BEN'S BLOG

It is officially spring at Snowriver, but while the calendar calls for spring we still have TONS of snow on the mountain. After a few additional feet over the past week, we've now crossed the 200" mark for this season. This is just about two feet more than our annual average for snowfall. This means we'll have great spring skiing conditions right up through the end of the season.  Our plan remains to close down the Jackson Creek Summit side after April 2nd. This early closure will allow us to begin the removal of the Original Double to make way for construction of the new Voyageur Express which is slated to begin May 1st. Over at Black River Basin, we plan to keep things rolling through Easter Sunday. We'll run the lifts from Friday the 7th through Sunday the 9th from 9am-4pm to finish off the season. If conditions and skier demand support reopening for a bonus weekend, we may reopen on April 15th and 16th. Stay tuned to our email newsletter and social media channels f...

The quad's chairs coming up the line for the final time - 3/10/2023 Our maintenance crew has begun the process of dismantling lifts to prepare for the installation of the new Voyageur Express this summer. Over the past week, the team has been removing chairs one by one from the Voyager Quad using a special tool called a de-tensioner. Riblet lifts attach the chairs to the haul rope with an internal clip inserted into the core. To attach the clips, the cable needs to be pulled together and expanded so the core can be cut out and the clip inserted in its place. The photos below illustrate how this process works. Once inserted, the rope is released and the tension of the cable holds the clip in place.    To remove the chairs from the line, the reverse is done. The rope is expanded, the clip is pulled out and replaced with a small piece of plastic core to retain the integrity of the rope, then it is closed back up again. The quad has 154 chairs with two clips per chair, meaning the...

NEW Legendary Passes I am really excited to share our new season pass products for next winter season. Now honored at all three resorts, our suite of Legendary Passes offer something for everyone at an unbeatable value. For our longtime Snowriver die-hards, the Silver Pass offers you unlimited skiing and riding at Snowriver for only $475 while also providing access to Granite Peak and Lutsten with only 12 blackout dates. Perfect for taking a trip to check out our sister resorts to enjoy all they have to offer. For anyone without a pass for this season, we're offering a $99 spring add-on to ski the rest of this season beginning right away at Granite Peak and Snowriver and Starting April 1st at Lutsen. If you've never enjoyed a bluebird day on the shores of lake superior carving turns down Moose Mountain, I promise you won't be disappointed. Check out our website  for more details. Passes go on sale this Saturday, March 4th.  End of Season Plan As we march toward spring, we...

The first half of February has been uncharacteristically warm here at Snowriver. Only a few inches of snow have fallen so far this month, but despite the warmer temps we're still holding onto a solid two feet of base across the mountains. The skiing has been fantastic with sunny skies and plenty of corduroy to carve up. If you haven't made it up to see us yet this season, the next couple of months are looking prime. We have ski-in/ski-out lodging available on most weekends for the rest of the season, with great specials in place to make your ski vacation even more affordable.  Last night's rain was less than desirable and unfortunately led us to close the ski area for the day (2/15/2023). Without ample time for the snow to drain out and set up again, we didn't want to send our machines out to lock in that moisture. Giving the snowpack the day off will provide for better conditions upon reopening on Thursday for the holiday weekend. Mother nature has already switched ove...

Today we cross over the halfway mark on this 2022-2023 winter season. Hard to believe it's half over already, but I like to focus on the half still remaining. In a lot of ways, I feel the best parts of our season are yet to come. Spring skiing has always been my favorite, even beating out a mid-winter powder day in my eyes and we're poised to host a hearty helping of spring turns this year. With half the season left to go, the team and I continue to field feedback and make operational adjustments to continue providing the best possible experience each and every day. New Enhanced Teaching Terrain Charlie and Bryan collaborate in the cat. - Monday, January 30th, 2023 Brian from our snow school has partnered with our cat crew this week to shape up some really neat terrain in our Sugar Hills Learning Area. They've built a mini half-pipe and three large banked turns. These features will be used to introduce new skiers to the snow in more intuitive ways. Rather than having to exp...

Tim Moon - Assitant GM, myself, and Charlotte Skinner - Chief of Staff and CFO on top of the Palisades at Olympic Valley, California. - 01/18/2023 We've made it through the holidays and are getting into the groove of the regular season. I spent the last week at Palisades Tahoe in California attending the National Ski Areas Association winter conference. This conference is a great opportunity for ski area operators and suppliers from across the country to share ideas, learn from each other, and be reminded of the awesome industry we're all a part of. For me it was a great opportunity to reflect on the start of my (and our company's) first season here at Snowriver. I spent a lot of time thinking about the feedback the team and I have received and how we can continue to provide the best experience possible to our guests each and every day. I'm excited to share a few changes we have in the pipeline and look forward to continuing our work to enhance this already legendary re...