Today’s Report: Marketing And Mountain Safety

I have to be honest, right up front. I went to Alpine Meadows today, but never got so far as putting my ski boots on. That was okay, because it allowed me to watch a lot of confusion unfold. The last forecast discussion from NOAA near midnight last night suggested that snow levels were not going to go above 7,000 feet today. Most people indicated today that was not the case.

So what was it like? As predicted, Roundhouse was the top of the mountain today and it was mostly all rain to the top of Roundhouse. When I left at 10:10, Roundhouse was not yet loading. The snow was not powder today, but we are sure that there are people who loved it, and people that hated it. We’ve seen the comments on Facebook and Twitter today. Coverage was definitely a bit better than yesterday, as it snowed a good 8 hours after closing before it turned to rain. We’re building the solid base we have been needing since November.

Let’s Talk Marketing

There was a lot of confusion created for people today based on mixed messages delivered by the online conditions updates, email updates, Facebook updates, the electronic lift status board and various employees trying to be helpful. Apparently, at about 8:20 am, Squaw sent out an email apologizing for the closure at Squaw and indicating that Summit would also be closed. Right about that same time, Alpine Meadows sent this tweet:

But at 9 am, Squaw Valley posted this on their Facebook feed:

Now, this was quite possibly just an example of miscommunication between the marketing department and mountain ops. But the chain of events that was set off was predictable. Once again, the parking lot filled at Alpine Meadows with people thinking they were arriving for a powder day, instead of a rainy day. Many of them paid $114 for a lift ticket. The lines in the morning were huge again, as were the crowds in the lodge and standing around in the breezeway.

What were they waiting for? They were waiting for the Summit chair to open. The electronic status board still said Summit was open, as did the website and mobile site, until somewhere around 10:30. A lot of those people did end up leaving after a couple of runs in the rain on Roundhouse. Reportedly it was a pretty quiet afternoon.

Clearly there were quite a few unhappy customers today. Ski resorts have not always been known for their honesty in portraying current conditions, hence the rise of such sites as UnofficialAlpine.com. If only people took the time to read my article “Summit Open Today? Looks Unlikely…”, which I posted at 7:07 this morning. More than a thousand smart people read that before Alpine opened this morning….

Yeah, I know, some people had a fantastic day today. You knew it was going to rain and you came anyways, and you’re willing to stand in a long line, and you paid $114 for a ticket, and you drove 100 hours from Iowa, and you also willingly spent $75 on warmup beverages in the bar. You rock. We know that already.

Let’s Talk Mountain Safety

There’s some people that just don’t understand that the Summit closure the last two days had little to do with wind, nor was it an effort to “save the powder for the locals on Monday”. There was very clearly significant avalanche hazards on Saturday and those were severely compounded today by a ton of new snow. We told you that would be the case. Not only did Summit not run today, the following resorts did not open today due to snow safety concerns: Squaw Valley, Kirkwood, and Mount Rose. All of those resorts have steep inbounds terrain that was likely to slide today, just like Alpine Meadows.

Yesterday, we heard a group of people were caught hiking up into Alpine Bowl, just before closing to catch some powder runs. They not only had no idea of the unstable nature of the current snowpack, they were also unaware that Patrol might be bombing in that area after the resort closed for the day. Reportedly the group lost their passes. They could have also been fined up to $1000 for entering a closed area while skiing and riding.

We hope that the skiing and riding public remember that patrollers put their lives on the line daily for us. Conditions have been very sketchy the last 2 days. There have been a number of slides at Alpine Meadows this weekend, both due to control work, and in areas that have remained closed. Today’s opening was delayed by a large control slide that started in Peter’s Peril and buried a large section of Blue trail, while another near Pond Slope appeared to have slid well onto the Kangaroo Run. It’s not often that you see 4 snowcats dispatched onto the hill just before the lifts are supposed to roll. Yes, the conditions were quite hazardous out there.

It was only last year that patroller Bill Foster lost his life doing control work on South Face on the Sherwood side. Squaw Valley also lost patroller Andrew Entin in 2009 during control work on Headwall. It’s dangerous enough for patrollers to get the job done. It’s unreasonable to expect patrollers to risk their lives more than necessary – whether to open lifts that should not be open, or to assist those that insist on going for the goods in closed areas.

We know that that the marketing department will not always be the first one to tell you that there are legitimate concerns regarding snow safety. In fact, KSL seems to be determined to market Alpine Meadows as that family friendly little cluster of gently sloped groomed trails. The reality is that as soon as you make that turn off of Highway 89, you’re entering a steep walled canyon that has a history of some deadly avalanches.

Thanks for your work Alpine Meadows patrol and NSP volunteers. Your job is not easy, especially when Mother Nature has been so wacky.

Here’s some helpful tips about Summit operations…no matter what you hear from the marketing department:

• Summit will close at wind speeds around 80 mph from the west. Check wind speed at the NOAA Remote Data page.

• Summit will close at wind speeds around 50 mph from the east as it is less protected.

• Summit will also close at wind speeds around 50 from the south as it stops chairs from moving through the terminal.

• If there is more than a foot of snow in normal conditions, there will likely be a delayed opening for Summit for control work.

• If there is more than a few inches of new snow that falls on a firm base or a faceted base (old snow), expect a delay in opening or a closure.

• If new snow is wet or heavy relative to the snow underneath, like today, expect a very delayed opening or closure.

Those are not official numbers in any way so don’t hold anyone to it…just based on years of casual observations.

Hoping for a better day tomorrow for everyone.

The line grew at Roundhouse as patrol was finalizing mountain safety today.

Four cats dispatched to Kangaroo at 9:30 am? You know something is not normal.

Scott is clearly starting to fill in nicely…soon, we hope…or should we say, when it’s safe…