The Way I Ski It: Big Sky Resort's Blog

HERE THEY GO again – Mother Nature and Old Man Winter pulling another switcheroo on us overnight!  The past five days have had full blown spring skiing conditions with warmer temps and bluebird skies.  Then this morning we woke up and WHAM!  Winter was back with nine inches of cold fluffy pow on the peak.

Ullr sure is keeping us on our toes – this is the second time this month we’ve done an extra early-week Ski Skinny post due to a big conditions shift.   But when it involves multiple bluebird powder days, we can’t complain.

Hit the mountain all over today – there’s powder everywhere and your fatty skis could use some exercise.

-  Greer

Check out the Big Sky Snow Report and the 7-day forecast from NOAA to stay updated on conditions.

Get the skinny on all things snow with the weekly Ski Skinny on The Way I Ski It.  It’s a special conditions report with intel on snow quality, where to head on the hill, and expert advice on what to pull from your quiver to get the most out of your day on the slopes.  Fatty pow skis or groomer go-tos?  Get the skinny here.

IT'S BACK.

For the third year running, Big Sky’s early season pass sale is discounting Adult Unlimited Gold Passes by 40%.

And Juniors ages 11-17 can save up to 60% when their 2012/13 pass is bought in conjunction with an Adult Gold Pass.

Prices include a $799 Adult Gold Pass, a $599 College Gold Pass, and a $299 Junior Gold Pass.

At the Biggest Skiing in America, that’s a screamin’ deal. Broken down, adults pay about 20 cents per skiable acre (there are 3,832 at Big Sky alone), around $5 per day if you ski every day of the season, and the break-even point for buying a pass is just 10 ski days.  For Juniors, the breakdown is even better.

The sale only goes through April 30th, but buying now gets you free skiing for the last two weeks of April 2012 as well.  That includes skiing during spring events like the annual Pond Skim on April 14th.

-  Greer

THIS WEEKEND BIG SKY is rolling out the Fast Pass program, where guests can reserve a timeslot for a walk-on ride up the Lone Peak Tram.

With an average of 2,000 skiers per day spread out over 3,832 acres of the Biggest Skiing in America, Big Sky skiers know that waiting in lift lines isn’t an issue. 

The one caveat has been the Lone Peak Tram, where arriving at the peak with a mere 14 other skiers for endless fresh lines on a powder day makes a couple of tram cars well worth the wait.

But even a wait that’s worth it is too long for Big Sky, and the Resort is working to mitigate wait time with the new Fast Pass program.  With a free Fast Pass, guests can reserve one Tram timeslot per day, making sure they get one walk-on experience for Big Sky’s most iconic views and expert runs.

This, is a Big Deal. 

Since the Tram was built in ’96, the only way to guarantee a walk-on Tram has been to join Ski Patrol or set your alarm for first chair, racing to the Triple and then Tram to hopefully grab an early car.  Every other walk-on was just dumb luck – Dave Stergar being in the right place during a wind-hold on the Triple, William Bryan landing 8 freak walk-ons during a random Wednesday.

Now, no one needs to leave a Tram lap to chance.  And the program won’t compromise unscheduled Tram laps either -  Fast Pass timeslots will take up 1/3 of available Tram capacity, ensuring both Fast Pass holders and skiers without a reserved timeslot will be able to get on the Tram quickly and efficiently.

The program is taking a pilot run during weekends throughout this March, when guests can show their season pass or lift ticket at a Fast Pass window to reserve a timeslot from 10:45am through 3:00pm, running in 15-minute increments, weather depending. 

So hit the Tram this weekend – Fast Pass or no, you’ll reach 11,166-feet in record time.

-  Greer

How does Fast Pass work?  Check out this video and these FAQs. Need more details?  See the official press release.

MY FRIEND ANNA showed me her new Harvard University ID.  I was impressed.  Not everyone possesses the brains for America's oldest school of prestige.  She officially belonged to an elite organization of higher learning, and it took considerable achievement to simply hold that ID in her hand. 

Like exchanging pictures of our children, I felt obligated to show her my photo ID too.  After all, I was also a committed member of an elite organization.  But the ID wasn't in my wallet.  It was attached to my ski pants. 

A season pass to any mountain is a membership to an experience of higher learning.  With my Biggest Skiing in America ski pass, I pass ticket sales and head right into the near wilderness where few but wildlife and weather assemble.  I gain access to a mountain summit in minutes that would ordinarily take a day to climb.  I graduate to a view that most people only see from an airplane.  I learn lessons in endurance, environmental studies, and snow science.  This unbendable plastic card enrolls me in the largest lift-served ski hill in the US.  Every time I flash it, I take part in something bigger than myself. 

Photo IDs help tell our stories:  College credentials show academic prowess,  licenses tell body sizes and home towns, passports prove a life well traveled.  And season passes are badges of our true passions.  They're also a science lesson that the northern hemisphere is tilted away from the sun, and that means winter is underway in Big Sky. 

Since Anna studies remotely, she is also a Big Sky local.  She’ll experience higher learning this winter, twice over.  But now that the ski lifts are turning, she really only needs one ID. 

 - Victor DeLeo

Harvard University acceptance rate: 6%.  Biggest Skiing in America acceptance Rate?  100%, SAT scores and college essays not required.  Check out how you can gain admission with a season pass, and get the most important ID you'll ever own.

You can learn a lot about Victor and Anna by going through the IDs in their wallets (Not only is Victor a good blood-donating samaritan, but it looks like he's a beer lover as well!), but their most valued IDs hang on their ski pants.