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Vermont Winter Eco-News

Vermont, “The Green Mountain State” goes green this winter. Check out what changes were made to go green and be more eco friendly!

Press Release

• October 05 2009 | 10 views

• Press Releases

Vermont Ski Areas Record 4 Million Skier/Snowboarder Visits in 2008-09

The Vermont Ski Areas Association announced recently that 4 million visitors passed through Vermont looking to ski or ride this past winter. Check out what else was talked about!

Press Release

• June 11 2009 | 42 views

• Press Releases

Mount Snow’s Spring Rates, Closing Details Announced

OFFICIAL PRESS RELEASE :

WEST DOVER, Vermont (March 30, 2009) – Officials at Mount Snow announced today that they plan to keep chairlifts spinning well into April, so long as weather cooperates.

“We are booking lodging reservations through April 12, when we will host our annual Golden Easter Egg Hunt,” said general manager Kelly Pawlak. “We are hoping that we will remain open after Easter, but we’ll have to keep an eye on the weather and business levels.”

Pawlak stressed that weather will be a major factor, and the April 12 closing date assumes cooperation from nature.

Starting Monday, March 30, Mount Snow will offer reduced spring lift ticket rates as follows: $59 adult, $49 young adult and $39 junior/senior. The same rates apply on weekends.

Also starting Monday, March 30, lifts will spin every day from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., including weekends.

As of March 29, Mount Snow had received 158” of natural snowfall on the season. An abundance of manmade snow was produced from November through February, building base depths up to 8 feet in spots. “A big snow base should help us through any early spring warm spells,” said Pawlak.

The mountain closed on Sunday, April 27 in 2008. Enough snow remained in the superpipe to host a rail jam on May 25, 2008.

For more information and continued updates on closing day, visit mountsnow.com or call 800-245-SNOW.

Press Release

• March 31 2009 | 11 views

• News

Vermont Ski Areas Report Strong Pre-Season Sales

Associated Press - October 12, 2008 4:05 PM ET

MONTPELIER, Vt. (AP) - Despite the financial anxiety, Vermont’s ski areas are optimistic about the upcoming season, with a jump in season-pass sales and reservations on track or above last winter at some resorts.

Visitors are calling the Vermont Ski Areas Association to book trips months ahead.

Stowe, Smugglers’ Notch and Sugarbush report that season-pass sales are up and reservations are generally the same as or slightly above last season.

Skiing and riding is a $1.5 billion industry in Vermont.

Michael Berry, president of the National Association of Ski Areas, says he’s hopeful about this season, following last season’s banner snow.

Vermont’s ski areas now are crossing their fingers for early snow to help them through the December holidays.

Press Release

• October 13 2008 | 60 views

• News

Vermont Ski and Snowboard Resorts Roll Out Improvements for 2008-09

Smuggler’s Notch

Montpelier, VT - Ski Vermont, the marketing arm of the Vermont Ski Areas Association, has released its roster of improvements to the state’s ski and snowboard resorts due for completion in time for the coming winter season.

When the lifts start turning for the 2008-09 winter season, Mount Snow, the state’s southernmost ski resort will have the most new-technology snowmaking fan guns in all of North America. After adding 150 new guns this past summer, most of its major trails will be covered by these energy efficient machines to assist ski resort managers in achieving their target early opening and late closing dates.

Into terrain parks? Mount Snow’s entire Carinthia mountain face will be dedicated to freestyle this year. With 95 acres of jumps, rails and halfpipes, a revamped base lodge, a skateboard ramp, a hikeable park and indoor lounge area, Carinthia is designed to suit everyone’s (free)style. Mount Snow has also been chosen as the only East Coast stop of the AST Winter Dew Tour, when many of the world’s top slopestyle and superpipe competitors will converge on Carinthia January 8 – 11, 2009.

Gladed trails are at the top of the list this season at Smugglers’ Notch. Added to the 22-and-growing percent of terrain amidst the trees at the resort, Madonna Mountain now has Attitude. To get to this trail, skiers and riders jump into the balsam firs on Lower Drifter just before the mid-station on skier’s left. After pumping their legs through the hardwoods, skiers and riders come out of this steep pitch on Lower Rum Runner on Sterling Mountain. Most of Smuggs’ other glades have received a thorough trimming.

Also at Smugglers’ Notch, he Hibernator Trail on Morse Highlands now offers beginners a direct line top to bottom. Smuggs’ progression terrain parks Log Jam, Birch Run and The Zone will be freshly populated with jumps, banks, rails and fun boxes for refining skills and simply having fun.

The addition of a new slopeside luxury hotel and spa, a new base area, an inter-mountain transfer gondola, new trails, a new beginner area, two new high-speed detachable quads, fully-automated snowmaking and exclusive mountainside residences has reinforced Stowe Mountain Resort’s position as one of the East’s premier ski and four-season mountain resorts. No single project will touch more visitors in Stowe this winter than the new Spruce Base Camp, Stowe Mountain Resort’s new central source for skier and snowboarder services. The new base lodge building includes restaurants, a bar, indoor and outdoor fireplaces, rental shops, retail, tickets, event space and public lounge areas. The building is adjacent to the new “Over Easy” transfer gondola, providing convenient access to Spruce Peak and Mount Mansfield’s slopes across Vermont Route 108.

For intermediates and experts, Stratton shines this season with its six new glades and trails in the Sunbowl. Old favorite trails and terrain will be enhanced with a new Prinoth Sherpa Winch Cat for steep pitches. A Prinoth BR350 terrain park cat that boasts more horsepower and range of motion will build innovative rails and features at the Tyrolienne Slopestyle course for freestylers to enjoy, especially the Stratton Saturday night terrain park events. The competitions are under the lights and open to all.

In progressive line with the green snow trend of Vermont’s resorts, Stratton is investing a half million dollars in energy efficiency programs, including snowmaking. Last year, Stratton invested $4 million, increasing snowmaking coverage to 95 percent.

The largest ski and snowboard resort in eastern North America, Killington celebrates its 50th birthday on Dec. 13 with more than $8.4 million in on-mountain improvements, including the new Skye Peak Express, ski trails, efficiency upgrades to one of the world’s most extensive snowmaking systems, and expanded environmental programs.

In addition to the new Skye Peak Express and new trails, Killington debuts The Burton Stash, an all natural terrain park with 34 features located off the shoulder of Skye Peak, accessible by the Skye Peak Express. Killington’s Stash is one of only four that exist worldwide and the only one on the East Coast. Plus, a new 500-foot Magic Carpet at Snowshed improves the uphill learning experience for beginner skiers and riders in the Killington Ski and Snowboard School and Burton Learn to Ride Programs. A new beginner and more advanced trail off Skye Peak each also debut for the 2008-09 season.

So your ski area just had one of the best winters in memory, and there’s a bit more cash in the till than normal. Where do you put your money? Well if you’re Mad River Glen, the iconoclastic, skier-owned mountain you’re going to renovate the bathrooms.

Unlike other ski areas, Mad River’s goal is to maintain and preserve the experience rather than overhaul or upgrade it. “I guess no one will ever accuse us of spending like drunken sailors,” quips Mad River Glen’s President Jamey Wimble.

Magic Mountain continues to improve its snowmaking operations with increased efficiency through overhauled snowmaking lines and increased capacity. Magic also continues to improve glade skiing options for the 2008-09 ski season through increased thinning of off-trail areas mountain wide. Adventurous skiers can follow the numerous tracks leading into the woods to find some of the best tree skiing in Southern Vermont.

Also this year, Magic Mountain will begin serving a menu of après-ski food in Goniff’s Den Bar.

A half million-dollar expansion to Sugarbush’s two-year old Gate House lodge means more room for all. At the lodge’s Castlerock Pub, pub-goers can toast a 1,200 square-foot addition that will include a slopeside deck complete with a BBQ and fire pit. Sugarbush will also be building an addition onto the top floor of the Gate House lodge for more food court seating and conference space. Construction will begin in September and the additions are expected to be open by Christmas week.

Hungry? Hop aboard a Pisten Bully cat cab for a ride up to Allyn’s Lodge at Lincoln Peak for specialty dinners and full-moon skiing and snowshoeing. Cat skiing? In New England? With the purchase a new Pisten Bully cat cab, Sugarbush will be the only resort in the East to have cat skiing. Traditionally, the resort closes its Mt. Ellen first in late March. When that happens, Sugarbush’s highest peak will become the domain of the 12-passenger cat.

Atira Group, responsible for building Cordillera in Edwards, Colo. near Beaver Creek and the Club at Crested Butte will deliver Sugarbush its new base area village. Groundbreaking for Phase Two of the Lincoln Peak Village is slated to begin in the spring of 2009.

Ascutney Mountain Resort has received town approval for its master development plan for the base of the ski area. When construction is complete, Ascutney will have new slopeside real estate as well as an all new day lodge, ski school, ticket outlets, food and beverage and retail outlets and a new ski shop, rental and tuning facilities. Ascutney is building the first new single family home development in the area in many years and plan to begin offering these lots in the fall.

The final two trails of Okemo’s Jackson Gore layout will open this winter. One of these new double black diamonds will measure about 1,000 feet long, and the other about 2,600 feet long with a vertical drop of 850 feet. These new trails add about eight acres to Okemo’s currently skiable 632 acres.

Snowmaking covers 96 percent of Okemo’s trails and 80 new snowmaking guns will be added this year. Okemo’s operational focus this winter will be on energy-efficient, early-season snowmaking with the help of HKD’s economic solutions and innovative snowmaking technology.

Okemo’s grooming fleet is the first in the East to include the Prinoth BR500 grooming machine, affectionately referred to as “The Beast” by resort operations staff. The 500-horsepower dual turbocharged behemoth is eight feet wider and ten feet longer than the next largest model, the BR350. The Beast sports a 24-foot-wide tiller and a 20-foot-wide blade. Also, by affixing adjustable laser units with a vertical orientation to a stationary base at the bottom of the superpipe, and attaching a receptor device to the arm of the Zaug Pipe Monster, Okemo’s groomer operators can monitor superpipe shaping for better construction, upkeep and optimal vert.

Okemo will also have mechanized loading and unloading carpets, a rarity in North America and a first in the East, on one of its South Ridge fixed-grip quad chairs this winter to make loading and unloading easier and safer. It will reduce lift line lengths, reduce ride time and improve overall lift capacity.

This summer, Bolton Valley west of Burlington invested heavily in new snowmaking and grooming equipment, along with an entire new inventory of rental equipment and new resort amenities.

Bolton installed new snowmaking lines on the main mountain and will be installing new energy efficient snow guns and fan guns. A new state-of-the-art Prinoth Bison snowcat/groomer will join the three groomers already in the Bolton Valley fleet.

An entirely new inventory of rental skis, boots and poles from Rossignol are available this season. The new ski equipment complements the latest Burton Snowboard equipment in the Bolton Valley Burton Learn-To-Ride Center. Folks can get cozy in the resort’s new furniture and even the chefs will be sizzling with new cooking equipment in the main cafeteria.

Burke Mountain launched the Burke Mountain Music Series, a year-round commitment to hosting live entertainment. The majority of the live entertainment will be held in the newly renovated Tamarack Grill, which re-opened this summer with a new family-oriented menu that features greater diversity and expanded pub fare. A new stage, complete with a 24 channel sound board and state-of-the-art audio and lighting systems allow for optimal sight and sound. The Burke Mountain Music Series culminates with the annual Burke Mountain Music Festival in the fall.

For those who want to kick it up a notch, Burke Mountain features a new intermediate terrain park this winter located on Lower Foxes Folly that offers modified terrain and a variety of features. Burke Mountain is also the latest Burton Learn To Ride Resort in Vermont.

Southern Vermont’s Bromley has invested $1 million in capital improvements for the 2008-09 season, the bulk of which is going toward an arsenal of HKD sv10 tower snow guns. These guns will increase Bromley’s snowmaking capacity by an additional 30 percent and will allow for more manmade snow at moderate temperatures, which translates into more open early-season terrain and fast recovery after poor weather. A new Prinoth BR350 groomer will also be added to Bromley’s fleet.

The biggest Jay Peak news for this season is the recent sale of mountain by Québec’s Mont-Saint-Sauveur International to a group of local investors led by the resort’s long time President and COO, Bill Stenger. Not much will change in the way of immediate plans – Jay Peak is working on the construction of a new 58-suite Hotel One at the Tram base, which will also include updated facilities for skier/rider services – but other projects should get underway sooner than originally planned. The new owners promise additional snowmaking, improved grooming, and updated lifts on Stateside in the near future. Jay Peak will also be moving forward with its plans to refurbish the existing Hotel Jay upon completion of Hotel One. Both projects are fully funded through EB5 investments.

While so much is new in Vermont’s ski industry, one really, really old event is surfacing. As a celebration of the state’s history and stunning surroundings, 2009 marks the 400th anniversary of Samuel de Champlain’s exploration of the lake that now bears his name.

The Lake Champlain Quadricentennial will be a year-long event that kicks off on Dec. 31, 2008 at First Night in Burlington. Events commemorating the 400th anniversary of Champlain’s visit will be held in Burlington, Vergennes, Isle La Motte, Jay, Randolph, Shelburne, St. Albans, South Hero and many other communities throughout the state in 2009.

The 400th anniversary memorializes an important historical moment: the first contact between European and Native American cultures in the Champlain Valley. 2009 is an opportunity to explore Vermont’s history, reexamine the events of 1609, and connect with the Green Mountain State’s scenic beauty and way of life. Events will range from musical performances, art exhibits, films, bike tours, culinary festivals, history tours, interactive activities, cultural demonstrations and much more. For more information, visit www.CelebrateChamplain.org.

Press Release

• September 08 2008 | 269 views | 2 comments