We're Here So You Don't Have to Be (Not that you don't want to be)

Tom (Twitter @OkemoMtnRoadie) and Rafael (Twitter @RafaelOkemo)

The postponement of opening day is always a total bum-ski, but it wasn't due to lack of effort. Despite the high level of optimism, frequent sacrifices to the snow gods, and all the tribal snow séances, Okemo was just not meant to open on November 21st. Trust us, we are just as eager to start slope sliding as anybody, and our snowmakers have the itchiest trigger fingers in the East. But Mother Nature is hanging on to every bit of warmth she has left before Old Man Winter gives her the boot (he's gentle but thorough, so don't worry).

Rafael and I will be here for you all season long, bringing you the latest snow reports and conditions updates directly from the "snojo" (the snow-reporting dojo), or as the uninspired like to call it, "the office." The snojo is where it all goes down -- live updates on Facebook, Twitter, your mobile devices and Okemo.com to keep you connected to the mountain no matter where you may be.

In a nutshell, here's what's coming up in the days ahead to keep your snow cravings at bay, or to make them even worse (so sorry!):

Annual Ski + Ride Swap for the benefit of the Okemo Mountain School: Begins Friday at 4 p.m in the Clocktower Base Lodge and runs all weekend.

Jason at www.Iwearyourshirt.com reps Okemo all day this Friday, Nov. 20, with free passes and other things to get you ready for the season. Tune in and win.

Okemo storms Boston for the Boston Globe Ski & Snowboard Show at the Bayside Expo Center this Thursday through Sunday. Mr. Ross Powers will be making an appearance Thursday and Friday evenings and the Okemo team has a fun, family activity in store for the crowd.

The Coleman Brook Tavern hosts a Thanksgiving Buffet on Nov. 26 to fill your ski or ride fuel tank to the brim. Call (802) 228-1435 to reserve your part of the bird and much more.

Nov. 28th: "What I Learned This Summer" Rail Jam presented by the Killarney.
"Trot-it-Off 5K Race and Tot's Trot"

Any day now: We open for the 09.10 season! Stay tuned!

Now for an update directly from the slopes with Rafael! http://www.okemo.com/okemowinter/ourmountain/snow/helmetcams.asp

Just One More Week... We Can Do It!!!

Here we are, in the final week before our anticipated opening day for the 09.10 season -- November 21! I tore through my closet the other day and made two piles: one full of the stuff I'll be using in a few days and one full of stuff I'll be selling. The annual Ski & Ride Swap for the benefit of the Okemo Mountain School is coming up this Friday, Nov. 20th - 22nd. I plan on making bank and walking away with a wad of cash, which I will then promptly spend on more new gear (and the vicious cycle continues infinitely). I'm telling you, I need to get out on the slopes already because all this idle time is bad for my bank account. Luckily though, the Ski & Ride Swap has a lot of great deals on both new and used equipment, including hard and soft goods. Also, I just took a stroll through the Snowsports Shop and they have a lot of really great gear from companies like Grenade, Quicksilver, Burton, Bern and Oakley. That place is dangerous, and I like it!

A little bird told me about a special promo going on right now on the official Okemo Mountain Facebook page. Something about the 12 days of Okemo and an exclusive Facebook opening day... That's all I'm saying, or that little bird might morph into Big Bird (Happy 40th Anniversary by the way!) and put a hurtin' on me when he finds all these people on his beloved ski slope.

Alright, I obviously need to get out on the snow soon... very, very soon. It won't be long now. In the meantime, join me on Twitter (@OkemoMountainRoadie). You can also add @RafaelOkemo (my snow-reporting compadre) and the mothership -- @OkemoMountain. Snow reports, special offers, some juicy insider info, and more of my incoherent ramblings are all included free of charge. Enjoy, and we'll catch you on the slopes soon!

P.S. - Look out for Okemo Mountain next week in Boston. We'll be at the Boston Globe Ski & Snowboard Expo from November 19 - 22 at the Bayside Expo Center. A lot of shenanigans will be going on, for sure, so don't miss out on this legendary tribute to the upcoming season.

And while you're in Boston feast your eyes on what's already being called one of the greatest ski films ever made-- The Edge of Never. It will be premiering in the Boston area on the 17th and 18th.

Can you believe it?!

This is it...the eve of opening day for the '08-'09 season! Our snowmakers have done an outstanding job of covering the entire mountain in a way that will have us skiing and riding from top to bottom tomorrow. The Northstar Express high-speed quad will be spinning us back up to the peak so we can get in as many runs as possible from open to close. Although this is my first season working at Okemo, it's been said that this may be the best opening day ever (or at least in recent history). The weather couldn't be better right now -- sunny with base temps in the upper 20s. It's expected to be much the same tomorrow and for the weekend, so dress accordingly, and not in your typical opening day shells and lightweight baselayers. In my opinion, temps in the mid 20s are ideal for riding; the conditions stay good all day and you don't overheat at the end of each run.(This was taken today from across the valley. If you look closely (or click the pic to enlarge), you can see snowmaking on the far right side. Also, the cats were already out smoothing the surface for us. )

Give yourselves a pat on the back for making it to this moment. I know, it hasn't been easy. Tonight, skiers and snowboarders everywhere will be putting the final tunes on their equipment and laying out all their gear so it's good to go in the morning. I know I will. Put some coffee in me and a little food for fuel and I am out the door. I look forward to seeing you all out on the slopes tomorrow.

Snowmaking: It’s not only what you’ve got... it’s how and when you use it.

We’re moving toward Opening Day… but it isn't going to be this Saturday, November 15 as we had hoped :(

As always, November openings are weather permitting and the temperature volatility is really tough to bet on this time of year... and the forecast calls for another warm up into this weekend. Rest assured, the snowmaking crews are not letting any opportunities go by... in fact the snow guns began blasting Okemo's 3,343 ft. summit white again today at about 11 AM, and the guns are on outside as I post this entry. The last effort that ended on Sunday, November 2 brought the snow to the top of the steep on Upper World Cup. The focus now is to make on the summit area and to push down World Cup as far as we can go with a goal of top-to-bottom coverage as soon as we can get it.

Okemo will continue to be very aggressive, but as expensive as energy is these days, we won’t be foolish. Our system is designed to make optimal snow at temperatures below 29 degrees F wet bulb. When mountain temperatures are within our design range, Okemo snowmakers can open more acreage faster with our HKD air-water system than other systems can produce... even fan guns. Okemo has the ability in both water capacity (pumping and storage) and air plant to be more competitive than anyone else in the state when temperatures are within our range.

If you’re counting, you know that 96% of Okemo’s trails have snowmaking. This year’s operational focus is on energy-efficient, early-season snowmaking. Last winter, Okemo tested some new energy-efficient HKD guns and the HKD SV-10 and Genesis tower guns were a huge success. So much so that 80 of these new snowmaking guns were added to the Okemo arsenal this
year. Due to the ability to make snow more efficiently at closer-to-freezing
temperatures, Okemo can now make more snow than in previous years using much less energy… a fuel-cost savings of $377,000.

While it looks like it's going to be too warm to make snow from Wednesday onward through this weekend... please stay in touch with http://www.okemo.com/ for the latest or better yet, read this blog daily.

Keep your fingers crossed and your tips up!