COVID 19 impact on skiing

Milo Maltbie wrote

I was surprised this morning to get an e-mail form Jackson Hole that they are opening the gondola for summer sightseeing on May 30.  I've been thinking gondolas are obsolete for the foreseeable future. If the summer goes well maybe gondolas will be usable next winter.

mm

There are plenty of people riding elevators in tall buildings.  Easier to be safe in a gondola.  Just keeping the windows  open makes a difference.  In the summer, I would think most people will be with close family or friends who are already spending time together.  Spreading out separate groups wouldn't be that hard.  For that matter, could use timed entry to spread people out.

Besides, no worries of a powder day crowd during the summer.  Figuring out to how handle that situation will be the hard part.

marznc wrote

 Easier to be safe in a gondola.  Just keeping the windows  open makes a difference.  

Wow. Have you ever been in the JH or Snowbird tram? Last place I would want to be right now, for sure. Fortunately, both places can operate without them.

Don't forget that ski areas, first in Europe and quickly in America, were very early transmission hot spots. No doubt the Euro party scene was a major contributing factor, but, I'll bet gondolas and trams were a close second.

marznc wrote

 Easier to be safe in a gondola.  Just keeping the windows  open makes a difference.  

Benny Profane wrote

Wow. Have you ever been in the JH or Snowbird tram? Last place I would want to be right now

Agreed. That was a really silly comment about a gondola being comparatively safe. I couldn't stand riding in those packed boxes even pre-COVID.

Benny Profane wrote

marznc wrote

 Easier to be safe in a gondola.  Just keeping the windows  open makes a difference.  

Wow. Have you ever been in the JH or Snowbird tram? Last place I would want to be right now, for sure. Fortunately, both places can operate without them.

Don't forget that ski areas, first in Europe and quickly in America, were very early transmission hot spots. No doubt the Euro party scene was a major contributing factor, but, I'll bet gondolas and trams were a close second.

To be clear . . . I said "gondola" not tram.  They aren't the same.  And yes, I've been in the JH and Snowbird tram.  I hate trams in general.  Being on the petite side, having a view of someone's chest is not my idea of a good way to ride up a mountain.  Those who are afraid of catching COVID-19 at a ski resort big enough to have a gondola this winter will stay home or stick to local ski areas.

Is there a greater risk of catching a contagious disease in a gondola over a chairlift?  Of course.

Jackson without the gondolas doesn’t really work

Bachelor closed for the season today, May 24.  Was open for the past nine days for 500 season passholders per day.

A-Basin is re-opening on May 27.  Reservations are required.  Season pass holders, including folks with Ikon, can make a reservation starting 36 hours in advance.  Bet the reservations won't last long.  Supposedly will also sell a limited number of $99 day tickets.  People who already have an Uphill Pass can be on the slopes from 4pm to 8am.

Seems like a pretty obvious conclusion:

https://www.powder.com/stories/how-covid-19-will-change-the-future-of-backcountry-skiing/

Hitting Australia too. Mt. Hotham and Falls Creek shutting down in the middle of their winter.

https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/starved-of-melburnians-and-snow-victorian-ski-season-facing-bitter-end-20200709-p55af5.html

Marcski wrote

Hitting Australia too. Mt. Hotham and Falls Creek shutting down in the middle of their winter.

https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/starved-of-melburnians-and-snow-victorian-ski-season-facing-bitter-end-20200709-p55af5.html

Not really mid-season yet.  Low snow meant they just opened, a week or two later than in a good Australian winter.

Perisher still open since it draws from a different population.

Meanwhile, ski resorts in New Zealand don't have to have any special restrictions due to COVID-19.  But only NZ folks can get to those mountains since the country's borders have been closed to all countries for months.  There was talk of a "trans-tasman" bubble with Australia in time for ski season.  But that doesn't seem likely given the issues in the Australian state of Victoria where Melbourne is located.

July 9, BBC
Coronavirus in Australia: Melbourne begins new shutdown
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-australia-53335745

In Australia last weekend, Perisher (Epic) and Thredbo (independent, Ikon) were looking forward to having more people on the slopes.  The ticketing and reservation system had worked well enough over the last couple weeks.  The problem was that there was TOO MUCH SNOW on the roads so it was very hard to people to get to the lifts because so many cars ran off the road.  The only access road to the region was completely closed for several hours.  Plus there were power outages.  It was a bit too warm, so wet snow and freezing conditions.

https://www.ski.com.au/xf/threads/perisher-2020-trip-reports-pics-updates-and-conditions.86652/page-109#post-4358389

Thredbo eliminated their season passes completely for 2020.  Passholders were given full refunds.  They get discounts and a separate pool for buying day tickets online.  Very messy in the beginning.  But has worked out well enough.

Looks like Bell and Gore (and Whiteface I assume) are going to start running gondolas this summer:

https://www.goremountain.com/mountain/summer-fall/scenic-skyides

Harvey wrote

Looks like Bell and Gore (and Whiteface I assume) are going to start running gondolas this summer:

https://www.goremountain.com/mountain/summer-fall/scenic-skyides

Assuming only family groups are allowed to share a cabin, no different than sharing an elevator.  During this summer, I can't imagine that gondola rides would be so popular that there would be long lift lines.  If that were common, then timed-entry tickets like museums use for popular special exhibits would make sense to space people out.

The elevator guides I saw in June had a limit of 4 people (DC, NC).  One elevator had circles on the floor in each corner to encourage people who were strangers to space themselves out.  This was in buildings that required a face covering to enter in the first place.

Even in non covid summers, gore is a ghost town. Does anyone know if covid insurance is being offered for season tickets? I’m very leery of purchasing a season’s pass this year without insurance. I don’t see how ski areas can solve the crowded lodge problem. I don’t want to live out of my car on a zero degree day. This latest covid surge around the country doesn’t bode well for this upcoming winter.

Not sure if any of this is new:
https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2020/07/how-ski-resorts-hope-to-operate-under-covid-19-this-winter.html

Some are forgetting that the shutdown decision isn't controlled by Vail or Alterra, but by the state, in the end.

Thanks for posting. ORDA has to implement pass incentives now or I’m unlikely to buy a pass. I’m very pessimistic about this season. Some places are talking about limiting daily visits or online sales only to control the crowds. Eat outside in the Adirondacks? I’m used to harsh winters but there are plenty of days that you have to go in after 4 runs for about a half an hour to warm up enough just to go out and take 4 more runs again. I would like ORDA to talk about these issues right now so we can plan to ski this winter.

I reached out to Mike yesterday after I saw your post. If he gets back to me, I will share.

More so than ever I feel lucky to have a pass at a small hill 1 mile from my house.

Last I knew, the WF gondola was going to be closed all summer for, essentially, a rebuild.

D.B. Cooper wrote

Last I knew, the WF gondola was going to be closed all summer for, essentially, a rebuild.

Both gondolas are now 20plus years old.