J2Ski Forum Posts and Replies by admin

They're still going in Colorado (at weekends, at least). Full PR follows below, but here's the latest summary of June openings for Arapahoe Basin :-

Arapahoe Basin wrote:A-Basin will be CLOSED Monday through Thursday starting June 2. The mountain will REOPEN for skiing and riding on the following Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays: June 6-8, June 13-15 & June 20-22, 2014 from 8:30 am - 2:30 pm.

SPRING CONDITIONS EXIST.
Beginner terrain is limited; check terrain status before arriving.
Terrain not recommended for first-time skiers & riders.

Arapahoe Basin extends 2013-14 ski and ride season... again!

Ski area to turn lifts for three weekends in June

ARAPAHOE BASIN, Colo. – Adventurous Coloradans who aren't quite ready to pack away their winter gear will be able to enjoy top-to-bottom skiing at The Legend well into June. Arapahoe Basin Ski Area (A-Basin) announced that it will extend Colorado's 2013-14 ski and ride with three bonus weekends in June. The ski area, originally slated to close on June 1, will re-open for its "summer season": June 6-8, June 13-15, and June 20-22, 2014 (Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays ONLY).

Arapahoe Basin ushered in the 2013-14 Colorado ski and ride season on October 13, 2013. So far this season, A-Basin has received over 440" of snow, with surprise accumulations in late May allowing for the ski area to extend its operations beyond its scheduled closing date. This May, A-Basin had 15 days with measurable snowfall accumulations, totaling 47 inches of snow for the month.

During the "summer skiing" season, the Black Mountain Express and Lenawee Mountain lifts will run from 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. A-Basin will be closed for regular operations Monday through Thursday starting June 2, 2014. Lift-served skiing will resume on Friday, June 6, and from then, lift-served skiing will be offered on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays only through June 22, 2014.

All 2013-14 A-Basin season passes, the A-Basin Spring '14 Pass, and all Vail Resorts season passes good at A-Basin will be valid with no additional charge during the bonus weekends. The majority of open terrain will be top-to-bottom intermediate trails, with the possibility of limited beginner ("green") skiing from the Black Mountain Express lift. Ski and snowboard rentals will be available for ages 3 and up every day that the lifts are operating. The A-Basin Snowsports School is closed for the season, and will not be offering lessons during the summer season.

Special two and three-day tickets are available for use on the bonus weekends only, and can be purchased online or at the mountain. These tickets can be used any day of the bonus weekends. Two-day tickets valid during the summer season are $72 for adults (ages 15+) and $50 for children (ages 6-14). Three-day tickets valid during the summer season are $99 for adults (ages 15+) and $60 for children (ages 6-14). Guests can stay up-to-date on summer season terrain, ticket pricing and skier services at A-Basin's Summer Ski page (arapahoebasin.com/summerski).

It remains to be seen if A-Basin can push the ski season to July 4, 2014. Arapahoe Basin has extended its season to the Fourth of July several times over the course of its history: 1993, 1995, 1996, 1997 and 2011.

Tony_H wrote:Simple solution to this.

Not if you want to take your children skiing...

Parents challenge UK Government Rules

It had to happen...

Parents to take legal action against term-time holiday ban

Travelmole wrote:A group of parents are planning to take legal action against the ban on term-time holidays and have already won the support of 200,000 other parents.

The campaign group 'Parents want a say', which was officially launched at the weekend, is seeking a judicial review of the rules, claiming they are a breach of the human right to family life.

Last September the Education Secretary Michael Gove put a stop to a policy which allowed schools to grant up to 10 days holiday a year to families in "special circumstances." Head teachers are now only allowed to give permission in "exceptional circumstances."

Frankly, this...

Under the new rules, parents can be fined or even put into prison if they take their children away during term time.

...is flipping ridiculous. :twisted:

This is bad news for all of us, even if you're currently kid-free and never ski in the school holidays.

Today's kids are tomorrow's skiers; they are the future of our sport and if their families can no longer afford to take them skiing then the "market" (upon which all our favourite resorts depend for a living and future investment) will shrink further. A shrinking market means less choice, fewer flights, higher prices and - ultimately - quite possibly fewer resorts.

Bah, humbug.

Andy's about covered it... a car will also give you more flexibility to change your plans at short notice.

It's not unknown for La Grave to be stormbound for a day or two. Alpe d'Huez and Les Deux Alpes are easily accessible by car from there and Serre Chevalier will give you bad weather/tree skiing options as long as you can cross the Col du Lauteret.

Car's definitely the easiest option for getting from there to Val d'Isere too.

When are you going?

batts wrote:Appreciate conditions may be variable based on season but are these resorts always actually open to a resonable extend in January?

If you can't find snow in any of those in January... then winter won't have happened! 8)

Seriously, you're rather more likely to encounter difficulties due to heavy snowfall (3 out of the last 5 seasons have seen some huge snows around that area in January).

You've got a massive choice from there, so I wouldn't hesitate if I were you.

To start you planning... we list about 100 ski areas within 2 hours of Zurich.

With four weeks, you should be able to tick off at least a dozen.

No wait, you'll get bored after a week... I'm sure I can find someone to look after the house for you...

bedrock barney wrote:Did a bit of grass seeding yesterday evening.

Adrenaline junkie... :lol:

Feel free to not set up a live webcam for us to watch it grow...

Tony_H wrote:So how do you propose these guys look after their equipment better exactly?

I reckon he writes "Serviced by Wickers" on all his skis and that does the trick... -)

Or he never takes them off, that would do it.

Tony_H wrote:Hintertux. Lock the thread.

Probably the best option, but there should be a reasonable choice...

From our Where to Ski in May rundown...

J2Ski, about Austrian glaciers wrote:Not all are operational right through the summer however, in fact only the Hintertux glacier endeavours to be, although the Dachstein, Kaunertal, Kitzsteinhorn and Stubai glaciers should be open to June and July.

The Molltal, Pitztal and Solden glaciers are all scheduled to close at the start of May and re-open in summer or autumn.

...but check direct with the Tourist Office for exact opening dates and times as they may change at relatively short notice...