Over the past couple of weeks, the Mount Washington Valley Chamber of Commerce has been running a wonderful program for meteorologists around New England to become better acquainted with the ski resorts in and around the Mount Washington Valley of New Hampshire. My weekend was spent at Bretton Woods and the Mount Washington Resort, a beautiful resort that offers not only downhill and cross-country skiing, but also some wonderful family and indoor activities, including dog sledding, horse-drawn sleigh rides, and a spa! Of course, those of you up for a partying time would want to be sure to check out The Cave - a bar set in the basement of the Mount Washington Hotel that finds its roots in the time of prohibition, when folks had to be very careful about where they found their refreshment! The hotel itself is spectacular - an historic and massive wooden structure with a number of wonderful restaurants and plenty of sitting area near the fireplaces and throughout the lobby area.
We headed slopeside at sunrise - a gorgeous and colorful dawn that would be the beginning of a fantastic day with spectacular views of the summit of Mount Washington. While I was at Bretton, my evening colleague at NECN, Tim Kelley, was over at Wildcat Mountain and one of the local Portland, Maine, meteorologists was at Cranmore, so it was a busy weekend of meteorologists in the White Mountains!
We began the day speaking with Keith Huntoon, Director of Snowmaking Operations at Bretton Woods, as he was out in full gear on the slopes, blasting the snow guns. This conversation was a terrific overview of snowmaking at Bretton, and a primer for what was to come.
Later, we'd speak with Keith "behind the scenes" in the compressor room, removed from the lifts and slopes by a few hundred yards in a large garage, where snow groomer repairs and maintenance take place as well. The interviews with Keith can be found here, and I guarantee you that you won't find out more about snowmaking from anyone else - Keith is the expert, and with 27 years of experience, you can imagine there aren't many folks in New England - or the country for that matter - who have more know-how than Keith.
Perhaps the most revealing part of the weekend was the terrific conversation with Chris Ellms, General Manager of Bretton Woods Resort. Chris can probably best be summed up by the way I met him - he drove up in a grooming machine, opened the door with a big smile on his face and welcomed me into the machine. This really sets the tone for Chris - a man who not only oversees the operation, but is a major player in the day-to-day functions of the resort, as well, out on the slopes, in the office and just about anywhere he can assist his staff in making sure the day goes smoothly. Chris was remarkably generous with his time, and wonderfully open about every aspect of operations at Bretton Woods.
If you are someone who's always wondered about the details of ski resorts - from the best time to groom, to the costs of operation, to the staff needed to run the operation - this interview is one that will fascinate you. I thought about cutting snippets of the interview, but realized that true skiing and winter weather enthusiasts would probably be far happier seeing the interview in its entirety, so I've broken it into a 10 part interview that you can see here. If you don't have time to view all of them at once, feel free to check back and view them one or two at a time - I'll leave them on the site for a long time to come.
In the first part of the interview, we hop aboard one of Bretton's grooming machines, with the ski resort's General Manager, Chris Ellms, at the controls. Chris may oversee all operations at the resort, but that doesn't keep him from getting his hands dirty with everyone else.
Chris has been in the business for a number of years. In Part 2 of the 10 part interview, Chris outlines how snowmaking has changed over the years.
In part 3 of the 10 part interview, Chris describes the snowmaking process and equipment in use at Bretton Woods.
Chris shares the resources Bretton uses for daily operations, and gives a feel for the staff needed to run Bretton and the Mount Washington Resort.
Weather certainly has a major impact on ski resorts like Bretton. Chris weighs in on broadcast weather, along with the all-important microclimates of New England that favor Bretton Woods.
What are some of the specifics of Bretton Woods? And how is Bretton Woods a good community member? Chris answers those questions in part 6 of this 10 part interview.
Chris offers his take on the key to success for the future of the New England ski industry, and for large and small ski areas, alike.
The final three parts of the interview revolve around the $225,000 piece of equipment Chris is operating. Here, he introduces us to the controls that make the groomer sing!
In Part 9, Chris gets into the methods of grooming the trails. Personally, I found this fascinating, as I've always wondered just what's going on after the mountain lifts shut down at 4 PM and I see the groomers at work.
In the final part of the interview, Chris lets us know some of the finer points of grooming. Many thanks to Chris for taking so much time to speak with me, and share so many thoughts on skiing with New Englanders!
Many thanks to everyone at Bretton Woods and the Mount Washington Resort for making the experience so wonderful, and to the Mount Washington Valley Chamber of Commerce for putting together the great idea to get meteorologists on the slopes!
The Sox played at Fenway Park last night. They waited through the rain, then played through the rain and between downpours. The end result, unfortunately, was a Red Sox loss.
