The things we do when it has not snowed…if you’re ready for some laughs, it’s time to head for Facebook. There’s been a movement afoot to move the terrain park off of Dance Floor, and we have documented such concerns. All parties concerned make some valid points about the positives and negatives involved. While I don’t care for the current location, I totally get the need and desire for terrain parks, as my family has been involved in freestyle and freeride for more than 10 years.
But today is a good day to just laugh about it. It all started with the “Move The Terrain Park At Alpine Meadows” Facebook page. It started off as a good idea, with constructive ideas and thoughts being expressed. Bus as in all Facebook battles, it has devolved into inane commentary, insults and other childish behaviors.
In response, someone started the spoof page titled “Move Keyhole At Alpine Meadows”. Here again there is come equally colorful commentary about the lack of use of Keyhole. The suggestions to bomb out all of the rocks and groom it certainly cannot be serious. Think how awesome the Tidy Bowl could be without all of those rocks 🙂
There’s currently a contest between the two pages to see who can get the most Likes. As you can see from our pictures, it was tied as of this morning. So head on over to Facebook this morning, like your favorite cause, and feel free to add some commentary. Hopefully it will snow soon, giving us all something better to do.
Lets just go Ata-Deer Valley and ban snowboarders.
Change the name to Alta Meadows
Sounds like another Facebook page in the making. 🙂
I propose serving High Tea on High-T every day… who’s bringing the finger sandwiches?
I propose we raise the mountain by 2000 feet, then no fear of climate change
Comparing the Dance Floor terrain park to Key is like apples and oranges. Or more accurately, Apples and rocks. One is something that Alpine spends lots of resource and can be located in a variety of spots while the other is a nature feature that simply exists. There is no obligation to give the Keyhole argument equal billing.
The challenge is to the park users to bring enough traffic to it to warrant the current location. As to date that has not occurred.
Agreed JustBob. I am certainly not giving equal billing to the Move Keyhole movement. The point of this post was only to bring up the ridiculousness of productive discussion on Facebook.
justbob, I believe the keyhole part was just a joke obviously.
Of don’t like either to refuse to fuel the competition for the sake of competition, one being a juvenile (IMO) spoof. Although admittedly, I speak as one who already does like the original page but has contemplated unliking to remove any connection or immediate exposure to the drama.
As someone who has repeatedly been in favor of relocating the terrain park and not afraid of saying so on the FB site I’ve been a target of infantile, malicious slander that was both disappointing and sad. As you mentioned the site was started with best of intentions and efforts in the hope that KSL would see there were options out there besides what their consultants told them. Sadly any hopes of a dialogue between supporters of the park and those who wished just a simple relocation crumbled under a avalanche of irrational inane commentary from the park supporters. Must admit it was fascinating observing the state of human condition based on their commentary. Quite depressing if they represent the future of the ski industry.
I feel your pain Brian. You described the exact reason that our merger with Unofficial Networks was so short. The internet has become the place where people can say whatever they want to say with essentially no filtering. In an environment where there is nobody that does moderation, it’s impossible to really have any productive discussion. At that site – the off the wall commentary has become more important than the actual content. A similar thing happens on most Facebook “pages” on a daily basis. I think it prevents people from actually speaking their mind (see Jennie’s comment on this thread as an example). It’s really part of the reason I run a site like this, where real ideas can be shared with a reasonable assurance that I will moderate any comments that are completely non-productive or contain the sort of personal attacks you have endured this week. Facebook is just not the place to get real communication done. It is just a tool that I happen to use to get the word out about UnofficialAlpine.com.
I too have noticed the counterproductive effects on the other site that involves Squaw Valley. Manners have died in our society. I thank UA for being the voice for those of use who love Alpine Meadows as it was and how it can be in the future. As Alpine is on public lands I’ve always felt that all users, from the traditional skier to the new age snowboarder and park riders should have input on how Alpine should be best used. Hopefully the folks at KSL remember that and reading UA will remind them of that fact. Thank you. PS, I think the grooming this year has been some of the best in at least 10 years.
I would just like to clarify a few things concerning the site and so called Battle Royale.
I did start the site with the best intentions, of establishing a place to voice good ideas, and hopefully finding some common ground concerning the terrain park. Things were going well, good ideas were being posted for and against the park. As the administrator, I was doing my very best to have an impartial ear, and I really didn’t want to have to start deleting points of view, and I certainly didn’t want play referee. The problems really started after my comments about global warming, and how I felt Andy Wirth’s actions of putting the park on Dance Floor contradicted the statements he had made rebutting an article posted in the SF Chronicle. Since that comment, all hell broke loose. My post were deleted from Alpine’s website, for soliciting “likes” , not for content according to Alpine. Then the attacks on site. Looking at the profiles of the people making the derogatory comments it’s not by coincidence that a good portion of them are employees of either Squaw or Alpine. I have also heard, through the grapevine that Alpine and Squaw have encouraged their employees to “support” the park. My goal when I started the page was not to bash snowboarders, or parks, but for the page to serve as an online petition to move the park to a better location. I really don’t want to stoop to the tactics, as Jennie put it, of juvenile behavior. Nor did I ever instigate any “Battle Royale”. So at this point, concerning the page, the way to go about it is just to let the “likes” speak for them selfs. Jennie, I think it’s ok to like the page, without getting engaged with juvenile behavior. As administrator of the page, this is going to be my approach, and I will be a lot quicker to hit the delete button. They have there own web page to post on, and I will do my best to protect ours.
Well said Michael. I concur. I just find it more efficient to run my own page than deal with the BS that is Facebook. Yes, quite a few of the immature remarks were made by Alpine/Squaw employees. Based on the numbers of teams in the park last weekend, it seemed pretty certain they were given the directive to use it.
I suppose to just add an opinion on moving the Terrain Park that I haven’t yet seen expressed, I support the Freeing of Dance Floor to be able to offer the next best run for a young skier transitioning into intermediate skiing skills. For a 5+ year-old with no poles, she has to be (partially) dragged across the flat stretch to get back to the Hot Wheels chair. That wouldn’t be a problem if they ever bothered to run Yellow Chair during non-holiday weekdays to hit the Weasel Loop over and over.
As a skier, I find it merely inconvenient, as a mother who remembers that stage of transitioning my abilities, I find it down right irritating to lose that run.
It is nice to come to a site and feel rational, thought out discussions are occurring. As a life long Alpine Meadows skier, who also worked in the ski industry and has witnessed the skier vs. snowboarder/ old vs. new tussle first hand, I shake my head at the juvenile attacks occurring on Facebook.
Per my experience, the attacking nature of the posts on “Move The Terrain park at Alpine Meadows” is due to a minority of individuals who work as lift ops for the season (this is not a career for them), party with their homeys and get the benefit of riding for free.
Alpine and Squaw need employees to run the mountain but the individuals who are posting on Facebook are not a good representative of the many great employees who work there. Recently I have had some great conversations with life long Tahoe residents/ employees at Alpine & Squaw about the Terrain Park and KSL is aware of pass holders concerns. There are more than just a “few” of us who would like KSL to look into moving the Terrain Park next year.
Thank you for hosting this forum and I hope it will create constructive dialog between KSL and the pass holders at Alpine.
Thanks Sarah!
Thank you Sarah, your opinon and support are greatly appreciated. If there is anything that is posted on Move the Terrain Park that is offensive or abusive please contact me and I will take care of it. I did sime clean up on the site, but I did try to leave post that I felt were relevant. As I stated earlier, I really don’t want to sensor opposing opinion, but if it becomes personal or irrelevant I will delete it. The other site seems to think this is a contest, but from my point of view the site is a forum to collaborate and make Alpine a better place for everyone. Even with that said, the more “likes” we have on the site, the better the chances KSL will acknowledge our point of view.
The “competition” aspect of likes on one site vs the other was more what I meant in my initial comment. If you start liking one or the other JUST because you are trying to get more than the other one, you miss the point of the existence of the pages, except for the fact that the other page was only really create to mock and irritate of course.
I agree 100 %. The one thing that is happening, is our opinons are being heard, we have Alpine’s attention. While I’m on here… Just to let everyone know… censored again at Alpine. This afternoon Alpine posted a piece about the terrain park, for a meet and greet type situation with the creators of the park. I was sitting at the computer when the post went up and saw a few Free Dance Floor comments, so I posted a link to Move the Terrain Park site, immediately I recieved three likes. Now I’m back home from work and my post has been deleted. Last night I went on Alpine site and saw a clothing comany soliciting business on their site, so again I posted a link. Today the clothing company’s post is still up but mine have been deleted. This is after they told me I was being shut down for solicitation, not because of content. A clothing line is selling clothes, and I’m posting an opinon… go figure. It doesn’t bother me, because I’m not in this for the “likes”, I’m in this so the message is heard… and apperently it’s being heard loud and clear.