Monarch Ski Guide

Part of being in a community is understanding and using the jargon or slang. Knowing the right words is not the same as being able to show your stuff on the hill, but it is a good place to start. Especially when you are stuck at home, with no snow in sight.

Here are a few ski and snowboard slang terms to get you started:

Air - Jumping off the snow, as in "I caught some big air!"

Après Ski - what you do after skiing, drink, party, watch TV, soak in the hot tub, as in "Meet you at the Sidewinder for après ski."

Biff - a partial fall, or bounce off the snow, as in "I saw you biff at the top, nice recovery."

Bumps - also called moguls, lumps on the slope, created by people turning in the same places on a steep ungroomed slope, as in "I hate bumps."

Chocolate Chips - area of rocks poking out of shallow snow, as in "Watch out for the chocolate chips on the right side."

Chocolate Chip Snow

Corduroy - straight lines in the snow made by grooming machines, as in "We really tracked up that corduroy."

Face-Plant - falling forward and landing on your face, as in "Did you see that guy face-plant?"

Faceplant

Fakie - skiing or snowboarding backwards, as in "I skied into the lift line fakie."

Freshies - new untracked powder, as in "We caught some freshies off Breezeway."

Gnar - short for gnarly, meaning tough terrain or conditions, as in "Shagnasty is gnar right now."

Hit - a ramp, bump, log or some other terrain feature used for catching air, as in "Did you catch that hit by the tree?"

Huck - to launch of a steep section or cliff for big air, as in "Watch this guy huck off that rock."

Liftie - a lift operator, as in "Smile and thank the liftie as you get on the chair."

Pinhead - a telemark skier, as in "He is a die-hard pinhead."

Planker - a skier, as in "She is a die-hard planker."

Pow - short for powder, as in "We caught early morning pow before work."

Rag Doll - a wild and loose tumble down the hill, as in "She ragdolled all the way down Frenzy, not a pretty sight."

Snow Farm - a lame ski area that relies on snowmaking, as in "Monarch will never be a snow farm."

Yard Sale - a fall resulting in gear being spread down the slope, as in "Yard Sale" yelled from the lift.  

While you are out and about at Monarch Ski Area, look for the things less observant skiers will miss. Feel superior when you find them.

The original lift at Monarch. Steep terrain on a north face must have made this an exciting place to learn to ski. The background clues make this an easy place to find, you still have to work hard to get there. 

The Mardi Gras trees. Several Englemann Spruce trees bejeweled with beads, and other interesting items. All on the same lift line.

One of Monarch's Bead Trees

Look for this weird compass-like device. Probably had mountain names on it at one time. Or perhaps it was for locating fires in the old days. Look closely at the photo, all the info you need to find this hidden wonder is there.

Monarch Mystery Spinner