twister (need report) T-Line
December 29, 2005
anybody have a trail report on twister?? hows the bottom - is it uphill / flat??
The top is a fun blue with some nice turns and some killer views. The bottom is a lot like Salamander except you get a couple tunnels to go through which I think is kinda cool. Overall, I think its a great slope for beginners making the transition to intermediate slopes.
Twister seems like it could be a nice beginner slope - but I was on it yesterday and conditions were brutal. The stiff wind had blown off all the surface snow and the first third was sheer ice. Beginners would be pretty freaked out in those conditions.
To call a spade a shovel: Twister was designed first and foremost as an access to housing lots. That's why there's such a long run-out at the bottom of the trail--to squeeze more slopeside lots onto the mountain.
With that said, its a surprisingly good intermediate trail. The top two twists are a lot of fun and quite steep for a Mid-Atlantic intermediate. The run-out beyond the twists is a bit steeper than much of Salamander, which makes this section bearable. The only section where you need some momentum is after the bridge. However, the lead-in to the bridge is fairly steep so if you gain some speed going through the bridge, you'll be fine. The pitch picks up again at the merge with Wintersett. In all, on a scale of 1-10 as a Mid-Atlantic intermediate run, I'd give it about an 8.5. It's got length (1 mile), vert. (1000 feet), and pretty good pitch all things considered. More importantly, it will spread out intermediate skiers onto three top-to-bottom runs (Almost Heaven, Dew Drop, and Twister). Let's face it, few resorts (if any) in the region offers three, 1,000 vert. blue squares on the same hill.
Agree with John and Jonjon, Twister is a really nice addition to Tline. Definately a lot of fun up top, with the steepish turns making for a very interesting ride. The bottom near the tunnel is not uphill as it seemed after the slope was cut. As John said, you have plenty of momentum coming down through the turns to easily carry through the flat spot. Plenty of snow on the trail as well. Very impressed with the coverage.
Generally at Tline, the trails to skier's left from the top of the mountain have the harshest winds. Dew Drop can have brutal winds on a blustery day. It would not surprise me if Twister suffered from a similar microclimate. We skied it Wednesday 12/28 in close to 50 degrees with sun. It was very nice.