Ski Season Grade

[Edd]

My idea of an "A" season was 2010-1: Good snow Xmas, MLK and pres. week. No January thaw to speak of. No extreme weather.

I was sort of taking this as a personal grade. The holidays you speak of, yes, not good for ski areas.

Those periods are a non-factor for some folks. I'm holding my grade as well. I hope to bang out 7 more days before May.

 

[Smellytele]

My season is almost over. I would say A-. Always room for improvement. I would you use a sliding scale by time of the year and my expectations for that time of year. The beginning of the year up until Christmas was an A+. Christmas week was a C. Most of January was a B- then end of January through beginning of March was an A. Middle of March was an A-. Yesterday was an unexpected A-. Hitting Crotched this afternoon but I am not expecting much...

 

[Brad J]

over all B+ good early season , best December ever ,then I went out to Alta/ Snowbird and hit a storm , back home to horrid, then great snow thru Febuary I think , my brain was frozen from the cold , then went to Jackson hole, very firm, Alta again hit another storm, then home to cold frozen conditions wishing for spring Temps/ sun. I was extremely lucky with my timing at Alta /Snowbird so over all a very good season.

 

[Whitey]

Wow, I am glad I didn't have you guys as teachers in school - I'd still be repeating the 4th grade. . .

This season is absolutely an A. We've had good to great snow & the season continues on. Yes, January was pretty much a wipe out but February & March kicked a$$. And the season goes on.

I'll admit that some of my grade is due to good timing on my part. I made more of an effort this season to watch the weather and be ready to go as soon as the snow fell or softened. That resulted in a powder day at Ragged, a cornfest at Cannon, and two 3 day trips where we nailed the timing/conditions. Throw in a 50th Bday weekend at Sugarloaf - that's a hard A!

Personally I've had some of my best days of skiing ever this season. I'd put a couple of those days on my "top ten of all time" days for me.

 

[sugarbushskier]

I'd give it an A-. Great year, 12 different ski areas, 412K+ of vertical over 21 days of mostly md-week skiing. Got to ski some smaller areas that had been on my list for years. Was also able to pick and choose when to ski so conditions mostly exceptional. No complaints!

 

[joshua segal]

OK. Here is the basis for my understanding of a grading system: The concept of "grade" to me implies some kind of bell curve with perhaps 1 season in 10 being rated "F", 1 in 10 rated "A"; 2 in 10 being rated "B", 2 rated "D" and 4 rated "C".

With 2010-1 as my "A" and 2012-13 and 2013-2014 as my "B"s, there is no room for this season for any more than a "C".

 

[Cannonball]

Using any rating system, including Joshua's curve, I give this season an A so far. It won't drop below A for me even if it ends today. But a few more good days could make it an A+.

Powder day on April 5 solidified that grade.

 

[deadheadskier]

With 2010-1 as my "A" and 2012-13 and 2013-2014 as my "B"s, there is no room for this season for any more than a "C".

Too each their own, but you are 1 of a VERY small percentage of NE skiers that rate last year better than this year; especially as a Crotched skier. Southern NH received probably 50" more snow this year than last and had no where near the severity of thaw cycles. I watched a 12-18" natural base at Crotched get wiped out 3-4 times last year. This year an even deeper base lasted almost 2.5 months straight.......unheard of for SNH.

 

[freeski]

I keep hearing people say how much snow we got in Concord this year. Not really, it just all came in 7 weeks or so and it never got above freezing. People saw the reports out of Boston, but above normal snow didn't happen here. We never even had a storm that was much more than a foot. All in all a good snow year though. Cannon got pretty much the same snow as Killington.

 

[JimG.]

Wow, I am glad I didn't have you guys as teachers in school - I'd still be repeating the 4th grade. . .

This season is absolutely an A. We've had good to great snow & the season continues on. Yes, January was pretty much a wipe out but February & March kicked a$$. And the season goes on.

I'll admit that some of my grade is due to good timing on my part. I made more of an effort this season to watch the weather and be ready to go as soon as the snow fell or softened. That resulted in a powder day at Ragged, a cornfest at Cannon, and two 3 day trips where we nailed the timing/conditions. Throw in a 50th Bday weekend at Sugarloaf - that's a hard A!

Personally I've had some of my best days of skiing ever this season. I'd put a couple of those days on my "top ten of all time" days for me.

My perception as well; being able to go ski at the drop of the weather hat makes a big difference.

 

[joshua segal]

I guess there is a fundamental question of "what grade is average?" And with no agreement on that, there is no meaning to a grading system that rates every season as an "A".

 

[Cannonball]

I guess there is a fundamental question of "what grade is average?" And with no agreement on that, there is no meaning to a grading system that rates every season as an "A".

I'd say "C" is average. Or at least that's the most common standard. Who rates every season an "A"? I haven't seen anybody make mention of that in this thread.

For me this season is on par with 2010-11 (making it an A) and is better than the past 3 seasons (which were Bs and C). My memory and notes don't go back much further than that with any detail. I do remember a horrible season that would have been an "F". Was that 06-07?

 

[thetrailboss]

Going to agree with DHS and withhold grading until it's over.


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[Scruffy]

So far, it's an A. What are you people talking about, no snow in Jan.? I guess the storms were hit or miss, but I skied several powder days at Killington in Jan. Devils fiddle, all natural cover, woods were great. They have cars, ya know, you can move around and ski here and there.

And to whine about the cold? Really? They make good clothing for that now a days, ya know. I think some of you need to take up parcheesi as a sport.

I can understand our brothers and sisters out west rating the season low, but anyone in the NE, who rates this season low, has a short memory. Some of you keep bringing up the 2001, and 2010 years; there has been a lot more bony years than this year in between.

 

[ScottySkis]

So far, it's an A. What are you people talking about, no snow in Jan.? I guess the storms were hit or miss, but I skied several powder days at Killington in Jan. Devils fiddle, all natural cover, woods were great. They have cars, ya know, you can move around and ski here and there.

And to whine about the cold? Really? They make good clothing for that now a days, ya know. I think some of you need to take up parcheesi as a sport.

I can understand our brothers and sisters out west rating the season low, but anyone in the NE, who rates this season low, has a short memory. Some of you keep bringing up the 2001, and 2010 years; there has been a lot more bony years than this year in between.

+420//2 years ago it snow like half normal and was in for 40 ad 50/ highs all winter long. This season mostly in Catskills is B+

 

[joshua segal]

I'd say "C" is average. Or at least that's the most common standard. Who rates every season an "A"? I haven't seen anybody make mention of that in this thread.

For me this season is on par with 2010-11 (making it an A) and is better than the past 3 seasons (which were Bs and C). My memory and notes don't go back much further than that with any detail. I do remember a horrible season that would have been an "F". Was that 06-07?

2006-7 is the season I'd rate "D", saved only by the "Valentine's Day" storm.
My "F" is the 2011-2: After October blockbuster storm, there was almost no natural snow all season. While the skiing was adequate on snowmaking trails, natural snow glade skiing and other aspects of the sport that involved natural snow, never materialized

But if you only remember back 4 seasons, and you agree that "C" is average - how can you have 2 seasons rated as "A"s? Something doesn't compute!!

 

[catsup948]

I'm giving this season a B. It's hard because Berkshire East was very good for like 4.5 weeks but besides that it wasn't very good. Lack of thaw made the season pretty awesome but basically it stopped snowing the second week of February and then it was brutally cold for the rest of the month. March had limited spring skiing and now the mountain is closed. Big bonus for me this season has been some high quality days away from home. I think for me I have this feeling of wanting more. Maybe I should know by now that this could be as good as it gets here in southern New England.

 

[deadheadskier]

I think people have much more anal grading systems than I. Most years fall in the B range for me. C's and A's are the exceptions from the norm for the east. A grade of D is not passing. So, it would have to really be awful. There's maybe 3-4 of those in the last 30 years. I would only grade a season an F if I had a season ending injury.

 

[joshua segal]

I think people have much more anal grading systems than I. Most years fall in the B range for me. C's and A's are the exceptions from the norm for the east. A grade of D is not passing. So, it would have to really be awful. There's maybe 3-4 of those in the last 30 years. I would only grade a season an F if I had a season ending injury.

Interesting. Your bias for an "F" is a season ending injury. I have a strong bias for how the industry does which on the surface makes no sense, since I am neither an owner nor a manager of a ski area. However, I do think "how the industry does" has a large impact on the next season(s) in terms of proper maintenance vs. deferred maintenance; new lifts/terrain; snowmaking upgrades and amenities in general. So that's my rationale for giving it what some might consider to be "undue importance."

 

[mishka]

I think it's very subjective in different what people think of same season.
For me this season is the best. Almost no weekend/holiday storms mostly midweek. more Powder day in December and January this season than several years combined. First ever trip out West. managed to score untracked pow at BEast, magic and MRG.... Not to mention first time venture to MRG. Met many AZ members hope made new friends.
So for me based on comparison to previous season best