Alpine Skiing & Snowboarding

Snow Has Begun to Fall

What’s New at the Big Ski Resorts for '03-'04

by Eric Vohr

Snow has begun to fall in the higher altitudes and a couple of eager diehards have already taken their first turns of the year. No, ski resorts have not officially opened yet, but we’re getting very close to that any-day-now period.

Gore Mountain
Adirondack skiers got all their Christmas presents last year when Gore opened its new Topridge Triple chairlift providing service from Straightbrook Valley terrain to the summit of Bear Mountain. Anyone who has trudged across the Cloud flats to return to the base area from the Gore Mountain summit knows that this new lift is a godsend.

Along with the new uphill service, Gore cut three new trails, Uncas, Tannery and Topridge. These new trails have been connected to Gore’s unique Hudson River pipeline, providing an endless supply of water for a snowmaking system that covers over 95 percent of their terrain.

If you didn’t get a chance to check these out last year, you should do it this season as Gore celebrates its 40th anniversary. This new lift and trails have added a whole new dimension to the ski resort. In addition, Gore will continue to add new glades to its extensive backcountry and tree skiing trails. These upgrades combined with ongoing improvements at the mountain over the last three years are helping to bring Gore to the level of a first-class destination resort.

Whiteface Mountain
Whiteface was named one of the top 10 resorts in the East this year by Skiing magazine with the Empire trail chosen as one of the top 5 classic runs in the East. The mountain also got high marks from the magazine for its off-hill activities and its nightlife and was rated as rivaling Killington.

Unfortunately, don’t expect to see much in the way of new lifts, lodges or trails this year, like Gore, Whiteface got its big shot in the arm last year with its new high-speed quad Face Lift. This new lift takes skiers from the base to the top of Upper Valley in approximately 6 minutes with uphill capacity of 2,400 people-per-hour. The lift accesses an all-intermediate area and was designed to serve the mid-level skier who likes to steer clear of the black diamonds.

Whiteface also expanded its Kids Kampus at Easy Acres adding a new 250-foot Magic Carpet conveyor/surface lift. With these new additions, Whiteface now has one of the best beginner areas in the East. The key to this beginner’s area is it’s separated from the rest of the mountain so ‘never-evers’ won’t have to worry about high-speed traffic issues.

Hunter Mountain
Hunter’s focus this year will be to improve customer service. The entrance road has been reworked and they have added a bag/ski check so skiers and riders can drop off gear before parking their car. Hunter will also offer premium parking at a cost of $10 a day so you are guaranteed to score a good spot in the lot. Also for convenience this year Hunter will introduce a swipe card system so holders will only have to swipe their cards at any ticket sales location and head directly for the slopes.

Windham Mountain
The Lodge at Windham Mountain has grown 25 percent to almost 100,000 square feet, making every space roomier and more comfortable. The mountain combined the rental shop and the snow sports school into one central location, called Starting Block, which includes a Starbucks coffee bar and Windham Mountain Photo. Windham also has a brand new parking lot that accommodates 225 vehicles. Also look for Windham’s new seasonal locker room under the mountainside deck called the 3500 Club.

Jiminy Peak
In Massachusetts, Jiminy Peak plans to finish construction on two new buildings in their Village Center by first snow, a 6,500-square-foot Burbank Children’s Center and the Paul Major Welcome Center. The buildings are placed in such a way that a courtyard is formed with the existing base buildings. Captured energy from the snowmaking compressors will be used to melt the snow on the courtyard bricks, and a special elevator has been designed to accommodate handicap access to the upper level of buildings and bypass the stairway.

Bromley
In Vermont, this year Bromley has been voted number 2 in North America for Family Programs by SKI magazine. The mountain has invested over $400,000 in snow surface preparation gear including upgrading its tower guns arsenal to include 162 HKD spectrum tower snow guns. The new guns will be placed on West Meadow, Lower Boulevard, Pabst’s Perril and other trials. Also look for its new Bombardier BR350 snow cat. Also $100,000 worth of chair parking was added to the Sun Mountain Express summit high-speed lift.

Jay Peak
Over the summer Jay Peak invested $6 million in real estate improvements by building 24 new village units all with ski-in, ski-out access. Over the last few years $4.6 has been dumped into lift, trail and snowmaking improvements. Also, Jay has begun preparing for its unprecedented 250-acre West Bowl expansion, a 2-3 year project that will be introduced in phases. Three lifts, 18 trails and 8 glades and a village are planned for the site.

Killington/Pico
Killington will double the size of its learning terrain for children under age 6 this season. A new surface 600-foot lift will be installed to service this new terrain. In addition a new easy glided terrain will be added at Rams Head, as well as additional upgrades to the Rams Head Family Center building.

Mad River Glen
Since Mad River Glen does little each year in the way of changes it will continue to offer some of the lowest lift prices in Vermont as well as killer natural skiing. The mountain is continuing with a 3-year old program to prune and maintain its tree runs with the help of local forester Jay Appleton. This program is designed to insure that the Glen’s tree skiing experience is as epic as it should be.

Magic Mountain
At Magic, the snowmaking ponds are being dredged, increasing water capacity by several million gallons. Also look for a new mid-mountain fixed double chair “the Phoenix” which will serve beginner to intermediate terrain.

Mount Snow
At Mount Snow, the Carinthia Base Lodge received an entire makeover. On the mountain, guests will find a new waffle house located in the main base area offering fresh made Belgium waffles and assorted toppings with Vermont maple syrup. Also, terrain park enthusiasts will find new elements in both Inferno and Un Blanco Gulch.

Okemo
Okemo’s new Jackson Gore terrain network now offers a total of 14 trails with four lifts and an entirely new base lodge/resort center. Seven new trails encompassing 40 acres have been added this year and a 400-foot-long carpet lift has been installed on the gentle terrain in the base for beginners.

Smugglers’ Notch
At Smugglers’ Notch, 40 acres of new glades are being cut to mark 40 years of New England-style skiing traditions on Madonna Mountain. For the sixth time, SKI magazine readers voted Smugglers’ Notch #1 for family programming in North America. The resort also gave the Madonna Summit chairlift a complete retrofit last season.

Stowe Mountain
This summer, Stowe widened the Hayride trail and upgraded its design. Also, the $225 million construction project slated for Spruce Peak has finally received the green light and will grow to include a luxury residential club, a 95-room hotel, 175 condominiums, 106 timeshare units, 38 townhouses and 21 single-family lots.

Stratton
At Stratton, the 25,000-square-foot Stratton Mountain Club will open for its first full season. Also, Stratton opens the new pro Power Park and Power Superpipe, designed and built with the approval from Stratton snowboarder and two-time Olympic medallist Ross Powers.

Sugarbush
Sugarbush traded in two older groomers for two new Bombardier BR350’s models. Also look for John Egan, a world-renowned adventure skier of Warren Miller movie fame and Doug Lewis, a two-time Olympian and World Cup medallist, as co-directors of the Sugarbush Ski and Ride School.

The gears are definitely in motion. Before you know it, snow guns will be kicking into action and lifts will be rolling. Last year, Killington got beat in the race to be the first in the East to open its trails. Who will be first this year, is anyone’s guess. I can tell you one thing, wherever they do have snow in the East, I’m sure to be there.

Eric Vohr (ericvohr@yahoo.com) grew up in Northville and currently lives in North Bennington, Vermont. He is a contributing writer to SKI magazine and the National Ski Areas Association’s NSAA Journal, and also writes a syndicated eastern ski column.

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