This Week In SeniorsSkiing.Com (12/16)
Find Ski Buddies, Ski For Free, More Gizmo Gift Ideas, Mt. Bachelor’s Appeal, New Backcountry Area Open and Short Swings!
We have some terrific news for all readers of SeniorsSkiing.com. Through our reader surveys, we know that many readers are looking for skiing companions. We thought of different ways to fill that need from boosting our FORUM to literally individually matching people who wrote in to us. Finally, we came up with a much better idea.
We’ve formed a relationship with the National Ski Council Federation which is an umbrella agency of regional ski councils comprised of hundreds of local ski clubs. That means you can look up a ski club near you, go on a group outing or trip to a distant resort, join, make friends, and transform your outdoor winter experience. We think this is a really important addition to the value we bring to our readers, and it is available to anyone who comes to our site; you don’t have to be a subscriber to access the NSCF page which is under the COMMUNITY menu pick.
But, as a reminder, we’ve just created a Subscriber-Only area which contains valuable information that we’ve worked hard to compile and produce. The Subscriber-Only menu can be found from the top navigation menu. Go to COMMUNITY, and in the drop-down you will find a menu pick. You will be asked to confirm your email address. No Password! You will then have access to…
- Our list of skis recommended just for seniors developed in collaboration with realskiers.com
- An inventory of 108 ski resorts that offer FREE skiing to seniors, thanks to the help of the National Ski Areas Association
- Instructions for accessing and signing up with Experticity, a portal to many deep discounts on top gear and clothing brands specifically targeted to our readers
- A downloadable, 16-page historic ski poster collection we curated with the support of the International Ski History Association.
Look for more Subscriber-Only content coming soon.
Where Seniors Can Ski For Free
We’ve just posted the 2016-2017 list of 108 ski areas in the US where seniors can ski for free. This is a Subscriber-Only asset, and you can find it under COMMUNITY. As with last year’s list, please be sure to check with the ski resort to ensure the listing is accurate. Some areas start as early as 60 while free skiing for others starts at 80+.
Last Minute Gizmo Gifts
Washington, DC, based SeniorsSkiing.com correspondent Val E brings us some highly practical gift ideas for connecting with people when you’re in back bowls, back country or remote trails. Did you know a low-cost device can add local texting and location capabilities to your SmartPhone even out of cell-tower range?
Luxury Yurts In Backcountry
Speaking of backcountry, correspondent Harriet Wallis provides you with an overview of Whisper Ridge, a brand new Cat skiing area opening this season in Utah. Aside from the 100 square miles of skiing, the new resort features lodging in luxury yurts. And we mean luxury.
Mt. Bachelor A Friend To Senior Skiers
Finally, Seattle-based correspondent John Nelson introduces us to Mt. Bachelor in our first official Resort Review of the season. Mt. Bachelor is opening a new lift this weekend, check out the view. Also, John met up with a 98 year old skier who continues to make turns on what he says is a “darn good mountain.”
Bernie Weichsel Honored
We also want to highlight Bernie Weichsel, a SeniorsSkiing.com Advisory Council member and snow sports industry leader. Bernie was honored with a lifetime achievement award by YES (Youth Enrichment Services), a Boston-based organization that provides opportunities for outdoor adventures for urban youth.
Next week, we’ll be looking at a return of the Ski Trains of yore, why guided skiing makes sense, some holiday fun and other stuff.
As usual, please tell your friends about us. There are more of us every day, and we aren’t going away.
Credit: Parents Magazine
Short Swings!
Snow Sports Industry Leader Bernie Weichsel Is Honored
SeniorsSkiing.com Advisory Council member and Snow Sports industry leader, Bernie Weichsel, was honored with the YES Lifetime Achievement Award in Boston last weekend. YES (Youth Enrichment Services) serves the urban youth of greater New England by providing outdoor adventures in skiing, snowboarding, hiking, biking, canoeing and camping. Bernie has been an outstanding supporter of YES for more than 40 years. Bernie’s generosity has provided thousands of Boston youth with the opportunity to experience the outdoors and benefit from enrichment programs at YES. We are proud of you, Bernie!
ISHA Fund Raising Campaign
If you’ve not yet made an annual contribution to the International Ski History Association, please consider a donation today. It’s fully deductible in the United States for the 2016 tax year if posted by December 31. Your ISHA contribution will support the expenses incurred in publishing Skiing History magazine, maintaining the skiinghistory.org Website, and running the annual ISHA Awards program.
Skiing History was recently featured in the Huffington Post as a unique holiday gift! Click here to read the article by Jon Weisberg of SeniorsSkiing.com. And to send a Skiing History gift, just fill in the gift subscription form. For an even better deal, give your favorite away-from-home student a digital subscription for just $29.
Canada
Quebec City has announced it has won the USA Today online vote for Best Winter Wonderland in North America. We’ve been to the famous Winter Carnival in January, and it is an amazing and festive celebration of ice and snow.
Monte-Sainte-Ann and Stoneham in Quebec are celebrating incredible snow conditions with 55 received since the beginning of the season. Christmas activities are starting. Why go to Europe when Quebec is a drive or quick flight away?
Colorado
Sunlight Mountain Resort celebrates it’s 50th anniversary with the most expensive lift ticket in the country. The $700 per ticket price includes one full day of skiing at the resort as well as a pair of limited edition Sunlight 50th anniversary Meier skis and a ticket to the Iron Mountain Hot Springs. The $600 version gets you a 50th anniversary snowboard.
Utah
Deer Valley Resort has won the distinction of the United States’ Best Ski Resort by the World Ski Awards for the fourth consecutive year. The World Ski Awards’ 2016 Ski Oscars winners represent excellence in ski tourism and the leaders shaping the future of the ski industry.
Enjoy midweek skiing and snowboarding for free at Snowbasin Resort when you fly Alaska Airlines into Salt Lake International Airport. From December to April, snow enthusiasts can “Fly Alaska, Ski Free” or simply take a scenic gondola ride at Snowbasin Resort for free within 24 hours of landing at the Salt Lake International Airport Tuesday through Thursday.
Quad Wednesdays are back at Brighton this year! With a charitable donation, you can purchase a lift ticket for only $20. December 14, 2016: Donate a warm article of clothing such as hats, jackets, pants or anything that will keep someone warm this winter. Proceeds go to The Road Home Charity. December 21, 2016: Donate a grocery bag of non-perishable food items. Proceeds go to the Utah Food Bank.
Solitude Mountain Resort is set to host a U.S. Grand Prix/FIS Snowboard World Cup and FIS Skicross NorAm Cup January 19-22, 2017, as part of a test event for the 2019 FIS Freestyle, Snowboard and Freeski World Championships. The event will be the second stop of the U.S. Grand Prix tour for the 2016-17 season and the first major international skiing and snowboarding competition Solitude has hosted.
After two years of construction and licensing, the New World Distillery will be opening this week in Eden, UT. The state of the art distillery is featuring its “Oomaw” gin, soon to be followed by “agave
spirits and Ogden Valley Vodka. New World will also offer classes in distilling in the Spring.
California
The second season has started for the Mountain Playground Group, a coalition of nine community and independent ski areas from California to Maine. Under the Mountain Rider’s Alliance, these ski areas have teams up to increase market awareness, share in best practices and identify expense-reducing initiatives.
Participating ski areas include Arctic Valley, AK; Bald Mountain, ID; Beartooth Basin; MT/WY; Elk Ridge Ski and Outdoor Recreation, AZ; Hurricane Ridge, WA; Mt Abram, ME; Mt Timothy and Phoenix Mountain, British Columbia.
New Hampshire
SkiNH reports that over the weekend of Dec 10-11 ski resorts received eight inches of fluffy stuff, and it was still coming down. Check with SkiNH for latest conditions. Season on in New Hampshire!
Jackson Ski Touring Center opened Dec. 12 with both classic and skate skiing on nine out of 55 trails (29 km groomed) thanks to a cross-country snowstorm. Also, Jackson XC has announced a series of money-saving packages for beginners as well as more experienced XC skiers.
Vermont
Stowe’s $80 million Adventure Center at Spruce Peak sees its first winter. The sleek center is base camp for the resort’s children’s programs, from day care to ski and snowboard lessons. It’s also home to family-friendly eating in The Canteen and the indoor Stowe Rocks Climbing Center.
Maine
Sunday River skiers will find a new Locke Mountain top terminal on the triple, but will have to wait until 2017-’18 before the Spruce Peak Triple is replaced with a $2.1 million fixed-grip chair.
Massachusetts
Wachusett in Princeton is now more readily accessible for Boston-area skiers, thanks to the MBTA’s new Wachusett Commuter Rail Station in West Fitchburg on the Fitchburg Line.
Where Seniors Can Ski For FREE: Huff Post
108 Ski Resorts In North America Recognize Seniors With Free Lift Tickets.
SeniorsSkiing.com’s co-publisher Jon Weisberg has another article on Huffington Post, this time describing where seniors can ski for free or for very little money. [NOTE: You can only download this list from SeniorsSkiing.com. There is no download link in the Huff Post article. See instructions in BOLD below.]
We are told by ski industry veterans that free skiing for seniors used to be much more widespread. However, a decade or so ago, some resort owners decided that they would rather cash in on seniors rather than gift them a ski lift ride in recognition for years of loyalty to the sport; big discounts and free skiing were gone.
From this list of 108 North American ski resorts, it appears that some more enlightened resorts might be swinging the pendulum back to free skiing. Sure, some of these resorts are small- or medium-sized, but they are attracting seniors, filling lifts, especially mid-week, and perhaps hosting their families. The impact of having a loyal group of seniors gathering at the lodge, skiing together, having lunch, staying occasionally for dinner is a huge positive for a ski resort.
Part of our mission at SeniorsSkiing.com is to show the industry the value we bring to their businesses beyond passes and tickets.
If you ARE a subscriber to SeniorsSkiing.com, you can download the list of resorts that offer free skiing by going to the top menu, click on COMMUNITY, then click on SUBSCRIBER-ONLY CONTENT. In the drop down menu, you will find the list of resorts. Re-enter your email address, and you can download the file.
If you ARE NOT a subscriber, sign up. It’s totally free, and we have strived to bring our readers value in the form of ski recommendations for seniors, discounts from top brands, and a collection of historic ski posters from the International Ski History Association. All free and focused on helping seniors continue to enjoy the outdoors and snow sports of all kinds.
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