So, the 2020-21 season is underway. Each of us who's gone out has had to figure out what to do about traveling with friends, eating, staying warm, using masks, and managing other tasks in new ways this year. By no means have I figured everything out yet after only 1 day on the snow so far, so I have some questions ... but I've learned a few things, too.
Thought it might be helpful to start a thread where we can share insights and ask questions.
My questions:
A few things I've tried that worked:
It'd be useful to hear others' suggestions, experiences, and challenges.
Woody
bousquet19 wrote:
So, the 2020-21 season is underway. Each of us who's gone out has had to figure out what to do about traveling with friends, eating, staying warm, using masks, and managing other tasks in new ways this year. By no means have I figured everything out yet after only 1 day on the snow so far, so I have some questions ... but I've learned a few things, too.
Thought it might be helpful to start a thread where we can share insights and ask questions.
My questions:
- What can be done to minimize problems with fogging eyeglasses (which I always wear) or goggles (which I wear only during rain, snow, or snowmaking)? The masks my wonderful wife makes have a nose-wire that helps me seal the mask against my face somewhat. But I still find one or both lenses fogging up quickly while I'm riding the lift.
- Any ideas about keeping a sandwich or leftovers warm in the car until lunchtime? Soup, tea, and coffee go into the thermos but that doesn't work so well for leftover lasagna.
A few things I've tried that worked:
- Bring a chair for booting up, taking a break at the car, and changing out of ski gear at the end of a day. Makes these tasks much more comfortable! My friend brought a folding chair. I brought a collapsible chair. His was much easier to manage, even though it's not as compact. It's folding chair for me next time.
- Use a rubber welcome mat to stand on when booting up in the parking lot. Better than standing in all that cold mud, water, and snow, not to mention those glutinous masses of questionable origin that one can find when stepping out of the car.
- My friends and I (unrelated, but being cautious) decided to ride with no more than 2 of us in a car, masked, and with windows open a couple inches. Wearing ski pants, hat, jacket, and mitts or gloves turned out to be essential.
- Assume that your vehicle will be your base lodge. Use indoor facilities only for restrooms and pick-up purchases.
It'd be useful to hear others' suggestions, experiences, and challenges.
Woody
This isn't that far off my commuter skier ways -- I may have wandered to the car for a refreshment on a few ski days. The rubber welcome mat and chair seem so obvious now and I'm going to do that moving forward.
bousquet19 wrote:
It'd be useful to hear others' suggestions, experiences, and challenges.
My first ski day this season was in Wyoming, I took an early season trip out west for 2 weeks. I'd like to share the following:
Suggestions:
1) Bring extra masks (at least 2) and put them in your jacket/pants. My cloth mask got damp / moist from breathing, having a cold damp mask stick to my face made me very cold. I changed to my dry mask every couple hours.
2) To prevent face mask from sticking to your face, you can put a mouth guard insert inside the mask. However, this does not prevent the goggles from getting fog up. You can even sew hooks inside your mask to keep the insert stay in place. See picture below for visual.
3) Bring a piece of cloth to wipe the fog / moist in your goggles.
4) Cat track is useful. Especially if you need to talk back to your car for breaks.
5) For thermos, Zojirushi, a japanese brand is good. Their thermos for drink is light in weight, sleek in design and retains heat well. Their thermos for food container is good, it keeps food warm for 4-5 hours (even though not pipping hot).
6) If skiing out west and not driving, carry a small backpack for thermos and lunch items.
Experiences:
1) Skiing in the pandemic year is tough, hard to keep myself warm since staying indoor too long is not recommended. For me, I do need to go indoors to "thaw" after every few runs, it is difficult to do this year.
2) Eating outdoor in winter is not pleasant. Hot drinks get cold quickly, cold food adds cold...
3) My friend ate a full breakfast later in the morning and start skiing late in the day. That way, she avoids going to lodge for lunch.
4) There are folks from other online forum discussing going to the woods for bio break. Not sure how realistic it is, for Mid Atlantic skiing or for intermediate skier like me. I don't go off piste or to woods and I don't know how...... If nature calls, I must use the restroom.
Challenge:
1) Keep warm. As much as I like skiing, I don't like feeling cold all day and can't go places to warm up. With that said, I don't mind sitting the rest of the season out, unless I get vaccinated.
For the days I skied out west, there were times I debated w/ myself, which one is riskier to my health: 1) get sick from staying out in the cold too long or; 2) get sick from exposing to the virus by staying indoor too long?
fosphenytoin wrote:
(@scott, I tried to post a picture in PNG format but unable to, it said file format is not supported?)
Things to check: make sure the filename ends in ".png", and that the file isn't too large. (I forget the exact upper limit I set; usually you won't hit it if uploading a single image at a time.). If that doesn't help, if you e-mail me the photo you tried uploading I can take a closer look. (You can find my e-mail address here.)
bousquet19 wrote:
My questions:
- What can be done to minimize problems with fogging eyeglasses (which I always wear) or goggles (which I wear only during rain, snow, or snowmaking)? The masks my wonderful wife makes have a nose-wire that helps me seal the mask against my face somewhat. But I still find one or both lenses fogging up quickly while I'm riding the lift.
Two things that work well for me:
1. Use a mask with some sort of "dome" structure. KN95 masks work really well.
2. To prevent fogging, use the hospital trick of a bandage or medical tape over the nose. Yes, this means you can't lower your mask - honestly, it's best to just leave it on if you can and minimize touching it, so this shouldn't be a big issue. Otherwise, make sure it is as flush to your face as possible so the exhaust goes either down or to the sides.
- Any ideas about keeping a sandwich or leftovers warm in the car until lunchtime? Soup, tea, and coffee go into the thermos but that doesn't work so well for leftover lasagna.
Get a really good cooler (e.g. Yeti) and put heat packs inside. Coolers can hold in heat as well, but you want a good one to do the job.
- Assume that your vehicle will be your base lodge. Use indoor facilities only for restrooms and pick-up purchases.
That should be the mantra for the season: your car is your base lodge. The tips on a folding chair and a mat are perfect. Also, don't discount the idea of bringing a portable grill or camp stove for heating things.
Nothing has changed for me, I never use the restrooms in the lodge anyway, never pay for food on the mtn and always bring my own drinks. The best way to keep your glasses from fogging up while wearing a mask on the lift is to not wear the mask on the lift.
The best way to keep your glasses from fogging up while wearing a mask on the lift is to not wear the mask on the lift.
Dumb dangerous idea!
Please don't assume, when you do that you make an @$$ out of u and me
https://www.forbes.com/sites/jvchamary/2020/06/30/face-mask-outdoors-coronavirus/?sh=3c09595e1822
The Colonel wrote:
The best way to keep your glasses from fogging up while wearing a mask on the lift is to not wear the mask on the lift.
Dumb dangerous idea!
The Colonel wrote:
The best way to keep your glasses from fogging up while wearing a mask on the lift is to not wear the mask on the lift.
Dumb dangerous idea!
So you live in the same house with the people on your chair, or you’re on the lift alone, taking your mask down is harmless
FYI, the rules at the local Vail resorts are that you must wear your mask/facial covering over your mouth and nose while in the lift line, on the lift and in the unloading area (and also in the indoor areas, of course).
I’ve seen some people removing theirs once they are riding the lift, a fair amount while gathering in the drop-off areas and a few even in line. I’ve only been out twice so far and I haven’t seen any enforcement of these rules with people who are breaking them. That doesn’t mean it doesn’t happen, just that I’ve seen maskless people sauntering right by the lift attendants without any action taken. 90-95%, maybe more, are complying, though, at least in the lift line.
I’ve worn my mask the whole time just because I get used to it and it’s easier that way but it is technically OK not to wear it while on your run. That may help explain why some people seem to forget to put theirs back on when they re-enter a lift line.
The good news is that even in the lift lines people are pretty decent about keeping their distance, apart from groups that are together, and everyone is outside.
Bousquet19 great thread!
Although it is a tough pill to swallow, I think the best solution is spending less time on the slopes each ski session. I try to push my limit for how long I can go without stopping and then stop for good. It isn't too different than my pre-covid approach anyway. Once, I unclick my boots at lunch and eat greasy food I can only do a few more runs before I want to call it quits. I try to avoid the lodge at all costs unless I need to go to the bathroom. I always ski with a backpack on that has protein bars, water, etc. so that if I need something I can get it on the lift. It isn't ideal but I'd rather ski for 3-4-5 hours straight and call it a day vs. not ski at all. Any time on the mountain this year is a bonus!
As for masks and goggles I have just been lifting up my goggles on the chairlift. I hope someone on this thread is very creative! I have been wearing the Underarmour mask when I ski which has preformed pretty well. I also keep a disposable in my ski jacket.
fosphenytoin wrote:
bousquet19 wrote:
It'd be useful to hear others' suggestions, experiences, and challenges.
My first ski day this season was in Wyoming, I took an early season trip out west for 2 weeks. I'd like to share the following:
Suggestions:
1) Bring extra masks (at least 2) and put them in your jacket/pants. My cloth mask got damp / moist from breathing, having a cold damp mask stick to my face made me very cold. I changed to my dry mask every couple hours.
2) To prevent face mask from sticking to your face, you can put a mouth guard insert inside the mask. However, this does not prevent the goggles from getting fog up. You can even sew hooks inside your mask to keep the insert stay in place. See picture below for visual.
3) Bring a piece of cloth to wipe the fog / moist in your goggles.
4) Cat track is useful. Especially if you need to talk back to your car for breaks.
5) For thermos, Zojirushi, a japanese brand is good. Their thermos for drink is light in weight, sleek in design and retains heat well. Their thermos for food container is good, it keeps food warm for 4-5 hours (even though not pipping hot).
6) If skiing out west and not driving, carry a small backpack for thermos and lunch items.
Experiences:
1) Skiing in the pandemic year is tough, hard to keep myself warm since staying indoor too long is not recommended. For me, I do need to go indoors to "thaw" after every few runs, it is difficult to do this year.
2) Eating outdoor in winter is not pleasant. Hot drinks get cold quickly, cold food adds cold...
3) My friend ate a full breakfast later in the morning and start skiing late in the day. That way, she avoids going to lodge for lunch.
4) There are folks from other online forum discussing going to the woods for bio break. Not sure how realistic it is, for Mid Atlantic skiing or for intermediate skier like me. I don't go off piste or to woods and I don't know how...... If nature calls, I must use the restroom.
Challenge:
1) Keep warm. As much as I like skiing, I don't like feeling cold all day and can't go places to warm up. With that said, I don't mind sitting the rest of the season out, unless I get vaccinated.
For the days I skied out west, there were times I debated w/ myself, which one is riskier to my health: 1) get sick from staying out in the cold too long or; 2) get sick from exposing to the virus by staying indoor too long?
With the restrictions I found Killington works quite well, you have 3 covered lifts to choose from to help keep you out of the elements as chairlifts are the coldest part of skiing, they will let you ride by yourself if you ask, they are doing a great job of getting lots of different lifts and base areas open
have not seen or heard of anyone going to bathroom outside especially women that just wouldn’t work in ski clothes, theirs plenty of bathrooms available and easy to get to
skiing in the trees you are also protected from the wind etc , I taught a guy couple weeks ago to ski the trees 🌲 his skiing on trails then greatly improved, I highly recommend learning it opens up so much more of the mountains to ski
using neck gators work great for covering your face and you just spin it now and then to keep it dry.
Grip-Walk for ski boots is a great way to walk around safely and easier , it feels like your walking on a rubber mat and has a bend that makes walking more natural, they can be added to some ski boots just switching out the plates at toe and heel, they are on permanently so you don’t have anything to carry
Grip walk interesting.
I dislike alpine boots and use AT or tele gear for all skiing. The boots are much more comfortable and have good grip on icy surfaces. Grip walk apparently requires a compatible binding. In former days I used cat tracks on Langes.
Car lighter slow cooker
Car lighter warming lunch box
Hot Logic Food Warming Tote 12V, Lunch, Black https://www.amazon.com/dp/B074TZKCCV/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glc_fabc_M6L6FbGM4Y75K?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1
Denis wrote:
Grip walk interesting.
I dislike alpine boots and use AT or tele gear for all skiing. The boots are much more comfortable and have good grip on icy surfaces. Grip walk apparently requires a compatible binding. In former days I used cat tracks on Langes.
I use Yak Trax and they work great. Most top line new bindings are alpine and grip walk compatible.
fosphenytoin wrote:
5) For thermos, Zojirushi, a japanese brand is good. Their thermos for drink is light in weight, sleek in design and retains heat well. Their thermos for food container is good, it keeps food warm for 4-5 hours (even though not pipping hot).
I second and third Zojirushi as a great brand.
