Travelers geared up for extra costs

Surcharges lead to rise in rentals

This is the time of year when the snow sports industry touts its myriad offseason improvements. But there is one significant change since last season that will adversely affect those who fly to faraway resorts: checked baggage surcharges.

Within the past eight months, airlines have shifted the burden of high fuel costs to the passengers. The surcharges vary by airline, but $15 for the first checked bag and $25 for the second is a typical fee structure, meaning a family of four flying round-trip with two checked bags each will now pay $320 more than it did last season.

What will be the ripple effect of these surcharges? For starters, people are likely to vacation closer to home. That's a plus for Northeast resorts, but the more isolated vacation mountains out West are likely to suffer. Those destination resorts could start dropping prices to lure travelers.

Vacationers also could rent their equipment to avoid the surcharges. Resorts nationwide have been trending toward offering higher quality rental equipment. Skiers and boarders get to use the latest gear, and the added income from rentals is a boon for resorts.

Snowsports Industries America is spearheading a campaign to alert consumers of other options, such as third-party shipping services, to economically bring their gear when vacationing. The group also maintains a list online (www.snowsports.org) of the checked baggage policies on 13 domestic carriers.

Learn for free

The best way to learn to ski or snowboard is with a certified instructor, and what could be better than learning for free?

Nearly 1,000 novices learned for free last season at Mount Sunapee. The New Hampshire resort is offering free lessons again Dec. 6-24.

"We need to do everything we can to grow our sport," said Bruce McCloy, Sunapee's director of marketing. "There are so many other forms of recreational competition out there. This is a great time to learn because we aren't very busy yet and as a beginner you don't need the whole mountain open."

Anyone new to skiing and riding (ages 8 and up) gets a free two-hour group lesson, rental, and lift ticket to the area's South Peak Learning Area. To register, go to www.mtsunapee.com.

Other resorts offering free lessons include Okemo Mountain in Ludlow, Vt. (through Dec. 19, www.okemo.com); Shawnee Peak in western Maine (Dec. 20-21, www.shawneepeak.com); and Mohawk Mountain in Cornwall, Conn. (Dec. 20, www.mohawkmtn.com).

Quarter master

Freeskier Simon Dumont is teaming with Sunday River to help build a signature terrain park.

The five-time X Games medalist grew up near the mountain in Bethel, Maine, and in April set a world quarterpipe record at Sunday River, airing 35 feet 6 inches out of a 38-foot quarterpipe. He's in no hurry to do that again.

"I'm just scared in quarterpipes because in general they are inconsistent and a lot of things can go wrong, especially when you go that high," he said. "I had to do it to prove to myself I could."

Dumont wants to involve academy freeskiers in an international competition at the resort.

"I want to give them a chance to break into the freeskiing scene," he said. "It is tough to get in."

Dumont, 22, plans to compete in a number of events this season, including the AST Winter Dew Tour stop at Mount Snow in January and the X Games in Aspen, Colo. He's got his eyes on an X Games gold.

"That's definitely my goal for the season," he said. "That's what I go for. I don't like going to a contest and getting second."

World class

US Ski Team member Kris Freeman of Andover, N.H., earned his second consecutive top-20 World Cup finish Sunday, coming in 16th during a 15K race in Kuusamo, Finland. US cross-country coach Pete Vordenberg said on the team's website that Freeman, a diabetic, is hopeful of making a podium.

"Before the race we were a little concerned with where his blood sugar was, but it didn't seem to affect him," said Vordenberg. "I think we got it dialed in well for the race, but still toward the end where he should have started to really pick it up, he started to fade a little bit."

Cannon cuts tram use

Cannon Mountain will fire up its signature 70-passenger aerial tramway Dec. 19, but the resort will no longer run the tram on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays, except during holiday weeks. For decades, the allure of the ultra-quick tram (base lodge to the 4,180-foot summit in under eight minutes) coupled with cheap 2-for-1 ticket deals made Cannon a mecca for midweek skiers.

Food for thought

Spread the love Sunday during "Cares and Shares" promotions at Mount Sunapee and Okemo. Riders who bring nonperishable food items (five for Sunapee, three for Okemo) will pay $30 for a lift ticket . . . On Sunday, scores of sliding Santas will hit the slopes at Sunday River for the resort's annual charity event . . . Sugarloaf has planned a couple of randonee races this season, the Holiday Hill Climb Dec. 27 and another in the spring. Competitors will race up the mountain at 4:30 a.m. on free-heel gear before skiing down 1,200 feet of vertical . . . The sixth Stowe Mountain Film Festival wraps up this weekend. Tonight at 7 is a free showing of "My Own Two Feet" at Piecasso restaurant. Tomorrow night at 7, there's a $5 double feature at the Rusty Nail, "Head for the Hills" and "Claim." Saturday night at 7 there is a $5 triple-flick package at Town Hall, showing "Iselanka," "The Pact," and "The Fine Line."