Ta-hizzoe!
Back from the Great American West. Here's some highlights:
Where we stayed: Peppermill Resort and Casino. In Re-no. PLayed some Ke-no. Nice place, but not centrally located which is probably a good thing since most of central Reno is an absolute shithole. Lots of turquoise neon and low ceilings, which kinda made it feel like a strip club.
Where we skied: Friday we hit Alpine Meadows, which was recommended to me by a crusty old skier I was BS'ing with at the Sacramento airport. Big hangout for locals who ski.
Saturday was Squaw Valley, the grandaddy of them all and site of the 1960 Olympics. The place is simply huge, making it both a great place to ski and a nightmare to get around. We had to park in the overflow employee parking lot, which made for about a mile walk with full ski gear to get to the lifts. Rob and Renee were hating us by then. Fun side note: Squaw is the 7th Olympic venue I have been at in my life. It was at Squaw that I suffered my worst moment of the trip: I left my hat, goggles and brand new gloves (which were the best pair of gloves I'd ever owned...I'd just bought them the day before) in the bathroom. I realized my mistake and walked back in there 2 minutes later...gone daddy gone. So, seeing as that it was snowing sideways and 30 degrees out, I needed to do something quick. Unfortunately, your options are pretty limited ar 8000 feet. 75 bucks later, I had a new pair of crappy gloves, a pretty cool hat, and blue sunglasses that put Bono to shame.
Sunday was Northstar at Tahoe, which I'd put on par with Vail in terms of the total ski experience. Simply amazing. Short lines, friendly staff, and most important of all...shuttle service to and from one's car.
Where we ate:
Piper's Patisserie in Truckee. Excellent coq au vin, and a great (if somewhat overpriced) selection of California wines. (If you visit the Tahoe area, I highly recommend checking out Truckee for eats. Much less congested than Tahoe City.)
The Steak House at Peppermill. If this place is truly Reno's Premier Steak House, then I'd hate to see what the competition is like. My prime rib tasted more like unprime ass, and K's filet reminded me of a Bass Weejun. Rotten rotten rotten. I'll give the Peppermill food service props where it's due though--their coffee shop has some of the best omelettes I've ever had.
OB's in Truckee. Looks like a run-of-the-mill bar and grill...but the menu runs more to the fine California food side than it does to burgers and fries. Had a great chunk of salmon that was great big, too.
Truckee Diner in (you guessed it) Truckee. It's a real authentic 50's diner...I'd never been in one before. Damned tasty.
La Terraza in Sacramento. Good Mexican eats in an interesting section of the Golden State's capital. Limited menu, but still good stuff. Good maragaritas as well, served in a pint glass.
What We Drank: Fat Tire Amber. Lots and lots of it. Someday they'll sell the stuff east of Fort Collins.
Geyser Peak Shiraz. Only highlight of our miserable steak house experience.
Stella Maris Red. Tasty meritage of Merlot and Cabernet that just might be in my top 10 bottles ever.
Random Stuff:
There's a trailer along I-80 between Reno and Truckee that has "Lotto Liquor Ladies--LDI Club--28 miles" spraypainted on it right near the Farad exit. I tried and tried to snap a picture of it, but we were always moving too damned fast. Damn, it was funny.
I only had one really good wipeout. Sunday at Northstar I was bombing through a double-diamond powder field (I really don't ski the hard stuff anymore, so I was sucking wind and on the verge of death) and popped a binding on a downslope, launching me about 8 feet in the air still wearing one ski. I kinda half-somersaulted and landed on my well-padded backside. Rattled my cage pretty good, but I was fine.
In keeping with their general theme of self-absorption, California drivers have got to be just about the worst bunch out there. While driving up 80 from Sacramento to Reno, we saw one woman in a Beamer poring over what looked like a legal brief resting on her steering wheel at about 75 mph with the dome light in her car on. Shortly after that, we passed a chick who was scarfing an In-And-Out while talking on her cell phone and driving with her knees.
Back from the Great American West. Here's some highlights:
Where we stayed: Peppermill Resort and Casino. In Re-no. PLayed some Ke-no. Nice place, but not centrally located which is probably a good thing since most of central Reno is an absolute shithole. Lots of turquoise neon and low ceilings, which kinda made it feel like a strip club.
Where we skied: Friday we hit Alpine Meadows, which was recommended to me by a crusty old skier I was BS'ing with at the Sacramento airport. Big hangout for locals who ski.
Saturday was Squaw Valley, the grandaddy of them all and site of the 1960 Olympics. The place is simply huge, making it both a great place to ski and a nightmare to get around. We had to park in the overflow employee parking lot, which made for about a mile walk with full ski gear to get to the lifts. Rob and Renee were hating us by then. Fun side note: Squaw is the 7th Olympic venue I have been at in my life. It was at Squaw that I suffered my worst moment of the trip: I left my hat, goggles and brand new gloves (which were the best pair of gloves I'd ever owned...I'd just bought them the day before) in the bathroom. I realized my mistake and walked back in there 2 minutes later...gone daddy gone. So, seeing as that it was snowing sideways and 30 degrees out, I needed to do something quick. Unfortunately, your options are pretty limited ar 8000 feet. 75 bucks later, I had a new pair of crappy gloves, a pretty cool hat, and blue sunglasses that put Bono to shame.
Sunday was Northstar at Tahoe, which I'd put on par with Vail in terms of the total ski experience. Simply amazing. Short lines, friendly staff, and most important of all...shuttle service to and from one's car.
Where we ate:
Piper's Patisserie in Truckee. Excellent coq au vin, and a great (if somewhat overpriced) selection of California wines. (If you visit the Tahoe area, I highly recommend checking out Truckee for eats. Much less congested than Tahoe City.)
The Steak House at Peppermill. If this place is truly Reno's Premier Steak House, then I'd hate to see what the competition is like. My prime rib tasted more like unprime ass, and K's filet reminded me of a Bass Weejun. Rotten rotten rotten. I'll give the Peppermill food service props where it's due though--their coffee shop has some of the best omelettes I've ever had.
OB's in Truckee. Looks like a run-of-the-mill bar and grill...but the menu runs more to the fine California food side than it does to burgers and fries. Had a great chunk of salmon that was great big, too.
Truckee Diner in (you guessed it) Truckee. It's a real authentic 50's diner...I'd never been in one before. Damned tasty.
La Terraza in Sacramento. Good Mexican eats in an interesting section of the Golden State's capital. Limited menu, but still good stuff. Good maragaritas as well, served in a pint glass.
What We Drank: Fat Tire Amber. Lots and lots of it. Someday they'll sell the stuff east of Fort Collins.
Geyser Peak Shiraz. Only highlight of our miserable steak house experience.
Stella Maris Red. Tasty meritage of Merlot and Cabernet that just might be in my top 10 bottles ever.
Random Stuff:
There's a trailer along I-80 between Reno and Truckee that has "Lotto Liquor Ladies--LDI Club--28 miles" spraypainted on it right near the Farad exit. I tried and tried to snap a picture of it, but we were always moving too damned fast. Damn, it was funny.
I only had one really good wipeout. Sunday at Northstar I was bombing through a double-diamond powder field (I really don't ski the hard stuff anymore, so I was sucking wind and on the verge of death) and popped a binding on a downslope, launching me about 8 feet in the air still wearing one ski. I kinda half-somersaulted and landed on my well-padded backside. Rattled my cage pretty good, but I was fine.
In keeping with their general theme of self-absorption, California drivers have got to be just about the worst bunch out there. While driving up 80 from Sacramento to Reno, we saw one woman in a Beamer poring over what looked like a legal brief resting on her steering wheel at about 75 mph with the dome light in her car on. Shortly after that, we passed a chick who was scarfing an In-And-Out while talking on her cell phone and driving with her knees.
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