Snow Returns at Schweitzer Mountain Resort

The snow is back at Schweitzer Mountain Resort. Stay tuned to this page over then next couple days (Sunday and Monday) as Schweitzer receives what should be its first significant snowfall of the season. Think snow!

UPDATE x2: Construction Back Underway at Schweitzer Mountain Resort?

(photo courtesy of Schweitzer Mountain Resort)

Is construction back underway at Schweitzer Mountain Resort? This photo, released today, makes it clear that something is going on at the resort. With the economy beginning to recover, is it really time for Schweitzer to ramp up construction in anticipation of an upswing in sales? Our guess is, second home sales will continue to decline through the end of this year and well into next. Why then, is so much going on up on the mountain? Perhaps the caption will draw some attention: “the future home of Mountainside at Schweitzer.” Ah, that’s it.

What is this “Mountainside at Schweitzer?” We’ll be honest; we have no idea — our only guess is some sort of destination club/members-only lodge. Perhaps it’s the “added amenity” for buyers at Trapper’s Creek — we don’t know. Of course, this is purely speculation. Perhaps SMR could be a little more open and transparent about all of this so that we don’t have to guess what this means?

UPDATE: Schweitzer has clarified what’s going on in their re-written caption for the picture, “construction continues at Trapper’s Creek.” It seems we’re just seeing the development (possibly) finally come to fruition. Still, it seems foolish to keep building in this economy.

UPDATE x2: Fractional Life has this story for us, which clarifies what exactly is going on at the resort:

Developer Schweitzer Mountain has begun construction on four luxury residences at Trappers Creek, the ski-in/ski-out neighborhood located above the Schweitzer Village in North Idaho. Three of the properties will be the first to be sold on a fractional basis in the area.

The design of the units has been described as “rustic contemporary” or “modern mountain”, with a balance of wood and stone, large balconies to enjoy the summer, and orientations that will maximize views of Lake Pend Oreille. The full ownership home will be approximately 3,400 square feet, while the three fractional ownership units will each have three bedrooms and a footprint of around 2,400 square feet.

Buyers will be offered 1/8 shares in the units, and will benefit from as yet unspecified club amenities. Michael Burns, an experienced fractional ownership consultant has been working with Schweitzer’s ownership to develop the concept.

Schweitzer aims to begin sales around Christmas 2009, with the first unit fast-tracked and ready for occupancy as soon as February 15, 2010. The other units would then be completed near the end of the upcoming ski season and ready to close by late Spring 2010.

The Case for a Larger Regional Snow Show in Spokane

Spokane’s “Ski the Northwest Rockies” Snow Show is a great event. It brings together legions of local skiers and acts as a great kickoff to the ski season. If offers a great place to go pick up your season pass or just wander around looking for free swag. But that’s not to say it cannot be improved.

The one-day event only showcases a small portion of the vast skiing and snowboarding industry. Significantly, it never completely fills up with exhibitors. And it takes place in one of the smaller Spokane Convention Center ballrooms — the smallest venue it has ever been located in. It may be a great local show, but by no means does it compare to the SIA Snow Show in Las Vegas (next year in Denver). But it will never be that size. But it is a reasonable goal to shoot for a ski show the size of Seattle’s SkiFever Snow Show.

It’s time to improve the Spokane Snow Show for the greater Spokane region. We’ve got five great ski resorts, including one world-class one — Schweitzer, two regional-class ones — Silver and 49, and two smaller local ones — Mt. Spokane and Lookout. The Spokane region has roughly 80,000-120,000 unique skiers. However, a good ski show would draw skiers from as far away as Seattle, Missoula and Boise — but only if it promised to be good enough.

In order to increase the amount of exhibitors, we’ll need to move the Snow Show into a new location. The ideal choice would be the Spokane Convention Center downtown — the old one. This way it is close to the INB Performing Arts Center for movie premieres. Plenty of space and room for growth.

The second thing on the list would be to actually add exhibitors. In order to reach the most potential skiers, you would have to include a wide variety of exhibitors. For best results, INSA should focus on reaching the following exhibitors:

• LINE Skis
• K2 Skis/Snowboard/Telemark
• Armada Skis
• 4FRNT Skis
• 686
• Atomic
• Billabong USA
• Bern Helmets
• Bolle
• Smith Optics
• Bonfire Snowboarding
• Burton
• Marker
• Salomon
• Patagonia
• O’Neill
• Quiksilver
• Ride Snowboards
• Scott USA
• Sessions
• Skullcandy
• Spy Optic
• The North Face

While not all of these manufacturers will sign on, many will if the Snow Show is correctly marketed.

In addition to ski/board manufacturers, INSA should also look at attracting new resorts to the Snow Show. Resorts should be within the immediate area — Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, etc.

• Whitefish Mountain Resort
• Crystal Mountain Resort
• Stevens Pass
• Mt. Bachelor
• White Pass Mountain Resort
• Willamette Pass Mountain Resort
• Tamarack Resort*
• Big Sky
• etc.

Now, the final step will be to move the dates for the show back slightly. For 2009, my recommendation would be to hold the show November 13-15.

Finally, what do we charge people to get into the show? Considering factors such as the venue, the potential exhibitors, etc., a cost of $20 would not be unreasonable. Sponsorships (including title sponsorships) could defray much of the cost and bring it down to roughly $10.

Of course, that’s if it happens; this is simply a wishlist for an improved Spokane Snow Show.

Where is the Freestyle Instruction? How to Introduce Schweitzer to the Freeskiing Environment — Open Letter #2 to Schweitzer CEO Tom Chasse

Whatever happened to freestyle instruction at Schweitzer Mountain
Resort? The Open Session — a weekly, "open" series of instruction
sessions geared toward teen riders — is gone. The Freeride Institute
– a three day series of freestyle instruction sessions featuring pro
and sponsored coaches — is gone. Meanwhile the realm of freestyle
skiing and snowboarding continues to progress at rates hitherto unseen
in the entire ski industry. The park at Schweitzer remains, largely
unchanged, but where has all the freestyle instruction gone? This is
an open letter to Schweitzer President and CEO Tom Chasse outlining a
possible new program (or set of programs) that would place Schweitzer
as an innovator within the ski industry and the action sports industry
as a whole.

STEP ONE: Create a resort account on Newschoolers (newschoolers.com).
This would help to reach potential new freeskier customers. And as
much as I hate to say it, Schweitzer's park has a very bad reputation
on NS. It couldn't hurt to clear that up.

STEP TWO: Reopen the ref•uge. It shouldn't be too hard — you should
still have signs and everything. My advice?Use the Bark Beetle Room.
Sure, it may not have gone too well the first time. But this time, try
to actually market it. You know, get the people in there. The ref•uge
is really important to the next step: the actual instruction.

STEP THREE: Schweitzer Freestyle Camp would be an ten week, fully
immersive freestyle instruction on Saturdays and Sundays from Januray
to March. The final week, the rider would compete in the Stomp Games
alongside members of his/her own group.

In addition to being supported by Schweitzer, sponsors could offset
part of the cost both to the resort and to the rider. Such
sponsorships should include rider-favorite companies, such as:

*K2 Factory Team Skis
*Line Skis
*Full Tilt Boots
*Salomon
*Saga Outerwear
*Sessions
*EC Headwear
*Smith Optics
*Oakley
*Spy Optics
*Skullcandy
*Bonfire
*Voleurz
*Freeskier Magazine
*Newschoolers
*Burton

And, what would a ski camp be without a headlining sponsor? In comes
the Schweitzer Freestyle Camp sponsored by the Sports Creel.

So, how would this supposed freeskiing/snowboarding camp be organized?
The concept would be similar to Windells in Oregon and Momentum in
Whistler. That is, you are divided into groups according to age and
ability level: beginner, intermediate, and advanced. Note that these
are not skier ability level descriptions; they are unique to park
skiing. That means that a skier could be an expert skier but an
intermediate at park skiing.

In order to make sure the riders get a quality coaching experience,
Schweitzer would bring in pros and top freestyle skiers from around
the area (and beyond) to coach the riders. To further ensure the best
coaching possible, video review would be employed.

Camp Orientation would take place the Saturday before the start of
Camp in the Caribou Room at the Lakeview. This would include the
basics of the camp session, meeting with coaches, as well as an on-
snow element that assesses a rider's ability level. According to that
level, riders would be put in groups. After a meet-your-group/meet-
your-coach session, orientation would close.

A typical Camp Saturday would look like this:

8:00-8:45 – Breakfast on the mountain. In the Lakeview, featuring the
classics that are already offered.

8:30 – Why not? Give riders first chair to get ready for the day. By
the way, on powder days, riders wouldn't necessarily be in the park
right away. Powder mornings/Park afternoons will be a virtue unless it
is dumping.

8:30-2:30 – Coaching.

11:00-1:00 – Lunch. It would be the group's discretion on when to eat.
Many options would be available for lunches. The best option would
probably to have the Alpenglow Deli (or Schweitzer) set up a camp tent
in the park for self-serve sandwiches and snacks. The other options
would include Thor's Pizza or an employee discount on food at the
Lakeview.

2:30-4 – Open Skiing. You're free to go anywhere on the mountain.

4:15-5:30 – Video review with coaches. This would take place in the
ref•uge or other spots around Schweitzer Village.

5:30-8 – Open skiing. This time, though, you're back in the park under
the lights with the coaches. No filmers would be available during the
night session.

5:30-?? – Open activities from Xbox in the ref•uge to tubing,
snowskating, airboarding, etc. As well as free weekly only-for-campers
activities put on by sponsors with prizes, swag, etc.

Dinner would not be provided, though breakfast and lunch would. This
is to accomodate for families staying on the mountain.

Here are some additional tips that would make the program even more
sick:

*Invite Will & Andy from Line's Traveling Circus out for a weekend to
ski and film an episode. This would be valuable to campers and to
others in that the series has a huge following online and you'd get
quite a bit of prime exposure.

*Keep the environment super chill. It needs to be laid-back and
relatively calm in order for riders to progress.

*Comps are great ways for riders to compete, but they are also a way
for riders to meet other riders. Embrace both aspects of them.

So, what do we price this at? You get 20 days total of coaching with
video review and free entry into the Stomp Gamps. You get breakfasts
and lunches, as well as activities like snowskating, tubing, and
sponsor activities. Considering the prices of various other summer ski
camps that provide more activities and lodging, but last only a week,
it is not unreasonable to price the Schweitzer Freestyle Camp at about
$1199. This would include a junior season pass valid for the entire
winter season.

In conclusion, I have laid before you an interesting program idea that
needs to be discussed at Schweitzer. In the absence of other quality
freestyle instruction programs in the area, this could be a boon for
Schweitzer. It would draw in money not just from the local area, but
also as far away as Seattle, Missoula and Boise. And it might just put
Idaho skiing on the map once and for all.

The Saga Continues: What’s Going on at Tamarack Resort?

(logo is the exclusive property of Tamarack Resort, Inc.)

To those of you who don’t know, Tamarack Resort is a ski resort in central Idaho, about 90 miles north of Boise. This is not a small mom-and-pop ski area either — the resort has seven chairlifts, including two high-speed detachable quads. They have 1,100 acres of terrain — which is comparable in size to Aspen, Colorado. And that wasn’t all; the resort also has an 18-hole Trent Jones golf course and literally an entire village that’s nearly complete, wrapped in Tyvek. You may recall that when Tamarack opened in 2004 in was described as “the new destination resort in North America in twenty years.” Unfortunately things have only gone downhill. The resort closed last March when receivers ran out of money to operate the resort. It’s now in $300 million worth of debt. Now it’s just sitting there, empty (aside for a small maintenance staff), waiting for a “white knight” to come in and save the day.

Today lenders pushed back a hearing (which, in part, is about the need for cash from lenders to flow to the resort) until tomorrow. Lenders, led by Credit Suisse (the Swiss bank that is attributed with Yellowstone Club’s bankruptcy), will have to decide whether to allow $195,000 worth of insurance payments to be paid. If an agreement to fund the resort cannot be reach, the court will begin to transfer control of the resort back to the owners, including Jean-Pierre Boespflug.

What’s interesting, however, is the fact that two primary potential bidders have now emerged as candidates to buy the place out of bankruptcy. Starwood Capital bought the majority stake in Mammoth Mountain, CA in 2005 for $365 million. Apollo Investments owns AMC Entertainment, Harrah’s, Norwegian Cruise Line, and Coldwell Banker/Century 21 Realty. Apollo also owned/invested in Vail Resorts in the 1990s. Their ownership really molded Vail Associates into the company that it is today.

So while the saga continues, it looks like there might be a light at the end of the tunnel for Tamarack Resort. We’ll keep you posted on this developing story.

UPDATE #1: The judge has approved funding for Tamarack Resort’s receivers through June 21 — this Sunday. A $35,000 liability insurance bill was paid, but a $160,000 property tax bill was not.

UPDATE #2: Tamarack Resort’s owner, Jean-Pierre Boespflug was quoted in an interview yesterday as saying that three serious buyout offers are on the table for the resort. A deal is, according to KTVB-TV, “imminent.”

The Best Resort in the State of Michigan…

(image Copyright 2009 – Mt. Bohemia Ski Area)

…has a 900 foot vertical drop and two chairlifts. But to take that information at first glance would be an insult. Mt. Bohemia, located in the Keweenaw of Michigan, gets 273 inches per year. They have 71 runs of inbounds backcountry terrain. And its terrain is easily comparable to that of larger, Western resorts. BACKCOUNTRY TERRAIN. IN MICHIGAN.

Mt. Bohemia is not for beginners. They even have a clear and obvious “WARNING” on their website. They do not groom their runs. But what they have chosen to do, they excel at. Just take a look at reviews of Mt. Bohemia and you get the idea. Watch the video and for more information, check out mtbohemia.com.

Itching for Some Skiing? Today’s Your Lucky Day

(logo property of Silver Mountain Resort and Eagle Crest Resorts)

Silver Mountain will reopen this Sunday, May 17, 2009 for a day of free skiing sponsored by Dave Smith Motors. The gondola will upload at 7:30 AM and chairs will be open from 8 AM – 3 PM in the Chair Two Basin only. Again, this ski day is free for everyone. Thank you, Silver Mountain, for satisfying local skiers’ need for snow and skiing.

UPDATE: Silver Mountain will again reopen this weekend — Memorial Day weekend — for skiing on two chairlifts and seventeen runs with trails for all ability levels. The gondola will throw riders up on the mountain starting at 7:30 on both Saturday and Sunday with chairlifts running from 8-2:30 and the gondola closing at 4:00. It comes at a price though: $25 gets you a lift ticket.

The Late Review: Big Bear Mountain Resorts, California

(logo property of Big Bear Mountain Resorts)

Snow Summit and Bear Mountain Resorts and Southern California have a lot going for them. They’re located high up in the mountains in the city of Big Bear Lake, on north-facing slopes with 100% snowmaking coverage. They both offer excellent terrain parks and each have two high-speed quads. The problem, however, comes in two key areas: snowpack and service. And I know that snowpack isn’t something I should be complaining about for Southern California, but I’ll explain my points. Let’s start with Snow Summit.

 

Snow Summit, the larger of the two Big Bear Mountain Resorts, markets itself as the “premier destination resort experience.” Unfortunately, their claim seems to come up short. Don’t get me wrong; Snow Summit is great. But I was appalled from the beginning about their service.

 

Wishing to try something different and to try a pair of new skis, when renting I opted for their “demo package.” I expected a current model year pair of Line, Rossignol, K2, or Armada twintips, given Snow Summit/Big Bear’s reputation as a “park resort.” The tech (who didn’t seem to know a thing about skis) handed me a pair of 5 to 9 year old K2s. I asked, “what brands are you demoing?” beforehand, but he didn’t seem to hear me. Not seeing any different behind the counter, I gave up and figured I’d give the skis a try.

 

I walked out and took a few runs of each high-speed quad. No lines, but it was a Monday, so I didn’t expect any differently. It’s hard to explain Snow Summit on paper. Their trail map doesn’t do the place justice and their blacks and double blacks are much like Schweitzer’s more difficult blues (i.e. Zip Down, Little Blue Ridge) and easier blacks (i.e. Jack’s Dream). The “snow” was solid ice – there wasn’t any possible way to get an edge, which made for one wild ride down. I wanted to just suggest that they groom their runs in the morning, rather than in the afternoon after the mountain closes for the day. The snowpack softened up a bit in the afternoon, however.

 

Interesting fact: Snow Summit and Bear Mountain’s “glades” had no snow when I was there. One of the employees at Snow Summit claimed they pushed the snow out of the trees to avoid liability issues. I got a good laugh out of that one. Also interesting: both resorts had “Trash Targets: Are You Good Enough?” underneath their HSQs. Just garbage cans, there, with a stupid caption.

 

After a competitively priced lunch (compared to other resorts), I hopped on the free shuttle to Bear Mountain.

 

At Bear Mountain we experienced some of the best conditions of the trip. Still very marginal, but better. Their most difficult run, Geronimo, would probably by a high blue or low black at Schweitzer, but who cares? It was a great run to lap, although it was the only run off of the chairlift that serviced it.

 

At Bear Mountain we also experienced easily one of the coolest and best terrain parks I have ever seen. 150 jibs, rails, and boxes, and countless jumps and tables. This is a freestyle mountain after all. Anyway, after 5-9 runs on the great parks they had to offer, I hopped back on their flagship HSQ. At the bottom, a ticket checker started yelling at me: “Dude, you can’t have that on your ticket?”

“What is he talking about?” I thought. “My Schweitzer pass?” I asked.

“Yeah, it invalidates your lift ticket.”

“What? How does that work? I came from Idaho and am skiing at your resort.”

“I know, but next time you come boarding you can’t have it on.” I skied away, still wondering what the heck he was talking about.

In conclusion, Snow Summit and Bear Mountain Resorts are a good choice for skiers who find themselves in Los Angeles or San Diego. But they’re definitely not a Schweitzer or even a Mt. Spokane. Coverage was not perfect, and if you expect tree skiing, be disappointed. Bear Mountain makes up for many of Snow Summit’s weaknesses, but not one of the most important ones: service. Overall, if you are looking for a cheap place to take a few runs on a day off or on a business trip, this is a great choice. If you want a true “destination resort experience” with great snow, cool temperatures, a great park, and many of the things that Snow Summit/Big Bear are missing, you’re better off at Mammoth or Lake Tahoe.

After a Long Hiatus, Significant Snow Finally Returns to the Forecast

Finally, after one and a half months without significant snowfall, it
returns to the mountains. A series of strong Pacific storms are
forecasted to make their way into the inland northwest by Sunday
night. There's only one piece of bad news, however. The first in the
series of storms is Pineapple Express-fed. That means that the valleys
will see rain. Schweitzer Village is on the fringe of the rain-snow
line at 5,000 feet. Thus, we've just got to wait and see. If we all
think and pray for snow, not rain, maybe it'll work. Expect hazardous
weather outlooks and other watches and warnings to be issued later
today.

By the way, the 8-14 day outlook foresees a return to cool and wet
weather for the northwest – even the lowlands. And that means cold and
snow.

—
"Live. Dream. Snow."

Weather Forecast & Snow Report – 12/3

It’s December already? Where did the year go? 2008 has been a great year for Schweitzer and the ski industry as a whole; in the northwest we had record snowfall and skier visits have finally been on the rise, even amidst a deep recession for the country. We’ll recap the year in the coming weeks to recall all the awesome things that happened in 2008.

There’s finally good news on the weather front. Here’s a summary of everything that’s been going on there.
It has finally cooled down enough for Schweitzer to start snowmaking on a large scale; they’ve been making snow 24/7 in four areas: the Village plaza, the Musical Carpet/Never Ever Tow Learning Area, Happy Trails, and the base of the Quad.

If conditions allow and the resort is able to fire the snowguns 24/7, there is a possibility that they may be able to open one run – Happy Trails – and two chairlifts – Musical Chairs and the Musical Carpet on Saturday. Only the weather and safety will be able to determine that. If there is enough man-made snow to open, ski patrol deems it safe, and management believes it is viable, they will open. If they do, expect reduced-price lift tickets and limited food service.

The weather itself looks like it will turn extremely unsettled by the end of the week. The National Weather Service has issued a Hazardous Weather Outlook for the Northeast Washington mountains and the Idaho Panhandle. It calls for one to two feet of snow this weekend – with an even more powerful storm to follow Tuesday and Wednesday of next week. As there is still some uncertainty as to the track and other variables in this storm, a watch has not yet been issued, however you can likely expect one within the next couple days.

In even more news, the GFS ensembles (models used by meteorologists to forecast) are currently pointing toward an almost invariably white mid-range forecast – with a snowstorm almost every 36 hours for the next week or so – at least. It is too early to tell whether this will actually come to fruition, and in all likeliness it will not completely – but it is an encouraging step in the right direction as we all get ready to hit the slopes. However, at this point, do expect a wetter pattern to prevail for the next week.