The Needle - Squaw Valley / Palisades Tahoe [4K]

RUN STATS:
Run Name: The Needle & Needle Alternate
Area Name: Cornice Bowl
Location: Squaw Valley/Palisades Tahoe
Rating: Unmarked
My Personal Rating Opinion: ♦♦ (Double Black)
Lift Taken: Headwall Express
Maximum Pitch: 43 degrees
Run Type: Chute/Couloir
Total Run Length: 0.2 mi.
Total Vertical Drop: 350 ft.
Run Aspect: North
SNOW CONDITIONS: Corn & Slush
DATE OF RECORDING:
Needle: May 18, 2024
Needle Alternate: May 19, 2024
DESCRIPTION:
TBD
PERSONAL ENJOYMENT RATING: 8/10
TIMESTAMPS:
0:00 - The Needle
1:00 - Needle Alternate
EXTERNAL LINKS:
Skiing Bucket List:
docs.google.com/spreadsheets/...
Double Black Diamond Runs I've Done:
docs.google.com/spreadsheets/...

[@JP-GFR]

Excellent straightline.

[@arjunski]

Thank you!

[@skifast_takechances]

that was a great straightline lol

[@arjunski]

Thanks man! It was a blast skiing this one with you :)

[@ajitkirpekar4251]

How difficult was this run compared to the typical double black for epic resorts? It certainly looks particularly narrow but I can't gauge the steepness just from the video

[@arjunski]

It's pretty steep. Steeper than anything that I've done at Heavenly. Maybe slightly less steep than Hell's Delight at Kirkwood but steeper than anything else I've done there (Notch, Upper Sister's, Fingers, Dick's Drop, Ski School Chute, etc...).

[@skifast_takechances]

@@arjunski the main difficulty of needle alternate is probably still the narrowness, which makes it easier to do the straightline at the bottom

[@ajitkirpekar4251]

@@arjunski Good to know thanks. It looks very challenging. That lift wasn't open when I went but I'll have to check it out next season. The Granite lift and Siberia were both weirdly different going late late spring in ways that made it both easier and more challenging. The snow being so soft made cutting threw bumps a breeze but also tested your balance because of how sticky things were.

[@skidaway1533]

Learn how to put your poles on!

[@arjunski]

Don't use pole straps, find it too cumbersome to keep putting them on and off. It's a personal preference though, I know plenty of people who use them and plenty who don't.