A hard cap of 500 skiers at any one time has been instituted; users sign up for specific time slots, allowing them to use what Hession describes a “push-pull” system. “Basically, every 15 minutes, 60 people come in, and 60 people are leaving,” he says. “The main thing was, we didn’t want people to feel rushed. I want you to get settled, put your stuff away, get the attention you need with your equipment, and then get on the snow, and your two hours starts.”
That afternoon, I worked my way through a seamless rental process. On arrival, visitors walk through a retail shop and sign in via tablets to purchase a two-hour package that starts at $50. The price includes nearly everything they might need: all ski and snowboard gear; ski pants, jacket, and helmet; a lesson, if needed; and, of course, unlimited lift access. A wristband is loaded with all their information and they proceed through a line that snakes through various gear-fitting stations, from jackets and pants to boots to skis, and then out the door to the lift.
I put on my Big Snow pants, clicked my new rental boots into my pristine rental skis, and ticked off a dozen descents. Each run down, even making more turns than necessary, lasted perhaps 30 seconds. The deliberately slow quad chair—an anti-crowding measure by the Snow Operating team—meant that the lift took three and a half minutes to crawl back to the top. That doesn’t sound like much, and it’s certainly not where I imagined I’d be getting my first runs of this ski season, but I soon noticed that everyone I was riding the chairlift with was smiling, marveling at what had been created in this cavernous space, staring up at the icicles dripping from the rafters.
On the hill, the crowd’s skill level was mixed, though tilted toward the more experienced end of the spectrum. Older guys in jeans carved tight turns, young snowboarders launched off jumps in the terrain park, and guys in the finance uniform—fleece vest over button-down—did laps. Snowboarders interested in the rails, jumps, and other features of the terrain park seemed particularly excited.
But the Snow Operating team estimates that, of the expected 600,000 skiers this year, about 200,000 of them will be beginners, the richest target market for Big Snow’s offerings. “This is a tremendous opportunity for winter sports in general, because of the population base around here,” says Jon Rucker, president of Head Skis USA, who attended the opening and was on one of the first chairs up. “Exposing these great sports to different populations is radically important for the future of our business.”
Most of the intermediate-level skiers I talked to were enthusiastic. “I love it, it’s definitely unique, and it’s got a little bit of everything,” said Dumar Casbrillon, a housepainter who took the afternoon off to come snowboarding. “The best part is that it’s five minutes from my house.” And if Casbrillon represents one important demographic—local enthusiasts—his girlfriend, watching and taking photos at the bottom, represents another. She is a novice, often intimidated by bigger hills. By the end of the day, she had already told him she would take a lesson the next time they come.
This article was provided by Bloomberg News.