2011-2012 Annual Snowmaking Discussion Thread

[gostan]

Not looking too good according to Win's Word: http://www.sugarbush.com/blogs/wins-word

[NorthLynx]

After this dump the forecast is rather ugly until next wednesday. Hopefully we will get some freezing temps at night to help preserve what we have. I would expect that things will start to take off the first week of december. Snowmaking will go much faster when it is actually cold out. Not just mid to upper 20's

[shadyjay]

We need some more recon! Ducky where are you? Shady????

Sorry for the late response.... I don't have Wi-Fi at Heaven's Gate.

Yup, I said that right.

I loaded my first chair today for a group of 3 individuals (my bosses) this morning, and for snowmakers throughout the day. There was definitely more than 1 gun going. We were lit up on Jester, Allyn's and Downspout at LP right through about 2-3 when they started shutting down due to the storm coming in (read: humidity levels rising). The base area had a couple guns going this morning - those new guns are so whisper quiet. Unfortunately I had the old-fashioned loud blasters in my ears all day.

I did manage to hook up my outdoor speakers and could hear them over the roar of the guns.

See y'all soon.... I hope!

[bumpcrasher]

That one gun was cranking out snow so you can load with skis on. Go look at the current forcast. They need all the snow they can make on jester, and downspout. Maybe after they build and sell these condo units they have in the works there will be capitol for expanding snowmaking infrastructure?

Can we really only make snow on one run at a time at Lincoln Peak? (And no....cant really count Jester/Downsprout as two separate runs) Sunday River and Killington were able to open at least 2 RUNS with about a 48-hour window at the end of October and stay open. Yeah, that is pretty crazy but now Jay, Stowe, Killington, Sugarloaf, Sunday River, Bretton Woods, and even Loon will be open for the weekend. Figure the Bush would have at least as much firepower as one of those other mountains?!? (My apologies in advance as I am getting a little weary of driving an hour down Rt. 100 to ski the past few weekends).

[djd66]

Guys,... get a grip. It is only November 22. Blowing a bunch of snow early only to see it melt away is a waste of money,... until they can see an extended period of cold weather. I would much rather see them blasting out the snow on a regular basis when it counts, not when we have periods of rain followed by 65 degrees.

[NorthLynx]

Sugarbush is probably never going to be able to make snow like Killington, or Sunday River, but then again I don't speak for the resort.

Temperatures play a bigger role than anything. Given temps below zero or in the single digits it becomes much more feasible to cover a trail in a couple of days.
Near 32 degrees it can take 5 days for upper jester alone. I think the real kicker here has been the limited windows with decent temperatures on downspout.

While it would be nice if Sugarbush had substantially more snowmaking capacity and it is easy to make comparisons to other resorts the reality is that it takes money
to make this sort of stuff happen. They do what they can. Running a business is not easy and these guys are industry professionals. I am sure they share many of the same
visions but they know the other side of the story.

[NorthLynx]

Guys,... get a grip. It is only November 22. Blowing a bunch of snow early only to see it melt away is a waste of money,... until they can see an extended period of cold weather. I would much rather see them blasting out the snow on a regular basis when it counts, not when we have periods of rain followed by 65 degrees.

agreed. I don't even know why thanksgiving, or early season skiing is such a big deal. Its fine if the weather is good but I don't know why the market demands it.

[MntMan4Bush]

The market demands it because 1) I want to go skiing now and 2) I want to go skiing now. Or with all joking aside really it demands it because other mountains are doing it and setting the bar. Some people ski from beginning of season to end and will shell out money (like me who has a SB season pass and will be at Killington this weekend spending money) to go when and where there is snow.

It's not just the lift ticket but the beers I'll buy after, etc. For some it may set a precedent of where they will go for the year. When skiing is an activity anywhere in New England I expect to be able to do it at the mountain I prefer so I want to see SB running right now. If you have voiced your opinion that you are not interested in early season skiing then by all means don't come out and crowd up the one trail that may or may not be open. Otherwise if you want to ski early season voice your opinion so the mountain hears and knows there is a market demand for it.

Also I hardly think all of Killington's snow that was made has melted away. Else how do they continue to open more terrain. So if they can manage how come we can't handle a fraction of it? Just because you blow snow early season it doesn't mean it goes to dirt in a day. Maybe if you put candy in Andy Richter's dish it will disappear that quick, but not necessarily true of man-made snow.

[Hawk]

agreed. I don't even know why thanksgiving, or early season skiing is such a big deal. Its fine if the weather is good but I don't know why the market demands it.

Dude If that is how you feel then that is fine. It's your opinion and every body has the right. I STRONGLY disagree with anyone who says that early season skiing is not a big deal. I will drive 3 hours this weekend and pay additional money over my pass to ski. There are hundreds of us that will do the same. We ski because we love the sport and have passion. I just think it is funny when people say that it's not worth it. It is.

I also think it is funny when people say that Sugarbush has a good snowmaking system and they make good snow. They don't. If they did then we would be open like many other areas.

It's just how I feel.

[NorthLynx]

It is what it is. 99% of people I know, myself included are perfectly happy with the way Sugarbush does things.

[NorthLynx]

Dude If that is how you feel then that is fine. It's your opinion and every body has the right. I STRONGLY disagree with anyone who says that early season skiing is not a big deal. I will drive 3 hours this weekend and pay additional money over my pass to ski. There are hundreds of us that will do the same. We ski because we love the sport and have passion. I just think it is funny when people say that it's not worth it. It is.

I also think it is funny when people say that Sugarbush has a good snowmaking system and they make good snow. They don't. If they did then we would be open like many other areas.

It's just how I feel.

I think early season skiing is fine if the conditions are suitable but what I am saying is that I feel that it is something that shouldn't be rushed. In a couple of weeks nobody will care about any of this anymore. I am saying this in general, not directed at any one person but there are better things to do than get worked up over this same old stuff that comes up at the start of every season.

[gostan]

Just got in to Bragg Hill Rd from Boston. Gotta go to sleep so I can get up early & go to Opening Day @ Stowe tomorrow @ 8 AM to ride the new ForeRunner Quad & ski 2.6 miles top to bottom. i am not complaining. I am happy to get out on my skis. November skiing in the East is a bonus. But, I would certainly prefer to be skiing @ Sugarbush this long Thanksgiving weekend, insead of heading elsewhere to purchase a lift ticket or thinking about hiking up MRG.

[NorthLynx]

Its dumping. There is about an inch of accumulation so far, so hopefully it keeps adding up.

[boze]

Whatever the rationale re: making early season snow - "won't" or "can't" - it does not play well when the neighborhood competitors have their early season lifts spinning just not our own, especially at a time when one is trying to pre-sell phase 1 of a new on-mountain development. When thinking about plunking down that kind of dough and planting a root so to speak, one factor folks consider is the length of the mountain's ski season, and the dependability of opening on the early side, staying open / recovering quickly during the inevitable funky weather periods, and staying open on the late side of the season. Sure there are lots of other factors, both objective an subjective. And that includes, to play Devil's Advocate, management prudence and expertise to make the best overall economic decisions. But the snow-making capacity just seems to continue to appear as an Achilles Heel. And I'm an avowed SB fan. Crazy Big Fan. So I hope one of us or Win gets the correct Powerball ticket next time it crests $150MM and do something monumentally crazy good w/ the current system to make my snow-anxiety go away for good - such as a system w/ enough firepower to reverse global warming. Until then, Praise & Give Thanks to Ullr!

[groomer]

Somebody needs to invent the refrigerated ski trail! Oh, and a bottomless heated coffee cup for my groomer! Happy thanksgiving everyone!
-Groomer O' the Great White North