Sugarloaf/Sugarbush

[SHRED HEAD]

I have never been to either of these mountains and i remember quite a few discussions on this board last year of which was better or what one you preferred. I recall the voting was close, however this year i hear almost nothing about sugarloaf, and it seems sugarbush is now the darling mountain of the northeast, and everyones best skiing experiences of their lives have been at the bush lately, and a must ski over just about everything, whats going on here??

IMHO Disney-Bush can't hold a candle to the the Loaf for anything except new slopeside hotels and more NY'ers per square foot. For pure skiing experience and atmosphere, hands down you gotta go to Sugarloaf. The ride's a bear but if you got the time and the energy it's worth it and the extra work it takes to get there cut the herbs down to almost nil

 

[Talisman]

I like both Sugarloaf and Sugarbush, a lot. Ski both and then decide for yourself which you prefer, but it is a bit like choosing which supermodel is the prettiest.

Sugarbush advantages:

More clipper system snow.
MRG, Stowe and Bolton are close by
Two base areas
Slidebrook, when open, is a unique ski experience
Chez Henri for a unique lunch
The MRV has as many cows as people

Sugar Loaf advantages:

A good Nor'easter can bury the place in snow
Saddleback is close by
Ski in Ski out from many of the parking lots if you boot up at the truck
The Snowfields and Backside, when open, are a unique ski experience
The Bag or Geppetto's for a great lunch
Carabassett county has more moose than people

 

[ski_industry_enthusiast]

IMHO Disney-Bush can't hold a candle to the the Loaf for anything except new slopeside hotels and more NY'ers per square foot. For pure skiing experience and atmosphere, hands down you gotta go to Sugarloaf. The ride's a bear but if you got the time and the energy it's worth it and the extra work it takes to get there cut the herbs down to almost nil

I can't even believe you just called Sugarbush Disney-Bush. Absolutely unbelievable. Sugarbush is the farthest thing from it. Ever ski Mt. Ellen? It's as pure a New England experience and atmosphere as you can find (aside from MRG perhaps!). And you want find the NY'ers at ME either.

 

[kingdom-tele]

old snowboarder- trust me, you are not that far away from sugarloaf, try living in caribou and see how long that ride takes to sugarloaf

two very different vibes at each mtn - growing up skiing sugarloaf - i would vote the loaf as a better mountain - but sugarbush had the VT woods - nothing beats that!

 

[snoseek]

the stuff leading out of the snowfields is pretty intense!

 

[JimG.]

Know what?

I like Sugarbush alot; I probably ski at MRG more when I'm there, but SB is a great mountain too. I've never been to Sugarloaf, but I'm sure I'd love it there too.

What I don't like are the inevitable shots people like to take at New Yorkers. So sorry for being the sole reason for any bad experiences in your ski day.

Here's a newsflash...assholes live everywhere and the one bothering you right now might just be from Vermont or Maine.

 

[kcyanks1]

Know what?

I like Sugarbush alot; I probably ski at MRG more when I'm there, but SB is a great mountain too. I've never been to Sugarloaf, but I'm sure I'd love it there too.

What I don't like are the inevitable shots people like to take at New Yorkers. So sorry for being the sole reason for any bad experiences in your ski day.

Here's a newsflash...assholes live everywhere and the one bothering you right now might just be from Vermont or Maine.

I wasn't going to say anything because I didn't want to start a fight, but thanks for speaking up. I don't care for those comments either.

 

[thetrailboss]

Just got back from a trip to Sunday River and Sugarloaf. One word: wow.

 

[SHRED HEAD]

Know what?

I like Sugarbush alot; I probably ski at MRG more when I'm there, but SB is a great mountain too. I've never been to Sugarloaf, but I'm sure I'd love it there too.

What I don't like are the inevitable shots people like to take at New Yorkers. So sorry for being the sole reason for any bad experiences in your ski day.

Here's a newsflash...assholes live everywhere and the one bothering you right now might just be from Vermont or Maine.

Gee guys, lighten up will ya'. I lived in NY for 10 years, great place (not so great in winter though, too far from the mtns.) and have some great friends there. I guess what I meant to say is the crowds are bigger at the Bush and 13 million Metro New Yorkers are a significant contributing factor to that. Nothing personal. Sorry if I offended you, can't erase 86 years of misery overnight.

I ski all over chasing my kids around on the race circuit and spent a couple days at the new Bush this year and it's just not my cup of tea. North has old school character but terrain is limited and the run-out is too long for my liking. South cannbe a zoo on the weekends and the new amenities don't impress me. Castlerock and Steins are classics but it's not in the same league as the Loaf, MRG, Jay Stowe or even Burke and it never will be.

 

[thetrailboss]

Gee guys, lighten up will ya'. I lived in NY for 10 years, great place (not so great in winter though, too far from the mtns.) and have some great friends there. I guess what I meant to say is the crowds are bigger at the Bush and 13 million Metro New Yorkers are a significant contributing factor to that. Nothing personal. Sorry if I offended you, can't erase 86 years of misery overnight.

I ski all over chasing my kids around on the race circuit and spent a couple days at the new Bush this year and it's just not my cup of tea. North has old school character but terrain is limited and the run-out is too long for my liking. South cannbe a zoo on the weekends and the new amenities don't impress me. Castlerock and Steins are classics but it's not in the same league as the Loaf, MRG, Jay Stowe or even Burke and it never will be.

Hey Shred Head....I see from your avator that you have been to Burke. Do you ski there regularly?

 

[Talisman]

Castlerock and Steins are classics but it's not in the same league as the Loaf, MRG, Jay Stowe or even Burke and it never will be.

It is hard for me put Burke in the same league as the Loaf, MRG, Jay and Stowe. I get you prefer other places to Sugarbush, but Burke is not in the same league. I like Burke, but it is smaller and to me has limited verticle as below the mid-mtn lodge is mostly run out.

 

[thetrailboss]

It is hard for me put Burke in the same league as the Loaf, MRG, Jay and Stowe. I get you prefer other places to Sugarbush, but Burke is not in the same league. I like Burke, but it is smaller and to me has limited verticle as below the mid-mtn lodge is mostly run out.

But I think his comments are more directed at the terrain, not just the vert.

 

[kingdom-tele]

if you don't think burke compares then you haven't really skied burke, there is a lot more than meets the eye with the mountain, burke's primary problem is location, it gets trapped in the shadow of the greens and the whites lending to lower overall snow totals, but they do more with less than anyone

 

[JimG.]

Gee guys, lighten up will ya'. I lived in NY for 10 years, great place (not so great in winter though, too far from the mtns.) and have some great friends there. I guess what I meant to say is the crowds are bigger at the Bush and 13 million Metro New Yorkers are a significant contributing factor to that. Nothing personal. Sorry if I offended you, can't erase 86 years of misery overnight.

I ski all over chasing my kids around on the race circuit and spent a couple days at the new Bush this year and it's just not my cup of tea. North has old school character but terrain is limited and the run-out is too long for my liking. South cannbe a zoo on the weekends and the new amenities don't impress me. Castlerock and Steins are classics but it's not in the same league as the Loaf, MRG, Jay Stowe or even Burke and it never will be.

I try to get used to it, but it always bothers me when "NY" is the answer to anything wrong with a given ski area. I was just at Sugarbush a week and a half ago...I wasn't really studying it, but I didn't notice that there were an overwhelming number of NY license plates on cars, and certainly no more than those from VT, NH, NJ, CT, or MA. I didn't meet any other NYers while I was out and about either. Frankly, I run into more NYers out west.

So, I guess I should have just disagreed with your post (still do) and moved on.

 

[Talisman]

if you don't think burke compares then you haven't really skied burke, there is a lot more than meets the eye with the mountain, burke's primary problem is location, it gets trapped in the shadow of the greens and the whites lending to lower overall snow totals, but they do more with less than anyone

I don't pretend to know every aspect of Burke, have skied it many times and enjoyed it. I don't think Burke has the vast amount of terrain that Sugarbush, Jay, Stowe or Sugar Loaf offer. I often find smaller places like Burke, Magic and Ascutney offer great skiing and fewer people to share the snow with. Most ski areas offer "more than meets" the eye.

 

[kingdom-tele]

hey, don't get me wrong, i wasn't trying to be a dick, it just my opinion, while larger mtns clearly have more trails- maybe more bumps, more glades, what have you, burke's offerings are comparable, their runs are equal to all the others, and the place oozes character - its just a fun place, thats all

 

[MikeTrainor]

I try to get used to it, but it always bothers me when "NY" is the answer to anything wrong with a given ski area. I was just at Sugarbush a week and a half ago...I wasn't really studying it, but I didn't notice that there were an overwhelming number of NY license plates on cars, and certainly no more than those from VT, NH, NJ, CT, or MA. I didn't meet any other NYers while I was out and about either. Frankly, I run into more NYers out west.

So, I guess I should have just disagreed with your post (still do) and moved on.

Jim I have to agree with you, when I had an ASC pass I really noticed the difference in attitude between Sunday River and Killington, I really didn't like the attitude at Killington and blamed it on NYers, but in the last week I skied 2 days at mad river and 1 at sugarbush, I saw many NY plates and road many lifts and skied a few runs with New Yorkers and had a great day, same great skiers as myself. I will just say that I don't like the crowds some mountains attract.

 

[snoseek]

people should be viewed as induviduals. Easier said than done on a saturday at loon or killington i suppose.

 

[kcyanks1]

Jim I have to agree with you, when I had an ASC pass I really noticed the difference in attitude between Sunday River and Killington, I really didn't like the attitude at Killington and blamed it on NYers, but in the last week I skied 2 days at mad river and 1 at sugarbush, I saw many NY plates and road many lifts and skied a few runs with New Yorkers and had a great day, same great skiers as myself. I will just say that I don't like the crowds some mountains attract.

I think your last sentence can be re-written as "I don't like that some mountains attract crowds" I've never skied at Sunday River so I don't know what crowds are like there, but for me, the number of people is the bigger issue at Killington than who those people are.

 

[JimG.]

I never skied at Sunday River so I don't know what crowds are like there, but for me, the number of people is the bigger issue at Killington than who those people are.

I believe this quote sums my feeling up best, and in a neutral way.