The Road to Opening Day, Part 3 – Snowmaking

Snowmaking has begun at Schweitzer Mountain Resort. The recent snow “drought” has many managers anxious to open, and what better way to cure that anxiety than making snow. Schweitzer employees flipped the switch for the guns Tuesday morning, at a frigid 19 degrees. Snow is currently being made on the most (obviously) accessible run, Happy Trails. Let’s all hope for success and think snow!

The Road to Opening Day – Part 2

Okay, I know I’ve been absent for a bit, but now I’m getting back into this: snow is in the forecast! So today is part two of The Road to Opening Day. We’ll look at the fundamental change going on at Schweitzer: 2 New Lifts.

The two new lifts are named The Basin Express and The Lakeview Triple. The Basin Express is a high-speed quad that starts in the heart of Schweitzer Village near the Mill Building. That lift follows the old chair 7 line and will take you to a point just above the old MidWay Unload/Load station. It will only take a blazing fast 3.7 minutes. Then, you will have the option to ski down to the Stomping Grounds Terrain Park or other intermediate terrain or get on the Lakeview Triple and ride to the top. The Lakeview is Schweitzer’s first triple, and it will actually take 4.5 minutes to reach the top via the same line as Chair One.

Here are some pictures of the lifts under construction.

This is a shot of the Basin Express with a wonderful snowy Ridge Run in the Background.Here is a shot of crews assembling the lower station for the Basin Express.Ah, the bliss of the summit of Schweitzer Mountain. Wait – why is that patrol station so high?!

Hello, down there! A shot of the Top of the Lakeview Triple

The weirdest looking unloading station ever! A shot of the Basin Express.

All this happens over the summer. It’s so amazing. The lifts were manufactured by Doppelmayr CTEC in Salt Lake City, Utah. To visit their website and fantasize about a backyard T-Bar, go HERE.

The Road to Opening Day – Part 1

The snow is piling up in the mountains. The leaves are beginning to fall. The ski swaps are taking place. All these signs point to only one thing: skiing. Today we begin a new series – The Road to the Ski Season. Many things come together as we near Thanksgiving, Schweitzer’s hoped-for opening day. Join us as we evaluate everything it takes to open a ski resort for the winter.

Schweitzer is getting many improvements ready for prime time. Here’s a list of everything they’ve done over the summer, in one capacity or another.

• Two new chairlifts: the Basin Express High Speed Quad and the Lakeview Fixed Grip Triple.
• A remodel of the Lakeview Lodge, including a ground level patio and more seating space inside.
• New chairs on the Great Escape Quad.
• Trail improvements, including better on-mountain signage, better access and better runouts.
• The removal and replacement of Ski Check.
• A completely new logo and attitude.
• A roundabout as you begin to see the mountain on Schweitzer Mountain Road.
• Trappers’ Creek, and exclusive ski-in/ski-out home opportunity, to be completed for 2008-09.

We’ll break down each and every improvement that went on over the summer in subsequent postings, but for now, that is all.

UPDATE: Arapahoe Basin Ski Area in Colorado opened on Wednesday, their earliest opening ever. The race to be the first to open has finished, and A-Basin is the winner.