Another View Of Pali

Walking out of The Beavers yesterday, I had a very nice view of Pali as I approached the base area. It was a view that is a bit different from what most of us are used to.

Mother Nature Tried

Today was our Cirque Series Trail Run and BBQ. Mother Nature tried to be a little difficult. I have to admit I was a little discouraged with the morning's early, steady rain. Almost immediately after 200 runners headed up the hill, it stopped raining. The athletes enjoyed a cool, cloudy mountain run, but it wasn't raining. They ran to the Top of Pali, to The Summit, down and back up Zuma Cornice, to the top of Little Lenawee and back to Mountain Goat Plaza.  With 40 Oz. To Freedom playing on the stage, lots of BBQ, The 6th Alley cranking and plenty of slightly oxygen deprived runners about, we had a really fun day.

And Old Mother Nature spared us on the rain.

Zuma, Goats, Marmots, Fox

Beautiful morning on The Summit today.  Perfect light looking into Montezuma Bowl. Lots of goats on Little Lenawee. There are several "kids" running around. Very cute.  Also plenty of marmot and pika and even a fox near the top. Wonderful morning.

Towards Loveland Pass

Patrol Headquarters Remodel

With The Beavers and Steep Gullies terrain coming online next winter, our Ski Patrol staff size is increasing. Those patrollers need someplace to use as a base. As a result, we are doing a small remodel/expansion at Patrol Headquarters. We need a little more room for lockers, ski storage, increased amount of sign stuff and maybe a couple of extra chairs and a bigger refrigerator.

This project is underway. The footers are poured. The foundation walls are next and we should be framing soon.

Lenawee Bullwheel Bearings

During the winter our Lift Maintenance team keeps quite busy doing two daily lift checks, weekly lift checks and monthly lift checks. They are continually monitoring the machines as they operate, making adjustments and repairing or replacing parts as needed.

In the summer, the crew gets really, really busy. There are big annual checks to do and at times, there are very big maintenance projects to complete. Right now the group is in the midst of replacing the bullwheel bearings at the top terminal of Lenawee Lift. It is a significant process. They fully de-tension the top terminal of the lift. Once completed, they remove the bullwheel. While it is stacked on cribbing, they replace the bearings. All this is followed by putting the bullwheel back on the lift and re-tensioning the lift. No small task.

Sunday Disc Golf

Enjoyed a mellow day off up at The Basin. Kay and I and a few friends played 9 holes on the Disc Golf Course. The wild flowers were in peak form. Playing with the discs and baskets is definitely fun, but also just wandering in the woods with your friends is a really great way to spend a few hours. We topped it off with lunch and a cold beverage on the 6th Alley deck.

Fun Saturdays

Everyone was having fun at The Basin today.