Back out grooming for a couple hours before work early this morning. Perfect track on Short Cut and Hair Raiser, perfect skate deck on Ridge Trail and Mary's Frolic. That will probably last until midafternoon. My plan is to groom Long Rider for skate tomorrow morning, and do Long Rider and Wild Thing on the classic side.

(Will Maines)

Finally got our main groomer out of the shop Saturday. I've been grooming a loop or two each day, with a couple of loops on both the classic and skate sides left untouched as of yet since last Saturday's 6" snowfall. Did Ridge Trail and Roller Coaster on the skate side this morning and Pine Hollow on the classic. Excellent deck and tracks, at least until mid-day. I'll try and do a little more each day until we hopefully get a change to cooler weather. Until then, expect decent skate and good looking tracks each morning, giving way to soft, wet snow by mid-afternoon. Enjoy while you can.

(Will Maines)

Fair conditions. Skate Lane was marginal at best. Plenty of snow out there but it has not been groomed or maintained well. Good skis could be used, I used my good skis but had to step around sticks and brush poking up from the trail a number of times. On the other hand if I had a new pair of $700 racing skis I would definitely not use them at Razorback right now (thus B ski rating). The skate lane only has about 3-4 feet down the middle that is firm and the edges are unpacked and soft and 10-12" deep so its nearly impossible to get a solid pole plant. Trees and brush along the skate trails have grown into the trail, making the trail too narrow everywhere and prone to catching ski tips especially on the uphill climbs and saddles. The skate trail system really needs to be brushed back a couple of feet and widened. This is such a great trail system but it just needs some TLC right now. Classic tracks looked in fair to good shape but had some leaves collected in them.

(Paul Zoske)

Trail was in very good condition, although looked like quite a bit of use over the weekend. Lions Pride trail was not groomed. Plenty of snow.

(Libby Stupak)

There is some great skiing available at Razorback. Nice, easy to follow, skier-set classic tracks on Lions Pride. Other classic trails were well groomed. The only exception to perfect conditions was a growing abundance of oak leaves along a few stretches. Waxless skis would be the best choice. Though not really evident on the trails, there was quite a crowd out enjoying the day today. Visiting vehicles filled the parking lot and overflowed along the road. Big thanks to Will Maines for his grooming dedication.

Photos:

(Tom Rulseh)

I groomed Ridge Trail, Long Rider, Bruce's Roundabout and Will's Crossing today on the skate side. Mary's Frolic was groomed earlier this week. All these loops are in great condition for skating. Tracks from earlier this week on the classic side are still deep and solid. Oak Ridge and Lions Pride are ungroomed as of now. I am the director of the Lions ice fishing tournament which will keep me busy all day Saturday, but Sunday morning I plan on grooming and tracking Oak Ridge and Lions Pride.

(Will Maines)

Skate skied Sunday afternoon. Mary's Frolic and Long Rider (except for Bruce's Roundabout) had been freshly groomed --probably that morning. Trails were slow but very good with excellent coverage and very little debris. Parts, but not all, of the classic loops had also been freshly groomed and looked like they had a great track. Worth the visit.

(John Huppert)

Still making do with the old Alpine and Tidd Tech. ASV is in the shop and may be on its last legs. Hopefully will be fixed next week and at least make it through the rest of this winter. Had to run the Alpine without drag around the trails today through 10 inches of Monday's new snow before I could groom with the drag. Finished most of the classic loops with perfect looking track. I expect that they will be a little soft, though with a cold overnight dropping into single digits the tracks should be fairly firm by morning. Wild Thing has had two passes with the Alpine but not yet groomed and tracked. Taking the morning off to groom skate loops, and if there is time will finish Wild Thing and give Oak Ridge a run through. Skiing should be excellent for the weekend despite a one-day thaw predicted.

(Will Maines)

Went out with the Alpine again today and finished all skate and classic loops. Here and there you'll find a bit of stubble, but not much. Good skis are safe. Tracks and skate deck are both in very good shape. Will continue to groom this old-fashioned way until our big groomer is fixed. Hopefully by the weekend.

(Will Maines)

Our main groomer is still down, but we got Plan B going this afternoon. Put a 68-year-old ancient groomer driver, a 30-year-old Ski-Doo Alpine and a 30--year-old beat up Tidd Tech together and the result is some pretty good conditions. Short Cut, Doug's Folly, Pine Hollow and Hair Raiser are groomed and tracked on the classic side with mostly very good tracks. Ridge Trail, Will's Crossing, Roller Coaster and Mary's Frolic are groomed on the skate side and are very good also. Grooming plan: Will see if these old bones can stand another four hours on the Alpine tomorrow to finish both classic and skate loops.

(Will Maines)