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

AT THE HELM calling the shots on when to open terrain over the past 30 years is Bob Dixon.  Who better to talk to about snow and what makes Big Sky the Biggest Skiing in America?  We took a minute to sit down with him; here is what he had to say about snow and what he likes best.

What do you think about this year, is the snow going to be good?
NOAA is calling for EL Nino, which is not good for the Northwest. Big Sky Resort sits on the cusp of the Northern and Southern weather patterns. An active Atlantic hurricane season has shown a more active La Nina, where an active Pacific hurricane season a more active El Nino. Mother Nature is cyclical. A dry summer means that precipitation needs to come sometime and winter will bring some snow. I don’t really want an early season, however here the winds keep the skiing good.

Are there any patterns you have seen for winter conditions on Lone Mountain?
The end of November to December is the worst for avalanches. There are deep slabs and lots of instabilities in the snowpack. Then the Christmas crowds come and help the snowpack with skiing it in (compaction). Around January 6th the buses are leaving and a storm rolls in for the locals. January is good and March picks up more and April is great for snowfall. The coldest of the cold snaps come in November and early December. The coldest day ever was in 1988 and it was 62 below.

What is your favorite run on the mountain?
It’s all about the right day. Consistently 1st Gulley, especially when the upper pockets are open. It has a consistent fall line and I enjoy the hoots and hollers from the chair when I do it right.

What is it about Big Sky Resort that you love the most?
Lone Mountain. No such thing as a bad snow year. That mountain gives you good skiing somewhere. The ski culture has changed, the mountain hasn’t.

What does the Biggest Skiing in America mean to you?
The ski experience. That mountain offers so much different terrain. Southern Comfort for world class beginner terrain, to the Tram with great vertical descents, to the Couloir for the ultimate adrenaline rush. There is no waiting in line. The ski experience is more available, with so many acres per skier, this is what it is all about. We have the best ski experience, anywhere.

What has been the best snow year ever at Big Sky?
Consistent snow years add up great snow totals. But it’s the epic days that I remember that outshine all those numbers. In 1986 we received 200” in two weeks. In 1994 we had a storm cycle that delivered 150” in a week and a half. I couldn’t make a turn down little tree. That was an epic storm cycle.

-Lyndsey Owens

WITH WELL OVER 20 inches of new snow in the last seven days and over a foot in the last 48 hrs, Presidents week has been powder skiing at it's finest.  But with some strong breezes hitting the mountain last Wednesday, you'll have look in just the right places to get the best turns.  The inside scoop?  Grab your all-mountain skis and head to the glades on the back side of Andesite, where Wolverine and Madagascar hold some great powder pockets, or to the perfectly wind-buffed Africa for smoother turns.

But keep those pow skis close within reach - NOAA is forecasting snow for the next seven days again with temperatures in the 20s and 30s. 

-  Greer

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.

 
Lyndsey spent her powder day digging snowpits and learning avalanche safety.

UNLIKE ALMOST EVERY other Big Sky skier last weekend, I did not spend my Saturday and Sunday skiing the 25+ inches of fresh snow at Big Sky Resort.  Instead, I got my face shots digging snow pits and practicing shoveling techniques in an American Avalanche Association Avy I course instructed by Tom Thorn of Big Sky Snow Safety.  

But when the trade-off for your ski day is a deeper knowledge of the deep powder, you realize first tram is overrated, and the truly snow savvy don’t need to rely on an early alarm for fresh tracks. 

Let me explain.

Yes, there’s the geeky snow science aspect of an avy course. It was fascinating learn about snow and how that frozen state of H20 falls and congregates to form an ever-changing layer cake we call our mountain snowpack, and how these layers represent stability or lack there of.  

But it’s this kind of nerdy snow stuff that translates directly to the slopes, and there are fundamentals any passionate powder junky should be thinking about. 

But just finding deep snow isn’t enough – a good ski day can turn bad quickly, and you need to be prepared should something go awry. Besides knowing about snowpack, I need to know the condition of my avalanche transceiver, probe and shovel, and how quickly I can effectively use them.  Vigilance and practice are key here, and I know that I will be checking the batteries in my beacon and taking the extra time once a week to stop in to Beacon Basin to race the clock with my transceiver and probe. 

Friends are key too, because despite popular belief you really do need friends on a powder day.  But choose wisely who you go with.  The friends who I am thinking of traveling into the slackcountry or backcountry with- are they avy savvy like I am? What’s the plan, where are we going, and what are the safe routes out if it’s not picture perfect?  

Here in Southwest Montana we are fortunate to have many great resources at our fingertips to help us stay safe in the backcountry.  Ultimately it’s up to us to not let the stoke override our sensibility the next time someone in the Tram Line asks “Hey, you want go out the gate?” Think risk, then reward.   If you’re avy savvy, the reward could truly be huge.  

-  Lyndsey Owens

Lyndsey Owens lives in Big Sky, MT where she rips the front- and backcountry alike. Besides being Avy Savvy, Lyndsey is also the reigning Big Sky Groomer Skier of the Year.

Backcountry Avalanche Awareness from Big Sky Search and Rescue on Vimeo.  

 
Avy I students dig snow pits and practice using their tranceivers


Lyndsey uses a Tracker2 avalanche beacon

While the rest of the west suffers bleak ski conditions, Big Sky Resort has gotten plenty of pow.  Now, we're sharing the love by inviting Epic Pass holders to ski free at Big Sky through January.
  

COLORADO SKI CONDITIONS have been less-than-epic this season.  In Montana, that’s not the case - with several large snowstorms and 3,381 acres open so far this season, Big Sky Resort has the best ski conditions and most open acres in the Rocky Mountains.  With such good Montana conditions contrasting with Colorado’s distinct lack of snow, Big Sky Resort is spreading the love by inviting Epic Pass holders to ski for free throughout the month of January.

“Big Sky has about twice the open acreage that Vail and Breckenridge do right now, plus we’ve had some great powder,” said Chad Jones, Big Sky Resort Public Relations Manager. “And with other Epic Pass resorts like Heavenly at under 200 acres, we decided to share the wealth.  We’re a skier’s and rider’s mountain, and no one should miss out on good snow just because they live in Colorado or California.”

The home of the Biggest Skiing in America, Big Sky Resort is currently open with 3,381 skiable acres, 4,350 vertical feet, and 100% of lifts running.  From rolling groomers to chutes off of the Lone Peak Tram and Big Sky’s 5 new gladed runs, 131 out of Big Sky’s 155 named runs are currently open.  

Epic Pass holders are now able to take advantage of these great conditions and join in the fun throughout January: Big Sky Resort will honor Epic Passes by allowing holders to ski free for the duration of their stay when they book lodging with Big Sky Central Reservations and ask for the Epic Package.  Big Sky Resort will extend the Bring a Buddy Coupon to holders as well, allowing friends in their reservation without Epic Passes to ski for $74/day.

So stop praying for snow, and just come find it.  See you soon, Coloradans!

 -  Greer

Bozeman Yellowstone International Airport offers 35 direct flights to and from Denver and 14 to and from San Francisco each week, as well as direct flights to and from eight other cities and hubs.  Visit bigskyresort.com/epic or call Big Sky Central Reservations at 1-800-548-4486 for more information.


Don't believe just how great the skiing at Big Sky is?  Take a look for yourself in the latest video from BSPN:

 
Vail's back bowls have been left dry so far this season; Big Sky's slopes have had great early season coverage

 
A December 2011 powder day at Big Sky; The first big snow at Big Sky this season - October 2011.

Big Sky

WHITE CHRISTMAS is an old holiday classic, and one of my personal favorites; you can’t beat Bing Crosby crooning while Danny Kaye hams it up on a quest for love, snow, and holiday cheer.

But watching the movie this year, the plot line resonated with me more than usual – the four main characters long for a snowy ski vacation, but when they get to their ski lodge there’s not a white fluffy flake to be found.

Big Sky’s been luckier this year – we’ve just had a huge storm roll though, and enough snow to open 1,588 acres including runs off the tram, and the open runs have been skiing great.

Still, I understand that longing for a White Christmas. I totally get it when in White Christmas’ ode to snow, Rosemary Clooney dreams of washing her hands, face, and hair with snow. I relate completely when the movie’s foursome longs to go where it’s snowy all winter through to ski and throw snowballs - it’s not an unfamiliar sentiment when you’ve decided to live in a Montana ski town.

Here in Big Sky, we’ve been dreaming of a white Christmas and praying for snow for months. Turns out we’re not so unique – even Bing Crosby prays for snow like the rest of us.  And just like Bing in the final scene of the movie when snowflakes finally fall, we're getting everything we ask for for Christmas this year.

-  Greer

'Tis the season for shredding!  Find out how Big Sky prepared for a white christmas and holiday season.

Check out holiday activities at Big Sky including fireworks and skiing with santa.

See the play adaptation of White Christmas now at the Ellen Theatre in Bozeman.

 
Big Sky's white christmas dreams started coming true in October; An all-star cast dreams of a White Christmas in the 1954 classic