Ski Sundown mention in Skiing Magazine

[hammer]

I saw that Sundown was in the December issue of Skiing magazine's "east scene" section as "Molehill of the Month".

One thing in the short article that was interesting...Gunbarrel was mentioned to have a pitch of 35 degrees. Is it really that steep?

 

[ALLSKIING]

I saw that as well. I read that part about gunbarrell 3 times to try to figure that out. Its not close to 35 degrees of quad burning skiing like they said it was:blink: Nice to see it in the mag though.

 

[2knees]

I saw that as well. I read that part about gunbarrell 3 times to try to figure that out. Its not close to 35 degrees of quad burning skiing like they said it was:blink: Nice to see it in the mag though.

35 degrees. not a chance. what is the other method for determing steepness, % of pitch or something like that. maybe thats what they meant.

 

[ALLSKIING]

I will quote that part.

Must Ski: "Connecticut's steepest run, Gunbarrel, falls at 35 degrees from the summit to the basefor 625 feet of quad-burning fun." With that said I enjoy skiing at Sundown!!

 

[2knees]

I will quote that part.

Must Ski: "Connecticut's steepest run, Gunbarrel, falls at 35 degrees from the summit to the basefor 625 feet of quad-burning fun." With that said I enjoy skiing at Sundown!!

good stuff. But i'll echo your last sentiment, i too enjoy going there.

 

[Greg]

No way is it anywhere near 35 degrees. I'm surprised they would actually print that. It's about as steep as a hard Northern New England blue trail. Steepest pitch in CT for sure, but not really all that steep.

 

[Tin Woodsman]

No way is it anywhere near 35 degrees. I'm surprised they would actually print that. It's about as steep as a hard Northern New England blue trail. Steepest pitch in CT for sure, but not really all that steep.

It's kind of sad that ski resorts and the big ski magazines continue to traffic in these lies and misrepresentations. The people who right those blurbs are skiers, not moonlighting travelogue journalists. Their primary interface at the mountains they write about is almost always the head fo marketing, and they have access to anyone they want to speak with. Despite this, you see this kind of crap year after year after year for ski areas all over the Northeast. There isn't a single pitch of 100 vert on any hill in CT that is 35 degrees, let alone 625 vert of "quad-burning fun". It's nonsense, and while it may make Sundown look cool to a few "never evers" in Patriots jackets, it rightly makes them looks like fools to anyone who skis more than 10 days per year.

 

[ski_adk]

So, what trail is 35 degrees? I have no idea how steep anything is, though I'm pretty sure that CanAm at Jay is the steepest trail I've ever skied (Haven't been to Stowe).

 

[bvibert]

Interesting, I haven't made it to the East Scene section yet...

I wonder where they got that 35 degree number from? I've never heard anyone at Sundown say anything silly like that. I do enjoy skiing there though!!

 

[Tin Woodsman]

So, what trail is 35 degrees? I have no idea how steep anything is, though I'm pretty sure that CanAm at Jay is the steepest trail I've ever skied (Haven't been to Stowe).

There are precious few trails in the East that avg 35 degrees for their entire length. Actually, I'd be surprised if there were any at all. Of course there are a number of trails with pitches in excess of 35 degrees and I'm sure Stowe has a few. Liftline, Rumble, Upper FIS and Black Diamond at SB certainly get close.

I'm not sure people understand just how steep 35 degrees is.

Maybe the confusion in the case of the Sundown article is between 35* and 35% pitch. Again, the people on both sides (writer and subject) have no excuse for continuing to butcher the two terms. None. They either don't know any better, in which case they are lousy at their jobs, or they do know better, in which case they are willfully mispreresenting something. Either way, they stink.

 

[awf170]

So, what trail is 35 degrees? I have no idea how steep anything is, though I'm pretty sure that CanAm at Jay is the steepest trail I've ever skied (Haven't been to Stowe).

Here is my thread about steepness.

http://forums.alpinezone.com/8477-steepness-runs.html

So I would say that no trail in the east is more than 35 degrees for 200 ft. of vertical or more. Also, I would guess that about 5-10 trails are 35 degrees or more for a 100 ft. of vertical.

 

[riverc0il]

So, what trail is 35 degrees? I have no idea how steep anything is, though I'm pretty sure that CanAm at Jay is the steepest trail I've ever skied (Haven't been to Stowe).

i don't think any trail in the northeast is 35 degrees top to bottom. there are maybe a dozen trails in the northeast that are 35 degrees or just under for a considerable length.

 

[Greg]

It's kind of sad that ski resorts and the big ski magazines continue to traffic in these lies and misrepresentations. The people who right those blurbs are skiers, not moonlighting travelogue journalists. Their primary interface at the mountains they write about is almost always the head fo marketing, and they have access to anyone they want to speak with. Despite this, you see this kind of crap year after year after year for ski areas all over the Northeast. There isn't a single pitch of 100 vert on any hill in CT that is 35 degrees, let alone 625 vert of "quad-burning fun". It's nonsense, and while it may make Sundown look cool to a few "never evers" in Patriots jackets, it rightly makes them looks like fools to anyone who skis more than 10 days per year.

Agreed on most of this. However, I've dealt with the marketing rep at Sundown for a few years and wouldn't expect this from her. I think your point about this making them look foolish to those in the know is right on. Sundown is a really great hill and they don't need to have themselves misrepresented like this. I actually Emailed the East Coast editor for SKIING to get the skinny. BTW, here's the 625 vert of "quad-burning fun":

Nice consistent pitch? Sure. 35 degrees at really any point? No effin way.

 

[ALLSKIING]

Agreed on most of this. However, I've dealt with the marketing rep at Sundown for a few years and wouldn't expect this from her. I think your point about this making them look foolish to those in the know is right on. Sundown is a really great hill and they don't need to have themselves misrepresented like this. I actually Emailed the East Coast editor for SKIING to get the skinny. BTW, here's the 625 vert of "quad-burning fun":

Nice consistent pitch? Sure. 35 degrees at really any point? No effin way.

It is a bit steeper then that shot looks though.

 

[awf170]

I just did the math:

20 degrees for 400 ft. of vertical
26 degrees for 200 ft. of vertical

Pretty darn steep for southern New England IMO. Then when you add moguls it will feel even steeper and longer. Sounds awesome. So Greg would you like to trade Sundown for Wachusett? I'll even throw in Nasoba and Bradford if you really want. ;-):lol:


I'll probably do some other steeper southern New England runs later to compare. I don't really know the ski areas that well though, so throw out some steeper runs for me.

 

[Greg]

It is a bit steeper then that shot looks though.

Of course. It's always hard to capture pitch in a 2D photograph. To compare, here's White Nitro extension at the Loaf that Austin calculated at a paltry 28 degrees for 400 ft. of vertical. Surly, the difference is obvious:

 

[Greg]

I just did the math:

20 degrees for 400 ft. of vertical
26 degrees for 200 ft. of vertical

Pretty darn steep for southern New England IMO. Then when you add moguls it will feel even steeper and longer. Sounds awesome. So Greg would you like to trade Sundown for Wachusett? I'll even throw in Nasoba and Bradford if you really want. ;-):lol:


I'll probably do some other steeper southern New England runs later to compare. I don't really know the ski areas that well though, so throw out some steeper runs for me.

I may buy those calcs. Roughly 1/3 of the run is pretty steep (right in the middle). They used to seed moguls on that steeper part, but now Gunny is usually groomed as it's the designated trail for races/training. Some other steepish SNE runs:

Jericho - Jiminy
Upper Liftline - Berkshire East
Catapult- Catamount

 

[Zand]

From what I've heard, Smith Walton at Wachusett hits 27 degrees for a point. I don't believe it unless it's only for like 50 vertical feet or so. I think the headwall is closer to 20 or 22.

 

[awf170]

I may buy those calcs. Roughly 1/3 of the run is pretty steep (right in the middle). They used to seed moguls on that steeper part, but now Gunny is usually groomed as it's the designated trail for races/training. Some other steepish SNE runs:

Jericho - Jiminy
Upper Liftline - Berkshire East
Catapult- Catamount

Jericho- Jiminy 25 degrees for 500 ft., 30 degrees for 200 ft. of vertical.
Upper Liftline- Berkshire East 26 degrees for 200 ft. of vertical.
Catapult- Catamount 32 degrees for 300 ft. of vertical.

These sections are quite short because their steep sections are very short making the data more prone to error. So I would give or take 3 degrees on each. Probably a few degrees less steep if anything. I highly doubt I under estimated on any of these runs. Greg so what do you have to say about this, because I have never skied these runs so I really have no idea how steep they feel? Also, catapult wasn't on the aerial photograph so I might have messed up by a little bit on the location, making my reading steeper than it truly is. My guess is catapult and Jericho are about the same steepness, and catapult is a little less steep.

I'm a dork.

 

[awf170]

From what I've heard, Smith Walton at Wachusett hits 27 degrees for a point. I don't believe it unless it's only for like 50 vertical feet or so. I think the headwall is closer to 20 or 22.

Wachusett- Smith Walton 24 degrees for 200 ft. of vertical.

Seem right to you Zand?