TR 12/16 and a comment

[Timeless]

Brief trip to CB yesterday morning (12/16), My 7 year old and I pulled into the main lot to find very few cars and the top of the hil shrouded with cloud/fog. Walked up to the main base area to find the quad still stacked up and no sign of being run, and there didn't seem to be many of the other lifts running either.

 

Coming across the snow towards us was a CB employee, who from his name tag turned out to be Joe (Amato?), "director of operations" or similar from his badge, just the right person to ask what they were planning with the lifts today. So I politely asked "what's the plan for the lifts today?" to which he very bluntly replied "there's one over there" pointing to the bailey double and walked away. Nice customer service......it's easy to see why he got to be "important".

 

Anyway, we get on the slow double to the top and take our first run down King Tut's which was nice surface conditions but the freezing fog at the peak and to about halfway down made your goggles (and everything else) ice up really quickly. Stopping halfway down to de-ice was the only solution.

 

With the lifts that were running it really meant you had to choose either the marc-anthony side or the bailey side as there was hiking invloved between the two otherwise so we took a few more runs down Tut's while the weather deteriorated into freezing rain at the base and then decided to head home, glad to have season passes and hence not having to waste the cost of a day ticket.

 

Whilst I cant blame them for only running the fixed lifts, with the ice / freezing rain that seems to be a problem for them, a little common courtesy wouldn't go amiss from the staff.

 

Oh yeah, and the two employees screaming at each other outside the rental shop where one (a ranger on a tractor who didn't have the headroom to drive under there without tearing chunks out of the wood panelling) and the other ("ambassador"?) were discussing the relative merits of the rangers education, that was a really nice piece of public image building.

 

Anyway, trying again this morning but I see from the trail report it looks like even fewer lifts so not expecting too much. At least the sun is out today. Will report again later.

[toast21602]

good ole' camelback.

[AtomicSkier]

I hate to criticize Camelback, and I hate to be a Blue fanboy, but come on Camelback. Get your tail from out between your legs and run the lifts. I've heard the "excuses" right from management personally why the lifts aren't run, but I don't buy it. Blue doesn't seem to buy it either. There is a member on here who has run an older Dopplymayr quad in higher winds then CB ever would. Blue will run their new 6pack, and old quad in any weather, including freezing rain, sleet, and wind. We're not in the rockies at serious elevations where the wind speeds are crazy, it's Camelback and the lifts are just above or at the top of the trees. Maybe Poma (the lifts that Blue uses) have a much better design for dealing with ice? But the mechanism on both lifts looks pretty similar. Camelback has to have one of the shortest high speed quad line lengths in the US, giving the ice the least amount of time to freeze on the detachment mechanism and line. Suck it up, run the lifts, and make your customers, even if its just season pass holders, happy.

[IrishSnow686]

When does CB do their morning report? I have off of work today thru Wed and will be snowboarding all three days. I wanted to try to hit up 2-3 different mountains. I checked CB's website and called the snowphone at 7:40am and still no update. For a mountain that is opening at 8 or 8:30, you think they would want to have the conditions updated. So I went back to Blue because I knew at 6:50am what lifts and trails would be open when I got there. I want to go to another mountain tomorrow and hopefully CB will have an updated conditions report by 7am. Mountain Creek was even updated and they don't open until 12pm.

[DiMe]

I just wish meadows would spin mid week mornings, if it dosn't start happening soon I'm gonna have to pick up a pass to boulder

[im rick james]

I just returned from cb for the weekend. Skied all day saturday. Didn't even bother on sunday. Didn't make it out there today had to come home and get some things done. Saturday was amazing. Scooped up my ticket, parked at sunbowl where there was like 4 other cars and enjoyed a great morning. Wasnt too cold, got away with a thermal and a hoodie. The snow was amazing. Excellent packed powder on every trail. Every employee that I dealt with (including the lifties for a change) was friendly. By lunch time the lines started to pick up. Now the report said 7 lifts.. but i counted 4. This was right aroud 12pm. Sullivan, sunbowl, coolmor and i think meadows. Marc antony was not running, but there were two dudes just standing around down by the lift??? dunno what the hell they were doing. Bailey was not running. I waited once in line at the sullivan for 10 minutes and said f it and went back to my house to eat and rest. Went back out at around 4 and was a little less crowded it seemed. I did a couple runs down Marjies and I was the only person on the trail. The one moderately attractive liftie girl on sunbowl said stevenson lift would be open thursday or friday. Where did they find her anyway all the other ones ive ever seen look like yoda. From what I could tell they were blowing snow on Nile Mile, pharoah, cliffhanger, rocket. 100% by christmas???

[Ski]

Coming across the snow towards us was a CB employee, who from his name tag turned out to be Joe (Amato?), "director of operations" or similar from his badge, just the right person to ask what they were planning with the lifts today. So I politely asked "what's the plan for the lifts today?" to which he very bluntly replied "there's one over there" pointing to the bailey double and walked away. Nice customer service......it's easy to see why he got to be "important".

 

Ha, I guarantee good 'ole Joe would have been 'friendlier' if you were Mrs. Timeless.

[Papasteeze]

damn.. customer service needs a smile. why is it so hard to do some weeding there?

Edited December 18, 2007 by Papasteeze

[formercbemployee]

Can't blame Joe Amato for being so rude. He works sooo hard up at the mountain.

 

The ownership is to busy putting restrictions on what the employees can't do that customer service is not even discussed in the operation meetings. I left Camelback when I realized it wasn't a fun place to work. Management yells at the employees because the customer's are angry, then management goes and yells at the customers. My supervisor once made a customer happy and then used that as an example for the rest of us. Forget the 150 other times that my supervisor could have made the customer happy. Lead by showing???

 

Customer service is not covered during the employees training at camelback and Joe is the worst offender.

[Timeless]

I REALLY didn't want this to be another CB bashing thread, and I'd like to make it very clear that most of the the CB employees (lifties, first aiders,cafeteria staff etc, hell even the rangers) are very polite and friendly, I'm sure even mr "Joe" has good days.

 

I've come accept that the quads are not going to run in high winds or any chance of ice although I personally think it has more to do with economics than safety, it is what it is and I'll live with it.

 

On top of that CB's snowmakers/groomers are incredible, the day after a major sleet / ice storm and the conditions first thing this morning were really excellent.

[ski911]

I'm sorry if there has been a few bad examples of customer service at CB. For the last few years, every new employee has to go thru "customer service training." We also get unannounced visits from a service called "Mystery Shopper" that evaluates everything and we normally rate very well.

[DiMe]

I'm nice to guests if it makes ya feel any better I even try to be nice to the masses that scream at me for things malfunctioning that can't be helped. In Joe's defense he had probably been harassed about the Sullivan not running all day long but i'm sorry for the negative experience.

Edited December 19, 2007 by DiMeThIcOnE

[jdew]

I hate to criticize Camelback, and I hate to be a Blue fanboy,

 

Not very convincing.

[formercbemployee]

I agree, the secret shopper program is a great way to take the temperature of your employees ability however, There has been no customer service training program that I was put through. That was up to the end of the season last year.

 

I do not accept that someone who is as clearly visible as good ol Joe should be grumpy and answer the way he did. I can tell you that he has always answered to his employees like that, sarcastic and pompous.

[Papasteeze]

[jordan]

There is a member on here who has run an older Dopplymayr quad in higher winds then CB ever would.

to be fair, CBs quad chairs are very light, not ones that are intentionally made heavy that are designed to run in high winds like on the imperial express at breck

[Timeless]

 

didn't recognise him with a smile.

[formercbemployee]

 

 

Good Ole Joe. Check out his awesome jacket. I bet he didn't pay for it! Other than his employees who must pay a $50 fee to use the jacket for the season. The instructors pay the fee and aren't even able to take it home with them. What gives??? He has some racket going over there.

[AtomicSkier]

to be fair, CBs quad chairs are very light, not ones that are intentionally made heavy that are designed to run in high winds like on the imperial express at breck

 

You've lifted many CB quad chairs?

[method9455]

to be fair, CBs quad chairs are very light, not ones that are intentionally made heavy that are designed to run in high winds like on the imperial express at breck

 

um, I'm going to have to call BS on that one. Wind speed and direction are going to negate any difference in weight quickly.

[AtomicSkier]

um, I'm going to have to call BS on that one. Wind speed and direction are going to negate any difference in weight quickly.

 

I think I find myself agreeing with Method....

[Ski]

CB does have some weird rules. I remember one or two coaches complaining they couldn't take their jackets home. I recall it was all because of some phantom incident at another mountain...a CB instructor supposedly got into trouble while wearing it. Don't know if it's true, but that was what a supervisor told the coach.

 

And Joe's usually a real nice guy. Maybe with the new job he's not so cheery, but he was never once a dick when I knew him.

[Glenn]

I hate to criticize Camelback, and I hate to be a Blue fanboy

 

Your a fibber.

[AtomicSkier]

Your a fibber.

 

What a tease....you said you weren't going to have internet, yet you're still posting

[formercbemployee]

Good Ole Joe has made the instructors pay for their jackets. All the other departments received their own jackets that they could wear home as part of their uniform, for free.

 

Pay for the pleasure to work at Camelback! Pay to ride at camelback! Next thing the chefs will be required to pay for their aprons.