Better skier, easterner or westerner? - Page 3

Highway Star?

On the chance that you are serious, John Egan and his brother Dan are two of the original extreme skiers / "ski movie" stars. They must have been in every Warren Miller movie in the early 90s. John still lives at Sugarbush, Vermont (where you can call the ski school and request him as an instructor); Dan still lives in New Hampshire somewhere.

John Egan lives in the East??? I'm so convinced. Easterners must be the bestest skiers in the world.


Actually, I'm twice as old as the Maggot, and if I've ever heard of him, I certainly forgot him long ago.

I don't know where you came up with this conclusion. Maggot mentioned it was hard to believe that there are "good" skiers in the East who haven't packed their bags and moved West. I mentioned the Egan brothers an example of yes, some "good" skiers remain here. How you transformed this into "the best skiers are from the East" baffles me.

I don't subscribe to the best skiers are from the east, far-east, west, mid-west, south-west, north-west, or anywhere else. Skiing is skiing. You can learn to do it well anywhere. I have no bone to pick in this fight. You (Harry Morgan) seem to have some sort of deep-rooted hatred of East-coast skiing though.

Maybe it was because it was posted in a thread about whether the bestest skiers come from the east or the west?

I have a strong dislike for the whole "east coast skiers are better" or "we're more dedicated because we ski in the rain" rah-rah that comes around year after year. As far as skiing in the east, I will admit that I am quite happy to have escaped the crowds, poor snow conditions, mediocre terrain, lousy weather and high prices of the east.

BTW , we're over 500" already; yesterday was bluebird and I was skiing untracked lines of knee deep, 15 degree powder. Our base is 195", and the forecast looks good all week.

It isn't hatred - it's knowing that for me, the east coast ain't where it's at.

Yes John lives in the East, but how much does he ski there with his X-team, etc. committments?

Ever heard of Bode Miller?

No. I mean scary fast!

Home-field pride. Keep it up guys.

Japan has some of the best mountains in the world, with meters upon meters of snow, very much like the west. I don't see many Japanese on podiums though, FIS or IFSA. I don't think that snow conditions and big mountains alone make for good skiers. Training, dedication to the sport, etc make good skiers.

You guys should be arguing about who is more dedicated- east or west.

If you go east far enough don't you end up back in the west?

I keep looking in on this thread to watch the carnage, and I think it funny that some are advocating generalizations. Skiers are individuals, and some of them ski well. The ones that become good at it because they ski a lot, and probably have a healthy dose of physical talent to go with the volition to acheive the freedom that riding gravity promises.

There are skills that go with specific conditions, and those who ski in those conditions often and with zeal, develope said skills. I've met one ice coast bear who was overwhelmed when I lead him into some deep crudy powder which is for me like water is for a duck. However if I got on a hill of ice coast boilerplate, I expect I might struggle a bit to acclimatize my body of skills to the differing environment.

I would like to say that I have alot of respect for a good western skier, as they are living my dream! But with that said, I'd like to say a few things, with no ish-talking involved. I don't think there's any real answer, but I always think of it as this...

1). You don't see ice in Colorado. No, that little patch by the liftlines doesn't count. Until you've successfully navigated a polished-granite mogul trail, you can't really consider yourself a good skier in the East. It's really hard and sometimes tragic to be a good skier in the East. You have to stay focused and gain skill in spite of your conditions, whereas in the West the conditions magnify and cushion your abilities. It also gives you plenty of chances to kill yourself as well, but I guess that comes with the territory.

2). Snow snobbery. This makes me sick. I know a few guys who used to live out here in the east, but have been in Colorado for about 3 years. These guys are now such snow snobs! We went out on a 6" fresh snow day and though conditions were great, these guys were just biitching and disappointed that it wasn't a foot. Nobody likes a spoiled baby. Ski the snow you get and love it- at least it's not ice!

3). West HAS the best. Best mountains, best conditions, etc. etc. Easterners can't practice hucking off 10 foot cliffs into oceans of powder simply because we don't have the base and the pow to do it. (usually) Going big's home is the West, but the first time I went out there the biggest challenge is the change in technique to stay afloat in all that pow. The conditions made it easier and more realistic to hit really big stuff that you could never hit here. Cliffs and super-steep back home are twice as scary simply because you could hit some sheet ice under that bind-blown and go for a nice yard sale. In the west I felt confident that at least my footing was going to stay semi-consistent and thus was much more apt to do some crazy ish.

That being said, I think this is an argument that nobody could ever win, and anybody that thinks they're the best simply because of where they're from is an idiot. But if some snow-snob wants to say that they're the best because they ski Vail or Telluride every day should come to Killington, Jay Peak or Sunday River with me and my friends and see how you do when the pow is just a memory before you talk too much trash.

And to Mr. Morgan who so vehemently defends his position as self-evident because of his surrounding conditions, you sir are a snow snob. I love it when people have that "Of course I'm right- look where I'm standing!" attitude... It makes me feel great knowing that I'm a good skier with an open mind who can recognize and respect an opposing point of view as opposed to a great skier who's so high up on their own horse they can't even give props to anyone else for any reason. Go back to Alaska! You're obviously too great to even be in this discussion! Oh, and SUPRISE! some of us can't affors to move out west just yet... Mr. Volant above me has the idea here... There's things any skier would have to adapt to in changing conditions, and any good skier would have no problem doing so. We're all in it for the same resons, so let's hold hands and sing coombayah already! And guys, fighting on the internet is like the special olympics- even if you "win" you're still a retard.

This is why I favor banning all Utah skiers from this forum. Unless they're willing to put me up when I come visit.

And you sir, fail at reading comprehension. I have never once said the best skiers come from the west, Alaska, Mongolia or Timbuctoo. I have picked on the easterners because it has invariably been the easterners who start this thread - time after time.

They usually follow up with some generalizations about how there is never ice in the west.

...and how most WC racers come from New England...

According to Steamboat, they contribute the most Olympic skiers of any single mountain, and that's not exactly a gnar hill like all those rinks in the East (and Ski Sundown as I was recently chided about .

especially the Austrians. I think most of them are from New Hampshire.

Isn't Steamboat secretly in Connecticut or something?

You guys should check out soul_skier over on TGR.....he's from the west but skis at Stowe.

Bode Miller is argueably the best american skier at the moment, he grew up at Cannon and Bretton Woods.

To say something suitably neutral (but nonetheless true), a lot of the best American skiers I've known come from Minnesota.

I'll second that and add '80s Buck Hill racing and free teams to be specific: It's not the shoes, it's the ROPE TOWS!:

Having skied the (south)east and the west, here are the generalizations that I can make.

1). The west has a higher percentage of better skiers (per capita)
2). Many of these western skiers didn't grow up locally (go west young man!).
3). Skiing the east teaches you superb pressure management skills.
4). Skiing the west teaches you how to turn your feet.
5). Skiing the east teaches you how to engage your edges.
6). Skiing the west teaches you how to release your edges.

and finally,

7). Those that say "the west never gets ice" have never skied the west in the spring time melt/freeze cycle.

No, Sundown is, and it's super gnar. There's video around if you can handle it :. Olympic caliber material if I ever saw it. :

It's hard to believe Steamboat's claim as it's a pretty mellow hill, but after seeing some of the conjectgure here, anything appears possible The last time I looked Steamboat wasn't in the east (or I took a damn long flight to nowhere apparently).

Right, because the ones from the west don't take lessons!

Oh, New Hampshire, sure. But everyone knows no good skier has ever come out of Vermont...

Each day I am thankful to live and ski in the East. It's gorgeous.

I skied out West and I am thankful for that. It was gorgeous.

Not if you include the Gapers/Tourons/Texans/Okies/etc.. that are "western" skiers:

You guys are all looney. Midwesterners are the best skiers. Come ski 400 feet of vert with me anytime

Better yet, buy an Alta sticker and put it on your helmet. Then everyone will know how gnar you are, because Alta is the steepest gnar-iest place on earth. Then you can show it to all the other guys in Jersey, and boast about how you've got almost three weeks of real skiing in this year.

I'd really love to see you ski sometime. I'd love to see you take on a "head handed to you" line you couldn't find in the east. It would be interesting.