So many homeowners rushed out to buy snowblowers back in October the local stores were hard pressed to keep the machines in stock. Now here we are on the verge of 2012 and there’s precious little snow to speak of in St. Albert — certainly not enough to fire up those snowblowers. It’s a bit depressing for those who enjoy winter sports such as skiing, snowboarding, tobogganing and snowmobiling.
The good news is there’s plenty of snow in the mountains. Skiers and snowboarders have been enjoying superb snow conditions at Marmot Basin practically since the Jasper resort opened in early November.
And conditions this week are nothing short of exceptional with mild temperatures until Saturday, enough new snow expected to replenish what’s being skied off each day, and a 90 centimetre mid-mountain base. By early December Marmot had already received more than 200 cm of snow, nearly half its annual winter snowfall. Last year at the same time the snowfall totaled just 110 cm.
Add in good highways between here and Jasper and there are no excuses not to take advantage of the school break and hit the slopes.
At four hours away by vehicle, Jasper is the mountain playground of choice for most St. Albert residents who enjoy the outdoors. They travel there for the alpine skiing, or the cross-country, or the incredibly visual canyon walk through Maligne Canyon, or skating on the lakes at Jasper Park Lodge or Pyramid Lake.
But mostly, it’s to ski.
“We get a wad of people from St. Albert,” said Brian Rode, vice-president of marketing for Marmot. “Our season ticket sales are much higher in Sherwood Park and St. Albert, per capita, than in Edmonton.”
Marmot Basin is owned by a group of Edmonton businessmen, including John Day, who was smiling broadly one day recently when he helped to officially open the resort’s newest chair lifts.
The $6 million Paradise detachable quad lift has been running since Nov. 26 so skiers and boarders have been enjoying it, along with the superb early-season conditions, for a number of weeks before the official opening.
The new quad replaces the old Paradise triple chair and makes life on the slopes better for clients in several ways.
For starters, the base of the lift was moved lower down the mountain, making it easier for skiers and especially boarders to access.
With a vertical rise of 410 metres it’s 70 per cent longer than the old chair. But with a ride time of just 4.5 minutes, it’s almost twice as fast.
The combination means riders and skiers will get to the top of the hill quicker and more comfortably, creating a more enjoyable experience.
The new Paradise chair also marks a milestone for the ownership group.
“Since 2003, we have invested $25 million, including state-of-the-art snowmaking, new terrain park, new guest services and rental shop,” Day said.
The old Paradise chair was retrofitted and relocated to the bottom of the hill, replacing the School House T-bar to service novice ski runs and vastly improve the learning experience for new skiers and boarders.
Marmot Basin has now installed more new high-speed quad chairs and lifts in the last three years than any other Canadian ski resort. In 2009 the Canadian Rockies Express Quad was installed, the longest high speed quad in the Canadian Rockies that opened new, expert terrain that changed the face of Marmot Basin.
The new quads, said president and CEO Dave Gibson, means skiers and boarders spend about 24 per cent less time on chairs and that much more time on the slopes. And, said Gibson earlier this winter, “we’re not finished yet.”
Along with the opening of the new lifts, Marmot Basin is also enjoying some of the best snow conditions in Canada. The resort is already reporting more than 230 centimetres of snow, and with the base built into the lower slopes by the snowmaking, conditions are excellent all over the mountain.
Skiers and boarders are responding. Attendance through the first six weeks has been strong once again. Rode said the number of skiers and snowboarders hitting the slopes is up slightly from the same period last year, when the resort finished with its third or fourth strongest year ever.
