Summer's the season for on-mountain improvements

As August is just around the corner, resorts across the country are putting their capital improvement projects into high gear. I spoken a lot about new lifts and in particular, the Sunday River Chondola, but there is a lot more that goes into preparing for a ski season than just installing a new lift. Everything from new coats of paint to base lodge renovations to trail grading and mowing are all part of summer operations and are some of the little things that add up to make the resorts look great come opening day. If you haven’t done so already, take a trip to your favorite resort and take a walk around. You’ll notice a certain buzz in August that means while winter is months away, the resort operators have it in their sights to make the most out of the short summer season.

Wildcat may not be a resort, but it's making quite the play as a four season area!

While most major ski resorts around the country can qualify as four-season resort because of large hotels and at least one 18-hole championship golf course, there’s often little else that they offer to their customers. Some have gone in and out of the mountain biking business, but with fluctuating numbers of riders, the costs to run even one lift can put these resorts in the red. That being said, some resorts will take that hit in order to draw customers, who will want to visit and own property at an resort that offers activities year-round. Wildcat Mountain in New Hampshire may be a little different in that they don’t have a major hotel and they don’t have a golf course, but what they do have is an array of summertime activities that seemingly puts the competition to shame. Last summer, Wildcat, which has been offering summer gondola rides for many years, added a state-of-the-art zip line to their resume of summertime activities. This summer they have fired up another lift to allow disc golfers a 9-hole course that begins up on the mountain and snakes its’ way down. While I know of a few resorts out west that have zip lines and lift rides, I haven’t heard of this in the east and the mountain course for disc golf is the very first I’ve heard of. It’s this type of outside-the-box thinking that often sets Wildcat apart and being less than a mile from trailheads for hiking Mount Washington and only minutes by car to either Gorham or North Conway, New Hampshire, this resort is billing itself as one of the premiere four season resorts in New England, despite being a day area. Oh, and the views of Tuckerman Ravine, Huntington Ravine, Great Gulf, and Gulf of Slides, can't be beat.

Ski Resorts Not Exempt From Economic Woes!

I’m often surprised at how many people perceive the ski industry and how it’s affected by the economy. Lot’s of people think that ski resorts and their quests are isolated from the downturn of the economy because of the perception that skiing or snowboarding are wealthy people’s sports. While skiing is expensive and many resorts cater to people that are willing to pay a little extra for their vacations, the spectrum of people that ski is wide and most of these people have jobs, families, and mortgages. Those three things right there are going to come before skiing and that is why some economists are predicting that this winter will not be a good one for resorts across the United States. While last year saw records shattered across the country, it was ahead of the $4 plus a gallon cost for gas, the surge in oil prices, and let’s not forget about the airlines – a lot of resorts count on travelers who comes from away. While there have been several signs of this in the east and they have been reported on locally, I think that a good indicator is with the country’s only publically traded ski resort holding company, Vail Resorts. The owner of Vail, Beaver Creek, Breckenridge, Keystone, and Heavenly, Vail Resorts shares have tumbled recently, falling for the low $40’s to the mid to low $20 range. The stocks fell further this week as Wall Street analysts downgraded Vail’s status from a stock to buy to one to hold off on. Some people were surprised that Vail Resorts would be so directly impacted. Just look at the list of resorts and you see five extremely large destination resorts that each draw near to or over a million skier visits each year, but many of these people comes from all over the United States and get to the respective resorts by plane. In case you haven’t heard, airline tickets are expected to double in price by early next year. That’s a big punch in the stomach to some of these resorts. While Vail in Colorado and Heavenly, which straddles the border of Nevada and California, may be more insulated because of their massive European share of visitors and the weak dollar, there’s no promise that those numbers will hold. In all, it should be an interesting time for skiers and riders all over the country and a time where resorts will need to make cost cutting changes to help manage their places in the market in the hopes of drawing and retaining skiers and riders.

The end for surface lifts draws closer

With the removing of the Kennebego T-bar (The only lift on the map to the summit) at Saddleback, Maine and the subsequent installation of a fixed grip quad, not only is a piece of history leaving, but a part of the mountain that was once accessible in heavy winds will now sit idle many days next winter. Sure, I know the value of putting in a chairlift for the mountain. It makes the summit much more accessible to the intermediate terrain up top, but in my opinion, the t-bar served many purposes like crowd control and keeping people off some expert terrain that can be as hairy as anywhere in the east. Second to all of that is that Saddleback had always prided itself on the fact that they had t-bars and slower lifts as they have always been a throw back to what skiing was. Now, as they expand and try to cater to higher income guests, they are going away from that philosophy, but also perhaps hurting their amount of skier days. The issue itself is industry-wide. Not many resorts still consider surface lifts as viable as many skiers and riders are afraid to ride them, but in my opinion they are not only fun, but also highly functional lifts that last a long time and can operate when other lifts sit idle. So the next time you look up at a part of any mountain that is closed because of wind while you cruise the beginner and intermediate terrain waiting for lift holds to open up, remember back to when t-bars and Pomas were the order of the day for expert terrain and remember how great it was to still get fresh tracks after a storm or even be able to access the same terrain. We live in different times now.

Ski Magazine Countdown Begins!

Nope, I'm not just talking about Ski magazine, but in about a month the first issues of all the major ski magazines will begin to arrive in the mail. Some will start off with the annual buyer's guide while others will start with their resort ratings, but regardless, I just can't wait till that first glossy cover arrives and the taste of ski season will begin to take over. Not that I'm excited or anything...

Chondola base structure is taking shape

For those unable to get up to Sunday River to see the construction first hand, I've obviously been doing my own supplement to the Chondalog right here. Now don't get me wrong, I encourage you to visit Sunday River's site as it's full of fabulous information about the lift and the technology, but that being said, writing about it here keeps me excited for the winter and the opening of this monumental lift at the River. From today's update, here is a video of Rohn Stilson talking about the pouring of the base and summit structures and their importance.

Happenings at Sugarloaf???

More rumors are coming out of the western Maine resort of Sugarloaf. During the past couple of months there have been some odd happenings. It started with two truck loads of CWA Omega I cabins being shipped in from Big Sky Montana. While it was said that these may be used in the future, it’s hard to imagine that anyone would want to spend the money on gas to ship all those cabins to a location that is only about 40 miles from the Canadian border. Nonetheless, the cabins were dumped in some bushes and thus lending credence to the notion that Big Sky wanted them out and they had to go somewhere. That being said, some pictures surfaced recently of stakes in several spots around the resort and one in particular that is situated right outside of Bullwinkle’s. On the stake it says, “Top bull wheel,” but heck, that could mean anything, right…

Doppelmayr vs. Poma

Perhaps not as particular as people are about brands of skis, I have found that skiers and riders are very opinionated when it comes to lift brands. While there were dozens of lift manufacturers up till the mid-80's or so, that number has dropped off to a handful. Most of those dozens either folded or merged with today's leaders; Doppelmayr and Poma, and yes, they have other names and if really depends or where you are and what you buy. I'm trying to be simple about it and refer to them by one name. Regardless, these two companies do pretty much every high-speed installation in North America now and also much of the refitting of older lifts. As for my favorite or the two, I am a Doppelmary fan through and through. Yes, I love the concept of the double-loading system that Poma came up with, but I find their lifts to be slower on the line. All that being said, this is specifically related to high-speed lifts and fixed grips is another story altogether.

What could have been for Mineral King Valley, CA

Back in the 1970’s, a man by the name of Walt Disney had a unique vision for a southern California valley that while destined for failure, was ahead of its’ time, like so many of his creations. And yet this was different in that Disney had eyes on a parcel of land called Mineral King Valley for a major southern California ski resort that would attract thousands of skiers from greater Los Angeles and south. While located on Forest Service land, Disney wanted to create a European style resort in that he planned a car-free village with use of the now famous monorails that had been installed in his two original parks as well as Seattle. Despite the environmental efforts, Disney’s and other developers’ bids were ultimately all denied and this steep-walled valley remains untouched.

Summit Terminal Work Continues at Sunday River

For those of you following the ongoing saga that is the installation of the Sunday River Chondola, or as I like to call it, The Viking Express, the resort has taken some major steps in preparing for the Doppelmayr parts to arrive next month. Check out the Chondola Page at Sunday River for tons of info and the latest pics, which show a lot of blasting needed for the top terminal. Perhaps I'm even steal a picture from the site and post it on here as long as AK and co dont' sue me!

Helping trace skiings visions

While we can easily take a journey into skiing’s history and see where rope tows used to incline and old Hall or Heron chairlifts used to swing, we don’t often look at what could have been. If we research through sites like NELSAP we find scores of little and medium sized hills that couldn’t make it for one reason or several others, but what about proposed ski areas and resorts. Earlier in this blog I talked about Lake Catamount near Steamboat Springs and to date that it one of the more famous of these failed or stalled proposals. And while lifts were never erected and base lodges never built, the history behind these proposals is really interesting and many have sketches. An easy way to learn some of this for your self is to head of to Colorado Ski History and look in their dedicated section. Maybe there’s some real estate you’d be interested in.

Has the online forum replaced the bar stool?

We've all been in situations where we've been in a bar and some yahoo is rambling on and on about how epic his ski day was. Heck, maybe you're on of the guys or gals that has done this. It's surely all in good fun. If you're full of crap you're full of crap. Skiers can generally tell what someone is talking a big game. Does this get them the label of a gaper? Perhaps, but even the best of skiers can be a gaper depending on which meaning you choose. Regardless, we know that these situation will never go away and we don't want them to. It can be rather amusing, but with the increasing use of internet chat forums, skiers and riders can now talk all the garbage they want and never have to back it up. It's a funny phenomenon that I see often and like those talkers in the bar, it's easy to get a sense of who is really full of it and who truly has soul.

Saddleback goes ahead with summit quad

It seems that while I was trying to write some accurate information about this summers new lift installations, I forgot one that is hugely important to New England and Maine skiing. While the lift installation falls into the same category as Killington in that the new lift is replacing an old, it's a little more of an upgrade for the good folks at Saddleback, Maine. For the first time ever, the summit will be accessible by a chairlift as the Kennebego T-bar is being replaced with a fixed grip quad. While the t-bar was great in allowing access to the mountain's expert terrain on many cold and windy days, the steep liftline also served as a natural deterrent to folks who should avoid the upper mountain terrain. The lift is part of the resort's 10-year master plan.

Have you checked up on the Peak to Peak?

The world's more extensive and expensive ski lift installation is again going full steam ahead with the two massive towers in place and both terminal stations being fitted with the drives, brakes, conveyors, and extensive sheave trains. Watch some great videos and see tons and tons of photos on Whistler/Blackcomb's Peak 2 Peak site!

The best chalets at some of the world's best ski resorts!

My teenage years were extremely memorable for me as they relate to my skiing experiences. Having lived in London, it was not only easy to hop a flight to Geneva or Zurich for a ski vacation, but it was commonplace. Everyone I the European skiing community knows that Britons love their luxury ski holidays and will spend more on booking some of the best chalets than anything else. Okay, so maybe some more money on ski lessons would help, but that’s neither here nor there. Every years the British flock to resorts like Courchevel, France, Verbiew, Switzerland, and St. Anton, Austria, to name a few. And they are looking to book a luxury chalet in Meribel, they turn to the experts in ski destination bookings, Supertravel. They’ll set you up with a chalet in Val d’Isere, Aspen, or any of Lake Tahoe’s resorts.

Remembering the Lake Catamount proposal!

If you’re old enough to remember this illustration, you’ve been skiing at least as long as I have, but technically the resort in question, on the shore of Lake Catamount is still pending approval. Sure, the original financers back out decades ago and permits would still need to be renewed, but this controversial resort that was planned for development in the 1980s could still happen. Only miles from Steamboat Springs, Colorado, residents and locals thought the idea of a second major resort to the area would help with the economy and bring diversity to the area that hosts only Steamboat Resort. Unfortunately, in the planning and permit process, nearby wetlands along the shores of the lakes caused and environmentalist stir, but in the end (Or the middle, depending on how full your glass is) it was the financial aspect that held the project up. Along with a proposed 14 lifts, the proposal also called for a railroad connection between Catamount and Steamboat Springs. A couple years after the last major financial backers of the original 1970s plan withdrew their names, the powerhouse couple of Tim and Diana Mueller submitted their own proposal for a resort on the mountain. While the proposal was accepted, this nice sketch is still all that’s ever come of the plan.

Summer Sucks!

Have you ever noticed that a lot of skiers and riders don't handle summer very well at all. Aside from the desire to be on the slopes, we are mostly a breed that doesn't like heat. Me, I don't really want it over the mid-70 range and I hate humidity. While many skiers and riders spend time hiking in the summer, a lot of those hikes come early or late in the season, but not so much when summer is at its' muggiest. Thankfully I have the outlet to be able to sail and live on the coast, but I can't imagine living in the mountains in the summer unless it was a place like Lake Tahoe. People have this perception that Maine is always this cold place, but in the summer our inland areas get as hot if not hotter than most parts of the country and we get black flies. Yikes!

A slow year for eastern installs

As summers go, it's a slow year for lift installations in the eastern United States. While there are many trail and snowmaking projects going on all over the region this year, only two brand new lifts are being installed in New England and no major trail network expansions. Whereas I don't think this means a decline in the industry, (the numbers were up across the board last season) the strong focus on snowmaking upgrades as opposed to terrain and lift expansion is certainly less exciting. New England is seeing two new lifts this summer. Killington is replacing a fixed grip quad with a new Doppelmayr HSQ and as we know, Sunday River is hard at work on the Chondola, which will be the only newly routed lift in the region this year.

Sunday River's Chondola Site Gets Major Upgrade

Constant and consistent improvement is a top priority at both Boyne USA and Sunday River Resort. A cool reminder of this is with the resort’s very new website dedicated to the building of the Sunday River Chondola. Formally, this site was a blog only and was called the Chondalog, but under the guidance of Alex Kaufman it has been transformed into a much more diverse and extensive website, which has multiple pages to include videos, blog updates, technical data and drawing, as well as a photo gallery. You can get to this site by accessing through the Sunday River website or visit chondola.com for more info.

Another Hybrid No One Talks About?

Willamette Pass, WA has what they call a high speed 6-pack, but it also carries gondolas. Granted, it seems as though they only carry the CWA Omega III Cabins in the summer, they have ski slots on the doors. Not only that, I've heard they have run this lift as a hybrid. So why isn't it listed as one of the country's "Chondolas?" I assume that the answer is because they don't use both cabins and chairs in the winter, but the lift seems perfectly configured for it. Very curious. I'll see if I can find a picture.

Still skiing Tucks in July!

Like most of the rest of you, I pretty much figured tat skiing for the year was and is through. I mean, come on, it’s July 6th for Christ’s sake, but low and behold, the heavy snow year has paid dividends to those still willing to make the hike to Tuckerman Ravine on Mount Washington. Sure, snow lasts in the ravine longer than anywhere on the east coast and there have been years where people have talked about the snow left in early July, but I’ve never heard of people skiing or riding the ravine this late. Most people have already switched gears, but no these hearty souls. My hat is most certainly off to them!

What do you do with those childhood ski stories?

You've heard stories of the local rope tows and family ski nights in your communities, but how much do you know about the history of your local ski hill. It's easy to just drive by and recall the days spent sipping hot chocolate in the lodge or hanging on for dear life as the rope tow whisked you to the top of the bunny slope, but whatever happened to that community hill? I suppose the popular idea would be for me to tell you to check out NELSAP, (New England Lost Ski Area Project) but I'm actually writing this in the hope that you will recall these places from your youth that others may not have already and share them with sites such as NELSAP. After 10 years online, a lot of folks think that if the area existed, it is documented on this popular site, but the fact remains that the areas listed are only there because people recall them, go out and fins where they were, and then the history is documented. Of course if you live outside of the northeast (NELSAP lists ski areas all along the eastern seaboard) there are other sites that aren't quite as established of extensive, but are growing...

In construction...

These are the things that skiers do in the summer!

A few posts back I introduced some of you to sites called skilifts.org and a more localized site called chairlift.org. While these are only a couple of websites dedicated to ski lifts in the United States and Canada, there is a ton of really good information and history about lifts and ski areas. From my own research, I have decided that I may want to do an incremental post – say once a week, where I talk about a unique or odd lift or ski area that I’ve come across and why I find it interesting. Chances are that most of you have never seen the pictures or heard of the subjects I’ll talk about whereas some of you will know everything about them. That being said, I won’t talk about the area that a lift exactly like this lift was proposed to be built, but will say that the drawing itself is based on a lift from Custer, South Dakota. It is referenced as a “ski bus” because it is self-propelled, which is to say that while it is on a track line, it is not a jig back lift, nor does it have a haul rope pulling it up the track line. As you can see from the drawing, the engine is actually in the cabin. The only hint I will give as to where this was to be built is that it was in a valley that in home to one of America’s most famous and posh resorts and has three other ski resorts nearby. (Pretty good hint, in my opinion)

The end of American Skiing Company

Almost a year after trying to dissolve itself and having sold off all but one resort, The American Skiing Company is finally laid to rest with the sale of The Canyons Resort in Park City, Utah to resort developer Talisker. While the sale faced legal challenges from the owner of much of the land the Canyons rests on as well as stiff anti-trust opposition from bidder Vail Resorts, the sale agreement has been reached and the company that both changed the landscape of ski resort ownership and at the same time angered many skiers and riders, is no more. Sunday River and Sugarloaf, both in Maine were sold last June to Boyne USA of Michigan. The American Skiing Company was founded by former Sunday River owner, Leslie B. Otten, who had quickly developed several resorts in the east and a handful out west. In 2001, ASC was the largest operator of ski resorts in the United States, but when the company went public to attempt to raise capital for rising investment costs, they were struck with less than favorable weather conditions and began a long downhill slide.