Run out to K1 Base Lodge
on Lower Bunny Buster
after last's nights precipitation.

Run out to K1 Base Lodge
on Lower Bunny Buster
after last's nights precipitation.

Non-crystaline precipitation (NCP - aka r@*n) fell briefly overnight bringing an end to Killington's aggressive snowmaking efforts. With 3 days and counting till the opening of ski season at Killington, competing resorts in New England are probably grinning like cheshire cats that the snow guns of Killington have been silenced. Much has been written in the media and the blogosphere about Killington not being the first ski resort in the east to open this year, but it is a long season. Cold weather is predicted to return to the area on Wednesday evening with light snow in the forecast on Thursday. It will be an interesting run up to Friday morning when the first lifts are scheduled to turn at Killington.

Personal commentary as we head into the new ski season: As I have written in the past, as a business owner in Killington, I am by nature an optimist. With new owners of the resort, and climate change lapping at the mountain tops, there is plenty of reason for high anxiety as we near the planned start of the Killington ski season. But ponder this for a moment...Killington has an altitude advantage over competing resorts with some of the highest lift serviced skiing in the Northeast. Killington has the largest snow making system in skiing. The new owners have spent the summer, and millions of dollars, repairing it to allow it to operate effectively this winter. But owning the largest snow making system in skiing does not mean much if it is not turned on. The new owners did just that, with a vengeance, over the last 10 days. But the resort is not yet open, and 10 days of snow blowing is not a season.

It is clear from my conversations with the new Killington owners and members of the resort management team over the last couple of weeks that they are committed to elevate the quality of the skiing product at Killington, to recover the reputation that Killington is a "Skiers Mountain". The new team definitely seemed a little "gun shy" about opening this past weekend, because they wanted the season opening day to be memorable. Whether or not this was a tactical error in promoting the resort, given the high variability in the weather at Killington in November, remains to be seen. Assuming the quality of the skiing product delivered by the Killington Resort lives up to the whisper line being delivered to the locals at Killington, then many start up hiccups will fade quickly from view. Although it has gotten shorter the last couple of years, it really still is a long ski season in the mountains here in Killington.

I, myself, am looking forward to skiing later this week; to be on the mountain enjoying the reason Mary and I gave up corporate jobs down south and moved to the state of Vermont full time 10 years ago. A lot of people are lucky enough to ski or ride a few weekends each season at Killington. Many call Killington their "home mountain"; they have seasons passes and real estate in the community. A few of us are really fortunate. We live here in the majesty of the Green Mountains. Skiing transcend being a hobby or a passion, it becomes a way of life. It's time!

3 more days and counting.... Let it snow!