ICYMI: Donny Pelletier Wins Pain McShlonkey on Handmade Snowlerblades

Published April 15, 2023 03:21PM

ICYMI: Donny Pelletier Wins Pain McShlonkey!

East meets West: Donny Pelletier wins Pain McShlonkey
Maine’s Moxie-slugging, mogul-slaying caricature put California on notice this week by not only entering Tahoe’s Pain McShlonkey on handbuilt snowlerblades, but winning the dang thing. Lifting the Golden Saucer, Donny Pelletier celebrated in typical downhome fashion, smashing a Whoopie Pie before slugging Moxie at the Slot Bar. Here’s a quick recap. Point ‘em straight, Donny!

So, like, is Utah closed?

After more record snowfall and a big warming cycle, Little Cottonwood and Big Cottonwood canyons experienced a series of closures this week, prompting the question: Is Utah skiing…umm…closed? In reality, resorts like Snowbird will probably be skiing until the 4th of July, but highway crews and ski patrol are dealing with historic avalanche cycles. I mean, check out this video from a triggered wet avalanche on Wednesday that sent debris across the road. Oh, he thicc.

WATCH: Mad River March…It’s a thing!

It may be time for April showers and slushy ski days, but Mad River gifted us with a reminder that things weren’t all that bad in March this year. The New England icon (yes, this is how you actually spell this word) had itself a month and then some, benefitting from a few big storms to unlock some of its legendary terrain.

History Lesson: SoCal’s Mysterious four-season ski hill experiment

Excuse the dorky video, but this is some really wild ski history for you. Did you know that the first year-round ski resort in the U.S. wasn’t at Mt. Hood, nor on the Snowflex at Liberty Mountain in Virginia, but actually in Chino Hills in Southern California? The 1,200-foot Ski Villa opened in 1966 and didn’t utilize snow but rather an innovative collection of plastic tiles laid over concrete to recreate the feeling of sliding on snow. The hill was also lit and considered the largest manmade slope in the world at that point, but failed to last even a year. This video does a great job uncovering the mystery at Ski Villa, and worth a stop for any ski nerd on a scrolling binge.