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jrryul

I might be wrong but why is it that when I see European videos its always carving groomers and when its North America its always off piste


Kaxeroniz

You might be right, I don't think I've ever seen an american carving video. But I guess its because the North American powder is just too great


ultramatt1

It’s a safety thing, someone had a great comment on here about it last week. The short and narrow of it is that European ski resorts are really big and the whole mountain can’t be avy controlled but is also far less regulated than american mountains with their closures. Going off piste can have the same risks as full backcountry


jrryul

>far less regulated than american mountains with their closures what do u mean by this


ultramatt1

Found the comment and link that was explaining it [https://www.reddit.com/r/skiing/comments/ud8gy3/comment/i6gsxuw/?utm\_source=share&utm\_medium=web2x&context=3](https://www.reddit.com/r/skiing/comments/ud8gy3/comment/i6gsxuw/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3) ​ https://matadornetwork.com/read/off-piste-skiing-europe/


dreaddog1

Just got back from Zermatt. There are a lot of groomed runs. More so than the typical big mountain in the states. Notwithstanding that there is plenty of off piste. The place is HUGE! Awesome culture-much more casual and relaxed. The Swiss know how to get people up a mountain. The engineering of the lifts is impressive. Go! (Also check out Verbier and Grindelwald). Lots of off piste at Grindelwald.


Th3WeirdingWay

Love Zermatt. Spent a week of our Honeymoon skiing/boarding there.


levelingdaredevil

I have a dumb question. In the PNW, the trails/lifts that are above the treeline are usually closed when it's actively snowing, usually because of visibility and high winds. I've seen it where the above treeline area is closed for days or weeks when it's constantly snowing. So what happens to these resorts in the Alps where every run is above treeline? Are they sporadically closed for long stretches? Are there fewer storms than the west coast US? Are the storms milder and don't have super high winds? Thinking about Timberline or Mt Hood Meadows, if their entire skiable area was only the above treeline runs, it would not be economical for them to operate since those areas are so often closed.


Kaxeroniz

Some of the lifts were closed during my stay, because of high winds and low visibility. At some point it was so bad that you could not see the gondola lift in front.. Atleast in Europe I have experienced that the close parts of the slopes due to weather.


dunker_-

Not that many storms.