critical component of summer trail prep that aims to prevent water from wreak- ing havoc on the snowpack and to assure slope stability, summer and winter. The Summit relies on water bars, lined with cobblestone, and, in some places, culverts and half culverts—cul- vert material cut in half and turned upside down, rainbow-style—to steer water away from places where it might do damage to skiing terrain. Water, water issues every- where. In fact, all of the mountain ops folks interviewed for this article agreed that drainage needs to be a high priori- ty in the summer trail-prep process. It’s essential to ensure all water bars, ditch- es, and culverts are clear and proper- ly directed, as well as make sure work roads are appropriately configured to drain properly. Nothing can destroy a snowpack more quickly and completely than water allowed to run its own course down a trail. Like Sugarbush and Mad River, The Summit uses a combination of machine mowing and manual labor to reduce trail brush and grass. Howard says they deploy small skid-steer tractors, each with a 72-inch mowing deck, to shave lower-angle trails. These replaced an old Bombardier groomer with a 12-foot flail mower that Howard says was just too unwieldy. The resort also sends out a crew of six to eight paid employees, all members of the winter staff, to hit more
rugged terrain with “weed whackers on steroids” and chainsaws. It’s a summer-long process. The Summit’s trail work stretches from June into September, working around its downhill mountain bike trails. Resorts with very active summer-ops pro- grams might need to be choosier about trail-maintenance schedules, not only to avoid disturbing summer guests but also to limit impacts on summer-ops infrastructure. Berms for mountain-bike trails, for example, can take a beating during mowing operations. THE PAYBACK The bottom line with summer trail prep is, of course, the impact on the bottom line. Cost savings is a big part of the justification for doing the work. Bigger projects, like the one Pass Powderkeg undertook a few years ago, start with identifying areas that cause the biggest headaches, “whether it was somewhere we had to make a ton of snow to make it safe or somewhere that just sucked to ski,” says Seleski, and working with an earthworks company to re-work the ter- rain and improve those problem areas. “It is amazing what one operator can do with a Cat D9 dozer,” she adds.
Seleski calculated that Pass Powder- keg’s earthwork project saved the ski area roughly 128 snowmaking hours, and Pass Powderkeg was able to open a week ear- lier than expected thanks to less snow being needed to safely open the terrain that first season. Cost savings on one end, additional revenue on the other. Similarly, Sugarbush snowmaking manager Sean Patenaude says he has seen a steady decline in recent years in air generation and water output, due at least in part to summer trail work. Longer season. The extension of the season and the additional revenue that generates may be the biggest pay- off. Quail claims that use of the Ski Hill Mulcher can typically add a week to the beginning of the season and two weeks at the end. Howard at The Summit cites those same numbers—opening a week sooner, closing two weeks later—as the payoff of the resort’s trail prep efforts and snow management. Pass Powder- keg’s project showed immediate returns. Snow management and snow-man- agement technology continue to evolve, but in some cases, especially for summer trail prep, sticking with old-school prac- tices might be the best methodology to put into play. Even Mad River’s pre-in- dustrial scything.
Left: An earthwork project at Pass Powderkeg, Alberta, saved the ski area hundreds of snow- making hours and added operating days.
Right: Mowing is just one component of off-season trail prep at The Summit at Snoqualmie; planning for water runoff is another.
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