joshua_segal;c-59174 wroteI want to emphasize again the quality of what is going on at CM this season:
What the Vail haters say: Vail areas are skimping on snow making.
The CM truth: The mountain is making unprecedented quantities of snow, even running guns when temps are above wet bulb. (Peak Resorts never ran above wet bulb.)
What the Vail haters say: Vail areas are cutting back on lift operations.
The CM truth: The Valley Chair is operating seven days a week (barring mechanical issues) as opposed to operating 3-days a week or as a backup if the Rocket had to go offline.
What the Vail haters say: Vail areas are cutting back on the length of the season.
The CM truth: CM was slated to have its earliest opening in more than a decade. The December 2 scheduled opening was delayed due to a rain storm - not lack of snow. The actual opening on December 10 was still the earliest in my 15 seasons at CM.
What the Vail haters say: EPIC passes are resulting in ridiculous lift-lines.
The CM truth: We have had Saturday lift-lines of about 13 minutes for a couple of the peak hours, but the lines quickly dissipate at lunch time. The lines grow to about 5 minutes between 2PM and 3PM before dissipating completely. Two-dozen runs on the Rocket (20K or more vertical) are readily available to anyone who wants to ski a lot - even on our most crowded Saturdays.
My suspicion is that Vail areas with issues mentioned have problems due to broken equipment, inadequate staffing, and/or poor local management. No such issues at CM.
Most of the complaints Ive seen this season about vail arent so much the operational stuff, but more on the employee side and maybe you can shed some light. Sure there are still the issues of some of the larger resorts bringing more traffic than the local infrastructures can handle, but It seems a lot of the complaints now are from workers getting their hours cut massively after being promised a certain amount, or lack of quality housing even though promised.
