Getting Out There

Posted by Scott H. on 22nd Mar 2014

Getting Out There

As a long time resident of Utah I have been able to enjoy the amazing snow, whether it is in the extensive backcountry or one of the twelve amazing resorts we have. Unfortunately, my experience had been limited to only Utah---until this year! As Ltd. Optics expanded into goggles we wanted to test our product in all conditions in as many places as we could get to. As such, we put together several trips to visit the resorts of Lake Tahoe on the border of Nevada and California and several resorts in Colorado as well. We figured it was a good reason to get out and ride more places!

If you rode at Tahoe this year you know they have been hurting for snow. We planned a trip in February hoping that they would get some fresh snow before the trip, unfortunately when we checked the night before we were scheduled to leave some of the resorts in the area were actually closed because of lack of snow. We contemplated canceling the trip, but at the last minute we decided we'd just go for it. As we began to drive we started seeing reports that the Tahoe region was getting pounded! By the time we reached the pass from Carson City to Heavenly village it was sketchy. We pressed on cautiously. We were so happy we did! The very next day we were hip deep in fresh powder!

Fresh snow and a new spot to ride made this trip amazing. We were able to test the new goggles (RSF, ELX) in this deep powder amid face shots and in the beautiful sunny days that Tahoe is famous for. They excelled in all the conditions and we were ecstatic!

Contrast that trip with the trip to Colorado. We were able to visit Keystone, Breckenridge, and Vail which allowed us to experience lots of different terrain and some of the best terrain parks in the western United States! Our first day was at Keystone, -8 to start the day with a solid 20 MPH wind reduced the temp to below -20 F! Even with these sub temp’s this resort did not disappoint with its massive terrain and amazingly progressive terrain park. This mirrored our experience at Vail, windy and sub temperatures, yet an amazing location to be able to ride! The ELX with our Clear Blue Mirrored lens was a perfect fit for these days with how overcast and low light it was. The lens provided great sight for these low light conditions while still keeping that style with its mirrored lens.

The last stop was Breckenridge, kindly called “Brecken-windy” by the locals because of its constant wind that seems to plague this resort. However, a little bit of wind didn’t stop these guys from having the best park I have been to in the last 5 years. Everything they built was on point. Long landings to avoid overshooting any of the progressive jump line, various rails/boxes to allow progressive riding but still challenge the most advanced riders allowing for some serious hammers.

This was a trip of a lifetime for me as all of these locations were spots I have dreamed of getting to since I began snowboarding. After getting back from these spots I began planning the next time I can get out to these spots again and hopefully get to some new resorts like Northstar, Kirkwood and Copper Mountain! This trip provided all the conditions for testing our newest goggle line and even provided some opportunities to ride in some of our Woodrow bamboo shades to show that even if they are wood they can stand up to being active!