VAIL SUCKS

[thetrailboss]

Dear wildcat this is your closest competition right now and they are fucking destroying you this year. View attachment 50174

That is a state-owned ski area with a non-profit race club helping pay for some of the snowmaking vs. a publicly traded multinational corporation. Wow. Just wow. Vail is getting killed.

 

[thetrailboss]

Dear wildcat this is your closest competition right now and they are fucking destroying you this year. View attachment 50174

Are they having any big races this year?

 

[snoseek]

Are they having any big races this year?

Don't know about big races but yeah they've been out there for sure. The state has been dropping alot of money on snowmaking all around. I was concerned they might run it lean but it's the opposite. Pass sales up and 89 a bucks a pop for everyone else gets it done I guess. Who knew that you gotta spend money to make money...

 

[thetrailboss]

Don't know about big races but yeah they've been out there for sure. The state has been dropping alot of money on snowmaking all around. I was concerned they might run it lean but it's the opposite. Pass sales up and 89 a bucks a pop for everyone else gets it done I guess. Who knew that you gotta spend money to make money...

Well, as I commented in the Cannon thread, with that huge increase in pass sales we are indeed seeing more invested into operations it seems. I am not on the ground, but from everyone I see posting here, folks are pretty happy.

 

[deadheadskier]

They got about 20" of natural in the past ten days. So, yes, that many trails are open. Some rather thin though.

 

[snoseek]

Well, as I commented in the Cannon thread, with that huge increase in pass sales we are indeed seeing more invested into operations it seems. I am not on the ground, but from everyone I see posting here, folks are pretty happy.

I just came back to cannon last year after a very long break and was blown away both seasons by how well its run while being the same old cannon

 

[jimmywilson69]

well I can assure you that the local places here in PA are off the hook busy. Like Holiday weekend busy by 10 AM every weekend. Based on some observations at my home hill Roundtop I have come to the following conclusions

1. Way more people from MD and VA are passing by the 2 closer resorts and coming to Roundtop. Snow is always better here, and historically lines are shorter.
2. People who typically only ski out west are definitely skiing more locally. This point proven by the family decked out in Helly Hanson from head to toe including backpacks. Yes they were skiing with backpacks at a 550 ft hill in PA...
3. Lots of newbies, which is really good for the sport. However, the bad thing is the rental line has been enormous and once stretched about 400 feet on MLK. This is attributed to the limited amount of people inside at a time. However, They've also sold out of rentals, meaning no equipment left, on at least 2 occasions since Christmas.
4. It too bad that the lodge and bar/restaurant are limited, because with all of these people here they are definitely loosing out on even more revenue than just being down 66%.
5. Mid-week is way busier than ever before. Somedays its hard to find a close spot which has never happened before.

I'm lucky that I can ski every day. I feel bad for folks who can only do weekends and are standing in long lines.

 

[2planks2coasts]

Eh Snowbasin is limited epic.. two days on the local, seven on the full. The vast majority of passes I saw out there were snowbasin not epic.

That's why it's still a great place to ski and doesn't violate my policy of trying not to give money to Vail!

 

[Edd]

It snowed. Wildcat has blown snow on just 3 trails. Their natural terrain would not be open at most other places. Expect the trail count to go down this week. Bobcat is still broken. No snowmaking going on

Trails beyond Bobcat are closed for snowmaking today. Guns are on. Not sure which trails.

 

[thetrailboss]

well I can assure you that the local places here in PA are off the hook busy. Like Holiday weekend busy by 10 AM every weekend. Based on some observations at my home hill Roundtop I have come to the following conclusions

1. Way more people from MD and VA are passing by the 2 closer resorts and coming to Roundtop. Snow is always better here, and historically lines are shorter.
2. People who typically only ski out west are definitely skiing more locally. This point proven by the family decked out in Helly Hanson from head to toe including backpacks. Yes they were skiing with backpacks at a 550 ft hill in PA...
3. Lots of newbies, which is really good for the sport. However, the bad thing is the rental line has been enormous and once stretched about 400 feet on MLK. This is attributed to the limited amount of people inside at a time. However, They've also sold out of rentals, meaning no equipment left, on at least 2 occasions since Christmas.
4. It too bad that the lodge and bar/restaurant are limited, because with all of these people here they are definitely loosing out on even more revenue than just being down 66%.
5. Mid-week is way busier than ever before. Somedays its hard to find a close spot which has never happened before.

I'm lucky that I can ski every day. I feel bad for folks who can only do weekends and are standing in long lines.

One has to wonder if the Holding Family agreed to Vail so as to give Vail a test-drive of their ski areas.....

 

[thebigo]

Trails beyond Bobcat are closed for snowmaking today. Guns are on. Not sure which trails.

Kitten per website.

 

[jimmywilson69]

One has to wonder if the Holding Family agreed to Vail so as to give Vail a test-drive of their ski areas.....

I'm not following?

 

[Cobbold]

I'm not following?

Holding family owns sun valley, they sell to vail, they are selling their oil company, I could see holding family with another investor buying vail and taking them private, and Katz still is the ceo.

 

[thetrailboss]

I'm not following?

Meaning that the Holdings might sell Snowbasin and Sun Valley to Vail at some point

 

[Cobbold]

Meaning that the Holdings might sell Snowbasin and Sun Valley to Vail at some point

I think vail would rather have deer valley than sun valley/snow basin, but who knows, ironic they owned snow basin at one point (vail).

 

[Cobbold]

I think vail would rather have deer valley than sun valley/snow basin, but who knows, ironic they owned snow basin at one point (vail).

Read a book by the founder of boyne resorts, everett kirchner , in the book he talks about the places he passed on, sun valley in 65 for 10 million, co ownership of Jackson hole, tellurid, keystone and copper Mtn, not sure if keystone / copper had the same owners. Granted in 1965 10 million was a lot but all of sun valley for 10 million oh boy, the inn at sun valley probably grosses 10 million per year, lol

 

[2planks2coasts]

Meaning that the Holdings might sell Snowbasin and Sun Valley to Vail at some point

bite your tongue. They were in MCP before going Epic. Hopefully they find the switch to have been ill advised.

 

[Cobbold]

bite your tongue. They were in MCP going Epic. Hopefully they find the switch to have been ill advised.

Just at sun valley,and asked a liftie who was scanning tickets if a lot of people their had aan epic pass, he stated it was a huge number, took the shuttle back to the sun valley inn, lots of epic passes around the necks of skiers on that shuttle, so yes sun valley is making money on the epic pass.

 

[2planks2coasts]

Just at sun valley,and asked a liftie who was scanning tickets if a lot of people their had aan epic pass, he stated it was a huge number, took the shuttle back to the sun valley inn, lots of epic passes around the necks of skiers on that shuttle, so yes sun valley is making money on the epic pass.

The presence of crowds seems to indicate that. Crowds aren't always a good thing though. Ask A-basin.

 

[ss20]

Read a book by the founder of boyne resorts, everett kirchner , in the book he talks about the places he passed on, sun valley in 65 for 10 million, co ownership of Jackson hole, tellurid, keystone and copper Mtn, not sure if keystone / copper had the same owners. Granted in 1965 10 million was a lot but all of sun valley for 10 million oh boy, the inn at sun valley probably grosses 10 million per year, lol

To be fair, Sun Valley was one of the top 5 resorts in the country in 1965.