Sunapee 2012-01-22 ... the good, the okay, and the dick move

[bdfreetuna]

Alright so this was my first time at Sunapee I went there to meet a friend who lives right near there and he snowboards and he wanted to show me the mountain.

The good: Wow my friend can snowboard! Like, no joke 85mph bombing down the mountain with excellent control. I was impressed and it took a little extra nerve to keep up with him.

Most fun I have ever had skiing side by side with a snowboarder.

The okay: What they called "machine groomed packed powder" is what most people in the lodge were calling "ice".. but what I would more accurately called hard-pack variable conditions. I was wishing I had fresher edges on my skis, for sure. Not a good day for easy carving or flicking around in the snow, but as long as I kept my balance forward and made long Super G turns at speed it was good.

The dick move: Last run of the day we went down towards the sunbowl... the lift was not closed yet but we were NOT ALLOWED to get on it because supposedly two people that looked like my friend and I were spotted poaching some trail. It wasn't us. We didn't ski under any ropes. This guy was on a walkie talkie with "his boss" and had no proof and wasn't even trying to hear our story which was that it truly wasn't us.

He basically said, "There's the road, parking lot is through the woods and that way"

So my overall impression of Mt Sunapee is that it's a medium size mountain with not much steeps but a nice view of the lake. Tickets are overpriced considering the amount of terrain... I think I paid $70 which is a bit much for a mountain of that size. I was not really impressed with the terrain overall except it was fun bombing down the mountain.

I also think they need to have a more mature attitude about skiiers or riders who may or may not have accidentally gone into the woods or skiied a closed trail... and not act like you should lose your ticket or not be able to take a lift up.

In any case, we were innocent in that situtation so that made it even worse.

 

[deadheadskier]

Bummer about the hassle from the staff.


and 85MPH? :lol:

 

[bdfreetuna]

deadhead..

Now that I think about it 85mph might be a bit high estimate..

But in a full tuck most way down the mountain with only a few turns.. on 185cm skis.. realistically I'm sure we got to 75mph at a few points

I normally don't ski so fast just bombing down the whole mountain like that but my friend is pretty much a maniac.. he was faster than me at speeds I consider actually sort of reckless

 

[o3jeff]

Don't Olympic downhill skiers go about 80 mph? And you guys were up to 75? Wow

 

[deadheadskier]

75? :lol:

 

[o3jeff]

75 km?

 

[deadheadskier]

Perhaps

I thought it was a known fact that the only skier who hits 75mph and posts on a skiing forum is Highwaystar

 

[bdfreetuna]

I think you guys are underestimating speeds racers go.

80mph is common for many downhill racers... I believe the record in a downhill race is something in the mid 90s mph.

And the fastest clocked skiier that was not in a real race but just seeing how fast he could go was up near 130mph.

It's not hard for advanced skiiers to go 60mph+

My original estimate of 85mph was too high. But I am sticking with around 75mph. Could have been 70... I didn't have a radar gun on me. But I have a pretty good idea of speeds I am going. Of course not the whole time but peak speed on at least a couple of the fastest runs we did.

Like I said the mountain was completely groomed over it was easy to tuck it all the way down with just a few small turns. On most mountains or conditions it would not have been possible to go that fast. Normally skiing this fast would be out of my comfort zone.

 

[o3jeff]

The good: Wow my friend can snowboard! Like, no joke 85mph

You said on a snowboard, thats freaking fast

 

[bdfreetuna]

Ok I looked it up.... top clocked speed in a downhill race competition is 96.6mph

That skiier did not win the race

Freaking fast is right. My friend is the most badass and fearless snowboarder I've ever seen.

He's also insane because he does not wear a helmet. I insisted multiple times that day that I would actually buy him one because I feared for his life on every run !

 

[buellski]

Alright so this was my first time at Sunapee I went there to meet a friend who lives right near there and he snowboards and he wanted to show me the mountain.

The good: Wow my friend can snowboard! Like, no joke 85mph bombing down the mountain with excellent control. I was impressed and it took a little extra nerve to keep up with him.

Most fun I have ever had skiing side by side with a snowboarder.

The okay: What they called "machine groomed packed powder" is what most people in the lodge were calling "ice".. but what I would more accurately called hard-pack variable conditions. I was wishing I had fresher edges on my skis, for sure. Not a good day for easy carving or flicking around in the snow, but as long as I kept my balance forward and made long Super G turns at speed it was good.

The dick move: Last run of the day we went down towards the sunbowl... the lift was not closed yet but we were NOT ALLOWED to get on it because supposedly two people that looked like my friend and I were spotted poaching some trail. It wasn't us. We didn't ski under any ropes. This guy was on a walkie talkie with "his boss" and had no proof and wasn't even trying to hear our story which was that it truly wasn't us.

He basically said, "There's the road, parking lot is through the woods and that way"

So my overall impression of Mt Sunapee is that it's a medium size mountain with not much steeps but a nice view of the lake. Tickets are overpriced considering the amount of terrain... I think I paid $70 which is a bit much for a mountain of that size. I was not really impressed with the terrain overall except it was fun bombing down the mountain.

I also think they need to have a more mature attitude about skiiers or riders who may or may not have accidentally gone into the woods or skiied a closed trail... and not act like you should lose your ticket or not be able to take a lift up.

In any case, we were innocent in that situtation so that made it even worse.

Sorry to hear about your run-in with the staff and your experience. In my opinion, Sunapee does as good a job as any "big" mountain as far as conditions go. Yesterday was arguably the best day of the season conditions wise, but it did get a bit scratchy by the end of the day. Like you said, good edges make a big difference. Sunapee will never win any awards for challenging terrain, but it definitely has some fun trails. If you go back, make sure you hit the bumps on Flying Goose, and if there's snow, there are some fun glades as well. You'll also find bumps on Lift Line, Chipmunk, and Cataract when there's enough snow.

As far as lift ticket prices go, I think you're going to be spending the same thing at most areas of the same size on a weekend. Full price at Sunapee is $72, Gunstock is $72, and Ragged is $71. Those are all pretty similar mountains.

 

[WWF-VT]

I think you guys are underestimating speeds racers go.

80mph is common for many downhill racers... I believe the record in a downhill race is something in the mid 90s mph.

And the fastest clocked skiier that was not in a real race but just seeing how fast he could go was up near 130mph.

It's not hard for advanced skiiers to go 60mph+

My original estimate of 85mph was too high. But I am sticking with around 75mph. Could have been 70... I didn't have a radar gun on me. But I have a pretty good idea of speeds I am going. Of course not the whole time but peak speed on at least a couple of the fastest runs we did.

Like I said the mountain was completely groomed over it was easy to tuck it all the way down with just a few small turns. On most mountains or conditions it would not have been possible to go that fast. Normally skiing this fast would be out of my comfort zone.

No way that you hit 75 MPH - nothing at Sunapee is steep enough or long enouigh to safely hit that speed

 

[soulseller]

I thought it was a known fact that the only skier who hits 75mph and posts on a skiing forum is Highwaystar

I think a new AZ legend is being born this season...

 

[Angus]

Your impressions of the mountain are correct. It is a nice intermediate, family mountain. Skiing that fast - and I believe you topped out at 75 - at Sunapee with their clientele and traffic is dangerous...slow down! ;-)

 

[KevinF]

Exactly what skis (model, length, etc.) were you on for hitting 75mph+?

I haven't been to Sunapee in a long time, but there are two or three trails where, if you had the balls to not turn, you could probably get pretty close to 70-something mph.

 

[bdfreetuna]

Your impressions of the mountain are correct. It is a nice intermediate, family mountain. Skiing that fast - and I believe you topped out at 75 - at Sunapee with their clientele and traffic is dangerous...slow down! ;-)

I agree it would have been dangerous in high traffic and honestly really reckless.

But since the Pats game had pretty much cleared everyone off the slopes we could make it the whole way down encountering probably no more than half a dozen easy to avoid people on the whole way down.

In the future I will slow down.. it's not all the time I have to keep up with a maniac snowboarder!

I haven't actually been on a race team in over 11 years but I have to admit it's nice to get that feelin that "you still got it"

 

[bdfreetuna]

Sorry to hear about your run-in with the staff and your experience. In my opinion, Sunapee does as good a job as any "big" mountain as far as conditions go. Yesterday was arguably the best day of the season conditions wise, but it did get a bit scratchy by the end of the day. Like you said, good edges make a big difference. Sunapee will never win any awards for challenging terrain, but it definitely has some fun trails. If you go back, make sure you hit the bumps on Flying Goose, and if there's snow, there are some fun glades as well. You'll also find bumps on Lift Line, Chipmunk, and Cataract when there's enough snow.

As far as lift ticket prices go, I think you're going to be spending the same thing at most areas of the same size on a weekend. Full price at Sunapee is $72, Gunstock is $72, and Ragged is $71. Those are all pretty similar mountains.

I'm sure I will go back some time because I have a lot of friends who live in Sunapee or towns right around there who like to ride or ski (mostly ride) so it's convenient for them if I go up there.

Look forward to exploring it when the glades are open and there is some softer snow later in the season.

Ragged... I have only been to once when I was a kid I hardly remember it... you think that's more fun than Sunapee? I seem to remember it having more narrow trails and slightly steeper stuff. Never been to Gunstock.

I have no skiied in NH nearly as much as VT due to convenience and also Vermont seems to get better snow most of the time

I was surprised to find that conditions in Western Mass ski areas are actually better than at Sunapee... I figured going north would be better but I guess NH hasn't been lucky with the snow so far this year

 

[conwayeast]

Couple things for you to do...

#1. Call Jay Gamble, he is the President. When they ask what this is in regards to tell them customer service, they will usually put you through to him. Tell him you want him to know what happened and how you feel. DO NOT BE RUDE. Tell him it was your first time there, and you may never go back now because of how you felt like you were treated when you did nothing wrong.

#2 Sign up for an All-Star rewards card. http://www.golfskiwarehouse.com/rewards_info.aspx Its free to sign up and you get discounts at the mountain.
{Mount Sunapee Resort: 40% off a mid-week, non-holiday period one-day lift ticket or $10.00 off a weekend or holiday period one-day lift ticket}

 

[neil]

Perhaps

I thought it was a known fact that the only skier who hits 75mph and posts on a skiing forum is Highwaystar

Funny because I was just thinking that this guy is the new Highwaystar.

 

[bdfreetuna]

Exactly what skis (model, length, etc.) were you on for hitting 75mph+?

I haven't been to Sunapee in a long time, but there are two or three trails where, if you had the balls to not turn, you could probably get pretty close to 70-something mph.

Rossignol Phantom SC80 185cm is what I ski on

Yeah there are several runs at Sunapee where you can take a pretty much straight shot down the mountain with a couple long arced turns that wouldn't even slow you down.

Also like I said the mountain was really slick like hard pack granular so it was easy to go fast yesterday.

Definitely got some lift-off at speed over a couple of the humps on the mountain.. I was suprised I've never actually pushed these skis to such speed limits before and also gotten air doing so.. I found them to be remarkably stable.

These Rossi Phantoms have honestly blown my mind ever since I got them... amazing skis in any kind of condition except deep wet powder