ATTN: ALL BIG MOUNTAIN SKIIERS

dmc12380

dmc12380

Active member
Just wondering do you feel the altitude when you ski big mountains such as in Alaska or in Europe. Im from the east coast but been skiing in colorado for 2 years now, go up about 3 days a week, and i can still feel the altitude just from skiing in summit county. do the big lines you do have any influence on the altitude difference you experience.I couldn't even imagine flying from one country to another, being all groggy and shit, then skiing a huge gnarly line and living.
 
No just lived in a ski resort in Switzerland for 4 years, travelling down the mountain then up another to get to smaller resorts etc plus do a lot of hike and ride. you soon get used to changing altitude alot.
except for on aeroplanes... damn ears always need to pop

 
try acclimatizing if your moving to a higher elevation in a short period of time. some people need a few days ... it all depends on your elevation gain/time and your base health. Blood doping may help too, but thats just speculation.
 
most AK mtns that people ski aren't that tall. alot of them around haines are 5 to 6,000 ft. however, denali and all those mountaineering peaks are very tall.
 
maybe its mental. You are telling yourself that you are still feeling the altitude, which might be bullshit. Just don't let that thought cross your mind, altitude don't got shit. Don't be a pussy.
 
i felt the altitude my first week in chile when skinning at around 13000 feet...that sucked, but after a few days i never feel it
 
it all depends on the person. I'm from the east coast and I can feel the altitude sickness in Colorado a little bit, but then again i've only been there 3 times.
 
summit county is pretty high up.... higher than a lot of the mecca's in the big mountain world. Alaska for example, when they are in town they are at sea level, and the peaks of the mountains are, oh around 2000m. really no big deal as far as altitude goes, especially when you consider the amount of time you actually spend on the peak as opposed to sea level.

Vail Village in comparison is just shy of, if not 2500m, the peak of Vail Resort being just shy of 3500m. now that is high elevation living. The only time I have ever actually felt altitude was when I've been in Vail.

Science says that you don't really need to worry about altitude until 3000m. anything below that and, yes, you can feel it, get tired, and all that stuff, but nothing serious can happen below 3000. once past 4000m you have the risk of super cereal shit happening to your body... and I'm pretty sure that in Nepal you need a special permit to go above 6000m. Gulmarg is India tops out at 4000m give or take I believe....

so you guys in Summit County jibbing your rails and hiking your pipe are having a much harder time with altitude than anyone here in British Columbia is touring around the backcountry bagging peaks. I live in a town that sits at 1000m, third highest town in the province by a hair, the peaks of the mountains sit between 2000m and 2500m.... within two hours or so we can reach peaks around 3000m, but there's nothing higher.
 
i find it all depends on where I sleep. If your sleeping below 3000 ft acclimating is pretty easy. its when you start sleeping higher up that the continuous pressure of a different altitude begins to wear you down.
 
yeah, most of the more popular mountains that people ski on come right out of sea level pretty much. but the inland ranges like the brooks or alaska range are just ridiculously massive. you can see denali from fairbanks on a clear day and its about 160 miles away.
 
yea, but people aren't skiing denali, and the brooks range isn't that big, no peaks even reach 3000m.
 
i wasnt trying to argue the point of people skiing denali. and the brooks range is massive, maybe not in terms of height but but certainly in grander. if you ever get the chance to fly through it in a bush plane you would understand.
 
yea i get what you're saying.... I've always loved how mountain ranged up north look. Way more raw... Even the Northern Rocky Mountain in BC look really amazing for how low the range actually is. Tree line is pretty much at valley bottom, beautiful coloured mosses and flowers, rocks, just really really big country.

BUT - this thread is talking about altitude, not visual impression... so...
 
sure, if you suck at reading comprehension. i was agreeing with the kid that i quoted the first time when he said that the skiable peaks arnt that tall because they start at sea level, and that the mountaineering ones are much bigger because they are farther inland... besides i was babbling more then trying to make any sort of point.
 
never for me
i was skiing some big lines in chile at bout 13000 and i didnt notice anythingcept i got in shape fast hiking up to thembut skiing, not at all
 
id say i feel it more in summit county than the big shit. when your shreddin a line like tha, altitude is the last thing ur thinkin of hahah
 
Only issues I had were in Argentina at around 14,000.

But they were only very minor, like when hiking or such.
 
i for sure felt it at 10,000 feet haleakala crater, Maui... i couldn't help but fall asleep in the car. i was super drowsy like after 10 minutes of light walking around. idk maybe i just have really bad lung capacity
 
i for sure felt it at 10,000 feet haleakala crater, Maui... i couldn't help but fall asleep in the car. i was super drowsy like after 10 minutes of light walking around. idk maybe i just have really bad lung capacity
 
on the glacier of les deux alps in france at 3600m (11,811ft) i definitely felt the altitude.
 
I can feel altitude when I'm hiking at the top of sugarloaf (above 4000 feet), either that or I was awfully out of shape
 
Just drink lots of water. I live on the east coat and my family makes a trip to snowbird every year and I feel absolutely nothing. My mom gets a little groggy the first to day and has trouble hiking and such but nothing to severe. I always think that if you are lime goin up the mountain thinking "holy shit were going so high right now" you will feel the effects of the altitude instead just don't pay attention to to it. Also you should be ready for it. All the big mountain athletes are in extremely good shape and I'm sure they have a huge lung capacity.
 
Well higher up you definitely need to take bigger breaths especially when you're doing something really aerobic like moguls.
 
My mountain peaks at 11,000 feet though so for me, that's what I would call 'high altitude.' It's really just all relative
 
wow very insightful post. I had no idea the peaks in Alaska were that low.
I know my house in Summit is pretty much at 10,000 feet and I was definitly able to feel the altitude. I spend most of my time in VT though which only has an elevation of about 200 feet.
People around summit usually say that for most people it takes approx 6 months to become completely acclimated to the altitude.
 
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