Okemo report 12/23 & 12/24

It was pretty good on the 23rd and 24th -- nearly every trail was open and they were all buffed smooth. Unfortunately heavy rains hits the night of the 24th, turning the mountain into slush, and wiping out at least half the snowpack. I did not bother with it on Christmas or the day after. Strangely there were very few people on the mountain either day I went.

If it freezes this week, the mountain is going to be dangerously icy unless they get some fresh snow. Slush can be sort of carved through (think spring corn snow) but after it crusts up overnight it is way too hard to get through, especially on steeper terrain.

The NYT had this a few weeks ago, and it's a nice piece.

http://travel2.nytimes.com/2005/12/02/travel/escapes/02gems.html?ex=1135832400&en=554492b496a287e3&ei=5070

Life is an uncertain and fleeting thing, so make sure you are doing the things you love with the people that matter in your life. The odds are good that if you are reading this blog, that you are in the aforementioned category.

See you guys on the weekend, hopefully under happier times.

Conde Naste spasms over Snowmass

http://www.concierge.com/bestof/ski

Also from the NYT

Ute Mountaineer in Aspen, Colo. By MARY BILLARD

Repeat visitors to Aspen love to stroll by the international temples of shopping - Prada, Ralph Lauren, Fendi - and reminisce about what beloved local institution "used to be" in that spot. In that setting, Ute Mountaineer, a one-stop shop for all things alpine, is a rare indigenous landmark.
The store treats the surrounding Rockies as a year-round romper room for adults, offering equipment for skiing, snowboarding, telemarking, mountain and ice climbing, snowshoeing, trail running, hiking. "Any nonmotorized sport," said Paul Perley, the store's general manager.
Sales people at the store are a good source for gossip about conditions in the Aspen backcountry. Many of them have either just hiked or skied a certain area, or their roommate did, or another customer will chime in with a report on the snow off piste. The store also gets updates from the Forest Service.
Employees, who radiate an annoying glow of vibrant health, are encouraged to check out new equipment and explore the area in the store's "Pay to Play" program. They receive $100 for any outdoor reconnaissance mission, once they write up notes for their coworkers. "We hire people that have a passion for the outdoors," Mr. Perley said. "They may not know every sport, but they are all gear hounds."
There is a lot of gear. When it opened on April Fool's Day in 1977, stock was limited, fleece was still called "pile" and Gore-Tex was barely known. After it moved to a site across from Wagner Park in 1980, it grew into two floors jam-packed with everything from avalanche equipment to detailed local hiking maps to altimeters to trail running shoes. There are now 20,000 items in inventory.
The current "must have" item is the Indigo G-String, which straps skis and boards to the backs of backcountry hikers ($25). It is perfect for tackling the Highland Bowl at Aspen Highlands, which requires a 30-minute hike up a razor's-edge ridge in order to ski a vertical drop of more than 1,500 feet. No way Prada is stocking it.
Ute Mountaineer, 308 South Mill Street, Aspen; (970) 925-2849; http://www.utemountaineer.com/. Open daily, 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. during the summer and winter seasons; 10 to 6 off season.

Every day is a Gift: Okemo Conditions over 12/16-12/18

Friday: we had 6-9 inches of fresh, heavy moisture content snow. The mountain was completely empty as the snow came down in 25F temps. About 40% of the mountain was open, but it was generally unplowed / ungroomed. It's tiring to ski through that thick stuff, but still kind of fun. I skiied for a few hours then came back home, utterly exhausted. Fellow PiLam, O'Donnel, arrived later that night with his friend Steve. We polished off a bottle of Goldschlager and a petit chateaux Bordeaux as he regaled us with "Tales of Weems Greatness", which was sometime during Reagan I, as best as historians can determine.

Saturday: The piste bashers had done their work overnight, grooming a good chunk of the mountain, and about 70% of the trails were open for business. Steve chose to don his ski gear for the day and it was very difficult to keep up with him; he is a fast and athletic skiier. I was only able to stay in his rear view mirror due to some local peculiarities. Intent on squeezing the most value out of the $69 lift passes they had bought (I am a season pass holder) we crammed a ridiculous amount of vertical into 4 hours on the 28F day. My legs resembled the rubbery spine of the French Officer Corps at the end of the day. On the way home, we got to meet our helpful neighbors who pulled me out of a snow gully with a truck & chain. Nice people, these flinty Vermonters. We gobbled down 5 lbs of steak and red wine afterwards, with some lame pretext of a spinach salad to lend a little green color to dinner.

Sunday: The weather warmed up a little bit this day -- it was about 31F and the conditions seemed to be getting faster as the snow lost some of its initial softness. Personally, having learned how to cruise on fast/hard snow, I am more comfortable with these sorts of conditions so I was happy. We continued to explore the rest of the main mountain and tried all the rest of the main runs off the center lift that we had missed on Saturday. Strangely the mountain was a little bit more crowded than the prior day, perhaps due to the $22 Sunday afternoon promotion for VT/NH residents. Still, there were hardly any people there. At this point, most of the mountain is open, which is remarkable for early season skiing, and it does not appear to be in danger of melting due to a warm spell. Every night they are blowing snow strategically on the high traffic trails, as well as steep icy pitches, so the next 10-14 days look very promising.

Every day is a Gift.

PS: Road conditions for Aspen are here http://apps.aspentimes.com/roads/

Rental Car Prices

I checked a few web sites for car rental prices. These prices are with taxes etc.

Aspen pickup 1/21 - 1/29

Full size $400
Small SUV $600
Regular SUV $800

Figure an extra $50 for gas for Aspen.

Vail pickup 1/21 - 1/28

Full size $250
Regular SUV $350
Mega SUV $550

Figure an extra $100 for gas for Vail pickup.

I'm thinking a full size car will be fine; we are not really doing any true local travel and there are plenty of taxis and shuttle buses there. Mostly this is for getting groceries etc. When we head into Aspen we should expect to pay $20 taxi tolls to get back to Snowmass if we stay out late partying. (I am budgeting for that a couple of nights)

-------

Late afternoon update : We've got a Trailblazer (or similar) on hold for us at the Alamo at Vail/Eagle which Waldo and I can pick up and bring to Aspen. We should be able to pick up the late arrivals at Aspen airport assuming all the weather is smooth for the drive over. We got a pretty good rate on the Blazer ($350 with taxes fees etc and including ski racks but not gas). With this I anticipate that we can pick up Doug and Alex at Aspen airport on the arrival day. We won't be able to get to Sardy in time for the SPAM arrival, but save your taxi receipt. So for those who still need to book your flights (Guano & Bagel) there would be some synergy in being able to get into Eagle airport by 10:30 on 1/21 and depart from there on 1/28 -- you would have a ride already lined up. Here is a detail sheet of what is in/out of Eagle

http://vail.snow.com/pb.gh.air.winter.asp

As if skiing in India was not weird enough

http://www.skidubai.ae/

SUV Subtraction

SUV Subtraction

In time for ski season, some rental-car companies are offering modestly sized special deals on SUVs.

Avis, for example, is offering a $50 discount and free ski racks on weekly rentals of SUVs (and $20 off the weekend rate), while Budget is offering up to $20 off on weekends, with free ski racks as well. Alamo has an online-only deal that cuts $50 off a weekly SUV rate and $15 off three-day weekend SUV rentals at cities including Aspen, Colo.; Bozeman, Mont. (near the Big Sky ski resort); and Sacramento, Calif., west of the Lake Tahoe ski area.

With the winter deals, some of the car companies are trying to entice customers to trade up to a higher-price vehicle: For the typical SUV, costs range roughly from $30 to $100 a day, compared with around half that for a compact car, analysts say. Few customers actually reserve SUVs, says Mike Kane of VRCG Inc., a consulting company in Southfield, Mich., so the up-selling is generally done through discounts and upgrades at the counter. SUV renters don't tend to be scared off by high fuel costs from the vehicles' low fuel efficiency, he adds.

-------------

Housekeeping notes

* The T-Shirts arrived - they look fine and all the sizes are correct
* I will look into rental cars ; I think we can get by with a small i.e. cheap one
* The final installment of $3500 was mailed to the Snowmass homeowner today (12/12)
* Please remit payment if you have not already done so

-------------

Completely unrelated, but John Tan pointed out this vital information about 80's icon, Mr T.

http://www.4q.cc/t/index.php?topthirty

Price of Vail lift ticket tops $80

Price of Vail lift ticket tops $80

Among elite ski resorts, higher prices are touted, not hidden
By Robert WellerThe Associated PressDecember 8, 2005DENVER — Businesses usually don’t trumpet having the highest price around, but in the ski business it’s become something to brag about.Vail Resorts announced Wednesday that the top lift ticket price at its Vail and Beaver Creek ski areas will be $81 a day — $3 more than Aspen, its nearby competitor for the high-end skier.“There is a certain cachet” to charging top dollar, Vail Resorts chief executive Adam Aron said.“Vail and Beaver Creek do have the highest lift ticket price in the United States. And yes, we’re actually — as opposed to hiding from that fact — we’re proud of that fact,” he said. “If the resort is capable of successfully charging the highest lift ticket prices in the country, that may be an indicator that it really is the best vacation experience.”Vail’s big-name competitors, from Mammoth Mountain in California to Stratton in Vermont, charge in the low $70s for a single-day peak season ticket. Idaho’s Sun Valley charges $69, while Jackson Hole in Wyoming charges $73. Smaller areas, like Loveland and Arapahoe Basin in Colorado, charge around $50 during peak season.At Aspen, which has had the highest single-day price in many previous seasons, executives said they were happy for Vail to have “the dubious honor” this year.“It can make your brand inaccessible to people,” said David Perry, Aspen vice president for marketing. Still, Perry acknowledged the top price does carry some prestige.“Ferrari is not ashamed to charge half a million dollars for one of their cars,” he noted.Stuart Rempel, vice president for marketing and sales at Canada’s Whistler-Blackcomb resort, said he was not surprised by Vail’s rate increase because the larger, more famous U.S. resorts have been raising prices. Utah’s Deer Valley, for example, this season raised its top rate from $71 to $74.“I think the reason we do significantly more visits than any other resort in North America is because of the value of the product we offer and the price we charge for it,” he said. The peak ticket price at the Canadian resort is the equivalent of $65 in U.S. dollars.Despite the rising price of single-day tickets, the ski industry nationwide has been in a discounting war since 1999, when some Colorado resorts cut season passes to as low as $300 from their standard rate of $800 or more.David Dillon, president of the trade organization Ski Vermont, said the season pass and multiticket deals mean few snowriders pay the full ticket window price. Tourists get lift tickets as part of a travel package or can seek out discounts elsewhere.“There is no reason to pay full walk-up rates for lift,” Perry said. “All you have to do is the tiniest bit of advance planning.”In any case, a lift ticket is only 20 percent to 30 percent of the total cost of a ski vacation, said Jerry Blann, president of the Jackson Hole resort.Aron predicted Vail and Beaver Creek will sell nearly 2.5 million lift tickets despite the high price.Ski analyst Will Marks of JMP Securities was skeptical that raising prices alone would do much for business, although if it would help anybody, it might be Vail, “due to the multimillionaire and billionaire clientele to which the resort caters,” he said.“Vail can justify [it] due to the quality of its mountain and the resort itself, and its traditional customer base,” he said.

Also check out:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10241318/from/RL.1/

Wacky stuff

Weird wacky stuff....skiing in India

http://www.paintedstork.com/photography/albums/auli/index.html

Okemo conditions (Dec 3 & 4)

Okemo was relatively desolate this weekend, as only the hardy skiiers ventured out for early season skiing. It was cold, roughly 25F each day, and they were blowing snow on a number of trails. There wasn't that much open, maybe 30 trails, because last weeks warm spell had wiped out the Thanksgiving weekends Alberta clipper dump. Still they did have some trails open for top to bottom cruising. Conditions were machine groomed large grain crystals. It seems like a good idea to sneak onto trails that have fresh blown snow on them...until you actually try going through the stuff which has the texture of mashed potatoes left out for a day...it has to be blown and then churned up to be useful. One thing about having the mountain to yourself -- you tend to ski way too fast, piling up 10,000 vertical an hour, and lapping the main lift if you fly. The problem is that skiing fast tends to put more strain on my whole body as more energy has to get absorbed by the muscles, joints and ligaments/tendons. My back stiffened up on the ride home.

Which sort of brings up the whole cost structure...skiing is expensive in the East because structurally all this stuff takes lots of energy and resources. For relatively few people one has to

run lifts (same cost no matter how few people are there)
maintain ski patrols and snowmobile emergency units
light and heat all the various mountain huts (ever multiplying too)
maintain a snowmaking pond
blow snow (lots of electricity/compressed air)
carry liability insurance
conduct advertising (somewhat discretionary admittedly)

I'm sure there's more when I think about it -- but I can't imagine any of these Eastern resorts are really making money in early season given these fixed costs. And this is still with with day passes clocking in north of $60 !

PS: I'd agree with most of this list, although I'm no expert.

http://away.com/skiing/ski_best_for.tcl?Top_Ski_Resorts_for_Expert&id=293365

Flying Straight to the Slopes

Flying Straight to the Slopes

By CONOR DOUGHERTY
Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
December 2, 2005; Page W9

This winter, skiers will be able to log more time on the slopes and less in the air. Even as airlines cut back routes elsewhere they're boosting service to several major ski resorts, including more nonstop and jet flights.

Jackson Hole Airport in Wyoming will have 144,000 seats on arriving planes this ski season, up 12% from a year earlier, while Montrose Regional Airport, which serves the Telluride Ski Resort in Colorado, has nonstop flights from six big metropolitan areas including New York (via Newark, N.J.) and Los Angeles, up from two in the 2000-2001 ski season. Yampa Valley Regional Airport, which serves Colorado's Steamboat Ski Resort, also increased flights, and technology will soon cut the required wait between plane landings to around two minutes from as long as 15 minutes.

Why the generous airline schedules? Many ski areas have subsidized service for years, because airlines have a hard time turning a profit flying to mountain airports, where inclement weather and short runways make flights tough. Telluride recently added a 2% sales tax on lodging and restaurants and uses it to subsidize air service, while Jackson Hole's business community pays from $800,000 to $1 million a year to carriers, including American Airlines and Delta Air Lines.

The resorts offer the airlines a revenue guarantee, in which the ski communities essentially pay for unfilled seats. As resorts have become better at predicting their passenger loads -- and thus spending less for unfilled seats -- they have been able to add new flights.

Some ski resorts, though, are a bit behind. Mammoth Mountain Ski Area in California still doesn't have commercial air service, so skiers like Kenn Bicknell, a San Francisco librarian, have to fly one hour to Los Angeles and then drive five hours to the resort. "If I could just jump on a plane, I could go the same morning I want to go skiing," he says. Mammoth says it plans to add air service from Los Angeles next year.

Okemo

So I went to Okemo over the weekend for a day. It was ok, kind of icy and mid winter cold. We had a half foot of fine, dry snow down in the valley, but the top had gotten wind scorched. The storm was one of the Arctic driven ones. However it has gotten way too warm this week, which will mess up the weekend...

Also I just added this new satellite image of the Okemo trail map, you can clearly see the addition of the Jackson Gore ridge, by zooming back and forth between levels. (The pictures
were taken at different times)

Satellite map of Okemo - play with this a little to get it to work_

Oi vay

Me and Guano took this lift a lot over the Easter holiday - glad it did not break down
on us.

------------

Canadian ski gondola breakdown strands 75 Page 1/2

LAKE LOUISE, Alberta, Nov. 28 (UPI) -- A breakdown of a gondola system at a ski
resort in Lake Louise, Alberta, stranded 75 people for as long as five hours in
frigid temperatures.
Rick Werner, operations manager at the resort in Banff National Park, said a
safety switch on the Grizzly Express gondola tripped at about 3 p.m. Sunday.
It took eight rescue teams until nearly 9 p.m. to get everyone down and take
them off the mountain by snowmobile or snow cat, the Canadian Broadcasting
Corp., reported. Crews used a pulley device to reach the cable cars and then
lowered people in harnesses to the ground.
It stranded about 75 children and adults along the resort's longest lift, which
stretches 9,500 feet from the resort's base to a mountaintop.
Temperatures had dipped to 21 degrees by early evening.
The resort promised a full investigation into the shutdown.

Shirts Ordered

Dear arvind,

Thank you for placing your order with CustomInk.com. Your guaranteed delivery date is on or before Friday, December 9, 2005. Below, please find an Order Confirmation for your records.

We will begin processing your order immediately. Because you used your own uploaded artwork in your design, we will require your approval of a final picture proof before your custom items go to print. An email with a link to the proof will be sent once your order has been processed, so be sure to check your email regularly to ensure that your order is not delayed.

At any time, you can track the progress of your order. Either click the tracking link provided in the Order Confirmation below or use the Track Your Order feature on our Welcome page. If you wish to make changes to your standard delivery order, please call 800.293.4232. CustomInk will happily accept such changes if submitted within 24 hours. Please note that for rush delivery orders, changes and cancellations are not possible.

We appreciate your business and look forward to serving you. Please feel free to contact us if we can be helpful in any way.

Thanks again.

-CustomInk.com
800.293.4232
service@customink.com

=====================================
CUSTOMINK ORDER CONFIRMATION

Order Tracking #: 227961
Track: Tracking Number

Design: aspenfinal
Date Placed: Wednesday, November 23, 2005

Delivery Date: On or before Friday, December 9, 2005

Item: Gildan 100% Cotton T - Natural

Decoration: Screenprinting, 1 color front, 4 color back

Quantity: M: 1, L: 3, XL: 5, XXL: 1; Total: 10

Subtotal: $200.30
Tax: $.00
Total Price: $200.30

Customer Contact Info:
arvind rao
Ph: 212 723 7881
Alt Ph: 212 723 7137

Shipping Address:
arvind rao
411 e. 57th st
2c
new york
NY 10022
US
Ph: 212 723 7881

Billing: Mastercard

Billing Address:
arvind k rao
411 e. 57th st
new york
NY 10022
US
Ph: 212 521 3110

--------------
Also, Sparky is no longer sure about attendance. We could still use another attendee, especially for the tail end of the week which is Jan 26 onwards, since the house will have an empty bed or two at that point.

SKI Magazine Rankings

#4 Snowmass

The big news is finally official: Construction of Snowmass's much needed and much contested new base village has begun. Since Snowmass opened in 1967 it has always been a world class hill and has always lacked a world class base village that would give the resort a clearly defined identity. Some locals are already criticizing the scope of the massive new village as being out of character for Snowmass. You can decide for yourself when its finished in 2011. More immediately, skiers, who grouse each year about too many old, slow lifts will be riding two new ones this winter. The Village Express six pack whips from Fanny Hill to Sam's Knob in less than 10 minutes. And in just two minutes, the Sky Cab gondola delivers you from the new Base Village - the first phase of which is scheduled to be opened next season - to the freshly refurbished Snowmass Village Mall. In truth Snowmass's nightlife tends to be unfairly disparaged (undoubtedly due to Aspen - queen of the night - holding court a few miles up valley). Snowmass's social options may be thin in number, but not in sophistication, as it offers both first class restaurants (Il Poggio, Butch's, Sage) and bars (Cirque, Zane's, Tower). Ultimately, though, Snowmass's biggest draw has always been its vast, varied mountain. In addition to the endless full throttle cruisers (Dallas Freeway, Green Cabin, Grey Wolf, Big Burn etc) for which Snowmass is adored (makes you feel like a better skier), there are knee quaking steeps in Hanging Valley and the Cirque. Snowmass is also home to one of the biggest terrain parks in America, a beginners version of the same, a ski by reindeer corral, a paintball arena, and enough other attractions to make you wonder if Disney has a stake in the place. (It doesn't, though Michael Eisner does own a house) Even with Snowmass ranked #4, many readers view it as underrated. If coming changes go as planned that may no longer be the case. -- Jay Cowan (SKI magazine OCT 2005)

#8 Aspen

The glitzy town of Aspen has become such an icon that the mountain itself tends to be chronically underappreciated. Having the coolest ski town at your base can do that to a hill. Still, while its relatively small compared to such leviathons such as Vail and Whistler, Aspen(technically Ajax mountain) skis huge, especially when you link multiple pitches top to bottom, follow locals to the best stashes (such as Trainor Ridge) and throw in a backside romp (Midnight Mine to a waiting taxi). There are many reasons why a lot of great, world savvy skiers think Aspen is still the best. If, after truly exploring all of this big little mountain, you're somehow still feeling underwhelmed (congested, poor egress, nasty and dangerous funneling) you could always kick off your skis and head to town. And what a town. Ranked #2 in Off Hill Activities, it offers enough diversions on any given day to make you beg for a nap. Paragliding, hot-air balooning, mine tours, the X games, a troupe from the Cirque du Soleil, world class restaurants, posh boutiques and some of America's highest rated hotels (Little Nell, St Regis, Jerome...Aspen has it all) Which means you can catch acts as diverse as Widespread Panic, the New York String Quartet or the Shakespeare Theater Company of Washington. Many readers call it the ultimate ski town not to mention the a great place to meet a millionaire. So with Aspen crushing the competition in Dining and Apres Ski (both #1) and earning a #4 in Lodging, it's easy to see why Ajax Mountain sometimes gets overlooked, especially with three other eminently skiable mountains in the valley. The upside:Even if you don't mesh with the old-school challenge of Ajax, you can still find terrain to suit your style. It's in the smaller, simpler things where visitors find Aspen lacking. There's no good place with a band to have a post run beer one reader complains. Holy Swank Town too pretentious another insists. And nearly everyone identifies with the reader who peg's Aspen's main weakness as my bank account. In the end however, you live the high life when you're there because it's Aspen. -- J.C. (SKI OCT 2005)

Shirt Sizes

We are having trip t-shirts made up again. Here are the sizes I was planning on ordering. The design will be different but the sizes are the same as we had last year. If your shirt last year did not fit right, please let me know and we can get you a different size.

Arv XL
David XL
Sean XXL
Guano XL
Doug M
Rajiv XL
Yuji L
Chris XL
Sparky L
Alex L

Here is our shirt design,

http://customink.com/cink/r.jsp?E=arvind1.rao%40citigroup.com&F=aspen2

The flight info thread has been updated for everyone's flight details. A few other various threads have also been updated for current information. If you know your travel details, please advise so that possible convoys, taxi pools, or car rentals can be arranged.

Plant

PS: The NY Times had an article about Kitzbuehl on Sunday.

http://travel2.nytimes.com/2005/11/13/travel/13hahnenkamm.html

Early season skiing

In case any of you are trying to get in some skiing before the big trip, here are some places reputed to have good early season skiing.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9995348/

Plant

Travel Details

Ok, now that we have finalized the destination and timing, let's go over various transportation issues.

Trip : Aspen / Snowmass
Dates : Saturday, Jan 21 - Sunday Jan 29

There are 3 main ways to get to Aspen / Snowmass

1) Fly in to Denver and shuttle/rental car drive over. Denver is served by United mostly, and some other carriers. It is pretty easy to use Frequent Flyer miles to get into Denver. The drive to Aspen is 220 miles and about 4-5 hours. It requires going over the continental divide and is reputed to be a tough drive. Shuttles are $108, probably less for a big group. This is probably Bruha's best option if he can fly direct from Europe into Denver. Others may want to join him here and convoy over, possibly in a rental or shuttle.

2) Fly in to Eagle / Vail and shuttle/rental car drive over. This is well served by the non United group of carriers and is a 757 jet capable field. It is is mostly an all weather field, but not 100% all weather. Currently you can use American miles to get in there, but I'm not sure the status with other carriers. It gets pricey as the season goes on to fly here. The drive to Aspen is 150 miles and about 2 hours. It is reputed to be an easy valley drive. Shuttles are $53 or so. For those who can fly direct to Eagle (DFW, ORD, LGA, EWR, MPL, etc) this is a very good option. For certain structural reasons (DIA bond payments) this can be a good deal, if booked before snowfall. I am going to fly in to here on a direct flight from LGA, returning to EWR. I have not booked shuttles / rentals yet until we come to some kind of consensus decision on that.

3) Fly in to Sandy/Pitkin in Aspen (possibly by way of Denver) and taxi over. This is served by a few carriers, probably mostly United. This airport is a turboprop/puddle jumper airport and can have significant weather issues. I don't know the exact cancellation rate, but have heard numerous anecdotal accounts of reroutings. I do not know how easy/difficult it is to use miles to travel here, but would expect that it would be hard unless you were a United premium passenger or something. The drive into town or Snowmass is about 5 miles and is a quick taxi ride. For those on the West Coast, there may even be some direct flights into this airfield, which would be worth the effort. If one flew in here, just taxi over to whatever house we rent or someone will come by and pick you up (if possible).

Anyways, start thinking about those, and consider using miles if possible. Realize using miles will either require early planning or using up 50,000 or so.

Plant

PS: I would be more leary of flying Delta than I was before....to wit:

NEW YORK, Nov. 15 (UPI) -- A decision by pilots of Atlanta-based Delta AirLines to strike, if a bankruptcy court abrogates their contract, could kill thecarrier, the carrier says.A bankruptcy court was set to rule Wednesday on Delta's request to end itspilots' contract and impose $325 million in concessions on the 6,000 pilots,TheStreet.com reported Tuesday.The company's characterization of a potential pilots strike as "murder-suicide"came after the Air Line Pilots Association raised the prospect of a strike --if the court rejects their contract.The nation's third-largest carrier filed for bankruptcy in September, after the ALPA gave management about $1 billion in concessions.

Finances

I will be having to send $3000 to the home owner next week to hold the house. Over the years, experience has taught me the wisdom of collecting money from attendees up front so I don't chase people for monies for the next 6.9 months. Accordingly, I'll be needing checks from people.
We do not have a precise handle on what the trip is going cost, at least from a collective sense. Last year we spend $5412 as a group, and it'll definitely be higher this year, due to increased lodging costs. Last year we collected $675 per person, and I'm assuming most of us spent around $1400 for the full week with airfare, lift tickets, and other various expenses included. $200/day is my usual cost estimate/guidance for skiing the Rockies in any case. (Europe tends to be an extra $100/day, with the Northeast tending to cost $100/day less).

I believe we will have 8 shares in the house (with 7 full ones) and (hopefully) Yuji/Doug splitting the week.

Plant
Bru
Spam
Waldo
Bagel
Guano
Alex
Doug/Yuji (mid week switchy switchy)

Here is my estimate of forecast expenses

housing 6000
car & gas 1000 (I am hoping this is less)
shirts 200
provisions 800 (we underestimated this last year)
------
$8000

At 8 shares, that works out to be $1000/person. The half share persons would be liable for $500. If we have more/less people attend I will make adjustments to make the number fair for everyone. Apparently the house is capped at 9 persons for short term rentals so I hope we are not oversubscribed.

If for some reason you are forced to pull out after signing up, we will make "best efforts" to find a replacement but can only reallocate the variable expenses (car, shirts, provisions) to the rest of the group. I can provide a letter to anyone whose employer forces a cancellation, so that you can attempt to get reimbursed.

As is our custom, room/bedding rap will be offered in order of payment so please remit monies to

Arvind Rao
411 E.57th St
Apt 2C
New York, NY 10022

I will advise upon receipt, and in what order they come in.

Thank you.

Plant

Some positive news and a property we should consider (now booked!)

Here's the update from today...

I spoke with an absentee owner in Columbus*, OH who seems to have a pretty good house that would meet our needs. They rent it out relatively infrequently, mostly just to cover fixed costs, which is the situation we're looking for. [That type of owner tends to have higher quality furnishings and more generic "stuff" than places that are essentially income properties. The place we stayed in Grand Targhee -- while very nice -- was clearly an income producer and not a place the owners really visited as you could tell from the pathetic kitchen accoutrements that did not befit a million dollar home.]

* He claimed not to know "Drug" Cohen or Senor Eskimobar

Anyways, I digress. Here's the details of the place that's available for our time frame.

Location

The home is in the "Ridge Run" sector of Snowmass. There are numerous pockets in this area, as you can see from the map in my prior post. It's about 12 minutes from the Aspen airport, which the owner recommended people fly in to if they can. It's close to a shuttle bus stop, but the owner recommended driving to the bus stop to lug the gear. We would be about 20 minutes from the town of Aspen and the 3 other ski areas there, but obviously super close to Snowmass. Snowmass is where the larger homes as well as ski in/ski out properties are.

Bedding:

The home has 4 bedrooms, 3 baths, and at least 7 beds. One of the beds can be turned into two twins, in addition. It's pretty big too, about 3800 sq. feet. The main feature is a massive 3 story stone fireplace (that weighs an astonishing 120 tons) along with a rec room. As far as I can tell, the place seems big enough that if we have extra folks show up (I'm budgeting / assuming we have 6-8 people) those people can crash on couches or use the extra bedding. As usual, room rap will be decided by order of payment ... and consumption of gin.

Terms & Conditions

The house is a good deal for the region and quality it represents at $750 per night. That includes taxes and cleaning -- most other rates I've seen sneak those on in the end. In addition, there is a midweek cleaning, which given our slovenliness, is going to be most welcome. Given that the owners are not real investment managers, we can probably buy an extra day stay, if there is sufficient group interest. If we have 8 official people like last year, it will be approx $650/person in lodging costs. If extra folks show up, clearly that drops, but that cost is manageable even without extra folk. They have a handyman on call if something breaks as well as a plowing service to deal with the driveway and walks. (That is something I've found some owners haven't really thought through, so it's good that these are all set up). Terms are 50% upfront to hold the place, with a $500 damage deposit, and a 7 day min. rental with full payment required 60 days prior. Those are standard for owner direct rentals.

I am hoping, although this may be naive, that we can exist with either no rental car, or a much smaller one. (We spent $1338 on the truck and associated expenses last year, and it was a terrible value. Our comparable cost for a similar vehicle at Vail was $900, which was still too high, I think)

The owners son in law made a web site www.snowmasshome.com/index.htm and it does a pretty good job covering the details. Please take a look at it, and hopefully we can discuss later this week. I've looked at a number of places over the internet in the last several days and I'm pleasantly surprised by this. I had kind of given up hope on a quality owner direct rental.

Frask,

Plant

PS: Bruha has booked his airline tix ; he is flying into Denver direct from LHR on Brit Air, arriving Friday, Jan 20 and departing Sunday, Jan 29. Some of you may want to convoy with him.

PPS: Also, Okemo up in Vermont has 6-18 in of snow covering the mountain already and is opening up next weekend, which seems extraordinarily early.

Communique from Home Owner

Hi Arvand. Thanks for your email this morning.

To Confirm:
The date starting January 21, 2006 and ending January 29, 2006 - 8 nights @ 750.00 per night.

Number in your party is 8, with 9 maximum.

50% is due to reserve. The last 50% plus a refundable $500. damage deposit is due 60 days before arrival. Send to John Breen, 886 Clayton Drive, Worthington, Ohio 43085.

I have a full packet of information for you on the house, phone numbers to call in case of need plus a map. I'll also enclose keys to our home and will send these on receipt of the final payment. I'll send the packet to the address shown on your email unless you tell me otherwise.

Our home management service will have everything ready for you when you arrive. The snow removal service functions automatically after a 4 inch or so snowfall. Midweek maid service is included.

Our Worthington phone: 614/885-1273 (until we leave for Snowmass November 18th)

My cell phone works anywhere: 614/619-7111

Snowmass home phone: 970/923-5897

Snowmass opens on Thanksgiving and I'll get a couple of trail maps and send them to you. I'm sure that you'll love what you see.

If you have any questions, give me a call.

John and Jan Breen

Property Search so Far

Today, I went throught the VRBO website and emailed owners of the 5 Snowmass properties that looked vaguely interesting. We'll see what they come back with. Most of them don't look that great though.

In addition I reviewed the Aspen Times newspaper but nothing there really stuck out. I don't think we really care about the $10,000 Xmas week special offers.

I spoke with one national rental chain company, which was totally worthless. Their web site was counterproductive, and their 800 number call center staffers (which their web site steered everyone towards) was unable to answer basic questions like 1. is the property available or 2. what is the number of beds . They wanted to take your information and "get back to you". That appears to be sheer agency brokerage, and if we wanted a middling experience, we could stay at some Ramada picked out by 1 800 6969 6969 too.

Afterwards, I checked 3-4 real estate agent web sites out and the level of property quality appeared higher on them, with correspondingly higher prices, since one is paying a fee embedded in the rate, and that agent is keeping that rental rate in line with demand. This may end up being the route we choose to get a good place.

[ Often rentals by owners are not "marked to market" as owners simply decide they want to rent out their place to get some fixed dollar amount of money to cover property taxes or other fixed costs. That is how we got such good deals on the places at Vail and Sun Valley by the way. My rental in Tahoe was not such a good deal though ! ]

Lastly, I left an indication of interest on Bloomberg. I have to think there are some folks out there who have homes they simply don't rent out but if someone shook the tree a little, something might fall out. I have had success before with WTB or WTSublet ads before, especially with unusual items.

As progress happens, we will keep you posted.

RentalPlant

Courcheval : A place OD, Bruha and I visited (until OD was declared persona non grata by the local gendarmes)

September 25, 2005
Lots of Choices, Lots of Room on French Slopes
By BILL PENNINGTON
THERE was something missing.

Maybe it was the view, shrouded by a brief snow squall that would promise good snow cover in every direction. Maybe it was the other people in the gondola, because there weren't any. Maybe it was the lack of obtrusive boundary warnings or glaring trail indicators in the vast swath of snow below. Instead, there was just a wide open welcome.

Ascending the Saulire lift nearly 3,000 feet above the Courchevel ski resort, there comes a moment when you realize what it is that's missing from your trip to this centerpiece of the Trois-Vallées (three valleys) region of the French Alps.

It's the pressure to make the right choice.

Which trail? Come now, there are 360 miles of trails in the three valleys.

Where to find the secret stash of off-piste skiing and riding? There are more than 28,000 acres available, too immense to be anyone's secret.

Which lift avoids the crowds? There are more than 180 lifts in a network serving terrain that is more than three times larger than the biggest North American resorts. Crowds, such as they are, scatter.

Where to stay? With five distinct villages, there is no single best location. The Courchevel villages are separated by elevation and economics, providing hotels for every budget taste.

Where to eat? You must be kidding. The nearest ski lodge cafeteria with chicken fingers is probably in Maine. Superb restaurants rise between the mountain peaks like epicurean mirages. Sixty more dining options grace the village streets.

No, standing atop any of the peaks surrounding Courchevel - Italy over one shoulder and Switzerland over the other - the calm that envelops you is the understanding that there is no stress to choose wisely.

The choices are everywhere. All may not be equal, but you will not be burdened long for any improvident decision. The next best choice is right around the corner.

This has something to do with the sheer size of Courchevel and the vast Trois-Vallées area, in the Savoie region of southeastern France. The Trois-Vallées is home to one of the largest ski lift and trail networks in the world. On a routine ski day in Courchevel, you head over one mountain, perhaps crest another, and then barrel your way into the valley of yet another, different resort. It will likely be five to six hours before you head back to your home base.

Of course, that's your choice. You can also step out of one of the dozens of hotels with access to the slopes and almost never lose sight of your room's balcony. The mountain and lift network right out your door will be roughly the size of an average Eastern ski area in the United States.

Courchevel's variety applies not just to its skiing and riding. One of the things that separates Courchevel from other resorts is that it has built its villages at various elevations - on striking, stepped plateaus. The villages are named for their elevation in meters, and each has characteristic differences. The pace of life seems to quicken with the altitude.

Courchevel 1300, also known as Le Praz, is small, quaint and quiet, attracting many families. At Courchevel 1650, there are more storefronts, bars and a greater variety of quality hotels, with more middle-income vacationing couples and small families. At the top of the spectrum, in every way, is Courchevel 1850, a stylish, woodsy enclave of pricey shops, haute cuisine and chic gathering spots.

Still, at any elevation - a simple family hotel at Courchevel 1300 or an exquisite chalet of 10 suites at Courchevel 1850 - you can hop on a gondola that serves all the same skiing or riding terrain. The villages are also linked by road and a bus system.

Everyone is connected and independent at the same time, from budget-minded travelers to European celebrities, although keeping within your budget will be a challenge - the charge for most goods and services is steep. This is especially true at Courchevel 1850, a mecca for the Paris jet set, who fly directly to an adjacent, small village airfield for private planes. They are drawn to the spas and to narrow streets that offer an old-world, yet privileged, shopping experience. In Courchevel 1850, places like Aspen are not considered competitive rivals.

As Eric Tournier, one of Courchevel's prominent hotel and restaurant owners, said: "Tell me another place in the world that can match our skiing terrain in dimension and variety, that has the quality of food in our restaurants and the depth of upscale private hotels? There is no such place."

Mr. Tournier did not even mention the discos that pulse until the wee hours.

In fact, it was the late night crowd that made my visit to Courchevel particularly pleasant last winter. Not that I danced with them. While they slept the next morning, I was out on the ski slopes.

Unlike most American winter vacationers, who tend to be early risers, the skiers and snowboarders in the French Alps tend to wander out to the slopes around 11. My wife, three children and I felt odd charging through our hotel lobby just after 8:30 a.m., skis in tow, especially since all our fellow guests were leisurely reading newspapers or finishing sumptuous breakfasts.

But there was a payoff for our fervor - endless choices. We could ski anywhere unimpeded.

There is so much to choose from, however, that we knew we would need an instructor as a guide on the first day. My wife, Joyce, and our 6-year-old son, Jack, stayed close to our lodging in Courchevel 1650, the Hotel Portetta, where an inviting sun deck borders some of the gentler terrain.

I took the more adventurous tour with my two teenage daughters and Philippe Mugnier, a lifelong Courchevel resident, ski teacher and town councilman. Mr. Mugnier wasted no time whisking us to the highest peak overlooking the Courchevel valley. It meant riding five lifts with rapid descents in between, but the snow on trails like Aiguille du Fruit and Vizelle was comfortable, mostly soft packed powder with a top dressing of new snow. More important was the freedom to roam on most trails, which were more like guideline paths in a broad snowfield rather than alleys confined by trees, ropes or cliffs.

I don't know which was more exhilarating - the freedom, the conditions or the fact that it seemed as if we were the only people awake and on skis - but we raced from lift to lift. Once we reached the top, we pointed our skis over the crest away from Courchevel and dropped into some deep powder runs toward the village of Méribel, where the 1992 Winter Olympics women's alpine skiing events were held. It was more than 1,000 yards down to Méribel, and the snow depth meant a slower pace.

We stopped for a quick snack of cured meats like ham and dry sausages and a local cheese, Beaufort. With delicious coffee to linger over, we might have eaten more, but Mr. Mugnier suggested that we stay less than sated. We were heading over another peak, and into the next valley.

Farther west are the villages of Val Thorens and Les Menuires, excellent starting points for off-piste and backcountry skiing, although again, guides are recommended because of the danger of avalanches, and we did not venture too much beyond the traditional trail map. Eventually we worked our way back toward Courchevel, and, stopping near a helipad at the base of the Suisses trail, clicked out of our skis outside Le Cap Horn, a large chalet-style restaurant with a wooden sun deck larger than would be found on an ocean liner. Inside there was white linen on the tables, waiters in tuxedos and music accompaniment.

In the Trois-Vallées, there are no midmountain cafeterias, the familiar midday stop for North American skiers. There are no places to stop for a quick bite to eat. Fast food would be considered a homemade crepe of your own design. In the French Alps, luncheon reservations, which the average American skier might find a bit of a nuisance, are a near necessity for on-mountain dining. But take a seat for lunch at one of several French mountain retreats like Le Cap Horn, and it will all seem worth it.

The seafood buffet was varied, fresh and inventive, the steak tartar uniquely seasoned and the desserts so rich that afterward, serious skiing was out of the question.

Back outside, we traversed the last few hundred yards slowly and happily.

There was still time to join Joyce and Jack, who had had their own full day of skiing, on the Hotel Portetta sun deck with a bottle of local Savoie wine.

Subsequent days were similar although we made more time to amble through the villages. We learned to spot groups of instructors getting off duty, and to follow them into restaurants.

There was also time for sledding on a specially built 1.25-mile sled track that runs from Courchevel 1850 to the village at Courchevel 1550. This doesn't remind you of the Flexible Flyer dash down the hill in your local town park; it has switchback turns.

Day by day, though, there was less zeal for speed. There was no getting away from the plentiful skiing prospects, but you can only pass so many people lounging in the hotel lobby by morning or sunning themselves in the afternoon without wondering what they know that you do not.

Were we missing something?

Under no particular pressure, we made a decision. Mornings were still for skiing - somebody had to put all that good snow to use. Afternoons were for the sun deck.

Or, we could do it the other way around. Why choose?

Current Voting for the 06 Ski Trip

Ski Area Voting A/S T/P BS/TBM

Totals: 20 14 14

Yuji 3 1 2
Sparky 3 1 2
Plant 3 2 1
Bruha 3 2 1
Bagel 3 1 2
SPAM 2 1 3
OD 2 3 1
Waldo 1 3 2
Keith
Guano

Each first place vote got 3 pts, second place 2 pts, and third place vote 1 pt.
Highest pt total indicates most popular choice.

A/S = Aspen / Snowmass
T/P = Telluride / Purgatory
BS/TBM = Big Sky / The Big Mountain

It would appear that Aspen / Snowmass is the winner, although we have not heard
yet officially from Guano. Keith was still thinking about attending, but probably only
if it was Aspen / Snowmass. (I didn't put down a vote for that, btw)

Only one person had A / S down as a last choice, but I'm hoping that it is still a desirable
place to visit, and that no one is grossly disatisfied. If we are all in consensus that Aspen / Snowmass
is the lucky recipient of our traveling dollars, we would not need the extra midweek travel day.
That would make the trip from Jan 21 - Jan 29 officially.

Plant

PS: It appears the blog destroyed my formatting on the voting -- hopefully its somewhat intelligble even without being in nice collumns

Jesse's input

Plant -

I eagerly look forward to sharpening my edges and attending the annual Pi
Lam Ski Bacchanal! I've not been to any of the three resorts under
consideration, and my preferences would echo Yuji's and Bagel's. Aspen is
particularly high on my list. One caveat to my participation is that my
work schedule is still undetermined for late January, but as we get closer
to hitting the "launch" button I should hopefully have a better idea.

Cheers - Sparky

Yuji and Consensus Decision Making

Arvind,

Thank you for the message. I'm back in school again, this time for
Masters in Health Administration. I'm working full time, and taking
classes part-time. This is likely going to affect my plans for skiing
this year. I would still like to try to make part of it, though.

My preference, with all things considered, is same as Bagel's:

1. Aspen/Snowmass
2. Big Sky/ Big Mountain
3. Telluride / Purgatory

I think I will have the best chance to make it to Aspen/Snowmass area
(or other resort in that area). If we end up going to either of the
other two, I will have to decide on which half to go based on the
transportation standpoint. Since I will not be able to make it to the
full trip, I wouldn't want to influence the decision too much; they
all seems to me like great places to go, and I will be happy if I can
make it to any part of the trip.

Please keep me in the loop on the planning process. I don't have the
class schedule for the spring semester yet, but the semester starts
1/17/2006. I'll keep you posted on my schedule as I find out more.

-Yuji

OD's Pronouncement

Musings
Yo,
Telluride
Aspen/Snowmass
Big Sky

I've been to all, they are all awesome for skiing. Aspen is head and shoulders above all the others for nightlife, eating,
shopping, keeping
non/skiing women occupied, looking at women, spending money.

I would think Aspen/Snowmass would be best for a vacation at a ski resort, where hard core skier/riders can still get extreme
action. Telluride
and Big Sky are for the hard core snow freaks, who want new terraine and to get away from anyone who is not about the snow. At
these places, it is not about "vacation" like talked about at the typical office coffee machine ... it is about remote nature and
hiting the slopes.

All would be great, but Aspen/Snowmass would appeal to a wider crowd.

- OD

Monsieur Aubergine's Thoughts

All these places are reputed to be awesome and worth a trip, at one point or another, by our group in my mind. It's just a question of what tradeoffs we want to make today.

Here are some facets of each prospective trip in this order

1. Housing
2. Town / Entertainment
3. Skiing
4. Travel

Aspen / Snowmass

• We would probably have/want to stay in Snowmass, which is about 15-20 minutes from the town of Aspen, and has a free shuttle route. The majority of the large rental homes are over there, and are typically ski in and ski out. Homes rentals at Snowmass are comparable in cost to Vail.
• Aspen's housing stock is more hotels & condos, which I don't think will be large enough for our group. The town has a shockingly large number of bars, restaurants, and shops of national reputation. Entertainment would be easy to find, with mischief not far behind. For nightlife, Aspen / Snowmass is going to offer more than the other venues.
• Presumably folks would ski half the time at Snowmass and the rest of the time sample Aspen, Aspen Highlands, or Buttermilk. Those areas are in the town of Aspen proper, and the first two are considered good for experts. Snowmass is compared to the front side of Vail in skiing style. As a practical matter, most of the group will be able to at least navigate themselves around Aspen Mtn adequately (there are no green trails on the main mountain) although no one will accuse us, collectively, as being ballerinas on Volkls.
• For traveling, the main ways to get there would be either fly to Denver and drive/fly to Pitkin Field or fly to Eagle and then drive over. Sandy is not an all weather field but for those who are in the West or have United Airlines as a preference, that could possibly work. For those who would like to fly to Eagle (where we went for Vail) we'd have about a 1.5 hour drive or so, although its not a hard drive according to reports. Driving from Denver is a pretty healthy 4-6 hours that requires going over the Continental Divide. For those who favor American Airlines, Eagle is well served. There are also lots of shuttle companies who are serving these airports (unlike at Sun Valley). It may be possible to live without a rental car/truck if we did Aspen / Snowmass.

Telluride / Purgatory

• This would be a bi-phase trip like what we did last year; these two destinations are often combined by ski safari groups. For Telluride, we'd probably have to stay in town and take the gondola up the mountain each day. There is housing on the mountain, but I don't think we'd be able to get as big of a place as we'll want unless we go down into town. Costs are similar to Vail for homes. Purgatory is a 2 hr morning drive from Telluride and would leave lots of time for a little midweek sight seeing. There is some on mountain lodging on Purgatory, which would be the preference, rather than staying in Durango, since its 20-30 min from the mountain. Purgatory rental prices are reasonable, somewhat akin to Targhee's in my estimate. If we could swing it, being on mountain would be awesome.
• I don't know much about the towns of Telluride or Durango. Telluride probably has some nightlife and quality bars/restaurants. Durango is probably less so, probably like wherever we stayed in Idaho. Telluride is known for a being a glitzy place so there is probably a base of business that can accomodate the weekend Gulfstream IV coterie. Supposedly there are no stoplights or fast food in Telluride.
• Anecdotally, I've heard Telluride is pretty steep and exciting for experts. And although the trail map may not have as much as cruising as Sun Valley had, it looks like there is plenty of terrain for all abilities. It's a big place but probably just about right for 3 days. Purgatory is reputed to be more set up for cruising, but it's so hard to get to that I've only met one person ever who's been there. It's also a big place but just about right for 3 days of skiing. I'd guess both places are about the size of Grand Targhee if we had to mentally visualize them. Again, I'd bet everyone in our group would find terrain they would enjoy.
• From a transportation perspective, T/P would be a ski safari style trip. We'd need a rental truck and we'd probably require everyone fly in to Montrose, Colorado via American. I guess other airports are possible (Eagle / Denver) but the driving in the San Juan range of Colorado is supposedly hairy. Montrose, probably via American/DFW, though seems pretty straight forward. This would require a trip starting on Sat, Jan 21 and returning Sun, Jan 29 though since we'd have a travel day on mid week on Wednesday. It's possible, and we'd have to really check the details, but we might be able squeeze in a day at Crested Butte.

Big Sky / The Big Mountain

• Again this would be a ski safari style trip requiring the extra day for travel. It looks like there are a healthy number of reasonably priced homes at Big Sky. The Big Mountain seems to have somewhat smaller housing stock, possibly pushing us into Whitefish. Our preference would be to stay ski on/off at both of these places but it may not be possible or vital. Cost wise, these lodging options would be less than the Colorado places in all likelihood. Our main issue, as it is each year, is finding rental houses which have 6-8 beds, which is not as easy as you would think.
• The nightlife situation in both of these Montana resorts would be limited. I would guess that we could probably find some kind of locals bar/restaurant, but that we would be entertaining ourselves more with Bing! Wang! sessions. While it's kind of nice to have a Whistler or Vail village nightlife around, my view is that having the group together is plenty of amusement to start with...
• The skiing at both Big Sky and The Big Mountain is pretty massive. Both are vast places that will easily keep the group amused for 3 days each. Big Sky is more like Jackson or Snowbird in that it has extreme steeps (You Fall - You Die zones) but lots of other stuff all over the mountain. TBM is more normal cruising oriented, perhaps something like Sugarloaf. The snow here is regarded as being particularly dry and fluffy. Both Montana areas have some rep for fog and other inclement issues, but are famously uncrowded.
• Getting to this part of the world is hard for most of us -- there is no candy coating that. The resorts themselves are 369 miles apart, which means a long 7 hour drive on the travel day, and the region is basically served only by Northwest or its affiliates. That ensures some monopoly pricing as well as bad scheduling. The main airports would be Kalispell or Bozeman. Relatively, this would require more travel time, at higher prices. I don't know Northwest is going to handle their ongoing bankruptcy situation, but so far they have been doing ok, with some flight cut backs, but mostly out of their hubs. I assume these route ares the ones where they can make money. It would be tricky to actually acquire these airfares either cheap or with frequent flyer miles, unfortunately.

All these places are pretty cool in my mind for a trip, and I would not mind going to any of them with the group we've put together. We'll take a straw poll sometime in the next week or so, but my vote would be

1. Aspen / Snowmass
2. Telluride / Purgatory
3. Big Sky / Big Mountain

I hope some other folks will chime in with discussion points, queries, rankings or even haiku.

Plant

Ski Areas Fill Up Early For the Holidays

Ski Areas Fill Up Early
For the Holidays

Bookings Jump After Resorts
Offer Big Advance Discounts;
Adding Rooms at Big Sky
By AVERY JOHNSON
Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
October 11, 2005; Page D1

While most ski areas now have barely a dusting of snow, some resorts are already booking up for the winter holidays.

Enticed by special discounts and because of the quirks of this year's holiday calendar, travelers are filling up resorts much earlier than in prior seasons. Winter reservations at Jackson Hole, Wyo., are up 41% this year compared with this time last year, according to Jackson Hole Central Reservations. Much of Utah, which continues to benefit from the buzz generated by the 2002 Winter Olympics and last year's epic snow fall, is quickly selling out; Reservations at Deer Valley Lodging, which manages property at the Deer Valley Resort, are up 14% from this time last year for the winter overall, and up 30% for the month of December. The Lake Tahoe, Calif., area is predicting a 18% increase in the number of nights booked in local hotels this winter over last, according to the Lake Tahoe Visitor's Authority.


Early snow at Aspen


Much of the bottleneck is due to the resorts' own making. After the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, advance bookings plummeted, and resorts found they had little way to predict whether skiers would show up for a weekend or not. Over the last couple of years, in an attempt to entice vacationers to commit early, some started to aggressively discount advance packages. This season, the specials, most of which expire at the end of this month, have spread to many more resorts. Because of concerns that gasoline prices may spook last-minute travelers, many resorts have thrown extra energy behind these incentives to lock in vacationers early.

This year's availability crunch is also exacerbated by the fact that both Christmas and New Year's fall on weekend days. This squeezes the options for vacation time. Also, this year, Jackson Hole, Breckenridge, Colo., and Alta, Utah, among others, have already received early-season snow. While most mountains don't open until at least November, the news is likely to excite skiers and speed bookings further.

The Mountain Travel Research Project, or MTRiP, which tracks the ski industry, found bookings at major Western ski resorts up 6.6% from where they were on Sept. 30 of last year.

According to the National Ski Areas Association, which has tracked ticket sales since 1978, four out of the last five winter seasons have been record setters for the ski industry in terms of numbers of tickets sold. The 2003-2003 season set a record of 57.6 million tickets. Last year the number dipped to 56.9 million, largely because of poor weather in the Pacific Northwest.

NO ROOM AT THE CHALET


Ski resorts across the country are filling up for key dates more quickly than usual. See a graphic of what resorts around the country are seeing.Ira Kitograd, a 41-year-old residential contractor in Orlando, Fla., who has taken his family on a ski vacation between Christmas and New Year's for the past six years, called the St. Regis Resort, Aspen in August only to find them completely sold out for the holiday week. That is a big contrast with last Christmas, when he stayed there using hotel reward points without much hassle. "It's much more difficult to find availability than when I started doing this," he says. Regarding Mr. Kitograd's experience, Rob Henderson, the property's director of sales and marketing, says the resort has been booking up more briskly this year, due to the popularity of luxury travel and a recent $40 million renovation.

The ski industry's fortunes reflect a larger uptick in travel overall. U.S. room rates on average this year are expected to hit a record high of $90.49, exceeding their previous peak in 2000 of $85.28. Occupancy, a measure of how full hotels are, this year is approaching the 2000 high of 63.3%, with a forecast this year of 63% (up from 61.3% in 2004).

According to a winter forecast to be released today by PricewaterhouseCoopers' Hospitality Practice, the early-winter holiday season between Thanksgiving and New Year's is expected to set a record in terms of number of room nights sold daily, at 2.28 million. That's a 3.2% increase over last year's strong sales of 2.21 million. Resorts are expected to increase 3.9%, says Bjorn Hanson, head of the lodging group. The nine-night Christmas period is predicted to outsell last year's holiday week by 50,000 rooms.

There are still, however, early-season deals available. The Whistler Blackcomb resort in Canada is offering a package that includes five nights, four lift tickets and one day of adult lessons for $326 per person. The package must be booked by the end of this month. Stowe Mountain Resort in Stowe, Vt., offers season passes for $1,245 until Oct. 27; after that the price jumps to $1,507. Through Oct. 12, the American Skiing Co.'s all-for-one pass, which gives access to six resorts on the East Coast including Killington, Mount Snow and Sugarloaf on the East Coast, is $369. (It is available online at www.peaks.com1. Some blackout dates apply.)

Other discounts run all season except holidays, creating openings for travelers who are more flexible. Deer Valley Lodging, which is over 95% full at Christmas and 85% full during February's Presidents Day holiday period, has a discount package that runs for 10 weeks (with holidays blacked out) and includes three nights of lodging and lift tickets. Sunday River in Maine has a promotion that gives a night's lodging, a lift ticket and lesson for $49.95 through Dec. 17. The price increases to $69.95 after that and some days are blacked out.

Even though the discounts are deep, the proliferation of early-bird specials will ultimately mean higher prices for the vast majority of skiers this winter, and much less availability for late-game bookers. Resorts have noticed that an early spike in numbers allows them to raise their rates earlier with confidence as the holidays approach. Big Sky Resort in Montana, for instance, abandoned its old policy of setting prices at the beginning of the season this past May, and replaced it with one that calculates room rates based on demand.

As a result, "rack rates," or the full prices that hotels can charge, are up to 10% over last year at ski resorts, according to Ski.com, a mountain-vacation travel agent. The Ritz-Carlton Bachelor Gulch in Colorado, for example, is $750 a night this year, up from $675 a night last year for the Christmas period.

Some ski resorts say that even though they're mostly booked up, potential holiday makers should try calling 45 days before their intended arrival date. That's because major resorts like the St. Regis Resort, Aspen require full payment of a holiday-period reservation that far in advance, and some early bookers back out around then, creating availability.

It also makes sense to look at a resort's expansion plans; if last year saw a lot of growth in the hotel market, beds are likely to be more available this year. At Big Sky, for instance, there are 25% more condominium units this year than last, which is causing the majority of the resort to remain around 70% full for the Christmas and New Year's period.

Waiting could also reap rewards if ski areas get jumpy about gas prices. Michael Berry, president of the National Ski Areas Association, anticipates that if fuel prices remain high, resorts will likely offer incentives, such as refunds for tanks of gas. At Mount Bachelor in Oregon, where reservations for the winter are 12.5% ahead of where they were last year at this time, the marketing department has such a promotion in the wings should gas climb over $3 a gallon.

Skiers can also try old-fashioned calling around: Even some of the biggest name resort towns still have hit-or-miss availability. Bookings at Vail Cascade Resort & Spa, for instance, are 20% lower for December compared with this time last year; Christmas is 30% full. The resort tends not to book up until November.

Whistler in Canada's British Columbia, which had a notoriously rainy winter last year, shows bookings through the middle of January running 7% below where they were at this time last year.

--------------------------

Skiing Uphill
By CONOR DOUGHERTY Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNALOctober 14, 2005; Page W3
After years of gradual increases, this year lift-ticket prices at ski resorts across the country are taking the big jump.
A one-day adult lift ticket will cost $78 at Colorado's Aspen/Snowmass, up $4 from last year (the previous increase was $2). At California's Mammoth Mountain Resort, this year's rise in weekend lift prices was $6, to $70, compared with a $2 increase the year before. In the East, Vermont's Killington Resort is charging $69 this season after two years of holding steady at $67.
Many ski resorts attribute the increase to higher costs, primarily energy. Mammoth Mountain says the cost of diesel -- used to run its snowcats -- recently was running at 55% more this year than last, while the daily cost of running chairlifts is expected to rise to $10,000 from around $8,700 last year. "We consume a fair amount of energy," says Michael Berry, president of the National Ski Areas Association.
The price rises come as the U.S. ski industry has logged some of its best seasons on record, thanks to a decent snowfall and an increase in international customers enticed by the weakened dollar. About 57 million people visited U.S. ski resorts last season, the fourth-best year ever, the Ski Areas Association says. Resorts have spent tens of millions adding everything from faster chairlifts to luxury hotels and shopping malls.
The ski season starts today, as Colorado's Loveland Ski Area opens.

S.P.A.M.'s Feedback on where to go

From a transportion standpoint I think they'll all be acceptable to me (air route info below is solely for my benefit).

Telluride/Purgatory: kind of a tweener wrt everything
Big Sky/Big Mountain: cheap, big, good difficulty mix, close to Yellowstone, and Glacier Nat Park
Aspen/Snowmass: 4 mountains, looks to be more difficult on the whole, probably easiest to get to, expensive

My current ranking is below but they are all close/acceptable

1. BS/BM
   
2. A/S
   
3. T/P
   
   Telluride
   $76/day
   Air Routes: AA (Chi), UA (Den)
   ?? Runs: 22% Green, 38% Blue, 40% black
   Snow making: ??
   
   Purgatory
   85 Runs: 23% Green, 51% Blue, 26% black
   Air Routes: UA (Den)
   $56/day
   Snow making: 21%
   
   Big Sky
   150 Runs: 17% Green, 25% Blue, 37% black, 21% double black
   Snow making: ??
   Air Routes: NWA (Minn, Det), Delta (SLC), UA (Den)
   $65/day
   
   Big Mountain
   91 Runs: 20% Green, 50% Intermediate, 30% black
   Air Routes: NWA (Minn), Delta (SLC)
   $49/day
   Snow Making: ??
   
   Aspen/Snowmass
   Maps weren't too bad at: http://www.aspensnowmass.com/onmountain/trailmaps/default.cfm
   Air Routes - Aspen/Eagle: UA (Den), NWA (Minn), AA (Chi [Eagle])
   $78/day ($70/day over six days)
   Snowmass
   88 Runs: 6% Green, 50% Blue, 12% Black, 32% double black
   Aspen Mtn
   76 Runs: 0% Green, 48% Blue, 26% Black, 26% double black
   Aspen Highlands
   131 Runs: 18% Green, 30% Blue, 16% Black, 36% double black
   Buttermilk
   44 Runs: 35% Green, 39% Blue, 26% Black

-- Sean


-------------------- (more comments from SPAM)

Well,
Obviously we know our hood the best - some great skiing and town is the best you'll find anywhere in terms of places to eat and drink.
Aspen, Highlands, Snowmass and Buttermilk are all here, furthest from town is snowmass which is 25 mins in the bus. That means you can ski any of them on a different day. All are different and all have intermediate runs - buttermilk and snowmass have more in the way of beginner terrain while highlands and aspen are more geared toward advanced and intermediate skiers. If thinking of late January bear in mind that X-Games are in town from Jan 27-31 - its a cool time to be here with a ton of events and free concerts but hotels probably hard to get and town is busy and overrun with punk teens. You can also stay up in snowmass - more reasonable and tons of condos - downside is its snowmass (limited town/ restaurants), and you are 20-30 mins from town of aspen which is way cooler.

Have not skied Purgatory - only been to durango in the summer.
Telluride - Great town and ski resort. The town is bit hippier/ free spirit, and very casual. The mountain resort is separate from the town, but tjhere is a gondola that links them so you can stay in either one. In terms of skiing, all ranges, but a lot of mogul runs. Only challenge with Telluride is that it is difficult to get to. can either fly to denver (then a pretty long drive) or fly into montrose.
Big Sky - from what I understand (although again never skied there) Big Sky is a relatively steep mountain with lots of advanced terrain - thats not to say it doesn't have other stuff too - I just don't know.
Big Mountain - wrap up real warm - it'll probably be freezing up there in January! - Only been there in sumer but town is real small, kind of quaint in old ranchy sort of way.

one other suggestion: if you are keen on two half weeks, do aspen/ vail. for aspen, you have 4 mountains above. for vail, it is close to breckenridge, beaver creek, copper, a-basin, etc. (not as close as aspen's 4 mountains, but doable if you are in that area)


enjoy,
dave and ali

-------------


Here are a couple more emails from my cousins.
--
Following-up on Dave's note, here are the details of the promo they are
running. It might be just hotels, but worthwhile looking
http://www.stayaspensnowmass.com/p-early-booking-special.php
>
> If you can fly into Aspen I would definitely do that - it is less than
> 10 mins from town.
> Eagle is 1:40 drive away, Denver is 3:45 (or much more depending on
> weather).
>
> Re accom - there is a company (and website) www.stayaspensnowmass.com
> that has comprehensive listings of
> condos in both Aspen and Snowmass - I think some of the others only
> deal with hotels. Bunch of other services also, www.ski.com
> is actually based here so they should have good
> info and there is a colorado state specific ski one that I can't
> remember the name of. You may also want to check it out soonish
> because I believe they are running some lift and lodging promos for a
> free ticket and night. Google is your friend here.

5 Minutes to Better Skiing

Musings

Per S.P.A.M.s request

-------------

5 Minutes to Better Skiing by Leslie Hammond
Every day we spend hours sitting, driving and standing, tasks that contract our muscles. On the slopes, tight muscles can cause the body to move incorrectly by forcing body weight and motion to shift to other groups of muscles.

Stretching before skiing signals the muscles that they are about to be used and helps elongate them, reducing tension and improving flexibility. Moguls will be less jarring to your knees when quadriceps are stretched and hamstrings relaxed, and turns will be easier with a more flexible back.

"Flexible muscles help reduce injury," says Steve Willard, head athletic trainer at the University of Colorado. "When a muscle is more flexible, there's more range of motion and more power in the joint."

Regular stretching will make you a more coordinated skier, allowing freer and easier movement. Best of all, it will allow you to ski longer days.

Willard recommends keeping your stretching routine simple, spending 15 to 20 minutes on the major muscle groups involved in skiing. Even five minutes daily can be effective. "Establish a short stretching routine and be consistent with it," he says.

Always stretch when muscles are warm, urges Len Kravitz, Ph.D., exercise researcher at the University of New Mexico. Before stretching, walk around for two to five minutes while swinging your arms. Mild exercise raises the core body temperature and increases blood flow in the body, reducing the chance of pulling a muscle during the stretch.

Stretching before and after skiing can make your muscles more efficient and keep them from tiring out as fast, as well as prevent injury, Kravitz says.

TIPS


Hold each stretch for 10 to 15 seconds, relaxing into the pose.
Breathe rhythmically to soften any tension. Quiet your mind, and focus your attention on the spot where you feel the greatest stretching sensation.
Stretching is not a competitive sport. Work at your own pace to ensure safety.
Only hold stretches that are comfortable; never stretch to the point of pain, and always be in control of your movements.
Never bounce while stretching—this can make you tighter or cause injury. Only a relaxed muscle will allow itself to be stretched.

Pre-Ski:
Ski Twist Stretch
Lie on your back with your right arm extended out to your side. Using your left hand, slowly pull your right knee across your torso, while keeping your right shoulder on the ground. Hold for 15 seconds, and then switch sides. This stretch stabilizes the lower back and trunk. (See "Stretching Photos" on the right sidebar)

Arm and Shoulder Stretch
Start from a standing position. Bend your right elbow, and put your arm behind your head. Hold your right elbow with your left hand. Move the back of your head against your right arm until a mild stretch is felt in the triceps and shoulder. Then switch arms. Hold for 10 seconds on each side. This is a good way to loosen your triceps, arms and shoulders.

Chest Stretch
Interlace your fingers behind your back. Slowly turn your elbows inward while straightening your arms. Hold for 10 seconds. This stretches the shoulders, arms and chest.

Doorknob Calf Stretch
Face a door and grip the doorknob with both hands. Put the ball of your left foot against the door, keeping the left heel on the floor. Pull your chest toward the door and notice the stretch in the lower leg. Hold for 15 seconds, then switch legs. (See "Stretching Photos" on the right sidebar)

The Towel Stretch
Sit on the floor, and place a towel under the ball of your foot. Keep your leg extended in front and your heel on the floor. Holding the towel with both hands, gently pull the towel toward you until you feel a comfortable stretch. Hold for 15 seconds, then switch legs. This stretch loosens the Achilles' tendon, heel, calf and ankle. (See "Stretching Photos" on the right sidebar)

Seated Quad Stretch
Sit on the floor with your right leg bent, so that your thigh is on the floor and your right heel is a few inches from your right hip. Keep your left leg straight out in front of you. Lean back until you feel a stretch in your quadriceps. Hold for 15 seconds. To increase your comfort, move the tucked-in foot farther from your hip.

The Karate Lunge
Using a wide stance, bend your left leg and extend your right leg, resting on your heel with toes stretched upward. Keeping your hands up and back straight, notice the stretch on the inner right thigh. Hold for 10 seconds and repeat stretch on the left leg. This stretches the inner thighs and strengthens the quadriceps. (See "Stretching Photos" on the right sidebar)

Après-Ski:
Stretching after skiing increases blood flow and oxygenation in the muscles.

Standing Calf Stretch
Stand a short distance from a wall and lean on it with your forearms, head resting on hands. Bend one leg, placing that foot on the ground in front of you, and keep the other leg straight behind. Slowly move your hips forward, keeping your lower back flat. Be sure to keep the heel of the straight leg on the ground, with toes pointed straight ahead or slightly turned in. Hold for 15 to 20 seconds with each leg. This stretches your calves and helps reenergize your legs.

Seated Trunk Twist
Sit with your right leg straight. Bending your left leg, cross your left foot over and to the outside of your right knee. Pull your knee across your body toward your opposite shoulder until you feel an easy stretch on the side of the hip. Hold for 15 seconds with each leg. This slight twist is good for the upper back, lower back, hips and rib cage.

Hamstring Stretch
Lie on your back. Straighten one leg, and lift it up as close as you can to a 90-degree angle at the hip joint. Keep the lower back flat against the floor, and hold onto the back of your leg to create the stretch. Hold 15 seconds with each leg. To increase the hamstring stretch, bend slightly at the knee and pull your leg closer to your face.

Elongation Stretch
Lying on your back, extend your arms overhead and straighten out your legs. Pointing your toes and extending your fingers, reach as far as possible in opposite directions with your arms and legs, as if you are trying to gain maximum distance from your fingers to your toes. Stretch for five seconds, relax and repeat. This elongation stretch is good for the muscles of the rib cage, abdominals, spine, shoulders, arms, ankles and feet.

Leg Elevation
Elevating your legs is one of the quickest ways to rid them of fatigue and lactic acid. Lying on your back, extend your legs up a wall and let the weight of your back release down into the floor. Get as close to the wall as possible, keeping your rear on the floor and your lower back flat. (If your lower back is arched, try backing away from the wall until it is flat and fully supported on the floor). Breathe rhythmically for two to five minutes. This position will gently stretch the hamstrings and lower back, and it's a restful way to unwind after a day on the mountain.

Sources: Topper Hagerman and John Atkins, sports medicine consultants and former U.S. Ski Team trainers, Vail, Colo.; Bob Anderson, author of Stretching; Dennis Kiper, D.P.M., podiatric sports medicine specialist, Arcadia, Calif.; Steve Willard, head athletic trainer at the University of Colorado, Boulder.

Waldo's Comments & Rebuttal of Bagel

General: here are some links to trail maps:

(Telluride is one of the most readable online trailmaps I've seen,
while Snowmass is one of the worst)

http://www.telluride.com/useful/trailmap.asp

http://durangomountainresort.com/assets/images/winter/trailmap/flash.htm

http://www.bigskyresort.com/ontheslopes/bs_ch_ots_map.asp

http://www.big-mountain.com/?a=content/trailmaps

http://dyn.onthesnow.com/ski/trailmaps/25.html

http://dyn.onthesnow.com/ski/trailmaps/406.html

My comments:

After a very quick look at the maps and even quicker look at some
online reviews, my ranking is the exact opposite of Bagels:

1. Telluride / Purgatory
   
2. Big Sky/ Big Mountain
   
3. Aspen/Snowmass
   

Telluride seems like it will be uncrowded, have plenty of snow, and
have good weather. The trail map shows plenty of green and blue
trails. It looks like Purgatory is a couple hours away, so it might
make sense to split up the trip like we did last year.

Big Sky/Big Mountain looks similar to Telluride, but with more
questionable weather.

Aspen looks like it's famous for things other than skiing, although it
probably has the best nightlife of the three. It also has the
advantage of two mountains close together, so we wouldn't need a
travelling day and logistics would be easier.

--Waldo

Bagel's Thoughts on Places

After a quick look, I'd rank from best-to-worst

1. Aspen/Snowmass
2. Big Sky/ Big Mountain
3. Telluride / Purgatory

Aspen/Snowmass seems to have the largest number of things going for it

1. Ski-in/Ski-out condos on snowmass
   
2. Tons of terrain, all with same lift ticket
   
3. Nightlife and things to do in Aspen if people want to chill for a day (or if there's bad conditions).
   
4. No need to rent an SUV, just use buses. Airport is very close.

Potential downsides are it could be the most expensive, may be large crowds, and it may be harder to keep the group together due to the sprawl.

Big Sky/ Big Mountain look great for skiing, but pretty bad for other things to do. Last year they didn't get much snow, so its worth worrying about. It looks like the hardest place to get to as well.

Telluride looks good for advanced/experts, but reviews seem to say fairly moguly and less good for cruising. Purgatory appears better for cruising, but the lift tickets don't appear to be exchangeable between the two mountains.

Thanks for starting the ball rolling again,

Bagel

Pi Lam Ski Trip 2006

Pi Lam Ski Machine:

As October rolls in, it's time to start thinking about our annual extravaganza.

Currently, we are penciled in for the same week we took last year, which was a good combination of daylight, snow quality, pricing, and crowds. Here are the dates for consideration:

Departure Saturday, Jan 21, 2006
Return Saturday, Jan 28 or Sunday Jan 29, 2006 (TBD)

We might need the extra day, Sunday, if we go on another ski safari style trip like we did on the epic Idaho / Wyoming adventure.

Here are some prospective places we could visit. We can go through more exhaustive pros & cons analysis in a bit, but hopefully folks can start thinking about areas. These are (probably) all unvisited by the group previously - but are reputed to be worth the extra effort and expense. The beauty contestants are:

Aspen / Snowmass www.aspensnowmass.com
Big Sky / Big Mountain www.bigskyresort.com and www.big-mountain.com
Telluride / Purgatory www.tellurideskiresort.com/winter and www.ski-purg.com

In order to reduce the amount of email people have to save to follow what is going on, I will keep the most important info kept up to date on a web site.

Please set up a "favorite" on your browser to www.eggplantmusings.blogspot.com

Next steps

1. Clear the decks for Jan21-29 with employers & SO's

2. Take a few min to read about the various areas
3. Set up a web link to www.eggplantmusings.blogspot.com
4. Purchase gear/clothing at fall ski swaps or closeouts before winter pricing ratchets up
5. Start saving up frequent flyer miles

Hopefully by mid October we can narrow down which area to visit.

Looking forward to my favorite week of the year,

Eggplant

PS: We'll be having the usual Vermont New Years ski weekend again, Dec 31 - Jan 3 for those who want to get some turns and quaffing ahead of time.

Trip Photos Here

You can see our photos from the trip here

photos.yahoo.com/pilamski

user: pilamski
password: masstheta