Ski Season is finally Here!

Transcription

1 North Penn Ski Club Downhill Times January Thanks go out to all the people who attended the December-- meeting and played our White Elephant Gift Exchange! Our annual holiday gathering was fun, and after a few rounds of stealing gifts, members went home with all sorts of interesting and festive prizes. Plus, everyone who attended last month also received a new EPSC luggage tag, courtesy of the club. A fun night! Ski Season is finally ere! The new year is bringing with it some cold weather, a little bit of snow, and plenty of opportunities to get out and hit the slopes. ave you seen the news from out west? So many resorts are just getting dumped on out there! But don t think the east coast is being left out Vermont resorts have been celebrating record snows for several weeks now. And NPSC members have the chance to celebrate the start of another ski year by getting together this week at the Red Cedar Grille. At this month s gathering, you can get together with fellow members and plan a day of local skiing, or make final payments on trips, or maybe even win a raffle prize. You re welcome to come out and enjoy a meal, adult beverages, appetizers, or even dessert. But don t think you have to make a purchase if you just want to come socialize and hear the latest ski news, that s ok too. We meet in the back room, and eats and drinks are available, but not required. As always, January s meeting also features the latest club announcements, details on trips, Council and ski resort news, and membership renewals. So bring your friends, coworkers, or family members, and come join us for some fun! Come on out Thursday evening and visit with ski club friends (or make new ones). See you there! RCG... OUR NEW OME! We meet at 7PM at the Red Cedar Grille, located on Route 309 (formerly the Inn Flight). Join your skiing friends for dinner, or drinks, or beers and appetizers, or coffee and dessert whatever floats your boat. Business portion of the meeting starts around 7:30pm. See you all on Thursday, the 12th! If you haven t come out to our new venue yet, what are you waiting for? NEXT MEETING: 7PM, Thursday January 12th The Red Cedar Grille, 249 Bethlehem Pike (Route 309), Colmar, PA Guests & visitors welcome! Inclement weather? Call an officer for any cancellation info. +

2 Presidential Ponderings Usually by this time of the ski season, I can certainly claim to be easily distracted by snow, as this T-shirt states. I have often skied at least one weekend prior to the holiday season, if not more. This winter, however, my first day out on the snow will be the Elk bus trip this coming Tuesday. To say the least, I have been easily distracted by so many other things right now! For those who have purchased a home, or at least have moved recently, you can identify. So with all of the coordination, phone calls, s, paperwork, packing, purging, and throwing stuff away that is involved in moving, I can honestly say that I have been easily distracted from quite a few of my normal responsibilities. The EPSC Monday night lessons didn t get promoted as much as I had intended, our club newsletters have barely gotten sent out prior to each meeting the past couple of months, and I haven t had much of a presidential focus either. Thank goodness for the handful of people who make up the NPSC Board! They have truly picked up the ball that I have been fumbling and are running with it. Steady progress has been made in improving the club website, research has been done to find ways of encouraging local folks to join NPSC, club T-shirts and other potential promo items are in the works, a new membership directory was created and circulated, and much more is going on behind the scenes! It takes a village and North Penn Ski Club could always benefit from a few more villagers pitching in to help. That is where YOU, the person reading this message, can step in and make a difference. Do you like to talk about skiing and all the fun trips and events that you have done with NPSC? We could use your social skills in spreading the word about this club while skiing at a local resort, within your workplace, and at community events throughout the year. Consider being on the Community Outreach committee, or at least help man our table for a couple of hours at an event sometime. Are there people where you work that ski but don t belong to a club? Why not post one of our promo flyers on the bulletin board in the lunch room? Or, if you have a name of someone in R that we could contact, maybe we could offer a discounted membership for folks at your company to join NPSC for a year and try out our club. At the meeting this Thursday, we can certainly go over all of these things that are in the works, and you will have plenty of opportunity to ask questions. There will also be promo flyers available so you can take a few home to distribute during the ski season. For now, what you really want to take note of is that our Elk Mountain bus trip takes place this Tuesday, and January s monthly meeting takes place at the Red Cedar Grille this Thursday. Very soon, members from numerous clubs will be traveling to Lake Placid for the annual EPSC Winter Carnival, and in February our own small group will be jetting out to Colorado to spend a week skiing at Steamboat. A busy couple of months! So don t let the distractions of daily life get in the way of your enjoying a day or two on the slopes. Our season here on the East Coast is way too short; get out there and get some runs in. I ll be making quite a few of my own at Elk in just a couple of days. ere s to a cold winter (finally) and a great ski season! Till next time, JoAnne Landis ( Madam President ) (2) President JoAnne Landis Vice President Dave Schoneker dschoneker@aol.com Secretary Judy Gordon NPSC OFFICERS Treasurer Jenny utchison Board Members Bruce Schwartz ibruce01@comcast.net John Del Pizzo Membership Linda Dedman Web Master Bruce Schwartz EPSC Reps Ken Foster Dave Schoneker dschoneker@aol.com Disc. Lift Tickets Ken Foster Newsletter Editor JoAnne Landis UPCOMING EVENTS January 9, 23, 30: EPSC Learn-to- Ski lessons, Spring Mountain, 6:30pm January 10: NPSC Snow Pig one-day bus trip adventure to Elk Mountain January 19: Buckmans Flashback Day, Spring Mtn, $12 all day lift (in store) January 26-29: Winter Carnival trip to Lake Placid, NY January 27: Buckmans CAD, Montage $55 all day lift & lunch (in store only) Feb.10: Buckmans CAD, Camelback February 11-18: NPSC s trip to Steamboat, Colorado February 22: Buckmans CAD & Demo day, Blue Mountain, $38 lifts (in store)

3 Discount Lift Tickets Tickets are avail able now through February via the Discount Lift Ticket program from Eastern PA Ski Council for local Pocono mountains as well as a few in New England. If you purchase tickets via EPSC s website, be sure to only order what you are sure to use. Return fees apply for all unused tickets, and the number of returns accepted is extremely limited (so don t count on it!). Be sure to have your ID and ski club membership card when visiting the mountains for which you bought discount tickets! Most resorts require that each person have their own membership card in order to use the discount ticket. These tickets are for use by current club members ONLY. Visit the EPSC website for details and order forms. Bear Creek: Evening 4-10pm $24.15 Weekday (All day) $32.55 Bear Creek: Adult Weekend (All day) $61.95 Belleayre, NY: Any day, all ages $49.35 Blue Mountain: Weekday (Full day/twilight) non-holiday $49.35 Blue Mountain: Weekend $63.00 Bromley, VT: Adult (13 and up) Anytime $56.70 Bromley, VT: Junior (6-12) Anytime $46.20 Elk Mountain: Weekday (non-holiday) $52.50 Elk Mountain: Weekend (Saturday / holiday) $63.00 Gore Mountain Resort, NY: Adult, Anytime, any day $63.00 unter Mountain, NY: Adult Midweek $51.45 unter Mountain, NY: Adult Weekend $65.10 Jack Frost/Big Boulder: Adult Daily /Midweek, age 19+) $36.75 Jack Frost/Big Boulder: Student/Youth (7-17) oliday $39.90 Jack Frost/Big Boulder: Student/Youth (7-17) Midweek $32.55 Jack Frost/Big Boulder: Adult (age 19+) oliday $48.30 Jay Peak, VT: Adult (19+) Anytime $71.40 Killington, VT: Junior (Age 6-18) Anytime $53.55 Killington, VT: Adult (19+) Anytime $67.20 Montage, PA: At window w/ memb. card, 20% discount anytime Mount Snow, VT: Anytime, All ages $69.30 Okemo, VT: Adult (19-64) Anytime $76.65 Okemo, VT: Jr (7-12) or Super Sr 70+ Anytime $55.65 Okemo, VT: Teen (13-18) or Sr (65-69) Anytime $64.05 Pico, VT: Adult (19+) Anytime $45.15 Pico, VT: Junior (age 6-18) Anytime $37.80 Stowe, VT: Age 6-12 and 65+, Anytime $72.45 Stowe, VT: Adult, Age 13-64, Anytime $79.80 Stratton, VT: Adult, Anytime $64.05 Sugarbush, VT: Anytime, AlI Ages $66.15 Whiteface, NY: Anytime, All ages $70.35 (3) Elk Mountain: January 10 Meet at 6AM at the agey Tours lot at 210 Schoolhouse Road, Souderton just a mile or so from Route 113. For folks north of that, we have a stop at the Quakertown turnpike park-and-ride lot at 6:30AM. You MUST let me know which location you will be boarding the bus. The $77 per person cost includes lift ticket, transportation, and OJ/ donuts/ snacks on the bus. Lunch is on your own. We typically ski from 9AM to 4:30PM. Discounted rentals and lessons are available please notify me in advance if you require these. If you already have lift tickets to Elk from some other means, bus transportation is available for $40 per person. SENIORS age 65 or more, your cost for this trip is just $67! Contact JoAnne at or joscott49@verizon.net for more information.

4 Lessons for All Ages Senior Skiing Clinic at Bear Creek Tips Turns Tactics Discover a Lifetime of Turns! Whether you want to sharpen your skills, build your confidence, tune up for a trip, or ski all day with your friends and family, the senior skiing clinics have your solution. Jan 11, 18, 25 and Feb 1, 8, 2017 (Advanced Reservations Appreciated) $40 per session or $175 for 5 sessions Clinic time- 10am-1pm Skill Levels Intermediate to Advanced Wednesdays: Lunch Voucher Included Lift Ticket or Season Pass Required (Not included in clinic price) Video Analysis of your skiing Ages 50 and Up Call the Bear Creek Snowsports School for Reservations 101 Doe Mountain Lane Macungie, PA bcmr.com Council s lesson program is hosted each January at Spring Mountain Ski Area. Lessons are free; nightly lift tickets and rentals are offered at a substantial discount. The program is open ONLY to current members of EPSC clubs. In order for students to develop the necessary skills to handle all types of terrain and snow conditions, lessons are held no matter what the weather, as long as the mountain is open! Monday Night Lesson Program Each winter, every adult EPSC club member (age 15 or more) is able to parti cipate in Council s FREE Learn-to-Ski program. This program provides new comers an in expensive way to learn the sport, and intermediates the opportunity to fine tune their skills. The instructors, who are also members of EPSC clubs, are certified instructors who volunteer their time to teach. Skill levels taught in these lessons range from those who have never skied before to those making open parallel turns, and students are grouped into classes based on ability levels. Even though we list this program as a learn to ski, lessons are also open to those who want to learn to ski better. The instructors will help build your skills and confidence from one week to the next. Who doesn t want to improve their technique or increase their comfort level on any terrain? So even if you think you re stuck in an inter mediate rut, you can benefit from these lessons! Lesson registration forms are available via EPSC s website (or fill one out your first night). Current club membership cards must be shown. Participants must sign in at the front lobby regis tration table prior to each lesson in order to receive their discounted lift ticket and/or equipment rentals. Registration opens at 5pm, lessons start promptly at 6:30pm. For over 25 years, lessons continue to be held at Spring Mountain, 757 Spring Mount Road, Schwenksville, PA. Rates are $15 for lifts, and $25 for a lift / rental package. The program runs for TREE Monday nights: January 9th, 23rd, and 30th, Attend just one, or all three! joscott49@verizon.net or call (215) for more info. New Youth Program: This season, the Bear Creek Snowsports School will be offering a Tuesday Night Youth Lesson Series (formerly the Flying Dutchmen program). This revised lesson series will be offered at a special discount for all club members in EPSC. This is a great way for kids to learn how to ski or ride or to continue to develop their skills, explore new terrain, and make new friends. The lessons are offered to children ages 8 to 14 (must be 8 years old by January 10th, 2017) and open to both skiers and snowboarders. The six-week series begins on Tuesday, January 10th and runs through Tuesday, February 14, from 6:30 to 8pm. The Youth Lesson Series is offered as a six-week series only. No make-up dates will be scheduled unless Bear Creek is closed for the day. The lesson cost to EPSC club members is $115 for the six-week series. Six-session lift passes and various other lift or rental packages are available; contact Bear Creek for full details. Contact the Snowsports School at or snowsports@bcmr.com for registration information. Proof of club membership must be presented at time of payment to receive the discounted rate. This series has limited availability and is likely to fill quickly! (4)

5 Ski-Related News Buoy in Pacific Ocean Predicts Snow Forget the local meteorologist; in order to plan for an epic powder day in Utah, you need a snowy crystal ball that can predict when the flakes will pile up well before they pile up. Enter The Wasatch Powder Buoy, a NOAAcontrolled weather buoy (officially Station 51101) floating off the northeastern coast of Kauai that s been predicting Utah storms for the past 10 years at least according to the buoy s passionate true believers. While the buoy s telemetry part of the National Data Buoy Center tracks all kinds of oceanic-nerd numbers for NOAA (swell direction, wind wave period, wave steepness, etc.), what matters for powder hunters is the wave height. A buoy pop, or increase in wave height, means the Wasatch should get hit with a storm two weeks later. Utah locals spent the last few years analyzing the buoy and its data, noticing that the larger the pop, the bigger the storm. Sometimes the buoy spikes up and comes down hard, a pattern that usually means just a few inches of snow. But if the wave height goes up and stays high? Ski areas like Snowbird and Park City should prepare to get hammered. (Google NDBC Station for a direct link to the buoy.) Wasatch insiders like the Brighton patrol and local ski shops wait for the buoy to pop and mark their calendars. We re told non-locals around the world follow the buoy, and then line up travel plans accordingly. So the buoy appears to work. It predicted Wasatch powder 83% of the time this past ski season. NOAA, of course, states that To be credible, this type of claim would need to be backed by peer-reviewed scientific literature. Lacking that, it can t be scientifically substantiated. (If ski folks in Utah say it works, who cares if scientists back it up?) Local Websites & Snow Phones f SNOW SKI-SWIM springmountainadventures.com (5) Northern Websites & Phones SKI-WINDAM Council Day in March 2017 Council Day, featuring the Council Cup Race, will be held on Sunday, March 5, 2017, at Bear Creek Mountain Resort in Macungie PA. This fun event, open to all members of EPSC clubs, offers a discounted day on the slopes ($45), which includes lunch, the use of a banquet room all day, and the oppor - tunity to run the NASTAR race course for a club trophy. Evolving from a race-specific club day that started in 1959, Council Day is open to all club members to come out and enjoy the day, whether they race on a club team or just ski with EPSC for the day. The turnout has been great as people who would not have raced came out just to enjoy the day on the slopes. Look for details on Council Day, as well as rules and registration for the Council Race, on EPSC s website. National Federation Benefits Ski club members can receive up to 20% off at a variety of sporting stores and ski resort shops by printing out the coupon/discount page on the National Ski Council Federation s website. This is yet another benefit of being a club member, as well as being an Eastern PA Ski Council (EPSC) member. Be sure your ski club membership card has the NSCF sticker on the back! (The National Ski Council Federation (NSCF) is made up of ski councils and clubs throughout United States that have a common interest: the enjoyment of snowsport activities including skiing, snowboarding, cross country and telemark skiing.)

6 Club Membership Cards Save Money Many east coast ski resorts offer Ski Council / Ski Club discount days. ere are just a few as of August Check EPSC s website for any additional dates announced during the ski season. You must present a valid 2016/17 club membership card along with photo ID in order to receive these discounted prices! Bolton Valley, VT: Daily lifts $35 during these times: January 9-13 and 23-26; February 6-11; March Mount Snow, VT: (per person, one day lift) Fridays, February 10 and March 10: $49 Saturdays, February 11 and March 11: $57 Sundays, February 12 and March 12: $52 Ski Club Week Special: Monday-Friday, February 13-16: $37 per day Stowe, VT: (must purchase $5 Evolution Stowe card; hands-free lift access replaces traditional lift ticket.) January 11-13; February 8-10; March 17-19; April 7-9 Adult (13+) 1-day: $46 Child (6-12) 1-day: $34 Adult 2-day: $92 Child 2-day: $68 Adult 3-day: $138 Child 3-day: $102 Bear Creek Mountain Resort (Macungie PA) is extending its ski club discount days to include Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays (non-holiday) throughout this entire season. Arrive anytime during the day (9am-9pm) and receive a $22 unlimited daily lift ticket. Killington, VT: (Friday & Monday, Saturday & Sunday) January 20 & 23, 2017: $45 January 21 & 22: $50 February 3 & 6: $45 February 4 & 5: $50 March 10 & 13: $45 March 11 & 12: $50 April 7-10, 2017: $43 each day Pico, VT: (Friday & Monday, Saturday & Sunday) January 20 & 23, 2017: $36 January 21 & 22: $41 February 3 & 6: $36 February 4 & 5: $41 March 10 & 13: $36 March 11 & 12: $41 Sugarbush, VT: Mon Sun, January 2-8, 2017 Lifts are $52 each, except Saturday, which is $58. New Members: Paul, Jill, Andrew, and Maddie Coleman Welcome to the club! Graphic Design JoAnne Landis joski53@verizon.net brochures, logos, flyers, newsletters, ads ave a creative pro design your promotional materials! SUGGESTION BOX: ave you visited the NPSC website lately? If so, you may have noticed the home page is now sporting a Suggestion Box. This will be a good tool for our members to use to suggest their ideas for things we can do with the club whether it s regarding a current activity, a suggestion for a future trip, an offseason event, something new to try at one of the monthly meetings, better ways to share news with our members whatever. Simply fill out the easy, brief form and hit submit! Visit our site and check out all the other updates that have been done let the board know what you think. Oh, nooooo! (6) Facebook Friends: If you re on Facebook, we invite you to LIKE North Penn s page! Support the club by being a friend and recommending the page to other Face book friends and skiers. Simply go to North Penn Ski Club's page, click on the "invite your friends" link, and then hit the "invite" button next to each of your friends' names. It's simple and easy. Thanks! Our page features comics, member photos, interesting resort information, upcoming club events, ski shop deals, amusing or inspiring videos, other club s trips, etc. Check it out!

7

8 NPSC s Community Outreach efforts Off to a great start in 2016; let s do more! The NPSC community outreach effort was mentioned during some of our fall meetings. Some of this past year s events were excellent opportunities to make contact with potential new members. We need your help to continue this type of outreach in 2017! Please contact John DelPizzo if you can help us grow the NPSC membership via community events. And, if you know of community events we might participate in during 2017, please fill out a suggestion via the Suggestion Box on the home page of our website: Community Outreach Committee Objective: Coordinate our participation in community events to heighten awareness of NPSC as a local ski club. The committee will hopefully comprise of four people, two long-term club members, two newer club members. These folks will search out community events appro - priate for NPSC participation, and co ordinate coverage of each event by committee members and/or other club members. ere are the 2016 events that NPSC covered, where we met many local folks and gained a few new club members: Calvary Outdoors Expo (March), Lansdale Community Day (June), Montgomery Township Community Day (August), Upper Salford Community Day (September), EPSC Auction/PRW Expo (October). Do you enjoy being in this club? Do you like to talk about skiing and to share stories about trips you ve taken with the club? Then you would be perfect for this job. Let John know that you can help out! Visit our web site! Ski Related News First-Timer Deals at PA Resorts Eighteen ski resorts in Pennsylvania are offering first-timers the chance to try a new winter sport for $49, including a lift ticket, lesson and rentals.program amenities, such as a minimum age of participants and the lifts available, vary from resort to resort. While there are no blackout dates, the First-Time Ski/Snowboard Program is limited to five vouchers per pur chaser, and quantities are limited for each resort. All participating resorts offer a choice of skiing or boarding. Applications must be completed online at the Ski PA website ( Participating resorts: Bear Creek, Blue Mountain, Big Boulder, Blue Knob, Camelback, Elk, idden Valley, Jack Frost, Liberty, Montage, Round Top, Seven Springs, Shawnee, Ski Big Bear, Ski Sawmill, Tussey, and Whitetail. Kids Ski for Cheap in Utah Available to all fifth and sixth-grade students, children can ski or ride all 14 resorts in Utah for only a $35 processing fee. The Fifth Grade Passport allows the student to ski or ride three times at each of Utah's 14 resorts, totaling 42 day tickets statewide. The Sixth Grade Passport allows for one day at each resort, totaling 14 day tickets. The passport also includes deals and discounts, including gear rentals, buddy passes and off-mountain activities. Parents can sign up online at skiutah.com/passport and passports will be mailed promptly. Vail Resorts buys Whistler Mountain Vail Resorts, Inc. has closed on its acquisition of Canada's Whistler Blackcomb. In announcing the transaction, the company also added limited Epic Pass benefits for Whistler this winter. Full Epic Pass access to Whistler Blackcomb will come with the ski season, company officials indicate. For now, though, all Epic Pass and Epic Local Pass holders will receive five days of skiing and snowboarding at Whistler Blackcomb this winter season. In addition, Whistler Blackcomb Unlimited season pass holders will receive five days of skiing and snowboarding at any of Vail Resorts' U.S. ski resorts.