Five hundred twenty inches of the good stuff has come and left Sierra At Tahoe this season, as they wrapped up another stellar effort today with their annual community day. 25 bucks got you on the hill today, and the proceeds went to local community athletic teams. The celebration marked the end of a turnaround year for South Lake’s favorite powder day destination.
The trees were always good at Sierra, but for years their park was a little subpar…not bad by any means, but not attracting the kind of A-listers that nearby Heavenly and Northstar were. That all changed this year, when the mountain brought in Doug Mercer to the helm the parks.
Mercer, an East Coaster by heart and a West Coaster by trade, honed his skills just down route 395 at both June Mountain and Mammoth Mountain. After a few years paying dues to various lead builders, he was finally given the opportunity to push his own path up at Sierra.
Throwin it back like a Yankee homer at Fenway
The result has been a new dedication to rail features at Sierra. The Circuit was once riddled with sticky and inconsistent sliders, but is now stocked full of the slippery stuff. Screws and rust spots flirt with those heel edges on your front boards no more. And jibs arent even Mercer’s specialty.
The jumps have a new life to ’em, with the perfect ratio of pop and loft that caters to skiers and shredders alike. Anyone who rode South Park in Mammoth in the years prior can attest to his skill, and now it just sits on a different trail at another mountain.
He’s also got a knack for the special features, the unique stuff that really sets your experience at Sierra apart. Anticipation has already begun to build for next season, so if you dropped the ball and didn’t make it here this season, make sure to set aside a weekend next time!
