Indy Ski Pass

[2planks2coasts]

World's darkest night skiing, big fun! Lot of locals wear headlamps. So if you have one, and you plan on night skiing, you might want to bring it. Patrol doesn't seem to care where you go. I don't think they close anything no matter how dark it is.

No booze though and not much in the way of food either.

 

[abc]

yea! why bother getting locked in to spending $289 for the potential of getting 2 days a piece at jay, cannon, magic, bolton, waterville, and saddleback!

at approximately $90 a day for a weekend walk up (and that's a generous estimated price), that is $1080 a la carte spending.

'when i know the weather before' - indy does not lock you into a pre-determined date. a few places require reservations. i have always been able to make reservations the week of, often the morning of.

your contrarianism for the sake of contrarianism is so fucking tiresome, especially when you are just objectively completely factually wrong.

Contrarianism?

How much gas money to drive from Brooklyn to Saddleback? Do you sleep in your car? How much does a motel compare with a day of lift tickets?

The only “Indy” that are within reasonable travel distance is Magic. I for one isn’t that impressed with it. Half of the time, it’s only got 50% of its terrain open. Jay is nice. But it’s only 2 days.

For many of you, you want to ski as many days as you want, even if it means you drive all over the place burning gas and TIME! Well, time is also money too for those who’re working (or those with family and kids).

It’s no different than Vail trying to scare people into buying their “inexpensive” Epic pass, by sighting the $200/day walk-up tickets. Sure, $70/day is a “deal”!

Last but not least, go back to the end of last season. How many people are moaning about their “leftover days” on their pass (and to a lessor extent, their multi-pack pre-paid tickets) that they’d have to burn gas and vacation time to “use”???

I‘ve been reminded by one wise poster (who may wish to stay nameless), it’s called “wishfulnism” when it comes to justifying the purchase of passes!

 

[KustyTheKlown]

what the fuck are you talking about. i drive to new england to ski and stay in motels every weekend. this is documented. the costs of gas and shitty motels are assumed. spent. cost of doing business. getting access to more ski areas for well under their retail rate is a good deal. no matter how you try to spin it. it takes 5 days to break even on indy and there are locations all over the place. youre a nutcase.

'contrarianism' because you decide to be argumentative about every. little. fucking. thing.

so tiresome.

 

[deadheadskier]

Gas / lodging expense is a consideration no matter where you go and what pass you buy. I don't buy iKon for that reason. Living in NH, Epic would be a choice, but Vail sucks! I still do but 2 Epic day passes a season though.

Hey, but good for you bucking the entire industry trend of making buying a pass really the only affordable way to ski anymore. You surely are winning the value game buying day tickets.


How many days did you ski last season and where were they?

 

[thebigo]

have tried to get the indy math to work every year since launch but could never justify the cost. think it depends whether you are a nomad or physically tied to one mountain. the indy add on is roughly the cost of K spring, the later is likely to yield far better value for me. If indy ever adds BW, it may change the ROI. April weekends at Saddleback and Jay, early season at BW and a couple mid season days at WV would be reasonable return.

 

[Smellytele]

Contrarianism?

How much gas money to drive from Brooklyn to Saddleback? Do you sleep in your car? How much does a motel compare with a day of lift tickets?

The only “Indy” that are within reasonable travel distance is Magic. I for one isn’t that impressed with it. Half of the time, it’s only got 50% of its terrain open. Jay is nice. But it’s only 2 days.

For many of you, you want to ski as many days as you want, even if it means you drive all over the place burning gas and TIME! Well, time is also money too for those who’re working (or those with family and kids).

It’s no different than Vail trying to scare people into buying their “inexpensive” Epic pass, by sighting the $200/day walk-up tickets. Sure, $70/day is a “deal”!

Last but not least, go back to the end of last season. How many people are moaning about their “leftover days” on their pass (and to a lessor extent, their multi-pack pre-paid tickets) that they’d have to burn gas and vacation time to “use”???

I‘ve been reminded by one wise poster (who may wish to stay nameless), it’s called “wishfulnism” when it comes to justifying the purchase of passes!

Where is a ski area that is a reasonable day trip from Brooklyn for $30?

Also I have Cannon, Waterville, Bolton, Ragged, Magic at less than 2 hours. Also smaller places like Dartmouth, East Berkshire, Black, Whaleback, S6.
Then I can get to Jay, Abram for day trips at a little over 2. I plan on hitting up a few Xcountry areas as well (Jackson NH and Woodstock VT)
On my trip out west I am skiing Big Sky, Jackson hole and Bridger Bowl but mixing in a few Indys.
So if all goes well I will have around 25 days on it. No wishfulnism involved. It is called keeping my addiction fed while still being able to pay my bills.

 

[AdironRider]

Why bother? I suppose I could see your POV using it 6 days or less.

Your calculator is either broken or uses different math formulas than mine. I use mine at minimum 12 times a year. I buy the Indy Plus at $379. That means at most , I'm paying $31.59 per day.

I'd love to know where you are buying lift tickets on weekends and holidays to places like Jay, Cannon, Saddleback etc. for $32 or even $64 a day. That's even difficult to do midweek on the shoulder seasons.

It's a steal if you like the mountains on the pass, which many are some of my favorites in the East.

To each their own though

I get an employee pass to Dartmouth Skiway for 100 bucks and the indy plus add on. For under 400 bucks I get 70+ days of skiing at my usage rates. Best deal in the biz.

I've tacked on a Jay pass now also, which raises my outlay, but those extra 20-30 days on top of the above are worth it.

 

[abc]

Gas / lodging expense is a consideration no matter where you go and what pass you buy. I don't buy iKon for that reason. Living in NH, Epic would be a choice, but Vail sucks! I still do but 2 Epic day passes a season though.

Hey, but good for you bucking the entire industry trend of making buying a pass really the only affordable way to ski anymore. You surely are winning the value game buying day tickets.


How many days did you ski last season and where were they?

9 or 10 days. Only one of them over $50. But not $90 either. (I don’t always keep detail track, and don’t ask me about # of runs of total elevation).

3 in Canada (Sutton) because I was there to watch the eclipse. CAN$99 for all 3 days (Sat/Sun/Mon)
2 in Bolton Valley (mid-week). There’s some deal going on. Something in the neighborhood of $30 for one and $50 (or $60?) the next
2 days in Burke (also mid-week). There’s a 3-for-1 deal for one day, worked out to be $19! The other day the “regular” mid-week price of $45 (or $49?)
1 (or 2?) day in Middlebury Snowbowl, ~$39 if I recall correctly

Some of the days may got a little mixed up. Because I had in mind of skiing x,y resort but the weather changed on me, some of them had massive wind hold. I had in mind to ski Mt Ellen and Pico, but were replaced by repeating Bolton or Burke (or Middlebury).

Many of those “scores” were thanks to the suggestion of people here. So I‘m just highlighting my experience for others who are in similar situation like mine rather than like those vocal regulars who think their choices were the only choice anyone should make!

 

[abc]

Where is a ski area that is a reasonable day trip from Brooklyn for $30?

Somewhat of a stretch of “reasonable”, but Plattekill and Bellearye can be done as a day trip. It isn’t $30. But deals can usually be found to be near (or below) $50.

Blomley and Magic can be considered too if one wants to really stretch the definition of “reasonable”. Sure, Magic is on Indy. But to make the pass pay, one would have to shell out motel cost for those beyond day trip distance. It’s an individual calculation whether it’s better to just pay the daily rate and NOT pay for motel, vs. a “cheap“ pass but racking up the motel bills.

I get it for people living near several Indy mountains, it makes sense. But this is NORTHEAST ski forum, not New England ski forum. For many of us living in the southern tier of NE, the math doesn’t automatically work out.

 

[abc]

what the fuck are you talking about. i drive to new england to ski and stay in motels every weekend.

You drive every weekend and assume everyone else should?

I would instead call your argument “contrarianism”.

'contrarianism' because you decide to be argumentative about every. little. fucking. thing.

so tiresome.

Pot calling kettle black?

Have you looked into a mirror after you post?

 

[deadheadskier]

Did you not pay for lodging and gas to go to Middlebury, Bolton, Burke and Canada?

You have the same expenses doing that and scouring for cheap day tickets (mostly midweek from the sounds of it) as those who are traveling to use an Indy Pass.

Your logic is all over the place.

 

[abc]

Did you not pay for lodging and gas to go to Middlebury, Bolton, Burke and Canada?

You have the same expenses doing that and scouring for cheap day tickets (mostly midweek from the sounds of it) as those who are traveling to use an Indy Pass.

Your logic is all over the place.

My plan was to ski near home. But the season was crap in the south. So I ended up having to shell out lodging to ski in northern VT.

But my point being, I end up spending no more than the cost of the Indy pass by skiing other non-Indy-affiliated but nonetheless independent mountains.

Except I wasn’t bound to spend those lodging cost at all had the weather were a bit more favorable. I had flexibility and I end up breaking even despite the unfavorable weather.

My logic, as you call it, flexibility is valuable. Buying a “pass” that lock one in for exact number of days far away from home in a region of highly unpredictable weather isn’t exactly cheap. And if you gets lucky with great condition, will you leave after 2 days regardless? (To go to the next “free“ mountain of unknown condition) Or do you pony up full price to ski the known good condition another day or two?

 

[urungus]

The only “Indy” that are within reasonable travel distance is Magic.

There are 10 ski areas on Indy Pass closer to Brooklyn than Magic:
Berkshire East, Catamount, Bousquet, Mohawk, Maple Ski Ridge, West Mountain, Hickory Ski Center, Montage, Shawnee, Ski Big Bear

 

[urungus]

The only “Indy” that are within reasonable travel distance is Magic. I for one isn’t that impressed with it. Half of the time, it’s only got 50% of its terrain open.

I wasn’t bound to spend those lodging cost at all had the weather were a bit more favorable. I had flexibility and I end up breaking even despite the unfavorable weather.

My logic, as you call it, flexibility is valuable. Buying a “pass” that lock one in for exact number of days far away from home in a region of highly unpredictable weather isn’t exactly cheap. And if you gets lucky with great condition, will you leave after 2 days regardless?

If not having an Indy pass somehow frees you up to go only when the weather is good (not sure I understand - I can also wait for good weather using my Indy Pass), why did you go to Magic when it only had 50% of its terrain open ?

 

[abc]

If not having an Indy pass somehow frees you up to go only when the weather is good (not sure I understand - I can also wait for good weather using my Indy Pass), why did you go to Magic when it only had 50% of its terrain open ?

I didn’t.

(When I went, it was more like 70-80% open. But the condition still wasn’t that great. I can only imagine what it’s like when it’s less than 50% open)

 

[KustyTheKlown]

You drive every weekend and assume everyone else should?

I would instead call your argument “contrarianism”.


Pot calling kettle black?

Have you looked into a mirror after you post?

you are posting on a board full of people who drive to ski every weekend. what the fuck are you even on about.

you dont have to drive every weekend. you need to drive 3 weekends to make the pass break even. less if you want to combine more than one indy in a trip, which is entirely doable. is it beyond your capabilities to ski cannon and waterville over 4 consecutive days? jay and bolton?

or go to catamount and b-east or montage mountain if you really must ski shitholes near southern new england/hudson valley

'if the weather is good will you leave after 2 days?' - um yes. this is the northeast. this isnt some major destination. we get in our cars and ski a couple days. many people on here are limited to weekends. the perfect 2 consecutive days.

to call the indy pass 'inflexible' is again just straight up factually wrong. you have many options of where to go, when you want.

dont worry about going to magic when its 100% open. you arent a good enough skier for it.

 

[ThatGuy]

'if the weather is good will you leave after 2 days?' - um yes. this is the northeast. this isnt some major destination. we get in our cars and ski a couple days. many people on here are limited to weekends. the perfect 2 consecutive days.

You dont even have to leave after two days since its 50% off lift tickets even after you use the days up…so shes just spouting nonsense at this point

 

[jaytrem]

No booze though and not much in the way of food either.

Funny, I think the longest line I ever seen for food was at Kelly Canyon. Lift ticket included a drink and a hotdog or 2. I passed.

Not surprised about the no alcohol with BYU-Idaho being right there.

 

[Ski2LiveLive2Ski]

IMO IndyPass is probably the best day to ski 6 to 15 days in the Northeast

Epic is probably the best deal to ski more than that particularly of you want to make a Colorado trip at least once a year

Shopping other deals can produce better value for fewer than that

 

[abc]

IMO IndyPass is probably the best day to ski 6 to 15 days in the Northeast

Epic is probably the best deal to ski more than that particularly of you want to make a Colorado trip at least once a year

Shopping other deals can produce better value for fewer than that

Bingo!

(the exactly number may vary a bit depending on where one lives and the kind of skiing one wish to do)