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02-23-2017, 01:14 PM #1
VIP/(Very Important Payer) Pass for No Lines or Early Access Ski Resort
What do you guys think of the off and on trend for VIP(very important payer) ticket privileges at ski resorts.
I was at Copper the other day, got there early, just to watch people get on the lift 15 minutes early and get first tracks down the front runs b/c they had the "Secret Pass" costing $30 extra/day and then their own line guaranteeing essentially no wait in lines. With the two combined people had 2 runs before I even got on the lift.
I find it kinda annoying and like its not just upselling someone else for some additional cash, but taking from what I considered the value of my ticket. I understand from and economics perspective - perfect price discrimination - if someone will pay more then you should charge it. But it vexes me.
I've noticed Steamboat has a similar program for early access, and read that Winter Park, Stratton, Killington have at least experimented with these programs.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/19/travel/19prac.html
http://www.coppercolorado.com/winter...secretpass2012
https://www.steamboat.com/plan-your-...s/first-tracks
What are your thoughts?
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02-23-2017, 01:47 PM #2Rope->Dope
- Join Date
- Nov 2012
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- I-70 West
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- 4,684
Two people in the Copper express line? I don't think they're selling many of them.
Lines aren't a big deal there, but their seasons pass + secret pass is a smoking deal.
Steamboat limits access to one area with the first tracks program, but I'm not sure how many people they cap it at. It sells out almost every year.
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02-23-2017, 02:01 PM #3
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02-23-2017, 02:15 PM #4
First tracks tickets are great if you want to pay for it. whistler's include breakfast.
I got no problem with this system. it's a business.
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02-23-2017, 02:23 PM #5
Here in Big Sky it is $500 per person with a 4 person minimum, that price includes the Instructor who will "guide" you. A mag from this forum objected to it and got banned for protesting it (although the way he did it was dumb). Read up on the incident in the SW Montana thread.
"Zee damn fat skis are ruining zee piste !" -Oscar Schevlin
"Hike up your skirt and grow a dick you fucking crybaby" -what Bunion said to Harry at the top of The Headwaters
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02-23-2017, 02:33 PM #6
lake louise does a 8:30 start, for $99 (plus lift ticket) for a 2 hour private lesson with instructor gets you on a bit early, but terrain in limited by Avi control work still.
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02-23-2017, 02:39 PM #7
It's $79 at Targhee. I wasn't too stoked at first but there's still tons of fresh lines and I do want them to make a few bux...
Something about the wrinkle in your forehead tells me there's a fit about to get thrown
And I never hear a single word you say when you tell me not to have my fun
It's the same old shit that I ain't gonna take off anyone.
and I never had a shortage of people tryin' to warn me about the dangers I pose to myself.
Patterson Hood of the DBT's
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02-23-2017, 03:15 PM #8
Founders Pass at Whistler lets you and some friends skip the upload line in the morning. $6,000/year.
Fresh Tracks is $20 and gets you a nice buffet breakfast and about 30 min mid-mountain skiing before the rest of people uploading get up. Awesome value, except you need to line-up at 6am to get a spot.
I have no problem with either of these. I would pay a day rate premium to guarantee front of the line for alpine lifts @ WB as long as it also guaranteed protection from snowball onslaught .
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02-23-2017, 03:26 PM #9
The good thing is most of the people dropping lots of $$ for this sort of thing usually aren't going to ski the good lines anyway. So within reason it's not that big of a deal. It is kind of annoying though.
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02-23-2017, 03:28 PM #10Jacket Cobbler
- Join Date
- Nov 2007
- Location
- 8,290'
- Posts
- 5,357
I bought the annual secret pass for about 3 years even added it to volunteer pass. However this is my opinion of the thing.
Weekends
Has own dedicated maze line at lift
if your friends don't have it , you won't use it
I dont ski weekends inbounds
weekday Powder days
1. it gives you 15 min early on the Eagle lift not the Flyer
2. they groom everything on front side all night so most likely the deep pow reported is not so deep on what you can ski
3. if excelerator is open you might get a couple of lines in mine dump area but excelerator 50/50 as to if its open
4. if excelerator is open you might head for runs under super bee...much of that is groomed all night as well and will not be deep
5. maybe get some trees but if it was not a ton of powder you will feel the earlier carved bumps
6. storm king will not be open to spaulding and most likely spaulding will need patrol avi mitigation so forget it
7. same with resolution bowl and that area....forget it in the first 15 min and probably the first hour
8. better skiing from Flyer which you cannot use the Secret pass for at start of morning / sierra / celebrity /Mtn chief routes
9. no real lift lines much anywhere except in village area (avoid)
10. no secret pass lines at sierra, celebrity, mtn chief, etc
11. most everything at copper (except for some obscure stuff) will be tracked in in approx 1 hour, many cases 30 min or less unless i-70 shut down
12, Plan your attack accordingly
Therefore, I quit buying the Secret Passwww.freeridesystems.com
ski & ride jackets made in colorado
maggot discount code TGR20
ok we'll come up with a solution by then makers....
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02-23-2017, 04:47 PM #11
Another way for the area to make $$.
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02-23-2017, 04:52 PM #12
There was a time at a ski area that I use to work for when the GM and some other managers would host a 1st tracks for prospective real estate buyers. They usually stuck to terrain that nobody gave a shit about.
There was a good powder morning coming off of a prolonged period of no snow when one group with the GM pretty much tracked out a high profile slope in front of a bunch of locals who were not real happy.
I bitched about it and to his credit that GM admitted it was poor form and that never happened again. Going forward they would ski a trail and move on.
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02-23-2017, 04:53 PM #13
Another way for the areas to make short term $ cannibalizing their long term market $$$.
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02-23-2017, 05:08 PM #14
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02-23-2017, 05:17 PM #15
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02-23-2017, 05:19 PM #16Registered User
- Join Date
- Jan 2014
- Posts
- 486
does cutting Alpental chair 2 lift line with singles trick count?
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02-23-2017, 05:28 PM #17Banned
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- Feb 2013
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- Highyak
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- 592
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02-23-2017, 05:49 PM #18
MAMMOTH BLACK
$9,200 gets you:
- Line cutting privileges
- Parking spot
- Demo/Wax whatever whenever
- Access to special lunch area
- "Personal concierge"
- AND getting boo'ed by the entire maze while you cut the line.
http://www.mammothblack.com/Best Skier on the Mountain
Self-Certified
1992 - 2012
Squaw Valley, USA
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02-23-2017, 06:06 PM #19
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02-23-2017, 06:21 PM #20Jacket Cobbler
- Join Date
- Nov 2007
- Location
- 8,290'
- Posts
- 5,357
www.freeridesystems.com
ski & ride jackets made in colorado
maggot discount code TGR20
ok we'll come up with a solution by then makers....
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02-23-2017, 06:53 PM #21
Squaw's dawn patrol is also sold to non gold pass holders. Normally there is access to Shirley; how many times is Shirley open first thing on a powder morning? I did it in the pre-KSL era--skied some pow on shirley until Silvy opened at 9 (now we know that's never going to happen under KSL) and then got a couple of laps in Silvy before the masses made it up from base. Had to get there at 7, a lot of standing around, then took the Tram up. I don't think I would bother again.
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02-23-2017, 09:45 PM #22cliffed out
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- Mar 2012
- Location
- Salt Lake City
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- 490
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02-23-2017, 10:07 PM #23
I've hitchhiked a few rides with members, they seemed nice enough and had interesting stories. It was nice to get a ride to their special parking area
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02-23-2017, 10:47 PM #24
Vail mountain club is 7-10k depending on what "package" you get, but the deposit is $275,000. They won't even look at you unless you have 275k cash. They get a few first tracks a year. There was a big pow (weekend) day this year, like 14" overnight and they (and some of Vail's other "signature clubs") got to rape the mountain before 20,000 people got the next 30 minutes of untracked.
$275,000 though, damn. That's a lot of licked boots.
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02-23-2017, 10:55 PM #25The JONGiest
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- Dec 2016
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- Lamebird
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