ICE - how common?

Marksman wrote:I tried to melt ice with an oxyacetalyne torch once and was amazed at how much energy it took.

:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: Funny for so many reasons!

Has anyone skied on what I call ice marbles, it was in Cortina some years ago on a north facing piste.

At the top it was OK but as you went down it got worse & extremely difficult to ski on, it looked like the surface snow had rolled into small balls & frozen solid so the whole surface of the run was covered in what looked like white marbles.

Haven't seen it before or since & never wish to see it again, only tip I can give is to avoid it & its the worse piste condition I have experienced in my 16 trips.

Marbles - yep, think this happens when spring slush freezes at the end of the day.
Skied on this a few times, on low slopes that get the morning sun and then go into shade later in the day.
Sometimes called sugar snow - coz it's like big grains of sugar.
Is this what you mean brooksy?

OldAndy wrote:Marbles - yep, think this happens when spring slush freezes at the end of the day.
Skied on this a few times, on low slopes that get the morning sun and then go into shade later in the day.
Sometimes called sugar snow - coz it's like big grains of sugar.
Is this what you mean brooksy?

Sounds a bit like it these balls of ice were around 1inch diameter
I compare it the stone size of ballast you put in concrete, the skis were rolling on them instead of sliding, basically no control.
There were 4 of us doing this run, one fell quite badly but it was very difficult to get to him, we were the only ones on it so no body else to help.

bandit wrote:

Snowboarders side slipping can make any pitch slippery.

I really missed out on the the old days before snowboarding. There was no ice, no moguls (except the ones that the mountain elves made at night for the amusement of skiers), the grooming lasted all day without getting skidded off, the powder was always untracked, no one was out of control, the sun was always shining, everyone was the right type,......... :wink:

Ice is produced by temperature, and humidity, not traffic. skiers sliding one side, then the other, or snowboarders side slipping will scrape the grooming off a patch of ice just the same.

Trencher wrote: I really missed out on the the old days before snowboarding. There was no ice, no moguls (except the ones that the mountain elves made at night for the amusement of skiers), the grooming lasted all day without getting skidded off, the powder was always untracked, no one was out of control, the sun was always shining, everyone was the right type,......... :wink:

Yep, that's how I remember it too. :mrgreen:

Dave Mac wrote:

Trencher wrote: I really missed out on the the old days before snowboarding. There was no ice, no moguls (except the ones that the mountain elves made at night for the amusement of skiers), the grooming lasted all day without getting skidded off, the powder was always untracked, no one was out of control, the sun was always shining, everyone was the right type,......... :wink:

Yep, that's how I remember it too. :mrgreen:

Ditto :D

You old timers.....