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Wachusett night skiing

tm07

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Hello. I'm a poor high school student from southeast Massachusetts. So it's kind of a trek for me to get to skiing of any kind. I'm looking at getting the Bronze Century Pass to Wachusett this year ($199, 5 weekdays and all 7 nights). I'm just wondering how is Wachusett night skiing? Is it hideously crowded as Wachusett is during the day (even on a Saturday night)?

Thanks for the help.
 

skibum1321

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I would say that Wachusett actually gets more crowded at night, believe it or not. In general, I'm not a big fan of night skiing -- you can't see any aspects of the trail so you are reduced to skiing groomers all night.
 

teachski

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Wachusett has a lot of school groups. They generally leave by 7:30 or so. It quiets down considerably about 8. It all depends on the time you would be there for skiing. Anything is better than nothing, right?
 

skibum1321

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teachski said:
Anything is better than nothing, right?
I tend to disagree with that statement - sliding down icy, crowded slopes isn't really my idea of a good time. That would get old really quick for me. But if you don't mind it then go for it.
 

thetrailboss

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tm07 said:
Hello. I'm a poor high school student from southeast Massachusetts. So it's kind of a trek for me to get to skiing of any kind. I'm looking at getting the Bronze Century Pass to Wachusett this year ($199, 5 weekdays and all 7 nights). I'm just wondering how is Wachusett night skiing? Is it hideously crowded as Wachusett is during the day (even on a Saturday night)?

Thanks for the help.

Sky where are you? :eek:

Welcome to the boards, tm07. My advice is to PM our resident Wachusett Expert, Sky521 (hopefully I got the right numbers). He is up there many times a week and has that same pass. A lot of folks gather there from the RSN board and I joined them last week...good group...another guy to ask about Wachusett is ozskier.

I enjoyed skiing there...they DO groom before the night session, so you can be one of the many who stand and wait for the trails to open one-by-one for fresh grooming. IMHO it has some really good terrain for this area...much better option than say, Nashoba, Blue, or Ward. Good, long runs and improved snowmaking for this season. Fast lifts, good facilities, views, accesibility, etc. BAD on crowds...but you can learn to live with it I guess :roll:

Good scene on weeknights :beer:

Nice park as well...popular place.

And at that price, you really can't go wrong. They give a lot of benefits to those in that program and the price is right :D

But what do you like to ski/ride?
 

Sky

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Sky where are you? :eek:

...another guy to ask about Wachusett is ozskier.

...they DO groom before the night session

...popular place.

And at that price, you really can't go wrong. They give a lot of benefits to those in that program and the price is right :D

HOLA Boss! Been on the road for three weeks.

Dear new poster (TM?...not to be confused with TB (Trail Boss)...I am biased, so know that up front. Certified, Drank the KoolAid etc.

The Bronze Pass is a great deal.

There are crowds for two reasons: It's a DEAL and it's CLOSE. True it thins out as the night goes on, but if you are driving 1-1/2 hrs or more from the south shore...you won't be satisfied with open access from 8PM to 10PM. Certainly many of the psoters in here want that all-day access with more challenge and less crowds.

BUT! If you have limited access to mid-week daytime escapes, limited access to $ for weekend day tix up north....Wa is certainly a very good solution.

As the Boss mentioned above, OZSKIER is another good source of info. He is pro material...and skis Wa for all the reasons mentioned...access/deal/park/decent terrain/decent park. Certainly it's not his only option, but it's definitely a good option.

Night skiing there is good. True there are school groups after Christmas vaca for 6 or 8 weeks. Yes the slopes are a bit crowded so you won't get first tracks by any stretch. HOWEVER, the grooming is very good.

ALSO....any snow days you have off (and don't have to work/have access to trans)...your pass is valid (for you and all your fellow high school skiers/riders with the day off).

Buy with confidence. Here's a tip! For $59, buy the group lesson pack (five lessons). Even if you don't need the lessons...taking the lessons gets you on the front of the lift line!.

If you need access to a group to get better pass pricing...contact me @ SKY@mountdozer.com.
 

Geoff

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Wa-wachusett night skiing: The place is a cocktail lounge with snow. You have to be _VERY_ aware of getting run over by yahoos there.
 

ozskier

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Ahhh, good ol' Wachusett. My Winter/Spring hangout.
If you're lacking in the funds department, Wachusett is a great way to clock in some major ski time. Many people will bash it for, well, being Wachusett. Sure, it isn't Stowe, but you know what... It's better than staying home and not enjoying winter.

Where else can you pay 200 bucks, ski twice a week for 12 weeks a year and get steady conditions thanks to abundant snowmaking, a state of the art lodge, a short walk from your car to the slopes, a halfway decent terrain park and detachable lifts within 80 miles of your home... Think about it.

In answer to some of your questions...
1. During the day : Not at all. Weekdays are very calm. Catch it during February vacation and you'll be waiting in line, but that is pretty much it for weekday traffic.

2. Schoolgroups / AKA : Brats : There are a ton of schoolgroups that pretty much dominate the Minuteman area during nights. Thankfully, they all pack up their shit and leave by 7:30. After they're all gone you pretty much have the place to yourself unless it has snowed that week, in which case every a-hole with a Century pass will be out looking to ski in some halfway decent conditions.

3. Grooming : Specific "bread and butter" trails as I call them are groomed starting at around 5:00. Connifer, 10th Mountain, Smith Walton, Ralphs, etc. You want to be on these trails after they drop the rope, the conditions are usually awesome for around 2 hours. I'm talking nice groomed runs where you can get an edge. It isn't uncommon to see me taking yo-yo runs going around mach 2 with rangers chasing me when conditions are like this.

4. Terrain Park : Don't knock it. For the location, its a pretty amazing terrain park and the mountain has done an amazing job developing it. Considering what it costs in snowmaking and man hours to get a park running, Wa really does have one of the better parks in the East considering their size.

5. Ares Ski : As mentioned before, we've got a quality group of people at the mountain. I've made some amazing friends there and once you start coming on a regular basis you start to see the same familiar faces and it really starts to become a second home. I was there just about 6 days a week when I was in college, it was great. I'd give just about anything to be able to go back to that kind of frequency. Now I'm usually there 2-3 days a week. 2 nights midweek and then I usually hit it up for some night skiing on the way home from Vermont. Ha.

If you don't want to go to Wa, you could always get a 2005-2006 Mount Dozer season pass! Rumor has it that they'll be reveling pass prices in a couple weeks.
 

thetrailboss

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Well said, ozskier. :wink:

ozskier said:
If you don't want to go to Wa, you could always get a 2005-2006 Mount Dozer season pass! Rumor has it that they'll be reveling pass prices in a couple weeks.

Yep, I'm looking forward to hearing about Mt. Dozer...they have a great website as well. :wink:
 

Sky

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ozskier said:
If you don't want to go to Wa, you could always get a 2005-2006 Mount Dozer season pass! Rumor has it that they'll be reveling pass prices in a couple weeks.

HEH! Welll the owner is on vaca at this very moment...researching the latest in erraaahhhh.....liftie wear.

Dude, I have some news...check your e-mail pally.
 

deadheadskier

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I skied there quite a few times as kid. I learned at Ward and then moved up to the 'big' mountain, often skiing nights with my cousins. That was the early 80's though, so I'm not a good source of info obviously. From what I remember its a pretty darn good little mountain for its location. If I lived in the Boston area, I'd probably hit up this deal that is being discussed as well.
 

tm07

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Ah. Thanks for all the help. I think I'm going to go for it, and hopefully drag a few friends in too. Besides, I have no problems with staying out all night--if I get back home at midnight, so what, it's worth it for any bit of skiing I can get.

As for what I like to ride, I'm really a big fan of glades, but I understand that glades down here are pretty much nonexistant for obvious reasons. I've been to Wachusett before, and all the stuff off the Polar Express chair works great for me. Yeah, crowds suck, but you learn to deal. I learned to ski mostly at Loon, so I've been getting practice at dodging hordes of people down the slopes since I started. :)
 

Vortex

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Loon and crowds.... I have heard that before. I usually avoid the crowds there pretty well. If you can do that you will be fine anywhere. Enjoy and check in with some of the gang.
 

ozskier

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Well, you won't be doing any glade skiing at Wachusett. Unless you know where to ride and there's a ton of snow... In which case, drop me a private message and I'll park my car in a convenient spot so we can get back to the main base ;-)

Ok, I officially really miss skiing. I can't wait to take my first run of the season down 10th Mountain Trail completely switch. Ha.

Nothing like getting your pass pulled on the first night of the season!
 

awf170

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ozskier said:
Ok, I officially really miss skiing. I can't wait to take my first run of the season down 10th Mountain Trail completely switch. Ha.

Thats awsome... still not as cool as the kid who went down snowbird switch going about 30 mph and passing everyone :blink:

i would do that if the trail was empty, but with people i would kill myself and probably a few other people
 

Sky

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ozskier said:
I can't wait to take my first run of the season down 10th Mountain Trail completely switch. Ha.

Nothing like getting your pass pulled on the first night of the season!

It's good to have goals. *SMIRK*

re: missing skiing.....for a while there I was wondering if the hunt for more/better gear kept me interested...and since I've upgraded substantially....those thoughts have been absent. So I was curious to discover if (much like my former Bass fishing addiction) my skiing addiction would fade.

However...it appears I have successfully adopted a "Summer time for summer thoughts" attitude. When I adjusted my calendar to dump July....September peeked out from behind August...and I got a shiver of excitement because September brings Ski sales and ski mags and fall and Century Pass (for Wa) sale deadlines etc.

I am excited about the coming seasong....but still busy enjoying summer thank you.
 

ozskier

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I'm making the best of my summer... Planning my grand comeback to freeskiing after being hurt this past year.

Watch out sky, you'll see me jumping over the road like this...

IMG_5948-2005.05.31-11.50.48.jpg


Lets see Dozer try to take me out when I'm above him!
 

Sky

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ozskier said:
Watch out sky, you'll see me jumping over the road like this...Lets see Dozer try to take me out when I'm above him!

HEH! Great photo. How much different is it to take off / land with a few extra feet of "sole"?

I don't care to be any "higher" than I already am thank you....(an excuse for being unable to jump with legs only vs ankle flex (as for hoops/rebounding))

I thought you got hurt two years ago not last year?
 
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