11 November 2016 — Sincere “thank you” to all veterans today, your service is much appreciated….Cold weather arriving, albeit slowly…in Colorado, Steamboat has 30 TA MMS carriage fan guns and Ratnik land guns building piles on Right O Way, Stampede and Desperado Magic Carpet…back east the guns are on at some of the usual “second and third to open” locations. Photo above, Loon Mountain NH had guns blasting on Exodus, Upper Bear Claw, Upper Picked Rock, Upper Flying Fox, Grand Junction and Basin Street. They’re targeting next Friday 18th as opening day…across the river in Vermont guns are on at a few places now, Sugarbush making snow on Jester, Organgrinder and Downspout. Mr. Smith sez Sugarbush will spin lifts next Saturday, Nov 19…even southern VT biggie Mount Snow has ramped up production, upper sections of Cascade and Freefall under the blowers at this point. They’re talking Turkey Day for opening top-to-bottom but could go sooner if the arctic blast checks in…If you haven’t heard, Aspen is scheduled to host the 2017 FIS World Cup Finals Mar. 15-19, which marks the first time the event has been held in the U.S. in 20 years….speaking of those first-to-opens, Michigan mighty mite Ski Brule is usually piecing something together by this time, traditionally today would be opening Friday. Now the Yoopers are talking about next Friday the 18th; Northern WI skiers keeping an eye on the Ski Brule website since they are known to kick things off with a free ski day. Don’t want to speak out of school here, that’s just what they’ve done in the past so please don’t call ’em and say “Rick says you have free skiing” or anything….and now a special shout out to Boyne Resorts and Sunday River, they donated 600 feet of snowmaking pipe to nearby bootstrap operation Black Mountain of Maine. They got plenty of problems of their own with lifts and whatnot over at the Riv, but they’re still doing what they can to help a smaller local operation…Dakota biggie Terry Peak hosting a job fair tomorrow…future in question for long time Pocono PA ski hill Alpine Mountain, formerly Timber Hill or something. They’re auctioning off a bunch of mountain ops stuff, not sure where this would leave the mountain for the coming season.
Top photo courtesy Loon Mountain, NH