While most of us are doing whatever we do in the summer we sometimes think. Ah if I could only go snowboarding? Or when does the season pass office open? Or when are they going to start blowing snow (so we can go poach the man made mounds of foe-snow)? You would think that scientists by now invented some type of machine that does it for us, unfortunately not. Well my family of snowboarders we humans actually start getting little signs, it’s like when farmers can tell what the weather is going to do by the way the animals start acting, I know amazing!

Photo courtesy of Flow Snowboarding

So all you need is a little known how and I want to help. One of the first signs is the new product showing up at shops all around this globe. It’s a pretty darn good sign that snow sliding is coming to a town near you. Just go into your local shred shop and get a glimpse for your self’s. Maybe grab a few catalogs of your favorite brand or even the brands you don’t like just so you can look at something that has to do with snowboarding.

Photo courtesy of Mountain High

Second would be your local mountain of snow sliding mayhem. Here you can start seeing the change in the season as early as August. The snow guns are being pulled out for maintenance, the seasonal jobs are being offered (get a good one before they’re taken), the season pass discount sales start and the welders are a welding away to make as many jibs for our sliding pleasure in time for the white stuff to arrive. In fact some resorts like Mtn. High bring in 120 tons of snow September 1st for their annual Buck Off Event just for our snow sliding purposes. Jibs, jumps, beer, food, cheap season passes, women and did I mention BEER, all just to get us pumped on the season ahead.

Another spot for old man winter to sneak up is the Mountain towns near our great Alpine ski areas. It’s here where you can notice a serious change in the life of the town. With house rentals filling up and jobs disappearing it’s a sure sign of at least how many non-locals will move in your neighborhood for the upcoming season. And don’t forget the leaves change color up in the high country much sooner than the flat lands.

“Don’t forget to drop off the kids” I hear my neighbor yell to his wife driving away to work. The kids you ask…..not those but the real kids, they start school. As soon as this happens it’s kind of cool all the skate parks, the beaches, and even the malls are empty. No children are to be found, unless they’re home schooled and have no leash.

Folklore has it that the Native Indians of America had several theories on predicting the winter to come upon centuries of observation. The Koyukon Indians say winter’s snowfall is predicted by snowshoe hares. If they leave a wide footprint in the fall, it shows that they grew extra furry hind feet, a sign that heavy snowfalls will come. Kutchin Indians say that the Black Bears normally will make their beds close to the opening of a den; if a cold winter is ahead bears will sleep as far away from the opening. Another would be the good old Farmers Almanac has been 80-85% correct over the last 100 years. That’s amazing considering that last years predictions for my area were wrong. The Almanac said it would be 33% wetter conditions in Southern California, unfortunately we had the driest winter in thirty years! There is also the NOAA check out their charts and let me know how were the conditions forecasted in your neck of the woods, was it correct? And what are your predictions for the upcoming season in your area of the world?? Will it be another El Nino or La Nina as snowboarders we need to know? I don’t want to go buy the book but if anyone out there has it give us some predictions!!!

06-07 Winter
http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/stories2006/s2716.htm

07-08 Winter:
http://www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov/products/predictions/90day/

So stop scratching your mosquito bites and get off the couch and do something like go skateboarding, surfing or check out some of next years stuff at your local shop and remember support your local snowboarder (shop). And continue to support our sport go buy a sticker or even better subscribe to Snowboard Mag.

Snow trivia:
• The snow capital of the United States is Stampede Pass, Washington. Each year it has an average snowfall of 430".
• The largest snowflake recorded fell in 1887 in Montana. It was 15” in diameter.
• Every snowflake has six sides or points, yet no two snowflakes are ever the same in design.
How snow is formed?
• Snow is formed from water vapors in the cold clouds that have condensed into ice crystals.
• Ice crystals fasten onto a dust speck. One crystal attaches to another forming a snowflake. Once the snowflake is heavy enough, it falls from the cloud.
• A snowflake is either a single ice crystal or many crystals.
• The size of a snowflake is determined by how many ice crystals join together.
• The tops of clouds must be below 32 degrees Fahrenheit, or 0 degrees Celsius in order for snowfall to occur.
• Snow can fall from any layered cloud that is cold enough.