The "Sugarbush Thread"

[BodeMiller1]

The tiller is just there to make pretty lines. The actual skiable surface comes from the blade, and if one doesn't use that there is no amount of tilling that can fix a trail. I agree with your Pennsylvania example. After a heavy thaw/freeze it should take at a minimum three passes to fix the surface. The first one I don't even have the tiller down, I just rip up the ice layer completely. The second, and third if need be, is to break up the big chunks with tracks and blade and rearrange my huge windrows back across the trail. The last one is the final till where I am just pushing enough snow to make it level again, and by then it has been broken up enough that it tills out clean.

Unfortunately this requires a deep base to do properly, because you're cutting off probably eight inches of surface at least and ice can easily grab the blade and force it even further down. On a frozen surface blading is really all or nothing, you can't just shave off part of the ice. It has a tendency to catch the blade, especially the wing, and dig a hole that the tiller is not carrying enough snow to fill in, so you have to go find more snow, except you don't really have easily accessible snow because it's frozen solid and you don't have the depth to go digging, and if you do it creates holes that are hard to fill in, etc. If you don't have the depth to be confident in plowing it heavily it's very hard to create a surface with enough loose snow for the tiller to work with.

Edit: I do not work at Sugarbush, so I have no idea exactly what they were dealing with; my comments are in general.

This could be a situation where you ski it and leave it alone. Then cover it with a tarp in the spring.

 

[BodeMiller1]

Back in the day at Pat's Peak there was a powder maker to pull behind a cat.

 

[Hawk]

Well they opened all the terrain at Bravo including Domino and lower birdland except for downspout. I bet some of that is fun.

 

[crank]

i cant get up north until sunday this weekend, but i'm off work as of tomorrow evening til jan 2. very pleasantly surprised to see very cheap hotel options in waitsfield/warren for sunday to tuesday. i guess pre christmas those are just regular weekdays.

i have to come back south for xmas eve/day, and then will go back north for 26-31. sugarloaf and SR

i keep looking at flights but the whole flight + car + lodging situation this time of year at last minute is steep

Granted it was 5 or 6 seasons back that we cancelled our VT holiday week plans and booked a last minute flight to SLC and skied on the heels of a 3' storm. Lots of rope drops and powder, but that's not my point. My point is that a business hotel in Sandy and a rental SUV were very reasonable. We used miles to fly so no cost there. Flew out on Christmas and back NYE.

 

[KustyTheKlown]

i've already gamed out the options for just about every ski worthy airport.

flights are very expensive. cheapest options are basically to fly to LAX or SFO and then get to mammoth or tahoe.

but between flights, lodging, cars, its $2000+ minimum to just ski 4 days 12/27-30. i also dont like a rushed western trip. if i didnt need to spend actual xmas with my fiance id be considering a proper 10 day trip

all good. will take what the east gives me. i will be in banff/revelstoke for 12 consecutive ski days at the height of the season

 

[thetrailboss]

Granted it was 5 or 6 seasons back that we cancelled our VT holiday week plans and booked a last minute flight to SLC and skied on the heels of a 3' storm. Lots of rope drops and powder, but that's not my point. My point is that a business hotel in Sandy and a rental SUV were very reasonable. We used miles to fly so no cost there. Flew out on Christmas and back NYE.

Unless things change, it is not worth the trip out here right now. We are in need of snow. Alta has a 34" base, which may be respectable in NE, but is grim for the Wasatch.

 

[KustyTheKlown]

Unless things change, it is not worth the trip out here right now. We are in need of snow. Alta has a 34" base, which may be respectable in NE, but is grim for the Wasatch.

thats another thing. if i were to make a move for xmas it would be towards the PacNW

bachelor is the one thing i gamed out that bordered on reasonable and worthwhile

i think thats gonna be a general theme for the season. go north/northwest. not a year to play utah colorado new mexico and soCal games.

 

[cdskier]

Mid-mountain and summit temps are finally updating on the website again it looks like...

 

[djd66]

And they turned a bunch more cameras back on,... so that's good! Looks like lots of snowmaking activity on lower downspout.

 

[cdskier]

And they turned a bunch more cameras back on,... so that's good! Looks like lots of snowmaking activity on lower downspout.

I wouldn't say lots unless they turned on guns after I left. They already made some and groomed it out. So it is skiable to the base. The only guns on lower DS (or DS) when I left were the handful of ones that seem to be visible on the HG cam right around the HG loading area. Definitely a lot more room in the HG load area now with shifting the bottom terminal a bit further up.

 

[MrGlen]

New to this site, just stumbled across it trying to find more details on HG. Lots of great detail posted on the thread here, excited to join.

Saw a few SB maintenance trucks and snowmobiles parked on German Flats and Slide Brook road today. Pulled over on my way home from South to see what the commotion was. Lift ops was keeping tight lips, but seems they may open Slide Brook this weekend.

Skinned up last weekend with some pals at night and skied a few sections. Coverage was surprisingly great. Hopefully a spinning lift doesn’t give the secret away.

 

[Lotso]

New to this site, just stumbled across it trying to find more details on HG. Lots of great detail posted on the thread here, excited to join.

Saw a few SB maintenance trucks and snowmobiles parked on German Flats and Slide Brook road today. Pulled over on my way home from South to see what the commotion was. Lift ops was keeping tight lips, but seems they may open Slide Brook this weekend.

Skinned up last weekend with some pals at night and skied a few sections. Coverage was surprisingly great. Hopefully a spinning lift doesn’t give the secret away.

Would be surprised if SB opens with the temps forecast. Maybe Saturday is not too cold, but Sunday will be

 

[Shredmonkey254]

Well they opened all the terrain at Bravo including Domino and lower birdland except for downspout. I bet some of that is fun.

Most of it was fun!

 

[Shredmonkey254]

I wouldn't say lots unless they turned on guns after I left. They already made some and groomed it out. So it is skiable to the base. The only guns on lower DS (or DS) when I left were the handful of ones that seem to be visible on the HG cam right around the HG loading area. Definitely a lot more room in the HG load area now with shifting the bottom terminal a bit further up.

Stopped to look at the new rig. We didn’t think the loading area moved much at all.

 

[bumpcrasher]

Does anyone have any intel on whether the Mad Bus is running tomorrow (Friday)?
Schedule online is from last season. Thanks.

 

[KustyTheKlown]

anyone know anything about the new-ish madbush falls lodging/restaurant situation? looks pretty nice

 

[Shredmonkey254]

anyone know anything about the new-ish madbush falls lodging/restaurant situation? looks pretty nice

I understand the food is pretty good, They did a nice job rebuilding the place, so staying there should be decent. It’s a good location just north of the base of the access road

 

[HokieDave]

anyone know anything about the new-ish madbush falls lodging/restaurant situation? looks pretty nice

I’ve eaten there. I remember it being pretty good. I’d go back.

 

[cdskier]

anyone know anything about the new-ish madbush falls lodging/restaurant situation? looks pretty nice

I've heard a lot of good things about the food but haven't had a chance to check it out yet.

 

[djd66]

anyone know anything about the new-ish madbush falls lodging/restaurant situation? looks pretty nice

I don’t know anything about the lodging, but the food is very good.