The "Sugarbush Thread"

[Slidebrook87]

Yup. Gatehouse is an issue. I’d like to hear what the plan is to mitigate that when they build a new lodge up there. Won’t that make the situation worse? Realistically I can’t imagine the lift you are describing would be in the cards.


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The Castlerock Connection lift is just silly and a waste of money. 20 minutes in line isn’t worth a lift purely built for access. Unless terrain was built there, I just can’t see that happening.


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[Slidebrook87]

So just curious, why is the Inverness Quad open today and tomorrow since it is usually a weekends only lift? Same goes with Valley House.


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[cdskier]

So just curious, why is the Inverness Quad open today and tomorrow since it is usually a weekends only lift? Same goes with Valley House.


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Can't speak to Inverness as I don't pay as much attention to it...but VH is always open on Fridays.

 

[Slidebrook87]

Can't speak to Inverness as I don't pay as much attention to it...but VH is always open on Fridays.

Wasn’t it open today though?


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[cdskier]

Wasn’t it open today though?

Not based on the report when I looked at it this morning...

 

[Slidebrook87]

Not based on the report when I looked at it this morning...

Maybe not then. Must’ve been confusing it with tomorrow’s report.


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[teleo]

Wasn’t it open today though?


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Wasn't running this afternoon. Had to take bravo to snowball, which had some sweet corn!

 

[Orca]

I'd personally be a bit disappointed to see Ellen with flashy new base facilities. I do think it would negatively impact the character that makes ME so cool today.

Yeah. A new ME base lodge would be great if we liked nice things, which we don't! Maybe it could be made crappier (though that is hard to imagine) and thus cooler!

It's disgusting in there on a Saturday. Overrun, ugly. Can't get out of there quick enough.

Mad River's basebox is charming and commodious by comparison. I like it. Likening the two seems like a sin.

 

[djd66]

Yeah. A new ME base lodge would be great if we liked nice things, which we don't! Maybe it could be made crappier (though that is hard to imagine) and thus cooler!

It's disgusting in there on a Saturday. Overrun, ugly. Can't get out of there quick enough.

Mad River's basebox is charming and commodious by comparison. I like it. Likening the two seems like a sin.

This is funny!

 

[ducky]

im there less than you are, but i find myself there ~3 days a season, almost always a saturday, and every time i've ever gone to the 2nd floor i have needed to fight thru hordes of rude little racers, and mom is def holding down the fort, sitting alone at a table for 10, with a checked picnic tablecloth to hold the space for when her precious little future bodes and mikaelas want a hot cocoa and homemade chili.

Those are race families from other VT areas racing against GMVS Club kids on Invy - agreed it can be annoying. Most of the GMVS Club parents (big difference from proper GMVS Academy) are skiing the woods and bumps (rather well too) and drinking at GML apres. There are loads of regulars at GML who have been GMVS Club parents at some point in their lives, some going back decades. In contrast, the academy kids are only there midweek, 8-12, and on specific training plans, unless they're hosting a big race like this weekend. It is probably good financially and from a PR perspective to have 200 or so people from all over Vermont, NH, and the ADK coming to race on Inverness, even if a bit crowded in the lodge. There are big plans afoot to improve what is known as the Kelly Brush Race Arena. Like it or not, GMVS and Sugarbush have been partners since 1973 and GMVS has been representing SB all over the world; Doug Lewis being one name that jumps to mind. During the World Cup Women's Slalom at K in November, the Swiss National Team trains at SB. There are currently roughly a dozen GMVS grads skiing on one of the US or Canadian National teams and many more skiing NCAA or USCSA.

https://www.skiracing.com/stories/g...llar-transformation-of-kelly-brush-race-arena

I too prefer the down-scale Mt Ellen to the upscale-ish LP. My tendency is to ski/ride LP weekdays and MtE on weekends. I'd hate to see much "improvement" of the Mt Ellen Base Lodge, bathrooms aside.

Worried by some of the "ski bum" definitions above, I may qualify.

 

[Hawk]

The Castlerock Connection lift is just silly and a waste of money. 20 minutes in line isn’t worth a lift purely built for access. Unless terrain was built there, I just can’t see that happening.

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You don't think an inexpensive T bar from the intersection of Castlerock Runout / Gondolier to the flat at the top of gatehouse Quad would relieve a ton of pressure off the gatehouse lift once the lodge is installed? I think you are being silly.

 

[Hawk]

It's funny, all the same topics revolve across the internet. The nostalgic people that love the old charm vs the renovators, the kid/racer haters vs the parents with kids and my favorite on here The ME only people vs the rest of the world. And no one is wrong, ever. LOL

 

[Slidebrook87]

Since I always ski both and consider it one resort, the difference and lack of amenities at Ellen is crazy. While some people may like this lower key vibe, back to the point of spreading people out, it’s ridiculous to have a tiny base lodge at one side and an extensively developed base village at the Lincoln side. It’s almost like Ellen just got frozen in time while Lincoln kept growing. With everything that has happened at Lincoln in the past 20 years I would expect something, at least something, other than buying some panini makers and turning the Glen House into Walt’s. Win has shown that he cares about the aesthetic element of a base area and I’m sure the classic look of the current lodge could be replicated by a new one. A small courtyard of sorts should also be added sort of where the ticket building is right now. This could provide something similar to what Lincoln has and would draw in many families at the end of the day for s’mores, waffles, music, etc. If the Lincoln Peak Village didn’t exist, I wouldn’t be writing this comment, but because of the drastic difference, Ellen just seems completely neglected.


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[Hawk]

I was a ski bum for 3 years between College and my first real job. The criteria for a ski bum is shunning any kind of real job back where you live and taking any old job you can find to sustain living at the mountain or near so you ski as may days as you can. I skied 100 days, barely slept, drank a ton. Got fired from at least 2 small jobs for not showing up on a powder day and didn't pay Sh*t for anything. We split a house with 12 people. I slept in a closet but at least I could lock it so that my roommates would not steal my stuff. Lived off Ramen, PB&J and Grill cheese with government issued cheese blocks. How many of you remember those days? That by definition is a ski bum. I am sure Slidebrook you would never have to resort to any of that.

 

[Slidebrook87]

You don't think an inexpensive T bar from the intersection of Castlerock Runout / Gondolier to the flat at the top of gatehouse Quad would relieve a ton of pressure off the gatehouse lift once the lodge is installed? I think you are being silly.

T-Bars usually run around $500,000 to $1,000,000 so they’re not exactly cheap. For a lift that you can’t lap and really isn’t logistical if you think about it, just isn’t worth it. Unless more trails were developed over there, I could never see that happening.


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[Hawk]

T-Bars usually run around $500,000 to $1,000,000 so they’re not exactly cheap. For a lift that you can’t lap and really isn’t logistical if you think about it, just isn’t worth it. Unless more trails were developed over there, I could never see that happening.


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Highly disagree with everything you say up here. What about buying a used Tbar. Also the run is not that long. You can do it for less that $1M. And when the line at Gate house is 20+ minutes long which it has been all year long this year, that T-Bar would not be the most popular lift to get to you slidebrook or North links? You are wrong. That is very logistical and totally worth it.

 

[tumbler]

T-Bars usually run around $500,000 to $1,000,000 so they’re not exactly cheap. For a lift that you can’t lap and really isn’t logistical if you think about it, just isn’t worth it. Unless more trails were developed over there, I could never see that happening.


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If you read the rest of my original post proposing this, is that it would have terrain in there but would need a bridge to cross Clay Brook to get back to the bottom of the lift.

 

[tumbler]

The Castlerock Connection lift is just silly and a waste of money. 20 minutes in line isn’t worth a lift purely built for access. Unless terrain was built there, I just can’t see that happening.


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This is coming from the guy who is obsessed with Slide Brook lift? I would say that lift is purely built for access. You?

 

[tumbler]

Since I always ski both and consider it one resort, the difference and lack of amenities at Ellen is crazy. While some people may like this lower key vibe, back to the point of spreading people out, it’s ridiculous to have a tiny base lodge at one side and an extensively developed base village at the Lincoln side. It’s almost like Ellen just got frozen in time while Lincoln kept growing. With everything that has happened at Lincoln in the past 20 years I would expect something, at least something, other than buying some panini makers and turning the Glen House into Walt’s. Win has shown that he cares about the aesthetic element of a base area and I’m sure the classic look of the current lodge could be replicated by a new one. A small courtyard of sorts should also be added sort of where the ticket building is right now. This could provide something similar to what Lincoln has and would draw in many families at the end of the day for s’mores, waffles, music, etc. If the Lincoln Peak Village didn’t exist, I wouldn’t be writing this comment, but because of the drastic difference, Ellen just seems completely neglected.


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Do some more research on the history of the two areas. Mt Ellen was the progressive mountain with all the amenities and snowmaking until 1995 when Les transformed South into what it is now with all the lifts and snowmaking. South barely had any snowmaking then. Win was able to build the new lodges and base area off that.

 

[Orca]

99% percent of people would agree that Ellen has suffered neglect. About 50% of people like that it suffered neglect and want it to continue.