Stowe, VT has snow.

Season Talley: 371 inches = STRONG

Next weekend will be the last for the resort's skiing & riding operations. People will hike, but if you want to hit this place up for a few spring turns, this deal is made for you...

How much snow: The Mount Manfield Stake is still floating around the 90" mark (but it ain't going the right way).

The Deal: on Sunday --- April 20th --- Lift tickets will be $20 with a non-perishable food donation.

Q: Need a place to crash?
A: Keep reading...

The Reggae Festival at Sugarloaf in Maine is an annual event. Many would argue it is the best of all the New England spring parties. I would tend to agree.

What makes it special is the Music (they schedule great acts) and the Snow (there is still a ton up there on that monster of a mountain).

Today's (4/10) Spring Conditions at Sugarloaf ~ SOLID REPORT

• 30 - 50" base depth
• 133 of 134 trails
• 666 acres
• 56 miles
• 9 of 15 lifts
• Grooming: 35 trails

I have not been up there for this event in years. I am pretty excited to be making the trip this weekend. It will most likely be my last couple days on the snow. Good way to go out...

S.G. pic of Sugarloaf, taken last February

Mount Sunapee is a great day trip from Boston and they are making it a little bit easier on the wallet.

I have attached information from the resort below.

This would be a great pick for a day trip this Sunday, make it happen!

This weekend at Sunday River is the annual Parot Head Festival!

I was at this event last year and it was a great time...absolutely worth checking out.

There is a ton more happening the rest of this season up there, keep reading for Events, Deals, and News...

huge crowds and sunshine last season at the Parrot Head Festival --- White Cap base area.

This is a great way to ski or ride for short $$$..

Check out the deal from Shawnee Peak in Maine. The mountain is only 2.5 hours from Boston.

Mount Ellen is closed for the season. This past Sunday was the last day of operations for Sugarbush North.

There is still a TON of snow up there on that mountain. If hiking is your thing, this is a good option for the remainder of the season.

Sugarbush South or Lincoln Peak is still going strong and has at least a few weeks left spinning the lifts.
'
Now is a great time to experience Sugarbush.

the S.G. messing around at North in mid-February

The U.S. Open Snowboarding Championships

March 17-23, 2008 * Stratton, VT

For the 23rd year in a row, Stratton, VT is hosting New England’s most prominent snow sport event.

Although heavily sponsered by Burton Snowboards, it is an “Open” field to all who can get through qualifications, which are going on now. I reckon there are invites/exemptions. The link to the website above will be current. The field of athletes is world class, not very surprising given the coin at stake, keep reading...

I dug up some of the pictures and video I took during the 2005 men’s Halfpipe Finals. I am heading there again this year…

This time of year, you can usually get some deals.

Spring Passes although rare, do exist. Season passes for next year are on sale and most of them will get you lift rides the rest of this season as a bonus. Here are a few that hit my radar.

S.G. Tip - If you have a favorite resort keep you eye on their website, heck give the customer service a call and ask them what’s up.

S.G. Note - If you do call, first ask if it is snowing. That is a S.G. rule of thumb. Whenever I call a ski area or anything around the mountains, I always ask if it is snowing.

Here is a quick data dump of things that hit my inbox and caught my attention.

I hope that some of you find this useful. Spring is here and we still have over a month of good skiing left in New England. Some of the regions biggest events on the snow are right around the corner.

New Website: Check this website put out there by SIA. Not too shabby… I gave it a few quick turns…and found some useful stuff of all walks after digging around a little. Look for yourself, you are probably reading this at work anyway. SNOWLINK

Annual snow totals all over the region are either being shattered or on pace to be broken. This has certainly been a wonderful run this season for all snow enthusiasts.

The majority of New England ski areas scored a FOOT of new snow in the last 24 hours.

The skiing should be fantastic for the next few days. Another storm is in the works for Friday into the weekend. To check in on your favorite resort hit this LINK.

Here is a taste of a couple things that hit the Guru’s radar which are going down in the Granite State.

In addition, on a personal note, I did already make it to Cannon this year and I love that place. There was great snow when I was there back in January. I know a lot of you are already keen too the place.

S.G. photo taken from Cannon, NH on 1/5/08 – Mount Lafayette in the distance, lots of snow

I found this breakdown on some factoids and events from Ski Vermont.

Some pretty interesting stuff. There will certainly be more as the days roll towards March. It is the best month to ski in New England…

I still owe the blog a write up on my killah day at Sugarbush North a few weekends back. I will get to that, but for now I offer this 411 from Sugarbush, VT.

The Today Show at Sugarbush

That's right: Tomorrow, Thursday, February 21st, "Today" will be broadcasting all four hours of its programming live from Sugarbush Resort. The broadcast kicks off at 7am and the whole “Today” crew will be here. So please be sure to tune in to NBC at 7am on Thursday morning.

I am playing catch up on the Inbox tonight. For you that means I should rattle off a few entries with good information. No promises tough, just starting now and since my last blog entry was about Saturday at Sunday River this press release was a nice tie in…

Check it: Lists for the rest of the season.

The S.G. snapped this picture of an outboard motor converted into a blender last year on Saturday of the Parrot/Bust n Burn weekend. Solid event to attend…

Folks, if you are thinking of heading north this weekend to take in some Patriots pigskin action this list may help. Every season I put out feelers to the mountains to see what, if anything, they have planned for the big game.

I always trumpet two non-traditional ski holidays.

• Super Bowl Monday
• St. Patrick’s Day (more on that in about 5 weeks)

If you have not done so, request a vacation day for Monday. Feel free to enjoy what could be one of the most historical sports performances ever.

picture taken 1/28 - courtesy of Attitash, NH

This one is VERY short notice, but hopefully someone out there can pick up on it and take adavantage.

This Friday (1/25/08) Wildcat, NH has $9.00 lift tickets for sale!

Fact: It is under 3 hour drive from the Hub to the Cat.

photo courtesy of Wildcat, NH

Every year around this time, I trumpet one thing. Take Super Bowl Monday off as a vacation day and hit the slopes! With the Patriots back in the big game and looking to rewrite NFL history, I cannot stress this enough, yet again.

I was up in Killington, VT last weekend for skiing and the games. I took in the football at the Lookout Bar & Grill. They have a great, giant (no pun intended) selection of HD flat screen televisions.

Tip: Get there (or wherever you are going up in the Killington region) early to secure a good seat/spot to view the game.

Warning: There is an old skiers adage about Killington being the last stop on the NYC subway. Lots of Geeeeeee-Men fans up there...

Observation: It is always fun watching NY fans undergo defeat, especially in person.

New Hampshire is all the news lately with the primaries. But we really care about the skiing up in the granite state.

This past weekend I made it up to Lincoln, NH. My temporary home base was at the Inn Seasons Resorts Pollard Brook.

These units are condominium style. They are new and very nice lodging. It is definitely worth looking into if you are considering heading up that way. From the condo it was a quick 15-minute ride to Cannon (Saturday) and Loon (Sunday) was literally across the rode.

I will have detailed reports on my days on the mountains later this week. But the skiing was exceptional. Keep reading for a full breakdown of deals and events this weekend in NH.

This is a pretty solid deal for newbies out there on the slopes.

You should look into it (keep reading) and spread the good word. Bring a friend that needs to get out in the winter. Figure out how to make schedules allow.

No better time to start a ski addiction then 2008.

Last season I remember how desolate the ski landscape of New England was at this time. On January 10th the thermometer topped out at 70ºF in downtown Boston. There was very little snow to be had anywhere because our mountains were constantly battling the warm air and that nasty “R” word.

Fast forward to NOW.

The Ski Season: So far New England ski areas could have not dreamt up a better start to the season. Plenty of cold air for snowmaking coupled with above average natural snowfall have made the skiing and riding the best the region has seen in decades for this time of year. Current conditions are approaching "World Class to So Ridiculous it is almost Unbelievable!"

Mount Ellen, aka Sugarbush North and Slidebrook to the left. pic ~ S.G. taken Sat 12/15, apx 9:00 am

View image of the same spot 24 hours later on Sun 12/16

Really we do not normally see the areas in this kind of shape heading into the Xmas/NYE holidays. Get out there and take advantage of it while you still can.

Here is a breakdown of what is happening in the north country this holiday week.

The Ski Expo is Loaded with DEALS on all types of ski gear! Tons of events, a huge crowd of snow enthusiasts!

What more could you want?

The Ski Expo is a snow sports carnival. The event will be calling the Bayside Expo Center home from this Thursday to Sunday.

Entry Coupon & detailed event schedules can be located with the following link. Ski Expo Info

Where: BAYSIDE EXPO CENTER
When: NOVEMBER 15 - 18, 2007

Show Hours
Thursday, Nov. 15: 4 - 10 p.m.
Friday, Nov. 16: 4 - 10 p.m.
Saturday, Nov. 17: 10 a.m. - 8 p.m.
Sunday, Nov. 18: 10 a.m. - 6 p.m.

Tons of stuff for children!

This past weekend was many resorts last for the season. Perfect weather was featured across New England for the spring parties that went off all over ski country. There are probably many skiers (and ski area employees) that were dragging Monday from a weekend in full throttle.

I sampled the spring snow up at Sunday River. Both days the surface loosened up and got soft by noon. The sun was pounding, without cloud cover until late on Sunday afternoon.

There was a ton of events going on. Parrot Head weekend, the Bust and Burn Mogul Competition, and pound skimming.

the White Cap base area, stuffed with people and events on Saturday

At the beginning of every ski season I pull out the calendar and pencil in a couple days. Super Bowl Monday & St. Patrick’s Day are the two. Both make for great long ski weekends. (Yes, I am aware that the 17th of March sometimes falls midweek)

This year Super Bowl Monday yielded a few wonderful days of skiing in fresh snow up in Stowe, VT.

This weekend IRISH DAY will be over-serving the skiers and riders of New England with POWDER.

I hate to say I told you SO. But I did, read the last ENTRY to the blog.

J.L. getting big air and a bit OC up at Jay Peak

The skiing and riding is very good in New England. Honest, Serious, for Real. We currently are experiencing the best conditions so far this season! Percentages of open terrain have been on a steady climb as the mountains up north have had over two weeks of consistently good snowmaking weather. Check this LINK to find out how your favorite resort is doing.

The mountains have been picking up an inch of two day to day form lake effect snows. It all counts. The steady small shots of snow are the best way for bases to become and remain Packed Powder. We have not had any rain events to speak of. All we need is one big storm and things will go bananas. Big = a foot plus for most resorts. That is not being too greedy is it? I mean, come on. It is February first today.

Sugarloaf has opened the Superpipe - pic from the resort

Whew! It is cold in New England! I am not complaining. A look at the calendar and guess what? There are still plenty of days in this ski season ahead of us. With winter finally here to stay for a while ski season in going to really get into gear. Better late than never...

the S.G. in the trees and pow pow at Winter Park

Looking for something to make you smile? Check out the new snow that the resorts of New England are picking up. LINK Keep in mind that the snowmaking efforts are on full throttle. It is also supposed to snow all weekend, with a major long term pattern change (GOOD – very good) beginning early next week!

All this considered MLK weekend will be the best we have seen so far this season. Take it and turn.

The new Sugarbush base area covered in snow (pic form resort)

Here are the stragglers left over from the New Years Eve Deals & Events post. It is nothing to be ashamed of if you are still on the fence, given the conditions. I do not have a destination locked down yet either.

An unhealthy debate to be having this time of year

Q: Should I go skiing or golfing?

A: Well… I could travel south. However, I do not imagine starting the ‘07 Long-shanks campaign off by hitting stingers in raw chilly air with the stud stick as a pleasurable thing.

Winner: Skiing!

photo from Jay Peak Resort taken on 12/28/06

The holidays are a hectic time for most everyone. There is so much to accomplish. Places to be, gifts to purchase & deliver, cards to send, and parties to attend.

I can tell you one thing, not having extraordinary conditions to lure me north these past few weekends has made this time a bit less taxing. Although there are two sides to every fence and unfortunately the snow is whiter on the other side. I would have gladly sufficed the extra effort and slept a few hours less to be snorkeling in hip deep powder.

Do you want to Ski for FREE?

Thought that might grab your attention. Here are some quick hits to get the week started, including how to get free lift tickets to Sunday River, ME.

How bout this weather. I have not had to turn the heat on once yet this fall and it is almost December. A glance at the forecasting for this week and consensus is that we should see some precipitation out of a weekend system. Will the cold air be along for the ride? We can only cross the fingers and hope.

Photo from Jay Peak, VT ~ good coverage on Jet this weekend.

In some fashion there are deals at every ski area in New England.

Most are also the same as last years.
Most are one day events.

These ‘one and done’ types are usually the best value. One could spend hours updating their Outlook calendar with reminders. Fortunately for all of you, I have already done that.

Stay tuned to the message boards and you will get a heads up.

So, bearing the above in mind, I sifted through the ski print out there across the region this weekend. Great information – but I found it overwhelming in volume. I have been looking at these things for seasons. I have read them with the gleaming eye of a child thinking about snowdays, when I was a frugal minded student, as an industry employee - fearful of misquotation, and this weekend looking to see what may have been missed or overlooked.

Here are ‘fresh’ deal options this year that seemed to have snuck under the radar.

"Hey, where we gunna find a deal?"

Updated Entry 04/05/06: The snow is falling again in the mountains of New England and some resorts have picked up substantial amounts. The new snow (more possible in the next 48 hours) should make this weekend a fantastic one for spring skiing. I am taking to opportunity to make my final charge of the season and suggest you do the same.

photo courtesy of Jay Peak, taken yesterday

***THIS WEEKEND ONLY*** Sunday River, ME

So not everyone in the crowd can bang out a vacation day or bang in a sick day. Life can be cruel and punishing for the skier in all of us. But today, I bring you reprieve. It knocks in the form of an awesome weekend deal.

Do you like your snow groomed to perfection first thing in the morning? Maybe you are more the afternoon corn type? Whatever you fancy this will fit the bill perfectly.

Spring Fest contiuens this weekend

***Ski Guru Special*** Do you like great deals coupled with outstanding conditions? This week is going to be a fantastic one to ski! Jay Peak currently has the best conditions any the of mountains in New England have seen this season. The resort is offering a Powder Special just for you!

Jay Peak has tallied a whopping 3+ feet in the past five days! It looks like they'll be heading into one of the (if not THE) best weeks of the season – temps forecasted in the 20-30 range all week. Snow/flurries tonight, tomorrow, sunshine on Tuesday, then flurries again on Wednesday into Thursday.

taken Sunday (11 AM) on the face

This is it... The season is waning. For the next several weeks we are going to be enjoying corn snow and wonderful, sun filled days on the slopes. This is my favorite time of year to ski. Good light long into the evening, warmer temperatures, music and grills on decks are the norm.

March is filled with tons of awesome events. The ski areas of New England have put the snowmaking equipment away until November and are focused on having fun for the next four weeks or so. It is the ideal time of year to get out and hit the slopes.

large crowds gather around the half pipe at the US Open

***Next weekend only! (2/24 - 2/26) Jay Peak Resort is offering up a deal only for you, the readers that ski and ride*** Limited Availability…

The Ski Guru loves Jay Peak, can I say that? It has a Tram, awesome terrain, the most snow, great trail and lift system (unless you get stuck on the Queens Highway T-bar at the end of the day), and being just a little further away from your everyday life.

looking at the Tram House

Thank Goodness it is February! For me it seemed as if the first month of the New Year was never going to end. This is my favorite time of the ski season. February is when the days get noticeably longer. Enjoy the better light in the afternoon out on the slopes.

The ski areas of New England have made a full recovery from the weather spell January brought. A quick look at Snow Country shows trail counts on the rise, most areas are operating with over 80% of their terrain. We still are waiting for that BIG STORM to hit us, but things are good up North. Most areas picked up new snow last week, some got as much as 10 inches, and we also have more in the long range forecasts. Head to the snowmaking trails for the best conditions.

View from the top of Lone Peak at the neighbors - Big Sky, MT photo ~ S.G.

Super Bowl Monday

Ski this day. Period. Double period… Got that? Read this and make the vacation request. The Monday after the Super Bowl (one week away) is a great way on a grand day to be a person who skis. Plus, snow is in the forecast. I may be making that up, but give it a look.

mid-station @ MRG, photo ~S.G.

The ski season is just getting started in earnest and there are a ton of events at all the different mountains across New England. Here are a few that may help spawn an idea for a trip. Take a look at the links below...for more info on any event go the areas website that is hosting.

***UPDATED with NEW DEALS and EVENTS***

So you still no plans for New Years? But you have had enough of paying top dollar to go to some fancy party in the city which inevitably turns out to be more of a hassle than a good time. Maybe you are like me and this New Years you are only looking to spend a quite evening with some friends up in ski country. If so and you do not have anything in concrete yet—Head for the mountains.

Powder anyone? No shortage of it at Jay Peak this weekend. I spoke with a friend up there last night and they picked up an honest to goodness 15 inches of new snow Wednesday. Check out their website for updates and photos…

***SPECIAL: SKI GURU DEAL***

Where: Jay Peak, VT
When: This weekend 12/9/05 – 12/11/05
What: 2 for 1 lift tickets at Jay Peak
How: Bring a screen print of this blog to the Customer Service window.

Simply print out this blog/web page, bring it to the Jay Peak Costumer Service window (not the lift ticket window) and you will receive two lift tickets for the price of one.

Only found here, this deal is completely legitimate and ONLY valid this Friday (12/9/05) through Sunday (12/11/05).

You will need a separate print out each day.

Sweet Powder Deal!

pic S.G.

My equipment is a joke. Hard and soft gear, the same story holds true. When I purchased it we are talking top of the line stuff. Ski a couple hundred days on it, junk. Where am I going to go to refresh? The Ski Expo!

First in New England to open that is… While most ski areas will not get their lifts turning until mid December, there are handfuls that are annually clicking on some cylinders by November. Thus offering reprieve after spending a joyful day with the family drinking wine and eating turkey.

Sugarloaf, from RSN

Unfortunately most of the real steals happened during the summer, regarding season passes. Fear not, this section will be plugged all winter with ways ski, eat and sleep on the cheap.

Herein find a few deals that are still in force, but act fast...

With out a pass this could be you.

Early season Event. Ski Jump on Fillmore Street in San Francisco. Old news, the competition went off on Thursday 9/29/05. Interesting, nonetheless.