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WTF - Midwest Season Pass Prices

7K views 44 replies 19 participants last post by  Vaughanabe13 
#1 · (Edited)
So I'm a Chicagoan and spent most of last year in WA, which has arguably some of the best ski/snowboard terrain in the country. It was my first season snowboarding and I became hooked instantly and bought a season pass out there at two different mountains. And I'm talking about real "mountains", not f'ing Wilmot Mountain in WI, for example.

Anyways, wtf is up with the prices for season passes out here?? Wilmot for example is $555??!! I paid about $350 for a season pass at the Summit at Snoqualmie in WA, which I assure you is God like compared to anything out here.

What is up with this?? I can't believe people pay this much for such lame terrain, which I agree is better than nothing, but still...
 
#4 ·
You are showing how little time you have been in this game. In the 90's a season pass at Snoq's would have cost you nearly $1k. All Western ski areas were at this higher rate. Once again, thank Winterpark for launching the pass war prices and bringing down the season pass rates all over the US.

Comparatively, Mid West areas were a bargain back in the day. Western areas have a lot of advantages over their mid west and east coast counter parts. I would imagine that offering a much cheaper pass would likely mean that your little area would have to stop spinning the wheels. It sucks, but those are just some of the realities with it. Running a ski area ain't cheap, that's for sure.
 
#6 ·
I really think its just a matter of charging what people are willing to pay and taking them for suckers.

I'm struggling to see how the resorts in the Midwest have anywhere near the operating costs that the much larger all mountain resorts out West do, but I'm open to hearing about it.
 
#10 ·
I'd wager the costs/acre are higher than they are out West. We average 60-80" of snow per YEAR. Utah or WA or CO can get that, and often does, in a weekend. It's quite expensive to make snow, and because of the warmer temps and lower elevations, we don't get much help from Ma Nature either.


Just a hunch, though, I could be completely wrong :)
 
#12 ·
Lots of things. Shorter season, snow making costs, night operations, and such. Let's also not forget, that if you are a visitor to Colorado, and most other destination places, your lift ticket is costing you $100 a day. Cheaper passes for locals are subsidized by higher lift ticket costs. I am sure that operating expense for say Snowbird for a season is way more expensive than Boyne, but they have a longer season and a much higher number of visits. I'd bet skier visits at Winterpark are probably in the neighborhood of 10x the number of any given Med West resort. That is a lot of money.
 
#13 ·
Some good points, but I don't think the operating costs can possibly be higher than the mountain resorts out West. Not sure if you guys have been out there? They are huge operations in quite a wild setting.

To give you an idea of some of the operating costs out West:
- Snoqualmie is open until 10pm 6 days a week at Alpental, Summit Central and Summit West, which offer a huge amount of terrain (compared to Midwest resorts) and you bet they have a ton of lighting
- perform avalanche control and monitoring daily
- have a large staff of ski patrol to cover the much larger and more dangerous terrain
- higher quantity of lifts which are also much longer
- plenty of onsite medical assistance (which is probably true for midwest as well :dunno:)
- the grooming costs are obviously going to be higher for the size and complexity of the terrain out West
- the insane amount of snowfall which is a huge plus for the obvious reasons, but the maintenance costs associated with keeping the local road ways/paths and parking lots are very high and a constant job

But I don't know, you could all be right, its just really hard for me to imagine how the operating costs could be higher in the Midwest just because of making snow.

It could be related to the volume of sales in relationship to profit but it seems like there is a lot of competition out here, especially in WI, which would drive costs down further. I really don't know how it all breaks down.
 
#14 ·
This is our 3rd year getting a family pass at Alpine Valley. For the 3 of us $1400.
Last year in a very bad weather year I rode 35 ish days. I don't have a clue to operation costs but on a busy weekend they can have up to 14 full buses of people from Chicago spending tons of money. lift ticket, lessons, gear, food, bar....

As stated earlier it's close to home, I can ride often, and it's what we got so enjoy it. Even on the bad days I can get some good runs in or simply drive home.
 
#15 ·
I think that for the folks living in or near Metro area's, Detroit, Chicago, etc. I imagine that greed & the "Captive" audience is probably a more valid argument.

I don't know any other way to explain how a season pass for a crappy little hill like Mt Brighton is $550, and yet a silver pass @ Boyne (covering multiple resorts, I might add and /w only 10 blackout days) goes for the same $550????

I might,.. might pay that for Pine Knob,.. but it would still be hard to make it there enough times in a season to get it to pay off!
 
#16 ·
I agree 550 is outrageous for a place like Wilmot. I paid 340 for a season pass at Wilmot this year but I bought mine before July 31st. Wilmot is super close and easy to get to for me so it is kind of my fall back if I don't feel like taking a road trip. I'm not sure if other places have deals like this but at 340 it more than pays for itself in 10 trips.
 
#17 ·
Holy S man! $550.00 for Wilmot that seems like over kill to me. I'm not familiar w/ that resort just from reading their website and observing there "mountain" trial map it's ridiculously priced.

Wilmot Mountain Location Kenosha County, Wisconsin, U.S. Nearest city Wilmot, Wisconsin Vertical 190 ft (58 m) Top elevation 960 ft (293 m)[1] Base elevation 770 ft (235 m) Skiable area 120 acres (0.49 km2) Runs 25 Longest run 2,500 ft (760 m) Lift system 11 chairlifts - vintage! Lift capacity 12,500 skiers/hr Terrain parks 5 Snowfall 48 in (120 cm) Snowmaking Yes Night skiing Yes Web site wilmotmountain.com

A vertical drop of 190 ft. Ha this made me laugh. Our bunny hills have more vertical drop than that. and a skiable area of 120 acres being located near major metropolis = big crowds.



Just to give you some comparison

[Crystal Mountain Skiers on Crystal Mountain's slopes Location Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest Pierce County, Washington United States Nearest city Enumclaw 40 mi. (65 km) north Coordinates 46°55′40″N 121°28′56″W Vertical 3100 ft (945 m) 2602 ft (793 m) - lifts Top elevation 7012 ft (2137 m) 7002 ft (2134 m) - lifts Base elevation 3912 ft (1192 m) 4400 ft (1341 m) - lifts Skiable area 2,600 acres (11 km2) lift serviced: 2300 acres (9.3 km²) inbounds backcountry 300 acres (1.2 km²) Runs 57 - 11% easiest - 54% more difficult - 35% most difficult Longest run 2.5 mi (4 km) "Northway" Lift system 1 Gondola 10 chairs 1 magic carpet Lift capacity 20,760 / hr Terrain parks 1 Snowfall 350 inches (8.9 m) Snowmaking none Night skiing none Web site crystalmountainresort.com



Last year I purchased two 5 day passes @ $320.00 a piece. My son and I then went up an additional 15 times at the daily lift rate+gondola = $74.00 a day totaling $1,110.00 for a season grand total of $1,420.00 for the two of us. Not to include gas making the 2 hour trip and food at the resort.

This year I purchased two gold member season passes for the Summit at Snoqualmie for right around $1200.00 back in July.


Location Snoqualmie Pass, Washington, United States
Nearest city North Bend (18 miles west)
Coordinates 47°24′36″N 121°24′21″W
Vertical 2,280 ft
Alpental – 2,280 ft
Summit Central – 1,025 ft
Summit West – 765 ft
Summit East – 1,100 ft
Top elevation 5420 ft (Alpental)
Base elevation 2610 ft (Summit East)
Skiable area 1,914 acres (7.75 km2) (combined)
Runs 62 (combined)
- 14% easiest
- 45% more difficult
- 41% most difficult
Longest run 1.2 mi International
Lift system 18 chairs, 6 surface lifts
Alpental:
4 chairs, 1 surface lift
Summit Central:
7 chairs, 3 surface lifts
Summit West:
5 chairs, 2 surface lifts
Summit East:
2 chairs
Snowfall 435 in
Web site summitatsnoqualmie.com - official site

http://www.summitatsnoqualmie.com/files/pdf/AlpentalMap2012.pdf

http://www.summitatsnoqualmie.com/files/pdf/SummitWest2012.pdf

http://www.summitatsnoqualmie.com/files/pdf/SummitCentral2012.pdf

http://www.summitatsnoqualmie.com/files/pdf/SummitEast2012.pdf


So to me to pay $550.00 for a mound i mean excuse me " Wilmot mountain" seems a little over priced in comparison. Though if it's all I had then I guess I'd pay it but I sure as shit would not be happy about it. In fact it's probably be enough to make me move.
 
#18 ·
Come on Dirty....we all don't live out west and most can't afford to move just to ride awesome mountains. I have long be a proponent of ride what you got. It may be small, crappy and expensive, but we are out there doing what we love. Hoping that learning to ride these brutal conditions will make us better riders for when we can get to a great resort.

Here is my home hill specs:
  • 90 skiable acres
  • 20 Runs
  • longest run is 3,000 feet
  • 3 high speed detachable quads
  • brutal terrain park conditions most of the time
  • 90% man-made snow

I'm not going to complain, because with last years crap winter/conditions I got in 35ish days riding (one week I rode 6 of 7 days) for a season that is only 3 months long, 4 months if it is an awesome year.
 
#19 ·
No I totally get what you mean ride what you've got. I also know the terrain of the country varies drastically from east to west north and south. I was just making a point that the value of what your getting for the price your paying is pretty crappy.
 
#22 ·
slyder, do you think Alpine will be open next weekend? I wasn't even thinking I would be getting out for a few more weeks but now I'm all amped to get out next weekend since I've discovered potential for being able to actually get on some snow. I saw Devilshead was going to try and be open Fri with half price lift tickets but that's a bit of a drive for limited runs being open.
 
#25 ·
Looking at the forecast for all of us in Wisconsin, I don't know how AV could possibly open. I don't even see anyone being able to make snow until Thursday night at the earliest.

I don't see Granite Peak being open until the 1st of December. They have been making snow when they can, but basically stockpiling it to keep it from melting right away.
 
#26 ·
I doubt Alpine will be open. If it gets cold enough with their new pipe and new guns they can cover the whole hill in 2 days. So I guess cross your fingers but don't hold your breath.

Tryol Basin has a small park and one chair running but the warm temps may also affect them. They have a 2 foot base so that is helpful.

If I hear any rumblings who else is open when I'll definitely post it up
 
#28 · (Edited)
I have nothing to offer to the discussion nor any reason to complain but I beg the question.....

WTF...why did you move?
I'm a Chicagoan who took a contract gig in Seattle for 9 months which was easy to do as I stayed with my in-laws who live there.

I developed a crack-head like addiction to snowboarding after trying it and it's practically a new reason to live. Anytime I was not at work, I was at the mountain racking up more time on a board in one season than many people have in their entire lives, eventually becoming comfortable with double-blacks and back country terrain.

I dragged on snowboarding as long as I possibly could, but after Crystal closed (the final resort open into the Summer months), I came back to Chicago where my condo is. I still work for the company in Seattle and watch the snowfall like a nutcase every day, I will be visiting soon for sure. WA in the Winter is like Heaven on Earth for me now.

My goal now is to buy a place in WA, preferably around Snoqualmie or Crystal, to stay during the Winters, but I can still crash at the in-laws anytime. For all other seasons I still prefer Chicago.
 
#29 ·
Chicago is a great place to live but definitely not a snowboarders paradise. $550 for a season pass at Wilmot is steep. But at least it is somewhere to get your fix. I only visit there once a season. The only hill I would visit with some regularity is Alpine Valley (3-4 times a season). At least they have 3 high speed lifts so I can get up the hill more often. I'd go crazy hitting the same terain over and over. Usually I hit multiple hills in WI and MI and I try to squeeze a trip out west if time and funds permit. A season pass for me is not worth it.
 
#30 ·
Regarding ticket prices, I think it's a combination of supply/demand, the additional cost of snowmaking in the east and the tourist $$. Let's face it, there's not a lot of places (if any) in the east that you'd buy an airline ticket to visit. So there's not enough tourists paying $100 for a day pass to "subsidize" the locals, in fact they're probably "subsidizing" the snowmaking. Most independent places in the east are probably only two poor seasons away from bankruptcy.
 
#32 ·
I think a season pass at Granite Peak in Wisconsin is like 450 if you get it at the last minute. If you plan on hitting up that place more than 6 times a year then it's your best bet by far.

Snowfall here sucks. All hills in WI that I know of have been making snow around the clock and no one is truly "open" yet. How do you expect them to absorb that cost? Definitely can't be cheap to have crews working long hours and making snow 24 hours a day.

Overpriced season passes? Meh, a little. Depends on how much you want to go snowboarding I guess.
 
#33 · (Edited)
I don't think season pass prices are a true reflection of operating costs, I'm pretty sure it's much more expensive to operate a true mountain resort. Take a look at the size of Crystal or Snoqualmie (someone posted images in this thread), you can't seriously believe the cost of blowing snow for a small hill would exceed the cost of managing terrain that is 15 times the size in a mountain range. Most of the costs for blowing snow would probably be electricity as water is in abundance, and most likely the melted water is recycled for use from a reservoir. It's not like they're pumping in ocean water, desalinating it, and running a state of the art cooling system like Dhubai.

Yes, it depends on how much I want to snowboard in WI for an extremely limited experience at outrageous prices. More power to them for charging what people are willing to pay, I'm not knocking them for running a business, but I don't have to play ball. I'm planning to buy a season pass in WA and take trips out there periodically during the winter.
 
#34 ·
I got a season pass to Chestnut Mtn this year, after deliberating whether it was worth it. The normal price is $450 but I got an early deal for $300, so I think that's much easier to justify. I imagine the biggest problem they have is the length of the season. Last year Chestnut opened in mid December and closed at the beginning of March. That is literally two and a half months of operating. That's only about 10 weekends! And they had to make a lot of snow because the snowfall was awful. Half the season the conditions were either slush or ice, which I'm sure really drives people away. Then you have to add in the costs of 100% coverage on snowmaking and the number of guns, groomer costs, park crew and other resort staff, chairlift/lighting/water costs, etc. They probably don't have a whole lot of profit per season even after the expensive tickets. As expensive as it is, snowboarding is fairly expensive in general, and I would rather support the local hill to keep them from going bankrupt.
 
#35 ·
It's all about the demand, the smallest scale hill in the east will charge a lot if they're close to a major centre.

Dagmar ski resort is at most 90 mins drive northeast from a population of 5 million people in the greater toronto area. It's $600 for a season pass and it's 200 feet high (not a typo). A day pass is $47 at good old Dagmar, vs $75 or so at whistler which gets you something like 25x the vertical and god knows how zillion many times the terrain.
 
#37 ·
I would quit snowboarding if I had to ride this place only. :(


On that note, I feel SUPER fortunate to only pay $429 with pass insurance for access to arapahoe basin, keystone, and breckenridge(99% of the time), and just as fortunate to get a loveland pass for $269. If I lived in park city,ut I wouldn't be able to afford a pass for 1 resort let alone 4.
 
#40 ·
I would quit snowboarding if I had to ride this place only. :(
I visited Wilmot for the first time last Saturday and that was my thought exactly. You can bomb down those runs in like 15 seconds, some of you guys could probably do it in less time than that. If it was my only snowboarding experience there is no way I would have become hooked like I did in WA. It was quite sad.

I was on the lift with another snowboarder who said he's just "riding what he's got", and I totally understand that, but I felt deeply sorry for him.
 
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