Mammoth for the rich only?

[jp5]

$69 lift tickets
$200 in gas to get there and back
$140 and up a night for a motel (Motel 6 is only $77 but their beds are like pool tables)

Looks like another year at mountain cry getting cut off by whipper snappers.

[LeeD]

Uli Lodge in town is only around 50 per.... shared...more if you want your own room with bathroom of course.
You only go to Mammoth if there's tons of recent snow, weather predictions are for calm winds, and you have alternatives like halfpipe down low during winds and fog, and upper mountain on clear windless days.
Ride your local mountains for conditioning and practice.
Whistler is more, as is Heavenly, Squaw, and most of Colorado's resorts.
395 itself is almost worth the drive.
Snowsports are for the rich, that's why we appreciate windsurfing.

[LeeD]

Oh, haven't ridden the High, but I actually LIKE Baldy, Bear, and Summit. Nice mediumsmall resorts with fun terrain for snowboarding, really boring for skiing.
From someone who's logged over 400 days at Squaw.

[gregorvass]

If you are poor you should work not snowboard!


What is the matter with everybody..

If you want $$$= WORK!!!

[LeeD]

I suppose it's possible to snowboard/ski 70 daze a season and not spend too much, if you don't mind working there a bit either greeter or in the restaurant biz. Cat drivers make OK working nites, as do tow truck drivers. Admin usually only 2 hours off for riding, so not good.
Lift ops no chance to ride, unless one hour works for you.
Lotsa poor peeps skiing and snowboarding lots of days, they just have to abstain from the new Hummer and trophy girlfriend/wife.
Some peeps work at shops which are busy early in the season, then with the shop emp discounts, ride for 15 a day from mid Feb thru April. Used to be closer to $5 a day, but inflation alas..

[jp5]

If we get good snow then the local mountains will be fine for snowboarding but I do miss the vastness of Mammoth Mountain.

As for working...work sucks but I need the bucks... we cant all be M.D.s

[ctuna]

I got a season ticket for Heavenly last year for 350 . And there are plenty of cheap hotels in south shore Tahoe if you can avoid weekends. There is a pretty good Season pass for the combo of Heavenly , Vail , Breckenridge , Keystone and Beaver Creek for about 570. The trouble is finding cheap lodging at Vail or at the Summit in Colorado. It seems all the single day lift ticket at the bigger resorts are closing in on 100 bucks a day.

[LeeD]

Yeah, Heavenly's pass is a good deal.
I had Sierra/Northstar passes for 5 years, and waay before that, Squaw passes for 7.
Alpine still has a good deal going, under $400 for the season including Sats.
But the big resorts are trying to become DESTINATION resorts, catering to the rich and famous, and those whose ONE vacation a year has no upper spending limits. Dat drives the prices upwards.
I did the ski/snowboard shop emp thing for 9 years, and the attendant discounts on lift and lodging really made the paltry 11 an hour worth working for.

[noflyzoneallstar]

There are hundreds of snowy mountains out there, with nothing but untracked, no crowds, and 100% free to ski down. If you're willing to climb up.

I live near LAX and can get to Alta (Utah) quicker and cheaper than Mammoth on a Friday night. Snow's better too.

Hopefully Mt. Waterman will open up again this year.

[ctuna]

When the Canadian Dollar exchange rate it was about a 33% cheaper . It looks like its coming back into range with about 20% today.