I think last year shows June is possible, had more snow been blown in the thin spots they would have made it. Late season endurance isn't about natural snowfall of 200, 250, or even 350", it's about the depth and resiliency of the man made. Or to put it another way, man made goes down very dense. An inch of hardpack is worth a foot of regular snow and 2 feet of blower. Mass and compaction of the snowpack is what counts. You can replace a missing 100" of natural with a foot of man made. Last year with about 15 feet of man made on the spine, it was the equivilent of about 1,800 inches of natural. I might be off slightly, but my point is that 250" of annual snowfall pales to what gets blown on Superstar every year. Spring temps, r*in and fog are a far greater factor.skiadikt wrote:personally don't think june will ever happen despite mike's "intentions". we'd need a 350" snowfall and a lot of cooperation from mama nature to make it happen. maybe if mike is still into it, we get memorial weekend one season. we came close last season. but with a corporate entity to report to, just don't see it happening.
addressing moose's sacrificing some trails for the build on supe ... can only speak for us but having those runs added to our ski experience. i might have traded the fiddle for lower o but that another story. as a late season proponent, hard for me to say this, but don't know how you can have 3 or 4 runs "lay fallow" for the sake of extending the season on one run and explain that to the general public.
again kudos to mike & jeff for a great season.
skiadkt has an interesting opinion in this as he is both a spring skier and a Vertigo/Fiddle/Ovation lover. As much as he likes spring bumps, he finds it hard to give up winter terrain in exchange for spring bumps. It illustrates the difficult balancing act management has in making operational decisions.
So skiadkt, what's the earliest closing date you could live with on just Supe in order to keep your man made favorites in play the rest of the season in a lean year?