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Wind holds on Friday

Vaughn

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Agreed.. The Magic Double may be the wonder of the northeast Skiing world. Protected by tall trees the whole way up meaning it very rarely if ever gets put on wind hold.

Too bad they only have 10 trails open at this point and are a bit north of the heavier snowfall forecast. I was hoping to go on Friday but that's not quite enough to sell me at this point.
 

Kleetus

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Magic.

I'm debating between VT and the Catskills for Friday. Looks like the Catskills get a little more snow and less wind maybe???

Still no consensus between the weather models less than 36 hours from the beginning of the event. This is a crazy storm!

What is the base looking like on the natural stuff at Magic? I would love to go, but given all the warmth I can't imagine there is any left at this point but I hope I'm wrong.

If they get 12" would most of the natural terrain be back to game on? Or would we still need another dump after this storm to fill it in provided this storm delivers.
 

Jully

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What is the base looking like on the natural stuff at Magic? I would love to go, but given all the warmth I can't imagine there is any left at this point but I hope I'm wrong.

If they get 12" would most of the natural terrain be back to game on? Or would we still need another dump after this storm to fill it in provided this storm delivers.

I'd imagine if anywhere got 12" of heavy snow, most low angle natural terrain would be back. Steeper stuff I highly doubt since it is basically November as far as the ground and snowpack is concerned.
 

Jcb890

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I'd imagine if anywhere got 12" of heavy snow, most low angle natural terrain would be back. Steeper stuff I highly doubt since it is basically November as far as the ground and snowpack is concerned.
I'd still prefer to be on the rock skis/board in that scenario since if you're using your edges I don't think 12" is going to cut it in most spots. Especially if you're out there during the storm before its a full 12" (if that's what falls). Now, if its 12" ontop of grass or dirt without any sticks or rocks you might be OK.
 

drjeff

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Let's also not forget that elevation is likely a player in this storm, so while *SOME* summits may get 12" if the cold air gets in quickly, down at the base it may be 1/2 or a 1/3rd of that....

There's a bunch of warm air this storm needs to displace at the beginning, and not a bunch of COLD air all that near by with which to work with....

About all that one can be certain of now, is that precipitation of various forms will fall from the sky, if a bunch of snow happens to fall, it's not going to be blower quality fluff, and the winds will be blowing....

Hopefully this storm will make for a more snow promoting atmosphere for the storm that looks to be rolling through the Northeast mid week next week.....
 

Jcb890

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How's Belleayre compared to Windham for wind? Catskills certainly look like the jackpot Friday...if wind doesn't shut everything down.
Hmmmm... they are both on the MAX... do I go West instead of North?
Windham a little under 3 hrs drive
Belleayre a little over 3.5 hrs drive

However, if Mt. Snow is getting the goods, its 2-2.25 hrs drive there.
 

cdskier

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How's Belleayre compared to Windham for wind? Catskills certainly look like the jackpot Friday...if wind doesn't shut everything down.

Interesting question...as many times as I skied Belleayre over the years, I never once experienced a wind hold somehow. (I know the new Gondola has already had wind holds though). Was it just dumb luck? Or are their lifts really not that impacted by wind? Of course it all depends how strong the winds really end up being on Friday too. It is possible I was just lucky and never there on very windy days.
 

ss20

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A minute from the Alta exit off the I-15!
Hmmmm... they are both on the MAX... do I go West instead of North?
Windham a little under 3 hrs drive
Belleayre a little over 3.5 hrs drive

However, if Mt. Snow is getting the goods, its 2-2.25 hrs drive there.

It's the opposite for me. Mount Snow is 3 hours while the Catskills are 2 hours. Catskills have none...zero...zip...zelch for a base. So while Mount Snow receive less snow there's a "slight" natural base. Most models have 6" on the ground by 7am Friday so some low-angle natural stuff should come into play later in the day.

Mount Snow is pretty bad with wind, too.
 

Tdizz

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How's Belleayre compared to Windham for wind? Catskills certainly look like the jackpot Friday...if wind doesn't shut everything down.
Depends on what direction the wind is coming from. If wind is coming from the North West, Hunter might be safe and Windham will have problems. Belleayre has shorter and lower chairs. Probably a safe bet.
 

Do Work

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What is the base looking like on the natural stuff at Magic? I would love to go, but given all the warmth I can't imagine there is any left at this point but I hope I'm wrong.

If they get 12" would most of the natural terrain be back to game on? Or would we still need another dump after this storm to fill it in provided this storm delivers.



There's actually a decent amount of base on the natural stuff. Spotty of course and we can't open it on that, but even trails like Talisman have a frozen base down. Goniff, T-Zone and any remotely protected aspect is poised and ready to open with fresh. Hearing people talk about the low trail count just hurts my soul so deep. You guys have no idea, as it is *right there*. If we get even a small portion of what I'm seeing from our weather guys it's going to open right up. Just a couple inches of heavier snow and we will have ropes dropping left and right. To answer your question specifically, if we get 12" of anything even approaching medium density, this place will be 100% open.

Then you have the issue of wind- and let me tell you right now, Magic will likely be the only mountain anywhere in the money zone with summit access and I don't care where the most snow is headed, that matters if you're planning on riding lifts in the storm. You can always go to the storm total winner (if that sort of thing truly matters to you) the following day once the roads are clear and the wind is gone.

Honestly, out of all your options, I really think Magic might be the only sane one. Don't be fooled by the low trail count, if we get snow that will be in a constant state of change. Just a heads up from your friendly neighborhood snow dealer- don't wait until it's too late to get a discount ticket. Doubly important since the public group think (even among well read skiers such as yourselves) seems to be "they have low trail count so I do't know"- but now you know, and given that I'm guessing many others are thinking that same way, this could really be your shot at an old school Magic country club day where not many show up and you end up crushing fresh, untouched lines all day long.

Given that this system is packing a huge wallop but there is zero consensus, I'd go with the safe bet- where the skiing will be stellar even if the storm doesn't 100% slay us, and the lifts are most likely to stay running in any case. On top of that, if it DOES pan out and we get hammered on, I'd be super pissed to miss that.


Just my .02

Yes I'm biased but you would be too if you knew what I know. :razz:
 

bdfreetuna

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keep the faith
^^
That's very good to hear. Agree on it being best bet in VT tomorrow. Hoping to finally make it up there some time next week.
 

Glenn

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Looks like a few lifts at Mt. Snow are on wind hold. The web cams there are showing some pretty good gusts. But at least it's snowing!
 

mikec142

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Windham is currently dealing with a power outage that is affecting all lifts. Good news is there is a foot on the ground already.
 

skiur

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Killington currently has 0 lifts on wind hold as of 11 am.
 
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