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The Official Michigan Winter Thread

490K views 8K replies 153 participants last post by  sabatoa 
#1 ·
Alright everyone since Summer is over, fall has just begun and we've already had our first rail jam of the year, it's time to start a new thread for the 10/11 winter.

Last year we had the "Southeast" michigan thread, but I think we should do all of Michigan. Sure, most of population lives in S/E michigan but we all ride the same resorts in the LP and even the UP if we get a chance, so we should have one thread to bring everyone together.

Cheers everyone we're probably only like 70 days from open resorts!
 
#6,176 ·
I'll be heading out to Holly, should be there in about an hour 30 minutes. Anybody else headed that way? :shrug:
 
#6,178 ·
Well,.. If my legs last that long, I'll see u there!! It's above freezing so the conditions are much better today than they were yesterday. Snow is softer you can actually get on and Set an edge in it!! :jumping1:
 
#6,179 ·
Congrats to all you guys that got out this weekend.

I'll be looking at opportunities during this week and next weekend I expect we'll get up to Boyne and get our passes printed finally.

I wish I could join you guys in CO that weekend. Had I known even 30 mins earlier it would have been a done deal but I'd already booked my Alberta trip by then.

It's all good though- Lake Louise is legit and it's a place that has some special meaning for us so I'm super stoked to get back up there again. Lift tix cost us like $60 thanks to the exchange. Yay oil and gas collapse!

It's a bummer about how things are going down here, but two trips out west in one season is pretty damn hard to complain about.

Looking ahead to next season (I know..) we're putting Jackson Hole on our radar or maybe Utah. I'm saving Colorado for guy trips since it's so cheap.
 
#6,180 ·
Rode for 3.5 hours at Cab yesterday. It was a fucking shit show with some of the longest lifts lines I've ever experienced there. I still got plenty of turns in, however, and I was impressed with the coverage considering what they were working with. Nearly all of the North Peak was open, but they hadn't opened the quad until after 11am, so just imagine all those people lining up for the Shelter double chair.

The groomers were nice and soft though, it was worth going for sure.
 
#6,182 ·
The line for the Shelter chair was backed up all the way past the entrance to the lodge on the one side, while people were lined up all the way into the woods next to the bunny hill on the other side. It. Was. Awful.
 
#6,184 ·
I've been wondering how the smaller hills manage in these conditions. Boyne is Boyne..they have properties across the country- so when one place is struggling, typically other places are doing well.

But Nubs, Holly, Searchmont...I wonder how long they can sustain the lack of revenue. It makes me curious about the overhead outside of labor which can be laid off in lean times.
 
#6,189 ·
TBH, a year like this is probably better than a more marginal year. Snow making costs a literal fuckton of money, so the fact that it's been so warm that most of them can't even entertain the notion of making snow let alone being open, is essentially offsetting the lack of revenue. Have to hope that once temps do drop, they can get by with minimal snowmaking and that Ma Nature will deliver some good snow, quickly.

December is a throwaway month for most of the midwest and mid-atlantic and even the east coast at lower elevations. Sucks, but that's the truth. Everyone in the industry knows it's seasonal and has wild ups and downs. So it's up to the management to budget accordingly, and that means managing and maintaining surpluses from "good" years in order to balance out the shitty years.

Talking to Mt Holly yesterday and they said what's worse than a lousy december is that they've not had a good Christmas week in 3 or 4 seasons now and that is a week during which most ski resorts anticipate making a significant portion of their annual revenues.
 
#6,185 · (Edited)
It must be very hard.. Searchmont is not-for-profit, usually every year is a struggle to break-even. They were hoping this year would have increased visitation from the midwest due to the dollar too. It's too bad as they put a lot of pre-season work in to the hill this year.. 2 new groomers they bought from Heavenly resorts, renos to the chalets, and lots of hill remediation and brushing. Was excited to see what they've done to the glades. The lack of income after all those capital investments must make it even harder!

I can just imagine how much Nubs has probably spent to see it just melt away and have to start over again..
 
#6,186 ·
Great point about expectations with the dollar. I know that we're looking at Canadian travel thanks to the bonus we get when we're up there. It helped us to choose Banff over Utah for a January trip, Lake Louise's site is targeting foreigners and the favorable exchange.

We send the kids money (they're in s'toon, SK) and it's awesome how much extra they get right now versus what we send.
 
#6,187 ·
Oh yeah, big time! They must love it, haha

I fill my truck up on the Michigan side and it's been costing me an extra $10 / $20 once converted, but still works out cheaper than the pumps here. I know my trips to Boyne are going to be limited this year. Was considering a trip to Mt. Tremblant instead. You can fly there from here for about $300 - $400 return.
 
#6,192 · (Edited)
Yep totally see all that. I guess my point was that for each day that they don't operate, the revenue generated from season passes becomes more "profitable" than it would if they were operating at full force. Essentially, they are collecting fees for a service that they are not providing.

PS micro-econ is not my forte whatsoever. I am on the macro side.
 
#6,193 ·
I hear where you're coming from but I don't know that I agree. The money made from a sold pass has a set value for a resort. They don't make more because you're there less just because the customer cost per visit is higher with a lower utilization rate.

They still can make more money on a pass holder that visits the hill from food and drink, ski and snowboard service (wax), and purchases made at the gear shop than the pass holder that bought a pass by seldom uses it. I dunno, that's my guess.
 
#6,194 ·
I didn't stay long enough last night to see Eric Beauchemin throw a Nollie to front rodeo off the donkey rail. I did see him riding in the Santa suit for a while though it was basically the only open feature so we were all sessioning it at the same time.

Dude made the other "good" riders look like me by comparison.

[ame]https://vimeo.com/149840293[/ame]

On Monday, he did a 5050 to front 7 off. It's on his IG if you wanna see that.
 
#6,196 ·
I was just about to post a notice and ask a question regarding this myself!! :D Do you know if Highlands Plans to be open? Also, being a holiday weekend what sort of shit show do you anticipate? I'm just wondering if it's going to be so damn crowded it's not worth going! :dunno:

... Then again, with such a shitty start to the season I should probably get up there for any opportunity to ride that I possibly can. I'll have to check with LiftTopia and see if there are any lift ticket deals available.

BTW, if anybody has any of those two-for-one pass deals,..? LMK,..! I'd be willing to hook up to pay half price for a lift ticket

:hairy:
 
#6,202 ·
Looks like Holly is aiming for Friday, I was really hoping they might be open by tomorrow but it's just not getting quite cold enough overnight yet.

I'm going to try and get my girl out for a few in the AM and possibly go back in the afternoon solo. Ideally wife and I would just take separate cars, so that I don't spend all day driving back and forth...
 
#6,203 ·
Whelp,..! Booked the room in Harbor Springs for the upcoming 3 day weekend! Looks like the resta ya are staying fairly "local!" Cab, Holly, etc! Too bad, I was hoping I might get a lap or two of decent riding with someone this weekend! ;) :D

After missing soooo much riding & good snow last season,.. I just couldn't see sticking around town for the crummy, marginal, 2-3 day accumulation of man made the locals can blow just to open 2-3 WROD's!!! Not when Highlands has had colder temps and been making snow longer, AND had some decent fresh recently added to their base!!!!

I figure this weekend will be the "Acid Test" for my back. If I can manage 3 days of consecutive riding with little or no back troubles,..? I figure I'm in good shape to pull the trigger on all the reservations etc. for those vacation trips to CO in Jan & Feb! (…been a little hesitant to commit until I was sure the back will hold up because all those "discounted" airfare & lodging prices are all NON-refundable!)

Anyway,.. If anyone changes their plans and decides to head up to Highlands,.. Give me a shout! We'll hook up for a lap or two! :D
 
#6,204 ·
Yah I would rather be "up north" anywhere this weekend, too, but I can't afford to stay up there on holiday weekend with a CO trip right around the corner, and to be perfectly honest even though I know it will be better conditions/riding, I'm sick of driving 4 hours for it, having already done that shit like 3 of the last 4 weekends.

Got an email from Crystal about how they still have availability for this weekend/NYE, I figured they might have some discounted rates on account of how awful the season has been, but nope, $299 PER NIGHT on a regular hotel room which doesn't include lift tickets. Sorry, dudes, but that's fucking ridiculous. For comparison's sake you could go solo to Colorado for less than the lodging rate at Crystal this weekend (assuming you had bought your airfare well enough in advance):


Round trip air to Denver: $160

2-day lift at Winter Park: $150

3 nights lodging in some random motel: $200

3 day rental car: $150
 
#6,206 ·
Wow, $299 for a room is a joke.

Chomps, what you paying for your room?


I desperately wanna get up there but our budget is tight too….
$299 A NIGHT,..?!?!! :eek: That's F'ing ridiculous!! I don't pay that for the Grand Lodge @ Boyne Mt!!

Sab,.. I'm staying at the BW just down the road from BH in Harbor Springs. For 2 nights, a 2 queen room= $233. That's taxes & all. ($109 for Fri and $99 Sat. night!) Probably not the cheapest place around, but they're decent, clean, quiet rooms. Just 5 min. from Highlands & Nub's.

Also along with all the bonus reward points I usually get, I've stayed often enough that the owner knows me & cuts me a little slack on early check in, late check out etc. :shrug:
 
#6,208 ·
How awesome is this,..? I just got a call about an hour ago from the owner of the Best Western I'll be staying at this weekend. It seems he has a booking problem and when he recognized my name on the reservation for this weekend he called to give me an upgrade to a King bed with an in room jacuzzi. No charge!!! :cheer: (...he remembered that my back was bothering me my last stay in spring of '14!) :huh: :D

Guess it pays to be pleasant & chat some with the people running things,.. (...and also to be considerate & tip the girls changing the sheets!) :D. They always get my room done in time for me to check in 2-3 hours early!!! :)

They got 10" of fresh this week with some more snow showers in the forcast all weekend. All in all, It's looking like a good start to 2016!! :jumping1:

:hairy:
 
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