Stuart - Love your content and look forward to every Storm Skiing email and podcast that wafts across my transom. One small bit of pushback on this episode, where you seemed to denigrate Snowmass by equating it to Big Sky w/o the Tram. I think you're dramatically underselling Snowmass. Having skied both (though Big Sky admittedly before the Moonlight acquisition), I don't think there's much of a comparison. Snowmass gets more snow (Big Sky snowfall stats are notoriously inflated per Tony Crocker), has superior exposure (all faces north whereas Big Sky is largely east/southeast/south) and more varied, fall line skiing.
Lone Peak looks great, but you can't get there due to lines and 80% of the terrain it accesses faces due south. Give me laps on the Headwall or Cirque, each accessible by a HSQ or during weather, any day.
Thanks Mike. Appreciate the feedback. I have to say that I actually am a huge fan of Snowmass. I've skied there a bunch and I love it. It wasn't meant to be a denigrating comparison - only to say that without the drama of lone peak, Big Sky was in line with the other great western ski areas, but lacking that iconic feature. A more fully-written-out version of that Big Sky section would have acknowledged that and I did think about it, but I decided to sacrifice that point for brevity.
A quick take away from this: Demand for skiing appears to be strong, a good thing. With capacity limits, or promise of weekend throngs in place, marketability of smaller areas in New York stare, and perhaps in Massachusetts and Connecticut might be enhanced.
I think that's right. Frequent skiers especially will seek alternatives to the hordes, particularly at peak times. I don't have confidence in the masses to summon this level of imagination, however. Most people think there are about 20 ski resorts in the Northeast and they are going to stick to those.
Stuart - Love your content and look forward to every Storm Skiing email and podcast that wafts across my transom. One small bit of pushback on this episode, where you seemed to denigrate Snowmass by equating it to Big Sky w/o the Tram. I think you're dramatically underselling Snowmass. Having skied both (though Big Sky admittedly before the Moonlight acquisition), I don't think there's much of a comparison. Snowmass gets more snow (Big Sky snowfall stats are notoriously inflated per Tony Crocker), has superior exposure (all faces north whereas Big Sky is largely east/southeast/south) and more varied, fall line skiing.
Lone Peak looks great, but you can't get there due to lines and 80% of the terrain it accesses faces due south. Give me laps on the Headwall or Cirque, each accessible by a HSQ or during weather, any day.
Thanks Mike. Appreciate the feedback. I have to say that I actually am a huge fan of Snowmass. I've skied there a bunch and I love it. It wasn't meant to be a denigrating comparison - only to say that without the drama of lone peak, Big Sky was in line with the other great western ski areas, but lacking that iconic feature. A more fully-written-out version of that Big Sky section would have acknowledged that and I did think about it, but I decided to sacrifice that point for brevity.
Thanks for the response Stuart, and that all tracks for me.
It snowed today in Mass.! I'm looking at as not a very late season storm, but an early season teaser for 2021-2022.
A quick take away from this: Demand for skiing appears to be strong, a good thing. With capacity limits, or promise of weekend throngs in place, marketability of smaller areas in New York stare, and perhaps in Massachusetts and Connecticut might be enhanced.
I think that's right. Frequent skiers especially will seek alternatives to the hordes, particularly at peak times. I don't have confidence in the masses to summon this level of imagination, however. Most people think there are about 20 ski resorts in the Northeast and they are going to stick to those.