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Sunday, December 30, 2012

Christmas week 2012

Here are some amazing shots of Alta from this week. Enjoy!
 
Photographer Will Wissman:
 


Photographer Lee Cohen:

 
And a nice video:
 

Tuesday, December 25, 2012

A very nice Christmas present!

Santa really took care of Alta skiers this year! We experienced an unbelievable blizzard on Christmas Eve, and with the sparse crowds it was "free refills" all afternoon - with each lap down Eagle's Nest, Lone Pine, and Westward Ho the snow would fill in, giving skeirs fresh tracks each run. At the peak of the storm it was coming down at 4" an hour!

The icing on the cake was this morning as Christmas day dawned bluebird clear. It was an amazing day with plenty of untracked powder for all. Baldy Shoulder and the Backside both opened for the first time in several days and both were bottomless.





What's up next? Another storm is scheduled to come in the 26-27th - looks like it will be a very happy New Year in Alta!

Tuesday, December 18, 2012

High Rustler face shots

Conditions keep getting better! It's been snowing for the last five days and as of today we're at 40" storm total, though this video was filmed on Sunday after "only" 24". The High Traverse is back in business - no more walking across rocks for us - and the Backside has been phenomenal. Ballroom and the Shoulder opened today after being closed the last few days and were lovely. We even had a mid-storm break yesterday and got to ski some primo windbuff on West Rustler. If you've never skied "West Buffler," as we like to call it, you're in for a treat if it happens while you're visiting. When the wind hammers the exposed runs below the High Traverse, they get "groomed" perfectly smooth and creamy. It's really a delight to ski. Come on out and help us carve it up!
 
Andrew Pollard filmed this run down High Rustler on Sunday. Face shots are not in short supply!
 

Friday, December 14, 2012

The Rustler has lost a friend: a tribute to Bob Auger

Bob Auger first organized the MBA Rustler ski trip 42 years ago in 1970 and our early Decembers have never been the same. From the early days when California wine arrived by the case to more recently when Utah’s selection had to suffice; from years of above average – WAY above average – snowfall to the very few lean years; from the top of High Rustler to the Rustler Bar; MBA as a group and Bob individually have been a part of the Rustler family for four decades.
At the Rustler, seeing Bob and all of MBA every year really made our winters – it was the big kickoff that got us all excited about the ski season. MBA was kind enough to be our annual “guinea pigs” – we used MBA to break in our new employees each year. MBA brought an enthusiasm for skiing and life that was an inspiration to us all, and Bob exemplified this.
Here are some thoughts from MBAers:
 “MBA is about skiing your ass off for 4 days with friends. MBA is about hilarious camaraderie. MBA is about High Rustler at 4. MBA is about adventurous people. MBA is about living life to the fullest. MBA is about the glass being half full (but not for long). And most important MBA has always been about a laugh, a handshake, and arm on the shoulder from Bob Auger at the bar. Like I told Tim, I'm sure that I have lived my life differently because of MBA. The spirit of Bob Auger and MBA is one of the same, and a small part of each of us. For that we can all be eternally grateful.” – Jay Schofield
 
 “He was a man who was blessed and measured by the amazing people he knew, influenced, worked, and recreated with. You have all been a huge part of his life, and we thank you for your friendships” – Tim Auger
 
 When you think of Bob and other MBAers, “please try and remember the good times we had with them. Maybe it was an incredible tree run through Eagle’s Nest, or one of those Greeley Bowl runs that seems to go on forever. Perhaps you stood at the top of High Rustler at the end of the day and took in the incredible views of Little Cottonwood Canyon, or you laughed in hysterics while one of them delivered an epic le3cture in the upstairs conference room. Whatever the memory, cherish it and know that this time is special.” – WCS in Memoriam
 
Here at the Rustler he is greatly missed. The lodge will never be the same.
Tom, Tauni, Kate, Meg and all the Rustler employees
 
WCS!
 
 




















Thursday, December 13, 2012

Alta powder, Pollard style

We had some great snow this past weekend - two feet of powder and boy was it fun! Plenty of face shots in High Rustler, Eagle's Nest, Lone Pine... it's hard to believe it's still early December. And with virtually no one on the slopes, there was plenty to go around. Check out Andrew Pollard's Alta conditions update: