State of the Shred: Massachusetts
By Justin Leveille • Jan 5th, 2012 • Category: Features, Latest, States of Shred
With several big names in the shred spotlight coming out of Massachusetts, It’s no surprise that this state has more to offer than annoying redsox fans and “wicked” shitty drivers. Most of the resorts worth your time are located on the west side of the state, a gnarnia amidst the rest of the concrete jungle surrounding Boston. As a local of the west side and a mass-hole at heart, here’s the lowdown on spots to check out.
Best Park: Ski Butternut, it’s a small mountain but the park crew sets up over thirty features choc-full-o’ log jibs, sketchy snake runs, rails, and hips.
Best powder: The Thunderbolt Trail. It’s an old ski trail cut into Mt. Greylock and maintained by locals. Sorry, no lifts, you gotta hike it!
Best place to spray NYC city slickers: Butternut on any weekend.
Best chance of convincing people you are a pro snowboarder: Bluehills, seriously, a friend of mine’s hat fell off and little kids started fighting over it.
Best Shred Store: Eastern Border, they’re all over the place!
Fastest lift: Jiminy Peak has a high-speed, six person chair.
Best Place to talk shit about the Redsox: Bluehills, It’s only twenty minutes from Boston!
Best Night riding: Wachusett has 18 runs, including its park, lit up.
Easiest resort to think of pick-up lines while on the lift: Butternut, “Yo Girl, wanna butter my nuts?”
Best handrail: Butternut, but you gotta find it yourself!
Blue Hills
Located just outside of Boston, try to not get lost at this resort. With seven whole runs and a whopping 309-foot vertical, It’s no wonder this place is breeding pros like horny rabbits, oh wait, its not. Either way, I’ve got love for any mountain that gets you to the top on a slow double-chair that takes three times as long to ride up as it takes to shred down.
Ski Butternut
Located in Great Barrington, this 1000-foot vertical mountain boasts 22 trails and most importantly, the “twisted terrain park.” Big names that can be spotted taking a day trip to the nut are among the likes of Scott Stevens, Chris Grenier, Scotty Arnold, Lane Knaack and Lucas Magoon. One thing you should know: you have to buy a park pass if you want to shred it. It’s $3 for the day and $10 for the season. Oh ya, call it “the nut” and everyone will think you’re local.
Jiminy Peak Resort
Jiminy Crickets! The biggest mountain on the List, Jiminy Peak has 1150 vertical feet and 44 runs, one of which is 2 miles long. According to them, they are one of the only resorts to generate most of their power from a wind turbine. That means all you environmentalists can shred guilt free! This mountain offers some pretty difficult terrain as far as Massachusetts goes, which is probably why they still have a leash law, no joke.
Wachusett Mountain
Flood. East Coast Invitational. Awhile back.
If you’re in Boston and Blue Hills just isn’t cutting it, you should probably check out Wachusett. This resort has 22 trails, 2 high-speed quads, and a park that will keep you coming back. At about 1,000 vertical feet, and night skiing on 18 trails, you can certainly get some good turns in. Interesting fact about Wachusett: There is an old Growth Forest in the woods off of the trails. Trees that are 350 years old look pretty radical. Bad news is, you’re not supposed to go there. If anyone catches you, say goodbye to your pass!
Blandford Ski Area
You cannot mention snowboarding in Mass without mentioning Blandford. Home mountain to a few decent riders — you know, Scott Stevens, Chris Beresford and Austen Granger. With a whopping 22 trails, 2 terrain parks and 11 lit up, you can ride into the night, which makes it perfect for those snowboarders who have to work 9-5’ers. Yeah, there may only be 465 vertical feet and a top elevation of less than 1500ft, but that can be forgiven since it is a club-owned ski area. And that means you can BRING YOUR OWN BEER, stash it in the park and grab’em on the way through. With season passes starting at $169.00 anyone can afford this place.– Tommy Brothers
HEY GUY, Get this wicked sticker to Match your other RED SOX gear!
FIRST!
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No BLANDFORD!!! Stevens, Beresford, Granger home mtn. C’MONN!!!
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A plus about Blue Hills is that it is also across the street from the world headquarters for Dunkin Donuts which has the best Dunkies in the world.
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Best place to relive the 80′s. Ski fucking Bradford.
skibradford.com
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so many thug boarders!!!
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Sorry about the Blandford over sight. Justin is new. It has been added.
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last edit ender yes. Yobeat Maine?!
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yeah yeah what about Bradford?? AND Nashoba!!! Faahkin A Guy….
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Are you kidding me?? Blandford is extremely overpriced for what it $458 if you wanna get a day/night pass its absolutely absurd…
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massachussetts fucking sucks.
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cant believe you forgot nashoba that place has the best park in MA
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excuse me, except for dunkin donuts*
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Nate haust wears ski company clothing… jerm wears ski company clothing, nate haust does swivels, must mean jerm does too.
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Hell yeah butternut! park crew is so dedicated its wonderful. Don’t hate on Nate, hes sick and a cool dude, he does go to UVM now though (90 percent sure) but anyway love this! go MA!
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I learned how to snowboard at Berkshire East and Mt. Tom (R.I.P), but I’m a traitor now and live in Washington where there are actual mountains. Brooke: I’ll gladly rep one of those masshole stickers…
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Mass’ best mountain in mount snow. The end.
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is*
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^hahaha
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hey ezra its jesse wanna buy some crack
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Butternut all day. best park ever. with the new stuff they added in the woods this year, its gunna be sick. cant hate the nut
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Bought my sticker yesterday. Where’s Berkshire East?
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Blue Hills over everything! just wait
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wicked sick boardin’ maneuvahs bro.
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blue hills whats good
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best place to lose hope/ freebase heroin=worcester
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justin leveille was my substitute teacher.. the author of this page
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Movin on up, from substitute teacher, to intern at a snowboard website, watch out world, here i come
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Border? Really? Hack.
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WHERE DO I GET THAT FUCKING STICKER? EMAIL ME.
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batgrasss all over blandford
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You gotta check out nashoba, best parks in mass. also sick pipe contests with some of the OGs back in the day
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BLOOBILLZ
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everyone from the east coast is a dick head. such assholes always giving off bad vibes
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fron must be a cali boy…. you softer than cotton panties, son.
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WHAT ABOUT NASHOBA???????? westfords own
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The blue bump the home to old men taking pictures of young girls, a great view of Boston, kids that think they are the shit for barely landing a 50/50 a box, a happy tree full of trainor bras and granny panties, a lodge that is not safe for people to be in, dick ass ski instructors that think the own the hill, and tho the fat chick thats drops her board off the lift every other run, and yet i call blue hills my home….
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Butternut is the tits especially that handrail…
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