The Clarkson Five

In what has been affectionately named the Clarkson Five, Okemo VP of Marketing Scott Clarkson decided to celebrate his birthday with a challenge to raise money for the challenged. He decided to revisit all the Vermont ski resorts where his career in the ski industry has taken him over the years. The challenging part was that he wanted to ski at every one of them in one day ... and he did - all five of them.

Scott, his wife Martha and son, Parker, started their day at Burke. They skied Sugarbush, Stratton and Bromley, and ended their day at Okemo with a celebration at Jackson Gore. They raised nearly $3,000 for Vermont Special Olympics in the process.

Marmota monax

Hey, who are you calling a whistle pig?

Feb. 2 is Groundhog Day and we're hoping the fuzzy little marmot gets frightened by his shadow so we can enjoy lots more winter.

Okay, campers, rise and shine, and don't forget your booties 'cause it's cooooold out there today.

Do ya think Phil is gonna come out and see his shadow?

(sound familiar)

 Punxsutawney Phil!

Thats right, woodchuck-chuckers - it's

GROUNDHOG DAY!

GROUNDHOG DAY!

If you think of the Bill Murray movie when you consider Groundhog Day, then you're in for a life-imitates-art experience at Okemo. The skiing and riding conditions are like they were prior to that horrible rain event we experienced a week ago. No matter what Mother Nature throws our way, we're waking up to mid-winter skiing and riding conditions that are oh-so-sweet..
 
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Phil: To the groundhog.

Rita: I always drink to world peace.
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Rita: What should we drink to?


Phil: I'd like to say a prayer and drink to world peace.

Hannah is crowned Okemo's Helmet Head Contest Winner!

Well folks, another National Safety Awareness Week has passed and this year's Top Helmet Head has been crowned. Hannah from Hudson, Massachusetts tallied 150 votes to secure her spot in Okemo's Helmet Head Hall of Fame! Hannah has won herself 2 complementary tickets to Okemo and a sweet prize bag full of swag. 399 votes were cast for the Best Helmet Head on Okemo's Blog site. Emily from Setauket, NY finished in second place with 101 votes.

$10 from every helmet purchased during National Safety Awareness Week will be donated to the Vermont Children’s Hospital P.H.A.T. Program: $5 from Okemo and $5 from the helmet manufacturer. This year our SnowSports Shops sold 160 helmets during National Safety Awareness Week, which totals $1600.00 benefiting Vermont's Children's Hospital P.H.A.T. (Protect Your Head at All Times) Program! We'd like to thank everyone for participating in our National Safety Awareness Week activities. It's Safety First here at Okemo!
Ride Safe and Ride on!
GravityHound

LOL!

It's time, once again, to laugh out loud with friends and neighbors as Okemo hosts Comedy Night on Saturday, Jan. 30. This event is sponsored by Vermont Properties and Development, Inc. and will take place in the Great Room at Okemo's Clock Tower Base Lodge. Ticket sale proceeds will benefit the Okemo Community Challenge Fund.

The show will feature comedian Steve Sweeney who was the first of the Boston super-stars to break into television. He has been a regular on some major TV shows such as David Letterman, Evening at The Improv, Comics Come Home and others. Many will recognize Steve from his special appearances with The Ryder Cup, his narrations of Peter and the Wolf with The Boston Symphony Orchestra or one of many featured roles in films such as Rodney Dangerfield's Back to School, Judd Apatow's Celtic Pride, and There's Something About Mary with Ben Stiller.

Johnny Joyce has been performing for more than 15 years in Boston, New York, Las Vegas, Hollywood, Los Angeles and Atlantic City. John’s act is very high energy and always evolving.
Always a sell-out show, tickets can be purchased in advance for $23 at Vermont Properties, Okemo Mountain Resort's Jackson Gore, Chittenden Bank and The Wine & Cheese Depot. If you want to take a chance, tickets may be purchased for $28 at the door. Doors open at 7 p.m. and the show begins at 8 p.m. Don’t forget to buy raffle tickets for a chance to win prizes including an Okemo “Ultra Season Pass” valued at over $1,600.00!

For more information, call Vermont Properties and Development, Inc. at 802-228-8877.

Perfect Snow, Perfect View, Perfect weekend ahead!

I must admit, it's been a week or so since I have had a chance to get on snow (I know, I work here, what am I crazy?). Let me tell you this. It was worth the wait. The snow conditions today were epic. I mean amazing. I just got my planks back from a tune and they skied like I was on rails. The snow is soft and forgiving, but firm enough to be fast. With a fresh coat of wax, VERY fast.

We did take our time for a run as we made our way down Mountain Road from the top of the Glades Peak Quad. Stopping to take in the breathtaking views of the Adirondacks as well as the White Mountains and a great view of Mount Washington. I then found some fresh powder in the trees before making it back to Mountain Road for the trip down to the bottom.

This weekend the forecast is calling for much of the same. Sunny, warm, perfect. I'll be sure to get out again first thing tomorrow to carve up some of the great trails, and then stop in at The Sitting Bull for lunch. We'll be serving up some of The World's Best Cheddar tomorrow - menu TBD, but it will include Cabot Cheese in some way or another. If you miss lunch, be sure to grab a free sample on your way out of the clocktower base area tomorrow afternoon. The Cabot Shredders will be on the hill before sampling the World's Best Cheddar at the bottom.

Vote for the Best Okemo Helmet Head!

It is the beginning of National Safety Awareness Week and Okemo is all about "Safety First." We had the folks from P.H.A.T. (Protect your Head at All Times) on hand today, promoting helmet safety. Karen Williams from P.H.A.T. worked with our SnowSports Shop in raffling off 6 helmets, which went to deserving skiers and riders. Besides promoting helmet usage the P.H.A.T. Table was the final destination for those who found Safety Helmets in our Safety Scavenger Hunt. Cardboard helmets with Skier Safety Codes on them were hidden along Green trails today. Hunters who found the helmets returned them to the P.H.A.T. table for a sweet prize bag!

Need a Helmet? Okemo’s Snowsports Shops have a large selection of helmets from vendors like Giro, Smith and Bern, plus a staff well trained to get you into the right one. If you purchase a helmet between Jan 16^th-23^rd you will be helping the Vermont Children’s Hospital. Starting Jan. 16 and running through National Safety Awareness Week, anyone who purchases a new ski or snowboard helmet at Okemo's Snowsports Shops will receive a coupon for 50 percent off a future full-day lift ticket, or 50 percent off a full-day equipment rental or high-performance demo, or 50 percent off a group lesson or adult clinic. New this year, $10 from every helmet purchase will benefit the Vermont Children’s Hospital P.H.A.T. program: $5 from Okemo and $5 from the helmet manufacturer.

So you are probably saying "Ok - let's get to the part about Voting for the Best Okemo Helmet Head!" The Events Team was out in the base areas looking for that perfectly messed up Helmet Hair. We found plenty of candidates, which means that helmet usage was abundant. In fact, over 260 helmets were rented resort-wide on Saturday, January 16th! This year the Okemo Marketing Department had a tough time narrowing down the field, so instead of the Top 10 we settled for the Top 11. Please take a second to Vote for your favorite "Helmet Head." Voting will end at midnight on Saturday the 23rd of February. The Head with the most votes will win 2 complimentary lift tickets!
Ride on and Ride Safely - GravityHound

it's national safety awareness week

"Safety First" is a motto you'll hear often from the staff of Okemo Mountain Resort. It's a mantra that is drilled into us from the start. We're reminded to be safe and watch out for one another daily in our GM's morning mountain-status update. Accidents still happen but we're doing our best to minimize those accidents.

Okemo celebrates National Safety Awareness Week through Jan. 22 with some fun events and activities to help educate skiers and riders of all ages and promote on-mountain safety.


The National Ski Areas Association named Okemo Mountain Resort winner of the Best Helmet Safety Program in its 2009 Heads Up National Ski Area Safety Awards. Nine resorts were recognized in different safety program categories and Okemo was the only New England resort to receive honors. Each season, the awards recognize those resorts that have done an outstanding job of educating employees and guests about skiing and snowboarding responsibly.
Starting Jan. 16 and running through National Safety Awareness Week, anyone who purchases a new ski or snowboard helmet at Okemo's Snowsports Shop will receive a coupon for 50 percent off a full-day lift ticket, or 50 percent off a full-day equipment rental or high-performance demo, or 50 percent off a group lesson or adult clinic. New this year, $10 from every helmet purchase will benefit the Vermont Children’s Hospital Phat program: $5 from Okemo and $5 from the helmet manufacturer.

Today, Okemo will host a “Helmet Head” contest. Staff members will be out on the mountain taking pictures of willing candidates showing their best helmet head – that cool, disheveled look of matted hair that happens when a skier or snowboarder removes his helmet after a great day on the slopes. A panel of judges will select the top-ten best helmet heads and post those photos on this blog for voting by blog visitors. The candidate who receives the most votes will win two complimentary lift tickets for a day of skiing or riding at Okemo.