Colorado River risks and water politics

As a dirty high pressure ridge sits over the West, sending all the cold and snow to the east coast, the boys recount the past month and how it feels like an entire ski season has transpired. A grab bag of topics is covered this week including a Downieville mountain biker somehow getting lost on an out-and-back, the dying dream of the ski bum and instead take up wind sports in Florida, I-80 from San Francisco to Nevada ranking as the 8th most deadly highway in America and the ski patrol strike in Telluride ending with a whimper. Pow Bot asks, how long do you have to live somewhere to be considered a local? Core lords call in with some finders keepers stories and aggro locals in the lift line. A few DOPE or DERPs including drop bars on mountain bikes, Leadville 100, driving to the trailhead in ski boots, waxing your split board in one piece and poaching backcountry freshies at Sky Tavern. Also, Pow Bot pays tribute to the passing of Bobby Weir with the story of his very first Grateful Dead show at 16 years old.

3:00 – The last 25 days feels like the entirety of a full winter ski season, base build, pow, corn, melting and thinking about bikes again.

5:30 – Colorado off to its worst winter snowpack in recorded history. Crazy dry across the American West.

7:30 – Lack of Colorado River runoff could be devastating to the Southwest. Lake Powell and Lake Mead could go below minimum power pool, aka dead pool.

11:45 – Mountain biker in Downieville gets lost riding and has to get helicopter rescued by CHP.

13:00 – Pow Bot gets lost on an epic mountain bike ride in Montana.

15:30 – Search and Rescue is getting overwhelmed by ill-prepared people who get lost.

17:25 – Pow Bot’s Florida Man adventure – don’t move to an expensive ski town, move to an affordable place like Florida and get into wind sports.

22:00 – The ski bum dream is dying, and season ski passes have become DERP.

24:25 – Sugar Bowl mid-mountain lodge catches on fire.

25:35 – Telluride ski patrol strike is over and patrollers did not get what they wanted.

29:05 – Interstate 80 from San Francisco to Nevada is 8th most deadly highway in America.

31:30 – Forest Service in Lake Tahoe legalizes 110-miles of non-motorized trail for Class 1 ebikes.

32:50 – Bob Weir of the Grateful Dead passes. Tom tells his first Grateful Dead show story.

45:45 – Core Lord Call-ins – Lee recommends Bridger Watches – Tom recommends OutMap.

50:22 – More Finders Keepers in the backcountry.

54:30 – Aggro local yelling at people in the lift line at Heavenly.

57:00 – How long do you have to live in a place before you are considered a local?

1:02:15 – Fritz comments on Sugar Bowl.

1:06:20 – DOPE OR DERP – a packable backcountry rescue sled the size of a camping hammock.

1:12:20 – DOPE OR DERP – waxing your split board in one piece.

1:19:15 – DOPE OR DERP – driving to the trailhead in ski boots or snowboard boots.

1:23:40 – DOPE OR DERP – poaching backcountry freshies at Sky Tavern.

1:28:30 – DOPE OR DERP – drop bars on mountain bikes.

1:36:30 – Making sure your feet are dialed in your ski boots on big hut trips.

1:38:00 – How to set up a split board special mini-episode coming next week.