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The 2020-2021 Ski season thread


Skivt2
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12 hours ago, alex said:

I think if there is anything that this summer experience can teach us is that visitors haven’t really lead to a significant outbreak anywhere in NH and certainly not in the North Country. We’ve been sold out every weekend since July. There’s been an invasion of visitors and it’s still happening, but the cases have been pretty stable and the slight resurgence mostly tied to schools and colleges and a few events

Same here.  In the (draft) Parks and Lands newsletter for November, the director noted that Parks has set a new record for campers in a season and that's thru 9/30 so the total will be higher than what will be in that report.  I don't know how that has worked out for the campers (no outbreaks reported) but to date, there have been no COVID-19 cases among Parks and Lands employees.  Also, use of hiking trails on Lands Division (my agency) is way up, though exact numbers aren't documented.

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15 hours ago, powderfreak said:

Yup I actually have been making that same point a lot lately whenever it comes up.

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I"m curious to know if Stowe Mtn. is planning a standby or waitlist for days that are full capacity in the morning but then crowds thin out at lunch time. I see this happen every winter but expect it to be even more prevalent this year when restaurants/bars on the mountain are closed. This would only help people who are local or have a seasonal house rather than people who need to reserve a spot at the mountain before booking weekend accommodations.

I personally am renting a place in Stowe for the winter season and have the kids enrolled in the Busters program. This year the hours are shorter but the kids are guaranteed a reservation on the days the program is running. In the event that the kids can ski but I can't get a reservation would be nice to have a waitlist for the possibility to ride in the afternoon when the crowds thin out. 

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33 minutes ago, dmconno said:

I"m curious to know if Stowe Mtn. is planning a standby or waitlist for days that are full capacity in the morning but then crowds thin out at lunch time. I see this happen every winter but expect it to be even more prevalent this year when restaurants/bars on the mountain are closed. This would only help people who are local or have a seasonal house rather than people who need to reserve a spot at the mountain before booking weekend accommodations.

I personally am renting a place in Stowe for the winter season and have the kids enrolled in the Busters program. This year the hours are shorter but the kids are guaranteed a reservation on the days the program is running. In the event that the kids can ski but can't get a reservation would be nice to have a waitlist for the possibility to ride in the afternoon when the crowds thin out. 

As far as I know, all of that is getting baked into the capacity limits set.  With years of ticket scanned data they have a good database of consumer patterns... when people show up, when people leave, how many people actually ski all day, how many in the morning, how many in the afternoon, etc.  All that data is getting baked into the capacity constraints.  They know that on average X-number of people can and will show up after 12-1pm, and X-number are likely to leave by 10-11am, so will include that in the daily capacity algorithm.  It’s not going to be perfect, but should work.

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The season is right around the corner, and we can’t wait for the Longest Season in the East to get started. Over a month ago we sent out our Winter Operations Plan and although we included a lot of detail, we still had some unanswered questions that I will address today. You will find high-level information below and I encourage you to click the links to our website for all the details. 
 
Our continued goal is to ensure the wellbeing of all, and an important part of Operation Stay Safe is managing the number of people at the resort at any given time. Doing so will enable appropriate physical distancing so that you may stay safe and have a great, fun-filled Killington Resort experience.   
 
Parking reservations are an important part of us ensuring all at the resort are able to appropriately physically distance. The parking reservation system will be in place every day of the season and parking spaces must be reserved before arriving to the resort to ensure availability.  Starting Thursday, November 5, at 10:00 A.M. you can book up to seven advance days throughout the season. You will be able to book a reservation starting Monday, November 23 and as we get closer to Opening Day, we will release passholder and Ikon dates for you to reserve above and beyond your advanced 7-day reservations. Once the season begins, you will also be able to book an unlimited number of days in the immediate rolling 7-day window. As your advance days fall into the rolling 7-day window, you can book additional advance days, only reserving up to seven at any given time.   

The parking management system means you can know that when you plan a trip to Killington, you will have a great experience, starting with the confidence in having plenty of room to spread out on the mountain.  

We will still need the majority of our guests to treat your car like a base lodge and, if you can, boot up at your car. After further consideration as a result of feedback from many of you–our passholders–we understand that for some access to the lodge to put boots on in the morning is needed. We will be allowing access to base lodges for booting up (if building capacity allows); however, bags cannot be left in the lodge and bag check will be moved to a new location that can be accessed anytime during the day from outside.

We announced our anticipated Opening Day at Killington but keep in mind this date continues to be dependent on having top-to-bottom skiing and riding with access to multiple base area lifts. If Mother Nature does not allow us to achieve this, we will delay our opening. From Opening Day through Sunday, November 22, access to the mountain will be reserved for you, Killington Season Passholders and Ikon guests only. At this time, we plan to begin accepting Express Card Holders, day tickets, passholder bring a friend tickets, vouchers, etc. starting Monday, November 23, and advance purchase lift tickets will go on-sale beginning Friday, November 6. Per state of Vermont guidance, guests can travel to Vermont only from approved counties on the Vermont Travel map without a quarantine prior to their arrival. This travel map is updated on a weekly basis, every Tuesday and we expect this policy to be in place throughout the season. 

Don't forget, every Season Pass is covered by the Passholder Promise, so you can rest assured that your investment will be protected should there be a covered Covid-19 related interruption during the upcoming winter season. This coverage includes the option to receive a full refund before November 20, as well as Zero Use Coverage for qualifying passes, which guarantees a future use voucher for the full amount paid for your season pass if at the end of the 2020-21 season you have used 0 days for any reason, including not being able to visit due to travel guidelines. 

For more information about what to expect this season, visit 20/21 Winter Operations. As a reminder, these plans are subject to change once the state of Vermont issues and approves ski resort restart guidance. We look forward to a great, fun-filled ski and ride season.   

As I stated in my last update, while there is always a competition to open first, we believe winning this year means all of us doing our part to put into place thoughtful plans and follow guidelines and best practices to keep one another safe, so that we may enjoy a full season of skiing and riding. I trust our commitment to continuing our candid communication gives you confidence in our plans for the upcoming season. I know everyone is continuing to adapt in their own way and I wanted to make sure you know how we continue to adjust.  

If you still have questions we haven’t answered yet, please submit them here.  

I look forward to seeing you on the trails.   

Mike Solimano   
President & General Manager

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3 hours ago, Skivt2 said:

Killington is making snow now in the Snowdon area as well as the Northridge area.

They have a great window non-stop through mid week.  They would def be open in the glades during a normal year.  They just need to get through the seven day torch following mid-week.  Mt. snow blowing up top too.  

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3 hours ago, PowderBeard said:

That parking plan at K will be interesting. Could be rough if you don't have a place slope side, a lot of waiting to park and walking. And they are planning on using shuttles? Be curious how long that lasts. 

Killington has almost no slope side lodging. They plan to run the shuttles to and from the condos at 50% of capacity.  The condo associations are gearing up with parking permits and enforcement.  Even folks dropping people off at drop off sites need permits.

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On 10/31/2020 at 9:27 PM, Skivt2 said:

Killington has almost no slope side lodging. They plan to run the shuttles to and from the condos at 50% of capacity.  The condo associations are gearing up with parking permits and enforcement.  Even folks dropping people off at drop off sites need permits.

Tow truck companies will be busy!

 

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4 minutes ago, PhineasC said:

Under that policy, if you ignore the travel rules and the resort traces an outbreak back to you, you could be in serious legal trouble. It basically passes all liability for outbreaks down to the customers. 

I'm not sure about legal troubles.  I guess. someone could sue someone...  Are states, etc. going after individuals?   It does say loss of privileges... 

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2 minutes ago, HoarfrostHubb said:

I'm not sure about legal troubles.  I guess. someone could sue someone...  Are states, etc. going after individuals?   It does say loss of privileges... 

If the resort has to close because people get COVID and you lied on your forms...

I am not sure the resort would sue, but people need to realize this statement very clearly in writing puts the liability burden on the resorts, and then ultimately on the consumers. It’s not just implied anymore. 

I would expect the resorts to enforce this strictly given the repercussions of not doing so. No more “wink and nod” stuff about how “yes there are rules but they are not being enforced and so therefore it’s no big deal.” I have heard that attitude a lot to explain away these strict measures since the spring. 

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Help me out here, what are the current regulations regarding going into VT for someone like me - metrowest Boston. As I said earlier, I purchased the Epic pass (Northeaster edition) and my strategy was to ski the VT ski areas on weekdays when I expected the traffic would be significantly reduced. If I'm significantly restricted, then I'm reasonably left with Wildcat, Crotched, and Sunapee. I would never ski Sunapee on a weekend due to crowds but I suspect if the VT requirements are significant, this will push people to Wildcat. Of course, you are skiing by reservation only.

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16 minutes ago, Angus said:

Help me out here, what are the current regulations regarding going into VT for someone like me - metrowest Boston. As I said earlier, I purchased the Epic pass (Northeaster edition) and my strategy was to ski the VT ski areas on weekdays when I expected the traffic would be significantly reduced. If I'm significantly restricted, then I'm reasonably left with Wildcat, Crotched, and Sunapee. I would never ski Sunapee on a weekend due to crowds but I suspect if the VT requirements are significant, this will push people to Wildcat. Of course, you are skiing by reservation only.

You are not allowed in the state unless you want to lie and/or quarantine for 14 days.

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2 hours ago, bch2014 said:

You are not allowed in the state unless you want to lie and/or quarantine for 14 days.

Since April too, ha.

I still think the crowds are coming, but maybe I’ll be proven wrong.  I don’t know how I’d approach it if I still lived in Albany, NY... but I don’t see consumer behavior changing from what fall foliage and summer brought.  Vermont apparently still did 80%< tourism business summer/fall while requiring 99% of the population to quarantine for 14-days.

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6 minutes ago, TauntonBlizzard2013 said:

This is a bit different I think. You can definitely track lift ticket purchases, and now they are putting the liability on individuals.

Agreed, no one was at the resorts logging the names and addresses of the leaf peepers. But that is what is supposed to be happening for ski season. 

But I gotta defer to PF here, he is the literal expert on this topic of VT ski resort policies and plans.  

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