Platform 8 they say

Now I haven't been up to Big Mountain since early may, so I can't say much right now about the actual conditions up there. But I have some friends who have been skiing up there for several weeks now, braving sketch conditions to get those early season turns. They also have been doing some filming, and have a company called Platform 8 media.

Carl Kohnstamm and Hunter Schutt are the minds behind this up starting company, and so far have been throwing out footage and photos of their favorite winter sports. Armed with their cameras and a crew, so far they have been able to showcase plenty of talent and dedication from the locals.

As of Thanksgiving weekend, Carl said that the mountain is doing pretty good for the early season. Where snow lacks at the base area, the conditions are more than legit on the backside. The coverage is widespread on the back with a solid base going into this week. The mid-mountain area is doing just as fine, and while it has less snow, the coverage is good enough to get to the bottom without any snowmaking. There is some crust in the mid mountain area so be careful if you plan to do any hiking. If you want to get more of a visual idea on the conditions, they have been putting out some early season webisodes on the big so check them out below. Webisode three is due out thursday so keep keep an eye out for that this week. The forecast is looking promising, so keeping checking the weather and keep on praying for more snow.

Link Dump:

Webisode 1

Webisode 2

Trampolining
Last year's video: Techno Pow

 Pray for Snow!

The S-Jenk

Pray for Snow(making guns)!

Pray for Snow, Pray for Snow! It's our last week before opening day of ski season for all of us in the Flathead Valley. As I write, we have 4 days, 13 hours, 12 minutes, and 36 seconds according to my countdown timer. Don't judge me, or don't judge us I should say, because at this point many of us are in the same state. We all have our ways of coping with the stress of waiting. You might make a trip to town for a new pair of gloves, a set of goggles, or a new hat. Waxing and sharpening your boards common side effect. You may find yourself watching multiple ski movies in your basement with the windows shut. Some of those who have a much more serious case of this "sickness" might end up throwing your skis on your back and hiking for a few early season turns. If you do find yourself doing any of the previous activities, don't panic it's a good thing, just don't let it get to your head too much before Saturday.

Now some of you might still be doubting if there will be any thing worth skiing right now on the mountain. The pre-season has been a little dry for the base area of big mountain even though there is 32" inches on the summit and backside areas. This is the time of year that many resorts turn to technology to give that extra push. Snow making is the saving grace for those early season dry spells in the rockies. The process is pretty ingenious idea, and is not the least environmentally friendly thing on the slopes. In short, the process is taking a firefighting strength hose, attaching it to an equally powerful fan, and then running it when the ideal temperature reaches 24 degrees. Here is the thing though: it uses a LOT of water. It takes approx. 75,000 gallons of water to create a 6 inch covering on a 200x200 foot area. Water isn't a huge expense though, and the methods of pumping it aren't too costly. The problem that worries many people is the power consumption, in which the guns are usually run off of a diesel engine, a heavy pollutant. Another reason for all of us to pray for snow this coming week.

More info in this link

I 'm trying to figure out what to call the early season disease, so far I have "Stokility," "Preseasonism," and "No Snow Nostalgia." What do you guys think?

The S-Jenk

Thanksgiving spirit on the road..

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! Now this is, in my opinion, is probably the most creative holiday's ever invented. Not because the 4000 plus calorie meals, the classic NFL games hosted by Detriot and Dallas, or the Bond-a-thon movie marathons on thanksgiving day. For me and many of us, today marks a special point in our countdown to ski season in the flathead. While much of our family fills their minds with fantasies of pumpkin pie and stuffing, we dream in anticipation of being able to sit ourselves back in the comfort of stepping off chair 1, and exploring areas seemingly forgotten by the summer heat. Many of us hope that spending the weekend with family, will distract us from the unusually low snow levels at the base of Big Mountain right now. I know, I know, it's depressing. The bits of comfort I can offer right now are these:

1) Remember opening day last year? We couldn't even ski down the front until mid december, when we styarted getting hammered with snow.
2) Snowmaking! The slopeside crews have their arsenal of snowguns to ensure a solid base, even if the weather doesn't.
3) Give thanks for what we have already. Today is the day for that, just keep that in your mind when you are all round the table.

Now enough philosiphy for now. I ate breakfast the other day in Ovando. Damn they make good food.

For those who don't know, Ovando sits on your way between Helena and Kalispell. It's right between Miners Hill junction, and Stillwater Junction. Small red building. I wouldn't think twice about eating there if I had not heard from my brother. From the outside, you are suprised it has a lawn. On the opposite side of the parking lot, there are a number of trailers and Rv's, mainly from hunters on long trips. Walking in, you are greeted by the owners dog, who is friendly as can be. Your choice of tables comes with it's own personal trophy buck: Antelope, Mule, Whitetail, Elk, or moose. Off in the corner, You can find multiple gaming machines coupled with a billards table as old as the place itself. Looking towards the opposite side, a multitude of gambling machines are placed with the bar area. The smell emmiting from the kitchen is mixed with the odor of whatever occured last night. We all guessed a backroads country band. The food was delicious, the coffee more than enjoyable, and the bacon was cooked to perfection. I guess that what happens when you order the largest item on the menu. While eating, I noticed a man in flannel, sitting a one of the gambling machines, thouroughly obbessed with taking home some extra cash. Sitting next to the table is the dog, waiting for the scraps that eventually were his before sauntering off to sleep. Will our stomachs filled with a slurry of coffee, eggs and bacon, we pile into the car and continue our way towards helena, and our thanksgiving gathering. Truely this will not be my last time here, and that's not because of the food, because of how amazing one roadside stop can be.

Inside of Trixies

My last thought for you comes in a quote I picked up the other day:

"We are only said to be alive, when our hearts, are conciuos of our treasures."

Happy Thanksgiving, and Pray for Snow!

The S-Jenk

Just a taste, but will there be more?

My friend Conway and I are excited to introduce a short Promo from the Mount Clements Media studio. The aim of this is just to give a short taste of what is to come within the next few years.

The link to the video site can be found Here
                                            BUT
If you want to be lame and watch a low quality version, go onto the YouTube

Please keep in mind that it might take a little bit to load, maybe leave it for a little while, grab a drink, call your girlfriend, or read som of my other posts. When you click play, enjoy!

Pray for Snow!

The S-Jenk

Snow Totals, Smashed Toes, and smiles on Lookout Pass

As Thanks giving week approaches, many ski areas have been feeling the need for giving thanks
 early this year. The last storm system that passed through the northwest has graced many of it's ski areas with a tons of snow for the early season. Currently, snow totals for Northwest ski are pretty substantial:

Mt. Baker- 87-99
Whistler/Blackcomb- 48-94
Stevens Pass- 55-70
Crystal Mountain- 31-55
Mt. Hood- 55-60
Timberline- 60-60

That's pretty damn impressive, even for the northwest at this point in the year. The Pacific Northwest has always been known to get massive amounts of snow. Mt. Baker holds the world record for season totals. It's a massive 1140 inches of snow, 95 feet of pow, 2896 cm of fluff, 29 meters of champagne skiing. They also hold the record for most snowfall in a month, with was 306 inches. When you put in perspective, the Cascade Mountains have the potential to amass Big Mountain's season total in just a few months. Showoffs. However, the Rockies always get the better pow. With all of the warmth and moisture dumped into the coastal areas, the flakes fall drier here, giving us us the memories to make with the freshies we get. The dense snowfall is the reason Washington's glaciers don't melt much, but the rain also affects that statement. Oh and it's rains more too, did I forget to mention that?
Mount Baker Snowfall Totals
Plowing Snow at Baker

So here's the thing: While the coastal areas get more snow with less pow, and the rockies get less with better results, where are the areas in the middle to reap both benefits? Enter Idaho. It's seat on the geographic map makes both states a perfect medium for dry snowfall. Places in Idaho like Lookout Pass, Silver Mountain, and Schweitzer sit in western Idaho, and all project a good balance of snowfall and cold wether. After skiing many times there, the only thing I would caution for is what trend they are in right now. All too often the might get too much from one side or another. It could be wet snow, below zero temps, and even dry patterns. Wind is also a factor there. If you hit it right though, that ski trip of yours could be one for the record books.

Lookout Ski Area

Scweitzer Mountain

Silver Mountain

By the way, I went skiing yesterday. holy shit it was fun.

After hearing rumors about Lookout pass being open, my good friend conway and I decided to investigate this case with our skis and snowboard. After much debate and drawing straws, I was soon sitting shotgun while he drove the 2 1/2 hours to the state boarder where the skiing lay in waiting. As soon as we pulled into the parking lot, our eyes popped with the resemblance of an 8 year old on Christmas morning. The fully covered slopes of the ski area lay, donned in a masking of 8 inches of fresh snowfall accumulated earlier that week. $19 dollars later, we were enjoying powder turns down a place seemingly foreign to us. The idea of taking photos and video took a back seat as we careened down new runs into unknown glades with people from across the boarder, beaming smiles not seen in over 7 months. As the afternoon approached, I found my friend losing energy as a result of having been off the slopes too long. After dragging him up the chairlift a few more times, he finally concedes defeat for the day. Upon realizing that he is driving us back, I say a few words of respect, and pop out of my bindings. A quick last glance and the mountain dissolves on the highway. Filling our lost desires, we can now wait patiently for t december 5th. The opening day of Big Mountain. Hopefully the slough of our thanksgiving feasts will keep our minds off of the weather until then.

En route to Lookout pass, with growing anticipation.

During the day though I had smashed my left toe in a bad fall. After skiing the rest of the day and sitting 3 hours in the car, I sat at the kitchen table with my dad, taking care of the annoyance. Having 2 holes drilled through the top of your toenail is not fun, but we had to relive the pressure, otherwise the pain would get worse. Did feel a lot better after that, but I am told I will still lose the toenail. That will make it the 3rd time in 3 years this has happened. Yippee for the ski boots that cause this garbage to happen to me.

Pray for Snow!

The S-Jenk

What about this El Nino eh?

Crap. As many of the winter-savy people know, forecasters are predicting an El Nino this winter. Going off of the past, that is not a good sign. El Nino is generally the warming of waters in equatorial over the winter season, affecting the overall weather patterns for those months. La Nina is practically the opposite, which is a cooling trend across the equator. Now typically this indicates that there will be increased precipitation along the western coast of North and South America, BUT the trouble here is that the storms are warmer and tends to rain more than it is snow, and Vice versa with a La Nina. So you have warmer weather patterns approaching from the pacific with less cold air coming from that direction. That is to say that goes with ever storm cycle. Now may be a time to fret about our current situation, but there is a silver lining here. While the forecast predicts the oceanic currents, it doesn't account for the cold Canadian fronts to the north. Those Canadians, sure know how to cook up a nice dose of winter eh? The way we get much of our below-zero temperatures is from these blasts occurring randomly throughout the next few months. The trick for getting a good snow year relies on the timing of these cold arctic air blasts.
         
Info about the El Nino-Here
Info about the La Nina-Here


Many of us remember that long stretch of below-zero temps last december. That was all the result of multiple shots of the canadian air mass that decided to visit the states. Now while these fronts tend to accumulate in the Dakotas and Minnesota, we also get a share of that goodness. With a bit of luck, it might be timed to intercept a pacific storm, meaning on thing: Big Dump. When two fronts collide, it becomes and occulated front. This is where it dumps the most, and any resort caught in the middle is going to get pow days. One of the best example of this happening would be the 1996-97 season, where the valley snow totals topped at 144 inches! One of the highest totals ever for the valley. 


Did I ever mention how much I love our Canadians? I remember last time I was up in canada I had an Elk Stew that was out of this world!


Now with a La Nina, the upper half of North America overall receives more precipitation. Places like Whistler, Mt. Baker, and Big Sky get their good snowfall. With an El Nino however, the southern half generally gets the better seasons. So Mammoth, Colorado and the Tahoe area recieve more snowfall totals. But remember, these are only predictions. The weather is unpredictable, and so are our winters. The El Nino's of '97 and 01' turned out to have significant snow amounts than what was predicted, and several La Nina's have also resulted in bad winters. All I can say at this point, is to wait and see. We have been having unusually cold weather so fal this fall, along with unusual snowfall amounts. Great Divide ski area was open for a while due to the October Snow we had. Lookout pass was open last weekend, and plans to open more terrain this weekend. Last weekend Bridger Bowl and Big Sky received close to two feet of snow. Sunshine village up in Canada is opening with a 35 inch base at the bottom. And while our Big Mountain may look like it is missing out on all the fun, it has a solid 24 inches base on the summit and backside. 

Silver Lining?


It's supposed to snow all weekend, and the forecast is calling for a cooling trend in that time period. In the mean time, my friends and I are high-tailing it up to Lookout pass for some November riding. We still have time, so wait and see. Pray for Snow!


God Bless, 


The S-Jenk

Diving a little Deeper.

I should probably give a little more insight behind this blog, and it's purpose. I did originally create this place as an area where I can speak my mind. True, but I want this journal to have as many uses as possible.

The main point of this blog is with ski season. I love to ski. Skiing is what my whole year revolves around. It's starts with early season turns before the lifts open, and continues until late April when much of the snow has melted from to slopes. But it doesn't stop there. I consider myself to be extremely fortunate to live in a place where you can ski year round. The ability to drive into Glacier Park, in and hour and a half,  has kept me and my bros skiing well into august. It's what started the 12 months of Winter challenge, that many people attempt every year to do. But that story is for another time.

With my constant obsession with winter, along with my watchfulness of the weather,  I will unload all of the "important" information that YOU want and need to know. Also comments and questions are gladly appreciated. I know it's a crappy post, but bear with me here. I'm tired. Anyways, think snow, think winter, and chack back for more.


Pray for Snow!

The S-Jenk

Good Day

I could probably call my day today a good one. Strangely enough, I previously thought today was going to suck actually, but I was proved otherwise. I would have to explain most of my reasons though:

1) Jazz Band- I enjoy having the opportunity to spend my early mornings before class with the jazz band. Also, we are getting into christmas music right now, and who doesn't love playing a jazzy version of Jingle Bells?

2) I am 150 dollars richer- Ok, so we had the VOD essay contest recently, and I had turned in my paper with no attention of winning. But lo and behold, there I am in first place, with a cash award of $100. The other $50 dollars was a bat I won against a friend that the Colts would lose to the Texans last weekend. All I can say is that I was on edge for a while until the end.

3) Snow Tire Exchange- "But S-Jenk, why would make my day better?" Well beforehand, getting up the forest roads up past the snow line was seriously sketch, and usually added on a fair amount of distance of walking to get up there. With snow tires now that problem has been solved temporarily, until the snow line gets to the valley floor that is.

That's pretty much the highlights of my day. Oh, and I have a San Pelligrino drink with meright now, if that counts for anything.


Pray for Snow!

The S-Jenk

The Problem with Fawns

So I have yet to figure out the working of this website. Maybe it's just me, but I am having a little difficulty making a place for links, putting my anger aside, here is what's on my mind.

I hit a deer the other day. It's not something uncommon for Montana drivers. To the californian tourists, they may seem to be cute creatures of god, but around here they are given a devilish name during the hunting offseason. They wander through town, get into the gardens, and are even more hated for the amount of damage they cause to vehicles yearly. One study has shown that there are estimated 1.5 million deer collisions yearly, causing on average $1000 dollars in repairs. The statistic wasn't what amazed me though, but the fact that Montana didn't make the top ten list of collision incidents. After pondering this thought, I concluded that many people don't ever report their collisions for one main reason. The vehicles we drive. we live in a society where trucks outnumber all other cars 3:1 on our roads. A fair amount also have deer guards mounted on the front. A worthwhile investment on our part. The effect of a deer hitting a guard on vehicle barreling down the interstate, can loosely be related to a bug hitting a windshield. Pretty thought isn't it? Getting back to my deer incident, it turned out to only be a small fawn. Lucky I was heading around a curb when the little bastard darted out from the right. Since I was only travelling 15 mph, the result was the animal rebounding off my car like a ping pong ball on a paddle. While I  quickly checked to see if any damage was present, the fawn was squirming on its back, trying to get up. When it finally scampered off, I resumed my drive to work. The fawn was okay, and no damage was present. I continued on through the cold morning, ice forming on the windshield, heaters going full blast, and a good wake-up call to my morning.

Pray for Snow.

The S-Jenk

Welcome. An introduction to the future.

My regular name is Spencer Jenko, but much of the time I go by S-Jenk. I was born, and currently reside in the Flathead Valley, Montana. Conveniently, it just happens to be an hour's drive away from the boarder. Our valley also has the privilege to the largest freshwater lake west of the Mississippi (no, it's not Tahoe!). I can be considered somewhat of a typical Montana guy. I hunt, fish, climb, hike, golf, ski, speed down the back roads, swim in 40 degree water, ride snowmobiles, ATV's, dirt bikes, and shoot any type of squirrel that happens to wander into the range. But don't let this put a cramp in your impression of this podcast. Being the son of a family practitioner, our family has been on a multitude of trips over the years. Spain, France, Germany, Italy, Costa Rica, Poland, Austria, French Polynesian islands, Switzerland, and Mexico Roughly. The multitude of camping trips around the U.S. and Canada have also largely added to my ever expanding list of travels. By and large, the amount of culture exposure I have gained over the many years has created an enigma within me. The knowledge and exposure crammed into my mind has given this personality an almost sinister twist. My mind constantly manipulates ideas, thoughts, and newly gained insights with the implanted Rocky mountain lifestyle, spinning off a plethora of imaginative ideas. The mental activity has caused the creation of this blog. Over these next few years, this will serve as a place where I can speak my mind. Along with journals and notes about what I have done, and what I am thinking, you will often find yourself filled with information, tips, knowledge, and jokes that serves the Mountaineer lifestyle. Which is where the name comes in. Skiing is the largest part of my life, among many of the outdoor things that reign common here in the N.W. Montana. I might even throw in a video from time to time, along with many photos. All in all, I hope you follow and get to know me over the course of this blog. Stay tuned for more.

Pray for snow!

The S-Jenk