rocks860
Active member
Mount Ellen is basically empty right now
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The "Sugarbush Thread"
- Thread starter thetrailboss
- Start date
bushpilot
Member
How are the winds?
xwhaler
Active member
See Catsup 948's reports from Stowe and Jay...we didnt do a report from Mt Ellen as it was just hardpack groomers.
I put up a report from Smuggs
I wish we could have taken more pics but it was so damn cold and the phones basically turned off the moment we attempted to turn them back on.
was a stellar wknd though. My 1st time to Stowe and got to ski some great stuff off map Fri-Sunday.
I'm guessing pretty strong at the summits. The afternoon snow report says 6" so far at the top, but the webcam shows a drift of about 16" at the moment. Only the summit lifts at both LP and ME have been impacted though, so that's a plus for the lower mountain.
rocks860
Active member
Summit is closed for wind so only gmx was open but it's basically a ghost town. Thanks to wwf-vt for taking some runs with me. Despite the fact that you can't get to much what you can get to is fantastic. Definitely a bit sketchy underneath in some spots but I'd say there's probably at least 6 inches of powder on everything. It would appear it's only wind it at the top because there's no wind lower down to speak of.
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rocks860
Active member
And of course it took half a hour to get back to the center of waitsfield during which time my windshield turned to a solid sheet of ice through which I couldn't see
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Saw someone poaching The Mall this morning, right about the time Valley House was opened. At that time, about 4-6" on top of bare ground/ice patches/crust. They were regretting that decision, and probably did even more once they saw their equipment afterwards. Use caution on the natural terrain, and don't bring out your best sticks if you're destined for that terrain.
Wind wasn't bad at all on lower el today. Didn't make it to top of Bravo, as I stayed working on Gate House side. I talked to the North Lynx guys and they said the wind was relatively calm. Only HG and Summit got affected. Tomorrow... we'll see.
Lift maintenance crews began yesterday dismantling the Village Double, removing chairs from both ends. It may be an inconvenience not having it, especially this weekend, but the long run will be a much-improved beginner experience for next season.
Wind wasn't bad at all on lower el today. Didn't make it to top of Bravo, as I stayed working on Gate House side. I talked to the North Lynx guys and they said the wind was relatively calm. Only HG and Summit got affected. Tomorrow... we'll see.
Lift maintenance crews began yesterday dismantling the Village Double, removing chairs from both ends. It may be an inconvenience not having it, especially this weekend, but the long run will be a much-improved beginner experience for next season.
Hawk
Well-known member
One lift condemned and one blew a motor right? Village lift was schedule to be moved anyway so they can build the next phase of the base area. Considering most people use that lift once in a great while that is not a big deal. It is one of the first at sugarbush and was definitely at the end of its life. The Northridge motor is troubling to me. They just replaced that thing. I was wondering if it was bad luck or human error that blew the motor. I am sure we will never know that answer.
Hawk
Well-known member
Shady, did you hear if they were selling the chairs from that lift?
I don't know if I would say the North Ridge motor was replaced. It was rebuilt 2 years ago, but as far as I know was not a new motor. I agree it is troubling though and I'm sure Win & co are not happy that they only got 1500 hours out of a rebuild that should have given them 10000+ hours.
Hawk
Well-known member
From what I was told, they took the whole think apart and replaced most of the guts. It was in very good condition and was like new.
Well, I seem to recall a discussion about how well the lifts at Sugarbush were operating and how old they were. I guess we now know the answer to that discussion--three lifts being replaced or rebuilt this summer. Two closed during what will probably be a high demand period. Not good in my mind. It's just too bad that they are going to lose valuable time when everyone is going to be thinking about going Epic or staying at SB.
But what is good is that they will have two new lifts and hopefully a more reliable NRX for next season. I bet that will be marketed.
But what is good is that they will have two new lifts and hopefully a more reliable NRX for next season. I bet that will be marketed.
rocks860
Active member
At mount Ellen, not super crowded but the snow is absurd. Rim run is windscoured but everything below that is crazy. Looks like at least a foot of powder on everything and god damn is it exhausting
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In those discussions the two lifts that are being replaced everyone agreed were older and most likely would be the next ones to be replaced. It was in their plan to replace them so it isn't like they were ignoring them.
NRX is an unfortunate situation. Sugarbush rebuilt the motor 2 years ago so again they weren't deferring maintenance or anything like that. They essentially did exactly what they should have done and what pretty much any major resort probably would have done. They were nowhere near the theoretical end of life of that motor after the rebuild.
I still maintain the core SB lifts are very reliable at the moment. SB has been very proactive the past few years with lift upgrades and maintenance and it shows (NRX issue aside).
Hawk
Well-known member
Two of these lifts were ancient and were slated to be replaced. These have been talked about and were on the capital plan. Both doubles, both at beginner terrain and both redundant and could be covered by other lifts. Not a big loss as far as capacity this late in the season. Crowds are certainly going to be going down from this point and Mt Ellen is closing in a couple of weeks.
The Northridge is the only big concern most skiers and I do not understand how a motor that got totally rebuilt last year can go south so fast.
The Northridge is the only big concern most skiers and I do not understand how a motor that got totally rebuilt last year can go south so fast.
WWF-VT
Well-known member
I did the 8 to 11 shift and Mt Ellen was amazing this morning !
Yea...I would so love to know more about exactly what happened there with that motor.
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