We had an excellent first weekend of skiing and riding at Black River Basin. It was fantastic to see so many families and friends enjoying time together on the slopes over thanksgiving weekend. The weather was a real treat with warm bluebird days on Friday and Saturday that felt more like early March than late November. It was the perfect opportunity to try out the new deck furniture while soaking in some rays and a cold drink. It's not too often we get the chance to do that so early in the season.
While the weather was superb, my favorite part of the weekend was the chance to meet so many of the people that call these hills home for the winter. The soul of skiing was alive and well on the slopes over the past four days reminding me that it really is the people that make the place. So, now’s as good a time as any to introduce myself to the Snowriver community.
My name is Benjamin Bartz, I assumed the position of General Manager of Snowriver at the beginning of October. This has been a bit of a coming home for me, having grown up just shy of two hours south in Tomahawk, Wisconsin. As a kid, I spent nearly every weekend traveling north to ski with my family in Big Snow Country. I fell in love with skiing here in the UP, where I made countless memories straight lining Shanty Girl, racing through the “woods trails” in Bear Creek and sneaking through the trees off the East-T.
I dreamt of turning my love of skiing into a lifestyle, and by the time I entered high school I knew a career in the ski business was all I wanted to pursue. Gogebic Community College's program in Ski Area Management was the obvious choice for me. I lived in the UP from 2013 - 2016 while pursing my Bachelor's in Ski Area Business Management before making the the inevitable move of every midwestern ski bum to Colorado in 2017. Following a short stint in the pricey paradise of Summit Country, I made the move back to the Midwest where I spent the next 5 years as the Mountain Operations Manager at Giants Ridge in Northern Minnesota.
As the General Manager, I believe in the power of communication and want to keep you in the loop with all that we have going on to improve your experience as a guest, build a sense of community and provide some insight into our business’ operations. As a skier I always wanted to know what was going on at the hill, so in that spirit I’ll do my best to give you a behind the scenes look at the transformation as it unfolds.
When the opportunity was presented to come and work with Midwest Family Ski Resorts and the team here to revitalize these legendary resorts, I simply couldn’t turn it down. The Skinner family has proven their dedication to the midwestern skier, and I am thrilled to be a part of their team working to bring this resort to its full potential.
Snowmaking Update
After a warm weekend, the snowmaking team is itching to get the guns running again at Black River Basin (Formerly Blackjack). With cooler temps rolling into the region on Tuesday night, our goal will be to freshen up the terrain we had open over the weekend, then get into some new terrain as soon as possible. NASTAR Run and Shanty Boy will be the big focus for this week with hopes of getting them opened sometime this coming weekend. After that we will get some guns running on River Drive to build a connection from the back side of the hill and begin working on Log Jam.
What I'm looking forward to this week is getting the snowmaking system up and running over at Jackson Creek Summit (Formerly Indianhead). In the brief time since purchasing the resort, upgrading the snowmaking systems has been a priority of the MFSR team. Over 80 new electrical pedestals and water hydrants, 100 new hoses, and 20 new snow guns were ordered for the summit.
Unfortunately, supply chain delays have pushed installation much later into the season than we'd hoped. Nevertheless, all the materials are now on site and a large majority have been installed with the final few finishing touches expected to be completed early this week. We'll get snowmaking started first on Voyageur's Highway, Superior (formerly Chippewa) and the Beginner's area at the top of the mountain, before moving on to Sundance, Alpenglow and Borealis.
The week ahead will be exciting at Jackson Creek Summit as we have numerous projects headed towards completion, the biggest of which is the new outdoor ticket windows. The team has completely reconstructed the frontside of the Sugar Maple Chalet and has it looking very sharp.
We expect delivery of the new windows this week, which are slated for installation before next weekend. I am looking forward to the streamlined experience this will create for our guests. All product sales and redemptions will be taken care of by our staff through these windows, keeping the indoor space available for our guests to get geared up or enjoy a snack.
The Gabbro Suites (Formerly Chamonix, Zermatt and Kitzbuhel) are also nearing completion. Our facility maintenance team has been doing an incredible job with the refresh of these rooms. All the new furniture is assembled and finishing touches are going in every day. They tell me the first units will be completed within a week or two and I can’t wait for our guests to see them.
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There are many more awesome upgrades coming for this season, stay tuned for more updates as we get closer to opening day at Jackson Creek which is scheduled for Friday December 16th.
Can't wait to see you all on the slopes!
-Benjamin, GM
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