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January 28, 2006,MTTA

1/28/06
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Posted by Scotsman on 1/30/06 2:37am
I would not normally write a trip report to the Mount Tahoma Trials Association trails outside Ashford but it turned into such a fiasco that  I had to vent.
I have been going to the MTTA trails nearly every Saturday as I am training my Siberian Husky to skijore.
Anyway, on Saturday I headed up to the Copper Creek trail. 3/4 of the way up I caught up to three cars stopped on the narrow road unable to make forward progress.
They where mostly Subarus and one Suv.
It was a classic scene, the sweating, swearing husband/boyfriend on his knees trying to install the chains and the girlfriend/wife holding the instruction manual for the chains. We groaned as there was no way to pass them. After about 30 minutes they finally managed to get the chains on and make it to the sno-park.
Question, why do people wait until they are stuck to put their chains on ?
On the way down, a pick-up had slid off the road. I tried to pull him out and couldn't . Then another guy, who was obviously way superior to me  ;)said he could do it with his " dualie" and manged to get himself stuck. I then had to dig and pull him out and then go and get a towtruck for the other.
1.5 hrs skiing, 4 hours digging, towing and getting other people unstuck.

Please, please, put your chains on before you need them
and in an area where you are not blocking others or if you can't drive on snow, stay away!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! >:(
Sorry I had to rant.
I'm glad people still get up on the MTTA. My dad was the first president and one of the founders (though we didn't cross country ski much and haven't been a part of the organization since the very early days). I spent several years building High Hut and the Yurt as a kid (which at one point was on Champion land by Golden Lakes. From there we had access to the silver forest and Colonade on Mount Rainier). We had a good time building those. In fact we set out on a ski traverse from hut to hut through rainier park (using many of their cabins, which were hard to find beneath snow) and out west side road. Quite a gutsy trip for my old man to take 8 to 11 year olds on in the winter/early spring. I have lots of classic stories from those days.    

CLEARLY YOU ARE MUCH SUPERIOR TO ALL THESE FOLKS.  Particularly people who drive Subarus.  I believe I speak for the masses when I say we all stand in awe of your perfection.

(Apparently Jason, your vibe is way too positive for this thread.)

Dberdinka, there is nothing wrong with Subaru's, and that wasn't the point of the rant. What is wrong is when you effectively block access to a public area because you have not taken the time to learn how to put chains on or had the consideration for others to do it in a place where it does not impede others plans and outings.

All the people who got stuck or blocked the road ( with one exception) where completely unworried that they had spoiled other people's plans and acted like it  was their god given right to block a one lane road while they figured out their problem. Judging by your response you would have probably felt the same way.
If you are going to drive to trailheads in deep snow you should be considerate of others and make sure you know how to use your vehicle and chains.
dberdinka, as we say in Scotland " right up your kilt"  ;D

As Justin alludes to, it's a never ending source of amazement and amusement to me how fragile the direction of a thread can be.  
It's like a perfect example of the chaos theory -- the potential directions are limitless.  What with the shortcomings of the written word and much of the time not actually knowing the person who is posting, we, probably as often as not, don't really get the message the poster is attempting to convey.

I was thinking about this phenomenon just the other day.  Thanks for the example, guys.  

So now you guys each got a clean shot at each other you ought to feel better about the whole thing.  Now take a deep breath, smile, shake hands like good backcountry ski brothers should, and think about all this snow that is falling that we'll probably get to enjoy clear into next August or longer  8)

Jason - thanks for the memory. You told me another classic story once when we happened to converge coming down from Heliotrope Ridge, about your dad taking you and your brother on your first attempt of Mt Rainier - do I remember right that it was when you were about 5 at the time? I was amused by your comment to the effect of "we didn't make good time because my brother and I weren't working well together on the rope." Your dad gave you some amazing experiences, apparently. I hope to hear more of your stories from time to time.

How's that for continuing the drift?

Ron - right on. Let's SKIIIIII!!!!!!!

(Apparently Jason, your vibe is way too positive for this thread.)


I like to be a positive influence  8)

While I personally don't have anything against subaru drivers, there was this apple weilding VW Van driver that I would like to have a few words with, but he passed me while I was stuck in my 4 wheel drive  ;D

My wife and I took the doggies to Snowbowl on 1/21 and I got 1 good lap below the point past the hut; long ski for 14 turns, tho.

We drove our SUBARU almost to the gate parking, but it got steep and I hate putting on chains so I backed 1/2 mile to a safe pullout.  As we booted up the road several
SUBARUs passed us, as well as trucks.  

We were the only ones with skins on that day; any other good turns to be had at MTTA?

Good Man TELEMACK, Exactly the point I was trying to make. You backed up to a pullout and did not impede others. I knew there was a reason I skied with you. ;D

Jason - thanks for the memory. You told me another classic story once when we happened to converge coming down from Heliotrope Ridge, about your dad taking you and your brother on your first attempt of Mt Rainier - do I remember right that it was when you were about 5 at the time? I was amused by your comment to the effect of "we didn't make good time because my brother and I weren't working well together on the rope." Your dad gave you some amazing experiences, apparently. I hope to hear more of your stories from time to time.

How's that for continuing the drift?

Ron - right on. Let's SKIIIIII!!!!!!!


Me? Tell a story  ;D

We were actually Six, and I'd love to tell you more whenever you'd like.

As Justin alludes to, it's a never ending source of amazement and amusement to me how fragile the direction of a thread can be.  
It's like a perfect example of the chaos theory -- the potential directions are limitless.  What with the shortcomings of the written word and much of the time not actually knowing the person who is posting, we, probably as often as not, don't really get the message the poster is attempting to convey.

I was thinking about this phenomenon just the other day.  Thanks for the example, guys.  

So now you guys each got a clean shot at each other you ought to feel better about the whole thing.  Now take a deep breath, smile, shake hands like good backcountry ski brothers should, and think about all this snow that is falling that we'll probably get to enjoy clear into next August or longer  8)


Never.  I'm celtic which means that dberdinka and I are forever linked in a blood fued that will continue beyond our deaths until both our families are destroyed in a never ending circle of revenge. >:(  Lots of nice new fluffy snow Ron eh. ;D



Me? Tell a story  ;D

We were actually Six, and I'd love to tell you more whenever you'd like.

What Jason meant to say was 'whether you'd like it or not'
;)

Question here, was it so deep that the Subarus  were boggin down, or was it a case of dumbass drivers? I have an Impreza, with tires of questionable traction, I deliver pizzas in Cle Elum-Roslyn area. i have encountered some very challenging driving conditions, but the Suby has only failed me once, and that was because the snow in this guys driveway was so deep and wet that my little car could not go. Suby's are the best snow car I have ever driven and can't seem to grasp the idea of having to put chains on unless it is really deep, steep and wet.

ps. I would have felt really bad if I ended up blocking the road, But I probably would have realized that I wasn't gonna make it and back out. My guess is the people you were upset with were probably gapers who have no clue.

Lets make this clear. I have nothing against Subarus, I don't know why I even bothered to mention that they where Subaru's. I love frigging Subaru's. I am going to sell my truck and buy a SUBARU as soon as I get of this web site. I am changing my son's name middle name to Subaru. I am sending an e-mail to every SUBARU dealer in the county to tell them how much I love SUBARUS.
It was the dumbass, inconsiderate drivers that where the problem, NOT the SUBARUS. ???

Ok, So lemme get this straight, Scotty -- You're saying that Subaru's are Ok, is that right?

So, how did the skijoring part go?

Lets make this clear. I have nothing against Subarus, I don't know why I even bothered to mention that they where Subaru's. I love frigging Subaru's. I am going to sell my truck and buy a SUBARU as soon as I get of this web site. I am changing my son's name middle name to Subaru. I am sending an e-mail to every SUBARU dealer in the county to tell them how much I love SUBARUS.
It was the dumbass, inconsiderate drivers that where the problem, NOT the SUBARUS. ???


Well....then I guess you are forgiven!   ;D

Arguing over silly shit!..... this is true online community now!  ;D


:) I can chain so quickly that my wife thinks were stopping for a pee break, and that bump bump sound is such a happy sound :D

So, how did the skijoring part go?


Going good. He's only 6 months old but already has this inbred desire to pull.Husky's are definitely a challenge though. Very intelligent and stubborn.I'm using a cheap harness I picked up and just some cord but I'm ready to buy one of the custom skijoring setups. It's tremendous fun. ;D

For Sale ; 90 Suburu wagon,Celtic Green ,plaid interior.Long in the tooth ,but still Braveheart.
Inexpensive but not cheap   Good in snow with chains and manual.

Thats great to hear!  They're fairly intractable at that age.

Its really easy to make your own lines and save money.  Mike Callahan has a nice how-to article here:

http://skijor.hypermart.net/line_article.html

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january-28-2006-mtta
Scotsman
2006-01-30 10:37:55