In the immortal words of Guns 'N Roses (no relation to Chris Rose), "all we need is just a little patience..."  This cheesy late 80's metal ballad reminds how to remain calm during the warmest November on record.   It is an inconvienient truth that there is no snow in Lake Placid, or MitcHELLbeiner Skistadion... yet.   Remember that a warm November is better than a warm January.  Here are some things to do while you PATIENTLY await the arrival of snow:

1.  Go to the High Peaks Waxing Clinic and buy a lot of crap.  At least you will be supporting the ski industry!

2.  Wax a pair of skis

3.  Build a hotbox (Doug Diehl will forward you his heating tips)

4.  Watch INERTIA again and again.

5.  Wax another pair of skis

6.  Buy your 06-07 Mt. Van Ho season pass (yes, the price has increased!)

7.  Wax another pair of skis

8. Buy a Peru Nordic ski suit (contact [email protected] for details) and walk around the house in it. Practice your XC "power stance!"

9. Do some online shopping at www.cafepress.com/PeruNordic The hoodie is sweet.

10.  Keep waxing those skis.

11. Do some trailwork at MitcHELLbeiner Skistadion (by the way, Charlie has done an awesome job... the race may need to be changed to the Monsters of Really Smooth Rock-Free Trails).

12.  Plan a big bike ride this weekend.  Get the bike ready and psych yourself up for it.  Get really excited about the ride, let it consume you.  Talk about how fired up you are for it all week.  Heck, buy some expensive piece of equipment for the bike and get pumped to ride it.  The more pumped up you get, the better... because, undoubtedly, Mother Nature will stick it to you; and crappy biking conditions in December usually lead to good ski conditions.