Magic opens Saturday!

Well, if you want to ski ungroomed steeps anyways.

THE LATEST
11|21|18
A Thanksgiving Special: "White Saturday"

So, as you know, it's been snowing a lot recently with another 5-9" here yesterday (which has been making up for the lack of productive snowmaking temps & time here--more on that later). So, our team has been huddling here and doing a little product testing today. Here's what we've decided to do:

Besides Black Friday shopping and tubing here, we're going to carve out an opportunity for some to do a "White Saturday" ski adventure here at Magic. This will be a one day "soft opening"--FOR EXPERTS ONLY-- to get after the goods mother-nature has kindly bestowed on Magic this Thanksgiving. It's a one-day-only historic early-open event, a sort of prequel to our official opening day for the ski and ride season which is still slated for December 1st weekend.

For skiing and riding on November 24th, Red Chair-only will spin from 9am-3:30pm (no Sunday lift service). This is an all-natural snow ski day, with a good portion of the mountain's trails/glades open. But there are many natural hazards that do exist--especially some natural streams and water bars across trails/lower run outs that have yet to freeze over this early in the season. We will be working with patrol all day friday to create navigable pathways on the run-outs as the temperatures drop Thursday into Friday.

In terms of conditions, we had Andy Belcher, head of Ski Patrol, Craig Bailes, Assistant Director Snowsports, and yours truly, ski different ways down the mountain and the conditions are straight-up soft powder, with a good base. A few scraps of rocks on some of the steeper terrain like Goniff and the work road (Carpet/Wand); nothing hit on Wizard into Talisman or Up Your Sleeve into Vertigo. Just a few water bars and cross streams to carefully navigate. Plan on nothing being groomed but the run outs, about 33 trails/glades open--it is truly skiing like it used to be--when skis where not that expensive (hint). But, the snow and base have really set up nicely, so why not let our better skilled skiers and riders enjoy a bonus day of mother nature's bounty?!

Adult tickets at the window will be just $49. Discounted tickets are also available online here

Because this "White Saturday" special ski day event is earlier than the anticipated official opening day, the new Base Cafe is still a little bit of a work-in-progress downstairs, but it will be open on Saturday for breakfast/lunch for skiers and tubers. And, of course, the Black Line Tavern will be open Friday-Sunday with tons of great music, along with the tubing park. The tubing park hours will be 1-7p on Friday, 11a-7p on Saturday, 11a-4p on Sunday (call ahead on Sunday as it will depend on what the potential storm system does that day). There will be no other lifts, learning center, or terrain park open for White Saturday. The Tuning shop will be available for getting your skis in shape for the winter ahead.

As I mentioned at the start of this note, we haven't had much in the way of snowmaking temperatures lately, so that's why there can't be any intermediate or beginner terrain open yet, plus, when we did get good temps last night,  we had a major pipe blow out which scuttled those efforts and created a mess on lower Magic Carpet. Such are the growing pains of working with the aged infrastructure here. The ops crew is making repairs today and we hope to be back blowing snow for real tonight as the temperatures do get very cold into Thursday and Friday.

Travis Richmond, our lifts manager, did an excellent job getting both the Red Lift and Tubing Lift approved by the state and work continues on the new Green mid-mtn lift as we plan to start putting chairs on the line by next week.

If you are planning to be in Vermont at all this Thanksgiving, please do come by and pick up passes and cards in the Group Sales Office; do some holiday shopping at the store (Sharon has some really great new Magic gear!); and, toast the new ski season with us at the BLT where we have a tasty new menu from Chef Hilary and great music with John Hill Friday night, Kyle & Matt acoustc jam Saturday afternoon and The Scripts from 7-10:30p on the EQX stage Saturday night (no cover!). The BLT will have some of the best music and concerts in southern Vermont this winter.

We have much to be thankful for here at Magic, regardless of its myriad operational challenges. And, in fact, some of those challenges make the "ups" that much higher and more enjoyable. Most of all we are thankful for our friends, some brand new, that come to ski, ride and hang out with us. Truly a blessing.

Have a happy, healthy and fun Thanksgiving with family and friends. Hope to see you on the hill!

Think snow!


-Geoff

SKI MAGIC LLC
Where skiing still has its soul

This is awesome. Skiing will be so good.