Dave's Blog

Hey Dave,

Beautiful day today and great skiing.  What's up with all the ski lift breakdowns?  14 was down a couple days ago, 12 was shut down today, 9 was down last week and the j lift was closed today.  I like hiking to Black Iron but my 7 year old wasn't keyed on hiking to get home!

Dave's reply: Hi Kevin, I'm sorry for the inconvenience. There are so many redundant safety features on lifts that sometimes the gremlins take over. We have had a few problems but everything is back on track and turning just fine now.

I asked our VP Mountain Operations Jeff Proteau for a detailed response to your questions which I attached below:

• Lift 9 last week (lift down less than 15 minutes).  We had a tower circuit fault that had to be troubleshot.  Travel time plus troubleshooting caused delay.   
• Lift 14 a couple of days ago.  Low voltage fault in the motor room.  Battery that runs controls was drained (cold weather) and heater was left on (operator error).  The generator used to recharge the battery was cold and did not start quickly.  LM got the generator started and recharged the battery and restarted lift.  Travel time etc, the lift was down for 14 minutes.
• Lift 12 yesterday.  Lift op could not reset paddle (difficult for lift op to troubleshoot), kept trying to reset but did not call lift maintenance until after 8 minutes.  Lift maintenance responded and lift was running after 14 minutes total.
• Lift 14 yesterday (blogger did not mention this).   The problem started with a normal stop at the bottom for a misload.  Lift op tried to restart and had a service brake fault.  Tried to clear service brake fault, but it would not clear.  Called lift maintenance.  They could not open break electrically and clear the fault, kept trying but let too much time pass (30 minutes) before deciding to unload the lift on tertiary diesel because they could manually operate the brake in this mode.  This is a slow evacuation motor so this extended the time people were on the lift.   LM continued to troubleshoot the service break fault but could not get the brake to release electrically which is required to operate.  They finally called a service consultant who had them re-boot the computer and it cleared the fault.

Dave,

  We had up to 14 people staying with us this holiday season of all skiing abilities.  As usual, we hire one of your most experienced instructors, (and past Ski School Director) Annie Savath for half or full days for the group to enjoy.  In the 17 years we have had a home here, I have never seen such wonderful snow conditions, and snow making/grooming.  The combination has caused everyone, including myself, to make significant improvements in our skiing ability. Wow! Great memories to take back home. Many of us will be back in February and March.  Surely, the gods of weather are smiling on us in Telluride, but I tell everyone how impressed I am with the way the Ski mountain is being managed this year.  The best ever! Thanks, Dave.  Happy New Year, Indeed!

Dave's reply: Hi Paul, glad you enjoyed your vacation! What I find interesting is that this season was forecast as a La Nina which the "experts" said would result in below average snow for Telluride. Then we set a record for December snowfall. I've gone on record before with my opinion that El Nino / La Nina is nothing but "La Nada"! If the forecasters can't get it right 24 hours out, how can they predict an entire ski season with accuracy?

Thank you for your nice compliments regarding the operation - TSG has a great team. There are many complexities and they handle the variables very well.

What's up with lift 14?

Dave's reply: Please see my reply to Kevin above. Thank you.

The 2nd photo would be south side of lower Andy's, aka lower Gold Hill-1.  Suggest that you consider blasting a narrow ski traverse (like Winger's route from Electra to Dynamo) across the upper portion of the GH-1 cliffband allowing skier access from GH-1 to Gold Hill-1.5 (skier's right to left); the topography is well suited for this type of improvement.  The more ways down through the cliffband the better!

Dave's reply: Hi slider, You are correct on the run!

Yes, I've been talking with Jeff Proteau about that access route project. Sounds like a good idea to me. Hopefully we can get it done in the near future.

I moved to Telluride having *never skied before*!! I went up to Ute Park yesterday and absolutely loved it. I tried skiing back down Double Cabins and I had a rough time. My question is, can you ride lift 10 back DOWN? I think I need to hold off on the double greens until my blackout days on my limitless lesson pass are over. I've been lucky to get with the same excellent instructor every time I've been up for a lesson. Thanks for everything that all of you do! :)

Dave's reply: Hi Lisa, I'm really glad you're enjoying the life-long sport of skiing! Yes, you can download on Chair 10 - just ask the operator for help at the top terminal. Thanks!

Dave,

  Snow's great, liftys & checkers are happy and friendly, our friends and neighbors, (your staff), are handling the holiday crowd with aplomb.  Gotta' love it when our peak season lift lines move faster than most everyone else's average weekday! I hope the bean counters are happy too, that's good for all of us.  

  A special thanks to you and big cheers to the snow making & grooming teams for getting as much of the hill open as early as possible given mama natures' reluctance to let Spring go.      

 Just one little request: Please bring back the port-a-johns at the bottom of 6 & top of 5 & maybe add back the second one at the bottom of 9.  Please? The buzz was that management decided they were unsightly. Perhaps. But as a former Guest Services Host and local ski bum, I can tell you, everyone REALLY appreciates them.

Hell,

paint 'em like out houses,

if you must for the show.

But

please bring them back.

Or we'll go in the snow.

Y'know.    

  Well, lifts open soon, gotta' run.

Cheers

Marco  

Dave's reply: Hi Marco, things have been going well. Thanks for recognizing the efforts of the staff - they're doing great!

As I've mentioned in earlier posts, there are real bathrooms all over the place. Top of Chair 12, Top of Chair 6, Gorrono Ranch, Angle station of gondola, bottom of gondola in Telluride, bottom of Gondola at MV, Big Billies. We're looking at constructing some additional bathrooms in the future also. Thank you for your input.

Thanks for that info! Too bad I didn't know this yesterday. I told you had an excellent instructor but I failed to mention his name. It's Shai Walker. I couldn't have made it this far without him. Heck, I couldn't even get my ski boot into my ski when I started. :)

Dave's reply: Thanks for mentioning Shai, we'll pass along the kudos!

I have skiied all over Colorado and always love coming home to my local mountain-Telluride...well, except yesterday.  Lift line after lift line (we timed one wait at 20+ minutes).  Then once we were on the lift (Lift 10) we never made it to the top without it stopping, and once for a total of 10 minutes!  Sitting on Lift 10 with two kids in 20 degrees in the shade is no fun.  Once we got up higher we found half the mountain open!  Beginners need to be encouraged to head up to Ute Park and Telluride needs to find ways to get them down...there is so much more room!  If it isn't marketed to beginers then bring back the Terrain Park!  CB has one at every turn and my kids (and husband) loved the Ute Terrrain Park!

Dave's reply: Hi Amanda. The way Christmas fell this year a lot of people shifted to this week. We were actually slower than usual last week. At this point, the peak is over though. While we had upwards of 8,000 people on the hill for the past few days, that doesn't compare to the 15,000 to 20,000 people per day at some of the other resorts.

I agree that Chair 11, Ute Park is underutilized. People are allowed to down load on Chair 10 if those runs are too long.

I'm not sure what you mean about 50% of the mountain was closed - you might be referring to the problem we had with Chair 14 yesterday. See my reply to Kevin above for details.

We're constructing a new beginner park over the next few days under Chair 1. I think you'll like it.

Thank you for your input. Holidays do tend to be a little crowded at ski resorts :) It's been great ski conditions this December though! While we had longer than usual lines on Chair 1, Chair 4, and Chair 10, the other lifts had very short lines. That is one of the things that Telluride is known for.

hey dave,  i just read the blog about gold hill 1 and how you are aware of its potential.  is this earthmoving project one that has been talked about?  and would the forest service approve something like this?  also would the owners put forth the money to do something like this? lastly, are there any long term plans to put a lift in the mt. qual area?

Dave's reply: We have been talking about the skiway and are doing some cost estimating. FS approval would be necessary.

As far as a lift to Mt. Quail, that's not something that is currently on a short list but I wouldn't say "never" regarding that idea. It's been kicked around.

Yes Dave there are many bathrooms on the mountain but none you listed are a reasonable choice for lift 5 folks.   Guys can cope but the ladies and little girls have fewer options.   Paint 'um white and build real ones next summer.   Bill

Dave's reply: There is an employee porta below the tree island at the bottom of Chair 5 (for emergencies only please). I'm working on getting real ones buit next summer.

Hi Dave - a suggestions for Telluride's new year's resolutions. check out this site :

www.skiareacitizens.com/index.phpnav=report_card&de=41

it's telluride's report card on environmental stewardship. We're #8 in the west which isn't bad at all but we only get a 73%. That's a C!! If you read through the report card, you'll see we have much to improve upon.

Let's try for a B in 08 and an A by 2010!!

Reasonable goal setting? Hope so.

Thanks.

Dave's reply: Hi Sue, I'm not a believer in the SACC score card for a number of reasons. It is a flawed ranking system developed by a group with a bias against any further ski resort expansion - no matter how well those projects are designed and implemented. If you look at the scores that are assigned to the various catagories, it clearly dings any ski area that is expanding or even planning to expand. For example, we had points deducted for opening Black Iron Bowl for hike-to skiing - that is flawed and biased in my opinion. TSG is a strong believer in responsible environmental stewardship but the SACC scorecard is not the metric.

Dave,

I have to agree with Marco about the bathrooms.  I myself have been near tears on chair 5 trying to figure out the quickest way to get to either the top of 12 or the bottom of 9.  Either way it is  an excruciating wait when you have to go.  My husband will just pull into the trees and let loose there.  Not ideal in my book.  My son had to go on the way to chair 5 the other day and we were planning on doing a few runs there.  Knowing there was no bathroom, I told him to pull in to the trees as well!  No, we are not a family with bladder problems!  

Unsightly perhaps when you don't need them, but quite a site to behold when you've been waiting!  I would think yellow snow scattered through the trees would be more unsightly.   Please bring back the bathrooms- I don't want to go in the trees!!!!

Hoping,

Carryann

Dave's reply: Hi Carryann, See my reply to Bill above. Thank you.

Dave,

You may have been standing in the runout of gold hill one, but your picture clearly shows the gold hill one cliffs, which are out of bounds.  Thanks for encouraging the poachers, Dave!

Dave's reply: The picture of the tracks is Gold Hill One Runout - which we open and close based on AC work above. We don't encourage poachers, we prosecute poachers. Gold Hill One Cliffs would require a person to ski past a closure to access. There is nothing to be confused about when coming upon a closure..

My wife and i will be out there staying at the Peaks resort jan 12-19. it will be our first time out there. i'm a decent snowboarder and look forward to this vacation!! great pics!

Dave's reply: Hi Jeff, Thanks for choosing Telluride, travel safe and enjoy!

Oi Dave!  When do you reckon the pipe will be up?  There seems to be heaps of snow!  A date to when it will be open would be quite nice.

cheers!  

Dave's reply: We've made a huge amount of snow for the pipe and are hoping to complete construction by the end of next week. Thanks!

Dave,

Kudos to the ski instructors, lift operators, ticket checkers, and groomers.  We had a wonderful week in Telluride over Christmas and enjoyed very few lift lines.  It was a magical week for my family.  Special thanks to Dascha for helping my daughter get comfy on skis finally after three previous attempts at different mountains.  Other than some thin conditions on parts of Telluride Trail and the one icy spot on Sandia, we loved every minute of it on the mountain!  And as always, we love the town of Telluride and all the great people there.  We will be back in July if not sooner!

Dave's reply: Hi Scott, thanks for your nice comments and mentioning Dascha! We're blessed with a great mountain, community, and staff! Hope you can make it back in the near future - another ski trip this year? :)

Hey Dave!!!  I'm Jack and I'm coming out to Telluride for the first time ever with the University of Wisconsin Ski and Snowboard Club.  My friends and I can't wait to see what you guys have to offer, but first we have a few concerns.  

My friends and I all snowboard and enjoy the terrain park as much as the next person, but the real reason why we come out west year after year is because of the powder, bowls and tree runs.  I'm personally a huge fan of tree runs, so where are a few places to go for the best ones?  Where should we go for some good hiking powder?  Any news on when Palmyra will be open?  Also, are there any places where there are any cliff drops?  Another personal favorite of mine...

O and thanks for putting up some great pics, they're making us really stoked to come out there!

Dave's reply: Hi Jack, Thanks for choosing Telluride for your vacation - you'll love it.

As for our tree skiing terrain, we have a number of great areas for you to check out. Log Pile into West Drain is incredible riding off Lift 9 along with KANT-MAK-M trees, Bushwacker trees and East Drain. You need to also check out the trees in between Allais Alley and Zulu Queen, Apex Glade, Silver Glade, Chongos and Happy Thoughts all located off Lift 6. Off Lift 14 you can drop into Buzz’s Glade, Millions and Andy’s Gold for some very nice trees as well as some intermittent cliff areas throughout.

The best hike-to areas that will also have the best powder at Telluride are Black Iron Bowl, which also has some rocky outcroppings, and Bald Mountain terrain.

The Palmyra Peak terrain will open as conditions allow and ski patrol has deemed the area safe to access. They are still mobilizing equipment and doing avalanche control work at this time. I really can't forecast with accuracy when they will open it to the public.

Travel safe and enjoy Telluride!

Hi Dave.  This is our 6th season at Telluride.  My family loves this place.  I have a few questions:

What happened to the ski racks in front of the high camp warming hut off lift 12?  There are skis all over the place as you enter.

Also, there is are a number of "slow" signs at the bottom of SeeForever that create a dangerous bottleneck.

Dave's reply: Hi David, as a result of your question, I looked into the ski racks at High Camp and asked that we get some up there. Thank you.

Regarding slow signs being hazardous, that really doesn't make any sense to me. I recommend slowing down near the slow signs :)

Dave,

Happy New Year! I read on the CAIC website that a skier caused an avalanche on GH1 and was swept over the cliff band uninjured. I've heard various rumors about who it was, why they were up there, whether or not they were fined, etc and no clear answers. Would you care to clear the air about this?

Thank you!

Dave's reply: Hi Tom, there are stories in the local papers on it. See the Telluride Daily Planet and Telluride Watch websites. They cover the details well. Thank you.

Dave,

The camera on top of nine is great. It really helps those of us close to town to decide whether it's worth going up for or not!

If you do any more cameras, how about one on chair 14 overlooking prospect and the wilsons so we can see what kind of weather is imminent?

Thanks, Steve

Dave's reply: Hi Steve, Glad you enjoy the new camera. The next camera we're working on will go at High Camp due to the wireless infrastructure. I think it will accomplish what you're looking for.

Love the new web cam atop chair 9, though it makes it even more frustrating not to be there(I guess that's the desired effect!). Dave, thanks for all the small and not so small improvements you're making and planning. Looking forward to coming up from Phoenix in 14 days (and counting).

Dave's reply: Hi Mike, Glad you like the new webcam - and thanks for your nice comments! We're into a continual improvement mode.

Dave,

I'm really excited to get to Telluride on Monday for College Week.  This blog has been great. The pictures have been getting me really excited, and the discussion has helped me decide what terrain to tackle, and with no lift lines, this shouldn't be difficult.

Quick question, is the Gondola used by many skiers, or is it mostly to connect downtown to Mountain Village?

Thanks,

Jeff

Dave's reply: Hi Jeff, Thanks for coming to Telluride next week. The Gondola is primarily used as transportation between Telluride, Mountain Village, and the parking complex in Mountain Village. Few people do laps on it.

Hey Dave, Wicked conditions man. Peace to the snow that comes nearly every day thats wicked awesome man. Waz chilling with the roads how are the peaced out roads are they in wicked condition. Peace to you and me!!PERIOD! Yo momma so fat she saw a bunch of white kids in a bus and she said stop that twinkie. I hope yo momma's not fat just wanted to share that wicked awesome joke wit u.

Peace out Dave

Dave's reply: I'm not sure how to respond :O

hey dave,

        i will be arriving in telluride next wednesday and staying at the peaks for a week. i am have been coming to telluride now for 5 years and so far this year seems to be one of the best years so far in a very long time. am i correct? what is the outlook for snow next week? i really would love for there to be a big storm while we are visiting. it seems like every year i come i just miss the storm, and the the day i leave theres another big storm. so im praying for snow! cant wait to be there.

Chris From Massachusetts

Dave's reply: Hi Chris, The snow in December was a record for that month so the conditions on the mountain are really quite good right now. We're forecast to get more snow this weekend too.

I really don't trust the weather maps that many days out. Please ask again early next week and I'll look at the maps and let you know. Travel safe and enjoy Telluride!

Whato iso theo statuso ofo Alpino Vino? Hey and by the way great job on the blog! I just wanted to add a comment about Lift 9. I think we should keep Lift 9 for those who want it and make another lift directly next to it so double the people can go up, no more fighting about the lift and its something new! Just a thought. Keep up the good work.

-Fritz

Dave's reply: Hi Fritz, Alpino Vino is still on hold. Added more vino options at Gorrono Saloon though :)

Duel lifts on the north side, that's a new concept!

Hi Dave...2 years ago my husband and I celebrated our anniversary in Telluride. According to everyone out there,it was not your best season. However...to  east coasters who are use to skiing on ice, we loved it! Both of us fell in love with Telluride and my husband fell in love with skiing again....YES!!! We will be back this Feb.23-28. Just looking at your pictures gets my heart racing. I cannot wait to see what is like to ski out there with that much snow!!

Dave's reply: Hi Jenifer, thanks for posting! Late February is a great time to come. You're both going to fall in love with Telluride again!

Dave,

I noticed you said Telluride set a new record for the snowiest December ever. How many inches of snow was that? Also in your experience at other ski resorts ie. Mount Hood and others, how does the snow in Telluride compare? Mount Hoods mid base as of now is well over 110 inches. Do they really get that much more snow? Obviously timing and quality of the snow far out weigh shear quantity. Is it that Telluride gets consitent snowfalls of one or two feet as opposed to the sporadic six or seven foot snow that may be poor in quality that is seen in places like Mt Hood.

Dave's reply: Hi Mitt, Good questions. Telluride received 95" in the month of December. Previous record was 63" in December, 1979.

The Cascade mountain range in the Pacific northwest does receive far more snow than the Rocky Mountains on average - and most often with a much higher moisture content. That mean that our snow settles more than the snow in the Cascades.

I've got an old saying that when you get a foot of snow in the Cascades and you drive a snowcat over it, you end up with 10". When you get a foot of snow in Colorado and drive a snowcat over it you end up with 3". It's not an exact science but you get the point.

I've skied some the best snow of my life in the Cascades but the trick is that you have to ski it during a cold storm. The minute the sun comes out it sets up pretty thick unless it's abnormally cold. The nice thing about intercontinental snow is that it stays nicer for several days after a storm - IMHO.

I don't want to come off as a snow snob though - both Colorado and the PNW have had great starts to the ski season. Enjoy!

Heck no Dave!!! Don't ever replace chair 9 with anything faster or bigger and sure as heck don't add another next to it to double the use of the pod!! Chair 9 is what it is because of the slow triple. I have said as a local I support all that you are doing but don't mess with that chair!! K?  

Dave's reply: Hi TG, The idea of a lift next to a lift is pretty crazy, don't count on that. I'll post a blog soon on the Chair 9 debate.. Sounds like a lively conversation to me!

Dave... Please.... Lift 9 running at half speed is killing me!!!! Honestly, I love Telluride, I love all you've done (I would like a port-o-potty at the top of 5 but I can live with your decision).  But really, I rode 9 four times today and it ran at half speed almost the entire time all four rides!!! Lift 8 stopped 3 times on my way up. I know it's crowded, I know people fall, but why the half speed?  

Honestly, I've skied all around Colorado and none of the other resorts have the lift problems that Telluride does. It makes me sad that my home resort has this problem. I sit on the lift talking to visitors and the most common conversation is them complaining about the lifts. Please... this can't keep going like this, I've heard the term "third-world class resort" too many times.

Dave's reply: 3rd-world class resort? That is over the top Snowball :O> 

You have the best skiing and resort in the country here at Telluride... I ski a fair amount - why are the lifts always running fine when I'm on them?

I've worked for several resorts and skied many others over the years and noticed that every ski area around has people mis-load periodically - or electrical stops now and then -Telluride is no worse.

1/2 speed 4 times in a row? That sounds odd.. I'll make some phone calls first thing tomorrow morning to find out about that claim. I did not get out of the box today and will ask some questions. Time of day would help.

Dave,

 I agree with the comment above about the "Slow Signs" on See Forever....specifically just above the junction of the trail from lift 4 and Telluride Trail where the Ski Patrol house is. This nice slope comes down from where Lookout cuts off from See Forever.

  The wide banner-type "Slow Fences" with little slots in between them are extremely dangerous, and you will have skiiers tangle in them and with eachother. Somebody is going to get hurt, and it probably has already happened. Why?  Simply because the slope just above them becomes sheer ice as all the skiiers are forced to attempt to slow and steer into the narrow slots to avoid these wide obstacles.  I was barely able to get through the slot, and barely under control because of the ice.  I was shaking my head while looking at ski patrol, and feeling lucky I had not crashed.  The Ski Patrol must have thought I was thinking I went too fast and went out of control because of it.  NO!  I was thinking of how stupid it is to force all skiers onto one small part of the hill and creating sheer ice!  You see, the snow on the upper half of this run, just below the Lookout turnoff, is easy to ski and easy to carve on the piles, so speed is easy to control.  Skiers spread out and use the entire width, making piles that can be used to ski on in between the icy spots.  just when the "Slow Fences" come into play, all the piles are pushed aside, the hill turns to chutes of ice aimed at the slots in the fences, and it is a broadside slide with little control.  Slow signs are good.  Broad obstacles at the bottom of a steep slope with little slots funnel everyone into narrow chutes pushing all the surface snow away leaving only sheer unsteerable ice.  I noticed that there have been experiments with the configuration of these "Slow Fences" over the last week.  None of the alternatives are working.  One of their tactics blocked use of the edges of the run where the only skiable snow remained! AACK!  Not smart. Allowing skiiers to use the whole width of the hill and leave some cover to get an edge in is a much better way.  The "Slow" signs and patrol eyes are enough, please.  We see them.  Some skiiers may not heed them, but please leave the rest of us the possibility to turn, slow and even stop. Don't force us all onto the same small icy surface using barriers.  You are on notice:  Somebody is going to get hurt because we can't steer at any speed on that ice after enjoying the broad coverage on the upper part of the run. If they don't break something when they hit the pile of snow at the barrier, they may run into you or me and crush us as well.  Right now, I am not even going down that run anymore.  It is too dangerous, and no fun.

 Sincerely concerned,

    - Paul

Dave's reply: I'll go look at it today. Something must have changed since I was last there. Thank you for your input.

Dave,

Yesterday, for the first time in a while, I decided to park in town instead of Mtn Village since Mtn Village parking has been so crowded. Little did my friend I was skiing and I know that we would be loaded onto separate chairs because the weight load on 7 can't handle having two people on each chair.

I am really sorry but this is truly embarrassing, wouldn't you say? For starters, wouldn't it be a little more customer service oriented to load every other chair instead of loading people and their friends and family separately? I will say that the lift op was extremely pleasant about the whole thing and when the woman behind me expressed that she was too nervous to ride without her husband they were allowed to ride together. But of course, this is only the smaller part of the obvious problem.

The greater issue is obvious: we are a supposedly a world class ski resort and one of our three base lifts coming from town is barely limping along. The fumes and noise from the diesel engine are just exemplifying further as one gets off the lift or skiis by at what an embarrassing situation this is. And, it really isn't just lift 7; 3 times this year I have had to wait at the bottom of 9 because it was shut down, twice I have gotten to the bottom of 10 and have had to go up 1 because 10 was down for who knows how long, and even 14 was shut down the other day. Yet we have no problem charging people $80+ for a day of skiing.

Is this really what Telluride considers to be upholding world class industry standards? I just never hear about these continuous and daily lift issues at other world class resorts. Does Telski have any plans to rectify this situation or are the lift ticket prices just going to keep going up while lift service continues to go down?

Oh, one thing I would like to expound upon; as I said the lift op at the bottom of 7 was a really nice girl who had a great attitude and this does seem to be a theme amongst lift ops all over the hill. That has been really nice this year. Bravo in the customer service department!

Sincerely,

Laura Marchal

Dave's reply: Hi Laura, Thank you for your comments.

When Chair 7 is running on the auxiliary motor that is because there is a power problem. That can be caused by a number of things. When on backup, there is a weight restriction. I'd like to replace Lift 7 someday but view it as part of the Lift 7 Subarea planning process the Town is working on right now. The  outcome of that process will help inform our decision.

While I understand your complaint, I don't agree that we have such a horrible lift problem as compared to other resorts.

Chair 14 was closed to the public a few days ago because two skiers violated our boundary closure and kicked off an avalanche. Patrol had to mobilize a search on the south side of the Chair 14 pod and wanted to clear the area as a result - which was appropriate.

When a lift stops, it is not always because of a lift problem - most of the time it is a result of user error loading or unloading. Like all world-class resorts, we allocate a giant budget annually and have a team of highly qualified Lift Maintenance staff members who are committed to keeping all lifts turning.

Thank you for recognizing the Lift Operations and Guest Services staff and their level of customer service. I agree that they are really doing a great job!

Enjoy the ski season - looks like we're going to get a pile of new snow this weekend!

Dave's follow up reply: I got a voice mail message from Andrew Brown, Lift Operations Manager today who had read your blog post.

He explained that the reason the operator was loading single people on the lift was because we had a group of people who were staying near the bottom of Lift 7 who were composed of several beginners.

In order to help those folks unload without incident, they were loading singles - which was working quite well. You and your friend must have gotten caught up in that.

The reason the auxiliary motor was running at the top was because Lift Maintenance runs them periodically to check them out. The lift was actually running on primary power at the time so there were no issues with the lift.

Sorry for the inconvenience but I wanted to clear up the facts. Thank you.

Hi Dave,

We recently returned from a great 2-week vacation in Telluride and experienced some of the best skiing we've ever had, especially this early in the year.  My wife and I are absolutely thrilled with our son's positive ski school experience.  Our warmest thanks to both Dustin and Wynne - they were fantastic instructors and made Dylan's vacation, and hence ours, truly memorable.

In follow-up to my 12/23 post, you were going to look into "value" pricing for ski school regulars like our son, who will be in ski school for six weeks this winter.  How about a limitless lesson pass like the one offered to adult season pass holders.  We appreciate your attention and hope for some incentive prior to our next visit in February.

Happy new year to you and your family.

Cheers,

Brad

Dave's reply: Hi Brad, I did discuss this with the VP of Resort Services / Ski School Director Bobby Murphy after reading your earlier post. There may be some hybrid we can offer in the future but not this season. We'll discuss it when we pull the Pricing and Product Development Committee together in the spring for next season. Thank you for your input!

Thank you for mentioning Dustin and Wynne, we'll make sure to recognize and reward them for a job well done.

Just wanted to know how the black Iron Bowl is shaping up, and what is expected for the rest of the season at Telluride.  I work overseas and won't have my Leave till March.  Wondering what kind of pics and info you may have on the new stuff.

Thanks,

James

Dave's reply: Hi James, Black Iron Bowl opened up much earlier than we expected this year (3rd weekend in December) with great conditions. The upper portion was closed today because we're in the middle of a great snowstorm and the avalanche risk is too high to open all the way to Mountain Quail. We're committed to opening it as often as possible, it's been extremely popular. Once this storm passes I'll get some pictures from the upper routes and post them. Thanks!

Hi Dave! Today was FANTASTIC!!!! I rode 9 all day and it was running great! Yesterday I was on it from about 1:00-2:30. I agree with TG, I would not want a high speed lift in place of 9 or a second lift next to it (that's new, I hadn't heard that rumor before). I agree that part of the reason 9 is so incredible is

that not as many people get to it in the amount of time they would on a high-speed quad.  And for me, I need that time to rest between runs, my legs are jello!

A random thought on pricing because I saw some talk above.... how about a deeply discounted lift ticket that only gets you on 1, and then maybe another pretty cheap ticket that only gets you on 1, 10 and 11?  That way people could try out skiing/snowboarding without having to pay for a full lift ticket and might be more inclined to give it a shot? Also it could be a big draw for families/groups with beginners looking for a destination resort in Colorado.

PS. Don't wait around for a 7 base area plan to replace the lift, it'll probably be years before anything gets finalized, and that lift needs help!!!

Dave's reply: Hi Snowball, Thanks for the ideas and input. I appreciate it.

Hey wicked dave my peaced out friend. Don't you understand my wicked question earlier. I was askin about the wicked snow conditions. Peace to you and me. How do you like this joke. Yo momma so fat it took her a twinkie to get out the door. And I agree with the wicked Fritz dude hes wicked right about dual lifts. I am a wicked local and the peaced out town needs the peaced out lift.

Peace to u and muah

Dave's reply: My mamma passed away from cancer a few years ago and was never fat. Please understand that some people may be offended by jokes like that.

Hey whats up with Paul V. Peace on Earth. He really must be a local because I have to admit it the locals in Telluride are hippys. You should try not to be local. I agree on dual lifts by the way great concept!

Dave's reply: Hi Josh, I really don't like to stereotype people, locals or visitors - thank you :)

hi Dave,

I have been skiing lift nine for over a decade, however due to a recent knee surgery I can no longer ski it because there is no leg rest.

Please consider installing leg rests.

Dave's reply: Hi Smith, I looked into that recently and the additional weight of foot rests would require that we take off about 22 chairs to compensate.

Black iron bowl has some great terrain however it takes most people a substantial amount of time to hike up.  Also,  if you pay over $80 a day for a lift ticket you expect to have so me great DOWN HILL skiing.  why pay so much when you have to hike to the best terrain while you could just go back country skiing for free.

Dave's reply: Hi John, My opinion is that Telluride has some the best lift-served terrain of all ski resorts - even without Black Iron Bowl. We opened this new hike-to terrain to the great pleasure of many locals and visitors. Hike-to terrain is only offered at a few resorts in the country and we're happy to be on that list.

Back country skiing is always an option but there are two main differences. First, the ability to ride up to 11,815' before you start hiking is a bonus. Second, Black Iron Bowl is managed by professional ski patrollers.

Thanks for you comments.

Some high class ski resorts such as Aspen give away cookies or Lara bars at the top of some lifts.

Its nice for the customers and inexpensive compared to other costs.

Dave's reply: Hi Jake, I agree and just had a meeting a few weeks ago with a cookie company over a new partnership. I'd like to get it going. Thanks!

Dave:

This is my first blog and I want to say that we just returned from a fabulous holiday in Tride once again.  By way of background we are a family of 7, and TMV second homeowners for nearly !5 year. We visit 8-10 weeks a year w our homes used by friends and family another 4-6 weeks.  We come winter and summer, and love both equally.  Since I first came to T in 1987 and fished w Bill White and Woody Pattishall, the Mountain and overall experience has improved dramatically. Hats-off to the Allreds and Morita for their foresight, hard work, money, and doing all they did.

We have been meaningful supporters of Telluride Academy, The Telluride Foundation and the Valley Floor acquisition.

The background above is so you understand we are long time T supporters and only want the best for the area.

Here are my concerns: Parking in TMV and Lift 9.

The parking last week in MV was horrendous!  Scores of cars parked all over MV Blvd everyday.  Not only are there "No Parking On Any Street" signs but there was an amenity cart provided to shuttle illegal parkers.  How can you allow this to happen? For a few extra lift tickets sold you have broken the compact we all agreed to for MV. Please let me know this will never happen again.

Lift 9 is a joke.  I've been coming here for over 20 years and I've heard all the romanticism and sentimentality.  Bottom line is that it is unreliable, unsafe (no safety bar), uncomfortable (slow, no foot rest). It's a rip-off and embarrassing that some of the best terrain on the mountain is served by that broken down jalopy.  Please let me know that there is the money and the sensibility to finally improve that lift.

Sorry for the long message.  Remember we love the area, have been coming here a long time and only want the best.

Dave's reply: Hi Mr. Benchmarker.

I'll start by responding to your concerns about cars parking on Mt. Village Blvd. The ski company , the Town of Mountain Village, and the Telluride Mountain Village Owners Association have been working together in a proactive and collaberative fashion to manage peak day parking.

The town has set up a committee on this issue and we've had several meetings. There are short term mitigation action plans that have been developed to manage peak day parking and work is being done to address the long-term solution.

Until additional parking is constructed, I would expect parking on MV Blvd to continue during peak times like the Christmas holiday. Providing shuttles improves the experience of our visitors who benefit not only the ski area but all the small businesses in the village core.

I believe the long-term economic health of all the village core businesses and the ski area benefits homeowners directly by protecting the value of their property and assures a high-quality mountain community experience for visitors as well as homeowners.

The community leaders in the village are not ignoring this issue and I believe much is being done to make things work well until additional parking solutions are developed.

If you want more information on this I recommend you log on to www.telluridewebtv.com and click on the January 3rd Mountain Village Mayor's Forum. Bob Delves, our mayor, talked about this very issue in detail.

Regarding Chair 9, I'll post a blog in the near future specifically to talk about it's future. As you know, there are various opinions. I look forward to the dialog.

Thank you for your historic participation and contribution to the community!

what happens if I lose, break, or forget my seasons pass??

Dave's reply: Hi Snowflake, Drop by the season pass office below the gondola at Mountain Village. They can replace your lost pass. I'm pretty sure we charge a service fee though - although I can't remember the amount tonight. Enjoy the great conditions!

Happy New Year!! Dave!! Good to see that you are getting lots of Good Comments from your Telluride customers too!! Some people are just Never happy!! Well good luck with that!! I'm @ Cooper Spur this year cuz Meadows Managment leaves much to be desired (Except for Woody and Brad!!) It only takes ONE bad apple to ruin the whole bunch I guess. Oh well Cooper is laid back and nice!! Sorry for the belated New Year Wish! Hope to get to Telluride one of these days!! Maybe we can take some turns(back country!!) :) Take care Dave, good to see you have your Great Sence of humor in you responses!! Sincerley Wes X-Concierge Supervisor, also open to recruitment!!

Dave's reply: Hi Wes, Glad all is going well for you. Say hi to Jodi for me! She's a great operator.

P.S. sorry about the small edit above :)

Hi Dave,

You said there was a record snowfall for December this year. So....how much snow and by what measure?

Also, I think it would be extremely helpful and more accurate to report on the website and the snow phone the amount of new snow since the lifts closed until 6AM report.  Sometimes they report it on the snow phone but not consistently.

Then, we can know how much fresh snow is out there.

The "last 24 hours" of snowfall really is not helpful at all in determining how much new snow there is today to be skied.

Of course it sounds good for marketing and I know other ski resorts do that but we're different...and better, aren't we?.

Thanks,

Lisa

Dave's reply: Hi Lisa, I asked Matt Skinner, our Executive Director of Sales and Marketing to reply, which is below:

On days when the bulk of the snowfall comes between 8am and 4pm, we do try to note the amount that has fallen since the lifts closed – we will make sure to include this information in both the phone and printed reports. This is one of those problems we ‘like to have’ because that means its dumping!