Snowfall totals / resort bragging rights

[mattlucas]

I'm just wondering why sugarbush is reporting 17" on the season and 22" in the last 48 hours when every other resort measures how much snow total they get every year.
For instance, Stowe opened yesterday and received 10-13" and is reporting 28" on the season.

I don't care about who gets more, because I know Sugarbush gets plenty of snow...but it seems that the 250" average has been standard on the promotional material for about 20 years, and I can't recall a year except one where we didn't exceed that.

This shouldn't be a license to exagerate, I think honesty is important above all, but can someone please add the totals for the last ten years and average it to see if it's actually 250?
and also,
If everyone else is reporting totals from September - June, why would Sugarbush do themselves the disservice of not playing by the same rules.

I just can't see Sugarbush averaging 250" if Stowe gets 350"+ and Jay gets 500 if counting in the same queens inches.

[kcyanks1]

I'm just wondering why sugarbush is reporting 17" on the season and 22" in the last 48 hours when every other resort measures how much snow total they get every year.
For instance, Stowe opened yesterday and received 10-13" and is reporting 28" on the season.

I don't care about who gets more, because I know Sugarbush gets plenty of snow...but it seems that the 250" average has been standard on the promotional material for about 20 years, and I can't recall a year except one where we didn't exceed that.

This shouldn't be a license to exagerate, I think honesty is important above all, but can someone please add the totals for the last ten years and average it to see if it's actually 250?
and also,
If everyone else is reporting totals from September - June, why would Sugarbush do themselves the disservice of not playing by the same rules.

I just can't see Sugarbush averaging 250" if Stowe gets 350"+ and Jay gets 500 if counting in the same queens inches.

Jay's reported average is around 350, not 500. I think Jay also, at least last year, only counted snow from opening day. I think uniformity probably is the most important thing. Sometimes the early pre-opening snow does matter and add to the base, but sometimes it's totally washed away before opening. In any case, the differences in totals from the methods probably doesn't amount to more than a foot in most years.

[Lostone]

You are allowed to ski thru the excess, and not have to give any back. They just ask that you smile.


I'd rather that they under promise and over deliver. Nobody ever complains (except here? ) about having more snow than was reported.

On the other hand, I rode up Heaven's Gate today with a couple guys who went to Jay, yesterday. They were exclaiming how good it was today, and how icy it was at Jay.

I really like the fact that you don't have to say, "Well they said there was 5", but all we really got was a dusting."

[mattlucas]

i'm all for accuracy, but it still feels strange that we've sat at the 250" number for what seems like my whole life.
Like, maybe they got 250" the first couple years in the 50s and just sat with it regardless of the small sample size.

seems like we get more is all.

[BushMogulMaster]

Average listed in the stats now is 269" (up from previous average of 262").

Last year was something like 290" reported, the previous season was 317" reported. Year before that was lower, around 230" IIRC.

Just something to think about.

[HowieT2]

this has been discussed previously.

[mattlucas]

sure, but congress discussed universal healthcare for at least two years in the 90s and this is waaaaayyyyyyyyyy more important.

[mattlucas]

also, i am glad to see that the stats have been updated. that is great news.

[skierdon]

who cares, just ski it.

[win]

We have discussed this internally because it is a bit frustrating that some other resorts count snowfall before they open for the season and we do not. I think some are also quite liberal with the inches they report. We think reporting before one is open is misleading because it usually does not last, and it is not indicative of the conditions that one will find when here. We also try to be an accurate as possible with our daily reporting and went to top, mid and bottom reporting last year since the inches can vary materially from bottom to top. We were really lucky this weekend. The lake effect snow was like an arrow pointed directly at Sugarbush. In fact the Western slopes received even more than we did on the Eastern slopes of the Green Mountains. One employee said he had over 20" of snow on his porch in Hinesburg.

[Strat]

IMO the conservative approach is certainly the better one. Like Win says, the snow that falls before opening isn't often still around by the time the lifts start turning, and if people don't have the opportunity to ski it, why count it in the total? It makes sense from a marketing and reputation perspective as well, as was talked about a bit earlier I think; much better to show up and be surprised that 3" is 5" than the opposite. Far better to have people saying "Sugarbush always has more than you expect!" than "I think Sugarbush exaggerates their snowfall."

[mattlucas]

I can live with "sugarbush gets snowfall totals right"

i might have to consider setting back all VT trailmaps back before the trail count arms race though....

win, can you get together a "summit"?

wucka wucka