Still time for a couple of runs

Still time for a couple of runs

BY SAM BAUMAN

Snow's going fast with only a couple of resorts still running. Squaw Valley offers a free Spring Fever Party with live music at Zenbu Saturday plus prizes and games. At Sugar Bowl closing date is Sunday. Alpine Meadows Spring Concert Series celebrates live musical talent and style, along with skiing and riding. Saturday Absynth, a San Francisco band known for their hypnotic beats, plays. Also on tap is the Mad Cow Downhill Saturday May 3, a no-holds bar race to the finish with an Alpine midweek season pass as the grand prize. Closing date is May 4.

Heavenly is down to one base, the Gondola at Stateline. You can shuttle from Cal base via bus or as some locals do park at Harrah's a walk. The garage at the Gondola is at least $10 or $20 on weekends. Dumb. Anyhow, five lifts running at Heavenly, including Comet and Dipper in Nevada. Plus the new quad Olympic chair. Don't forget to wax the boards and keep an eye out for rocks and logs. See you at Squaw.

MAMMOTH MOUNTAIN LIVES

An animated crowd welcomed springtime to Mammoth Mountain last weekend when about 75 people attempted to ski and snowboard across a 100-foot pool of icy water in the return of Mammoth's Pond Skim.

Once the Pond Skim champions were crowned, Spring Fest kicked off at Mammoth Mountain. Spring Fest is a celebration of Mammoth's legendary spring skiing under the California sun that runs through May 18.

Lift tickets drop to Spring Value Season prices ($64 adult, $47 youth, $32 child and senior). Spring Fest lift and lodging packages are available from just $111 per person per night.

Upcoming Spring Fest events at Mammoth include the award winning West Coast Invitational (May 2-4) with an on-snow party, Nighttime Rail Jam in The Village, Fiesta de la Pipa and live entertainment by My-G featuring special guest and Talib Kweli.

Mammoth Mountain plans to remain open through Memorial Day May 26. Visit MammothMountain.com/springfest.

For the seventh consecutive year, Mammoth Mountain's award winning West Coast Invitational (WCI) returns May 2-3 with a lineup of former Olympians and the most talented up-and-comers. These riders will be competing in the Vans Fiesta de la Pipa and The Village Rail Jam for a $20,000 prize purse.

Schedule; May 2, Fiesta de la Pipa at Main Park Super Pipe; May 3, Village Rail Jam at The Village; May 3, My-G featuring special guest and Talib Kweli at Canyon Lodge ($5, 21 and up).

HANGING IT UP?

If you're putting your skis away for the season, don't forget to back off the front and rear bindings. The relieves the pressure on the springs inside so they don't lose tension. And it's a good idea to give the bases a waxing. Doesn't have to be a hot wax job; just rub a coating of wax on the base and then smooth it down with a rub. To store the boots, lock the catches to help the boots keep shape. And skis are best stored vertically.

We figure on a couple of more days on the hills, winding up at Mammoth in May. We skied there last May after a camping trip to Death Valley and the snow was fine and the crowds just enough to keep the lifts running.