Belleayre March 8 2014

  The Catskills hay days and Dirty Dancing are well behind them , but Coach Z your attitude towards the Catskills sounds a little like a sore loser whining.  New York City made the Catskills what they are today , but for a lot of proud people, this is still home. Sorry you couldn't try Platt, but you made the right choice pm skiing was way better than the am.

Face4Me wrote

Isn't this the whole point of having ORDA take over Belleayre? ORDA can work to bring events to Belleayre, such as your son's race, drawing people from outside the area who will need lodging, restaurants, stores, etc. Typical visitors to the Catskills don't require these things, as they're making day trips. As more and more outside visitors are brought in, there will be more justification for investment. It's kind of a chicken and egg thing.

As long as that egg does not get on your face which in this case it did.  Those families that attempted to stay at the roach motel aka Colonial Inn told probably 100 more people and next thing it's on the internet like say here

Sore loser about what? If you mean that my did not do well I think you are way out of line.  It's ski racing and they fall sometimes.  I'm proud of him for going 100% and trying hard.  He is a first year u12 so there was no way he was going to be top 10 over kids that weigh much more than him and we knew that going in.  It's all about the experience.

I thought I wrote a pretty balanced review to give the Daks readers a feel of Belleayre from a Whiteface or a Gore skiers perspective.  I think bumps were the best thing about the place as I mentioned.  Clearly the lifts and area are an issue as many have concurred.

Z I know your son has an awesome race future and  it sounds like you both work hard and enjoy the sport. Just seems like so many northern elite skiers look down on what we have in the Cats.  There are plenty of high level skiers at my home Mt  and in the Cats.

Gunny J wrote

Z I know your son has an awesome race future and  it sounds like you both work hard and enjoy the sport. Just seems like so many northern elite skiers look down on what we have in the Cats.  There are plenty of high level skiers at my home Mt  and in the Cats.

When it comes to racing, good turns trump weight any day and You don't need a lot of vertical to make a good race hill, some of the programs in Michigan produce excellent racers and they don't even have the terrain Bell has.

I don't know if the attitude you sense is Whiteface elitism or race day disappointment or a combination of both.

I am not a big Catskills skier but I like the trees and hike to terrain and to me Bell has potential for a lot of glades and can offer a great day of skiing despite not having steeps and should be considered a great day trip destination for capital region skiers when the storms pass south as they often do.

I look forward to visiting Platty as well, maybe not this year but soon. What they do desperately need is a Stewarts in Roxbury.

Coach Z wrote

Face4Me wrote

Isn't this the whole point of having ORDA take over Belleayre? ORDA can work to bring events to Belleayre, such as your son's race, drawing people from outside the area who will need lodging, restaurants, stores, etc. Typical visitors to the Catskills don't require these things, as they're making day trips. As more and more outside visitors are brought in, there will be more justification for investment. It's kind of a chicken and egg thing.

As long as that egg does not get on your face which in this case it did.  Those families that attempted to stay at the roach motel aka Colonial Inn told probably 100 more people and next thing it's on the internet like say here

My chicken and egg metaphor referred to the notion that before people are going to be willing to invest in the area, they're going to need to have some kind of assurance that there's going to be something there for people to come for, but I think you know that.

I agree with your comment in your other post, regarding the "balance" of your post about Belleayre itself, however, your suggestion about people in the surrounding area needing to invest in themselves, on the other hand, was overly simplistic and ignores the realities of the situation in the Catskills.

PeeTex wrote

I like the trees and hike to terrain and to me Bell has potential for a lot of glades...

Belleayre has one of the best naturally gladed side country runs in New York. Long, and wide open through a beautiful mature forest with more vert than the ski area.

From an outsiders perspective, I see a lot of parallels between these towns in the Cats and Daks. I've got family in Phoenicia, and most of these small towns are getting squeezed. The town has changed from the days of ski trains to Simpson, and that's the cycle of life. Reminds me of the stories of the Southern Tier and the old resorts like Kutcher's- people's tastes change, and who knows, maybe 20 years from now we'll be comparing 4 different hotels in the Margaretvilles and Tupper Lakes of the world and which one best caters to skiers. Is that naive on my part? Perhaps, but I'm too young to be so jaded.

Gunny

Go watch a u12 race.  The biggest kid wins almost always.

My kid weights less than 80 pounds as a 10 year old.  The podium of 11 or just turned 12 weighted 125 to 150 and some were ready to shave.  There is a huge difference. Ski racing is a gravity sport weight matters especially on a flatter course.   He DNF so the issue is mute but you have no idea what you are talking about.

The race results have nothing to do with Belleayre the ski area.  It needs fixing that us why orda took it over.  

Sorry I sound a little ticked off I dropped my iPad and the screen is cracked plus don't mess with my kid.

dudes!  chill out.  we're about to get exactly what's needed!!  March rules!!!!  

For the record, I've stayed at both the Andes and the Colonial and IMHO, they are both on par with each other as far as accommodations. The Andes does have the bar and restaurant, which is a nice feature.  

The Cats are what they are. If you want mountainside or near mountain upscale, you need to head to Windham and ski flat, boring terrain or the Berkshires or Vermont.

  I know all about weight, my son Caleb is also a lightweight , he still might be in a race program if it wasn't for all the fat chubby racers frustrating him on all those easy  slalom courses.

PeeTex wrote

Gunny J wrote

Z I know your son has an awesome race future and  it sounds like you both work hard and enjoy the sport. Just seems like so many northern elite skiers look down on what we have in the Cats.  There are plenty of high level skiers at my home Mt  and in the Cats.

When it comes to racing, good turns trump weight any day and You don't need a lot of vertical to make a good race hill, some of the programs in Michigan produce excellent racers and they don't even have the terrain Bell has.

I don't know if the attitude you sense is Whiteface elitism or race day disappointment or a combination of both.

I am not a big Catskills skier but I like the trees and hike to terrain and to me Bell has potential for a lot of glades and can offer a great day of skiing despite not having steeps and should be considered a great day trip destination for capital region skiers when the storms pass south as they often do.

I look forward to visiting Platty as well, maybe not this year but soon. What they do desperately need is a Stewarts in Roxbury.

I went to Bell on Saturday. I opted out of skiing. The 5 hours of driving combined with the inability to leave early, left me spectating.  As I drove in from the NYS Thruway, I was impressed with how pretty the Catskills are.  It's been quite awhile since my last visit and I had forgotten how scenic it is. I arrived at Bell a bit before 10 and the place was packed. It was a beautiful day and the temperatures were comfortable for standing still and watching a race.

I ended up at the lodge further up the mountain at lunch time. Normally I am a dedicated brown bagger. Traveling solo, I had planned to buy some lunch. The lines were overwhelming and I did not have enough time to wait between runs. Some friends gave me a snack and I made do until I was on my way home. I cannot speak to the lodging situation as the racers I know stayed at a place close to the Thruway.

I really liked the vibe at Bell. The mountain appeared to have great coverage. From what I could see driving in and what I saw on the trail map, I was sorry I could not ski. It looked and felt like a place with personality. Next time I plan to coordinate my logistics so I can take some runs and check the place out a bit more.

Gunny J wrote

I know all about weight, my son Caleb is also a lightweight , he still might be in a race program if it wasn't for all the fat chubby racers frustrating him on all those easy  slalom courses.

<thread drift>John Candy and Rossanne Barr, men's and women's Olympic ski legends.
It ain't the weight of the skier, it's how they ski.</thread drift>

I been to Bell twice this season it is a nice change every once in a while. The whole Kid Hudson Valley is actually economy nit good that is why I commute 4 hours every day for work and distant pay.

PeeTex wrote

Gunny J wrote

I know all about weight, my son Caleb is also a lightweight , he still might be in a race program if it wasn't for all the fat chubby racers frustrating him on all those easy  slalom courses.

<thread drift>John Candy and Rossanne Barr, men's and women's Olympic ski legends.
It ain't the weight of the skier, it's how they ski.</thread drift>

I never see any fat kids at those Gore speed camps and there were no fat racers when I was racing many moons ago.

my apologies

I broke my fricking Ipad so $500+ down the drain.  Worse than a core shot to a new pair of skis.  Having a bad week.  Maybe some snow can fix that if I can actually get home.

Coach Z wrote

my apologies

I broke my fricking Ipad so $500+ down the drain.  Worse than a core shot to a new pair of skis.  Having a bad week.  Maybe some snow can fix that if I can actually get home.

Take it to an apple store. They will give you 50% off the price of the same model you broke if you trade in your broken one.

Lapping Dot Nebel on a day that Hunta and Windham crowds out is a nice change of pace.

Apple Store?  I don't live in a City

there are no Apple stores in the Daks or the Cats either for that matter

I did find a service that will fix the screen for $120 thru Office Max