SUNDOWN: The 2008 AlpineZone Ski Area Challenge

[Greg]

Chris Sullivan, Mountain Operations Manager for Ski Sundown has agreed to take the 2008 AlpineZone Challenge! This is your opportunity to ask questions, offer suggestions, or say some praise to the men and women who are in charge of the Northeast’s ski areas. Please post some suggested questions in this thread and we'll select ten to present for official responses.

Also please don't be offended if we edit/change your question for grammar, tone, or some other minor thing. In order to get in all of the questions we MAY merge some questions but we'll do our best to keep the substance of your question. If we don't get your question in, feel free to post a follow up after we get the results...we are encouraging the representatives follow the threads. :wink:

As always, please be respectful of Chris and keep it civil. Also, please refrain from asking specifics about skier visit numbers, financials, demographic information, etc. Sundown needs to be discrete about certain information.

Ask away!

Sundown's Profile

Previous Responses:

2007 Responses
2006 Responses

 

[Greg]

Any update on terrain expansion? Will a dedicated mogul trail be part of the plan?

Have you decided on whether Temptor will be the primary bump run this season? If so, will you consider putting in a few small tabletops on the upper flats?

Are you still planning to hold the spring bump competition on Gunbarrel?

Have you considered opening up the area to mountain biking? Not necessary lift-served downhill, but perhaps some cross country on the property?

That's all I got.

 

[GrilledSteezeSandwich]

Can Greg get a free season pass for all the promoting he does?

 

[2knees]

First i want to thank Chris, Jarrod and everyone else who puts the time and effort into giving us a bump run for basically sundowns entire season. I cant stress enough how much that keeps me coming back and how much I as a local skier appreciates that. There were times last year when sundown had better bumps that what i found in vermont. And the bump comp last year was fantastic.

My question, no surprise, is in regards to this years plan. Are you going to once again seed nor'easter until late february and then switch to temptor or is there any chance of giving us temptor right off the bat. The upper part of temptor has enough pitch to be a bit challenging at times so that would be my preference. (suggestion!). I also understand this has been asked frequently in the past, but is there any serious consideration of cutting a new trail to the (skiers) left of gunbarrel?


Congratulations on running the best ski area in southern new england.


Pat

 

[powderman]

Has Sundown considered officially opening the glade to the skier's left on Gunbarrel? I know Connecticut doesn't recieve much natural snow, but during the occasions when there is natural snow, this would be a great addition to the hill.

 

[MR. evil]

Chris Sullivan, Mountain Operations Manager for Ski Sundown has agreed to take the 2008 AlpineZone Challenge! This is your opportunity to ask questions, offer suggestions, or say some praise to the men and women who are in charge of the Northeast’s ski areas. Please post some suggested questions in this thread and we'll select ten to present for official responses.

Also please don't be offended if we edit/change your question for grammar, tone, or some other minor thing. In order to get in all of the questions we MAY merge some questions but we'll do our best to keep the substance of your question. If we don't get your question in, feel free to post a follow up after we get the results...we are encouraging the representatives follow the threads. :wink:

As always, please be respectful of Chris and keep it civil. Also, please refrain from asking specifics about skier visit numbers, financials, demographic information, etc. Sundown needs to be discrete about certain information.

Ask away!

Sundown's Profile

Previous Responses:

2007 Responses
2006 Responses

+1

Also, has there been any talk about offering a night or twillight season pass?

 

[mondeo]

+1

Also, has there been any talk about offering a night or twillight season pass?

+1

As someone who already has a season pass to Killington (and plans on spending weekends there,) that would be awesome.

Are there any plans to let the runs that don't have seeded bumps form bumps naturally?

Will the two mogul competitions have different formats (e.g., one single, one dual?)

 

[jarrodski]

hey mondo,

shoot me an email with your mogul comp questions. I am always open to suggestion with events and like the feed back of the actual competitors.

 

[Greg]

Are there any plans to let the runs that don't have seeded bumps form bumps naturally?

They attempted this on skier's right of Gunny last spring. It didn't really work out that well. I think the problem was lack of skier traffic that late in the season and the skier and snowboarder traffic that was there just doesn't ski in such a way to build good bumps. Brian and I tried to ski in some lines, but it's tough to dedicate that much time when we had sweet bumps on Temptor two trails over.

Sundown has limited terrain as it is and we are very fortunate that they dedicate as much of it as they do to bumps. If letting some areas bumps up naturally was in addition to the seeded runs, I'd be all for it, but there's no way I would support skier-made sweeping push piles as a replacement for their seeded bumps. I hate to say it, but 90% of their clientèle just doesn't have the skill to ski in good natural lines.

 

[deadheadskier]

What does the management at Sundown think of Greg? Radical bumper or Goose Stomping nerd whom they seed bumps for so he'll shut his trap? :razz:

 

[Greg]

What does the management at Sundown think of Greg? Radical bumper or Goose Stomping nerd whom they seed bumps for so he'll shut his trap? :razz:

I'll field that one for ya. Goose stompin' nerd, without a doubt!

 

[mondeo]

They attempted this on skier's right of Gunny last spring. It didn't really work out that well. I think the problem was lack of skier traffic that late in the season and the skier and snowboarder traffic that was there just doesn't ski in such a way to build good bumps. Brian and I tried to ski in some lines, but it's tough to dedicate that much time when we had sweet bumps on Temptor two trails over.

Sundown has limited terrain as it is and we are very fortunate that they dedicate as much of it as they do to bumps. If letting some areas bumps up naturally was in addition to the seeded runs, I'd be all for it, but there's no way I would support skier-made sweeping push piles as a replacement for their seeded bumps. I hate to say it, but 90% of their clientèle just doesn't have the skill to ski in good natural lines.

Maybe I wasn't clear in my original post. I'm not talking about letting a trail bump up naturally. I'm talking about selling the groomers.

 

[Grassi21]

What is the current state of affairs with Powder Ridge?

I heard a rumor about a new lift to the "true" summit that would give Sundown the elevation edge in CT. Is a new lift going to be installed in in he near future? If so, where would the base of the new lift be located?

PS - I would also like to praise the people at Sundown for a job well done.

 

[Beetlenut]

Having to drive 2 hours from RI to ski Sundown, I too would like to give them props for seeding the bumps that they do. For a smallish SNE hill they definitely have the right idea on how to attract and maintain business. Their bump runs are great for practicing at night, and an idea that is long overdue for SNE areas! With the price of gas going up, I would think Sundown will see even more business this year. I know I'll make the trip a few more times this coming year!

 

[Tin Woodsman]

What is the current state of affairs with Powder Ridge?

I heard a rumor about a new lift to the "true" summit that would give Sundown the elevation edge in CT. Is a new lift going to be installed in in he near future? If so, where would the base of the new lift be located?

I think a quick look at a topo would dispell that notion. There is a modestly higher (20-25') summit behind the top of the current lift out near Tom's Treat, but it wouldn't make much sense to run the lifts back there from the current base (you'd go down and then up form the current summit) and a lift serving the Tom's Treat/Upper Canyon run area exclusively would have a vertical drop of a whopping 280'. I think you need to check your source.

 

[MR. evil]

I think a quick look at a topo would dispell that notion. There is a modestly higher (20-25') summit behind the top of the current lift out near Tom's Treat, but it wouldn't make much sense to run the lifts back there from the current base (you'd go down and then up form the current summit) and a lift serving the Tom's Treat/Upper Canyon run area exclusively would have a vertical drop of a whopping 280'. I think you need to check your source.

The rumor I heard was that they would cut a new trail or two down the back side of the mountain. That is where the new lift would go, and it would give them the most vert in CT.

 

[Grassi21]

The rumor I heard was that they would cut a new trail or two down the back side of the mountain. That is where the new lift would go, and it would give them the most vert in CT.

That is how I understood it.

 

[Tin Woodsman]

The rumor I heard was that they would cut a new trail or two down the back side of the mountain. That is where the new lift would go, and it would give them the most vert in CT.

i don't think its the back side, more the side side. I guess while any lift there would b e short, it would have two advantages. First, it would face due north (October to May skiing in CT!!!! psych) which is good for snow retention. More importantly, it would allow skiers to do laps up there and stay off of crowded Exhibition, helping overall flow. You'd have three distinct areas/pods for people to enjoy, so it would seem bigger than it is.

 

[Greg]

Keeping with the somewhat unconventional approach to the challenges this season, I'm going to publish Chris's responses right in this thread.

And for the AZ bump lovers, just wait till you see what I'm about to post!!!! They will be up soon...

 

[Greg]

Any update on terrain expansion? Will a dedicated mogul run be part of the plan?

Ski Sundown has grown in sync with market demand. This is our 40th year. The first twenty five years additional trails were cut, lifts constructed as well as snowmaking and lighting installed on every trail.

In the past fifteen years the snowmaking system, lodge, and, rental shop have all tripled in size. These all proved to be good moves as the investments have been justified with returns. Like all businesses simply turning a profit and resting on your laurels is not a solid plan for operating a ski area. The next logical step to increase skier visits is to expand the ski area.

The expansion plan is moving forward. A survey of Ski Sundown property and the adjoining properties has been completed. Ski Sundown has contracted SE Group to help develop a plan that will make best use of the resources available to us. As notable events unfold we, will pass them along to the AZ world.

Yes, we will have a dedicated mogul trail. Also, we would offer some lower angle bumps elsewhere for beginners to progress on.

Are you still planning to hold the spring bump competition on Gunbarrel?

Yes, as soon as racing season is completed (mid Feb.) we will seed bumps on the skiers right. They will be top to bottom and half the trail width. This will result in a bump run 1800 feet long and 75 feet wide.

Have you considered opening up the area to mountain biking? Not necessary lift service, but perhaps cross country on the property?

Yes, Jarrod is an avid mountain biker and was hoping to do something here. He did a very in depth study. Much to his disappointment he found that a mountain bike operation here would not be sustainable.

Are you going to once again seed Nor'easter until late February and then switch to Temptor or is there any chance of giving us Temptor right off the bat? The upper part of Temptor has enough pitch to be a bit challenging at times so that would be my preference (suggestion!). Will you consider putting a few small table tops on the upper Temptor flats?

This season we plan to bump up Temptor and the right side of Exhibition as soon as there is enough snow to support bumps. After race season ends (3rd wk of Feb.) we will seed bumps on Gunbarrel skier's right. After the Gunbarrel bumps are skied in, we will flatten Temptor and bump up Nor'easter. The Exhibition bumps will go away for a couple of weeks, mid season, and return in late February.

This plan gives some variety to our mogul offerings and gives skiers and riders that don't like bumps a chance to use Nor'easter and Temptor in their groomed state. Having three distinctly different bump runs should create a nice atmosphere for the late season bump competition.

As far as table tops on the flat part of Temptor, that section of trail is only a little more than a cat width wide and may present some maintenance issues. Bumping that section up is also somewhat pointless as you may have noticed last season. Rollers might be the best option; they require little maintenance and are still be usable in thaw-freeze cycles.

I also understand this has been asked frequently in the past, but is there any serious consideration of cutting a new trail to the skiers (left) of Gunbarrel?

Yes, that is the obvious place for expansion. It offers varying terrain with multiple fall lines.

Has there been any talk about offering a night or twilight seasons pass?

Yes, it has been discussed. There are good reasons we don't offer a night pass.

For instance we believe this type of pass would have a negative impact on our seasonal employment pool. Ski Sundown has always been able to attract quality local people because of the skiing benefits. However, with AZ'ers and others in mind, we, have come up with a new product for the upcoming season.

"The Once A Week Seasons Pass" This pass will be a photo I.D. that allows direct lift access once a week, day and or night weekdays non-holiday. This pass offers a lot of flexibility and value at $199.00. The purchaser is not locked into any particular time or day of the week. You can take advantage of the best conditions any week may offer, up to 13 hours a day. Last season 14 weeks of our season would have been non-blackout weeks. Making the price of an all day, all night lift ticket $14.21 or $0.91 per hour.

Are there any plans to let the runs that don't have seeded bumps form bumps naturally?

The lack of natural snow is a big problem when it comes to natural bumps. Moguls, terrain parks, and race programs are important aspects of skiing and riding. However, we can not lose focus on what has kept this place a healthy business for the past forty years. First and foremost we are a skier factory, creating new skiers and riders is of paramount importance to the ski industry as a whole.

Your best bet to get in to some natural chop and bumps here, is to keep your eye on the weather and take advantage of our grooming policy. When we get natural snow we do not groom Gunbarrel, Temptor, Upper CanyonRun, Stinger, Nor,easter, and half of Exhibition. Racing and park events sometimes impact that policy. Keep in mind that we are open till 10:00pm seven days a week, so, when it stops snowing impacts the grooming policy as well.

Will the two mogul competitions have different formats (e,g. one single one duel)?

We don't have anything in concrete as far as official format is concerned. We are open to all suggestions.

Last years "Bump or Bust" competition was the first mogul contest that we have had in eight years. We stopped doing them due to lack of interest. That no longer seems to be the case. The turn out was good and most likely would have been better had the weather beforehand not been so inconsistent.
This year we will have a clearly marked finish and a Tele.bracket.

The Temptor comp. will most likely remain a contest for local bragging rights, where as the Gunbarrel comp has potential to become a regional draw.

What is the current state of affairs with Powder Ridge?

Powder Ridge is slowly slipping toward the point of no return. It is a shame. I know it's not the steepest hill, with the most challenging terrain, but it is a place that means a lot to the local community. If resurrected and properly managed it could be a great learning center as well as terrain park.

I heard a rumor about a new lift to the true summit that would give Sundown an elevation edge in CT. Is a new lift going to be installed in the near future? Where would the base of the new lift be located?

That is an awesome rumor, I can only imagine where you heard that one. An expansion plan, that did not include more lift capacity and a second base area would result in over crowding.

Nothing is for certain but I would guess the base of the lift would be south of lift #4.