mount snow to install a bubble 6 pack next year!

[thetrailboss]

The changes at Mount Snow these last now 5 years since ASC sold them to Peak Resorts have been amazing! They have a great group of admins there with ownership that is really behind treating the mountain not just as a cash cow as ASC did, but as their flagship resort. As a Mount Snow skier for over a quarter century now, its such a great thing to both see and experience!

It's interesting that folks who ski other former ASC resorts, namely Sugarbush, Sunday River, Sugarloaf, and Snow are happy. The others, well, it is mixed.

 

[drjeff]

It's interesting that folks who ski other former ASC resorts, namely Sugarbush, Sunday River, Sugarloaf, and Snow are happy. The others, well, it is mixed.

Very true. I guess that it's just the luck of having been bought by a new owner whose operational philosophy and vision for the ski area are in general agreement for the "successes" and not quite in as much agreement at others (although even at some of the other areas, I think that the vast majority of even the most diehard of loyal patrons will admit that their new ownership IS doing more (but not all) things better than ASC did, especially in their last few years.

 

[thetrailboss]

Glad to hear. Let's keep the pics coming.

 

[x10003q]

Ok I know the lift they are replacing now. It was SLOW as hell. Are there any concerns with trail congestion. I mean a 6 and a four running high speed top to bottom could get kinda crazy right? I would have thought North Face would make sense for a newer/faster lift.

Maybe the addition of the 6 does not increase the uphill capacity or there is only a slight increase. Hunter's new 6 only increased uphill capacity by about 200/hr over the HSQ. Maybe this is a way to decrease the lines equalizing the use of the 2 lifts.

 

[drjeff]

Maybe the addition of the 6 does not increase the uphill capacity or there is only a slight increase. Hunter's new 6 only increased uphill capacity by about 200/hr over the HSQ. Maybe this is a way to decrease the lines equalizing the use of the 2 lifts.

Will it increase uphill capacity out of the base area, for sure. Going from memoey now, I believe that the 6 pack will be able to transport an extra 600 or so per hour out of the base area compared to the quad. And the quad could transport and extra 600/hour out of the base area than the old triple could.

In reality, my hunch is what will happen is that, first off, the old triple, even at peak times with big lines on the quad essentially never had enough "interest" to transport its maximum potential 1800 people per hour to the top - i'd be suprised if it did 1/2 that even at peak times. For a bunch of reasons, the 6 pack is going to be the choice of the majority of people looking to head from base to summit, and as such I would expect that the quad won't be seeing too many hours where it will be transporting as many people base to summit as it has been at peak times since the 80's. So in the end, in theory there can be over an extra 1000/hour transported up the mountain, in reality I don't think that it will be too many more than Mount Snow has been able to do for a long time

 

[jaytrem]

So in the end, in theory there can be over an extra 1000/hour transported up the mountain, in reality I don't think that it will be too many more than Mount Snow has been able to do for a long time

What??? When you consider all the stops the triple made I would think the 6-pack would about double it's capacity. And I gotta think people will be a lot more willing to ride the quad than the old triple, I know I am. The trails might not end up super crowded, but I can't imagine there not being a boatload of extra people going up the mountain. Also, gotta think there will be even less people on the North Face and Sunbrook if they don't have to wait so long on the front.

 

[Glenn]

I liked riding the triple because of the shorter line...and you were moving. I was never able to figure which was faster: no line, triple, or long line, high speed. Didn't matter though. I'd rather be moving on a slow lift than standing in line.

Anyways, I figure my wife and I will probably end up riding the "old" high speed during peak times. See above "waiting vs riding".

 

[bvibert]

I'd rather be moving on a slow lift than standing in line.

That's always my thought process too.

 

[k123]

I liked riding the triple because of the shorter line...and you were moving. I was never able to figure which was faster: no line, triple, or long line, high speed. Didn't matter though. I'd rather be moving on a slow lift than standing in line.

Anyways, I figure my wife and I will probably end up riding the "old" high speed during peak times. See above "waiting vs riding".

Same here. When I was there last year during presidents week, I used the triple a bunch of times since the line for the quad looked like it would take at least 10-15 mins

 

[drjeff]

Same here. When I was there last year during presidents week, I used the triple a bunch of times since the line for the quad looked like it would take at least 10-15 mins

My rule of thumb used to be, if the lift line for the quad was out past the back of the queue ropes, I'd take the triple, since the triple was a 17 minute ride, the quad is a 7 minute ride and the full queue takes about 10 minutes to empty. Plus, sometimes the "entertainment" value that one can get from a full queue more than makes up for standing around for a few minutes in my book.

Now, with the 6 pack and the quad, we'll see what I'll be riding more, and most likely much of the descision will be weather based (of course if I'm skiing with my kids, mu hunch is that it will be all about the 6 pack and the bubble, with line length not even coming into the equation! :lol: )

 

[Newpylong]

I will ride the 6 when I have to, but other than that, I'll be on the ol' Clipper when it's running! I am sure the lines will be less there for sure...

 

[Glenn]

That's true Jeff. If the wind is bad, it may be worth waiting in line for a warmer ride up.

One other thing to consider with the uphill capacity: I think I remember management saying at the season passholder meeting that getting every chair loaded with 6 people can be a big challenge. We'll have to see how that plays out when the season starts.

 

[vcunning]

There will clearly be a novelty factor with the bubble chair. Plus the higher exit at the summit terminal will be a plus over the Grand Summit Express.

 

[Newpylong]

There will clearly be a novelty factor with the bubble chair. Plus the higher exit at the summit terminal will be a plus over the Grand Summit Express.

Plus right outside the Main lodge, etc will probably have appeal. I suspect on weekends, people funneling over from the south side of the mountain will probably head towards the Quad instead...

 

[vcunning]

Plus right outside the Main lodge, etc will probably have appeal. I suspect on weekends, people funneling over from the south side of the mountain will probably head towards the Quad instead...

On those busy Saturday late mornings, early afternoons, we just hang out on Heavy Metal. I'm not a park rat, but there still is great terrain there.

The 6 pack will be great though for those very cold days and getting over to the North Face first thing.

 

[MommaBear]

The 6 pack will be great though for those very cold days and getting over to the North Face first thing.

We will probably stick with the Canyon chair for a quick trip over to the North Face. Sucks getting right back on a chair, but the ride up Challenger gives the chance to scope out what we want to ski.

 

[Glenn]

My wife and I went canoeing on Somerset Reservior last week. It was pretty wild seeing the North Face from the lake. We could see the gray towers on the Challenger lift.

 

[drjeff]

My wife and I went canoeing on Somerset Reservior last week. It was pretty wild seeing the North Face from the lake. We could see the gray towers on the Challenger lift.

I've done the hike from the base of the North Face down to Somerset a few times (follows the trail the High Country Snowmobiles takes). Pretty nice hike down and back up, and a really cool and different perspective of the North Face from down at Somerset!

 

[ScottySkis]

http://mountsnow.com/bubble-blog-new-chairs/ more great info i love the owners so far of Mount Snow

 

[Glenn]

They're doing an awesome job documenting the process. And they take the time to write all the details...like model numbers and weight of the dozers. Friggin cool...I love it.