21-22 Vail/Stevens Pass Monitoring reports

Well Filbo, it works great in the short term, we'll see how loyal people are when they don't get value for it.  I really want them to figure it out, it's a 30 minute drive for me, I don't want to go somewhere else. But I'll skip a pass next year, get the Indy Pass again and travel more with our camper.  

With Crystal going back to reservations, it's really going to put pressure on Baker, White, and maybe Alpy/Sno.   We need them all functioning to spread out.  Sure we can tour more but I prefer to storm ski  inbounds and tour more in stable and spring conditions.

Lots of news stories the past few days, but no immediate improvement, 1 lift running tonight.

Will be asking for a refund, already filled with ATG.

Vail's business model is based off climate change, and is pretty forward looking: get people to buy in before the season so people take at least some of the risk of low snow years and amortize regional problems across the globe. The idea that they're throwing away a $100m investment on a single year cash grab just doesn't ring true. I don't think stevens is a good resort for that model but that's another topic really.

Woah, so I hadn't look at this before but they bought 19 resorts in 2019, 4 in 2018, 7 from 2010 to 2017... basically, they what quadrupled in size in a year? and they're having some serious growing pains the following two seasons, no duh. They really should have seen it coming and made a series of dumb choices since, but it smells more of ignorance and optimistic growth than maliciousness.

On the upside, lift lines are way down IME, parking is a lot easier and all the pissed off grumpies stay home. I'm quite enjoying the de-twittering of the pass.

Vail sucks, why try to legitimize their greed oriented behavior with what their global mind set you think is.  Back in the day when they were growing their Vail World they had their  new construction project burned out by pissed off Colorado skiers who saw they could not deal with the corporate mind set.   That act of malicious retort phazed them not in the least since they are multi-million dollar power mongers.   It just cost them a little more to get it all back with their lift ticket prices that are on sale now. 

I'm not sure what the point of that story is? It probably cost them nothing more than some time, insurance would have covered the damage. It would have been passed onto the other property owners in the insurance group, which is probably local businesses. Lets not burn down stevens in protest... Or do, I guess, I don't use the lodges anyhow.

I'm not defending vail, I'm saying it seems strange to position vail as some evil corp making obviously stupid, short term choices when they're going to come out on top here. If I'm going to fail at something, I'd like it to be a good battle, but that's just me I guess. Underestimating the opposition seems like a really bad strategy.

My guess is unless they get more people to work, it'll be handled the way the low snow year was; a pro rated deal after the season closes on next years pass. However, I don't expect that so I'm going to get my days in. There are only so many more ski years left, I'm not going to waste one fighting a lost cause.

I don't think anyone here cares why I think this is a lost cause, but you might want to read the contract you signed before disputing the cc charge. That looks like it'll be a breach of contract, and vail can cancel your pass w/no refund, not that I think they will. I don't think they're a dumb evil corp, just a dumb one.

Last Feb. I we hiked up the ridge on a powder day and caught up with ski patrol checking their bomb lines.  Tye and backside were closed and Steve's official word was that it was due to avie danger.  Before we dropped into Sidewinder and onto the closed runs on Tye, we asked the ski patrol why Tye was closed, they said "have a great run, we are not concerned about avie danger today at all", with a wink and a nod.  They really didn't want to say what they really wanted to say.  I emailed SP at that time and I listed off the litany of issues; sani cans not service for weeks, no plowing in the lots,  closed lifts for no legit reason, opening really late on any powder, on and on.  If you would have told me that day, that next season with a 122% snowpack in Jan., during one of the coldest sustained 2 to 3 week storm cycles bringing some of the best snow in memory, that SP wouldn't even be able to open Tye or Big Chief, let alone the backside??  I remember thinking, there is no way they can do this next season.  Think about it??  Last year they were at least able to open and operate the backside.  This year on certain days, they can't even open 7th or Brooks or Daisy?  All this while they have sold thousands of more Epic passes.  Vail is a real estate company that institutionally and systemically has no interest, will or commitment to running the Stevens Pass ski area to the standards that all of us are accustomed.  I first skied at Stevens Pass as a child.  It's an extremely disturbing revelation that I have taken for granted they way ski areas have operated in my 50 plus years of skiing.  Spoiled all these years?  I guess so, but I have never experienced anything like this in all the years of skiing anywhere that I have skied.  EVERY OTHER OWNER HAS BEEN INTERESTED, CAPABLE AND COMMITTED TO RUNNING THE SKI AREA.  PERIOD!!  

This discussion pretty much sums up the entire situation