bwt3650

Going to be real close for that World Cup measurement next week at Killington. They will probably have about 36 hours to bury that thing. This week hurts and looking at the mid-section on webcams, not sure they make it.

Cool learning these details about snowmaking. How long a window do they usually want to turn the system on? I would honestly love to do that job in retirement if it wasn’t for the hours. I could deal with the cold and physical aspect, but after years of working midnights, I don’t if I could do the overnights. Those hours beat the shit out if you.

Yeah, that’s a good call. Mt. Ellen seems like it’s just overlooked. Don’t they open it late, close early and not put a lot of snow making into it? I’ve only been to that side a few times but it seemed like some great terrain.

Agree 100 percent with the trail count thing. Acreage is a much better read. That was my point with some resorts showing six open trails with really only one route down. But Killington does have an advantage with that high terrain with a lift and they will definitely blow snow when others won’t. It’s smart marketing to a point, but they usually lead in open acreage too until natural snow really starts rolling.

Not hating the time change right now..kind of enjoy the early sunset, being lazy watching football. It’s like another step toward full blown winter.

That’s some nice edge to edge coverage..what trail is that?

Nah, I wouldn't say it's a gimmick. You just have to know what to expect. People can't be surprised to find only superstar open on Memorial Day. It's Vermont at 3500'. I think the late season is more for the tailgating and party, with some cool laps in shorts in between. Jay will stay open until May and some years, it's just The Jet. You're not going for the conditions, that's for sure. Early season, Killington does make an effort to blow at every possible moment. And many places only have one or two real trails open even up to the start of December unless there is some good natural so Killington will almost always have more actual skiing. Now if the northern Vermont places get hit early, that's different story. Other places may call it 6 trails, but a lot of times it's just one route down. I think with Killington, it's more about the brand. There is no way they are making money on any skiing before Thanksgiving or April on; and the cost of putting on the World Cup is probably a loss too. I always want Jay to blow more trails early on, but I get it. Jay's "brand" is not first to open. It's the most natural snow in the east, trees, and late season. I like Killington for different reasons I like Jay and Stowe. I don't really know Wildcat, but I should get there this year. I hear when it's on, there is some great terrain and some of the best views in the east.

They start with a 10 minute hike from the gondola to the north ridge on the peak walkway. They blew Great Northern yesterday so now you can ski from the gondola to north ridge and then only have to walk back to gondola to get down. North Ridge is only about 500-600 feet of vertical but its at about 3000' and has its own quad, so they can get it open fast. Once they get another few days of good snowmaking, they will make a connection to Snowdon and have TTB. They can usually pump that out pretty quick, but next week will be tough for the lower elevations. I would guess they will be TTB mid week the following week.

My 9 year old is begging for a go-pro. I might give in this year just to see the craziness.

Jay has plans to start tomorrow. They usually hold off until closer to thanksgiving, but I think this is too good a window to miss, especially if mid-month warms up.

About 3000 feet up on Killington's Web Cam.

That’s a real solid snowmaking window on the gfs, storm or no storm.

I love these forecasts...Jan and Feb will be the coldest part of the winter, it will snow in Canada and storms out of the gulf. Not to discredit the guy, but it seems the posters on this forum do a better job of the difficult long range game and taking a risk with their forecasts.

Monday looks like go day for real this time for snowmaking season. I would guess we see K-mart and Mt. Snow open soon.

Was surprised too but they’ve been on all day. Spitting out slush. That north ridge is way up there but I hought next weekend might be a better window.

And so it begins…here’s to a great 2021-2022.

Yeah, it looks like seeing first flakes on the peaks is a real possibility next week. I looked back to last year and I think the 17th was the first dusting. It’s hard to believe with how warm it’s been that the timing year over year would actually be fairly close.

First fake snowstorm on the Gfs tonight…it’s coming!

First Until a-basin opens a magic carpet at 530pm Friday night…. good to see it begin, tho.

Feel better. Love hearing your historical insight into that Maine climate.

I think it’s a safe bet an October opening at Killington is off the table. No panic yet, but with the World Cup back this year, I would think they have to be a little nervous if the long range were to look the same 15 days from now. They really have to string some good windows together to bury that lower half of superstar in time for those depth measurements. I know they set up about 100 guns, but I have to think that’s gotta be a lot of trail to bury to the cup standards if they don’t start by the first week of November.

Big news on the mountain triple. I swear you could hear that thing grunt on busy days, though it was the go to when windy. That’s for next season I assume? Where are they extending it to?

Highlight of my year is being out with my family during the season. Last year was a big step with my kids finally being able to hang on some more intermediate terrain. My wife snowboards so when I go out with her, I'll switch it up and it's like a completely different mountain on a board. It's kind of become our thing to do together and get a little kid free time. The excitement is starting to build. In some years past, K-mart was only about a month away from opening.

When they are working smoothly, the RFID system is great. But I've left a credit card or maybe my phone or something in a pocket near the card and then the gates don't open or you are doing that freaky looking bump/dance next to the reader to try and get it to work. If it doesn't work right away, I'll just move to the side and try and grab the actual card out, but I've seen people on busy days sit there and try it over and over while the line backs up and it doesn't take long for the "get the f out of the way" mumbles to get louder and louder. But from a resort perspective, I'm sure there is better use of labor than having two or three people scanning with the guns, especially with a labor shortage.

Well, at least Wall street sees a big ski season. I kinda buy the pent up demand. Let's see if mother nature cooperates. https://www.cnbc.com/2021/09/21/vail-resorts-stock-upgrade-keybanc.html