La Niña La Failia

"It's coming again. La Niña coming back!" These were the words I heard from skiers, whether forecasters, and random web pages starting around October or November. Due to the massive effect of La Niña last year, this produced a lot of excitement. However, now it's late January, and here's the snow report from Bridger Bowl:
New Snow: 0 in.
Settled Base Depth: 31 in.

Temperature: 37 degrees F.

Montana averages between 70 and 80% behind average snow fall. The average base depth at Bridger on new years day is 48 inches. This year it was half that. And it's not just Montana. The Lake Tahoe Resorts (Alpine Meadows, Heavenly, Kirkwood, Mt. Rose, Northstar, Sierra and Squaw Valley) have 18-48 inches on the ground. The only two resorts in the lower 48 I'm aware of that have decent skiing right now are Jackson Hole and it's little sibling, Grand Targhee. They are still behind average, but have each received at least ten feet of snow this season.

However, while the Euro is falling, the snow just keeps piling up across the ocean. Europe is well above average, with some resorts reporting 200+ inches on the ground. This is exactly the opposite of last year, with the lower 48 getting pounded, but BC, Alaska, and Europe bone dry. But, as I look out the window, the clouds are coming in, and I can see the Bridgers becoming shrouded in white. Maybe white things will fall from the ski to. Curse you Ullr.

Missoula Forms Seminar

A few weeks ago there was a Taekwondo forms seminar in Missoula with Aikiko Reyes, one of the top forms competitors in the U.S. The first day focused on the official guide lines for forms set forth by the World Taekwondo Federation in 2007 and subsequently tweaked every year, much too the annoyance of myself and a few thousand other competitors world wide. Nonetheless, these standards do improve the level of competition and are a must for national and international-level competitors.

The second day of the seminar was directed specifically towards Nationals and US Open competitors. This session was more precise, due to the scrutiny that competitors at that level are put under by judges. Tiny "mistakes," such as not having your arm totally straight, or not coming back to the exact spot where you started could make the difference between winning and not getting on the podium at all. The seminar improved my forms tremendously and I'm feeling even more confident for the spring tournament season.