While we wait for the new trail, Velvet has been expanded into the woods on  the skiers left (right side of the chair going up the hill).

Whitetail's web site will let renters print out a rental form and fill it in in advance. There are some busy days where this could save people a ton of time. Next season, you will be able to fill out the form online. If you've got the form already filled out - look for an Express Lane!

The old Underground snowboard rental area will be turned into an arcade with additional seating space. This space will also be used for a special group seating area.

Jib Junction Terrain Park News - not this year
The 1/2 pipe will not be moved this year. The old handle tow will not be moved to the terrain park this year. Stay tuned for these upgrades to occur for the 2006-2007 season.

Following are some of the changes affecting group lessons (age 8 & up):

·        Our line up area will move from the mixing bowl to the base of Northern Lights/ Launching Pad. 

·        A meeting place will be established for guests finishing lessons to wait for family or friends. 

·        Level 1 guests will be identified (possibly by a button or sticker on their lift pass) so that they can receive special attention from all the Whitetail staff throughout the day. 

·        Levels 2 through 8 for regular group lessons will be offered at 10, 12, 2, 5:30 and 7:30 every day. Our 3:30 line up is for beginners only and first timers may attend any line up. We will coordinate Level 1 lessons at any time from 9am to 2pm daily, as groups and instructors are ready (part of our reason for keeping some instructors “on the clock”). We will offer a “Pre-course” to first timers to help with staging and timing of lessons. This pre-course will review safety, equipment and fit, lift use, some prep for what the lesson is about, etc. People can benefit from any part of the pre-course, so they can come into it late, or come back to it after their lesson. We will use it as a way to gather and occupy first timers until instructors are ready to take a group.

·        There will be more attention to grooming in the Northern Lights, Velvet and  First Tracks slope areas to tailor this terrain to first time and novice guests.

·        A change in the route bringing injured guests off the hill will allow traffic to move through the walkway between KMC and Rentals. No more traffic in the KMC terrain garden.

Some changes involving Private Lessons (and affecting KMC)  include:

·        The Ski School Desk will move to the rental building allowing closer proximity for all our school facilities. We plan to man the Ski School Desk 12 hours per day, every day (previously the desk would close at 3PM).

·        Private lesson guests who call ahead for reservations will have the option of having their rental equipment set up ahead (as we now do for KMC camp kids). This will fast track our private lesson guests, allowing private lessons to start on time. With the Ski School desk in the rental shop, our private lesson guests have only one place they need to go before they begin their lesson; and they will be much closer to the snow to start their lesson.

·        Private lessons for children 7 and under will be coordinated from the KMC allowing KMC staffers more opportunity to teach private lessons.

·        A new 30 minute private lesson for children ages 2 and 3, more appropriate time frame for their attention span and physical ability.

·        KMC age 4-7 Package lessons will be for skiers only. Snowboarders under age 8 will be encouraged to take private lessons or camp sessions if they are 7 years of age. This will allow instructors with small (age 6 and under) snowboarders to give them the more specialized attention required at this age. 

When a guest finishes a Level 1 (first time) lesson, they may purchase the Mountain Passport Club card at any time that day for $39. If they want to purchase their Passport on their return visit, the price will be $49. When the guest purchases a Passport they will also be given a voucher for their second visit (good for a free All Mountain Lift, Lesson and Rental package). On their third and subsequent visits, guests can use their passport to receive a 40% discount on lift tickets and rentals and get free lessons on every visit. The Mountain Passport booklet will also contain special offers for deals at all three resorts.

Previously, guests could only purchase the deal on the same day, did not get their cards until the second visit and paid for subsequent lessons.  These new changes greatly reduce the hassle factor. The main difference between the Mountain Passport Club Card and an Advantage Card is that the Club Card does not offer 1 free visit for every 5 paid visits.

plus some more Advantage card news

Anyone who did not use their Advantage or Night Club card last year (or used it just once) will receive an offer to roll their card over for this year for the fee of $25.

Snowtime, Inc. has moved to a fully integrated database system for handling season passes and advantage cards, which means that we will be able to take a guest's picture at any resort and print the pass at any resort, regardless of where the pass or card was initially purchased. This new system will allow more deals to be offered to our guests. VERY IMPORTANT: However, because of this upgrade, all passholders, new and renewing, will need to have their pictures taken this year and have new cards printed. You can get it done early at the National Ski Expo!

Do you want more?

There are lots of big holes where pipe is being replaced.

The new race shack can be seen in this pic.

A new 350MP Bombardier groomer will allow Whitetail to get more grooming done overnight. This is a high horsepower groomer designed to spread out mounds of man made snow and groom terrain park features better and faster.

25 new Ratnik snow guns. These guns have a wider coverage area. They will be placed on Drop In and Snow Park.

The snowmaking pipes in the base and beginner areas have been completely replaced. This should eliminate the puddles that formed in front of the lodge last season.

The plaza lighting in the entryway has been upgraded. It's hard to tell, but the light poles and fixtures are brand new.

All main level restrooms in Marketplace and Windows have been completely renovated. This should take care of the balky plumbing and paper towel fixtures.

New carpet in the main lodge.

New buildings: A new information shed at the top of the steps as you enter the main plaza. A new racing building on Home Run (the old one was trying to run the race course). A new salt and cinder shed.

STARBUCKS COFFEE is available in ETC. and Windows!

New webcams have been added. The 3 old cams have been retired, we have 9 new cams that have bigger pictures.

Here's what new for jibbers this year

New for the 2004 season are ski school "terrain park" lessons!

The mini terrain park (now called 1010 Park Place) on Northern Lights will be expanded. On 1/2, the park includes 3 rails, a mini 1/2 half pipe, 1 jump and a couple of sad rollers.

Snowmaking
2 more water pumps (one at the pond and one at the mountain) have been added to increase water pumping capacity by 20%. 15 more SMI fan guns have been added to Exhibition. The tower guns on Exhibition have been moved to Far Side. Look for the expert terrain to get open earlier in the season and for the Far Side trail to stay open longer.

Snow grooming
2 more groomers were added to the fleet at the end of last season

Snow tubing
The snow tubing lodge has been doubled in size. A larger kitchen means an expanded menu. The restrooms are being upgraded too. Plus there will be more room for group parties. A new storage building will help smooth operations. Finally, the slope has been "reshaped" (i.e. another lane?).

KMC
The lobby in the Kids Mountain Camp has been expanded. This should help parents get their kids checked in and out quicker. KMC gets new carpet this year. SnowMonsters (tm) will be at KMC this year!

Nitetrailers
The popular Whitetrailers multiweek ski school program is being expanded with a Thursday night offering.

Plaza and road work
Minor repairs to the plaza area have been made to keep it looking good! The roads at the resort have been repaired after all of the heavy rain this summer. We'll work on adding brand new potholes as soon as the season starts.

Fall Festival
This year's festival was  October 25-26. It's free for season and advantage card holders. There was a ski swap this year.

Price raised
Ticket prices have been raised from $1-$4 across the board. Pass prices have also been raised.

The Underground snowboard rental operation has moved from the space below the ski rentals to where the old sport shop underneath Windows. You can access the Underground from outside (take a left on the wooden decking before you get to the lodge, then a right down the wooden steps) or from the main breezeway (take a left towards Windows, then either the elevator down or the steps on the left).

A new 2 story ski school/lift department "office" building has replaced the old ski school trailer. The only trailer left is a "nice" race trailer.

Lights on the Expert Trails
The LONG wait is over. Whitetail will have lights and night skiing on the expert terrain. Exhibition, Drop In, Ridge Runner and Bold Decision have been LIT!!! The new lights are noticeably brighter than the old lights.

More Snowmaking
The last of the 3 year snowmaking expansion plan has been revealed. 23 new tower guns will go on Exhibition. Rusty says this means we will have a bumps competition this year (at least Rusty is crossing his fingers). A couple sections of the snowmaking pipe on Lower Angel Drop and Limelight were replaced because of heavy leakage. Rumor has it that geysers were spotted on the slopes early season!

Ski School Changes
One hour lessons for kids ages 4-8 are now available through the Kids Mountain Camp at 10, 2 and 5:30 every day (plus 3:30 on the weekends). The minimum age for children in regular group lessons is being raised from 7 to 8. Rusty strongly recommends that parents of 4-6 year olds start their kids skiing. 4-6 year old snowboarders should not expect anything more than straight running unless the children are already adept at snowboarding. The ski school desk has been moved from a corner of the lodge facing the parking lot to one facing the slopes. Group lessons are now $25. Private lessons are $52.

Seasonal lockers/ changing areas
Seasonal lockers are available for $139/season rental. They are large enough to hold several pairs of skis or a couple of snowboards with bindings, plus gear. There are benches in the locker area for changing. A new (for real) changing area has been placed in the area where the old guest services office used to be. Both the locker and changing area are in the lower level below the Window restaurant (on the left as you walk up to the lodge).

Terrain park changes
There are more rails in the park this year and more hits than ever. Features change on a regular basis. A rainbow rail was installed before New Years and a quarterpipe is planned in early January.

Online ticket sales
You can now buy your lift tickets online.

Prices raised
A couple of lift ticket prices were raised a buck or two. Other prices were raised too (e.g. ski school).

Late Additions
In February, Whitetail added a new groomer, specifically outfitted for terrain park grooming.

Most ticket prices are up a $1. Rental rates were increased. Advantage card prices have gone up $10 but they are still a bargain.

Flash - The snowboard park is being moved to lower Angel Drop. Plans are being made to eventually move the half pipe over to this area and to install a surface lift.

Fan guns have been added to lower Angel Drop and Limelight. 29 new tower guns added in total.

More rental equipment - 150 new snowboards (mostly small children's sizes),  200 new shaped skis.

Diann Roffe (aka Diann Roffe-Steinrotter) - former Olympic gold medalist is working for SnowTime this season. Watch for her to be involved with womens programs and racing events at all 3 local Snow Time resorts this winter.

You can now make online reservations for Kid's Mountain Camp. KMC has it's own supply of mini snowboards for mini riders!

Valet parking for $12! Jeeves, will you park the Rover out back?

The maintenance shed has been expanded. This may not sound like a biggie, but it should ease a bottleneck for groomer maintenance. The end result should be the ability to get more grooming done every night and maybe, just maybe a return to evening grooming for night skiing?