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Sugar Mtn

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Woodsrider427
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While the constant snow guns at Sugar are definitely annoying, after skiing there Monday I see why they do it. They have a massive base right now and I bet they will be happy they made so much come March. The conditions Monday were great and the guns weren't too bad, only sporadically running on the main trails.
deere25
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Like killglobalwarmingnow said, we should all be grateful to be skiing in this part of the country! Every ski resort that is open in the region is good for the other. There is so much hard work put in by every team at each resort to make skiing in the south a great thing. Everyone has their preferences as to which resort to contribute their money to. Every ski resort offers something to make some happy and something to make some angry, to each his own. I think it is kind of salty to not mention Sugar in the first trax report myself. If the powers that be think that it may hurt Sugar's business somewhat by not doing so, then Sugar's parking lots the last 4 weekends say otherwise. This site is a business and it exists to make money, so I get it if Sugar isn't mentioned. Sugar is also a business existing to make money, so if they choose not to send some to this site, so be it. It's not a make or break for either business, but just seems strange to still have pages on this site with all of Sugar's info. If they aren't a member ski resort then omit everything about them instead of the pettiness of not mentioning their name in the morning report.
canadianbacon828
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killglobalwarmingnow wrote: Wed Jan 30, 2019 8:38 am I find a way to be grateful that we have a ski industry in the state at all. I spread my visits around. My recent observation is that the new quad at Beech is slow, especially noticeable when its 18 degrees and 20 mph winds at night. The high speed quad is greatly missed, seems like a step backwards but I get that from a continuity of operations standpoint two slow reliable quads are better than persistent maintenance issues shutting down the main lift.
Depends on the weather and the customers. Sugar has to run Summit Express slower if it is windy also. Usually in the mornings up until the twilight crowd Beech is running lift 5 at 2.3 meters per second which equates to a 7 min 50 second ride. I definitely wouldn't call that slow. Once the beginners show up they back it down to 1.7-2.0. Lift 6 runs at 2 meters per second. Management chose a fixed grip and conveyor system on 5 and a quad fixed grip to on 6 to balance the lift line, customers on the chairs, and customers on the hill. Uphill capacity is 2400 per hour with both lifts running which is a lot. Complain about an old detatch with 64 chairs that never ran full speed all you want, I think it's a very smart setup.
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theKENDOG
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canadianbacon828 wrote: Sat Feb 02, 2019 12:23 am Depends on the weather and the customers. Sugar has to run Summit Express slower if it is windy also. Usually in the mornings up until the twilight crowd Beech is running lift 5 at 2.3 meters per second which equates to a 7 min 50 second ride. I definitely wouldn't call that slow. Once the beginners show up they back it down to 1.7-2.0. Lift 6 runs at 2 meters per second. Management chose a fixed grip and conveyor system on 5 and a quad fixed grip to on 6 to balance the lift line, customers on the chairs, and customers on the hill. Uphill capacity is 2400 per hour with both lifts running which is a lot. Complain about an old detatch with 64 chairs that never ran full speed all you want, I think it's a very smart setup.
I can attest to the fact that the new lifts greatly help with lift lines. I hardly had to wait at all last weekend and the place was packed. That said, they are slow and I miss the good ole days when the old high speed quad was actually high speed. Could get so many laps.
WOOOOOO!

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SalisburySkier
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Those were the good ol days ken. You could go night skiing and absolutely wear yourself out in four hours when they had the old quad cranked up. Until Thursday, I had also forgotten how long the runout is at sugar. I remember being able to hop on halfway on the old yellow lift when it wasn’t too crowded. Talk about tired legs when you could ski the steeper runs back to back without getting to cruise all the way back to the base. Good times and great memories, but hey things change. I don’t care what changes at beech or sugar, I will always visit both the unless I move, or just get too old to ski. Have a good one guys.
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dreamnofpow
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Sugar is the VAIL of NC.
canadianbacon828
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gpatton78 wrote: Tue Jan 29, 2019 12:02 am I may have missed something, but why is there no mention of Sugar Mountain on any ski reports, etc...? Not a Sugar apologist, but was curious as to why they are rarely mentioned on the site?
This is just an opinion from a local who has passes to both Beech and Sugar: I wouldn't want to be affiliated with a site that advocates negativity towards my business. I have been following this site for a long time (since the early/mid 2000s, can't remember exactly) and decided this year to create an account to hopefully dispel some of the rumors that fly around. I do see some genuine appreciation towards both mtns on the forums...However, for the most part all you people do is complain. You complain about Sugar being too "aggressive" with snow making, you complain about Beech not being "aggressive" enough, you complain about how trails are laid out, lift lines, ticket prices, the speed of a lift, etc etc. I live up here and snowboard 7 days a week, all winter, every year. Both mountains have great people working for them that care a lot about the industry. It's really disappointing to see admin accounts complain. Aren't you guys supposed to be advocating for the industry as a whole? I'm really surprised Beech still pays to be on this site (if they pay, no idea how it works) to be honest, especially when admin accounts criticize them in a public setting. The reality is none of you know what it's like to manage a ski area so stop acting like you do. Huge thanks to both mountains for bringing tourism revenue, investing back into their infrastructure, and allowing us to do what we love. Some of you need a reality check, big time.
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theKENDOG
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canadianbacon828 wrote: Sun Feb 03, 2019 1:29 pm
gpatton78 wrote: Tue Jan 29, 2019 12:02 am I may have missed something, but why is there no mention of Sugar Mountain on any ski reports, etc...? Not a Sugar apologist, but was curious as to why they are rarely mentioned on the site?
This is just an opinion from a local who has passes to both Beech and Sugar: I wouldn't want to be affiliated with a site that advocates negativity towards my business. I have been following this site for a long time (since the early/mid 2000s, can't remember exactly) and decided this year to create an account to hopefully dispel some of the rumors that fly around. I do see some genuine appreciation towards both mtns on the forums...However, for the most part all you people do is complain. You complain about Sugar being too "aggressive" with snow making, you complain about Beech not being "aggressive" enough, you complain about how trails are laid out, lift lines, ticket prices, the speed of a lift, etc etc. I live up here and snowboard 7 days a week, all winter, every year. Both mountains have great people working for them that care a lot about the industry. It's really disappointing to see admin accounts complain. Aren't you guys supposed to be advocating for the industry as a whole? I'm really surprised Beech still pays to be on this site (if they pay, no idea how it works) to be honest, especially when admin accounts criticize them in a public setting. The reality is none of you know what it's like to manage a ski area so stop acting like you do. Huge thanks to both mountains for bringing tourism revenue, investing back into their infrastructure, and allowing us to do what we love. Some of you need a reality check, big time.
So nobody is allowed to criticize anyone about anything and we shouldn't have an opinion? Pretty sure there's lots of stuff on here both positive and negative. That's the beauty of the messageboard. It's not all one sided. I love both mountains and frequent them each winter (I was at Beech last weekend and had a grand time. Hell, I consider it my home mountain.). That doesn't mean I'm not allowed to have my own thoughts and wishes for each though.
WOOOOOO!

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canadianbacon828
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theKENDOG wrote: Sun Feb 03, 2019 3:41 pm
canadianbacon828 wrote: Sun Feb 03, 2019 1:29 pm
gpatton78 wrote: Tue Jan 29, 2019 12:02 am I may have missed something, but why is there no mention of Sugar Mountain on any ski reports, etc...? Not a Sugar apologist, but was curious as to why they are rarely mentioned on the site?
This is just an opinion from a local who has passes to both Beech and Sugar: I wouldn't want to be affiliated with a site that advocates negativity towards my business. I have been following this site for a long time (since the early/mid 2000s, can't remember exactly) and decided this year to create an account to hopefully dispel some of the rumors that fly around. I do see some genuine appreciation towards both mtns on the forums...However, for the most part all you people do is complain. You complain about Sugar being too "aggressive" with snow making, you complain about Beech not being "aggressive" enough, you complain about how trails are laid out, lift lines, ticket prices, the speed of a lift, etc etc. I live up here and snowboard 7 days a week, all winter, every year. Both mountains have great people working for them that care a lot about the industry. It's really disappointing to see admin accounts complain. Aren't you guys supposed to be advocating for the industry as a whole? I'm really surprised Beech still pays to be on this site (if they pay, no idea how it works) to be honest, especially when admin accounts criticize them in a public setting. The reality is none of you know what it's like to manage a ski area so stop acting like you do. Huge thanks to both mountains for bringing tourism revenue, investing back into their infrastructure, and allowing us to do what we love. Some of you need a reality check, big time.
So nobody is allowed to criticize anyone about anything and we shouldn't have an opinion? Pretty sure there's lots of stuff on here both positive and negative. That's the beauty of the messageboard. It's not all one sided. I love both mountains and frequent them each winter (I was at Beech last weekend and had a grand time. Hell, I consider it my home mountain.). That doesn't mean I'm not allowed to have my own thoughts and wishes for each though.

You are taking everything I said completely out of context. I never said you couldn't/shouldn't have your own opinion. However, an educated opinion would be nice. The average consumer stumbles on this message board looking for advice and area info only to find thread after thread of complaints, rumors, speculation, and inaccurate information . If some of you actually understood what it's like to manage an operation (which judging by the ad nauseam ridiculous complaints few of you know what you are talking about) or how many hours the managers and staff work you might be a little less critical and more empathetic to what's its like to run a resort. Here is a crazy thought: How about instead of being arm chair engineers you guys give a high five or thank you to the snowmakers, lift attendants, patrollers, lift maintenance, food and beverage staff, parking attendants, compressor operators, mechanics, administration staff, rental techs, machine operators, ticket booth attendants and countless volunteers (that's right, people are volunteering their time so that we can ski and ride)? Maybe then a resort like Sugar might consider being affiliated with your site. Just sayin'...
deere25
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canadianbacon828 wrote: Sun Feb 03, 2019 4:53 pm
theKENDOG wrote: Sun Feb 03, 2019 3:41 pm
canadianbacon828 wrote: Sun Feb 03, 2019 1:29 pm

This is just an opinion from a local who has passes to both Beech and Sugar: I wouldn't want to be affiliated with a site that advocates negativity towards my business. I have been following this site for a long time (since the early/mid 2000s, can't remember exactly) and decided this year to create an account to hopefully dispel some of the rumors that fly around. I do see some genuine appreciation towards both mtns on the forums...However, for the most part all you people do is complain. You complain about Sugar being too "aggressive" with snow making, you complain about Beech not being "aggressive" enough, you complain about how trails are laid out, lift lines, ticket prices, the speed of a lift, etc etc. I live up here and snowboard 7 days a week, all winter, every year. Both mountains have great people working for them that care a lot about the industry. It's really disappointing to see admin accounts complain. Aren't you guys supposed to be advocating for the industry as a whole? I'm really surprised Beech still pays to be on this site (if they pay, no idea how it works) to be honest, especially when admin accounts criticize them in a public setting. The reality is none of you know what it's like to manage a ski area so stop acting like you do. Huge thanks to both mountains for bringing tourism revenue, investing back into their infrastructure, and allowing us to do what we love. Some of you need a reality check, big time.
So nobody is allowed to criticize anyone about anything and we shouldn't have an opinion? Pretty sure there's lots of stuff on here both positive and negative. That's the beauty of the messageboard. It's not all one sided. I love both mountains and frequent them each winter (I was at Beech last weekend and had a grand time. Hell, I consider it my home mountain.). That doesn't mean I'm not allowed to have my own thoughts and wishes for each though.

You are taking everything I said completely out of context. I never said you couldn't/shouldn't have your own opinion. However, an educated opinion would be nice. The average consumer stumbles on this message board looking for advice and area info only to find thread after thread of complaints, rumors, speculation, and inaccurate information . If some of you actually understood what it's like to manage an operation (which judging by the ad nauseam ridiculous complaints few of you know what you are talking about) or how many hours the managers and staff work you might be a little less critical and more empathetic to what's its like to run a resort. Here is a crazy thought: How about instead of being arm chair engineers you guys give a high five or thank you to the snowmakers, lift attendants, patrollers, lift maintenance, food and beverage staff, parking attendants, compressor operators, mechanics, administration staff, rental techs, machine operators, ticket booth attendants and countless volunteers (that's right, people are volunteering their time so that we can ski and ride)? Maybe then a resort like Sugar might consider being affiliated with your site. Just sayin'...
canadianbacon828, you've smacked the nail on the head! Thanks for your insightful comments! Also being local and skiing here for 30+ years I am grateful for what all of the resorts do to employ hundreds of people in the area that desperately need jobs, (even though both Avery County resorts are very short staffed due to no one wanting to work)! And by Sugar not getting mentioned in the morning dialogue, it is just fishy!
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