Opening Weekend, Thanksgiving Dinner, Hall of Fame, MINI Cooper Sweepstakes & more!‏

Mother Nature has not been at her best lately, but after lots of time and speculation we've got a tentative opening date: December 5 - 6, 2009! The guns & crew are reading for snowmaking, which could begin as early as this weekend.




Stop by on Friday, Saturday or Sunday to get your locker in order and remember to purchase your season's pass, 3X Card or Big Lift Card before the crowds arrive next weekend. Diane and crew will be in Snowsports Services on Friday, Saturday and Sunday from 8a - 5p.

The Sports & Expeditions Center will be open on Thanksgiving from 9a - 2p. There are still lots of great deals left over from the fall sales and loads of new merchandise to drool over. Regularly scheduled hours will continue throughout Friday and the weekend!


As for Thanksgiving...have it here at Hunter Mountain! VanWinkle's at the Kaatskill Mountain Club will be serving a prix fixe dinner for $23.95 per person from 1p - 7p on Thursday. Specials include roasted turkey with cornbread stuffing; broiled salmon filet; Catskill Mountain smoked apricot & sherry-glazed ham. Vegetarian options are available. Reservations are strongly recommended.




Our annual Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony has been rescheduled to take place during the 50th Anniversary Party (Welcome 51!) on January 9th, 2010. Don't miss our 50th Party - it's going to be huge! Bring your family and friends for a truly great time! SAVE THE DATE: January 9, 2010!


Don't forget to take a moment to check out the red MINI Coopers sitting out in front of the lodge... you might just be the winner of a brand new 2010 MINI Cooper!! Sweepstakes entry forms will be waiting for you next weekend. That's right: we'll be giving away a 2010 MINI Cooper at Pond Skimming on April 3rd, compliments of friends at Prestige MINI of Mahwah, NJ, the official vehicle sponsor of Hunter Mountain. We're also giving away a trip to Telluride and a trip to Vail this winter along with hundreds of other Saturday giveaways at the bar!



We'll keep you posted with snowmaking news, photos, surface conditions and more on our newly upgraded website, and on the Hunterblog. Don't forget to also check us out on Facebook, to follow us on Twitter and to sign up for snow report e-mails at HunterMtn.com!




Have a happy Thanksgiving, and we'll see you on the slopes next weekend!

CATScard news story on YouTube

Thanks to Gerry Pallor, RadXSports

SRD Names Junior Race Team for 2009-2010

Introducing the Ski Racing Development Junior Race Team, for 2009-2010! We welcome new racers Ali Gunesch, Kendall Van Hee, Serina Kidd, Nicolas Veth, Alex Leever, Kazui Kusumi and Sam Morse. They join Jessie Delacenserie, Mikeala Shiffrin, Katelyn Barclay, Katharine Irwin, Taylor Shiffrin, Kieffer Christianson, Andrew Hancock, Stephen Splitstoser and Kyle Burcin. All hope to follow in the footsteps of former SRD racers Ben Morse and Rose Caston in joining the US Ski Team.

With the creation of the SRD Development Team we hope to help support, develop and supply these young racers with the very best in speed equipment featuring the SRD World Cup race suits and ski poles. Our goal is to develop our grass-roots support program starting with these highly motivated young athletes as they progress towards the US Ski team. Truly, we are living up to our name by proudly supporting Ski Racing Development! SRD is also pleased to announce a partnership with World Cup Supply and Halti USA in presenting the Fast Skier Junior Alpine Scholarship Fund.

These exceptional athletes have scored wins from the International Topolino Games in Italy and Canada's Whistler Cup to numerous Junior Olympic titles and regional USSA/FIS races.This past season the SRD Ski Team defeated the Spyder Speedfreaks team in a season long competition! A $500 donation was recently made by Spyder in the SRD Team's name to the World Cup Dreams Foundation, a charity for supporting USA ski team racers in need. To all our SRD Team skiers ..... Go fast and good luck this season!

RideHunter.com is Live!

Our new terrain park website for the 09/10' season is up! Check it out HERE!

Recovering!

We -- myself, Dre, Brian and Randy are all recovering from a crazy weekend of staff training, ski & snowboard shows and more. It's 65 degrees today in Hunter -- and we're looking at colder nighttime temps later in the week. As for today...get out and enjoy it while it lasts!!

Our Big Lift Card sales have ended, but there is plenty to come in terms of saving money. Don't forget to sign up for our newsletter to get the most up-to-date info from Hunter Mountain each week!

While you're waiting for my next update...check out some recent press!
11 Reasons to Ski New York State
Catskill ski resorts team up for regional promotion effort (Daily Freeman)

Albany Ski & Snowboard Expo starts TONIGHT!

Come visit Dre and others at the Hunter Mountain booth at the Albany Ski & Snowboard Expo (at Empire State Plaza) this weekend, starting today at 4pm! There will be door prizes and sales on apparel, products & more! We hope to see you there!

Show hours are 4 to 9 p.m. Nov. 6, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Nov. 7, and 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Nov. 8.

Admission is $8 for adults and $4 for kids 7-12. Children 6 and under are free with a paying adult.

Read more about the expo at Onthesnow.com!

This morning's dusting

I drove into work today to see a SERIOUS dusting of snow on the upper portion of the mountain and alongside the tops of the ridges. Sorry for the not-so-hot cell photo, but better ones coming in the future! Due to weather forecasts indicating temps in the 60's on Monday and Tuesday, we will NOT be making snow over the weekend or early next week, but I will keep you informed as to progress!

Photo Op: First Tracks Media Night

Last night at First Tracks Media Night in Bryant Park, NYC, the CATScard program was unveiled -- for $25, customers can get 20% off non-holiday lift tickets at 5 Catskills resorts: Hunter, Windham, Belleayre, Plattekill and Holiday Mountain. More info on this product coming...but for now, a photo!

From left: Kirt Zimmer, Windham Mountain; Tony Lanza, Belleayre Mountain; Brian Czarnecki, Hunter Mountain. Photo taken by Bill Jones of SnowEAST.

Hunter's own Jeremy "Worm" Transue named to the 2010 US Alpine Ski Team

Which of the below describes Jeremy Transue?
(a) local skier and fellow attendee of Hunter-Tannersville Central School
(b) son of Hunter snowmaking boss Bruce Transue
(c) member of the 2010 US Alpine Ski Team
(d) all of the above

If you guessed (d), right on!

Jeremy "Worm" Transue has been named to the 2010 U.S. Alpine Ski Team The Team includes four training groups competing at the Audi FIS Alpine World Cup, Europa Cup and Nor-Am Cup levels. Separate teams will also be named for the 2010 Olympic Winter Games. 26-year-old Transue, who tore his ACL in the Europa Cup downhill in January last year, notched a handful of top 10's on the Europa Cup this January, won a FIS SG in Vermont, took bronze in this year's national DH race in Alyeska and took a couple of top 10's in Nor-Am on the Mammoth hill in February. He wrapped up his comeback season in top form, as proven by another win at the FIS Spring Series super-G race at Mammoth Mountain on April 15. On December 4 - 6, 2009 Beaver Creek will be hosting the Birds of Prey World Cup. Last winter a group from Hunter went out with a banner and to cheer and support him. On the day of the race, the Marco Sullivan fan Club showed up wearing green fan club hats and making a presence. Well, it's time to make a presence for Worm. Come on out to Beaver Creek and join the fan club to help support him! Follow Worm as he tries to qualify for the Vancouver Olympic Games in February on the U.S. Ski Team website USSkiTeam.com

Want a Great Job?

HIRING DAY

Wednesday, November 11th, 2009
From 4pm-7pm
AND
Saturday, November 14th, 2009
9:00am to 2:00 pm

Come join TEAM Hunter!
We are in the business of fun and adventure…sound interesting?
Come to our Hiring Day event!

Employee benefits include Free Skiing/Riding, Lessons, and Equipment Rental privileges - Food, Retail, and Play Care discounts – Employee referral bonus.

Immediate interviews will be held in the Base Lodge for openings in the following departments:

*Food Service—wait staff, line cooks
*Rentals *Cashiers
*Snowmaking day & night shifts *Retail Shop
*Lift Operations *Grooming
*Maintenance *Snowtubing
*Ticket Sales *Ski School Desk
*Terrain Park *Play Care
*Call Center Receptionists
*Housekeepers
*Concierge

Apply in person at
Hunter Mountain Ski Bowl,
Rt. 23A Hunter, NY 12442

It may not be much, but it's snow!

I've been hearing a lot of a particularly exciting four-letter word that starts with an "s" in the news, forecasts and on NOAA lately. As I'm ramping up the snow reporting systems for the season, I'm thinking I might as well let you all see some evidence of the white fluffy stuff. Not much, just yet, but it's something, on the hood of my car, while on the way into work this morning, and lightly blanketing the tops of the ridges of the Catskills, and the edges of our trails...

Check the weather at NOAA for the most concise and often most correct updates on the weather up here in the Catskills.

Tonight, Brian and I are heading to NYC to hang out with folks from Thunder Ridge, Windham, Catamount, Plattekill, Belleayre, Greek Peek, Holiday Valley and many more resorts from New York, along with members of the media. Keep checking back for more news, updates, photos & more!

Come visit us at the Albany Ski & Snowboard Expo!

Hunter Mountain, and Windham, and Belleayre, and many other mountains from all over the northeast will be at the Albany Ski & Snowboard Expo (at Empire State Plaza) this weekend, starting on Friday! Stop by the Hunter booth! There will be door prizes and sales on apparel, products & more! We hope to see you there!

Show hours are 4 to 9 p.m. Nov. 6, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Nov. 7, and 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Nov. 8.

Admission is $8 for adults and $4 for kids 7-12. Children 6 and under are free with a paying adult.

Read more about the expo at Onthesnow.com!

MINI at Prestige MINI

Brian is hanging out at Prestige MINI for repairs to be completed on one of our MINI Coopers, and sent this image. Check out that sweet hat!

Keep your eyes peeled for these hot little mamas on the Thruway and throughout the Tri-State Area! If you see one near you, snap a photo and send it in! I'll post it here, in the blog!

Updates, updates and more updates.

Hello Hunter skiers, riders and other assorted friends and passers-by! This blog update is going up before the email blast goes out...keep on reading for important news!

Our sales for the 3X and Big Lift Card & BLC+1 were supposed to all end on Sunday...HOWEVER, due to overwhelming interest (to the point of our online shop crashing), we've extended the sale through Friday for Big Lift Cards & BLC+1s. If you have been struggling with our eSki online store, give it another shot, and you shouldn't have any issues. Buy your BLC & BLC+1 here!

I've got some more info, news, photos and such coming soon. Keep checking back, as the blog will be updated nearly every day from now until April! Check back soon for a revamped appearance on the Hunterblog, as well.......:) bye!

In with November, out with fall foliage!

How's the weather in your neck of the woods? We've got no leaves left...I took some photos this morning around North/South Lake, Boulder Rock & Inspiration Point. Winter is near! With nighttime temps in the low 20's, snowmaking will start sooner than later.......

Some leaves last longer than others....

Stay tuned for snowgun testing information...