So what's going to happen next season?

[snoWYmonkey]

All trams and gondolas will have windows open this season, regardless of how few people are riding together. Pretty sure that's part of the NSAA recommendations.

Curious how that will work? Do they remove the operable windows? I know most people prefer them closed in a snow storm, and snow will accumulate pretty fast inside the gondolas.

I do not plan on sharing a gondola with anyone. This is my biggest concern actually this winter. I hope they allow my preference. Face to face, poorly worn masks, people talking loudly across the gondola....not my idea of fun!

 

[marzNC]

Curious how that will work? Do they remove the operable windows? I know most people prefer them closed in a snow storm, and snow will accumulate pretty fast inside the gondolas.

I do not plan on sharing a gondola with anyone. This is my biggest concern actually this winter. I hope they allow my preference. Face to face, poorly worn masks, people talking loudly across the gondola....not my idea of fun!

Windows don't need to wide open. A crack to promote air flow is enough to reduce the risk. Plus with everyone masked, very little is getting out in the first place. I suppose it's possible that during storms the gondolas will only be boarded by people in the same "pod." Not as much experience from Australia to draw on since there aren't as many trams/gondolas there.

In general, most of the policies I've read state that no one will be forced to ride a lift with strangers if they are uncomfortable. Only exception is Big Sky for the 6-pack and 8-pack where no one will be allowed to ride solo.

Have you looked at any of the info about Japan and public transportation? The significant difference that is cultural is that Japanese have been wearing face masks during the winter for quite a while, probably since before SARS. They also do not chat while on the subway. Bottom line is that the level of spread in Japan has been much lower than most countries with very limited government mandated rules such as mask usage.

 

[MissySki]

Have not been paying close attention to ski school plans or rentals, but for the few ski resorts where I've read the plans or FAQs more carefully there are no group lessons for any level or age. Rentals will require a reservation, often with an arrival time. Have seen an article geared to ski industry management that has suggestions about how to get people to provide more info beforehand so that the first pair of boots they are offered is in fact a decent fit <don't laugh>.

I would guess that most beginners who aren't children usually buy day tickets, which they will have to buy in advance online this season. Parents who want their kids to learn presumably has some awareness that things will be different. So they should see the relevant info on a ski resort's website long before they arrive at the parking lot.

As of right now Sunday River is doing lesson programs except for the youngest kids. I actually signed up for the season long adult program that I’ve been wanting to do again. It’s every Saturday and Sunday for 3 hours per day, starts sometime in early December and goes through mid-March. They have a gaurantee similar to season passes if they were to discontinue due to Covid, you’d then get a pro-rated refund or carryover to next year. In this program you get to skip the line like any lesson group, and I thought this might be a good year to do that along with having built in groups to ski with. Hoping it all happens and is able to go through the season, I did it for a couple of seasons a handful of years ago and I’m excited to work on some things with a consistent instructor or two for the season!

 

[fgor]

As of right now Sunday River is doing lesson programs except for the youngest kids. I actually signed up for the season long adult program that I’ve been wanting to do again. It’s every Saturday and Sunday for 3 hours per day, starts sometime in early December and goes through mid-March. They have a gaurantee similar to season passes if they were to discontinue due to Covid, you’d then get a pro-rated refund or carryover to next year. In this program you get to skip the line like any lesson group, and I thought this might be a good year to do that along with having built in groups to ski with. Hoping it all happens and is able to go through the season, I did it for a couple of seasons a handful of years ago and I’m excited to work on some things with a consistent instructor or two for the season!

That sounds awesome! I'd love to do an ongoing adult ski program if that was offered here I tried to do the next best thing and found a private instructor who I got on well with, then just kept requesting that instructor each time. It was pretty great as we got to get straight into the lesson each time, since they already knew how I skied (and where on the mountain I skied)!

Fingers crossed it does go ahead!

 

[marzNC]

One of the companies that supports the ski industry is advertising software for ski areas/resorts that want a reservation system. Aspenware started a series of four blog articles about dealing with capacity limits back in July. Topics included how to deal with passholders, dynamic pricing, handling discount options, and how to launch sales given the likelihood of high demand.

https://aspenware.com/news/aspenware-commerce-now-supports-passholder-reservations/

 

[marzNC]

Clearly early October is still the time that major news outlets start writing about the upcoming ski season. Will be interesting to read whatever articles come out around mid-November given that online reservations still have started for Epic and Ikon by then.

Oct. 8, Washington Post
What to expect from this winter’s ski season
https://www.washingtonpost.com/life...e8a6d2-0719-11eb-859b-f9c27abe638d_story.html

 

[Christy]

Clearly early October is still the time that major news outlets start writing about the upcoming ski season. Will be interesting to read whatever articles come out around mid-November given that online reservations still have started for Epic and Ikon by then.

Oct. 8, Washington Post
What to expect from this winter’s ski season
https://www.washingtonpost.com/life...e8a6d2-0719-11eb-859b-f9c27abe638d_story.html

“There’s a strong appetite, a high intention, to go skiing and boarding this year,” says Dave Belin, of market research company RRC Associates, based on a national survey conducted by the company this summer. “Ninety-three percent said they felt safe doing dispersed outdoor recreation during the pandemic.”

Oh and geez, they mention people headed to more out of the way ski areas this year, and specifically mentioned Tamarack, which is on my radar!

 

[BlueSkies]

Oh and geez, they mention people headed to more out of the way ski areas this year, and specifically mentioned Tamarack, which is on my radar!

Oh no! And double Oh no! they mentioned my home resort (Jay) too.

 

[Jilly]

Speaking of Jay...they just refunded all Canadian resident's season passes. So they don't figure the border is going to open soon either.

 

[StayWarm]

Copper Mountain just released the details of their parking reservation system (they won't have lift ticket reservations for season pass holders, but you do have to purchase day lift tickets in advance, and in either case you have to reserve parking).

https://www.coppercolorado.com/plan-your-trip/getting-here/parking

You'll have to show a QR code in order to enter the parking areas. I'm still curious about :

(1) whether they'll be directing people to specific lots in order to manage how many people are on the shuttles at any one time; the FAQ doesn't mention that.

(2) how they're going to guarantee that if you buy a day lift ticket you can also get a parking reservation for that day. Hopefully these two systems talk to each other!