VAIL SUCKS

[skimagic]

I’ve never experienced lines like that at Jackson Gore, granted I’ve never been over a holiday weekend. They did upgrade the main “Quantum” chairlift over there from a quad to a 6-pack over the summer which should help.

Every time I venture over to JacksGore, I end up thinking it's a waste of time. The trails flatten out quickly and the few natural snow trails never have much cover. Are the two long glade runs over there any good?, I'm stump adverse.

 

[ss20]

Every time I venture over to JacksGore, I end up thinking it's a waste of time. The trails flatten out quickly and the few natural snow trails never have much cover. Are the two long glade runs over there any good?, I'm stump adverse.

No they're not that good of glades. Something a lot of people don't realize about Okemo is that the summit is wayyyyyyy lower than any other major VT mountain. It tops out around 3,300 feet. Jackson Gore's summit .... only 2,700 feet. So the glades/trails there do not hold snow well at all. For reference, the K1 base lodge is about 2,400 feet. Stratton's BASE...right around 2,000ft.

 

[kendo]

After almost 50 years of Killington season passes, the lousy snowmaking elsewhere baffles me. Killington has the mountain up to skyeship stage 2 open and Bear about to come on line. Sunday River usually does a good job. How can somewhere mostly intermediate like Okemo and Mount Snow that can get trails open after a dusting not have much of the mountain open?

Labor shortage + Cost management as noted here last March...


Doubt snowmaking will improve significantly going forward.

Not when Katz reports on his recent investors call ... While the company’s business has declined, the company still has plenty of liquid assets, including $1.4 billion in cash on hand. Katz attributed the company’s financial position to both guest loyalty and a “thoughtful, disciplined approach to expenses.”

Snowmaking = expense. A lot of snowmaking = undisciplined expenses. If they were 'thoughtful' about their eastern resorts, they'd at least add a snowmaking icon to their trail report templates.


Let's hope for snow. . . soon and often!!

 

[deadheadskier]

No they're not that good of glades. Something a lot of people don't realize about Okemo is that the summit is wayyyyyyy lower than any other major VT mountain. It tops out around 3,300 feet. Jackson Gore's summit .... only 2,700 feet. So the glades/trails there do not hold snow well at all. For reference, the K1 base lodge is about 2,400 feet. Stratton's BASE...right around 2,000ft.

This is certainly true, but the terrain itself is pretty fun, low angle trees when they have the snow.

 

[jimmywilson69]

Okemo can be fun. Hell skiing is just fun. Do I prefer more challenge yep. But my wife loves Okemo so I gladly go there and have fun

 

[machski]

Right. How much does it cost to put some cubbyholes outside? Act like you want our business. Boyne and SR did not while BW did. They have both the cubbyholes outside for free and the rental ones inside. Not to mention the snow is 10x nicer at BW than SR.

Your post doesn't make sense. SR did but cubby's outside both Barker and South Ridge. Easier to maintain a snow surface on lesser pitched slopes that BW has, but 10x better is a stretch to any imagination.

 

[jimmywilson69]

Just got word that my Vail owned property is opening Monday. Impressive with 3 nights of snowmaking. Will say that i haven't seen a lack of aggressive snowmaking at Roundtop since Vail has bought them. They don't have a choice and thankfully their system is strong.

Only Complaint I have is there is clearly enough snow now so not sure why they are waiting until Monday...

 

[abc]

there is clearly enough snow now so not sure why they are waiting until Monday...

So those who have blackout passes can't ski today?

 

[jimmywilson69]

They aren't opening for anyone until Monday. There is no blackout for Roundtop

 

[drjeff]

After almost 50 years of Killington season passes, the lousy snowmaking elsewhere baffles me. Killington has the mountain up to skyeship stage 2 open and Bear about to come on line. Sunday River usually does a good job. How can somewhere mostly intermediate like Okemo and Mount Snow that can get trails open after a dusting not have much of the mountain open?

Speaking purely on what I have seen this season to date at Mount Snow.

They seem to be taking an extra day or 2 over past seasons, to open up snowmaking terrain this year, and that seems to be because they're putting MORE snow on each trail prior to opening than they have in the past.

Will that translate in less subsequent snowmaking runs in the coming weeks for base augmentation? Guess we'll find out.

That being said, going into Christmas Week on what has been a less than ideal snowmaking season this year, when they finish up the trails they're running on now, short of Ripcord, South Bowl and the 1/2 pipe if I am not mistaken they'll have all their snowmaking terrain covered which certainly isn't a below average snowmaking effort for Mount Snow.

What Mount Snow suffers from until they put snowmaking on more trails, is that while they can cover a good percentage of their terrain with respect to total acres, the acres they don't have snowmaking on make up a fair amount of their total trail count

 

[2Planker]

Wildcat = 1 trail for Christmas week. No quad. No snow makers. Hopefully the new gm can make a good burger because he sucks at running a resort. Might as well of flushed that $1300 (family passes) down the toilet. Merry Christmas, thank little baby Jesus for the chamber pass

I’m w/ you on that.
WC has 1 3 man snowmaking crew. But 3-4 people standing behind the food counter doing nothing today around lunch hour. Glad our Food & Bev GM is on top of things….
Total VAIL FAIL 2021

 

[ThatGuy]

Theres profit to be made on shitty burgers, people already bought their epic pass so they’re s.o.l for snowmaking

 

[snoseek]

Sunbowl opened at sunapee and snowmaking is happening. Probably too little too late. The blackout people are coming next week shits gonna get real

 

[PAabe]

Gore will have all lifts except hudson and maybe burnt ridge (and almost all blue runs) open for Christmas so, as is the case with Cannon, yet another state-operated area blowing away a certain competitor

 

[PAabe]

Fun? fact we have hit 200 pages of all the ways Vail Sucks

In other news Ski Roundtop updated their trail map:

Park moved from Fife and Drum (it has also been on Recruit before I think) to Susquehannah which people are complaining about but I guess it is good they have parks planned in any case. Tree hits off Lafayette's leap are now an official glade, allegedly they are planning on blowing snow into there which would be pretty cool if they did instead of relying on the leftovers from the surrounding trails

 

[jimmywilson69]

They took the single handed best intermediate slope on the hill and turned it into a park.

The general manager is an idiot for green lighting this and I will be telling him that hopefully on Monday

 

[eatskisleep]

Labor shortage + Cost management as noted here last March...


Doubt snowmaking will improve significantly going forward.

Not when Katz reports on his recent investors call ... While the company’s business has declined, the company still has plenty of liquid assets, including $1.4 billion in cash on hand. Katz attributed the company’s financial position to both guest loyalty and a “thoughtful, disciplined approach to expenses.”

Snowmaking = expense. A lot of snowmaking = undisciplined expenses. If they were 'thoughtful' about their eastern resorts, they'd at least add a snowmaking icon to their trail report templates.


Let's hope for snow. . . soon and often!!

Honestly they will probably have their best season ever: no snowmaking expenses, no staff expenses, less lift running, less shuttles running, shorter season and less operating days on both ends, expensive food etc, everyone buys Epic passes... I know friends that complain all day long about Epic... yet they continue to buy.

 

[PAabe]

They took the single handed best intermediate slope on the hill and turned it into a park.

The general manager is an idiot for green lighting this and I will be telling him that hopefully on Monday

Agreed I do not get why they wouldn't just put the park on Recruit which is thoroughly uninteresting otherwise instead of on the most interesting cruiser in the whole area

Also recruit is accessible from all 3 main lifts while Susquehanna, unlike the other parks, only dumps out on the east side which I would think would be annoying for people hitting the park repeatedly

As for fife and drum park, that would also be advantageous because you can hit bunker Hill > fife and drum together which now you cannot. Also they have underutilized the fife and drum lift now without the park traffic and boarders will likely not enjoy lapping Ramrod>Susquehanna or maybe even exhibition due to the required flat traverses

 

[Former Sunday Rivah Rat]

Your post doesn't make sense. SR did but cubby's outside both Barker and South Ridge. Easier to maintain a snow surface on lesser pitched slopes that BW has, but 10x better is a stretch to any imagination.

Last year at SR was a shit show. We had enough of :

• Walking through dirt parking lots in ski boots.
• Upon arrival you get to be constantly harangued by Mainer's telling me to "Pull my mask up" if God forbid it slipped under my nose.
• No bag storage at all last year.
• This made warm days fun wearing the mask up to the eyballs as Nazi ski patrollers watched long lift lines. Want to drop a layer? Hike to the truck and back.
• The waiting in very long lift lines, on warm days desperate to get on a lift, sweating through the mask, watching a 20 something after 20 something get on the middle seat of a 6 pack for the solo ride up to "feel safe".
• What made me want to scream was realizing they paid half price for their Nitro pass.
• Watching 20 something extreme morons do insanely fast runs, blind jumps and nearly kill my wife on Escapade.
• Being from MA and made to feel like a criminal for going to my second home in Maine.
• Hearing that Maine actually proposed a 2nd tax on vacation homes shows the deep seated resentment Mainers have for other states, particularly MA.
• Driving from 95 to SR through shithole rural blight towns, abandoned homes litter what should be valuable real estate.
• The funny thing is some of these Mainers have more tattoos than teeth and common sense put together. I think we have had enough of Maine.

 

[Smellytele]

Last year at SR was a shit show. We had enough of :

• Walking through dirt parking lots in ski boots.
• Upon arrival you get to be constantly harangued by Mainer's telling me to "Pull my mask up" if God forbid it slipped under my nose.
• No bag storage at all last year.
• This made warm days fun wearing the mask up to the eyballs as Nazi ski patrollers watched long lift lines. Want to drop a layer? Hike to the truck and back.
• The waiting in very long lift lines, on warm days desperate to get on a lift, sweating through the mask, watching a 20 something after 20 something get on the middle seat of a 6 pack for the solo ride up to "feel safe".
• What made me want to scream was realizing they paid half price for their Nitro pass.
• Watching 20 something extreme morons do insanely fast runs, blind jumps and nearly kill my wife on Escapade.
• Being from MA and made to feel like a criminal for going to my second home in Maine.
• Hearing that Maine actually proposed a 2nd tax on vacation homes shows the deep seated resentment Mainers have for other states, particularly MA.
• Driving from 95 to SR through shithole rural blight towns, abandoned homes litter what should be valuable real estate.
• The funny thing is some of these Mainers have more tattoos than teeth and common sense put together. I think we have had enough of Maine.

You’re a douche! Merry Christmas!