Week 16 & March is here!

Greetings,

We are skiing into the 16^th week of the season and heading into spring and it is looking like some great conditions.  Let’s hope that this year spring skiing will be strong. The last couple of years we have not seen the stars align which has meant a slower than expected March into April. This year is going to be different.

The new snow was welcome for all. The glades are holding up pretty good as are the natural trails.  This may change somewhat if the temperature gets to 40 or so by this coming weekend.  Ski patrol has been checking out the trails and does what they can to keep them open.  When we don’t have them open the SF checks them out anyway and gives a report on what we missed.  Okemo hasn’t put away the snow guns for good yet.  We have sent back all our rental compressors for the season.  The good news is that Okemo owns machines that can put out several thousand feet of compressed air, so if we need to touch up some areas, we will be able to do that.  The natural snow has been great to see as the surface is better and the making of it quieter.

What are our plans for the spring you ask?  Reservations are looking good as we head into the depths of March.  The next big event will be Festevol on Saturday March 16^th.  This two band concert will have the doors open at 3pm with DJ Logic coming on at 4pm, OAR around 4:45pm and Yukon Kornelius around 7pm. should be lots of fun.  A new addition will be tent material walls on the side of the Ice house.  A welcome addition as the temperature drops. We also will be running some large scale warm air heaters into the building to hopefully keep things toasty.  Of course the temperature will probably be around 50, but if it isn’t, we will be ready!  Get on line and get your tickets now.  The Slush Cup will be happening on April 6^th and the Mountain Dew Vertical Challenge finals are on March 23^rd.

As we get into March, we will be running lifts to access all of our trails.  At times there are adjustments that will be made depending on business, but with the great conditions, I am hopeful we can keep skiing lots of terrain.  Closing day on paper is forecasted to be April 14^th, but Mother Nature usually has some say in that.

Enjoy the sun and fun as spring arrives. Don’t forget to spring your clocks ahead on Saturday night March 9^th.

Bruce Schmidt

Okemo GM

Happy Birthday George Washington...........

Greetings,

Do you think that if George Washington were alive he would ski or snowboard?  I think ski, but try snowboarding as he was a man of the people and was willing to be a rebel.  We know he would enjoy winter sports after the winter he spent at Valley Forge he showed he could handle the cold and snow...

Washington’s Birthday weekend is upon us and the weather is looking good, the snow conditions are ideal and the mountain is in great shape. The staff is ready for the next 10 days and we are looking for a chance to wow our guests.  All 19 lifts will be operating each day and the lifts will open at 8am, 7:45am for those who have an Ultra Pass or are Gold pass holders.  The Big Air Bag will be open as well Tubing and the Mountain Coaster as well as Nastar.

Contrary to popular belief by some, including SF, Snowmaking will be continuing and building depth and enhancing the surface.  We plan to fire up the guns after the weekend as the temperatures permit and get after it.  The snowmakers have been helping on the lifts and shoveling decks as they wait for the go ahead.

Snowcat Excursions will be happening during the holiday week. This is a great way to see the grooming operation going on, check out the trails by going uphill and see the town from the summit. 

So this was a little update on what is happening as we head into the week.  Okemo staff is looking forward to providing the Okemo Difference. Let me know how we are doing.  Good or bad, it is always helpful to know how things are going from guests eyes…..

 

Happy Birthday George Washington………

Bruce Schmidt

Okemo GM

Looks like the Groundhog was wrong.........

Greetings,

February is here and it looks like we will begin with some snow! This year the new way we know when the storm is forecasted to be big is when the Weather Channel gives it a name. The storm forecasted for Friday/Saturday is named Nemo…..

So what are we seeing at Okemo? As you can imagine, I look at many different weather web sites and Okemo contracts with a weather reporting service. It looks like all forecasts are pointing towards lots of snow. I think it is going to be a good old fashion Vermont winter snowstorm. Nothing way out of the ordinary, but more than a few inches. My take on “Nemo” is that it is going to be slower than what they are saying and be prolonged into Saturday. I don’t believe there will be as much snow during the day Friday as they are forecasting with the bulk coming Friday afternoon and evening.

Bottom line, the skiing is going to be great. This snow is forecasted to be champagne powder. Lots of fluff! Okemo will get as much open as we can and leave as much powder as possible. Put this on top of all the snowmaking we have done since last Thursday and you have things looking good. We have gone from South Face to Jackson Gore and covered lots of acreage. Snowmaking will go on break for a few days while the storm goes on through and then we will reevaluate. We don’t want to screw up the new powder, and the snowmakers always need to help us snowplow and shovel.

Spread the word. Snow is on the way. My prediction is 10 – 16 inches of fresh powder by Saturday afternoon.

Bruce Schmidt
Okemo GM

What goes on when you are not skiing.....

Greetings,

Have you ever wondered how the mountain gets going every morning? It is a process that flows like clockwork, although every so often there are a few wrinkles that need to be worked out but for the most part, the team work of the different department’s means guests are ready to ski and ride on time. There are many players on the team which make things happen. The team leaders who are out there every day & night include Barry Tucker – VP Mountain Ops, Eb Kinney - Mountain Manager, Brian Boudro - Night Manager, Greg Carter - Lift Maintenance Manager, Dave Thompson -Lift Operations manager, Jim Seiberling-Patrol Director, John Conway – Skier Services Manager, Ray Kennedy-Snowmaking Manager and then the grooming supervisors who include Art, John & Bill. On any given day, the work for the next day begins actually in the afternoon when around 4pm the groomers head out to prepare the slopes and snowmaking is on the trails.

Art coordinates with Eb to discuss where snowmaking is happening, special requests, trails to not groom etc. At around 8pm of so, Brian will arrive for work and speak with Eb at home to discuss anything special. Brian will be the go to person during the night and coordinate the dance between snowmaking, grooming, snowplowing when needed, and anything else. At midnight the new grooming crew will arrive and John and his crew will head out. Around 5am, the day mountain ops staff will begin arriving. There will be meetings with Eb, Barry, Ray & John who will then communicate with lift operations, lift maintenance, & ski patrol.

From then on things happen in sequence, get the grooming done, check the trails, ride the lift lines, run the auxiliary engines of the lifts, check the detachable lift tires (those are what keep the chair going through the terminal at the top and bottom when off the cable), mark the trails for hazards and then begin loading guests when the time comes (Ultra and Gold pass holders can get on 15 minutes early). After opening Lift maintenance will ride every chairlift and check every carpet lift for any issues. The groomers will finish up and then head into the maintenance shop where they will be brought into the garage, sprayed off with a power washer to remove the ice and snow and looked over for wear and tear and then the process begins all over for the next day.

It is because of these behind the scene guys and gals in all the mountain operations departments that there is an Okemo Difference and while you are asleep at night or catching a few extra winks, all these Okemo Team members are getting things ready for a great skiing and riding day. Snowmaking will be continuing as we head into February.

This past week saw Okemo snowmaking being done on most of our trails and we added several new trails. Thanks for Skiing and riding with us and think snow

Bruce Schmidt
Okemo GM

Q & A with the GM....

Greetings,

I figured it was a good time to pull out the mail bag and answer some questions……  Between myself and info@okemo.com, we get a few questions as you can imagine.  I will try to answer a few inquiries the best I can.

How come the Amp Energy Big Air Bag is not in place??   If I told you it is on a boat would you believe me?  The skinny is that the big air bag was shipped to Europe to be repaired under warranty.  It had some tears and the grommets were ripping that hold the bag down.  After the Adventure Zone closed, we packed up the bag and sent it on its way.  The rest of the story is how slow the company has been in getting us back the bag, clearing customs, holidays, etc. The good news is we are expecting the bag to be at Okemo next week!

What is the deal with the Amp Energy Superpipe?  The Superpipe is right now a quarter pipe! Well basically one side is done and cut, but we can’t use it yet.  Snowmaking will be working on the pipe tonight and Friday and we then will cut the other side. The reason for the delay has been a couple things. We probably bit off a lot when it came to trying to get the Superpipe, Black Out Terrain Park and the Nor’easter Superpark already at the same time.  There were only so many hours our groomers could work on the parks and Superpipe and the Superpipe requires a little more experience. Since the Superpipe needed more snow made in it, we finished the other two. We are hopeful to have it up and going by maybe Sunday.

Is Okemo aware of the I-91 interstate bridge delays in Brattleboro?  This construction project and delays have been very frustrating for our guests. I have heard from many of you. I have been speaking with the President of the Vermont Ski Areas Association who is our liaison with the State of Vermont as well as I have spoken with our legislators.  The stock answer was the work needed to be done and they were working as fast as they could. The good news is that both southbound lanes are now open and I have been told that both northbound lanes will be open by Tuesday 1/22/13…Finally…

How come there are no picnic tables at the Waffle Cabin at Jackson Gore? I know guests like to sit and enjoy a fabulous Waffle Cabin Waffle, but the space in that area just doesn’t allow a lot of lingering. We feel that since there are tables near the Round House, that guests who do want to linger, can use those tables. For others who want to grab and go, they can get right on the Coleman Brook Express.  Hopefully you will agree that this small inconvenience is ok as long as there is a Waffle Cabin.  Did you know that this Waffle Cabin will be moved to the food location for the Adventure Zone and will be selling summer fare and waffles all summer here at Okemo!

Tell me the snowmaking plan with this cold weather coming? Snowmaking will be going heavy while it is cold. Our plan is to resurface as many trails as possible before the weekend and also work on some new terrain.  Wild Thing and Easy Rider have been opened and we are heading towards the Plunge and Ledges at some point.  We are also going to be building base depths to get our mainline trails into the spring time. Another snowstorm will allow us to open up some more of the natural trails.

If you have a specific question, send it along. I will answer what I can and periodically feature some in the blog.

Thanks for Skiing and riding with us and think snow

Bruce Schmidt

Okemo GM

Terrain Parks and Lift Mechanics

Greetings,

 

Through the years, there has always been talk of the January thaw. Of course last year it was all year, but that is in the past. We have been experiencing the January thaw for the past week and the good news is that it looks like it will be ending soon.  Colder temperatures are on the way next week and Snowmaking will kick in quickly. 

Speaking of snowmaking, the past 10 days has seen a massive effort in the terrain parks.  The effort began on Black Out, moved to the Superpipe and finished on The Amp Energy Superpark.  The end result was great. There are numerous features all over the parks. Some are made out of snow and some are rails.  The Okemo Parks and Pipes crew has put countless hours in designing the terrain parks and the groomers have put in many more hours pushing the snow, sculpting the jumps and setting the rails. Lot of hard work by everyone. As you can see from the photos, the finished product looks great.

Next up for snowmaking is to finish Wild Thing & Dream Weaver over in South Face as well as begin a resurfacing program on existing terrain.  We are also looking to finish the Superpipe.  One side of the wall needs more snow and then it can be shaped and the Zaugg Pipe Dragon can do its job.  The plan is to also make enough snow for the ant hill and Igloo in Jackson Gore.

I want to take some time and mention all the work that goes into the “rides” at Okemo.  The lift operations and maintenance crews are the ones who keep things going on the lifts.  The operators do so much to prepare and run the lifts. They are the front line people for all of our guests. The behind the scene guys are the lift mechanics. They are the ones who are up before dawn and work behind the scenes to keep the bullwheels turning. Last week they worked on the Quad B seat pads and got those all repaired and we are heading towards some of the other lifts that need some help. They also ride every lift every day to make sure that things are looking good.

The weather pattern is changing, so be on the lookout for some colder weather and snow on the way. Thanks for skiing with us and we hope you enjoy the slopes.

Bruce Schmidt

Okemo GM

Snowmaking in the real cold.........

Greetings,

It has been some time since the last Blog.   Lot’s has happened since then.  Cold weather, great snowmaking, sunny skies and a good first week of January.  The New Year has brought good fortune to Okemo and all our skiers and riders.

Snowmaking has been moving full force during the past 10 days or so.  The weather has been ideal for snowmaking and we have been working hard at getting the terrain parks, Superpipe and other trails covered in snow.  Tuckered Out, which is one of our longer snowmaking trails, opened up this weekend.  Snowmaking in the cold weather is always a challenge. While the basics of snowmaking are to keep the water moving, it is even more prevalent and important when the temperatures are hovering near below zero.  Okemo has many of our snowmaking pipes above ground. This is done for a couple reasons. One, the mountain terrain of ledge outcroppings would require blasting to get the pipes underground. Two, the price of installing snowmaking underground is much higher.  So having the pipe above ground means that between the temperature, wind and steel pipe, the water needs to be mobile!  The snowmakers know that sitting water is not good.  The system is built to have loops where the water will drain at the far end. Another trick for the snowmakers is to run a gun very close to the end of the loop. This keeps the water moving even more.  On cold nights you will see snowmakers carrying their propane torches with them all night in the event that there is a problem, they can get some heat on the pipe quickly.

 

 

Another concern with making snow when the temperature is real cold is the snowmakers themselves.  Now these guys dress for the conditions every night, but below zero brings out additional concerns. The guys are always watching out for each other, checking for exposed skin, making sure guys don’t go out alone and in general working as a team to take care of each other.  Decisions are made with the guys in mind as to where we might make snow.  During real cold weather the plan is usually to stay on the lower mountain trails and stay off of the summit. This is to keep the snowmakers safer as well as protect our equipment from potential freeze ups.  As you can well imagine, in the event of a power failure when it is cold, things need to happen fast to drain the pipes.  It is a real fire drill!

If you have been skiing in the past few days you have seen the construction begin on the terrain parks. Black Out Progression Park, Hot Dog Hill and Broken Arrow are all now open.  Rails and features are coming off of Sapphire to move to the other parks.  Construction on Nor’easter will be next and then the Superpipe.  It will probably be a week until we see the Superpipe ready. Lots of work is needs to be done before the lasers are set up to cut the Superpipe.

Long range weather is looking favorable for great skiing and riding. Snowmaking will continue as the weather allows us to, which looks like into early next week.  Thanks for spending time skiing and riding with us. 

Someone asked me my favorite trail…………..I like them all, but Defiance is right up there………

Bruce Schmidt

Okemo General Manager