HANCOCK-RIPTON — As the Middlebury Snowbowl prepares for opening day this Saturday, Dec. 9, loyal skiers and riders are excited to take advantage of several new amenities.

Visitors will see a new quad chairlift serving the former Sheehan double, an expanded Discovery Zone that doubles the previous area and connects the top of the Magic Carpet to the base of the Sheehan quad (without having to hike up); new lights for night skiing to illuminate three of the runs off the new Sheehan quad as well as the Discovery Zone; and more après ski activities on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday nights, when skiing will be extended from 4-9 p.m.

The idea of adding night skiing at the Snowbowl has been in the works for the past several years and was given the go-ahead a few years ago to coincide with the new Sheehan lift. 

“The idea was to increase skier and rider visits without having to increase the size of our parking lot, or lodge, or other facilities that are already full on busy days,” said Mike Hussey, who has been manager of the Snowbowl for the past six years. “But this is also an idea that we hope will rejuvenate the ski culture in town; to recreate that ski town persona that Middlebury was in the 1960s and 1970s when the town had state champion ski teams at the high school and a ski club that was one of the strongest in the state.”

When Middlebury Union High School stopped letting Tiger ski team members out of classes early for ski training, that program waned and other sports like ice hockey and Nordic skiing gained favor.

But today, with a very strong Nordic program at the high school and with a strong alpine ski club at the Snow Bowl for younger skiers, the time seems ripe for a resurgence. 

“Today we have a strong younger ski club program, but once those skiers get to high school age and there is no team sport there, they go to hockey or something else,” Hussey said. “So, we’re hoping this will help revive the ski program in area schools … And that will, in turn, encourage more families to get involved in the sport and all we have to offer at the Snowbowl.”

The process to rejuvenate a ski team at MUHS is to form a club team for two years and if there is adequate interest, it would gain varsity status in the third year. A club team has been formed this year at MUHS under the direction of John Nuceder.

NIGHT SKIING

Hussey also said night skiing should attract a whole new subset of skiers who weren’t previously able to take off from work or school to be on the mountain mid-week. 

“We anticipate that night skiing will be an amazing asset for the community,” Hussey said. He noted that while only a handful of Vermont ski areas offer night skiing, almost 80% of the ski areas in New York and other southern New England states offer night skiing — a feature that makes up the bulk of their business.

NEW LIGHTS WILL enable night skiing on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday nights from 4-9 p.m. this season on three runs off the Sheehan Lift as well as the expanded Discovery Center.
Independent photo/Angelo Lynn

Hussey said the Snowbowl would be looking at other industry leaders who are doing night skiing well. Of the half-dozen ski areas in Vermont offering night skiing, Hussey cited Bolton Valley as a leader that has “a great bar, food and beverage scene, as well as successful night-skiing programs that attract a lot of skiers.

“There are a lot of ski areas we can learn from,” Hussey said, adding that he expects “a sizable uptick in revenue from being opening these three nights.” 

Those potential gains are not without challenges, he admits. 

“Creating the right atmosphere, food offerings and après ski scene is something we have to build on, so that’s also a big challenge and very exciting.”

Hussey said the crew that will cater the Snowbowl’s food is the same group that is running the Tavern on the T, the restaurant at the Middlebury College golf course, which is part of the college’s staff — a change from the outside contractors of the past few years. The pub located on the second floor of the lodge will continue to be called the Lake Pleiad Pub, which is a rolling kiosk bar and flexible, as they mull over ways to make the après ski scene more attractive.

If projections hit their targets, the Snowbowl expects to draw a couple hundred people a night.

“We’ve gotten a pretty good response on our season and night passes so far,” Hussey said, “so community interest seems to be there.”

NEW LIFT, EXPANSION

The old Poma double Sheehan Lift, which was installed around 1984-85, has been replaced by a SkyTrac fixed-grip quad. While it could offer almost double the uphill capacity, Hussey said they will run it conservatively at first, spacing the chairs at a 17-second interval rather than the 12 seconds for the Poma lift, and running the new lift at less than full speed on most days, resulting in an increase of about 20% capacity. 

For the most part, the tower locations, start point and ending point are roughly the same as the previous Poma double.

The other major expansion at the Snowbowl is adding a new trail at the Discovery Center, the beginner’s area, served by the Magic Carpet. This area will provide easier beginner terrain that’s about 7-8% grade instead of the current 12%. 

“Our old slope is way steeper than it should be for someone just learning to ski,” Hussey said, adding it was also short. “The new trail will offer more than twice the length of the current trail, and will also allow beginners to ski to the base of the new Sheehan Lift rather than have to hike up from the bottom of the Magic Carpet.” From the top of the magic carpet, the new trail is shaped like a sideways “V” with the point at the base of the Sheehan lift, and the bottom leg going back to the base of the magic carpet. 

THE DISCOVERY CENTER, which is served by the Magic Carpet, has doubled its skiing terrain with the addition of a new run, which also connects skiers and riders to the base of the new Sheehan Lift.
Independent photo/Angelo Lynn

The Discovery Center is free for beginning skiers and adults teaching small children. It will be lit at night for skiing on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday from 4-9 p.m., the same as the Sheehan Lift.

The three trails that will be lit for skiing off the Sheehan lift are Kelton (under the lift line), Cameron (race training trail) and Lang. Hussey said that lights on the slopes have to be off by 9 p.m., and lights in the parking area go off by 9:30 p.m., according to the area’s state permit, which was respectful of light pollution at night.

The lights are LED Dark Sky compliant, Hussey added, noting that the lights will be mounted on telephone poles along each of the trails.

ON SCHEDULE AND READY

With the significant lift construction and implementation of night lights going on over the summer and fall, the good news is that everything has proceeded pretty much on schedule.

SNOWMAKING AT THE nearby Rikert Nordic Center has allowed dedicated cross country skier to get in some early season runs around the Ripton center’s meadow.
Independent photo/Angelo Lynn

“Given the summer weather we’ve had, we’re amazingly on schedule,” Hussey said, adding that the final lift inspection was completed in late November and the night lights are slated to be turned on in mid-December.

Like last year, the Snowbowl is slated to be closed on Mondays and Tuesdays, two days that have historically had lower visitation.

Other improvements at the ski area include carpet throughout the base lodge, and improvements to the snowmaking system that will make it more energy efficient and cost effective.

The ski area will continue to rent and lease skis through its ski shop on the mountain, as well as do tuning, and the ski school is working on new programs to encourage more skiers and riders to enjoy the sport and the ski area.

RIKERT NORDIC CENTER

Down Route 125 a couple of miles is the Rikert Nordic Center, which has already seen limited access over the past couple of weeks with the loop in the meadow and short hills down to the roads open for those truly dedicated to the sport. This week’s colder weather will allow snowmaking through the week until warmer weather this weekend moves in.

The Nordic center not only has a new grooming machine this winter, but has also expanded its retail space in the base lodge, and it created a separate area for people to sit and warm up while grabbing a bite to eat. 

The skiing terrain will be expanded as quickly as possible, according to manager Robert Drake, depending on weather and snow-making conditions.