Sat March 21 - Awful conditions today - makes one really angry when a groomer cannot make a few passes in the morning after an overnight freeze. Mostly ice - people falling everywhere and sliding hundreds of feet down the hill on their back. I took a trip down the 'rollers" on 7 and saw my life pass before me - ruts, ridges, holes and ice. Took my skis off and went home. (114 days)

Fri March 20 - Another great day for snow conditions! Firm, fast and soft enough but not too soft - some of the best overall conditions of the year, considering temperature, snow, lack of crowding. (113 days, 4 hours)

Thurs March 19 - Great snow this morning - fast and not too firm, then softened up a little more and improved even more. (112 days)

Wed March 18 - Much better snow today since the temps around evening and night did not create a meltdown that froze. 4 1/2 hrs on good snow that softened around 11. (111 days, 71 lifts)

Tues March 17 - Groomed at night, perhaps with a Zamboni! Since the groomer was needed in the morning to deliver some softer snow to the lift area at 7 for the landing and entry areas, a swath of softer snow was accidentally created on the west side of 7. That is where I spent my 40 runs, on a 12 foot wide patch that run from the top to the bottom. Without that I would not have done any skiing today on the ice. Still no knocking down of the jumps. (110 days)

Mon March 16 - Warm morning with soft snow and terrible grooming (late night thaw and overnight freeze, holes, missed overlaps, large sections totally missed around 7), but I managed 40 runs anyway. (5k lifts, 109 days - 8 days of golf of some sort)

Sun March 15 - After preaching for Pam, I hit lift 7 run on the right of the jumps for 40 runs. Not bad! Then I went to the driving range and hot tub.(108 days)

Sat March 14 - Spring Fling - managed 8 challenges despite rough snow. Found a secret place that held up and no one was skiing there. Recognition for Epic Mix leadership with Bruce was fun, especially with instructors hanging around and applauding. Fun morning with daughter, grandsons and family skiing. (107 days)

Fri March 13 - Grooming disaster - crusty, ruts between grooming swipes ... still managed 8 challenges and a few hours. (106 days, missed 27 days between Nov 8 and Mar 13)

Thur March 12 - Not so bad considering. Highlands is probably done for the year. (105 days)

Wed March 11 - Snow crunchier than yesterday up front and soft in the Highlands. Held up well as temps stayed lower than yesterday. (104 days, ranked 13th nationally on Epic Mix)

Tues March 10 - Highlands not so great with only 15 running and meltdown taking its toll. Frontside away from the sun angle great until noon when I left. (103 days)

Mon March 9 - Great morning of good grooming after low 30's at night. Highlands meltdown by 10:30. But front good until 12:30 when I left. (102 days). 60's for a few days meltng golf course and maybe opening next week.

Sun March 8 - Found great fun on 11 that did not melt down and kids stayed away. Almost 3 hours of fun. (100th day at Afton and 101 including Troll)

Sat March 7 - 2 1/2 hrs with good start before a meltdown in the Highlands. Front still ok at noon despite 43 degrees. (100 days)

Fri March 6 - Last day for Brian at AA. Great snow, warming up soon. (99 days)

Thurs March 5 - Cold again (zero and climbing to 6) with great grooming. Wonderful sunny day with warm days ahead. (98 days)

Wed March 4 - Great grooming after snowy yesterday. Windchills brutal. (97 days)

Tues March 3 - 2 inches of new snow during early am before opening. Fun but slow. (96 days)

Mon March 2 - Cold day but fun. Hit 1 million vertical feet. (95 days)

Sat Feb 28 - Great 2 1/2 hrs before the world arrived. Still cold, but bearable. Can see spring temps next week. (94 days)

Fri Feb 27 - 2 1/2 hrs after child care .. a bit cold and a few too many children in packs. (93 days)

Thurs Feb 26 - 6 hr day in the cold, which meant few people on the excellent grooming. Coincidence - 91 lifts on 91st day (91 days)

Wed Feb 25 - 4 hrs on a cold am that reached 10 by noon. Snow the best ever and no wind on 7 and 16 (90 days)

Tues Feb 24 - 4 hrs on a windy day 7, 17 best ... but temps hit 20, great snow. (89 days)

Mon Feb 23 - 4 hrs on another -25 day. Nobody there. Wonderful day, snow was great. I was comfortable. Their loss. (88 days, 900k feet)

Sun Feb 22 - 4 hrs on a -25 windchill day, clearing the slopes for my personal use. Great snow. I was warm enough. Their loss (87 days)

Sat Feb 21 - 4 hrs of great snow, missing some crowding, could have stayed all day. Temps about 20 with a little wind. (86 days)

Fri Feb 20 - Five hours with Brian on a cold windchill day. An inch or two of powder softened things up after the grooming. Great day! (85 days, Number one in vertical feet, but more points is a mystery for others.

Thurs Feb 19 - Watched grandsons in the am. Three hours in the evening. Snow really good since it was so cold (-10 and -25 windchill) in the am that people stayed away. Started at 10 and dropped to -1 and -10 windchill in the evening. (84 days)

Wed Feb 18 - Cold, so cold that I was the only one on the lift for a long while. However, -25 did not bother me. Stayed for 5 hours and could have stayed longer. So nice to have great grooming unspoiled all day (83 days)

Tues Feb 17 - Cold, cold and windchill ... great grooming and snow. (82 days)

Mon Feb 16 - Pres Day crowded but manageable until almost 2 pm. Great snow, windy and cold. (81 days)

Sat Feb 14 - Cold with windchills well below zero, but I survived. Cold kept people away for a Sat and stayed until 1 pm. (80 days)

Fri Feb 13 - Great day with good grooming and soft snow!(79 days)

Thurs Feb 12 - After daytime with grandsons, skied the evening from 5-9. Lots of untouched snow due to cold day. Windchills below zero. Warmup Fri and back to cold at night. (78 days).

Tuesday Feb 10 - Threat of rain turned out to be snow. A blizzard broke out for 30 minutes (break time) and then stopped. It added a 1 inch layer on top of the grooming, slowing things down a bit but making for soft, quiet carving. Fast groomed snow was great before the snowfall. (4 hrs, 77 days)

Mon Feb 9 - Another great day in Paradise! Loved skiing without people in the way, with perfect grooming, soft snow, 20's, no wind, sunshine, blue sky, good company and music in my ear! It doesn't get any better. Stayed until 2:30 and could have stayed all day. (76 days)

Sun Feb 8 - Stayed until 1 since lines were not so long. Great snow!(75 days)

Sat Feb 7 - Great 2 hours on 11, 12 after runs on 16. 20's and good snow. (74 days)

Fri Feb 6 - Watched grandsons until 4 and then made a beeline for Afton. Good snow remained and it was beautiful warm evening of 13k feet. (73 days)

Thurs Feb 5 - Great day for snow conditions, but cold and wind were a challenge. Kurt back in town. Five hours. (72 days)

Wed Feb 4 - Even better snow after a couple inch snowfall overnight. Grooming after. Windchill a bit cold and temps in single digits, but not so bad with good layers. Cold cut down on people and provided lots of fresh snow. (71 days)

Tues Feb 3 - Great snow, a little cold but warm enough for me (10). Four hours of great fun! (70 days)

Mon Feb 2 - Cold am, but taking friend to airport gave me time to wait for a warmup. 3 hrs after noon. Great snow. Cold and windy. Not many people.

Sun Feb 1 - Great morning with few people for a Sunday - due to cold and windchills near 0. I had a great time by finding places to ski out of the wind. (68 days)

Sat Jan 31 - Great 2 hours before crowds descended. Soft and fast, perfect grooming! (67 days)

Fri Jan 30 - 4 1/2 hrs with Brian. Great conditions. Could have stayed 8 hrs.

Wed Jan 28 - Warm spell in the 30's, great skiing!

Tuesaday Jan 27 - Thaw and freeze cycle left the slopes a little crusty this morning, but not too bad. I liked the speed and firmness. (62 days)

Monday Jan 26 - Brian and I did 4 hours in good conditions. (61 days)

Sat Jan 24 - Great am with crowds manageable until noon, when snow softened as well. (60 days)

Thurs Jan 22 - Best day of the year! Great grooming and fast snow that was also soft for turning. Ski right into the chairs. Sun came out after decent visibility before that. Warm clothes shut down the wind chill in the teens. Four hours. (59 days)

Wed Jan 21 - Another great day with fewer people, inch of powder over nicely groomed snow, and 27 degrees. No sunshine, but adequate light. Four hours. (58 days)

Tues Jan 20 - Best day in a while with not as many people, great snow, 32+ degrees. Stayed 'til 2 pm. One school district still on vacation so more people than on a usual weekday. Right side of 7 got a workout from me until a telemarker skied across my line in front of me. If I had not cut my turn short at the last second, I would have plowed right into him. I caught up with him at the lift and 'educated' him on etiquette. (57 days)

Mon Jan 19 - Great snow, nice 30 degrees, some light sunshine, loved my runs until 11:30 and crowd descended. (56 days)

Sun Jan 18 - Another great three hours, especially on 7 and 10, while the Highlands was an early mob scene. Grandson (2 years old) Graham and grandparents skiing today - fun! (55 days)

Sat Jan 17 - Great 2 hours before the crowd descended and long lines formed. Suddenly became mushy with 37 degrees as well. (54 days)

Fri Jan 16 - Really great day of 20's, grooming greatness, good company and not too crowded - 4 1/2 hrs and 70 lifts, (53 days)

Thurs Jan 15 - 4 1/2 hours with Brian on a sunny am turning to clouds with great grooming and fast snow in many places. Still some grooming needed on back of 1 and on 6. (52 days)

Wed Jan 14 - Great day without snowmaking, but a few poorly groomed areas after snowmaking marathons in previous days. Great grooming on many slopes. (51 days)

Tues Jan 13 - Still below zero but warming trend on the way. Great snow and grooming in the Highlands. Snowmaking on 5 blocked a safe trip to the other side, so I just stayed away from there. Not many people with warmer temps expected in the pm. (50 days)

Sat Jan 10 - A few hours of fun with great snow. (49)

Fri Jan 9 - Great morning of cold temps and great snow. (48 days)

Thurs Jan 8 - After a closed day due to cold/lack of skiers? today was different. No snowmaking, but nature kept snow coming all morning. I enjoyed the fresh pow. (47 days, 370k ft)

Tues Jan 6 - Three areas for skiing today: 9/10, north side of 7 and 5, 1,2 with snowmaking in between that made moving from one area to another downright hazardous (slow snow, ice blown in the face, poor visibility, no grooming, hidden humps and bumps). It was like this yesterday too. Cancellation of Wednesday was just as well if this is what one can expect.(day 46)

Mon Jan 5 - Ok, that was cold: -13 and -26 windchill. However, my toes were the only spot that I could not keep warm. Ordered boot gloves. Maybe that will help. Three hours hours was good. Could have been better without snowmaking in so many places - really slow, sticky snow. (day 45)

Sun Jan 4 - Sharp contrast to yesterday 5k people or more vs 500 or less today (34 degrees to -34 windchills). Good grooming and nobody in my way today. Three hours was enough of fighting the cold. (day 44)

Sat Jan 3 - Grandson Sawyer went solo (without a harness) today and wowed me and the world! Great grooming with most lifts open.Then the whole world was skiing! Cold weather coming the next day so everybody decided today was the day. Snow held up well. (day 43, pulling away from 4th place, securing 3rd)

Fri Jan 2 - Another great snow day. Still single digits. Crowd showed around noon. Good time skiing with Bryan. (day 42)

Thurs Jan 1 - Great snow today and not too crowded. Double digit temps felt good. Favs today were 12, 14 and 9, (day 41)

Wed Dec 31 - Great morning despite -25 windchill. It kept the crowds away and only the most hearty showed up today. Great snow! Snowmaking craziness continued, however. No 16 or 17 and only 14 ... but not a problem with fewer people out there. Fixed missing days on EpicMix with Matt's help. (day 40)

Tues Dec 30 - Great snow on a sub-zero day. Cold kept people at home a little longer, but many coming around noon. Same strategy for AA today with snowmaking on 7, 17 and in some unused slopes. Not so bad today when fewer people were there. No lift lines. Had a great day of skiing! (day 39)

Mon Dec 29 - Great snow today again and it was still good after 4 hours and my 55 runs/lifts. Had a great day and found Bryan - helped me to ski longer with good conversations. Let me say the following because I love Afton Alps and I am disappointed when it is not up to par. If I ran the world, there would not have been snowmaking in places where people should have been skiing. There would not have been closed lifts on a vacation day, creating long lines on 6 and 14. Grooming would have been better for a crowd to impress newcomers with Afton. But I do not run the world and we all had to deal with bad choices by management - snowmakers and lift supervisors. Make snow at night and in places where nobody would ski. Open 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 12, 13 ,14, 15, 16, and 17 on a vacation day when crowds appear. Groom runs after slalom training is closed down. Don't use up so much space with slalom training if some of the usual runs are closed - like 7 and 17 (day 38)

Sun Dec 28 - Awesome snow today, fast, groomed, firm and soft. Not too crowded before 11 and then the cars streamed in and lines lengthened. Out by noon after a great day when snow held up really well. (day 37)

Sat Dec 27 - Ok, powder is beautiful and fun to ski when the snow is a 4 icnh cover over well groomer firmer snow - as it was today. Two hours of great skiing in it until it became a mess. (day 36)

Friday Dec 26 - Soft deep grooming was not so bad at first, but it became a mess of mush after a few hours. (day 35)

Thurs Dec 25 - Crusty fast snow ... thaw is over and snowmaking weather approaches. Had a wonderful morning without many people by noon when I departed. (day 34, 3rd in EpicMix stats)

Wednesday Dec 24 - Great morning despite 35 degrees. Soft but fast snow. Not many people due to warm weather, but it was great skiing without many there. (day 33)

Tuesday Dec 23 - Another great morning of groomed snow - soft but fast and very enjoyable despite rain on my goggles. Rain X Next time! Dry Butt Baggie worked great again! (day 32)

Monday Dec 22 - Amazingly fast snow without ice or crusty surface on a day of rain and 35. After 2 hours of great skiing, I was warn out. The down side was the rain on my goggles and low visibility. Wore a garbage bag on my backside to stay dry - worked great = "Dry Butt Baggie" (day 31)

Saturday Dec 20 - Excellent snow today and opening of 16, 13, 14, 7 ... 3 hours of glory! (day 30)

Thursday Dec 19 - Snowmaking everywhere and some recovery still. Nine and 10 fine. (day 29, passed 200k)

Wednesday Dec 18 - Improved over yesterday and lots of snowmaking going on for a better future. Highlands decimated by rain and warmth (50+ on Monday). Cold is back - low teens and windchills in single digits. (day 28, nearly 200k vertical feet, 4th place)

Tuesday Dec 17 - Reopening adequate considering it rained all day Monday. Groomed up some decent snow. Opened at 3 - oops, I was there at 9:30

Sunday Church and rain, Monday closed and rain

Sat Dec 13 - 35 degrees at opening, but snow was packed and fast, not crusty. Had a few good hours amid some crowding. (day 26, 4th place)

Fri Dec 12 - Despite a warmup to 34 today, the snow held up great. No sun helped. (day 25, 4 hours, 47 lifts)

Thursday Dec 11 - Best day I can remember with good grooming and no snow guns and 30 degrees. Both Brian and Kurt were there and we skied together. 13 working (day 24, 5 hours, 54 lifts)

Wed Dec 10 - Wonderful conditions, great skiing! Epic Mix on 13 not working so at least 10 runs were not recorded. I am done caring about Epic Mix. (day 23, 5 hours)

Tues Dec 9 - Great morning! Snow quality excellent and lift 1 open. Making snow in the far Highlands and on 7, the last 2 frontiers. (day 22, 3 hours)

Mon Dec 8 - Some crusty spots on the Alps side after meltdown, grooming, refreeze, but 9 was great and 13 too. Epic Mix failure on 13 may be fixed after I talked with JR and Joe. (4 hrs, day 21)

Sun Dec 7 - Epic Mix is just a joke sometimes. 13 not working at all and I was on it for a while this am. Great conditions and not too crowded. (4 hrs, day 20)

Sat Dec 6 - Great morning with lots of cars for Nastar, training of all sorts, but not crowded lifts. (4 hours, 32 lifts, 110k vertical feet, 6th place, 19)

Thurs Dec 4 - Rehab at the pool went great, walking normally again after limping from left leg, side, nerve pain for a day. Justin's 100+ lifts twice making it a runaway. I'm not going to ski past my pleasure point - freedom.

Wed Dec 3 - great skiing, icy sidewalk led to a walking accident. Landed on my lower back and bruised enough to be too sore to ski next day. (day 18)

Tues Dec 2 - almost 4 hours of awesome snow. (day 17)

Mon Dec 1 - Windchills -15 at 9:30 am - no problem dressed well and comfortable. Great grooming and fast snow. Loved it! (85k feet, 7th place, day 16)

Sun Nov 30 - Awesome day! Grooming perfect, cold but tolerable at 7 below wind chill. (78k feet, 5th place, day 15)

Sat Nov 29 - Great morning before crowds arrived. Soft snow well groomed. Temps in the low 30's (day 14, 70k feet, 7th place)

Fri Nov 28 - Missed a day waiting on the doctor, but new snow and then a sleet and rain spell made it a good day to miss.

Thurs Nov 27 - Happy Thanksgiving! Great 90 minutes before family celebrations. Excellent grooming and not crowded by the time I departed for the hot tub. (day 13)>p> Wed Nov 26 - Fresh powder - not for me. It was tracked up and dangerous, so I did not stay long. Moved into top 5 (day 12)

Tues Nov 25 - Loved the snow today! Better than yesterday. More soft snow on top of a firm base - really fast. (3 hours, total 55k feet, climbing in ranks today, day 11).

Mon Nov 24 - Good conditions, considering the meltdown and rain on Sunday. Fast, really fast and a little crusty, Windy and low 20's. Two hours and out to wait for better conditions. (46k feet, day 10)

Sun Nov 23 - Stayed away with meltdown and rain.

Sat Nov 22 - Excellent snow despite 35 degrees and it lasted until noon, when crowds arrived and I left. (40 runs, 7k feet, 8th place and climbing)

Friday Nov 21 - great 90 minutes and off to care for grandsons 2 and 4 yrs old. Chair 3 opened but grooming was spotty yet, fast and slow patches. Looks like almost all but 7 on the frontside opening Saturday (30k feet (day 8)

Thursday Nov 20 - Great 90 minutes before kids arrived and lines developed and scanners slowed the process ... and I left for teenage taxi duty. (26k feet, day 7)

Tues Nov 18 - Great runs on 5 and 6 between 3 and 5 pm! Kids arriving after 5 pm and my toes were cold at 16 degrees and low wind chills so I left, fully satisfied! (20k vertical feet almost 800 points, day 6)

Mon Nov 17 - Not open until 3 (Troll open at 10 am). Could open the whole frontside with all the snow there. Snow guns blowing on 6, so that makes one good chair open. Nevertheless I had a really good time! Was really dark until I begged repeatedly for some lights and they finally were turned on. About 10 degrees and 30 mph wind made for some cold skiing, but I was warm enough with the right clothes. (6k feet, 26 runs, 2 hours on the slopes, day 5)

Sunday Nov 16 - Greatest 90 minutes in sports - 10-11:30 am! Then crowds descended and I departed. Riding chair 5, skiing down 6 run and over to 5 - loved it! Snowmaking around the clock. Daytime hours would be great, but 3 pm gives me an hour or two before kids arrive. (day 4)

Saturday Nov 15 - Great conditions lasted about an hour, then crowd descended. Six not open until after I left. Snow and flat light was rough too. This was an appetizer for the season I love - weekday mornings. I will keep up a long day at Lifetime and fit in a few runs until weekday mornings come back. Frustration with Epic Mix not working for me helped me to realize that the Epic Mix experience is just not for me. It got in the way of good decisions about my health last year. Best that I make good decisions about that rather than risk injury when I am too tired to be there or the conditions are too dangerous. I will probably ski more runs than anybody at Afton. Just knowing that is good enough for me. (day 3).

Friday Nov 14 - Great conditions for an opening day. Good turnout. While only 4 and 5 were open, the first couple hours were pretty good. Lines and ruts chased me away after a couple hours, but I loved it. Epic Mix recorded nothing for me, but it was fixed by the next day. (day 2)

Wednesday Nov 12 - After a few days of snowmaking around the clock, AA will open Friday evening and full days on the weekend. Troll and Wild closed today for snowmaking. Light snow today and snowmaking around the clock.

Tuesday Nov 11 - Snow north was over a foot, but just a few inches around Afton Alps. Then cold in single digits making for good snowmaking for a couple weeks. Still no announcement about an opening date at AA.

Sun Nov 9 - Snow predicted to start at 5 am Monday and stop by Tuesday with up to a foot. Then a week of single digit nights for snowmaking.

Sat Nov 8 - Awaiting a promised cold spell and snow with good snowmaking temps for a week, starting tomorrow. Here it comes! Ski season 2014-15!

Sat Nov 1 - Trollhaugen opening day - it was a thrill to be on the snow again. After several good runs for an hour, crowds and crazy riders took over and left for my safety. (day 1)

Friday Nov 1 - Cold, real cold, but I was comfortable and the only one on the course. (rd 152)

Thursday Oct 30 - OMG! What a great day! Not one person on the golf course besides me! Threat of rain but no rain, no wind, 40's but green Heaven! Course so nice! Played 18 in 2 hours, several birdies, new Taylor Made r-11 driver (love it!) (rd 151)

Wednesday Oct 29 - Another cold one but I was dressed for it - enjoyable! Two others on the course. (rd 150)

Tuesday Oct 28 - windchills in the 30's, temp 42, brrrr. I was the only one on the course. A towel around my neck and neckwarmer on my head helped. Glad I played. (rd 149)

Monday Oct 27 - Nice day for late October, (rd 148)

Saturday Oct 25 - Not so bad weather. (rd 147)

Friday Oct 24 - temps hit 70 today, but I played before lots of people came out to enjoy the weather. Freshly cut greens were the best of the year and I made some long putts. Shot low, way low! (rd 146)

Thursday Oct 23 - Few people out but me, their loss. Warm spell - 60's today. (rd 145)

Wednesday Oct 22 - cold but sunny. (rd 144)

Tuesday Oct 21 - 32 degree windchill made a day for covering my ears from the wind and cold, but sunshine and colors beautiful. Finally got comfortable and enjoyed a great day. Greens not being cut often, but they are in great shape - just a little dew in the am and grass a little shaggy. (rd 143)

Monday Oct 20 - Beautiful day with sunshine, fall reds and yellows and cool breeze. 60's (rd 142)

Sunday Oct 19 - Great evening of golf! (rd 141)

Saturday Oct 18 - Almost nobody there today due to 42 degrees and a northwest breeze, but it was tolerable by the last hole. (rd 140)

Thur Oct 16 - 70's and sunny, more wow! Nick and Verne ... had a great day! (rd 139)

Wed Oct 15 - 50's and sunny ... wow! (rd 138)

Tues Oct 14 - 60 degrees with 23 mph wind, nice! (rd 137)

Monday Oct 13 - Great day on the course! Back nine closed but 10 open. (rd 136)

Saturday Oct 11 - Another day in Paradise! Sunny and cool, so pleasant. Course perfect! (rd 135)

Friday Oct 10 - great day - again - so few people out and such great conditions! (rd 134)

Thursday Oct 9 - so fine (rd 133)

Wed Oct 8 - Sunny and warm enough, leaves beautiful. Great day! Doesn't get any better! (rd 133)

Tuesday Oct 7 - Better yet! Wow! (rd 132)

Monday Oct 6 - Another day in Paradise with sunshine and cool breezes. Course condition awesome! (rd 131)

Sunday Oct 5 Finally back out after rain and cold shut me out for a few days. Still cold and windy but bearable. (rd 130)

Tuesday rain early played noon (rd 129)

Monday cool but great fall golf (rd 128)

Sunday September 28, 2014 - Another best weather day of the year. Skipped a couple holes to get around in 90 minutes. (rd 127)

Saturday September 27, 2014 - Best day of the year! Saturday and no one in my way! (rd 126)

Friday September 26, 2014 - Yet another warm fall day with perfect sunshine and short sleeves. (rd 125)

Thursday September 25, 2014 - Another awesome day of warm fall air and sunshine - short sleeves. Fall golf with fewer people out early. (rd 124)

Wednesday September 24, 2014 - Great morning of cool air and perfect course conditions with no people in the way! (rd 123)

Tuesday September 23, 2014 - Playing 7th when Chris texted me that Owen William was born at 8:01 am. Drove to see them all then. (rd 122)

Monday September 22, 2014 - Great day again! (rd 121)

Sunday September 21, 2014 - Finished 3rd at 8 under and won a prize in USSA ski fundraiser with John, Jackson, Mark and William ... fun day with great weather. (rd120)

Saturday September 20, 2014 - Another day in paradise! Not many out on a perfect Saturday. (Rd 119)

Friday September 19, 2014 - Cool and sunny. Played 9 with Steve DeLune and rode - sweet. (rd 118)

Thursday September 18, 2014 - Beautiful weather - making lingering and walking in the woods so attractive! (rd 117)

Tuesday September 16, 2014 - Great day again! Lots of balls in the woods! (rd 116)

Monday September 15, 2014 - Another day in Paradise - cool, sunny, after rain stopped. Greens on the front great, back almost great. (rd 115)

Saturday September 13, 2014 - Great morning of cool air and sunshine. Avoided people on the front by playing the back first and then had smooth sailing. Reached par 5's in 2!(rd 114)

Friday September 12, 2014 - Great morning of really cool air that thinned out the crowd nicely for me. Hot air balloon landed by 5 green! Found golf balls to the left of 17. Every time I search a new place, I find so many next to each other. Another 100 ball day! (rd 113)

Thursday September 11, 2014 - Yesterday was all rain and wind, but today was just cold and gentle breezes. Greens growing in miraculously fast after aeration! (rd 112)

Tuesday September 9, 2014 - Warm before the cold snap. Played back while event on the front cleared out. Great day! (rd 111)

Monday September 8, 2014 - Great day in Paradise! Cool breezes. Greens recovering from aeration. (rd 110)

Sunday September 7, 2014 - Great morning of sunshine and cool breezes. Found a gap between early birds and an event - smooth sailing! (rd 109)

Saturday September 6, 2014 - Wow! Beat the crowd at 7:45. Amazing recovery by aerated greens! (rd 108)

Friday September 5, 2014 - Cold day in 60's with wind after hot and humid day yesterday. Aerated front, back closed ... just playing for shot making and not putting, take automatic 2 after reaching the green. (rd 107)

Thursday September 4, 2014 - After a day off for rain, played the front while back was being aerated. Sad to see the greens wounded for our future, but necessary evil. (rd 106)

Tuesday September 2, 2014 - Aeration day on the front ... understandable but such a shame that the greens were the best all year and they were destroyed today ... with the event on the 21st today was the right date, just too bad. Played back in great weather of sunshine and cool air. (rd 105)

Monday September 1, 2014 - Beat the crowd today at 8:30 and hardly saw anyone until almost finishing around 11:30. Great weather morning of sunshine and cool air. (rd 104)

Sunday August 31, 2014 - Another day in Paradise! Where else can I play by myself with no one in front or behind on a Sunday morning at 8 am? (rd 103)

Saturday August 30, 2014 - Where else can you have a course to yourself on a Saturday morning?!! Great day of cool breezes and cloud cover with sunshine peaking now and then. (rd 102)

Friday August 29, 2014 - Another day in Paradise! Cool breezes and warm sunshine. Deer and turkeys out in full force today - good photos of them. Add a 6 iron to my bag next time. (rd 101)

Thursday August 28, 2014 - Great morning of sunshine and cool air before watching the boys. Dropped an Eagle on 4! (rd 100)

Wednesday August 27, 2014 - Won the Sr League Scramble today on my own ball with one shot from my partner. Two under until I bogeyed the last two holes to finish even par. Really nice jacket for the prize! Also won long drive. Great weather today with sunshine and cool breezes. (rd 99)

Tuesday August 26, 2014 - From 90's Sunday to high 50's this morning ... only in MN! Great round this am with cool air and sunshine. (rd 98)

Monday August 25, 2014 - Great morning of cool breezes and sunshine, playing with 4 clubs in bag on shoulder. Nobody in my way - another day in Paradise! (rd 97)

Saturday August 23, 2014 - Lots of players out today! Managed to work around them and have a good round on a cloudy and comfortable day. Course conditions excellent! (rd 96)

Friday August 22, 2014 - Played with 4 clubs (driver, 3 hybrid, gap wedge, putter) on both front and back in 90 minutes and loved it, (rd 95)

Thursday August 21, 2014 - Rain early so I delayed and had a great morning of sunshine and nobody on the course ... their loss. (rd 94)

Wednesday August 20, 2014 - Another picture perfect day! Sr league on the back. Shot one over par. (rd 93)

Tuesday August 19, 2014 - Glorious morning at 7:30 with cool breezes and warm sunshine and nobody in the way. Course top shape. (rd 92)

Saturday August 16, 2014 - Another great morning with no one in front or behind. Several great workout days in a row. Course best conditions ever! (rd 91)

Friday August 15, 2014 - Fun round of ball hunting (125) and playing the back with gap wedge and 3 hybrid. (rd 90)

Thursday August 14, 2014 - Great 7 am round before fun with the grandsons. (rd 89)

Wednesday August 13, 2014 - Sr League fun with great lunch on a beautiful day of sunshine and cool breezes! Tied for win. (rd 88)

Tuesday August 12, 2014 - Great sunny and cool breezy morning playing with Nick. Another day in Paradise! (rd87)

Monday August 11, 2014 - Great morning but misting on the ninth drove me away. (rd 86)

Friday August 8, 2014 - 100 holes today at Enderlin! (rds to 85)

Thursday August 7, 2014 - 63 holes in Enderlin! Sweet! (rd 77, 78, 79, 80)

Tuesday August 5, 2014 - Another day in Paradise. Played the back first while Jr camp was on the front. Hiked through the woods - love those woods! Found over 100 golf balls. The day after a scramble is like a kid's Easter egg hunt, finding places where there are several balls close together. Hit the ball really well! (rd 76)

Monday August 4, 2014 - Played some great shots with Nick and John, while Nick carried us on many occasions. We were 12 under, but lost 3rd place on a card comparison. Great day of fun, food and more. (rd 74, 75)

Friday August 1, 2014 - Quick round before 3M ... out in front of the crowd and enjoyed great weather. (rd73)

Thursday July 31, 2014 - Great morning of golf before grandson heaven and Paddle Boarding with Joe. Driver, 7 iron for Eagle from sr tees on 6 - prep for Monday tournament. (rd 72)

Wednesday July 30, 2014 - Scored one under in senior league! (rd71)

Tuesday July 29, 2014 - Played 18 with Nick and then Steve called and I played 18 with Steve at Keller. Played great at AA and not so great at Keller. Made me appreciate Afton a lot. Frankly, Keller has too many trees and the grass is not ready for prime time. (rd69 and 70)

Monday July 28, 2014 - Another perfect morning with temps in the high 60's and cool breezes. Course conditions great after some rain in the last couple days. (rd68)

Friday July 24. 2014 - Another great morning of cool breezes. Beginning to think that MN may hit 90 only once this summer. Rain during the night was more than welcome for the course and my yard. (rd67)

Thursday July 23, 2014 - Great morning for a walk through the woods. To justify the walk, I look for golf balls. Today I played 18 and found 125 golf balls in 4 hours. Great weather today with sunshine and cool breezes! (rd66)

Wednesday July 22, 2014 - Primo! Eighth straight day without rain ... sunshine and cool breezes abound. Sr League -1 on the back with four distance awards and then played the front and stayed under par again. (rd65)

Tuesday July 21, 2014 - Beautiful morning after 90 the day before. Sunny and cool breezes - a real joy to be on the links and hitting better shots and not caring so much. (rd64)

Monday July 20, 2014 - Played in the Carpenter Nature Center event today. Past 14 under would have won it by 1, but we couldn't get some wedges close enough and settled for 10 under and out of the top 3. Still, most fun I have had because we didn't take it too seriously. Nick was fun. I had some good moments and not so good with shoulder pain somewhat of a non-factor --- except on short wedges, Thanks to John, it was a great day! (rd63)

Saturday July 18, 2014 - After seeing that Rory was in control at The Open Championship, went out to play. Great morning of cool breezes and sunshine. Great course conditions! Feeling so good about playing with a shoulder injury - no problem in anticipation of the Carpenter event on Monday. Deserted course for a Saturday... no one in front or behind for 18 with plenty of time to hit lots of extra shots for practice. (rd 62)

Friday July 17, 2014 - Great weather today! Played 9 with Charlie and Mike and had great fun before backing into a van on the blind corner. No more parking on the lower level - too dangerous! (rd61)

Wednesday July 16, 2014 - Played in Sr League today and won with 3 over by 5 strokes. Mild pain gave me hope for full recovery and let me know that I won't be without golf. (rd60)

Sunday July 13, 2014 - Played with Ellie and had fun on a crowded day of great weather. Shoulder not so great after accident in NYC shower, but I did get to play ... so ok. (rd59)

Friday July 4, 2014 - Quick round before travel to NYC and WV. (rd58)

Thursday July 3, 2014 - Another great day! Cool and sunny combo. Dollar Spot conquered at Afton - never again! Course conditions best ever! (rd57)

Wednesday July 2, 2014 - Awesome morning of golf! Skipped Sr League - putts just too easy to win. Gave Ken a chance. Conditions great! (rd 56)

Tuesday July 1, 2014 - Played 27 with Nick today. Cool breezes again. Had a really good time! Course conditions better every day! (rd55)

Monday June 30, 2014 - Managed a great round in cool breezes and warm sunshine before rain returned. Course conditions awesome! (rd54)

Sunday June 29, 2014 - Weather does not get any better - warm sunshine and cool breezes. Course conditions very good. Lots of people today but I managed 18 in 2 1/2 hours. (rd53)

Saturday June 28, 2014 - Is this the greatest golf option in the world?! Saturday morning at 8 am - walk-on, no tee time, nobody in front or behind, cool breeze, sunshine, course in great shape, played 18 under 3 hours for $1 a round!(rd 52)

Thursday June 26, 2014 - Great early morning round. (rd51)

Wednesday June 25, 2014 - Even par today with three birdies, a bogey, a double and the rest pars on the back nine for a Senior League win by 18 strokes in nine holes. (rd50)

Tuesday June 24, 2014 - Marvelous! Cooler weather with sunshine and a shower here and there. Played with Nick with a free pass for him and I paid for a cart - luxurious for the back nine. (rd49)

Monday June 23, 2014 - Another day in Paradise! Sunshine and some breaths of fresh air! (rd48)

Sunday June 22, 2014 - Great morning of sunshine and cooling breeze. Course holding up and flourishing with lots of rain. Finished the round just before thunderstorm hit. (rd47)

Friday June 20, 2014 - Great morning of 70 and cooling breezes. Course recovering from another drenching. I like it like this! Greens are a miracle recovery story! (rd46)

Wednesday June 18, 2014 - Late start and skipped senior league 4 hole draw score. Played 18 in nice weather before a Thursday all-day soaking rain. (rd45)

Tuesday June 17, 2014 - Lots of rain, most since 1871. However, the course is soaking it up and growing grass where none had been. (rd44)

Monday June 16, 2014 - Great morning of cool breezes and warm sunshine. PLayed 15 on the front and then 7 on the back. Golf camp on the back earlier. Greens are just a miracle and fairways too after the rough start to the season. (rd43)

Friday June 13, 2014 - Another pleasant morning! Course conditions really good! More people playing but room for everybody, especially me. Played back nine almost alone. (rd42)

Thursday June 12, 2014 - Beautiful morning with breezes and cool temps that were unseasonable ... 50's??!! Made 18 holes a breeze! (rd41)

Wednesday June 11, 2014 - Sr League frenzy with 3 on the board and great stuffed pork chops! Weather awesome with breezes and sunshine. (rd40)

Tuesday June 10, 2014 - Beautiful morning with course looking so much better. (rd39)

Monday June 9, 2014 - (rd38)

Sunday June 8, 2014 - Evening golf, love it! (rd37)

Friday June 6, 2014 - Weather awesome with 70's and breezes to cool the sun's rays. A few folks out on a Friday to start the weekend, so I skipped around them and played the back - good workout! Greens recovery almost miraculous!(rd36)

Thursday June 5, 2014 - Breeze kept the temps just right on a sunny day. Verticutting the greens made them almost perfect on the front nine. Then the back nine will be next. Wow! Loved playing today and where was everybody else. Sailed around on twosome and saw no one else in my way. (rd35)

Wednesday June 4, 2014 - Another great day at AA! Sr League fun and awesome pork sandwiches! (rd34)

Tuesday June 3, 2014 - Played the front with Steve and had a great time socializing. Played the back and realized that I had lost my keys. Took an hour of walking retracing my steps until I found them. Amazing recovery of the greens! (rd33)

Monday June 2, 2014 - Course conditions improving again! Water draining. Great morning! (rd32)

Sunday June 1, 2104 - Heavy rain overnight drenched the course and kept people away so I had the course to myself - sweet!! (rd31)

Saturday May 31, 2014 - Great morning before airport wedding! Lovely day and not too crowded. (rd 30)

Friday May 30, 2014 - Played with Nick and played much better today. Back nine walking a bit much so we will play the front twice next time. (rd28)

Wednesday May 28, 2014 - Sr League repeat win 4/4 ... beautiful day and course conditions improving. (rd27)

Monday May 26, 2014 - Warm morning with some welcome gentle breezes, great sunshine. Course conditions better again. Hit some good long shots, controlled backswing. Great Memorial Day! (rd26)

Sunday May 25, 2014 - Good to see about 15 groups on the course at a time today! I worked my way around in a few gaps. Course better again today with warm weather ... rain expected to help growth of greens some more. 80's today and sunny! (rd25)

Saturday May 24, 2014 - Great weather day as 80 appeared by noon. Memorial Day weekend crowd required playing through and around a few groups, but 3 hours of fun on one of the few courses in the Twin Cities where this would be possible on this day. Walked onto the tee with no tee time at 10:30!!(rd24)

Friday May 23, 2014 - Another day in Paradise! Played 18 and hit many shots more for 3 hours. Greens even better today. (rd23)

Thursday May 22, 2014 - Another gem for weather - hi 60's and sunshine. Course conditions improving every day! Played 18 and hit enough shots for 36. Playing better. Hit RBZ on 11, 7 on 12, 9 on 13, 7 on 15 and tee it up so there is no turf on these shots, Trees removed on 10 makes the tee shot over the trees so much easier. (rd22)

Wednesday May 21, 2014 - Oh, what a beautiful morning! Won the Seniors event (3 for 3) with five 4's. Greens improving more after warm weather growing and rain. Watering system electronics being repaired today. (rd21)

Tuesday May 20, 2014 - Better and better every day in every way - the course, not my golf game. (rd20)

Sunday May 18, 2014 - Even better today - shortsleeves and shorts weather but not too warm - high 60's. Improving conditions every day. Driver 2 on 4, 8 and 9 - like a 3 wood but easy to hit. Hands drop on irons to avoid becoming too handsy. Putter chip works well. (rd19)

Saturday May 17, 2014 - Now that's what I'm talking about - sunshinand temps in the 60's. Greens improving even more after fertilization and antifungal treatment on Friday! Playing better and more consistent. (rd18)

Friday May 16, 2014 - Cold and windy but bearable. Played 18 in 2 hours, good workout! Greens improving daily. Fringes and fairways good. (rd17)

Wednesday May 14, 2014 - Sr League was another up and down day for me as I lost concentration and ran into worse greens and wobbling putts, yet I won again. The greens are improving, however, and there is hope that they will be back to normal in a few weeks at the latest. (rd16)

Tuesday May 13, 2014 - Blustery day, but I played 18 - good exercise. Course conditions improving daily. (rd15)

Monday May 12, 2014 - Rain threatening again, but I played anyway and stayed dry. Warm enough that the gentle breeze was refreshing and not cold - 60's. Course greening up nicely, even the greens are beginning to show promise. (rd14)

Saturday May 10, 2014 - That's what I'm talking about! Great weather! High 60's and no cold breeze. Back nine open. Fun playing the two changed holes. Makes the back nine easier and more fun. (rd13)

Friday May 9, 2014 - Blustery, cool day, but I managed to enjoy the day with an umbrella protecting me from the wind and double neckwarmer headgear, down vest and two gloves. Back nine opened this afternoon after I left the course. Greens are improving, fairways growing nicely. (rd12)

Wednesday May 7, 2014 - Sr. League Day - played fine tee to green, but conditions of the greens led to 5 missed putts under two feet. Five over was good enough to win anyway. Played another round and made several putts to shoot 2 under. Sunshine and 60's made for a great day of golf and growing grass!(rd11)

Tuesday May 6, 2014 - Windy again. Course conditions improving. Game getting better too. (rd10)

Monday May 5, 2014 - Great day with sunshine, 60's, golf buddies, course maintenance, improving greens, greener grass. Wow! (rd9)

Sunday May 4, 2014 - Great sunny day with temps in the 50's and a bit of wind chill. Greens making progress with sunny growing weather. More warmth would help even more. Fairways improving after chemicals. Still not so crowded for a Sunday. Jumped around a little to avoid the few groups out today. (rd8)

Saturday May 3, 2014 - Sunshine on my shoulders makes me happy! Growing day as grass is happy too! Hit lots of practice shots. Low hands, pause, finish backswing, crisp upward hit. Drop club and not too much arm swinging. Even better days ahead! (rd7)

Friday May 2, 2014 - Little bit of rain early, then just cold and windy but the sun came out. Course maintenance under way today, greens cut, some fairways, hope for the greens as they rolled better after cutting (Greenskeeper treating for cutworm and reseeding greens and tees this year). Sunshine in the next week should help growth of grass and recovery. Hit some good shots, low inside takeback, let the club drop into the short shots instead of hands rushing into the ball, weight on left side. (rd 6)

Thursday May 1, 2014 - Rain stopped after 3 days, cold and wind continued. I played anyway with a rain suit and an umbrella to block the wind. I hit some good shots. Greens are still pock-marked with last year's cutworm epidemic.Hoping for a recovery and the opening of the back nine soon. (rd5)

Saturday April 26, 2014 - Cool and windy but not much traffic on a Saturday am. Used umbrella to shield myself from the wind. (rd4)

Friday April 25, 2014 - Cool day but sunny. (rd3)

Monday April 21, 2014 - Windy and cool today but the days ahead with rain, wind and cold temps look worse. (rd2)

Friday April 18, 2014 - Last week I practiced in the mancave and home practice range. Today I practiced at The Dunes range for a couple hours - good results in chipping, putting and shotmaking. I feel like this is the year that I get better results.

Friday April 11, 2014 - AA decided not to open on April 12-13 for skiing after a threat of rain and a week of 60's. So, I began the golf season today at Bellwood Oaks, south of Hastings. Beautiful day, great course conditions, some good shots, a lot of sunshine and 60's. I am eager to play Afton Alps!! (1 round)

Saturday April 5, 2014 - It was a fun day of celebrating the Epic Mix race as Number One Bruce, Number Two Bryan and Number Three Gary (me) taped interviews and skiing to publicize the Epic Mix race. We were each given gifts from the 50th Anniversary collection. Then we had lunch on Afton Alps and Joe Yasis. It was such a fun time getting to know the other guys and hearing their stories! (93 days)

Friday April 4, 2014 - Soft wet snow fell and grooming was not done due to softness of the snow and inability of the groomer to climb the hills without destroying the snow. One run by 7 made my day ok for me. (92 days)

Tuesday April 1, 2014 - Snow would be good today, but all area slopes are closed until Friday ... lack of people on the slopes, not lack of snow. Threat of rain another factor, rain and snow mix.

Wednesday March 26, 2014 - No, this was the best day of the year! Firm and fast snow, but not crusted. (91 days, 850k feet)

Tuesday March 25, 2014 - Great snow today - fast, soft, firm! Windchills near zero with low teen temps.(90 days)

Monday March 24, 2014 - Snowing this am was a bit wet and low visibility and uneven speeds made for not so great conditions, but 90 minutes of that was better than nothing. (89 days)

Sunday March 23, 2014 - Temps in the single digits with windchills near zero. Snow a bit crusty but firm and fast. Not a lot of people for a Sunday. (88 days)

Saturday March 22, 2014 - On my first run, I ran into my son-in-law, grandson and his other grandparents! What a great surprise! We did some skiing, had snacks and lunch together, videotaped Sawyer skiing and had a great cold morning with crisp snow. February-like temps in the low teens with windchills down to zero. No meltdown today. (87 days, over 800k feet)

Friday March 21, 2014 - Great morning with fast snow before a noontime thaw. Visibility adequate early and then sunshine. Temps in the mid 30's enabled me to ski for 4 hours straight. (86 days)

“The Last Run”
Verse by Gary Ritner
Three eagles soared
over the Alps today
Against blue sky
above snow covered peaks.
Seeing them fly so free
I turned to soar as well
Down one side of the bowl
and up another.
Whoosh and whistle
was in my ears from the speed.
Breezes blew on my cheek
and sun warmed
my upturned face,
riding to the top.
Birds sang of spring
and geese flew northward.
Deer tracks made a mosaic
on the corduroy carpet below.
While the days melt away
‘til the very last one,
The memory will linger
as eternally as
the snow returns,
Held tightly until
the last run and beyond.

Thursday March 20, 2014 - Great day with Jim! Good snow that eventually became soft around noon with 40+ temps. (85 days)

Tuesday March 18, 2014 - Best day of the year! Great snow with temps in the low 30's and few people until later in the afternoon. (Approaching 800k feet, 84 days)

Sunday March 17, 2014 - Not very crowded for a Sunday. Temps in the teens made for great snow. Awesome sunshine and blue skies. (83 days)

Saturday March 15, 2014 - Spring Fling events, lots of good conversations. Long day of skiing in the high 20's with great snow at the start. (82 days)

Friday March 14, 2014 - Good snow, good day (81 days)

Thursday March 13, 2014 - Really great day to ski 5 hours. Up to 46 today, but the snow held up in the shadows and on the frontside. Highlands got too soft by 11 am. (80 days)

Wednesday March 12, 2014 - Colder overnight and in the am made for fast snow. Loved it! (79 days)

Monday March 10, 2014 - Almost 50 by noon. Meltdown areas slow and tricky, but staying in the shadows produced some fast runs. (78 days)

Sunday March 9, 2014 - Not crowded until noon, so 30's was great and snow was pretty good. Meltdown in the previous afternoon froze up a little under the surface to produce a few icy spots. (77 days, passed 700k feet)

Saturday March 8, 2014 - Not crowded until 11 am for a day in the mid 20's. Snow held up well for a couple hours and then deteriorated under the pressure. Glad I was there for the great snow and sunshine and warmth. (76 days)

Thursday March 6, 2014 - Windy but 20. Great conditions. Not crowded despite some school busloads. (75 days)

Wednesday March 5, 2014 - Warmed up to 24 today and that felt great. Snow was wonderful and I did not want to leave, but I did after 4 hours and 13k feet (74 days)

Tuesday March 4, 2014 - Up to 18 by midday and people returning. Awesome snow conditions today (73 days, approaching 700k feet).

Monday March 3, 2014 - Zubzero again kept people away, but I was mostly comfortable - just an extra fireside cappuccino break. Got back into 2nd place after taking a few days off for family and a wedding officiating gig. (72 days)

Friday February 28, 2014 - Another subzero day with few people and great conditions. Not much wind, so I was comfortable. Saw Brian and we traveled together for a while. (71 days)

Wednesday February 26, 2014 - Cold winds blowing today and few people out, but the conditions were awesome and I was comfortable, (70 days!)

Monday February 24, 2014 - Another cold day with few people, but I loved it. Then it made my day to run into an old friend. Skiing with him and his son was so much fun! Excellent grooming and snow conditions! (69 days, 620k feet)

Sunday February 23, 2014 - Awesome morning with few people due to below zero windchills (cold am and then windy after noon). Snow soft yet fast and held up well all day. (68 days, 15k feet today and 77 run)

Saturday February 22, 2014 - Great day after 10 inches of snow on Friday. I skipped Friday because of bad roads, blowing snow and too much powder mess. Not very crowded today. Snow fast and soft and it held up well. (67 days, 14k feet, 70 runs)

Thursday February 20, 2014 - Strange day for weather - rain, clearing, wet snow. Even so, the conditions held up and I had a good day. Figured out more about the no. 1 guy in stats today. (66 days)

Wednesday February 19, 2014 - Warming into the upper 30's today. Snow held up well in the morning. People coming out with warmup. Great day! (65 days, approaching 600k feet)

Tuesday February 18, 2014 - Warmup day - 38 degrees by 1 pm. Great snow, considering the warmth. Great to be back after a long weekend with my family at Kalahari Resort in WI Dells. (64 days)

Friday February 14, 2014 - Great grooming this am. Cold yet not so many people. (63 days)

Wednesday February 12, 2014 - Warming to the 20's, fresh inch of powder over grooming, people coming back now that the cold snap is gone. Wonderful day of skiing. (over 3 hours, 50 lifts, 10k feet, 62 days).

Tuesday February 11, 2014 - Still below zero and windchills 20 below but great snow and few people (61 days. 51 lifts, 12k feet)

Monday February 10, 2014 - Cold and few people, but great grooming and fast snow. (60 days, 60 lifts, 20k feet)

Friday February 7, 2014 - Record day for me - 7 hrs, 100 lifts, 20k feet, 59 days ... cold and not many people, but the conditions were great all day and I just couldn't leave.

Thursday February 6, 2014 - After interviewing with a writer for Epic Life, I enjoyed almost 4 hours of great skiing. Grooming was perfect and so fresh all morning because so few ventured out in the cold. It is never too cold to ski. You just need the right clothes. I was quite comfortable despite 20 below windchills and subzero temps. Did not seem to bother the high school sectional meet going on at 1 and 2. Great day! (58 days, approaching 500k feet)

Wednesday February 5, 2014 - Best day for great snow, fast, soft, sunny ... but below zero. I managed to stay warm anyway and enjoyed every minute. (57 days, 47 lifts, 92k feet)

Monday February 3, 2014 - Great day with few people and great grooming. (56 days, 31 lifts, 7500 feet)

Saturday February 1, 2013 - Snowy start, great grooming, not crowded, plenty of good places to ski all day, like 12. (55 days, 67 lifts, 13.5 k feet)

Friday January 31, 2013 - Great day with good grooming after 6 inch snow. (54 days)

Wednesday January 27, 2014 - Great to be back on the slopes after 2 days of being closed for extreme cold (-40 windchills). Good grooming after lots of snowmaking, but it will surely improve in the next few days. (4 hrs, 60 runs, 13k feet, 53 days)

Sunday January 26, 2014 - Snow overnight, blowing wind, cold, not so big for a Sunday crowd. Found some good runs for a 6 hour day. (Day 52, 10k fee)

Saturday January 25, 2014 - Cold start kept the crowd down for a wonderful morning! (Day 51, 57 lifts, 11k feet)

Friday January 24, 2014 - Great day with temps near 30, moderate wind, good grooming, small crowd. (DAY 50! Almost 400k vertical feet)

Wednesday January 22, 2013 - Rough day for weather - below zero, windchills brutal. Four lifts open, snowmaking on half of open runs. Short day for me. (49 days).

Tuesday January 21, 2013 - Started the morning at -12, but I was dressed for it and hardly noticed. Four hours of great skiing with few people out there. Closed half of the chairs/runs due to the cold. It was a really great day! (48 days, 375,000 vertical feet)

Monday January 20, 2013 - Great MLKing, Jr. holiday. Not too crowded. Great snow conditions. Colder and windier by the minute. (47 days, 59 lifts, 12,450 feet)

Sunday January 19, 2013 - Avoided deep, messy powder yesterday. Good morning before crowds arrived. After a few long lift lines, I left. Three hours was enough for me today (46 days, 2nd place in stats)

Friday January 17, 2013 - Great day! Cold (2 degrees and windchill) so not crowded. Good snow, fast, groomed. Four hours - (45 days, climbing back toward no 1 rank).

Thursday January 16, 2013 - Windy day, but 12 and 7 were out of the wind. Temps in 20's and dropping with fast snow. Four hours - (59, 11826, 44 days)

Wednesday January 15, 2013 - After taking a day off to avoid deep powder (injury potential) and waiting for it to be groomed, today was wonderful. Soft snow and good grooming was excellent. Temps started to warm up with 20 by evening. (43 days)

Monday January 13, 2013 - Awesome morning of good snow, good grooming, almost 30 degrees and bright sunshine! (42 days)

Sunday January 12, 2013 - Good morning with warm temps, couple hours before bowing out to the crowd. (41 days).

Saturday January 11, 2013 - Great morning before massive crowd arrived. Temps in the high 20's, grooming great, light decent, fine day! Feeling good again! (51 lifts, 9696 feet, 40 days)

Friday January 10,2013 - Skiing felt great today. Cold snap over, but rain was worse. Rain sidetracked my joy after a couple hours.

Sunday January 5, 2013 - Taking some days off to deal with vertigo ... hoping for solutions better than Dramamine and Sudafed. Trying recommended maneuvers on inner ear issues - Epley maneuver, for example. Withdrew from Epic Mix sharing to focus on my health issues.

Tuesday December 31, 2013 - Great conditions despite -8 degrees. I felt good control over ski sickness until 3 hours. I left before it got worse. Dramamine finally kicked in after I got home. I am expecting to give up Epic Mix so that I do not overdo it. The guy behind me is way more into it with 100 lifts a day.

Monday December 30, 2013 - Another cold one - below zero, but not a problem. Snow was softer today than yesterday. Grooming after freezing and not before made it softer. Discovered that I have "Ski Sickness" today. Balance mechanisms upset by skiing. Motion sickness is no fun - dizziness, nauseous feeling, upset stomach, balance off. Took Dramamine to deal with it. It is sometimes felt in low light skiing, and I felt that today. But it is also felt after skiing hours later.

Sunday December 29, 2013 - As cold as -23 wind chill. Hard snow and fast, and I liked it. Thousands yesterday in the 38 degree temps, but a hundred today perhaps. Made for great skiing and I did not want to quit. (72 lifts, 15233 feet)

Saturday December 28, 2013 - Had a great morning from 9 to noon before the biggest crowd I ever saw arrived. Even 12 was getting busy. I feel for the staff handling such a large crowd. (45, 8995 feet)

Friday December 27, 2013 - Great morning with pure grooming pleasure. Warm day - 34 by noon. Biggest crowds I have ever seen at Afton Alps with cars streaming in and practically no parking left ... on to #10 fairway next. (52, 10,450 feet)

Thursday December 26, 2013 - Great start to the day with few people and great grooming, then the crowds came for a wonderful dy. Managed to find places to avoid people like the sides of 7 and lift 12. (59, 12,779)

Wednesday December 25, 2013 - Five inches of snow overnight made for soft grooming - slower but nice soft feel to the turns. Good turnout for Christmas. (29 lifts, 5847 feet)

Tuesday December 24, 2013 - Great day of grooming with few people (for a school holiday) due to the holiday and 8 below with 20 below windchills. Skied into the chair on most runs without a wait. I warmed up once an hour at the Highlands fireplace and was comfortable most of the time. (45 lifts and 9,600 feet)

Monday December 23, 2013 - Not so busy for a holiday from school due to zero temp and - 10 windchill, but I liked it. (211,000 feet total - 46 and 10066 today). Great grooming, 12 least crowded (like nobody).

Sunday December 22, 2013 - Grooming by 12 held up great! After 2 hours of great skiing, I headed home to avoid the growing crowds.

Saturday December 21, 2013 - Great crowd today with temps in the 20's. Every lift open (except 1). Good conditions holding up in the afternoon. Loved skiing 12 without lines. LZ full of boarders. Rope tow getting a workout. Jumpers exciting. Fun watching so many people having fun! (27 lifts, 5290 feet)

Friday December 20, 2013 - Great day! Great grooming, not too crowded, skied with Bryan all day, good chat ... conditions firm and fast all over. (47 runs, 10,798 feet)

Thursday December 19, 2013 - Windy but great day because the snow was fast and well groomed. Temps in high teens. LZ opened and the rope tow ... great new stuff. Watching jumpers a thrill. (45 runs, 10,357)

Wednesday December 18, 2013 - An even better day today! Temps in the 30's! Grooming awesome!

Tuesday December 17, 2013 - Was this the greatest day of the year? Maybe ... great grooming, 20's for temp, not too crowded, great shows on the jump line, lots of runs and lifts ... yep, best day so far! (46 runs, 10335 feet) I jumped to Number One on the Epic Mix leaderboard today!

Monday December 16, 2013 - Great day with a couple inches of fresh pow! Big jumps opened in the afternoon - wow! That is fun to watch, watch that is! They look like they are having fun and it is so impressive to see what they can do. Highland Chalet open and chair in front of it. Terrain Park features under construction today. Many finished. (48 runs, 11,210 feet)

Sunday December 15, 2013 - Cold day cut down on the crowd, but snow conditions were great, fast, compacted. Jumps completed and more work done on the other terrain park. 40 Trails (more runs opening soon) 12 Chairlifts (Chairs 2,3,4,5,7,9,10,12,14 (41 runs, 9115 feet).

Saturday December 14, 2013 - Great turnout today with single digit temps, new runs open, including lifts 12, 13, 14 and 16. Highlands Chalet opened with packed house in the bar. Jumps on 7 almost completed, features in park almost done. (6 hours, 54 runs, 13,020 feet)

Friday December 13, 2013 - Warmer air ... 14 ... but windchills around 0 ... skiing awesome with excellent grooming. I did a video of the jumps being created on 7. Amazing amount of snow being pushed around! (52 lifts, 12,060 vertical feet today)

Thursday December 12, 2013 - Enjoyed the day caring for and playing with my grandsons (1 and 3)

Wednesday December 11, 2013 - Cold again, so not many ventured out ... but it was great skiing and I stayed warm for 4 hours. Grooming is so smooth. Snowmaking at the far end of the Highlands picking up and expected to be fully open on the weekend. Highlands Chalet to open as well. (28 lifts, 6655 feet today)

Tuesday December 10, 2013 - While the cold snap continues, so does the great skiing. Grooming perfect today. Groomers working on the terrain park again today. Highlands getting lots of snow and progress continues on the Highlands Chalet makeover. (42 lifts, 9143 feet today).

Monday December 9, 2013 - Excellent grooming today opening some new trails. Three or more groomers working on terrain park. Cold (zero and 10 below windchills) day but not one to be missed, considering the few people and the great conditions. Snowmaking more discreet today but still a few snowing on chairs and people. (32 lifts, 7570 feet)

Sunday December 8, 2013 - Great morning before crowds arrived. Few snow guns, like 3 on 7 hitting the chair, put a damper (literally) on the fun. However, conditions were great. When 6 opened around noon, things got really great. By 2:30 lines on 5, 6, 14 made me leave and arrive home in time to watch the wild finish to the Vikings game.(37 lifts for 8171 feet)

Saturday December 7, 2013 - Cold day but great skiing wherever the snow guns were not making for trouble. Apparently the snowmakers are not skiers ... blinding clouds, rain in the face, snowmaking on active runs, guns aimed at chairs ... give me a warm enough day for snowmakers to stop this bad behavior. Seven was the best run again, both sides. Exciting to see mountains of snow on runs surely opening soon. (36 runs today for 7992 feet - not too bad for a subzero windchill day).

Friday December 6, 2013 - Temps dropped to about 4 degrees with windchills in the subzero teens. Nevertheless, I found some great skiing and stayed warm. There was a huge snow cloud over Afton Alps from lots of snowmaking (see photo at the bottom of this page). There were some snow guns to avoid, but I found a great fast run on the Alps side of Chair 7 and kept coming back to it as the best run without slow snow or snow guns. (13 days, 45 hours, 538 lifts, 130,365 vertical feet).

Thursday December 5, 2013 - After spending yesterday with my grandsons, today was a longer day than usual with 61 runs and 12,400 feet. Snowmaking made several runs off limits for me, but the left side of 7 was great all day. Fast snow in the extreme cold (8 degrees and subzero windchill).

Wednesday December 4, 2013 - enjoy my grandsons day.

Tuesday December 3, 2013 - Snow quality was excellent despite some light rain and then snow. 2,4,5,7,10,14 running (11 days, 33 hrs, 40 lifts, 10,000 feet).

Monday December 2, 2013 - Grooming excellent today. Kids out of school, but not crowded. Chairs 2,4,5,7,10,14 running. Light dusting of snow overnight filled in the grooming pattern and slowed things just a bit early in the day, warming slowed things later in the afternoon. (10 days, 32 hrs, 384 lifts, 96000 vertical feet).

Sunday December 1, 2013 - One fine day. Lots of people but not too crowded. Still skied into many chairs. Temps in the 30's and no snowmaking while skiing. From 1:30-5:30 and caught the Vikings win in the chalet. (9)

Saturday November 30, 2013 - Applause! Applause! Applause! What a great day at Afton Alps! 23 trails, 8 chairlifts (Chair 2,3,4,5,7,9,10,14)and Meadows Conveyor. Good turnout but not too crowded. Conditions fast and solid, not deep ruts or piles of snow. Epic Mix improved today and close to accurate. Ticket checking on lift lines becoming smoother every day. (8)

Friday November 29, 2013 - Thanksgiving with daughter's family and grandsons.

Thanksgiving am - more open 3 chairs in the meadows and 7, 5 4 before noon.1, 2 and 3 grooming begun but not open before noon. (7)

Wednesday November 27, 2013 - Great snow today on 4,5 and then 10 (opened at 1:30). Good crowd for a school day. Groomers working on mountains of snow especially preparing 6 and 7. 1, 2 and 3 should be ready for grooming soon with lots of snow on them now. Meadows Chalet ready to open. More rails set up on both sides of 10. From current conditions report: "Number of Trails: 3 trails, 2 chairlifts (Chair 4 and 5) and at 3:30pm we will open chair 7 and 9 or 10, so in the evening we will have 7 trails and 4 chairlifts (Chair 4, 5, 7 and 9 or 10) (We will open more trails on Thursday November 28th)."(6)

Tuesday November 26, 2013 - Another great morning of fast snow, packed well on Chair 5. Snowmaking in many places. 1, 2 and 3 well covered and ready to go whenever (Thursday perhaps). Epic Mix issues still in progress (not recording accurately yet), Chair 10 opened after 3:30.(5)

Monday November 25, 2013 - Great morning of well groomed skiing on 5. Ten is closed until 3:30 pm. Epic Mix is being tweaked to fix an issue with short fast runs. So, only half of my runs were recorded yesterday when there were no lines to slow me down. Shortening the recycle time will fix this. Not sure when. It was a great morning, but Friday should be even better with more runs open. Several areas have enough snow now. Snowmaking stopped for temps in the 30's today, but into the 20's tonight and snowmaking will resume (I think). (4)

Sunday November 24, 2013 - Great afternoon with lots of kids. Lifts 4, 5 and 10 open. Snowmaking mountains of snow on 3 and some other areas as well. More trails to open on Friday Nov 29. Three pipes pumping out big streams of water to keep up with the snow guns. Temps good for snowmaking all day. Five was a little rugged from use by afternoon, but 10 held up really well all day and I had a blast running the sides while kids stayed mostly on the rails. Monday normal operating hours - according to a lift supervisor. (3)

Saturday November 23, 2013 - Opening Day at Afton Alps was awesome: lots of kids, 3 lifts (4,5 and 10). After 2 pm, the run by 10 was 1/3 terrain park features, but the sides were clear for skiing. Snow guns were throwing all day long and maybe for the next week of cold weather. It won't take long to open a lot of runs with that much snowmaking! (2 - 3101 feet)

November 9, 2013 - While waiting for Afton Alps (Vail Resorts) to finish snowmaking and other upgrades valued at ten million dollars, I started the season at Trollhaugen. It was really great to be back on any slopes, but I am so stoked to enjoy the new features and snowmaking at Afton Alps. (1)

Tuesday 11/19/13 - Not over yet! Played Eagle Valley ... goose poop put a damper on the otherwise good course conditions. Weather forecasters promised 50 but it never made it out of the low 40's with a 25 mph wind and gusts that made it feel like 25. I wore ski goggles when the wind was at its worst. Guys passed and laughed but complemented me for nice goggles. I played very well, shooting in the high 70's. I enjoyed it a lot despite the cold. I wore my Columbia vest over my Callaway shirt, which made it easier to swing than other options. I think that might do it for the 2013 golf season. (154)

Friday 11/15/13 - Played River Oaks with some rain and wind, but nobody in front or behind and I could hit as many shots as I wanted and listen to music. Loved it! (153)

Tuesday 11/5/13 - Played Havanna course in The Villages with Nick ...great Florida vacation! (152)

Monday 11/4.13 - Played Palmer Legends Course in The Villages, Florida. Beautiful 70's day from the very tips. (151)

Sunday 10/27/13 - Almost 60 degrees on the last announced day of Afton golf. Played 150 of 184 days of the season. (150)

Friday 10/25/13 - Cold and windy ... yet sunny ... but I played and there were about 6 others there too. Sunday is the last day of the season ... six months compared to almost 8 last year. (149)

Wednesday 10/23/13 - I was the only player today with 37 degrees and 25 degree windchill. I thought it was great. I was almost too warm at times with 3 neckwarmers. Hit some great shots and putts. Scored close to par.(148)

Tuesday 10/22/13 - I was one of 2 people who played today. I thought that 38 was quite comfortable with neck warmers on my head. (147)

Monday 10/21/13 - Took a couple days off due to rain and snow and cold, but today was almost 40 with no wind and I liked it. One other person on the course around noon. (146)

Friday 10/18/13 - Another sunny day of cool air but comfortable with covered ears. Big rain overnight greening up the course nicely.(145)

Thursday 10/17/13 - Lovely day of cool sunshine. (144)

Wednesday 10/16/13 - Caught up with seniors and had a good chat and social time. High 40's but well dressed. (143)

Monday 10/14/13 - Another great weather day for October in MN. Tuesday closed for rain. Rain has helped course to recover from late summer drought that browned out the fairways and prevented recovery of the greens from aeration. (142)

Saturday 10/12/13 - Nice day with 50's. (141)

Wednesday 10/9/13 - Another day in Paradise! (140)

Tuesday 10/8/13 - Played with Steve Dalune. Great time and talk! (139)

Monday 10/7/13 - Beautiful day and round! (138)

Saturday 10/5/13 - Almost nobody on not so great weather day. (138)

Friday 10/4/13 - Cool and few players. (137)

Wednesday 10/2/13 - Caught up with Seniors on a beautiful morning ... three birdies (3, 7, 8), 1 under par on the front nine.(136)

Tuesday 10/1/13 - Great, sunny morning of 70 with gentle breezes. Playing well. (135)

Monday 9/30/13 - Sunny and breezy and few players ... awesome day! (134)

Sunday 9/29/13 - Sunny and 70 and few people playing ... no waiting ... playing great! Par fives in 2 ... good wedges (133)

Saturday 9/28/13 - Out before the rain again. Hitting it long! (132)

Friday 9/27/13 - Fine day with some wind and clouds but out before the rain came. (131)

Wednesday 9/25/13 - Fine day with some of the seniors ahead of me. Hitting high ball with good carry. (130)

Tuesday 9/24/13 - Beautiful morning with few players and then a bunch just before noon as I was leaving. (129)

Monday 9/23/13 - Beautiful cool morning of jacket weather for a while. Found lots of balls in 8 woods again. (128)

Sunday 9/22/13 - Beautiful day for a golf event at Afton. Despite aerated greens with cutworm damage and a windy day, we managed five under and prizes ... card match with another five under team. (127)

Saturday 9/21/13 - Quick round before wedding ... nobody here on a Saturday with great weather! TPC Blaine charges $200+ for a round! Afton $200+ for a whole season of rounds! (126)

Friday 9/20/13 - Another quick round before rain.(125)

Thursday 9/19/13 - Got to love the hard rain that was long overdue, pushing me to a fast 6 holes and running for cover.(124)

Tuesday 9/17/13 - Summit with Nick ... nice day! (123)

Monday 9/16/13 - Cool morning with a towel around my neck - 50's but sunny. Three birdies. (122)

Saturday 9/14/13 - Not crowded for a Saturday. Temps in the mid 60's. Aeration not so bad but holes have too little sand in them. (121)

Friday 9/13/13 - Beautiful! Breezes and 64! Aerated greens putted pretty well. Eagled 6, birdied 7 ... shot 2 under. (120)

Wednesday 9/11/13 - Nice weather! Good numbers. Fun play! (119)

Tuesday 9/10/13 - No crowds, great am, Todd and Bruce, Jim and Len ... some breezes on warm day. (118)

Monday 9/9/13 - Great morning with few people. Snowmaking equipment arriving. (117)

Saturday 9/7/13 Some event slowed the course today, but I managed to play few holes several times to get a workout. (116)

Friday 9/6/13 - Beautiful morning of sunshine and fresh breezes. Played with Charlie for some holes. Hit some great ones! (115)

Wednesday - 9/4/13 - Played with seniors league folks ... hit some good shots. 'Don't you get tired of hearing 'Nice Shot!'? (114)

Tuesday - 9/2/13 - Great day with mild temps. (113)

Saturday 8/31/13 - Fast 45 minute round before wedding while Emmy waited. (112)

Friday 8/30/13 - Great round before a wedding rehearsal. Not crowded. Great weather! (111)

Thursday 8/29/13 - wonderful morning with few on the course. refreshing breezes with hot sun. Found a couple dozen balls and hit some good shots. Walked 11k steps. (110)

Wednesday 8/28/13 - Last sr league day, great lunch, lots of fun (109)

Tuesday 8/27/13 - hot one but almost nobody else out here, so I was happy. (108)

Monday 8/26/13 - 8:30 start with some sweatin, but great day anyway! (107)

Sunday 8/25/13 - 9 am start and not so much traffic, plenty of open spaces to play. (106)

Saturday 8/24/13 - Warming up to 90's but the air keeps moving. Early play and wiping the brow without hat or glasses makes it bearable. Ball rolling far in the rough, fairways well watered. (105)

Friday 8/23/13 - Beautiful morning. Back on No. 1-9. Loving my regripped Hybrid! Lots of free space this am and some early cool fresh air despite rising temps into high 80's later in the day and rising for the week. (104)

Wednesday 8/21/13 - won Sr league with 1 over on 8 pars and 1 bogie .. Missed 4 putts under 10 feet! (103)

Tuesday 8/20/13 - great day (102)

Monday 8/19/13 - played with steve d and had a good time. (101

Sunday 8/18/13 - Busy day at AA! Managed to skip holes and get in my round on a great weather day of sunshine, warm sun and refreshing air movement. (100)

Saturday 8/17/13 - Wonderful morning with little traffic for a Saturday. (99)

Friday 8/16/13 - Another day in Paradise! Warming trend coming up for a week or so after 2 weeks of northern cool air. Playing well with three birdies and mostly pars. No. 1 closed, playing 10/9/2 instead. (98)

Wednesday 8/14/13 - Sr League went well ... left to take Emmy to SOS and gave first place to Ken. Beautiful day! Cool and sunny! Played really well tee to green, but missed 4 x 8 footers and still shot 1 over 38 with a birdie and 2 bogies. (97)

Tuesday 8/13/13 - Cool again and fewer people to dodge. (96)

Monday 8/12/13 - Cool air keeps blowing in from the North, making for pleasant yet sunny days. Dodged people to get my round in. (95)

Sunday 8/11/13 - Played quick round before PGA showdown. Not many people at all and skipping and coming back was great with 12 holes in an hour on a sunny 72 day. Good workout!(94)

Saturday 8/10/13 - Great morning of cool sunshine and not too many people. (93)

Friday 8/9/13 - Really beautiful, sunny yet cool breezes day without much crowding. Another day in Paradise! Then home just in time for TV coverage of the PGA. (92)

Thursday 8/8/13 - Won the Wrestling Fundraiser (Tom Keene Memorial) with Dave, Dillon and David Augustine at 13 under. Lots of fun! (91)

Wednesday 8/7/13 - Caught up with Sr League and won again with lowest putts. Sunny and low 70's - another day in Paradise. Great Chicken Marsala for lunch. What a golf club! (90)

Tuesday 8/6/13 - Played 10, 17 and 18 while kids camp finished up and then 12 holes on the front. Not too cool, not too warm, (89)

Monday 8/5/13 - Great day ... waited until after noon and played without much crowding. Hit some good shots ... hold out a wedge for an eagle. Practiced for Thursday scramble. Cut shot is becoming more straight when I don't exaggerate the right hand. (88)

Sunday 8/4/13 - Good timing to squeeze in some holes before crowding. Cool temps for August, about 72, and very pleasant. Home to watch Tiger and 3M (87)

Saturday 8/3/13 - Played before 3M again. Beat the crowd on a cool but short-sleeve 60's morning. Then talked to Nancy Lopez and Pat Bradley and enjoyed 7 hours of watching and walking the course. Awesome experience with so much emotion about seeing so many legends all in one place! (86)

Friday 8/2/13 - Played before 3M Championship on a cool morning, then a long fun day with Lehman, Rocco and a chat and autograph on my favorite visor (85)

Tuesday 7/30/13 - took Emmy and Ellie to Enderlin golf course = fun time! (84)

Monday 7/29/13 - rain shortened round at Oakes and another - broke 80 - at enderlin (82-83)

Sunday 7/28/13 - played Enderlin for 7 hours x 18 per hour by cart (75-81)

Saturday 7/27/13 - great cool morning and few players ... Then wind and rain after. (74)

Friday 7/26/13 - Welcome cool days (when it could be 90). Barely 70 with some sunshine that was warm enough and some breeze that was cool enough - just right day! Few people on the course made for easy play and a very pleasant time! (73)

Thursday 7/25/13 - Played from 7-9 am before the kids campers arrived. Beautiful morning! (72)

Wednesday 7/24/13 - Sr League ... won a sleeve of Pro V1's ... made a putt saving fifteen footer on 4 to seal the deal. Cooler weather was awesome ... 70 at tee time and pleasant all the way. (71)

Tuesday 7/23/13 - Beautiful morning in the high 60's. Played around kids camp and got plenty of exercise. (70)

Monday 7/22/13 - Played a round and then the Carpenter Nature Center Event. Hit from red tees like we thought we were supposed to ... that was fun. Shot 12 under in a 15 hole event. Would have won small first prize, but withdrew our card to avoid controversy. Hilights included me driving one and ten foot downhill putt for Eagle 2 and prize. Also won long drive contest. Two good meals, free beer, John paid fees, what a day!(68-69)

Saturday 7/20/13 - 7 am start with beautiful weather, cool NW breeze with warm sun. Finish by 9:45 ... few people at start but more later. Silver dollar starting on greens and fairways (need Nitrogen treatments?). British Open good watch with Tiger and Westwood. Practicing for Monday scramble tournament going well. (67)

Friday 7/19/13 - Played some holes with Hank prior to Monday event. String of great weather days after a warm sun today with a cool refreshing breeze occasionally. (66)

Thursday 7/18/13 - 7:45 start to beat the 94 predictions and the youth campers at 9 am. Played 10, 17, 18 again. Good workout. (65)

Wednesday 7/17/13 - Sr League with different game on every hole. Won one hole and in the running on another. Excellent big burger lunch with potato salad, fries, drink - like a free lunch on Afton. Played with Bernie and Toni (they play fast) - enjoyable variety. (64)

Tuesday 7/16/13 - Hot spell, but good workout. Played 10, 17, 18 then front after kids left. Enjoyable day! (63)

Monday 7/15/13 - Some more people than usual for a Monday morning with a 9 am start ... shooting for earlier tomorrow on a streak of hot days. (62)

Sunday 7/14/13 - Late afternoon romp ... love playing 15 holes on the front nine! Almost no openings to play because of the great turnout today in hot weather with a little breeze. (61)

Saturday 7/13/13 - Maneuvered around some groups for an awesome day with great temps and air. (60)

Friday 7/12/13 - Recovered from 15 hour overnight drive by afternoon and played ... so good to be back at my home course ... right price, right people, right conditions .. home sweet home! (59)

Thursday 7/11/13 - Golf with a high school golf team friend (46 years since we last played together)and then a reunion with other high school friends (58)

Tuesday 7/9/13 - In West Virginia by Oglebay Resort for golf with high school friend again on Palmer course. He had 6 birdies and I had 2 ... great day! (57)

Sunday 7/7/13 - 9 am start today. A hot one approaching. Nobody behind me ... must be in church ... after 11 many more folks showing up. Today is the last day of the back nine being open until work is done on skiing-related improvements. More pipes and a bigger reservoir for snowmaking, compressor improvements as well. (56)

Saturday 7/6/13 - 7:30 start to beat the heat, nice air flow kept it comfortable. Shot of the day: 80 yard wedge on 17 - "I think it is ok, it is good, it is in the hole! Eagle!" (55)

Friday 7/5/13 - 8 am beat the crowd, smooth sailing, air moving and pleasant, great morning (54)

Thursday - 7/4/13 - Lots of people out enjoying golf today! Dodged, played through, walked around and managed to almost get the right amount of steps and 18 holes in today before it became really warm. (53)

Wednesday - 7/3/13 - Not many folks out today, easy round in 2 hours with ideal weather and great course conditions. (52)

Tuesday 7/2/13 - Awesome morning with few people on the course at 8 am ... two hours for 18 ... love it! (51)

Monday 7/1/13 - Jr PGA event closed the course in the am, so I played in the evening. It was a beautiful night. (50)

Sunday 6/30/13 - Played after church on the first of a promising long line of beautiful days without rain. Skipped around or played through a few groups enjoying the day as well. (49)

Saturday 6/29/13 - At Cragun's today to officiate a wedding, but managed a couple hours of golf at Madden's range and putting greens. (48)

Friday 6/28/13 - People on my course ... but I dodged them and had a great cool morning. (47)

Wednesday 6/26/13 - Sr day ... 2 birdies, 39, good lunch ... finished and then it rained heavily ... again (46)

Tuesday 6/25/13 - Beautiful morning! Cool breeze in a hot sun felt great! (45)

Monday 6/24/13 - Awesome morning with Thomas, where I hit one great shot after another ... close to par (44)

Saturday - 6/22/13 - Beautiful morning with few people until I was leaving. (43)

Friday - 6/21/13 - 8:45-10:30 quick 18, played well ... nobody in front .. getting on to the hot tub and home for day with grandsons. Where else can you play 18 in less than 2 hours?!!(42)

Thursday - 6/20/13 - played early to beat the heat ... Oh what a great day (41)

Wednesday - 6/19/13 - Another spectacular morning! Sr. League ... pick four holes out of the hat - get par 3's and you win. I didn't ... good laughs at some awful shots. Good putting saved the day ... 50 footer and 20 footer drained. (40)

Tuesday - 6/18/13 - Beautiful morning! Power fade improving every day. Turkeys on the course. Last little pile of snow melting away today. (39)

Monday - 6/17/13 - Played Emerald Greens with Steve E. Great weather. Missed the Alps. Greens huge and holes long, easy to lose balls in the rough. (38)

Saturday - 6/15/13- Beautiful morning with great temp - cooling breeze with low 70's. Almost nobody on the course at 8 am ... sailed around in about 2 hours. People arriving later. Good plan to play early. Fantastic! (37)

Friday - 6/14/13 - Beautiful morning with great temp - cooling breeze with low 70's. Hotel pool closing to open swim - bummer. (36)

Wednesday - 6/12/13 - Sr. League rained on ... one hole played. Came back and played in the late afternoon. (35)

Tuesday - 6/11/13 - Great day! Avoided rain. (34)

Monday - 6/10/13 - Played 36! (32-33)

Sunday - 6/9/13 - Played around noon. Good day. (31)

Saturday - 6/8/13 - Awesome day! Temps in the low 70's ... cool air that was refreshing ... sunny. Birds singing, deer abundant, turkeys gobbling ... Course in perfect shape. Nobody behind me or in front of me on a Saturday morning between 8:30 and 10:30 ... smooth sailing for 18 in 2 hours of leisurely walking. Is this the Twilight Zone? Most courses in the area are overcrowded, take 5 hours to play and tee times are hard to get on a Saturday am. Played well. Shot 75 ... birdies and bogies. This is my idea of Heaven! (30)

Friday - 6/7/13 - That's what I'm talkin' about! Nice weather today ... calm and 60 ... sunshine here and there. Hit some great shots. Course best condition ever! Back nine closes July 8 for ski work ... and maybe for the rest of the season. Highlands/Golf Shop renovation removing balacony ... opened up the corner and let in more light and sky view ... good idea! (29)

Thursday - 6/6/13 - Another day of cool weather and threatening mist - course to myself ... sweet! (28)

Wednesday 6/5/13 - Raining and cool and breezy ... not so great shots from under trees and rough in Senior League but some really good shots too. Great hamburger lunch! (27)

Tuesday 6/4/13 - Cool morning with a few raindrops and some breezes, but that meant I had the course to myself - almost. Found 50 balls in 8 woods ... love walking through the woods and finding good balls! Saw three fawns, four does and 10 turkeys! Great day! (26)

Monday 6/3/13 - Beautiful morning! 60's and sunny, few golfers around 8 am. They came later. Wonderful day with some good shots and lots of learning ... always learning ... my swing, the course, etc. (25)

Sunday 6/2/13 - Busy day with couples and parents and kids, but 1 pm start worked out pretty well. I played through slow groups, hit extra balls to cope with mid-speed groups and enjoyed a sunny, yet a little cool afternoon. (24)

Saturday 6/1/13 - Beautiful morning! Grooming of the course is great! Several holes used today for a church tournament. I managed to find some space here and there to enjoy the day. Geese, deer and turkeys ... and birdies too! (23)

Friday 5/31/13 - Wow! What a great day! 70's with a refreshing breeze! Course in great shape! Photo of tiny fawn and video of geese families. Playing well. Canyons added to Epic Pass. (22 - under $10 per round)

Wednesday 5/29/13 - Now, that's what I'm talkin' 'bout! Some sunshine and 70 degrees. (21)

Tuesday 5/28/13 - And I thought yesterday's weather was bad ... rain today forced me off after 13 holes. (20)

Monday 5/27/13 - Beat the weather today! Windchills hit the 40's with 30 mph gusts, but I did not mind after wearing neck warmer on my head to cover my ears, scarf around my neck to cover skin and an umbrella to shield me from the wind. (19)

Sunday 5/26/13 - Wind chills again ... (18)

Saturday 5/25/13 - Another cool, windy day, but it kept the course open for me ... 4 groups out today?! Found about 40 balls in various woods ... fun hiking day in the woods out of the wind. Saw deer (including newborn fawn), turkeys and birds. Snow almost melted except for biggest piles. (17)

Friday 5/24/13 - Still? Really? ... chilly wind again (16)

Thursday 5/23/13 - Cold morning with chilly wind ... annoying cold spell ... getting old! (15)

Wednesday 5/22/13 - Missed the rain, caught the cold wind eventually ... still, glad I played today. Good workout! (14)

Tuesday 5/21/13 - Great morning with 60's and gentle breeze. Course in great shape after lots of rain over a few days. Finished dry and rain followed soon after. Playing well ... straight takeback ... putting open stance looking down the line ... hitting high cut drives rather than hooks. (13)

Monday 5/20/13 - Great morning of sunshine, 70 and a refreshing breeze ... finished round and rain fell off and on in the pm. Saw tiniest deer ever, short legs, running on his own by 18. (12)

Saturday 5/18/13 - Rained all morning and assumed the day was lost, but sun emerged at noon and temps went to 82 with air moving to keep it bearable in bright sun. (11)

Friday 5/17/13 - Cool day but not so bad. (10)

Wednesday 5/15/13 - 65 at 9 am ... course in great shape, greens beautiful! Birdied 5, eagled 6, birdied 7, birdied 10 ... shot 70 ... swinging well, some putts dropped. What a game! (9)

Monday 5/13/13 - Cool morning but warming to 70. Played really well! Missed a few days with Bronchitis and cold wet weather.(8)

Wednesday 5/8/13 Oh what a beautiful morning! Almost 70 degrees by 9 am and hit 81 by afternoon. Found 50 balls on the back nine, which was now open. Grass green from snow melt. Huge piles of snow plowed off of the fairways. Amazing site! (7)

Tuesday 5/7/13 Greens cut today and getting faster. Hit 81 by mid afternoon. High 60's and 70+ in the am when I played. Back nine opened at 3 pm today. (6)

Monday 5/6/13 Course greening up with 70's today. (5)

Tuesday 4/30/13 Another day of 70's and few people - almost Heaven. (4)

Monday 4/29/13 With 70's again today ... front nine only still snow melts on the back nine, then close back nine in July for construction related to skiing/snowmaking (probably for rest of the season). Great day today ... a few more than usual for a Monday but 70's for a couple days with possible snow by Wednesday and low 40's surely convincing a few to play. (3)

Sunday 4/28/13 Ellie and I played in 70 degree weather - now the grass can start greening up more and our spirits are lifted. (2)

Friday 4/26/13 John and I videotaped my playing of the 2nd hole to kick off a new golf season - opening day 2013.

Monday April 14, 2013 - Snow and cold weather has delayed the start of the golf course opening ... and skiing has ended ... time for some spring cleaning and extra gym workouts. Maybe next weekend the golf course will open.

Friday March 29, 2013 - Another excellent morning in the 20's - fast and well groomed! Then it started getting cloudy, slushy with high 30's and a little sprinkle and tons of people showed up for Good Friday day off school and work skiing ... and I am out of here.... last day of the season for me and March 30 was the last day for AA. (79)

Thursday March 28, 2013 - Another excellent morning in the 20's - fast and well groomed! (78 out of 125 days of skiing ... missed 47 days)

Wednesday March 27, 2013 - Twenties at 10 am opening. Snow held up well, especially in shady areas. Great morning! (77)

Tuesday March 26, 2013 - Sub freezing temps made for good snow, along with great grooming. Snow softening in some places by noon, but still great day. Countdown 4 days left unless some bonus days happen April 6-7. Some plowing of snow off the golf course back nine! (76)

Monday March 25, 2013 - Great morning! Sub-thirty temps kept the snow in great shape. Sad to hear that the Highlands is closed for the season, despite great snow conditions there. It's a business and some things have to be done for good business reasons. (75)

Saturday March 23, 2013 - Great conditions on a chilly March morning after spring has sprung (not). Crowds were amazing in a week that never happened last year! (74)

Friday March 22, 2013 - Great day with some cold temps continuing to preserve the snow. Temps a year ago at 70 and snow was slush. Skiing in shorts. Far different from today. (73)

Thursday March 21, 2013 - Another perfect day for snow conditions and people appeared in good numbers after a warmup (after below zero windchills early) around noon ... best time of the year - bonus days! (72)

Wednesday March 20, 2013 - Conditions were the best ever today despite some chilly wind - snow was firm and fast with a soft surface. It should be even better when the temps rise over the next few days. (71)

Sunday March 17, 2013 - Not so many people out today for a Sunday and fewer lifts running. Cold enough (20) for the snow to hold up well. Had a great 2-hour run after church. Another 10 days to match the most days of skiing from last year. (70)

Saturday March 16, 2013 - Spring Fling Day ... fun time with Jessica and Chris. Poor Sawyer crashed and burned with a cold and tears. Fast surface that softened up around 1 pm when we left. So much better than last year's season-end meltdown when it was 70 degrees on this day. Barely 20 today. (69)

Monday March 11, 2013 - Not so bad today despite dusting of snow producing inconsistent conditions ... Some good fast runs. (68)

Saturday March 9, 2013 - Rain held off for 2 hours from 9-11, and I had a great time on good grooming. (67)

Friday March 8, 2013 - Great morning! Sunshine and 30. Snow holding up. School break began and lift lines increased by noon ... gone. Investment of 10 million by Vail, main chalet for sure .. fireplace? I hope. (66)

Wednesday March 6, 2013 - Outstanding sunny day after 8 inches of snow was groomed. A little loose and slow, but good. Still like the ice crystals made by AA better. They are faster and groom tighter and stay that way, compared to the fluff of an 8 inch snowfall that gets rutted quickly. (65)

Monday March 4, 2013 - Great day! Snow on the way. Back nine will stay open in 2013. Snowballs to golfballs pass continued. Foot of new snow by Tuesday night ... New boost for longer ski season! (64)

Friday March 1, 2013 - Yet another awesome day at AA! Groomers created a work of art! Temps great and snow holding up well. New passes with great options and keeping some traditional fantastic values! Not to worry. It just gets better! (63)

Wednesday February 27, 2013 - Another perfect day! (62)

Tuesday February 26, 2013 - Pile on the awesome! 30 degrees and sunshine on great grooming! Doesn't get any better! (61)

Monday February 25, 2013 - Oh what a morning! Great grooming! Temps around 30, foggy and low light but visibility ok. Snow conditions excellent again! (60)

Saturday February 23, 2013 - Fabulous day in the am after that fluffy stuff from yesterday was groomed! Lots of people! (59)

Friday February 22, 2013 - A few inches of new fluffy snow was nice and ungroomed, but it turned ugly quickly as the worked over powder created deep holes and piles of snow - one of them sent me into a tumble as my skis stopped and my body kept going. I landed on my back and my head snapped back against the ground. Wearing a helmet saved my life! Groom that stuff after it gets ugly! (58)

Wednesday February 20, 2013 - Cold ...brrr ... 15 below windchills, but I dressed for it and stayed warm. Snow was great, fewer people than usual, sunny skies ... glad I went and had a great day! (57)

Monday February 18, 2013 - President's Day crowd kept coming as I was leaving at noon. I enjoyed a couple hours of great skiing in the morning with good grooming, soft snow and 30 degrees. (56)

Sunday February 17, 2013 - Was this the biggest day of the year for attendance? Cars everywhere! Lift lines not too long before noon, but people kept coming. Conditions were great as firm snow held up to skiing. Temps in the 20's and beautiful blue skies, (55)

Friday February 15, 2013 - And then it got better. What a great day! Grooming awesome. No lift lines! (54)

Wednesday February 13, 2013 - Looks like today was the best day of the year instead. Grooming left a soft surface, temps in the 20's, sunshine, no busloads of people, no race training or racing, no lift lines ... just another great day in Paradise! (53)

Tuesday February 12, 2013 - Was this the best day of the year? Yes!! Sunshine, blue sky, 20 something degrees, fast grooming but not icy, good turnout .. loved it! (52)

Monday February 11, 2013 - Snow and ice overnight with wind drifting snow across hard packed snow left some slippery conditions, but I managed to find some spots out of the wind with tolerable crust. (51)

Friday February 8, 2013 - Was this the best day ever? Sunshine, perfect grooming, lots of school trips today but plenty of room for everybody. Temps mild in the 20's with no wind. (50th day of skiing for me ... how many more? 20? 30?

Wednesday February 6, 2013 - Warming to teens with great grooming and flurries with a very wintery day (49).

Tuesday February 5, 2013 - Cool start in low teens and then winds made it feel colder despite reaching 28. Good skiing ... especially where it was groomed. Some clamor for powder and it was there - a couple inches on top of grooming. For me, it is too slow. Groomed spots were fast and I loved them the best. (48)

Monday February 4, 2013 - Best grooming ever on a single digit morning with 30's for a week in sight. (47)

Friday February 1, 2013 - Cold, new snow, good grooming (46)

Wednesday January 30, 2013 - Windchills around zero but temps in teens ... great grooming today - again! (45)

Monday January 28, 2013 - 30's today ... 3 inches of new snow ... great grooming ... wet chairs (used garbage bag for a seat cover) ... good turnout ... great day (44)

Saturday January 26, 2013 - Warming into the teens, wind not too bad. Conditions great with every lift running. Lots of groups on busloads led to some bunching on a few lifts, but avoiding crowds possible. Was this the biggest turnout in two years? Maybe. Had a great day finding openings on lifts with good grooming and no snowmaking. (43)

Friday January 25, 2013 - Great day as grooming improved in the Highlands. Good turnout with groups present. Snowmaking less intrusive. Temps hit 20 but windchills crazy below zero. (42)

Thursday January 24, 2013 - 2 below and 10 below windchills ... Nevertheless, a good day ... Snowmaking out of control and grooming behind schedule... Made the best of it, finding the good runs ... 7 opened eventually ... 12 closed, 17 a mess from snowmaking .. 41

Wednesday January 23, 2013 - Hit the teens today. Snowmaking closed 7 and 12 (my favorites) but there were plenty of good trails open. Wind picked up just before noon and sent windchills well below zero. Still, it was a great day and conditions provided for lots of fun. (40)

Tuesday January 22, 2013 - Despite the subzero temps today, it was a great day! Tips for staying warm: wear toe warmers, hand warmers, cover all skin, layer ... go inside once an hour (warm up at the fireplace in the Highlands chalet and have a hot drink), turn away from the wind, find a run that goes with the wind ... and enjoy. The best part of a day like today is great grooming, no waiting on chairs and the encouragement of others, including lift operators. Don't get scared. Be prepared and enjoy! (39)

Sunday January 20, 2013 - Almost zero ... Keeping people away ... Good grooming ... No lift lines

Friday January 18, 2013 - Great fun! 40 by noon ... Conditions great!

Thursday January 17, 2013 - Grooming awesome, temps high teens, great day ... slipped away after lots of fun as the day belonged to several groups of teens and adults ... good crowd. Spoiled me did not want to wait on lift lines with groups traveling together.

Wednesday January 16, 2013 - Another super day at AA! Temps up to 30, great grooming, not too crowded. Day 35.

Tuesday January 15, 2013 - Great grooming today! One of the best days in the Highlands following three groomers. Temps in the 20's. Good turnout. Another day in Paradise. To see my video on YouTube Click Here

Monday January 14, 2013 - Warm weather, rain, family events and illness kept me away for 5 days ... ahhh, withdrawal! But today was great with below zero windchills to separate the real hardy ones from the casual folks ... great grooming with some lifts to myself for a long time this am. (33)

Wednesday January 10, 2013 - Another great day in Paradise. Temps in the high 20's-low 30's, snow perfect in the am, grooming great, no slalom events, not much traffic before noon. (32 days on the slopes)

Tuesday January 9, 2013 - Just when I think that it can't get any better, it does. Another even more awesome day at AA! Thanks to all who made it great!

Monday January 8, 2013 - Best day of the year so far ... grooming, sunshine, 28 degrees, small crowd, no slalom events ... whooppee! Tip of the day: If you like to maximize time on the slope and minimize time in the chair as I do, try these three chairs - 7, 12 and 17/18. The runs are Blue Diamonds. The lifts are shorter length trips up the hill. You get a better workout because you are not sitting as long between runs. Ski the runs fast and shred hard to maximize the energy output.

Friday January 4, 2013 - Another spectacular day with temps in the 20's, great grooming, almost all trails open and not too many people - but a good turnout.

Wednesday January 2, 2013 - Grooming great! Mostly open with enough chairs to reach all runs. The last ungroomed and closed run is past 18 (woods run on golf hole 1). College crowd still on break, but plenty of room for everybody. Back into 20's this week after single digits and nippy windchills. More flurries today. (28)

Monday December 31, 2012 - Another wow day! Great grooming! Skiing alone for the first hour before some arrived. Good crowd by noon when I departed.

Saturday December 29, 2012 - Wow! Great morning! Grooming masterpiece! All but a couple runs and lifts open. People having fun! Especially me!

Monday December 24, 2012 - Good crowd for Christmas Eve! Grooming good with a few new trails opened. Temps in the low teens. (25)

Saturday December 22, 2012 - Wow! What a great day! Sunny, great grooming, Highlands open, good crowd ... Doesn't get any better!

Friday December 21, 2012 - Great day expected! Awesome in places without snowmaking and wet chairs. Highlands reopened!

Thursday December 20, 2012 - Day with grandsons ... 2 inches of new snow today.

Wednesday December 19, 2012 - Excellent conditions between chairs 5 and 9. Before 5, crusty snow and lots of ski chatter. Groomed and then frozen over. Day 22 of skiing for me. No snowguns today. Hooray!

Tuesday December 18, 2012 - Grooming great. Chairs 7 and 9 best. Snowmaking on 1, 2 and 3. Highlands still recovering from rain.

Monday December 17, 2012 - Great day with good grooming. Recovering from rainy Saturday. Snowmaking continued.

Sunday December 16, 2012 - Day off for football and family.

Saturday December 15, 2012 - Rained most of the morning, but people still showed up. Temps in the high 30's. Basketball family day for me, but the webcams showed some folks having fun.

Friday December 14, 2012 - It just keeps getting better every day! Temps started in low 20's and climbed into the 30's. Watched the trail by 7 being groomed today. Grooming Paradise today!

Thursday December 13, 2012 - Awesome conditions!

Wednesday December 12, 2012 - Was this the best day of skiing so far this season? Oh, yes!! Good grooming ... run by # 1 opened ... higher temps shut down snow guns by 11 am that were causing rain and ice on the chairs by 2 and 7. After that the runs were great!

Tuesday December 11, 2012 - Cold am in the teens but warming to 20 by afternoon with 30's coming tomorrow. Snowmaking blizzards around the slopes in prep for a big weekend and holiday period. Grooming awesome. More people out today. Still frontside 2, 4, 5, 7 and 9 but more before long.

Monday December 10, 2012 - Temps dropped to close to zero by evening, but morning skiing was awesome with good grooming after more than a foot of snow the day before. Snowmaking all over. Tubing park getting some snowmaking and pulling out the equipment to get ready. The season really got a boost today - the best snowfall in a couple years. Christmas break will surely produce some great turnout with snow on the ground. Lots of runs should be open by then. Winter Wonderland! Great way to celebrate the Vail Resorts sale by them sending a foot of snow our way! Isn't sharing wonderful!

Sunday December 9, 2012 - Foot of wet snow followed by teens. Now that's what I'm talkin' 'bout!

Saturday December 8, 2012 - Good day for skiing ahead of a blizzard.

Friday December 7, 2012 - Wow! Great snow! Snowmaking stopped by 11 am. Week of snowmaking ahead ... Maybe some snow from nature too.

Thursday December 6, 2012 - Day to be be with my grandsons, so no skiing for me. Looks like a good day on the webcams. Not cold enough for snowmaking but good for skiing without it. The Vail Resorts purchase of Afton Alps was announced today! Improvements appear to be the big plus. I am hoping for a continuation of the current great season pass pricing patterns myself.

Wednesday December 5, 2012 - Best conditions of the year today. Groomed, fast, cool ... 2,4,5,7 and 9 open. Snowmaking last night and grooming created awesome runs.

Tuesday December 4, 2012 - Good grooming made this a wonderful day. Temps dropped into the low 30's to firm up the snow. Colder days ahead and snowmaking tonight.

Monday December 3, 2012 - With temps in the mid 50's and a mist, the golf course looked more inviting than the slopes ... at first. Some selective grooming made for some good skiing - fast and not too sloppy. Colder temps bring snowmaking back and low 30's for a week to return to better conditions.

Sunday December 2, 2012 - Conditions holding up despite almost 40 degrees before 3. Lots of ski school folks. Lifts not too crowded. It was a good day!

Saturday December 1, 2012 - Great morning! Snow fast with shallow grooming ... love it! Chairs 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 9 and 10 ... or something like that ... lots of frontside open! Come out and play!

Friday November 30, 2012 - Wow! Great day! Ready for the weekend ... 3, 4 (conveyor belt too), 5, 7 and 9 with lots of great runs! Excellent grooming with softening snow from mid 30's temps and no snow guns to avoid. Thank you, Afton Alps!

Thursday November 29, 2012 - Enjoyed my 6 month and 2 year-old grandsons today ... but skiing looked good on the webcams.

Wednesday November 28, 2012 - Awesome conditions today, marred only by snowmaking in high temps (mid 30's) that left a pool of wet cement snow near bridge to 5. Skiis stopped and sent me hurling over them. Otherwise, a great day crossing from chair 5 to run 3 and back to chair 5 until 3 opened around noon.

Tuesday November 27, 2012 - another great day at AA! Chairs 3, 4 and 5 ... Bowl was fun ... Snowmaking round the clock doing wonders! AA rocks!

Monday November 26. 2012 - Wow! Chair 3! Great day! Snowmaking in teens weather and then 20's continued around the clock. Area by chair 2 being worked on by the groomer. Looking good!

Sunday November 25, 2012 - Good turnout today. Chair 5 helped ... more to come soon.

Saturday November 24, 2012 - 9 am start until 10 pm on Saturday ... Chair 5 opened and snowmaking around the clock for a couple days beforehand made this a great day! Temps between 26 and 32. With a week of snowmaking weather ahead, I expect more new runs soon and the pre-Christmas skiing season to be in full swing.

After skiing from 9-noon - Oh, what a beautiful morning! Around 11 am, Chair 5 and the run above opened with good grooming. Crowds followed soon after. Today was the real beginning of the season with a long run and lots of enthusiasts! Snowmaking at full blast with more chairs and runs to come.

Friday November 23, 2012 - Open today! 11 am - 9 pm ... chair 4 (Bunny Hill) ... more runs to come. Regular hours Saturday and Sunday. Nancy's Nursery a lot of fun today. Not too crowded. Chair 5 to open Saturday am ... Rumor has it.

See it on the webcam. CLICK HERE

Winter made a bold move today with temps dropping overnight by 35 degrees from 60 to 25. A light dusting of snow fell, but snowmaking at AA went into full ahead gear. Surely this is the real beginning of the ski season after a false start last week when temps climbed up into the 50's and 60's for five days. Nice for golf but a bummer for skiing prospects. Cold temps enough for snowmaking for the next 7 days before the return of 30's and 40's.

Tuesday November 20, 2012 - AA opened for golf on Tuesday and Wednesday with temps in the 50's, sunshine and no wind. Skiing season postponed until the weekend when snowmaking may be possible again. Played the last round Wednesday in nearly 60 degrees and sunshine with no wind - round 236 = 4248 holes. Some of those rounds were at other courses in ND, WV and MN. Most at AA.

Sunday November 18, 2012 - Sixty degrees by noon, several groups out today for the last day of Afton's golf season. Round 235 was awesome. More people on the golf course than on the bunny hill skiing, perhaps.

Saturday November 17, 2012 - After a few days of withdrawal from golf, golf returns for Saturday and Sunday along with some skiing on the bunny hill too! Golf course in great shape, temps in the 50's, some golfers out today. Enjoyed my round immensely from 9-11 ... 18 holes before others showed up ... cool at first around 40 but comfortable by 10 am. What a day - round 234 today.

Tuesday November 13, 2012 - I was there OPENING DAY! Lots of snow made. Impressive for 48 hours of snowmaking. Good after school crowd of kids. I gave lessons to my almost-13 year old daughter on her first time on skis. Made a run myself. Wow! Feels so great to be back out there. Bunny hill only open run and lift.

Monday November 12, 2012 - Drove by Afton Alps on my way home from driving 2,000 miles to WV and back over 3 days. Winter Wonderland as snow guns were going full blast on several slopes. What a sweet view. Checked out the web cams on the AA web site a few hours after that and watched snowmaking - quite a sight/site! Hours until the season opens! Snowmaking began on Sunday Nov 11 at 3 pm!

Friday November 9, 2012 - What a great year for golf! I am not even tired of it, but I am looking forward to skiing. Maybe by next weekend since temps are forecast for the 20-30 range.

Thursday November 8, 2012 - Winding down but still playing today.

Wednesday November 7, 2012 - More golfers out today as temps and wind were good - almost 50 by afternoon.

Tuesday November 6, 2012 - Another mild day for November, almost 50 with little wind. A few golfers out to get in a round before the end of the season.

Monday November 5, 2012 - Looks like a good week for golf. Perhaps 40's and 50's all week and maybe 60 on Saturday ... and then 25-30 by Sunday and maybe even snow. This could be the end. Let's do it. After the round - another nice day for golf without wind. Temp not a factor with gloves and neckwarmer and windbreaker.

Friday November 9, 2012 - This is my final day of the season at Afton Alps, even though closing day is Saturday November 10. Today completes a season for me of 231 rounds = 4,148 holes. What a great year for golf! I am not even tired of it, but I am looking forward to skiing. Maybe by next weekend since temps are forecast for the 20-30 range.

Thursday November 8, 2012 - Winding down but still playing today.

Wednesday November 7, 2012 - More golfers out today as temps and wind were good - almost 50 by afternoon.

Tuesday November 6, 2012 - Another mild day for November, almost 50 with little wind. A few golfers out to get in a round before the end of the season.

Monday November 5, 2012 - Looks like a good week for golf. Perhaps 40's and 50's all week and maybe 60 on Saturday ... and then 25-30 by Sunday and maybe even snow. This could be the end. Let's do it. After the round - another nice day for golf without wind. Temp not a factor with gloves and neckwarmer and windbreaker.

Saturday November 3, 2012 - A couple of us enjoyed a good day in paradise on the course with no wind, perfect course conditions and no one to slow down the play. Thanks for keeping the course open when it is an obvious losing proposition financially. Come out and enjoy yourself ... contribute and keep the season going. Nice temps coming up midweek - 50+.

Friday November 2 - Few more golfers enjoying the day on the front 9. Perhaps another week or so of play. Thanks for staying open!

Wednesday October 31, 2012 - Golf all the way through October was great! The late afternoon temp reached 49 and wind was only 10 mph. Sunshine made the late morning chill of the high 30's bearable, but a brisk walk and the right combination of gloves, neck warmers and wind breaker sealed the deal for completing 4,000 holes in a season. Three more rounds to hit 225 rounds - the next goal. The back nine is officially closed as well as the mountain bike trails, both of which crisscross the ski slopes. That prepares the way for snowmaking to begin soon. There were at least 10 others enjoying golf today on greens firmed up by the chill, fairways rolling harder and a few ponds with ice or no water. What comes next? Another week or two of golf? Or snowmaking and skiing. Rain forecast for Saturday would not help any snowmaking beforehand, unless it turns to snow ... let's hope so.

Tuesday October 30. 2012 - What a great day as 50+ arrived and great course conditions continued. Pins removed from the back nine to get ready for snowmaking, hoses attached to snowmaking machines, pads going up around chairlift poles ... counting down to ski season. Many new trees being planted on 2, 3, 8, 9 and 10. More golfers out today. Ski staff having lunch at the Highland Chalet/Golf Clubhouse. Another great day coming on Wednesday. Two golf rounds left to hit 4,000 holes for the season. Maybe I will play 36 tomorrow to make it a great crossing of the goal line.

Monday October 29, 2012 - I enjoyed another great day for golf, and there were a few others out as well. Leaves are gone, greens are beautiful, fairways weedless ... some of the best conditions of the season! Crews removing golf markers on the back nine to prepare for snowmaking.

Sunday October 28, 2012 - An ideal day of golf weather at St. Andrews and Pebble Beach would be 50ish with very little wind and sunshine. On such a day, there would be little chance of getting a tee time as crowds would occupy the course with foursomes on every hole. So, why was I out enjoying Afton Alps Golf Course in conditions like this on this glorious afternoon without another soul in site?!

It wasn't because the Vikings (who broke our hearts again on Thursday) were playing. They were not. It wasn't because great golf was on TV. Most of it finished before 2 pm from Asian venues. Don't tell me it was too cold. Wear the right clothes and 45-50 without much wind is really nice. Wear fleece neckwarmers around the neck and cover the ears. Wear a layer on the bottom to soak up sweat, a layer after that for warmth and a top layer that is wind-proof. Keep the layers thin/light to avoid restricting your swing.

At this temp for another couple weeks, there is plenty of golf left. The course is awesome. Leaves mostly swept away. Greens rolling well and free of blemishes/ballmarks. Fairway grass has won out over any weeds. Roughs starting to green up some after some recent rain. No crowds to slow you down. I'll be there every day. Come on, Hardy Minnesotans, show us what you're made of!

Friday October 26, 2012 - High 30's and wind today ... used the day to do jobs to be put out of the way so that I can golf or ski when the weather warms or cools for one or the other: shampoo the carpets, rake the leaves, clean the garage for window car storage. Now my slate will be clean for playing on a nicer (or colder day). Using the inbetween days for such chores fills me with excitement for better days to come for golf or skiing.

Check out a video done with John Reents, Afton Alps Golf Pro, where I show how to play the 18th hole. CLICK HERE

Thursday October 25, 2012 - Forecast for morning rain and something between 28 and 45, but Friday and Saturday look to be sunny, light wind and low 40's eventually. Next week looks like something between 30 and 50. The week after that is expected to be in the 50's .. first week of November for more golf!

Did not play today ... Saw snowflakes and rain much of the day ... Wind too .. 22 degrees windchill.

Wednesday October 24, 2012 - Forecast for near 70 again and maybe some storms later in the day. Last day before the 40's? Let's get on it!

After the round ... It was a great day! Misty on occasion in the morning but warm - 60's. Lots of oak leaves were falling on 16 ... almost looked like big snowflakes floating down ... ah, a skiier's mirage. Grounds crew was working on lifts, cutting brush and weeds on ski runs. It takes a lot of work to get ready for a safe and great ski season. But golf isn't over until ... the great staff of Afton Alps says it's over ... and that is not yet.

Tuesday October 23, 2012 - Forecast for 70 ... and then a dip in temps later this week ... enjoy every minute ... Thursday and after, look for 7 days in the 40's with 20's and 30's at night with wind and chances of rain increased. Let the ski and snowboard dreams begin.

After the round - except for a slight occasional mist, it was a great day for golf. Leaves cleared in most areas where the wind did not blow them back from yesterday's removal efforts. Pleasant temps in the 60's with gentle south wind. Played around a couple groups but course was neither crowded nor deserted.

Monday October 22, 2012 - Forecast for 60's on Monday and possible scattered showers. Plenty of room to play between any showers, I suspect. I will be there for round 212 of the season on Monday. It has been 220 days since the season began in March. I played 36 on some days but I did not miss many days. Great year for golf. Who would have thought that the golf season in MN would be 9 months from March into November and the ski season only 4 months from late November to early March. Consider that the course was open in January for a day or two as well and you have an extraordinary year for golf!

After the round - Wow! That was a great day for late October - 60's and little wind. Leaves being blown off the course today by workers - nice!

Sunday October 21, 2012 - Forecast for sunny and 70 ... wow! Gotta love it! Just like October in Florida!

A day to remember! Sunshine and 70's brought out the golfers this afternoon. New pin placements ... course is in awesome shape. Leaves almost done falling and will disappear soon.

About 100 ski instructors meeting at the clubhouse. Would have made sense if it were 30 degrees, but seemed like a time warp with 70's and sunshine.

Saturday October 20, 2012 - Forecast - 56 hi and sunny and almost no wind ... ideal golf day ahead. Course in great shape - fairways mowed and mostly free of leaves, greens mowed and free of leaves, greens rolling fast and holding shots ... doesn't get any better!

After the round - fog lifted at 11 after 9 holes of playing by memory and not seeing any pins. That was fun! No wind ... two gloves, three layers, neck warmer .. perfect attire for a great day. Golfers showing up to enjoy the better part of the day after noon.

Friday October 19, 2012 - Scattered showers, 10 mph wind, mid 50's ... worth a shot dodging some possible rain (they were wrong about rain on Thursday) ... let's play ... chasing 4000 hole goal this season with 13 rounds to go ... expect to see the 5 or so faithful (and lots more) on Friday. Next five days look great for golf! Fifties and 60's ... if it were a day like this on New Year's Eve (like the last one), hundreds of golfers would be out playing. Take advantage of it while you can!

After the round ... Greens holding shots and smooth .. Leaves disappearing ..greens cut ... Fairways cut.. Ready for play ... Now play!

Dropped off my skiis today for sharpening and waxing - good deal $20. Ready in three weeks - in time for the beginning of the ski season.

Thursday October 18, 2012 - No tee time needed recently ... Just show up ... Course open ... Walked 18 in 2 hours ... Nice day after all .. Low wind .. 50's .. No rain ... Course to myself .. Where were you? You missed a good one ... maybe tomorrow?

Wednesday October 17, 2012 - The course is in great shape: greens rolling fast and smooth, few ball marks - fairways mostly free of leaves. The course is almost never crowded. Play at your speed. Skip a hole and come back to a hole or ask to play through if someone is playing slow ahead of you. I can play 18 walking in two hours or less on most days. The back is a good workout walking and the front is an easy walk. Take a cart on the back and appreciate the scenery. Come on out and enjoy the golf. Ways to beat the wind: carry an umbrella to shield you from the wind, wear two gloves, wear a windbreaker and a couple neck warmers (one around the neck and one over the ears). This is the kind of weather in which golf was invented.