Xena in the USA trip report

[Xena]

Day 1. Flew to LAX, checked in to Hilton and went straight out to Universal Studios. We had front of line passes, so it was VIP treatment all day, no waiting, which meant we got to see every show and do every ride.

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We were exhausted at the end of the day. IMO, Six Flags at Valencia is far better, but we like big rollercoasters!! (went to Six Flags in 2008 with the kids).

Day 2. Flew to Denver, hired our skis (half the price from Denver and can take them to all the resorts we are going to and drop them off at the last resort.) transferred out to Breckenridge. What a pretty little town! We started our altitude sickness prevention adjustment strategy (ASPS) - hydrate, no caffeine, no alcohol and visited the Oxygen Bar for some good air. Warrior Prince can't believe we not only buy water in bottles but now we buy air! ASPS finished an hour later when we found this -:

Breck - Tequila Bar.jpgBreck - Rita's - Marly.jpg

It could have been worse, we found this too (but restrained ourselves and didn't go in) -:

Breck - Cannabis Club.jpg

Day 3. We were a little depressed about the lack of good snow, but excited to ski nevertheless. We were impressed that less than a metre here is much different to less than a metre in Oz. We skied Breck blues and surprised ourselves at how well we could do the blacks - our skiing has progressed! My girlfriend suffered all day with nausea and vomited, also had a nose bleed - altitude takes some getting use to, but she assured us she was not needing medical attention just yet and did recover quite a bit by dinner time, which is when I started to feel it with the nausea.

Breck - Marly.jpg

[Vet]

I bought a frypan! Yes, I have clearly been altitude affected buying a frypan, WTF???

Crikey Xena - Mr Xena was going to get you a frying pan for your Anniversary.

[chunky]

+1 and I suffered the altitude stuff. It didn't help that we both got acute bronchitis as well and had to go on antibiotics. We stayed in Keystone when we skiied Summit County and loved all the resorts in the area. Hope it snows big soon. It can all turn around with just one of their storms.

The night skiing at Keystone would be like skiing Thredbo at night. It has sooo much terrain available and makes for a very long day of sliding.

Hurry up with those pics

[Legolas]

Yay x. Hope your tummy is feeling better soon...I don't recall nausea with altitude sickness...but it's possibly different for some. Sounds to me like your going hard too...you'd prolly be right as rain if you had just one early night! Says she who doesn't have a hill full of snow and a village full of bars and dining ... And shopping... At her doorstep!,

[Jahoota]

sounds like a little bit of a shakey start (with nausea and iplod). I reckon you'll be in the groove by day 5!

[Paul Oberin]

You picked the highest resort in the USA to start with, we usually pick a slightly lower one like Winter park to acclimatise to the alititude first up, early nights, drink twice as much water as you would normally, no alcohol and don't ski too hard first day or 2.
I hope you start to feel better soon, I hear snow is coming next weekend.

[Xena]

Day 4. We were woken very early by alarms going off and then a loss of power to half the town, due to what the news reports described as hurricane force winds of over 125 mph. The resort was closed and most shops could not provide food. So, we went to Silverthorne for some outlet shopping. I bought some jeans, shoes and a frypan! Yes, I have clearly been altitude affected buying a frypan, WTF??? Still feeling some nausea, is it altitude or am I getting a flu? As it was New Years Eve, we hit the streets and found a quiet, little divey American pub for a drink. Within a half hour it got packed, we had struck up fantastic conversation with some locals and didn't want to leave.

Breck - M,M & T NY eve.jpg

They love Aussies over here, so we were very popular - I was particularly popular on the dance floor with some toy boys, as all the young girls were too busy texting about what a great time they were going to have if they ever got off their phone. Reluctantly we left to go to the number 1 rated restaurant (on tripadvisor) for some fine dining. I had only had 2 drinks, so could appreciate the whole thing, except that my nausea and indigestion menat I could not drink anything but water and couldn't eat my $90 meal. The men were a bit messy and a tad embarassing, but who cares, we enjoyed our American NYE.

Day 5. The three inches that yesterday had was all but wind affected, but better than nothing. We skied Breck blacks and moguls and decided that we've done all that is open (no bowls and no double blacks which we are now keen to try) so will go to Keystone tomorrow. Still nauseated, so soup is all I could stomach. After skiing tomorrow, we will transfer to Vail and I am hoping to feel better and more altitude adjusted ( the question is - as I took a four day course of doctor prescribed Diamox for altitude sickness prevention, am I sick from the meds or sick from altitude and lucky I took the meds or I would have been much worse?

Breck - Kelby - 1.jpg
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Day 6. We skied Keystone. Warmed up on a black, boy we have come such a long way. We skied all of Keystone in a day (that was open of course). All the people who work there were so friendly and fell over themselves to be nice, it was such a lovely place, just a pity there was only 2 black runs open. At any rate, we thoroughly enjoyed the long steep well groomed runs. They sure know how to make and groom snow here.
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I am feeling a lot better today, but now my nose has gone haywire, winter doesn't agree with me, but skiing does, so suck it up Warrior Princess! Transferred to Vail after skiing. Tivoli Lodge is very nice indeed. Went out for dinner, where I decided to make like an American and eat buffalo chicken wings with a beer. Ouch, the hot wings hurt my dry cracked lips and my nose is still burning in the chaffed spots!! My second option was a baby spinach salad, if only I had given in to the rabbit food yearning.

[Xena]

Day 7. Vail is massive. We would love to see this place with oodles of snow instead of the crap we have. It is so disappointing to see this magnificent resort with almost very black run closed. No bowls, basically only beginner runs and a few blues, hard packed and lots of rocks coming through. We skied all day anyway, but can you believe we covered it all and are bored enough to want to go to Beaver Creek tomorrow? Feeling better with the altitude, but now have a flu setting in, so I drowned that with a martini at the Tap Room. One martini and I am a bit messy! Warrior Prince had to undress me and set me up with the iPad in bed, so sorry, but no photos again! I did earlier download some of the photos from my first post though when WP gave up the laptop for a little while, but then WP got bored and I got distracted by him - he had a very compelling argument for distraction, no words were necessary! Vail Village is very pretty, but also very expensive!

Vail - Tivoli Lodge - 1.jpgP1000335.jpgP1000348.jpgVail - Mark licking corduroy.jpg

[Polaris]

So no back bowls at all Xena?.... Front side only?

That's a shame, the back bowls ARE Vail

but in saying that, if things are like that at Vail, I doubt Beaver Creek would be any better and I'd lay a bet even worse!!!
Just go for a drive/bus ride and get a photo outside the grog store at Beaver.... everybody does it

[chunky]

My first real try at powder skiing was at those back bowls at Vail.