Pico Adventure Center... Is No More

[RustyK]

Wow...Been riding the Apline slide since the 80's. Will miss that summer lift ride.

It's too old to move it i'm sure, but having one adventure center seems to make sense.

There was never more than 20 people there when I used to go...

They might still have The fairs and other events there..

[falldise]

Been hitting that place since the 80's. This past summer hit it like 3 or 4 times. My sister owns property up here now and she has young kids. Its too bad, but it is true there was nobody there. That slide was fun, and dangerous(most really fun things are right). The Bromley alpine slide has always been the benchmark though. What makes me sad is the loss of the disc golf course. We hit it last year, had a great time. Was a good course, and ended with a big waterfall. I know they said they will rebuild it at Killington. But I expect them to haphazardly throw it togethor.... I hope they at least make a lift ride required to do it(or a big hike).

[Geoff]

But I doubt the stereotypical Florida visitor is interested in the "Adventure" center.

Cheap golf on empty golf courses will get their attention. The town and the resort should get together and offer a joint monthly midweek golf pass to Florida seniors. Florida license and AARP card required.

[RENO]

That Alpine Slide should've been replaced many years ago instead of patching it up here and there. It's 1/2 old track and 1/2 new track. When you hit the new track with the old carts it's like hitting wet manmade ungroomed snow and just grabs the cart. They tried putting in the new carts, but they were just too freakin fast on the old track. I wanted to try one they had up top that they were testing, but they wouldn't let me! Years ago when we first hit it in the 90's it was fun. Got tossed a couple times off it because I was going too fast! Ouch! They needed to rip it all out like Bromley and replace it. Been on the Okemo Coaster and it was fun. Safer and you can't get tossed off the track with that! A bit expensive though...
Summer and Fall are nice in the K area! Sure it's not nearly as busy as winter weekends, but who cares? We like it that way. You need a break from the winter weekend madness. Easy to go biking, hiking or golfing. It has been a little too dead until the last couple years. More stuff going on weekends and holidays which is nice. The Cooler In the Mountains concerts at K base Saturday late afternoons late July - August are fun. The Spartan Beast race was definitely entertaining!
I also just read in Vermont Magazine that Michael Smith who did a lot to get Pine Hill Park developed for mountain biking in Rutland is working with the town of Killington to develop something similar there. Would be interesting. Not sure exactly where they're looking to do it. Much steeper terrain than Pine Hill up near the resort. I'm guessing they might be furthur down near route 4. Maybe around Kent Pond and behind base camp outfitters and the Mountain Meadows cross country ski and snowshoe trails. I've been biking on some of those trails several times over the years. I could see a similar type of park developed around there which would be cool.

[Bubba]

But I doubt the stereotypical Florida visitor is interested in the "Adventure" center.

They are for their grandchildren who visit them here.

Anyway, dividing up summer activities between Killington and Pico really makes no sense so I don't see this as a bad move at all.

[Mister Moose]

Killington could take the "me too" approach and build an alpine slide. See how many people they could siphon off from Bromley and Okemo. Or they could do something different, something no one else is offering.

One idea would be to, oh, I don't know... offer skiing into June?

The umbrella bar, in a small way, shows the power of unique solutions to a problem. The new lodge will help. The more Killington offers that is THE BEST or THE ONLY, the better they will be.

[newpylong]

If they had any clue they would relocate the alpine slide to Killington. It could be longer and more exciting starting from the new peak lodge. In my opinion the alpine slide is more fun then the Okemo Coaster, been on both. Never liked the snowshed lodge for summer activities at Killington, it will never be the main base area in my mind.

a 1800 vertical foot Alpine Slide on K Peak is not feasible.

Snowdon is likely the best option for an alpine slide. Kick people off at the triple midstation with their sleds, lol.

[brownman]

Summer Symphony Series ... is that still going on?
How about the Art Show or Horse Show?

want to bring 'em here in droves...?
Revive the Trike Race.
Signature Event for years ... Great Fun & Antics!

Remember the first weekend the Alpine Slide ran?
...at least two busted collarbones that 1st day.
Last few years, the panache had run it's course

The sprawl factor is a serious detriment
Village Concept changes the dynamic.
Without it, Beast destined as primarily winter playground.

You don't need Killington for hiking, biking, fishing or golf.

[skifaster]

If they had any clue they would relocate the alpine slide to Killington. It could be longer and more exciting starting from the new peak lodge. In my opinion the alpine slide is more fun then the Okemo Coaster, been on both. Never liked the snowshed lodge for summer activities at Killington, it will never be the main base area in my mind.

a 1800 vertical foot Alpine Slide on K Peak is not feasible.

Snowdon is likely the best option for an alpine slide. Kick people off at the triple midstation with their sleds, lol.

Actually they could build it from the peak. Bromley back in the day used to have the longest Alpine slide in the world, from the top, they could still have it for all I know.
They wont do it, for it would interupt the mtn bike operation and hiking trails.
But it could be done on Rams head...

[RENO]

One idea would be to, oh, I don't know... offer skiing into June?

Just gotta accept that it's never gonna happen.

[Mister Moose]

One idea would be to, oh, I don't know... offer skiing into June?

Just gotta accept that it's never gonna happen.

You have it completely wrong. I don't need to accept it won't happen, I'm not there in June anyway. I'm on the ocean all summer. It will take a Simon and Garfunkel reunion concert, a brewfest with IMWB's pilsner on tap, or a family wedding in the new peak lodge to get me there in the summer. It isn't about me. It's about the things Killington is uniquely situated to offer to promote summer visitor growth.

It is about whether or not Killington wants to pursue excellence or mediocrity. Whether they want to be good enough, or the best.

And while I'm not expecting it to happen anytime soon, never is a very long time. As soon as the resort feels it is in their best interest to build the summer clientel (can you say Village real estate values and marketing), several decisions are going to be re-evaluated.

[biged]

If they had any clue they would relocate the alpine slide to Killington. It could be longer and more exciting starting from the new peak lodge. In my opinion the alpine slide is more fun then the Okemo Coaster, been on both. Never liked the snowshed lodge for summer activities at Killington, it will never be the main base area in my mind.

a 1800 vertical foot Alpine Slide on K Peak is not feasible.

Snowdon is likely the best option for an alpine slide. Kick people off at the triple midstation with their sleds, lol.

A modification to the design of the timber ripper should be easy to do. The biggest issue is carts coming off the track. Make it so the carts can only come off at the bottom and top. Other possibilities are gravity go carts, zip lines, public ski jump pool (similar to Lake Placid).
With the exception of Golf, In my opinion Killington should focus its summer daily activities for the second home owner. What will bring them up and allow Killington to take there money.
Other summer activities such as the Killington Stage Race, Jeep Chamboree and Spartan Race seem to get great reviews from people that I know who have participated in them.
The memorial day Triathlon (RIP) was a great early summer event that I participated in.
Sorry it's difficult to forget about the May and June skiing.

[DrJeff]

If they had any clue they would relocate the alpine slide to Killington. It could be longer and more exciting starting from the new peak lodge. In my opinion the alpine slide is more fun then the Okemo Coaster, been on both. Never liked the snowshed lodge for summer activities at Killington, it will never be the main base area in my mind.

a 1800 vertical foot Alpine Slide on K Peak is not feasible.

Snowdon is likely the best option for an alpine slide. Kick people off at the triple midstation with their sleds, lol.

Actually they could build it from the peak. Bromley back in the day used to have the longest Alpine slide in the world, from the top, they could still have it for all I know.
They wont do it, for it would interupt the mtn bike operation and hiking trails.
But it could be done on Rams head...

Bromley currently has 3 Alpine Slide tracks. All three run from top of their Alpine Double Chairlift (basically goes to mid mountain). They have 2 parallel tracks, 1 lane for "beginners" and one for "intermediates" and then a 3rd totally different layout track for "experts" All 3 tracks are a bunch of fun. Also from essentially the same starting point they have their "Sun Mountain Flyer" zip lines which operate year round. Riders pay and extra fee to use these in both summer and winter (I believe it was $15 a run when I went on it in August) and they're a blast too. Fun stuff IMHO for "kids" of all ages!

[RENO]

One idea would be to, oh, I don't know... offer skiing into June?

Just gotta accept that it's never gonna happen.

You have it completely wrong. I don't need to accept it won't happen, I'm not there in June anyway. I'm on the ocean all summer. It will take a Simon and Garfunkel reunion concert, a brewfest with IMWB's pilsner on tap, or a family wedding in the new peak lodge to get me there in the summer. It isn't about me. It's about the things Killington is uniquely situated to offer to promote summer visitor growth.

It is about whether or not Killington wants to pursue excellence or mediocrity. Whether they want to be good enough, or the best.

And while I'm not expecting it to happen anytime soon, never is a very long time. As soon as the resort feels it is in their best interest to build the summer clientel (can you say Village real estate values and marketing), several decisions are going to be re-evaluated.

[newpylong]

The Bromley alpine slide never did (and still doesn't go from the top). Ram's Head is too flat I think.

If they had any clue they would relocate the alpine slide to Killington. It could be longer and more exciting starting from the new peak lodge. In my opinion the alpine slide is more fun then the Okemo Coaster, been on both. Never liked the snowshed lodge for summer activities at Killington, it will never be the main base area in my mind.

a 1800 vertical foot Alpine Slide on K Peak is not feasible.

Snowdon is likely the best option for an alpine slide. Kick people off at the triple midstation with their sleds, lol.

Actually they could build it from the peak. Bromley back in the day used to have the longest Alpine slide in the world, from the top, they could still have it for all I know.
They wont do it, for it would interupt the mtn bike operation and hiking trails.
But it could be done on Rams head...