MOUNT SNOW

I put this in regionals but it'll probably get more exposure here. I just got this in an email and copied and pasted it directly but try your best to read it, it's well worth it.




To our season passholders, Before we announce this to the public and the media, we wanted you to hear thisexciting news first. Along with Peak Resorts, I am happy to announce that Mount Snow will dedicate theentire Carinthia mountain face to freestyle terrain parks when it opens for the 2008-09 season, transforming 95 acres of trails into a massive park system. Carinthia is about to become Vermont’s only all-freestyle mountain face. Asmorgasbord of rails, jumps and halfpipes will cover nearly five miles of terrain. Asnowskate playground, hikable park, beginners’ learning park and a skate ramp willsurround the base area, while the base lodge itself will be renovated and outfittedwith lounge areas, an extended outdoor deck with ample seating, counter seatingalong the windows, free wireless internet, flat screen televisions, outdoor firepits and a new retail shop. Skiers and riders can choose from a variety of approximately 125 freestyle featuresscattered around 12 full terrain parks. A tree-skiing area, a superpipe with 18-footwalls, a mini-pipe with 8-foot walls, an all-natural park absent of manmade materialand a big-air site will also be featured. The sweeping overhaul is the brainchild of Peak Resorts’ president, Tim Boyd, andhis son Jesse, Peak’s Vice President of Operations & Freestyle Terrain. Jesseoversaw the modification of Big Boulder in Pennsylvania into an all-freestylemountain and will work closely with us during the changeover. Our Mountain ManagerElia Hamilton, as well as Parks and Pipes Manager Ken Gaitor, are both nationallyrecognized and respected freestyle terrain designers who will spearhead the project,scheduled for completion by the time the mountain opens for the 2008-09 season. On a recent visit to Mount Snow, Jesse Boyd explained that freestyle skiers andriders are the future of the ski industry. “They’re the fastest growing group,and it just makes sense to build the biggest and best parks that Mount Snow canoffer,” he told me. Carinthia will be perfect for spectators. Not only will mom and dad be able to hangout on the deck and watch the kids in one of our learning parks, but they can joinin the fun themselves. This is for everyone, young and old, beginner and expert,skier and rider. Under the new plan, all freestyle terrain parks will be contained to Carinthia. Thiswill improve the flow of skier traffic on Sunbrook, the North Face and the MainFace. Un Blanco Gulch will revert to a ski trail, while trails like lower Long Johnand Standard will be relieved of park traffic. Not into freestyle? Don’t worry,Carinthia is being designed to accommodate a wide range of skiers and riders, withan emphasis on providing a family-friendly environment. A little background: Mount Snow opened Un Blanco Gulch, the first terrain park inthe East, in 1992. The Inferno park, which was featured at the ESPN X-Games in 2000and 2001, will return to its home turf on the former Stugger’s Chute trail atCarinthia. The tubing park, currently located on Ski Baba at Carinthia, will berelocated to Mixing Bowl on the Main Mountain. This exciting transformation comes as Peak Resorts continues its commitment to offera superior on-hill product and act as an innovative leader in the ski industry.Combine this summer’s addition of 150 fan guns with last summer’s 101, and MountSnow will have spent $8.5 million adding 251 new-technology fan guns, the most ofany resort in North America. Many of the trails on Carinthia will be flanked by theguns, including Mine Shaft, Nitro, Lower Titanium, Stugger’s Chute and Fairway.The fan guns’ ability to produce high quality snow in marginal temperatures willallow our terrain parks to open earlier in the season and stay open later. I know this is a major change, so please do not hesitate to email with questions,concerns or loud shouts of “wahooo!” For an updated trail map of Carinthia, the new logo and related photos, please visitthe Parks & Pipes page at www.mountsnow.com, or call 800-245-SNOW for moreinformation. Sincerely, Kelly Pawlak, General Manager