I usally went up to Lake Tahoe for snowboarding with my brother and his friends each time I come to San Francisco, there is no exception this year. Unfortunately, none of my brother's friends can make it this year. So, we decided to make it a long weekend and stay at Reno for a weekend with my parents coming along. They are hitting the casino floor while we are coming down the skihill.

My brother's girlfriend Stella helps book the room and rental car for us, which save me a lot of headache. We actually called her many times during the trip when problems and questions arise. I am so graceful for her helps. Too bad she doesn't ski and can't make it this time.

We rent a Ford Explorer SUV so the four of us can get there comfortably with my snowboarding gear. My snowboard is 4+ feets long so, it takes up a lot of space in the back. Another reason we want a 4x4/AWD SUV is to travel safely. Tire-chain is mandatory on the road if it snows. They actually setup road block to check for tire-chain and require it install before you can continue on your journal. The exception is a 4x4 with winter tires. A compact car just won't make it. But there is a problem; we ask the guy at the rental pickup counter to make sure we got a 4x4, _but_ Hertz still gave us a rear-wheel drive SUV. It sucks. We didn't realize it until we are in Reno.

Anyway, we load up Saturday morning and head up the mountain. We drive up I-80 freeway, passing through Sacramento, and up the mountain.

map

We climb over 7000 ft at some point, and my ears was popping because of the pressure changes.... just like what you experience on the plane during flight. We arrived after almost 4 hours of driving, stopped for a quick lunch on a roadside Jack in the box, than dropped my parents off at the casino. We head up the near-by Mt. Rose for a half day snowboarding.

Mt Rose from a far

Mt Rose is about 26 miles (42 km) from Reno. The base is high up at 7900 ft, the summit @ 9700 ft! My brother is still learning snowboarding so I ride with him and show some tricks. The best trick is my own "holding the ring", which I found most who learning to turn on snowboard can pick up easily. After 2 runs, he's turning alright on the flat terrain. It takes only 45 minutes for our 1st run, but we makes it donw in about 20 minutes by 4pm when the hill closed.

Me, on snow Kal, on snow

Meanwhile, I was able to do a run on advance terrain while my brother taking a break. I did a blue run from the summit. It actually like a black run in Canada. The summit was covered by clouds, it was hard to see the run in front of me. I was almost riding in a white-out condition. I also feel a bit dizzy on the way down, probably because of the 9000+ ft environment.... maybe I am just lame. wink ) It was so tiring to keep turning on such steep slope that I have to stop for breaks many times. It takes me about 15 minutes to come down.

After the hill closed, we head back to Reno and check in to the hotel at Eldorado, one of the casino. Supper was done at a ok buffet place.

Stay tuned for part II
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