OppositeGeorge
Member
My apologies if this thread is superfluous (Mods -- delete if you think so.) Given how many recommendation threads this forum gets, maybe we need to start a forum just for recommendations.
Here's the deal: a friend just called and invited me to spend New Year's weekend with her family at a place they've rented for the season in Jamaica. Skiing will be done. Obvious suspects are Stratton, Magic, Bromley, Mt. Snow. I guess Okemo and Ascutney aren't out of the question either (did I miss any?)
If it was up to me, I know where I'd be. But I get a lot of days in anyway so I don't care about me so much as the other skiers -- all in various states of green/blue and none of whom get out that much.
Skier breakdown:
Me: Advanced/expert skier working on junk and bumps, and just got L1 instructor cert. Planning on taking this opportunity to work on my instruction skills.
Husband and his buddy: Long Island natives, mid-30s, self-taught with okay skills but they do blacks anyway and think they rock 'em (it's a guy thing.) They probably won't want tips (even if they could use them) but would IMO prefer good groomed conditions (even if they won't admit it.)
My friend and husband's buddy's girlfriend: Low intermediate and advanced beginner, respectively. These are the two I'll probably be working with. My friend hasn't been skiing long and definitely prefers groomed greens and blues. Blacks probably out of the question for her right now -- but if I can get her confident on them after a day or two of coaching that'd be great. She's been taught by her husband so I suspect we'll be working on breaking some bad habits for most of day one. Girlfriend is unknown quantity but probably any place with good groomed beginner stuff will do. Planning on starting out working with them together and then playing by ear.
Two kids: Boy (6-ish) and Girl (4-ish.) The boy is pretty advanced for his age. My guess is they'll spend most of the day in a kids' program but the parents haven't scheduled anything yet.
So, in short: Want good groomed conditions, with good kid's program with open last-minute slots. Stratton, Bromley, Snow, Okemo all have those covered, I guess. The unknown that I'd like to minimize is hassle factor -- drive to/from, crowds each day, ability to set up camp in centralized location with ability to meet up and not go nuts, etc. The group isn't committed to one specific area, so if there are specific days when you think one would be better than the other (we'll be skiing Sunday, Monday and maybe Tuesday depending on how much we party Monday night) that'd be good to know.
Driving back to SW Ct via I-91 Monday night if that makes a difference.
The husband makes bank, buddy is single and working and I'm pretty vouchered up so cost isn't an issue.
Okay guys, you know the drill -- whaddaya think?
Here's the deal: a friend just called and invited me to spend New Year's weekend with her family at a place they've rented for the season in Jamaica. Skiing will be done. Obvious suspects are Stratton, Magic, Bromley, Mt. Snow. I guess Okemo and Ascutney aren't out of the question either (did I miss any?)
If it was up to me, I know where I'd be. But I get a lot of days in anyway so I don't care about me so much as the other skiers -- all in various states of green/blue and none of whom get out that much.
Skier breakdown:
Me: Advanced/expert skier working on junk and bumps, and just got L1 instructor cert. Planning on taking this opportunity to work on my instruction skills.
Husband and his buddy: Long Island natives, mid-30s, self-taught with okay skills but they do blacks anyway and think they rock 'em (it's a guy thing.) They probably won't want tips (even if they could use them) but would IMO prefer good groomed conditions (even if they won't admit it.)
My friend and husband's buddy's girlfriend: Low intermediate and advanced beginner, respectively. These are the two I'll probably be working with. My friend hasn't been skiing long and definitely prefers groomed greens and blues. Blacks probably out of the question for her right now -- but if I can get her confident on them after a day or two of coaching that'd be great. She's been taught by her husband so I suspect we'll be working on breaking some bad habits for most of day one. Girlfriend is unknown quantity but probably any place with good groomed beginner stuff will do. Planning on starting out working with them together and then playing by ear.
Two kids: Boy (6-ish) and Girl (4-ish.) The boy is pretty advanced for his age. My guess is they'll spend most of the day in a kids' program but the parents haven't scheduled anything yet.
So, in short: Want good groomed conditions, with good kid's program with open last-minute slots. Stratton, Bromley, Snow, Okemo all have those covered, I guess. The unknown that I'd like to minimize is hassle factor -- drive to/from, crowds each day, ability to set up camp in centralized location with ability to meet up and not go nuts, etc. The group isn't committed to one specific area, so if there are specific days when you think one would be better than the other (we'll be skiing Sunday, Monday and maybe Tuesday depending on how much we party Monday night) that'd be good to know.
Driving back to SW Ct via I-91 Monday night if that makes a difference.
The husband makes bank, buddy is single and working and I'm pretty vouchered up so cost isn't an issue.
Okay guys, you know the drill -- whaddaya think?
