The "Sugarbush Thread"

[Hawk]

LOL says the local guy that skis mostly midweek. I do envy you.

 

[Hawk]

10 min lift lines send me running.

Wonder if SB and Stowe would ever work together to offer a dual mountain pass, say $1200 that they could both share in. Otoh, An early buy Mt Ellen Pass plus an Epic Local costs under $1,100. I bought the Epic Local to ski with Stowe friends two years in a row but only made it 13 times each year. Hard to justify for me with SB and MRG right here and not an hour away and I usually log over a hundred days.

The Stowe Area Association, Waterbury Chamber, and MRV Chamber of Commerce have a group marketing effort this year, spearheaded by Eric Friedman, featuring Vermont Route 100 as a multi-town destination.

I had a beer with Ed Reed and Eric last year and talk about this very thing. Sounds like they have some good ideas but nothing concrete yet?

 

[Shredmonkey254]

Hawk, I would say 10 minutes at Gate House on the most crowded weekend. Most days were less than five minutes everywhere on the mountain (except CR) and many times (especially after 11am) it was ski right onto the lift.

Last season we skied on President's day weekend and it was practically empty on Saturday and Sunday. Granted it was very cold, but that shouldn't have kept the masses away. I was told later that it's a black out weekend for the Ikon Base pass which certainly helps explain things. But still, I was shocked!

Side note, I'd be curious to know the breakdown of the Ikon Pass and Epic Pass. What percentage of the purchasers get the full pass vs. the base pass. For a guy like me who still has a kid in high school (and another in college) the MLK, PD and Christmas week holidays are still gonna be prime ski times. So to save the $260 and give up those times doesn't make a lot of sense to me. Then again, if I were retired or not accounting for my kids, and I was already skiing a ton I could see bowing out of those days. My parents spend the winter in Florida. They play golf 5 days/week. They don't play Saturday cuz it's crowded (and they need a day to run errands).

I think nobody here encountered (or remembers!) the insane lines at Heavens Gate last year. The worst and longest lines ever. They will need traffic direction down there this year if we are more crowded as is being predicted here. Maybe get one of those dancing cops you see.... keep it fun for all!

 

[KustyTheKlown]

the heavens gate lines were a result of distancing the queues in a limited amount of space that is also an intersection for lower downspout. some days the heavens gate line snaked up the hill but it was a single file line and it didn't take that long to get to the front. easing the distancing between lanes and sending up singles with doubles will make that minor issue irrelevant this year.

i also only saw that happen between like 10 and 12 on Saturdays, and that just meant it was time to go ski castlerock and bravo for a while.

 

[kingslug]

Last year was the first time I spent several days skiing CR..when my legs where shot I just snaked around the Troll road which was almost knee deep..a nice escape from ..well pretty small lift lines at the time..but its an escape that Stowe does not have...there is no escape at Stowe..your stuck with everyone.

 

[cdskier]

I think nobody here encountered (or remembers!) the insane lines at Heavens Gate last year. The worst and longest lines ever. They will need traffic direction down there this year if we are more crowded as is being predicted here. Maybe get one of those dancing cops you see.... keep it fun for all!

I skied HG plenty last year (including weekends) and really don't think they were bad at all. They were well managed and I still don't think I ever waited more than 10 minutes even though they might have looked long. But there's also only a few trails up there. If the line gets too crazy, there's plenty of other terrain on LP to ski. I don't need to take every run from HG.

 

[WWF-VT]

WIW, I think Waterbury gives a ton of optionality. Skiing wise, it's pretty much equidistant from SB, MRG, and Stowe. It's about 10 minutes further to Smuggs and It's very close to Bolton. Additionally you are 30 minutes from downtown Burlington. On days where it's nuking snow, it might not be that great a solution. But most days it sounds pretty good to me.

10 minutes further to Smuggs.....except from mid October to May when the Notch is closed to winter travel

 

[kingslug]

If I can wait 10 minutes to get on a stinking subway..10 minutes for a lift is ...easy. But that all ends in 3 months...weekday skiing will be a nice change

 

[machski]

I had a beer with Ed Reed and Eric last year and talk about this very thing. Sounds like they have some good ideas but nothing concrete yet?

I can see the towns/regions working together from a common marketing approach OUTSIDE of the ski resorts. Vail and Alterra offering a combined pass? Not ever going to happen.

 

[Howitzer]

Is Sugarbush footing the bill for part of the VT Adaptive expansion at Mt Ellen? It looks from afar like Sugarbush will see ancillary benefits such as improved restroom facilities from this project. Should be a wonderful addition to Mt Ellen and improve access for program participants.

 

[WWF-VT]

Is Sugarbush footing the bill for part of the VT Adaptive expansion at Mt Ellen? It looks from afar like Sugarbush will see ancillary benefits such as improved restroom facilities from this project. Should be a wonderful addition to Mt Ellen and improve access for program participants.

Vermont Adaptive breaks ground on $2.5M Sugarbush facility

Work is underway on Vermont Adaptive Ski & Sports' second permanent home -- a $2.5 million adaptive sports facility that will be connected to Sugarbush’s Mt. Ellen base lodge.

www.wcax.com

Sports for Every Body - Vermont Adaptive Ski & Sports

Vermont Adaptive is a nationally recognized organization that empowers people of all abilities through inclusive sports and recreational programming regardless of ability to pay.

www.vermontadaptive.org

 

[cdskier]

Fall colors are just starting to show up around Sugarbush and the Mad River Valley...

 

[mbedle]

Is that Blueberry Lake?

 

[cdskier]

Is that Blueberry Lake?

Yes

 

[mikec142]

Those are two fantastic pix. DSLR or iPhone? If phone, which one?

 

[cdskier]

Those are two fantastic pix. DSLR or iPhone? If phone, which one?

Thanks!

DSLR. (Nikon D7500...first pic with a Sigma 17-50 lens and 2nd pic with a Nikon wide angle 10-20 lens)

 

[mikec142]

Forgot to mention...my Ikon Pass came on Monday!

 

[Hawk]

Do you get a new one every year or if you had one last year, do you just use that one?

 

[teleo]

Seems like they are sending new o es to everyone. We got a new ones last week. So have a number of friends. But not all yet so they are still in process.

 

[Smellytele]

Forgot to mention...my Ikon Pass came on Monday!

Wife and I got ours on Monday as well.