The Ski Guru’s inbox has been under constant assault.

Resorts are announcing all sorts of Spring Specials.

The slopes of New England still have a ton of base coverage. It was cold and windy this past weekend, melting was at a minimum. That made for a hard and fast surface. The sun was shinning and that made for some fun skiing. I was in southern VT and those areas are set up perfectly for a Huge Corn harvest. Might it be this coming weekend?

Reality Check: There is more snow in the forecast for this week. I am keeping the fingers crossed. I think we are overdue. New England has not had a storm pow up the entire region since February. The S.G. is still hoping for a couple more powder days this season. Maybe…why not?

In the meantime, what we got ain’t at all bad.

Enjoy the spring skiing and I hope the attached info helps you get north.

• Warmer temperatures
• Corn snow is Fun
• Mashed Potato’s are also…
• The light lasts long into the evening
• Some places (Magic & Mad River Glen – for sure) are spinning the lifts past 4:00 pm
• Morning groomies are a blast

Now is a Very Good time to think about next season.

If you are serious about skiing—and know you are going to spend over a dozen days on the snow between now and this time next year—then think about purchasing a season pass.

More and more deals on passes are popping up as resorts establish their pricing points. Most of them include the remainder of this season, plus next season if you purchase soon. Check your favorite areas website if you are looking for something specific. I am posting the ones that hit my inbox.

It is also a great time to hit the shop for gear (hard & soft) if there is something in your set up that needs an upgrade. I just picked up a jacket myself.

Here is the latest information drop from the Ski Mountains of New England and beyond.

This is some great news from Killington, and their pass rate for next season...

KILLINGTON RESORT ANNOUNCES $8.4 MILLION IN IMPROVEMENTS; 2008-09 SEASON PASS PRICES

Leading the list of improvements is a new high-speed detachable quad to replace the existing fixed-grip Skye Peak Quad operating out of the Bear Mountain base area. The new Skye Peak Express will cut the ride time from 13 minutes to just under 5 minutes.

The new Skye Peak Express is the first lift installed at Killington Resort in more than 10 years and brings its total of high speed lifts to nine, nearly twice the number of high speed lifts found at any other resort in the East. In addition to greatly reduced ride time, the new lift will be less susceptible to wind holds and delays in operation due to the slower loading and unloading speed offered by a detachable lift.

Killington announces season pass products and prices for the 2008-09 season. The very popular summer payment plan is also back. Simply purchase with a credit card by phone by June 3, pay 50 percent of the total season pass purchase at the time of your order, and the remaining 50 percent will be automatically charged to your credit card on August 26.

Here are Killington Resort and PicoMountain season pass prices and products for 2008-09:

KILLINGTON & PICO PASSES EARLY MID WINTER

Purchase by 6/3/08, 6/4/08 – 10/15/08, after 10/15/08

UnlimitedPass – valid all season
Adult (age 19-64) $1,049 $1,199 tbd
Young Adult (age 13-18) $829 $879 tbd
Junior (age 6-12) $729 $779 tbd
Senior (65-69 $829 $879 tbd
Senior Plus (70+) $729 $779 tbd
Child (5 and under) $29 $29 tbd

BlackoutPass – all ages
not valid: 11/28-29/08, 12/26-31/08, 1/2-3/09, 1/17-18/09, 2/14-16/09
$649 $699 tbd


MidweekPass – all ages Mon-Fri
not valid: 11/28/08, 12/26/08, 12/29/08-1/2/09, 2/16-20/09
$349 $449 tbd


CollegePass – valid all season
proof of full time status required available in August

PICO ONLY PASSES
Adult (age 19-64) $419 $449 tbd
Young Adult (age 13-18) $349 $369 tbd
Junior (age 6-12) $319 $339 tbd
Senior (65-69) $349 $369 tbd
Senior Plus (70+) $319 $339 tbd
Child (5 and under) $29 $29 tbd

All passes are subject to 7% VermontState and local tax. Some restrictions apply. For complete pass details and answers to frequently asked questions visit www.killington.com or call 800-887-3257.

Toots is hitting a bunch of spots in New England this year. Here is some vibe from Waterville Valley, NH.

Reggae Legends Toots & The Maytals in Concert on April 5

WATERVILLE VALLEY, NH - Waterville Valley's annual spring concert is featuring Toots & The Maytals, part of the Bud Light Concert Tour, on Saturday, April 5. The show kicks off at 7:30 p.m., for those 18 and over, with the opening act, Peter Kilpatrick Band, under the tent at the base of the ski area. Advance concert tickets are $15 and $10 for college students. Add $5 each for tickets purchased on April 5th.

A ski all day and reggae all night ticket is $61 in advance. You can also ski, stay and Reggae for $100 per person, double occupancy at the Golden Eagle Lodge. You get two lift tickets, two Toots & and the Maytals concert tickets and one night's lodging in a 1 bedroom condominium.

A ski, concert and lodging package is also offered at Town Square Condominium for four at $87 per person, quad occupancy in a 3 bedroom condominium. Tickets and concert packages can be purchased online at waterville.com or by calling 1-800 GO VALLEY.

April Events at Waterville Valley include:
4/1 April Fool's Dollar Day! This is no April Fool's joke! $1 buys a full day lift ticket
4/5 "Do The Reggae" Pond Skimming - All ages, open to the first 70 to sign up!
4/5 Toots & the Maytals - The Grammy award winning reggae band takes the stage
on the slopes of Waterville Valley. 18+ show, opens at 7:30 pm.
4/5 & 6 IZSTYLE Winter Tour with ski and snowboard demos, Reverb Eco Village
with organic food sampling and acoustic après ski party with Audio Journal
4/13 Tentative closing date for Waterville Valley Ski Area.

This is actually an incredible pass deal from Vail Resorts. Read, and then think about it. Do a week away and then follow it up with another long weekend...Hit friends couches Colorado and then Tahoe. You are in the money... No Blackouts days!

VAIL RESORTS UNVEILS A REVOLUTIONARY SEASON PASS GIVING SKIERS AND SNOWBOARDERS UNLIMITED, UNRESTRICTED SKIING AT VAIL, BEAVER CREEK, BRECKENRIDGE, KEYSTONE AND HEAVENLY

•The Epic Season Pass will be offered at an initial price of $579 for adults and $279 for children and is available for online purchases at www.epicpass.com

Broomfield, Colo. – March 18, 2008 – Most skiers and snowboarders dream of an ‘epic’ season. Now, Vail Resorts, Inc. (NYSE: MTN) is making that dream a reality with the Epic Season Pass, a new unlimited, unrestricted season pass that’s valid for the entire 2008-2009 ski and snowboard season at five of the top-rated resorts in the world: Vail, Beaver Creek, Breckenridge, Keystone and Heavenly, all for an initial price of only $579.

“Vail Resorts’ new Epic Season Pass is a groundbreaking initiative that will completely change how our guests experience their ski and snowboard vacations,” said Rob Katz, chief executive officer of Vail Resorts. “The word “epic” is defined in the Webster’s dictionary as “extending beyond the usual or ordinary especially in size or scope.

The Epic Season Pass does exactly that. It offers an epic amount of skiing and riding across five world-class mountain resorts with 17,400 acres of terrain, 128 chairlifts and 722 trails, for each moment of our season from the day we open in November until we close in April, including every holiday in between. No one will be able to out-ski this pass.

The Epic Season Pass is priced initially at $579 for adults and $279 for children ages 5-12. The Epic Season Pass will be valid for the 2008-2009 ski season and will only be available for purchase through Nov. 15, 2008.

For more information or to purchase a $579 Epic Season Pass online, visit www.epicpass.com.

I warned you about these guys. I like Toots. Good music, fits the mountains well and should rock Mount Snow.

Toots and the Maytals Headlining Mount Snow Reggaefest West Dover, VT-

Legendary reggae band Toots and the Maytals will headline Mount Snow's annual Reggaefest Saturday night, March 29, 2008. The concert caps a weekend-long festival of live music, food, Spring skiing and riding, and entertaining on-snow competitions.

Toots and the Maytals are just one of several acts slated to perform over the weekend. Boston-based reggae band Jah Ni will open for Toots and the Maytals Saturday night under a large tent at the base area of the mountain; Dub Station will bring their dub-reggae style to the Snow Barn Friday night; and several other bands will be playing live on the deck of Cuzzin's Bar and Grill throughout the weekend.

The Sink or Skim pond skimming competition, a famously crowd-pleasing event that dares costumed skiers and riders to skim across a 150-foot pond at the base area, will take place Saturday afternoon. Sunday afternoon is the first annual Duct Tape Derby. Open to the public, the Derby requires entrants to race against the clock in a sled built solely of cardboard, zip ties, duct tape and paint.

Tickets for Toots and the Maytals are available for $20 online at www.mountsnow.com/livemusic or at The Snow Barn in West Dover, Vt. Tickets will be available at the door for $30.
For more information about Mount Snow lodging and lift ticket packages, call 800-245-SNOW or visit www.mountsnow.com.

This is about as affordable as skiing can get! I am a little late on this one, it says 2/23 was the last day to take advantage of that deal. Smart money says they did not come close to selling a 1,000 of them. I bet if you call you can get one at this rate still. Tell them the S.G. said so.... Plus it's an easy drive to Tenney in NH also...check it.

2008-2009 TENNEY SEASON PASSES ONLY $99 FOR LIMITED TIME

Plymouth, NH—White Mountain Exploration, the operating company of Tenney Mountain Ski Area is offering an unbeatable Easter/End-of-Season special on season passes for 2008-2009. For $99 customers of any age can buy a season pass valid any day of operation next winter. (Ages 80+ and 5 and under are always free)

The details:
•This sale runs from Thursday 3/20/08 through Sunday 3/23/08 only
•This sale is open to the first 1,000 customers
•Purchases can be made on these days at the season pass office during normal business hours, or anytime online at www.tenneymtn.com . Office hours are 8:30am-5pm Thursday through Sunday.

Tenney Mountain is known for its classic New England skiing and riding with exciting winding trails and spectacular glades. Tenney is also famous for its down-home friendliness, affordable ticket prices, après ski entertainment in The Backcountry Pub, and outdoor adventures with The Exploration Schools of Eastern Mountain Sports. Tenney is located just 10 minutes from I-93 off of Exit 26.

More information is available at www.tenneymtn.com or by calling (888) 289-1020.

Cranmore, NH is going deep into the spring this season, here is the deal over that way...

Cranmore Mountain Extends Season Into April

New Season Pass Prices Announced for 08-09 and Valid for Rest of This Season

NORTH CONWAY, NH – Cranmore Mountain today announced it will extend its winter operating season into April, with skiing and riding offered through Sunday, April 6, and its tubing park open weekends through Sunday, April 27.

But spring fun in the snow won’t be reserved only for those on boards and skis. New Hampshire’s most popular tubing park, the Arctic Blast Tubing Park at Cranmore , plans on operating weekends through the end of the month. The Park will keep its regular hours of operation through Sunday, March 30 (Thurs. 3-9pm, Fri. & Sat. 9am- 9pm, and Sun. 9am – 4pm). After the 30th, the park will operate weekends only, Sat. 11am – 7pm and Sundays 11am – 4pm through April 27. Prices for the tubing park are $18 for a 2 hour ticket and $24 for an unlimited ticket.

To celebrate its extended season, Cranmore will offer 2 for 1 midweek ski lift tickets from Monday, March 31 – Friday, April 4. This means 2 people ages 19+ can ski for only $49, or $24.50 each.

Cranmore also announced that its Happy Trails Season Pass for 08-09 is for sale at the resort. As a special bonus, the pass will be valid for the remainder of this winter, plus all of next season, at no extra cost. Happy Trails Passes, valid only at Cranmore Mountain, are available at the following price through the May 31st deadline at which time prices will increase:

19+ Anytime Pass (ages 19+) $399
Teen/Senior Anytime Pass (ages 13-18) $249
Youth Anytime Pass (ages 6-12) $149
19+ Limited Pass (ages 19+) * $259
* 19+ Limited passes are valid any day of the Winter Season except: 12/27-31/08, 1/17-18/09, 2/14-21/09.

The Happy Trails Pass is offered in addition to the new Threedom Pass, valid at Cranmore, Bretton Woods and Waterville Valley ski areas, which also is good for the remainder of this winter at all 3 resorts when a pass for next winter is purchased. For information on the Threedom Pass, visit www.threedompass.com.

Cranmore is taking advantage of its deep snow base and long sunny days with a full array of activities. Upcoming special events include:

Saturday, March 29
Mountain Dew Spring Splash
Everyone's favorite spring event! Ski down the slope into a Mountain Dew slush pool and see how far you can go!

Sunday, March 30
Cranarchy

Enjoy the last terrain park competition of the season with this freestyle jam in the park.
Cranmore is located in the heart of North Conway Village, NH and offers skiing and riding on 42 trails and 6 glades with over 200 acres of skiable terrain.

For hotel, lift ticket, lesson and daycare reservations, visit Cranmore.com or call 1-800-SUN-N-SKI.

Go West young lad! Crested Butte is making it easy if you have some miles to burn on a flight. Have a lookski...

Mar 14, 2008 - Record Snowfall and Half Price Skiing and Riding at Crested Butte Mountain Resort

Record Snowfall and Half Price Skiing/Riding at Crested Butte Mountain Resort

Attention skiers and riders, Crested Butte Mountain Resort (CBMR) is having a record year and extending three weeks of half price skiing and riding to everyone with a season pass or card from any resort in the country.

CBMR is having the best snow year in our history. With more than 350 inches of snowfall by the beginning of March, CBMR is on track to top the existing record of 415 inches recorded during the 1979-1980 winter season.

CBMR is inviting all season pass holders, from any other ski area to join in the celebration of this record breaking year. All pass holders can enjoy Crested Butte's amazing conditions for half the price during the last three weeks of the season.

Individuals need to present a valid season pass or card to the Crested Butte lift ticket office, March 24, 2008 through closing day, April 13, 2008, to take advantage of this special offer. Discount applies to full and multi-day adult, child, young adult and senior lift tickets.

CBMR is open an extra week this season, giving you plenty of time to plan that spring getaway. During the last week of the season, April 7-13, 2008, adults can ski or ride for as low as $19.50 (plus tax) and children age seven to twelve are only $12.50. Additional discounts apply to multi-day tickets.

In addition to great savings on ticket prices, season pass holders from other resorts will be able to use their passes to receive from 10 to 15 percent off Crested Butte Vacations (CBV) lodging packages. For more information call CBV at 1-800-544-8448.

Sweet Sugar! This is a great lodging opportunity from Sugarbush in VT. They will be going strong for quite some time still.

Stay At Clay Brook For Just $99

Have you always wanted to try the slope-side comfort of Clay Brook? Or, have you already experienced it and are dying to return? Either way, you're in luck. Starting March 23, you can stay at Clay Brook for just $99 per person, per night. Head here to book now and you'll be lounging in style at Clay Brook in no time.

How about a little Loon update...

Loon Mountain Extends Its Winter Season Until April 21 • Over 17 feet of snowfall so far this season: http://www.loonmtn.com/winter/conditions.asp • Loon announces new pass line-up for 2008-09 season: http://www.loonmtn.com/info/winter/rates_passes.asp

Lincoln, N.H., March 12, 2008: March has come in like a lion, dumping over a foot of new snow so far this month on New Hampshire's Loon Mountain. With over seven feet falling since February 1st, Loon announced it will stay open through Monday, April 21.

Loon Mountain kicked off its King of Spring event series on March 1, with the resort's annual TJX Briefcase Race, hosted by WCVB-TV's Mike Lynch. The event, which supports the Breast Cancer Research Fund at Boston's Faulkner Hospital Breast Centre, raised over $70,000 in one day. The Briefcase Race has raised over $1 million for breast cancer research over the past 16 years.

Loon is also on track to post record snow totals this season. Over 17 feet of snowfall so far mean incredible March and late-season conditions, giving skiers and riders even more reason to make their way to Loon Mountain.

Spring Events Calendar:

March 29: Mountain Dew Vertical Challenge Finals - Mountain Dew brings its famed racing event to Loon Mountain for the last hurrah of the season. Challenge champions from mountains around New England are invited to participate in the Finals weekend.

March 30: Cardboard Box Race - A Loon classic, the Cardboard Box Race celebrates everything fun about spring and skiing.

March 29-30: The Weekend with 382 - Park event for freeskiers only. Similar to March Madness, the event is open to the first 64 competitors. It's a unique event that combines both on-mountain talent and behind-the-camera-lens talent.

April 5: Margaritas Slush Pool Party - Grab your beach towel and take a chance making it across the famed slush pool. Or have fun just watching the 75 competitors try. New this year, Margaritas Restaurants will host the apres ski party in the Bunyan Room. Plenty of great entertainment and fun competitions--see who can eat the most avocados in five minutes!

In addition to exciting spring events at the resort, Loon just announced the brand-new 2008-09 New England Season Pass lineup. Valid at Loon, Sunday River, and Sugarloaf, New England Passes are now on sale, with prices starting at $349.

Current 2007-08 Loon, Sunday River and Sugarloaf season pass holders, who maintain or upgrade their pass level when purchasing a New England Pass before April 30, can take advantage of special $50 savings. First-time pass purchasers can enjoy complimentary skiing or riding for the rest of the 2007-08 season, starting March 23.

For a full event calendar and details, click on http://www.loonmtn.com/winter/events.asp.
For updated snow conditions, click on http://www.loonmtn.com/winter/conditions.asp or call 1-800-229-LOON(5666).

and last but not least is Mount Sunapee...

MOUNT SUNAPEE CELEBRATES SPRING WITH INCREDIBLE WEEKEND SKI & STAY PACKAGES

Newbury, NH – (March 10, 2008) – Enjoying its fifth snowiest winter in its 60-year history, Mount Sunapee has teamed up with area lodging properties to create some incredible weekend Ski & Stay packages.

Starting March 15-16 Ski & Stay packages including lodging Friday and Saturday nights and skiing/riding Saturday and Sunday start at $129 for lodges, $139 for motels, $155 for family cottages and $150 for country inns and B&Bs. These rates are per person based on double occupancy. The country inn and B&B rate includes a full breakfast on Saturday and Sunday. The cost of a weekend adult lift ticket at $116 puts the value of these packages in perspective.

With over 11 feet of natural snow this winter and enough season-long snowmaking to fill the Prudential Center in Boston twice, the spring season will extend at least until April 13. All trails are still covered edge-to-edge with up to four feet of base.

The granddaddy of Mount Sunapee’s spring events, the 10th Annual Slush Cup, is Saturday, March 29th. Two hundred brave souls will try to negotiate a 90-foot pond on skis or a snowboard. Things wrap up with the 17th Annual Intragalactic Cardboard Sled Race on Saturday, April 12th sponsored by Harpoon Brewery.

For information on booking Ski & Stay packages and more information about spring events go to www.mountsunapee.com.

Check back soon for more news and info from the S.G.'s Inbox.

Go Spring Skiing!

Think Snow,
S.G.