The pandemic caused ski area management teams to change how they run their resorts. Covid affected every business function from technology to marketing and communications to day-to-day operations. As a group, ski areas were forced to learn how to react quickly to an ever-changing set of guidelines emanating from the Federal government as well as those from state governments that[Read More…]
Statewide Programs for Kids Good news for parents and grandparents – The SKI NY Passport Program-Kids Ski Free is back for the 2022-23 Season. Kids in 3rd and 4th grade can ski free with parents at mountains including Belleayre, Gore, Greek Peak, Holiday Valley, Snow Ridge, Swain and Whiteface Ski Areas. Ski Mountain Updates – Alphabetically Belleayre Mountain has added more than 50,000 feet of[Read More…]
There’s so much news this new ski season, which is why we are launching this monthly ICYMI (In Case You Missed It) collection of this and that at our favorite resorts. Reservations Required Your IKON Pass gives you five free days at a participating resort. But don’t just show up anywhere, since some IKON resorts now require advance reservations. Not all, just[Read More…]
Move over IKON Pass, Epic Pass, even Mountain Collective Pass, and make room for the Indy Pass with access to 120+ small independent ski areas in the US, Canada and Japan. Through Dec. 31, an Indy Pass is just $349 for two free days at each area, and discounted lift tickets after that. Extra deal – there are no blackout dates at[Read More…]
Cross-country ski clubs and Nordic non-profits in North America (for simplicity, let’s just call them “clubs”) are crazy-diverse and often unsung, but they play a vital role in creating lifelong skiers – not just elite racers but the equally important recreational participants. Clubs are the base which spread the word, coach kids, bring their families skiing, buy clothing and equipment, even[Read More…]
All aboard the popular Amtrak Winter Park Express – your ticket between downtown Denver and the base of Winter Park Resort. The new season of what everybody calls the “ski train” rides each Friday, Saturday, and Sunday from Jan.13-15 through March 24-26. That’s a total of 33 roundtrips to what’s been voted one of North America’s best ski resorts and Colorado’s top adventure town. One-way fares start[Read More…]
French performance skis and apparel brand blackcrows is bringing back the Ski Sauvage tour for the 2022-23 winter season, with gear to test and celebrities to ski with. The Ski Sauvage crew is loaded with an array of skis from the all terrain, touring and big mountain collections. The team moves around from ski area to ski area preaching wild skiing, sharing[Read More…]
Here’s a new word for you – “Knowtice”. It describes the mental process combining knowledge with noticing. Learning to do this is essential to developing skill, including skiing skills. No system can purposefully change without accurate, prompt, feedback. If feedback is delayed, inaccurate or simply not noticed, any change will be random, and probably short lived – perhaps thankfully! I have[Read More…]
By the time you read this you may have already made your first turns in the new season. Mother Nature has been generous with cold and natural snow from coast to coast, with the West favored in late October and early November and then the Midwest and East over the past couple of weeks. The East is where I am[Read More…]
“Quick. Look over there. Do you see what I see?” The fog was as heavy as a wet blanket. I’d already been driving for 3 hours and most of it was in the pea soup as I headed north up the Connecticut River Valley. High beams were too much. Low beams weren’t enough. Just stay on the road. Destination: Killington,[Read More…]
A rag-tag snowboarder with a ratty-looking mop of hair held the door open for me. Then he graciously acknowledged my thank you. A staff wearing a headband with jiggling Thanksgiving drumsticks raced by to check on something. I burst out laughing. A lodge cleaner guy pushing a vacuum around the locker room looked up to cheerily wish: “Happy Thanksgiving and[Read More…]
The Herminator Turns 50, Collecting Books and a US Ski Team Reunion The November-December issue of Skiing History magazine is on press, but you can read it now, online. The Herminator Turns 50: Top story comes from Patrick Lang, who recently retired after a lifetime covering the Alpine World Cup circuit. Patrick summarizes the career and bucolic retirement of Hermann[Read More…]
The good news is that several ski/snowboard resorts in Utah have increased parking spaces, paved lots, preferred close-in parking for vehicles with three or more passengers, and added shuttles from outlying lots to the base area. The bad news is that parking is likely to cost you more this season. Here are the new parking policies and prices in Utah. But[Read More…]
With the La Niña weather pattern developing thousands of miles away in the Pacific Ocean for the third consecutive winter, the Northwest should expect a cold, wet winter with heavy mountain snow. That means another great ski and snowboard season in Idaho. It’s not just the snow – for the first time in history, SKI Magazine named three Ski Idaho[Read More…]
Terrain expansions and technology upgrades are routine at the seventeen ski resorts south of the Mason-Dixon Line. This year, that trend continues. Here’s what’s new for the 2022/2023 season in Virginia, West Virginia, North Carolina and Tennessee. Virginia – Massanutten – 2022-23 marks the 50th year of skiing inside the “Kettle” bowl of Shenandoah Valley landmark Massanutten Mountain. In 1990, the[Read More…]
Alaska Airlines, the only U.S. airline to offer a pay-by-month flight subscription service, is expanding its popular program to Salt Lake City less than a year after its launch. Just in time for ski/snowboard season, subscribers to Flight Pass can fly between Salt Lake City and San Francisco or San Diego, in addition to 18 other routes throughout California and select cities in Nevada, Arizona and now Utah. The[Read More…]
Aging comes with health issues — sometimes life-threatening health issues. Body parts wear out and disease happens. I often jest that it would take five or six seniors to have enough good parts to assemble one complete person. But in spite of fused spines, mechanical joints, heart stints and disease, we ski. We ski for the fresh air, the whole[Read More…]
Fall and cooler weather are giving antsy legs to all skiers, snowboarders, as well as all other winter lovers. Here’s what’s new this season, north of the border in the province of Quebec, by region, including several important resort anniversaries. Bas-Saint-Laurent Parc du Mont-Saint-Mathieu has expanded its snow park, and snowmaking improvements will allow both earlier and later season access to an[Read More…]
Mont Tremblant is a major alpine ski resort just north of Montreal, part of the vast Alterra Mountain Company menu of ski areas, which includes Steamboat, Winter Park, Mammoth Mountain, Deer Valley, Stratton, Sugarbush. Therefore it’s part of the Ikon Pass system. Though it’s well-known to Eastern Canadians, cross country skiing around Mont Tremblant isn’t quite the clichéd “hidden gem” for Nordic[Read More…]
As you may know by now, seniorsskiing.com founder Jon Weisberg passed away suddenly a few months ago and will be sorely missed for his love of winter sports and his importance to the industry. Let me introduce myself as the new publisher. Some of you already know me from my work with the 70+ Ski Club, which was founded by my grandfather[Read More…]
It’s time to check your goggles and helmet for wear and tear, shake your packed-up down jackets back to life and try on your ski or snowboard pants to make sure they still fit well enough to let you bend down and fasten your boots. Here’s a short swing through what’s new at resorts in the Northeast. New York State[Read More…]
As always, resorts were busy over the summer replacing lifts and improving or adding terrain. Here’s a quick rundown to whet your appetite of what’s new and noteworthy in several states West of the Mississippi. In alphabetical order, by state – California Palisades Tahoe – For a second season under its new name, there’s a brand new Base-to-Base gondola. It connects[Read More…]
So many resorts, most of them within 45 minutes of the Salt Lake City airport. And so many new lifts, trams, on-mountain dining, and more, this season. Here’s a short swing around what’s new and notable on the snow in Utah, in alphabetical order, since that’s the only fair way: Alta Ski Area – The Sunnyside fixed-grip triple has been[Read More…]
Buy a Back-Up Pass Even you already have your perfect Ikon, Epic or Mountain Collective pass, it’s worth checking out resort-specific and regional passes to give you extra days. I’m an Ikon guy because I ski a lot at Stratton in VT and Snowbird UT. But this season, I also got an Epic Northeast pass. Why? Because Epic offers a[Read More…]
