Plan a day together
Ski and snowboard guides
Find ski and snowboard friends, use a first-meetup checklist, plan carpools and read mountain snow forecasts. Practical guides for your next day.
Choose a destination in the mountain region guides, or find ski clubs and official forecast resources to start planning.
How to find ski buddies and people to ride with
Where to look for ski buddies in your situation, a first-day post people can say yes to, and why the second day together matters more than the first.
Read the guide →How to plan a ski carpool everyone can agree on
Plan a ski carpool: pickup, gear and return time, plus a worked cost split showing how a fourth rider cuts each passenger's share by more than half.
Read the guide →How to read a ski resort snow forecast
Read a ski resort snow forecast by its hours, elevation, snow level, low-end amount and wind, with a worked example and a rule for when to commit.
Read the guide →How to find snowboard friends who ride your way
Find people to snowboard with: where riders meet, how to describe your riding, which resorts ban snowboards, and a plan for the flats with skiers.
Read the guide →Ski and snowboard buddy meetup checklist
A checklist for a first ski meetup with someone new: a public meeting spot, a 15-minute wait rule, two easy laps with an exit and a message to copy.
Read the guide →Skiing and snowboarding with friends of different abilities
A rule for mixed-ability ski days: the least confident rider picks the shared runs, others split off on a clock, and everyone regroups somewhere easy.
Read the guide →How to plan a powder day with ski and snowboard friends
Plan a powder day with friends: pick the mountain the night before on the low-end snow forecast, and let the morning check say go, later or cancel.
Read the guide →Snow depth vs snowfall: which number helps plan your ski day?
Snow depth vs snowfall vs SWE: what each measures, why 8 inches of new snow can raise depth by only 4, and which to compare.
Read the guide →How to join a ski club and find people to ride with
Find a ski club through the national council directory, price a club trip against booking it yourself, and tell a travel club from a riding club.
Read the guide →How to get ready for ski season with your riding friends
Get ready for ski season on a countdown: fitness six weeks out, boots and bindings a month out, then tires, passes and an easy first day.
Read the guide →Snow-to-liquid ratio: why some storms ski deeper than others
Snow-to-liquid ratio explained: why the US average is nearer 13:1 than 10:1, how temperature and wind change it, and how SkiBuds will estimate it.
Read the guide →Why snow forecasts disagree, and how to read the spread
Why weather models give one mountain different snow totals, how grid size and ensembles explain it, and how to read the spread yourself.
Read the guide →Chinook winds: how a warm, dry wind changes the snow
A Chinook can warm the air more than 10 °F in three hours. How to spot one in an hourly forecast, where they hit and what they do to snow.
Read the guide →Orographic lift: why one side of a range gets more snow
Why the windward side of a range gets more snow, how much less the lee usually gets, and how to use storm direction to choose a mountain.
Read the guide →How to read an avalanche forecast before you leave the resort
How to read an avalanche forecast: the five danger levels, elevation bands and avalanche problems, with a sample forecast read step by step.
Read the guide →How to find a backcountry ski partner you can trust
Find a backcountry ski or splitboard partner through avalanche courses and local events, vet them with six questions, and start with a low-angle tour.
Read the guide →How to find people to go on a ski trip with
Where to find people for a multi-day ski trip, how to test the fit before you book, and how to set a drop-out date from the lodging's cancellation policy.
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