11/30/14....why isn't Burma chair running...warmer.

[GrilledSteezeSandwich]

Hey all,

 

I'm back from another session at Blue mountain. Their 5th day of operation this season and coincidently my 5th day of the season herp de Derp. I arrived at the upper lot mad early at like 7:25am..temperature was 35 degrees and the Lufacris XMAS song was on blast. Atomic Jeff, Johnny law, Ryan, Ryan's snowboard buddy, root, justo, the real Kevin Thomas..Matt #2, terry and rose were all in the house.

 

Good smooth packed powder on midway and Main Street which turned a little choppier as time went on. I did like 1.5 runs in the bumps and was sweating and I didn't even pop a Molly, eat spicy food, sit in a sauna or go through a field sobriety checkpoint..I only did lazy mile one it was kind of slow but second turn was kind of rowdy. One ride I rode with a race coach and he said the BMR racers don't start for another two weeks. The liftline for the Main Street chair reachd a full corral by 930am and at that time the corral for the Burma chair was probably a half corral but the problem was that the Burma chair was not running which had me SMH shaking my Herman!!! That meant that both lines moved at half the speed and the Main Street lift was stopping alot. That lines lessened my desire to wanna be out on the slopes anymore so I went to the lot to have a beer and Ryan and his snowboarder buddy were already there.

 

After another run some PASRs along with members of the shady bunch joined in the lot and it was some darn good people watching from row two right below the summit lodge. Straight ski Steve, facemask Freddy and I believe two Asian YouTube celebrity's wearing matching unisex snow pants. After a few beers me atomic Jeff and Johnny law hit up the covered bridge inn down in the valley. Was interesting to see the new tent in the lower lot and it looks like PASRs are gonna be parking one row west of previous years spots as put former row is half cutoff...looks like a decent amount of snow was blown on falls and homestretch and the shuttle and tuts lane. Maybe the valley will open next week. It's not a guarantee with fairly warm weather this week although there is hope for some overnight snowmaking midweek. CBI was good and it was still in the upper 30s as I drove back over the mountains and Wednesdays snow still clinging to the branches...gets me in the mood for roasting chestnuts on an open fire. Anyway props to Blue for a fine november start but this has to be the worst time for the Burma lift not to operate again. I feel for the folks shelling out $50 for a ticket.

 

JADIP just another day in paradise.

[AtomicSkier]

The lift situation is pretty annoying.  But otherwise, not too bad today.  That first run and a half down Main Street is soooo nice.  Today had to be the best first run of the year.  A little softer, and super smooth.  Time to get off the Shiros and break out the Mantras.  I'll definitely be back for some evening sessions this week.

[tarponhead]

Was on the snow at noon. Burma was running. Lines were 'ok'. Snow was outstanding

[thedude4bides]

Both lifts are intermittently taking turns shutting down here this evening. No lines to speak of though so it's all good. Hero snow is making this outing well worth it. Woulda been here in the AM with you guys if I didn't wake up in NC.

[GrilledSteezeSandwich]

Both lifts are intermittently taking turns shutting down here this evening. No lines to speak of though so it's all good. Hero snow is making this outing well worth it. Woulda been here in the AM with you guys if I didn't wake up in NC.

Did u wakeup feeling like P Diddy??? Lets hope for the six pack next weekend.

[Justo8484]

Burma lift started running right around 10 when everyone peaced for beerz. We went back out and ripped bump and park laps til almost 1 and met up with some friends we hadn't seen in a while. Lines were no more than 5 minutes, bumps were softish, and park crew was keeping things fresh in come around. Can't ask for much more than that in November! Makes me glad I'm a blue local.

[GrilledSteezeSandwich]

I'm glad I sort of remember how to ski bumps...

[MattEDGE]

GrilledSteeze....I did it!  Good times had, many more to come.  6-PACK, 6-PACK, 6-PACK!!!!!!!!!!!

[phillycore]

5 minute lift wait times? Oh my.... At Boulder I didn't have to wait behind 5 people let alone 5 minutes

[GrilledSteezeSandwich]

MattEdge welcome to PASR...

[burton71]

5 minute lift wait times? Oh my.... At Boulder I didn't have to wait behind 5 people let alone 5 minutes

Was way more than 5 minutes.  Lift worker said they were understaffed which is why it wasn't running...not really sure how that happens on a holiday weekend.

 

Snow was good, park was fun but got annoying later in the day with people hiking and sitting on features.  Lift lines sucked until Burma was running....longest wait was right around 16 minutes.  Ended up lapping the park using Vista chair for a good part of the morning to miss the line up.  Rode from 8:30 till around 2, probably would have stayed longer but didn't want to buy another ticket.

 

Over all a pretty fun day...not sure if it was worth the price with the terrain they have open over going to Boulder though.

[GrilledSteezeSandwich]

Nice to see Blue making loot off bear creak passholders.

[burton71]

Nice to see Blue making loot off bear creak passholders.

Interesting to see them scrambling to respond to the massive amounts of complaints they have gotten over their ticket pricing this season.  Talk about a cluster fuck.  They actually had people buying tickets on their phones at the lift window because they wouldn't ring up an 8 hour ticket for them and they were telling them about an all day pass that isn't available.   

 

I think every facebook post they make basically turns into people bitching about tickets in the comments lol.  Probably going to want to get that fixed or people are going to go else where.

Edited December 1, 2014 by burton71

[GrilledSteezeSandwich]

I really hope they get the six pack open for the weekend. They've only blown snow in the valley like 8 days but Blue mountains social media coordinator doesn't seem that confident due to the warm weather this week.

Interesting to see them scrambling to respond to the massive amounts of complaints they have gotten over their ticket pricing this season.  Talk about a cluster fuck.  They actually had people buying tickets on their phones at the lift window because they wouldn't ring up an 8 hour ticket for them and they were telling them about an all day pass that isn't available.   

 

I think every facebook post they make basically turns into people bitching about tickets in the comments lol.  Probably going to want to get that fixed or people are going to go else where.

But people complained like crazy and still went to Blue. I think they should do 4 and 8 hour tickets.

[burton71]

But people complained like crazy and still went to Blue. I think they should do 4 and 8 hour tickets.

6 hour flex pass, Night, and All Day would be fine and make the sense compared to the mess they have now.

 

There were people at Boulder on Sat that said they were there because they didn't want to pay for Blue so it certainly is keeping some people away.

[GrilledSteezeSandwich]

Good Blue was crowded enough...

[tnt]

Yeah, I was just going to make a thread about the Facebook page, but seems like we're talking about it here.

 

They are getting hammered over there.  

 

FWIW, IMO it really doesn't make sense to offer the 8 hour refill online and 6 hours at the window....

 

What if you lose your card and can't refill?  What if your internet is down?  What if you filled three cards for your family, but forgot the fill the last?  

 

And this is really important to me, because we use our rental coupon books all season - how do I turn in a coupon and refill my card AND get the 8 hour deal?

 

You can't.  You are screwed out of the 2 hours....

 

Makes no sense.

 

And again, I just don't think 6 hours is enough time for most people ESPECIALLY because blue is popular and super, super crowded many weekends.  It's just not. I just can't really believe that their research shows an average of four hours skiing....

 

I'm driving 1.5 hrs each way, paying over $200 for a day's worth of skiing (before coupons....) We're not going to stop at 6 hours on a crowded day when that can honestly be what?  10 runs?  20 minute lines are pretty common on weekends after say 10am.  so, with a 5-10minute run with the family, that's 2 runs an hour.  Time off for lunch....yeah, 6 hours could be 10-12 runs.   that's not a lot of skiing. 

 

I don't know, I think it's lame.  It's really going to effect our decision making if we can't get the 8 hour reload deal and use a coupon.

[GrilledSteezeSandwich]

tnt you should have just bought a season pass to Blue...problem solved

[tnt]

Good Blue was crowded enough...

 

Yeah, I honestly think that is what their attitude is - it does get so crowded that it hurts the overall experience, so clearly they can afford to some how raise the rates.  And the 6 hour thing should theoretically spread out the crowd since you aren't tied to a specific start/end time....

 

But they should also offer an 8 or 10 hour ticket IMO.

[trackbiker]

Blue has their Cyber Monday three packs but they are only good for nonholiday weekdays.

I'll pass.

 

But people complained like crazy and still went to Blue.

 

But they're likely to go somewhere else next time.

[tnt]

tnt you should have just bought a season pass to Blue...problem solved

Ha!  

 

I hear you....live too far for it to make sense.  the beauty of the season pass is exactly what you have going on - ski a few hours in the morning, stay if you want, leave if you want...no hassle, no money lost - ski before work, after work, whenever....

Blue has their Cyber Monday three packs but they are only good for nonholiday weekdays.

I'll pass.

 

 

But they're likely to go somewhere else next time.

People are bitching about that on the Facebook page as well....

[GrilledSteezeSandwich]

But they're likely to go somewhere else next time.

Good Blue mountains popularity has gotten out of hand the last few years. Anyway with all their complaints I'm sure management will scramble to bring back their old passes.

[Sabba]

48 bucks for a 8 hr ticket is allright by me... if Im riding solo. If you have kids and want to teach them midweek when blue is empty I would have liked the option for an all day pass. Between warming them up and breaks during the day you could burn 6 hrs in no time.

 

Just my opinion...

[tnt]

Good Blue mountains popularity has gotten out of hand the last few years. Anyway with all their complaints I'm sure management will scramble to bring back their old passes.

IMO, they should jack the rates on an 8 hour ez pass ticket, then offer a 4 hour ez pass ticket for folks who don't want to pay the full rate.  This is a straightforward recognition of their immense popularity and the strong demand for their product.  They deserve to charge more given the huge crowds - I'm not begrudging them that. 

 

This 6 hour thing is essentially a coward's way out - they want to try to limit crowds, make as much if not  more money, and give the appearance of not tremendously jacking prices so regulars don't get pissed.

 

But it's kind of back firing.

 

it's a great mountain - good vertical, great trail variety, fairly legit steeps.  They have a nice new lodge.  They seem to have a fun attitude about skiing and skiers, they embrace bumps, and make snow at the drop of a hat.....for all that they rightly deserve to be the most expensive mountain in PA.  Just don't pussy foot around with 6 hours....because I think that really turns off a lot of skiers.

[Sabba]

For Pocono Park blue is the best mountain around. I agree snow making there is great. Second weekend out and they already had decent bumps on Barneys. Staff and people at the mountain are super friendly. Of course were in PA and not in North Jersey Once the valley opens up the lines should die down for a bit. Its still super early in the season. Most avg skiers/riders don't even have the mountain on their radars yet. Creek hasn't even been making snow they really screw their passholders over. My friend was telling me last week they had a hike only park open on South. Blue had a decent park opened day1.