No Free Lunch

Hello Skiers and Boarders,

The good news is that I woke up to a light snow falling from a grey sky.  Overnight we received less than an inch of snow at my home in Alpine Meadows.  It snowed a little harder toward the open bell and a couple of friends called to see if I would join them on the hill.  We headed out deciding not to ride Summit as it was in a dark cloud.  There seemed to be a couple of inches of dense snow covering the groomed areas which is where we spent a our time.  Flat light made it difficult to tell smooth from hard rough at times.  Drizzle that was clear and not white did not help the situation.  Goggles that required constant whipping drove a couple of my friends into the lodge after the required 5 runs.  I stayed out a little longer as the drizzle ceased making a couple of runs down Ridge Run which was much better today than yesterday.  Basically the snow today was better than yesterday.  A couple of wet inches rid the slope of death cookies and totally scrapped off slick surfaces.  It seems to be clearing so I guess today’s storm is over.

I titled this report “There is No Free Lunch”.  Here is the story behind the title.

At the beginning of the season we were riding Kangaroo, the only option at the time.  The lift broke down for a period of time.  We were stuck on it.  I mentioned our disappointment to one of the employees who immediately offered me a coupon for a Free Hot Chocolate or Coffee good for the entire season.  I was satisfied with this rededication.  Yesterday I decided I should use the coupon before I lost it so I sauntered up to the Coffee Bar in the main lodge and ordered a hot chocolate as I handed over the coupon.  After waiting a few minutes (there was no line) and watching the two employees attempting to enter my order into the cash register so they could fill my order, one of them raised his head and ask me if I had a quarter.  He was very apologetic and explained that the computer was demanding I pay the sales tax. It would not accept my coupon for a Free Hot Chocolate unless I paid twenty five cents.  Of course I handed over the quarter and then received a nice cup of hot chocolate.  There is not Free Lunch.

Enjoy your day,

Andy

The Unofficial Alpine Meadows Ski Report
Produced by Andy Wertheim
Tahoe Truckee Realtor
Email: andyinalpine@yahoo.com
Website: andyintahoe.com
Cell: 530-386-0734