Sugarloaf 2020 Blog

It’s been almost 24 hours since we announced our new cat skiing operation coming this winter. This news has been greeted mostly with sheer excitement and plenty of #stoke, but it sounds like there are also a few concerns. We hear you, and we want to clear up some confusion about what cat skiing could mean for your Burn Mountain experience. Here are a few of the questions we’ve had so far:

Q) Will this make the Burnt Mountain glades overcrowded?

A) It really won’t. The area on Burnt Mountain accessed by the cat is over 100 acres in size, including 12 acres of new terrain cut by our trail crew this summer. Also, there are only two cats running with seats for 12 people. Since they run every 20 minutes, it’s very likely that the first group of 12 will be out of sight before the next group arrives. Even on the busiest days, uphill capacity on cats will never be more than about 36-48 skiers per hour. By comparison, our t-bar has an uphill capacity of nearly 800 skiers per hour.

Q) Will this encourage people to ski beyond their ability level?

A) The safety of our guests is always our number one priority, which is why we do our best to make it clear that everyone is responsible for skiing and riding within their ability level. While the eastern-most glades are clearly for experts only, the terrain is not especially more difficult than some of the most accessible glades in Bracket Basin.

Q) Will the ‘earn your turns’ satisfaction of hiking to the Burnt Mountain summit be compromised?

A) We understand that skiing and riding from the summit of Burnt Mountain is a really special experience, in large part because of the effort it takes to get there. And that will still be an option. Hiking and skinning will be allowed, and we don’t expect it to be impacted by the addition of cat skiing. The cat will take a designated route (newly cut this summer) on the far eastern boundary. The cat will provide access to terrain east of Bracket Brook, but the summit of Burnt Mountain will still only be accessible by hiking or skinning, and none of the Brackett Basin terrain will be impacted at all.

First off, apologies for the radio silence.   Secondly, we have some very exciting news which until today has been kept under tight wraps - but the secret is out. This winter we will be offering cat-serviced skiing and riding on Burnt Mountain.

The dream of skiing and riding on Burnt Mountain became a reality in 2010 when we first unveiled the Sugarloaf 2020 Road Map, and this winter it will become even more accessible to Sugarloafers as we launch Maine’s first cat skiing operation. 

This summer, we purchased a new twelve passenger cat that will operate in tandem with an existing cat to transport skiers and riders from the Log Yard, below the bottom terminal of King Pine, to the top of the Androscoggin Glade.

Additionally our glade cutting crews have been working to develop a designated cat road, and to clear a new still-to-be-named glade on Burnt Mountain which will add 100 acres of newly-developed terrain to explore. 

A view from the new glade can be seen in the photo below. 

For the first year,  cat cat rides will be offered on weekends and vacation weeks only, from 9:00am – 3:00pm, and guests will be able to reserve their seat online in advance.

Glade cutting on Burnt Mountain

Competition Center Progress - Photos taken 8/8/2016

A noticeable amount of progress is being made day after day on the new Competition Center. The facade is coming together in remarkable fashion, and framing has begun on the interior. In the last week, stone masons have begun to work their way around the bottom of the building, while windows are starting to get installed.

With a steep racing heritage, Sugarloaf has been known as a proving ground for aspiring US Team athletes since the 1970s. Through a partnership with Carrabassett Valley Academy and the Sugarloaf Ski Club, a new state-of-the-art Competition Center is currently being built to help breed the next generation of champions.When athletes, coaches, and race crews return to the slopes this winter, they’ll find a new home base at the new Competition Center. Construction of the facility began on May 1, and is on schedule to be completed by November 15, 2016, allowing us to have the new building up and running well in advance of the U.S. Alpine Championships, which return in March 2016.

At a cost of $2.1 million, the new competition center will be about more than just competition; it will provide a hub for social activity and networking, as well as a warm and welcoming venue for athletes of all ages.

With a steep racing heritage, Sugarloaf has been known as a proving ground for aspiring US Team athletes since the 1970s. Through a partnership with Carrabassett Valley Academy and the Sugarloaf Ski Club, a new state-of-the-art Competition Center is currently being built to help breed the next generation of champions.

When athletes, coaches, and race crews return to the slopes this winter, they’ll find a new home base at the new Competition Center. Construction of the facility began on May 1, and is on schedule to be completed by November 15, 2016, allowing us to have the new building up and running well in advance of the U.S. Alpine Championships, which return in March 2016.

At a cost of $2.1 million, the new competition center will be about more than just competition; it will provide a hub for social activity and networking, as well as a warm and welcoming venue for athletes of all ages.

Nordic Trail 22

With temperatures in the eighties this week, it might be hard to imagine snow on the ground, but our Mountain Operations department has been doing just that, with the resurrection of the former trail 22. In collaboration with the town of Carrabassett Valley, our trail crew is has been working to bring new life to an underutilized trail in the Sugarloaf Outdoor Center network.

For those of you that may not remember, Trail 22 was a narrow connection between Trails 50 and 21. Because of its location and direction, the trail presented several drainage challenges, making it hard to maintain and keep open—even during the best snow winters. In recent years, the trail hasn’t opened at all.

This summer, trail crews have worked to install and maintain water bars to promote more efficient drainage, widened the trail to allow for better groomer access, and have even re-routed sections of the trail to make it more skier friendly. The recent improvements will allow for the trail to be opened earlier in the season than ever before.

Above: Bentley has been supervising the project. 

Adding approximately two kilometers of terrain, the new and improved Trail 22 will provide skiers and on-mountain homeowners with greater access to the Outdoor Center trail network, without having to drive down to the Outdoor Center. It will also create alternative routes for skiers and on-mountain guests looking to access the challenging Trail 50, or other terrain in the Reddington area.

One of the projects taking place here this summer, will be the addition of a new retail outlet in the village; Utah-based KÜHL clothing company is set to open a new store at the base of the mountain in time for Homecoming Weekend.

Born in the mountains, and anchored in the ski community since the early-eighties, the KÜHL brand has become a staple in the outdoor and active wear segment, delivering innovative style and features, using exclusive fabrics with unique weaves and vintage washes to create authentic character in all of its products.

The company’s product lines feature men’s and women’s casual, active, and outer wear, in addition to hats, accessories, and kids clothes.

Similar to the addition of the Burton Signature Store last fall, this new retail location is part of a continued effort to further animate the base area, and help enhance the Sugarloaf Village experience with more shops, events, and dining options.

The KÜHL outlet will be located next to Goldsmith Gallery, and construction on the retail space is set to begin this month. The store will celebrate its grand opening during Homecoming Weekend, October 8-9, and remain open throughout the year.

Click here for more details about the project, and stay tuned for further updates as construction gets underway later this summer.

Apologies for the extended radio silence on here—certainly if you follow any of our other channels, you know that we haven’t fallen off the map, but to bring you up to speed on what’s transpired since our last post in November, here’s a quick recap of the 2015/16 winter season.

King Pine Re-opens

Following months of planning, construction, and testing, the King Pine lift (which received a new load terminal) re-opened for the first time on January 4, 2016.

New State-of-the-art Competition Center

Carrabassett Valley Academy secured a grant from the Bill and Joan Alfond Fund, which in partnership with Sugarloaf and the Sugarloaf Ski Club set in motion the project of building a new, state-of-the-art Competition Center.

Night Skiing at Sugarloaf

The fourth annual WinterKids Downhill24 fundraiser brought the first-ever night skiing to the slopes of Sugarloaf in March, and raised over $200,000 for the organization. 

First-Ever Snowmaking in April

Aptly referred to as the “winter that wasn’t” the 2015/16 season brought well below average snowfall amounts to resorts across the northeast. Thankfully our team of hard working snowmakers kept us in the game and never called it quits—taking advantage of every opportunity to make snow, and even firing up their systems for the first time ever in the month of April. 

While Mother Nature keeps the winter weather at bay, the King Pine terminal construction presses on here at Sugarloaf. After receiving the steel frame last week, the remaining terminal components, including the 29,000lb motor assembly, arrived this weekend after a five day cross-country journey, from Salt Lake City UT.

Our lift crew wasted no time in unpacking the many pieces, taking inventory, and beginning assembly. Yesterday, less than 24 hours after delivery, the crew navigated Crosshaul with the motor assembly in tow, to relocate it from parking lot E to the constructions site. First thing this morning, a crane hoisted it to its final destination on the steel frame.

Over the next 4-5 weeks, the crew will concentrate on piecing the rest of the terminal together, with some help from the experts at Doppelmayr. The lift is expected to be ready for operation in late-December.

Ever since we announced back in August that we’d be removing the Bucksaw lift, people have been asking us when they’ll be able to buy one of the chairs. The answer to that question is right now. 

We have a limited quantity of commemorative Bucksaw chairs available for purchase, in their original form, for $250.  

Our lift maintenance crew is wasting no time assembling the new King Pine terminal. From receiving the first shipment of parts on Monday, they have already pieced together the frame (shown above), as of late this morning.

And so it begins…

This week, the first (of many) pieces of the King Pine load terminal arrived in parking lot E.

Today, the crew will work to assemble the frame (shown above), in preparation for more terminal parts that will be arriving steadily over the next couple of days.

Snowboarders rejoice! We’re excited to share with you a sneak peek of the new Burton Signature Store, opening here at Sugarloaf later this month. The shop is located above the Bag and Kettle, across from the Base Lodge and the Beach. The store will exclusively feature Burton products, such as snowboards, boots, bindings, goggles, helmets, outerwear and apparel, backpacks, and accessories.

Our pal Johnny Warren, who many of you may recognize from Downhill Supply Company, is a long time local snowboarder and the new manager of the store. We caught up with him earlier this week to see how the shop setup was progressing, and to check out some of the new gear.

But it’s not just the new products that have Jonny excited. “This shop will be a one-stop-shop for all your snowboarding needs,“ said Warren. “The Burton Signature Store is one of three within the Boyne family, and our Sugarloaf location will be the largest of the bunch; that means we can fit a lot of product in here.”

Burton has also provided the shop with over 20 demo boards, along with bindings and boots, for Sugarloafers to try out before they commit to buying a setup. Included in the mix are a few demo split boards, which have been a popular item lately thanks to the continued sidecountry development in Brackett Basin and Burnt Mountain.

It has been a busy summer in the lift department; in addition to the terminal construction at King Pine and resort-wide lift upgrades, the crew has also been working to remove the Bucksaw lift.

If you missed the announcement we made earlier this summer, regarding the removal of the Bucksaw, click over to our new Lift Information website for all the details, as well as status updates for all of our other ongoing projects.

Over the last couple of weeks, our crew has worked tirelessly to remove all 181 chairs, and last week the seven-ton haul rope was removed.

This week, Sky Trans Manufacturing, a company from New Hampshire, joined the team to remove the towers.

The undertaking was a three man job; on person ran the excavator, one person climbed the towers, and the third ran the torch.

Three of the four bolts that secure each tower to the concrete footings were cut with the torch, then the climber secured the excavator bucket to the tower. After the bucket was secured, the fourth and final bolt was cut, and when the tower was free Sky Trans used the excavator to lift the tower from the footing, and lay it on the ground.

In just three days, Sky Trans had all 23 towers on the ground and began towing them off the hill.

Danny Barker, our snowmaker extraordinaire, is already excited to fire up the tower guns over to Windrow!

With summer setting in, the days are growing shorter by the minute; welcome news for those of you itching for winter to return, and a ticking clock for our Lift Maintenance crew, who have been hard at work this week dismantling the bottom terminal of the King Pine Lift. With the help of Nickerson Rigging & Crane services (the same company who helped with the Spillway/Skyline project), the demolition process has taken just one week, and all that remains is a skeleton of the King Pine terminal.

As you may recall from the announcement we made back in June, the King Pine lift will receive a new Doppelmayr TRISTAR terminal; expected to up and running by December.

With the existing King Pine towers and chairs remaining in place for the new terminal, the haul rope, with chairs, has been removed from the old bullwheel, repositioned, and anchored to allow for construction to begin on the new terminal.

A new King Pine terminal and $1.3 million in lift upgrades are in the works for this summer.

What a way to head in to the busy holiday season; we’ve picked up more than 4 FEET of new snow this month, and according to the calendar, it’s not even officially winter yet.  This week we recognized a significant milestone with the earliest recorded opening of Brackett Basin on Tuesday, December 16th. The all-new 10+ acre glade, Slashfire, made its debut as well since being added to the trail map; the preliminary reviews say it’s one of the best glades out there.

Today marks an even larger accomplishment as Ski Patrol gave the green light to open the summit of Burnt Mountain to skiers and riders for the second time in history this weekend.

Burnt Mountain is a quintessential component of the new “sidecountry” skiing development outlined the in our “Sugarloaf 2020” ten year development plan. It offers a backcountry style skiing and riding experience, with the security of inbounds, patrolled terrain. The whole experience from the hike out to the terrain you ski down from the summit is very unique for the east; it’s a lot of work to get out there, but well worth the effort.

It’s being called the December to Remember, and it’s no surprise as to why.