And now for something different – an overly done snowboard.
This project will eventually be seen again in any winter timelapses I’ll do. It’s a snowboard with a measurement pole. A snowboard is just that, a board of wood. I suppose it could be called a weaver board what with the pole in the middle but eh, I’m not Canadian.
The board part is simple enough. Go find some plywood. The measurements given in the above link say 16 to 24 inches, but if you happen to find scrap wood that’s 15 and a half inches wide that’s close enough. P.S. You won’t actually need to keep it in a locked case.
Pull out your great-grandfather’s circular saw and cut the board into a square. Now this is where one could stop, but so far it’s been too easy! Let’s keep going. Head out to the hardware store to get a 4 foot pole. I got a one inch diameter one, but if you plan to stick this way way out in the yard to view during a snow storm, a two-inch diameter pole may be more visible.
Now, paint both the board and pole white. This both seals the wood from moisture and helps reflect any heat away that might melt snow. Also, it just looks better that way. String them up from the rafters to be able to paint both sides, and then forget to take a picture of this step.
Partially drill a hole into the middle of the board, for the pole to sit in. A smaller drill bit was used to go through the rest of the board and into the middle of the pole for the mounting screw. Use a screw so you can take it apart for storage. I also put a small nail offset from that hole and a notch in the board so the pole isn’t so wobbly and won’t turn when screwing it and the board together.
Now, to stripe the pole in one inch segments, realize all you need is one inch width painters tape. That’s easy enough. Go out to the store for just such a tape to find several different stores gladly carrying ⅝”, 2 cm and 
After accounting for the small amount of the pole that sits inside the board, tape it. Wrap around once, put another wrap lined up to that one, then do that a third time and remove the second wrapping, then repeat. Pull out some spray paint from a previous project and begin to work on this during the same day your dad plays the “ugh, I’m old” card and have to dig holes to move his forsythia bushes instead. The plumber arrives the next day for an unrelated clogged toilet.
In addition to the stripes, I wanted to mark the half foot and whole foot stripes with a different color. Head out again for some small craft paint – if you do this, this will require a search of at least three different stores. The plumber calls for a specialist.
If you’re like me and I know I am, painting is messy and somehow goes on really thin so you’ll need to put multiple coats of it on. I painted the half foot stripes with yellow and the whole foot stripes orange. The specialist calls for backup.
Now once all the paint is finally dry, remove the tape and admire your craftsmanship. The backup heads out for a jackhammer. Remove some pictures in glass frames off the walls for no particular reason.
Now the pole I got was a bit twisted at the end and also never planned to use all four feet of it. Additionally, it would never snow that much in my current area (but would be amazing if it did!). So I cut it just after the three and a half foot marker and topped it with a bar stool cap. The specialist finally retrieves his inspection camera from underneath the water heater.
So there it is; a snow board that’s good for three and a half feet of snow. Worry about the bleed-through of the paint under the tape but then realize it’s meant to be seen from a distance. I might yet add some black stripes to the foot markers – one stripe for one foot, two for two, etc.
This year’s winter was a dud where there was hardly any snow, so I didn’t get to use it. But it was something different.
Orthallelous 
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