Silver Streak was slightly narrower and generally less bumped up. It also caught a lot of blown in snow from Upper White Lightning. To me, Silver Streak skied more like an open tree shot while Upper Thunderstruck skied pretty much like a narrow (in spots) bump run.

In a good snow year, the streak was packed with snow. Its narrowness protected it from windblow. I have many fond memories working my way down the streak through piles of powder above my knees. When they were not running the Silver Queen overhead, the streak was a nice quiet private bump run. I'll miss it.

Another groomer would be great....I would suggest the addition of a Piston Bully Park Bully with the extra articulation on the blade for shaping features and the optional retractable forks for moving rails and boxes around.

On a powder day I would always hit the streak first. It always drifted nicely and was the most continuous vertical powder run on the mountain...because they couldn't fit a groomer in there. It will be nice to make some wide open turns on lightning now, I'm sure those plate board dudes will dig it, and there should be some killer races on lightning ...but I'm gonna miss that powder stash for sure.

Ugh. Another stupid move by Timberline. Those trees held new snow on Silver Streak and made it one of the best trails to ski after a snowfall. Now all the new snow will just get blown into the woods....Is this progress?

Could the changes be a precursor to a new (or at least new to TL) lift next year? THAT would be a good thing!

I guess one could hope that a newly widened WL will pull less capable skiers off of the other upper mountain trails...but that's hoping a lot.

Looks like we will be doing more OB poaching to get the freshies that they can't groom. Personally though, last year the streak was skiable only a few days cuz there just wasn't a heavy enough snow to set a natural base there. The one or two times I went there caused me to invest in more p-tex.

They killed the best run on the mountain!! Agreed, it wasn't open enough, but when it was there was nothing better. As for the Silver Queen lift riders, they just wish they could have handled the trail. The best thing about it was most of the time you were alone...

I wonder how well they will be able to groom the old streak now - even with the trees gone. Unless they cleared more trees to skiers' right, I would think it's a little tight between the lift towers and the bordering trees to fit a groomer in. Could there be a silver (excuse the pun) lining in that Tline may have no choice but to leave the far right of the new White Lightning to bump up? With the improved snowmaking they might finally have an all-weather bump run (as long as they don't groom right up to the lift towers).

glass is half full glass is half full glass is half full glass is half full...

U may be right they can't groom it all, did they at least leave those trees up at the top? Will they have to print new trail maps? Maybe they change the name of the lift?

glassishalffull, glass is half full

i shall not think bad thoughts i shall not think bad thoughts i shall not think bad thoughts i shall not think bad thoughts i shall not think bad thoughts i shall not think bad thoughts i shall not think bad thoughts i shall not think bad thoughts i shall not think bad thoughts i shall not think bad thoughts i shall not think bad thoughts i shall not think bad thoughts i shall not think bad thoughts i shall not think bad thoughts i shall not think bad thoughts i shall not think bad thoughts i shall not think bad thoughts i shall not think bad thoughts i shall not think bad thoughts i shall not think bad thoughts All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy All work and no play makes Jack a dull boyi shall not think bad thoughts i shall not think bad thoughts i shall not think bad thoughts i shall not think bad thoughts

Redrum. Redrum. Redrum. Redrum. Redrum. Redrum. Redrum. Redrum. Redrum. Redrum. Redrum. Redrum. Redrum. Redrum. Redrum. Redrum. Redrum. Redrum. Redrum.

I love lamp.

For comparison purposes, and your sentimentality, this is a capture from last year that illustrates the trees. This is from the day after the day I was there, which was a rainey day and streak was patchy and crusty. I still managed to try it out and came to view the world from my backside.

The Dolly Sods cam looks like they are burning the remains now. Click

yeah - what are they burning there about 1/3 of the way up?

fire is out now......

I occurred to me that a long-term reason (2-5 year plan) for removing these trees might be a new lift. Any thoughts on this theory? I realize that Silver Queen is a newer lift than Thunderdraft but it is still old by industry standards (it was purchased second hand). Also, there's no mid-station to worry about and perhaps the right of way could be extended all the way to Salamander. Thoughts? Tucker or Kim, have you heard anything through your sources? The trees were crappy, secondary growth trees, so no one will really miss the trees.

I haven't heard any discussion to replace the queen. Those in the know up there have hinted that if a quad were to make our day, it would be as a replacement for the triple which would then be relocated to elsewhere on the mountain. Then again, who knows what will finally happen. The only reason for cutting the trees, that I know of, is to make lightening wider and a better race hill for many of the events that t-lint hosts during the season. They couldn't cut on the other side due to water and electric infrastructure.

I think it was canaanman a while back who suggested that they convert the silver queen back to an *experts* only lift. I think i remember it being marked as such, maybe ten years ago? There's another improvement they could make that would cost nothing. I see it as an improvement, anyone else agree?

The definition of "expert" would need to be a bit more, shall we say, rigorous than that which is used at Highlands lift at Wintergreen. Expert there seems to mean being able to offload the lift without falling.

LOL, i know what u mean. I think if there was no access to Salamander, it would shrink the lift line significantly. This could be accomplished by not grooming flag spruce, maybe blow some big whales on it, and put a sign at the load on saying that no green terrain is served by this lift.

Jimmy, sorry to tip over your half full glass...hopefully it wasn't half full of Beer or Jack..but they can easily swing the tiller of the groomer in between those towers...but hopefully they will let it bump up nice and gnarly-like beneath the lift...actually I hope they let the entire trail bump up but that ain't gonna happen. I went up and checked it out this morning and it's ubelievable how much wider that trail is..it's gonna take twice as much snow (atleast) to blow lightning now...should be interesting. When the wind is blowing it's also going to be deadly windy on the doobiequeen(as I heard it refered to in the lift line once/still trying to figure out what that means)...in years past you could be sheltered by the trees when you rode that lift...you could get out of the wind...because it's cold in the wind on a lift chair of course.

TDG, If Tucker didn't know what doobiequeen meant...he wont know what ganjalla means...Tucker, the Queen with the shields were perfect for smoking pot!...or whatever else you could find to smoke...I cannot Imagine a Crackhead skiing though...Maybe I can, the Crackhead would be the skier always fumbling through his pockets and on his knees sifting through the powder looking for his imaginary lost piece of crack...& swearing up & down that the Queen was wired as he tries to bum cig ashes for his crack pipe!

The Queen with shields was also know as the double bouble. Pot..wow.. whoa stop the train...now everything makes sense...????...wait a minute..you mean Doobie wasn't the DoobieBrothers proper family name....excuse me I have to do some thinking now....

I am as SLOW as the Queen..I blame my stupidity on the DoobieQueen..its evil...so, Tucker..how much do you really know about the lift??

Timberline purchased the queen from a resort out west.. I think Crested Butte (but I could be wrong,but I'm pretty sure). ..from what I've heard Crested Butte even bought it used. I've ridden the lift with several folks who say they rode the same lift when it was at the Butte. A few years ago Glenn Plake (sp) was skiing at timberline(he used to come about once a season) and the word was that he rode that lift a bunch looking for a chair that he had signed or marked somehow when it was out west. I don't know if he ever found it but he did sign a double bubble chair or two when he was at timberline. Once in a while when I was riding the double bubble I would run across markings that must have been made out west....there was all kinds of cool ski graffiti on those things.

I really thought those bubble chairs were killer. They were one of a kind and allowed folks to ski/ride in some serious nasty weather..the type that is common in the valley.I remember being able to ride in some deadly temperatures(negative 10-15 with the windchill) when the snow was excellent. Nowadays when it's brutle cold out with the lifts running at the speed they do without the bubble I can't crank out more than a run or two at a time no matter how good the snow is. I've pretty much come to hang it up on those cold days ...I've sustained to many cases of frostbite to ride those lifts when it's windy and real cold.

If anyone out there wants to know where Mount porte crayon is just look to the far right of the web shot that john84 posted...Job Knob with tory Mtn (Wisp owned) is just beyond that...The Future of Big Mtn skiing in West Va...unless half of these "Dcskiers" have thier way!

Glenn plake at TL?? My post was worth the info you just gave.When I first started to go out with my fiancee for life I told her that i had a helicoptor stashed up in the Mtns of west va...then I took her up on the Queen lift & she loved it! yes I am quite the lover.....Wach yo mouth!

Seriously Dude...Glen Plake Skied Timberline...from what I hear he dug it...he hasn't been back in years though...maybe cause they pulled the bubbles...ALMOST HEAVEN...OH YES BRING IT ON!!!

What's the latest on Wisp buying Tory - any new news or talk of development?

Tucker's is correct. Plake has been in the valley several times. There's a poster he signed hanging in the men's bathroom at Whitegrass. Its a picture of him sitting on the pot reading the paper with his ski boots on.

Sirianni's has the Extreme Garlic chips on their menu. Think there is a blurb on the menu about them making them at his request.

He mentions Timberline, Canaan and Blue Knob at around 3:30 in the smaller video interview On Telemark Tips

When I met him at the recent chnatilly ski board expo, GP said he actually did ski arround here at TL, BK and maybe one other place a few years ago in a huge blizzard. I take this to be february 2003...

--Tim

Actually, Glen Plake was in t-line during a demo day about 8 years ago. I remember driving up there on a cold, snowy night in order to do the day with my son who was on the t-line race team. I believe it was Phil Mayer as well as GP. The kids from the race team hooked up with the two of them in the AM and poached the drop until the fresh pow-pow was truned into crud. I had the opportunity to ride the chair with GP that day. I was in awe at the way he could turn those old K2's through the powder bumps. We stopped on a run down white out and he helped some kids build a kicker where he proceeded to hike back up and do a heli off it for the kids (and me!). He mentioned that when he called his wife back at Mammoth he had reported that he was skiing fresh powder in WV and that the folks over there couldn't believe it. I think he had said that his next two stops were going to be Wisp and the 7 Springs and that he had been sooooo stoked at finally getting some good skiing. Something about the western drought... I saw him later that night comming in from night skiing in 15 degree weather. He had been out doing runs by himself. What an incredible guy!
By the way, as of yesterday, the trees are still on the hill above the headwall between lightening and the streak. Maybe those will remain there.

One more thing.... It was a Ski Chalet demo day, and it was during the first week of January when GP was there. He was quoted in Powder Magazine (remember that?) when asked of amazing things he had seen as saying that he couldn't believe that the Silver Queen Lift was still in service at Timberline WV since it was old when it left the Butte.

Didn't both the Mayer Brothers(twins???) come to timberline a couple seasons ago and ski with the Jr. racers. I'm pretty sure they did and remember a funny story about the racers coming down and the Mayer brothers giving them advice...the advice that made me laugh was they told some of the kids to get bigger or grow or something like that...anyway I thaught it was real cool for those guys being olympic athletes to come out and ski with those kids on a little hill like timberline...I guess it just shows there love for the sport and passing it on...pretty cool.

You know kwill, I feel like the last few months here at Dcski have been more like school than anything else with all the economics/realestate/oil ect..Your post was so refreshing & put me back into that winter dreamworld I have yearned for.GP sounds like a real kool dude & a true ski lover to heart.What made it really special was the fact that it was a Dcski local story.. Thanks for the post!

Hey,fishnski, you're welcome! Over the years of being at t-line and the valley, my family has shared very special moments and met some really cool folks. Tucker, as a matter of fact both Phil and Steve were in the valley as a part of the Wendy's Family Challenge sponsored by local hamburger man James Huber. I was the race referee that day and was working the start of both the GS on Saturday which we ran on thunderstruck and the slalom on Sunday on lightening. We hadn't bothered to find for-runners for the race which is required by the USSA for an event of this nature since the Mahre brothers had agreed to do the honors. I was so stoked at the opportunity to start these guys. Anyway, let me continue the story. We got to the start, course was set, everyone was in anticipation. The race TD came up, introduced himself to the brothers, and just in passing, asked for them to stop by the race headquarters sometime during the day and give the race director their USSA competitor number which is required of all for-runners. Phil and Steve gave each other a funny look then looked at me and confessed that they hadn't had a USSA card since they last competed years earlier. We had to then find someone who could legally for-run the race and there wasn't anyone who had the credentials! So, my lovely spouse, who is not too bad in the gates and who was also working the race, jumped into the course to be the official for-runner that day. Phil and Steve did go first, only not as official for-runners, but according to my wife, set an awesome line for her to follow. They even autographed her helment. Yes Tucker, they did give the kids advice and were a real inspiration for the youngsters.

Has anybody checked to see if the trees were cleared in and around the race shack at the top of white-out?

Oh wow I can't believe it. They ruined 2 trails with this idiotic move. I guess the thinking is to make TL safe for intermediates?

Does the owner even ski?

Depends who you call the owner, Doc, Rosemarie, or Fred.... then again, I wouldn't always call what Fred does skiing either. that being the case, the answer to your question is not enough to make a difference !

So all I want to know is what weekend they're having the Bump Clinic . Supposed to make it safer/better for the nine days of racing they have every year. Wonder if they'll move the NASTAR course over there?

Cub Scouts and Church Groups, I have nothing against either mind you, but that's their focus.

BRING ON "ALMOST HEAVEN"!

SAVE THE WHALES!!!

SKI KANSAS!

Hey the local ski hill out here just took their biggest ski trail and converted it into a snow tubing park. So things could be worse back east, believe me.

Hey all,

A couple quotes from the tline website are worth a couple laughs (I'm laughing, cuz otherwise i'd be crying)

"Upper White Lightning has been widened along most of its length to be confluent with Silver Streak. This concept has met with enthusiasm by our skiers many of whom consider White Lightening one of their favorite ski slopes"

ummm...anyone meeting this with enthusiasm? anyone? helloooo...

here's another:

"The widened trail will enhance its reputation as the region's favorite racing trail. White Lightning will be twice the width of most of our trails."

Great move, guys. Why not make it 4 times as wide and then its reputation will be super-enhanced!!!