Expert's Only! The History and Ranking of Eastern North America's Hardest Ski Trails is the definitive guide to the hardest ski trails located in the east. The book aims to settle many of the debates that have been argued by ski resorts and skiers for decades, such as: What is the steepest trail? What is the longest trail? And ultimately, what is the hardest trail?
White Heat (center) - Sunday River, ME. The trail is marketed as the "steepest, longest, widest" trail on the East Coast.
The book features, with astonishingly beautiful photographs; the steepest, narrowest, hardest ski runs from as far south as the Appalachians of North Carolina to the Laurentians of Quebec, and everything in between. The book highlights many of the well-known trails such as Paradise - Mad River Glen, Goat - Stowe, DJ's Tramline - Cannon and La Dynamite - Mont Tremblant, but also many lesser known trails. Each trail description will transport the reader to mogul covered pistes with no bail out options; dense, powder filled glades and narrow, treacherous trails with double fall lines and frozen waterfalls.
Renversante, Val d'Irene, QC is one of the lesser know trails. The mountain is located near the Chic-Chocs mountains in Quebec.
All 600+ double and the five triple black diamond trails in Eastern North America have been analyzed for:
Average steepness
Single steepest point
Steepest section over 300 feet
Vertical drop
Length
Average width
Groomed vs. ungroomed
Bailout options
Presence of Trees
Audience (lift on trail)
Obstacles created by Mother Nature, such as rock ledges and frozen waterfalls
All of the data was input into a formula to determine the Dirty Dozen - the 12 hardest trails in Eastern North America, these are the trails that take skills, mental and physical fortitude to ski, not just go down, but to ski! These are the handful of ski runs in Eastern North America that are steep, long, narrow, with no bailout options that are peppered with moguls, trees, cliffs and an enthusiastic audience above you on a lift. These select trails are a surefire way to find religion, even if you are a devout atheist. They make skiing fun and push you to the next level.
Spring bumps on Chute, located under the iconic single chair at Mad River Glen, VT
As a bonus, the data from the 600+ double and triple black diamond trails has been included in the appendix, allowing the reader to:
Compare some of the famous runs on the east coast against trails skied regularly at their home mountain
Create a bucket list of trails to ski
Determine what mountain they believe to be the hardest
Plan road trips to knock off the Dirty Dozen
Ski some of the off the beaten path, but still difficult trails