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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Oct 2008
    Location
    Colorado
    Posts
    5,517

    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?

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Nov 2012
    Location
    I-70 West
    Posts
    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.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Dec 2006
    Location
    Your Mom's House
    Posts
    8,302
    Quote Originally Posted by Kinnikinnick View Post
    taking from what I considered the value of my ticket.
    If you don't find enough value in the price you pay for a lift ticket, then don't buy a ticket there.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Feb 2012
    Posts
    10,906
    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.

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Jan 2008
    Location
    Big Sky/Moonlight Basin
    Posts
    14,417
    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

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Oct 2003
    Location
    Banff
    Posts
    22,210
    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.


  7. #7
    Join Date
    Dec 2006
    Location
    crown of the continent
    Posts
    13,947
    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

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Feb 2005
    Location
    Vancouver BC
    Posts
    3,267
    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 .

  9. #9
    Join Date
    May 2011
    Location
    Truckee & Nor Cal
    Posts
    15,621
    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.

  10. #10
    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 Pass
    www.freeridesystems.com
    ski & ride jackets made in colorado
    maggot discount code TGR20
    ok we'll come up with a solution by then makers....

  11. #11
    Join Date
    Feb 2012
    Location
    W/ Oz, Craig, McConkey
    Posts
    446
    Another way for the area to make $$.

  12. #12
    Join Date
    Dec 2004
    Location
    Where the sheets have no stains
    Posts
    22,070
    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.

  13. #13
    Join Date
    Aug 2016
    Location
    关你屁事
    Posts
    9,532
    Another way for the areas to make short term $ cannibalizing their long term market $$$.

  14. #14
    Join Date
    Sep 2004
    Location
    LV-426
    Posts
    21,126
    Surprised Squaw hasn't adopted this business model. Somebody email Andy Wirth!
    Quote Originally Posted by powder11 View Post
    if you have to resort to taking advice from the nitwits on this forum, then you're doomed.

  15. #15
    Join Date
    May 2011
    Location
    Truckee & Nor Cal
    Posts
    15,621
    Quote Originally Posted by El Chupacabra View Post
    Surprised Squaw hasn't adopted this business model. Somebody email Andy Wirth!
    They do Saturday morning dawn patrol... but gold pass holders get 2 per year included or something like that.

    They couldn't do it right anyway - when are the early ups? 11am before the eventual 1pm opening?

  16. #16
    Join Date
    Jan 2014
    Posts
    486
    does cutting Alpental chair 2 lift line with singles trick count?

  17. #17
    Join Date
    Feb 2013
    Location
    Highyak
    Posts
    592
    Quote Originally Posted by wordbird View Post
    does cutting Alpental chair 2 lift line with singles trick count?

  18. #18
    Join Date
    Jan 2008
    Location
    livin the dream
    Posts
    5,761
    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

  19. #19
    Join Date
    Mar 2006
    Location
    Missoula, MT
    Posts
    22,462
    Omg Harry, I forgot all about that.
    That Mammoth thing is hilarious.
    Around here, they don't open till 9:30. 10 after daylight savings time. No joke. They're not letting anyone jump the line, or anything. Sometimes, I think they're just lazy.
    No longer stuck.

    Quote Originally Posted by stuckathuntermtn View Post
    Just an uneducated guess.

  20. #20
    Join Date
    Nov 2007
    Location
    8,290'
    Posts
    5,357
    Quote Originally Posted by nickwm21 View Post
    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/
    copper was only like $100 bux for the season
    it was mostly locals that were there on the powder days

    we boo'd when they let the ski racers in training in side gate before us
    little skinny skied rats tracked out the few runs available

    9,200 insane
    www.freeridesystems.com
    ski & ride jackets made in colorado
    maggot discount code TGR20
    ok we'll come up with a solution by then makers....

  21. #21
    Join Date
    Jan 2008
    Location
    truckee
    Posts
    23,120
    Quote Originally Posted by TahoeJ View Post
    They do Saturday morning dawn patrol... but gold pass holders get 2 per year included or something like that.

    They couldn't do it right anyway - when are the early ups? 11am before the eventual 1pm opening?
    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.

  22. #22
    Join Date
    Mar 2012
    Location
    Salt Lake City
    Posts
    490
    Quote Originally Posted by nickwm21 View Post
    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/
    Snowbirds got em beat with the 7 summits club. 14k or 21k-heard both from reputable sources but never asked a member directly cuz I don't talk to them. Early tram lap, mostly not in good terrain and get your own line. Clubhouse thing too

  23. #23
    Join Date
    Oct 2006
    Location
    Bellevue
    Posts
    7,431
    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

  24. #24
    Join Date
    May 2011
    Location
    CO
    Posts
    2,206
    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.

  25. #25
    Join Date
    Dec 2016
    Location
    Lamebird
    Posts
    430
    I've never been cut in line by someone from 7 summits not with a Snowbird guide. Pretty sure I'd heckle them if I was.

    Quote Originally Posted by claymond View Post
    Snowbirds got em beat with the 7 summits club. 14k or 21k-heard both from reputable sources but never asked a member directly cuz I don't talk to them. Early tram lap, mostly not in good terrain and get your own line. Clubhouse thing too

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