I got this in an email from our ski school director. It's not posted anywhere. Call to confirm or double check the web site before you go.

Hmmm. Might be bringing you some never-evers, then.

Do you know whether the rental fleet has been upgraded?

The rental fleet was replaced - 3000 new skis and all new Dalbello ski boots. There will also be 700 new snowboards too. Want to know what elese is new at Whitetail this year? Check out therusty's web site .

I have some questions on Whitetail and Liberty.

1. Is there a changing area for changing out of my clothes (e.g., jeans) and into my ski pants. (so, we don't have to drop down to our skivvies in the parking lot).
2. If so, does it have lockers we can stowe are jeans/lunch in?
3. With regard to the free lesson offer, I might go skiing with my 6 year old this weekend. I wouldn't mind a lesson, but what can I do with him during the lesson. He's not a bad skiier (and considers himself too good for lessons), but it looks like the offer doesn't apply to kids. Or, could he take the lesson with me?
4. How many people do you expect in these lessons?
5. I ordered an advantage card a while back at the Ski Chalet during a sale. I think I listed Liberty as the home mountain. Do I have to pick up the card there? (Incidentally, I didn't see any Snow Blast cards there).

Regarding questions 1 and 2 at Whitetail: yes and yes. If you walk through the passageway leading from the parking lot to the slopes, go in the door on the left and then down your first stairway on the left. I'm pretty sure there are signs to the changing area. They're about the size of a fitting room stall at Hechts or JCPenny, but that's just fine. Lockers are just across the hallway.

Great website really! Do you have any recommendations for a mostly beginning and trepidatious floridian by birth, texan transplate to maryland who is stuck in a wedge for instructors? She's skied perhaps 5 times in her life... last year she took half-day private lesson at Snowbasin Utah ... but i feel confident that it mostly didn't stick as she only skied the one day and then forgot all about it.

Thanks!

Oh man, I turn my back to work the day job for a little bit and wow do the questions back up.

1) I have not been down the old underground area to see the new configuration. The old snowboard rental place is now an arcade/overflow seating area. The locker and changing area should still be down there. We also have extra space for changing in the rest rooms on the top level of the main lodge with some lockers up there. Finally, the new rental building now has restroom space that could be used for changing and should have more locker space too.

2) You can stow jeans/lunch in the free cubbies in the main lodge. Very few people will steal your lunch. Just write "toxic waste" on the bag.

3) No free lessons for kids under 8. Kids under 8 are not allowed in adult lessons. I floated a suggestion for allowing "upgrades" for the price difference, but all I got back was "We'll consider it". We do have Children's group ski lessons for ages 4-7, but they are only an hour long vs a 90 minute adult lesson. There is also child care (babysitting) available. The only other alternatives are kids camp (1/2 and full day), bring another adult, or tying the kid to a tree while you take your lesson (oooo - I think Santa will get me for that one).

4) It's usually pretty slow in early season because everyone is Xmas shopping, but with all this snow in the forecast it COULD get crazy. This early in the season, it's always a crap shoot on the instructor availability side as well. New hire instructors are not trained/available to teach yet. Many vets like myself are not available because we're going to training in VT this weekend/next week.

5) You should have received a confirmation letter with instructions for your Advantage card. Otherwise call before you leave if you can (office officially opens at 8, but may be open earlier on opening day - start trying at 7). Where ever your paperwork was processed, that's where you need to go to pick up your card. We're in a multi year project for upgrading the computer software. Eventually you'll be able to pick up your pass anywhere, but not yet.

(blushing) Thanks for the compliment and you're welcome Kev.

Whitetail and Liberty have a ton of pros who can help Wedging Southerners. This is our bread and butter. Liberty has more terrain options at this level, but Whitetail has wider trails. It's kind of a personal taste issue.

If you have your own gear, do take advantage of the free lesson offer and just hope for the luck of the draw with respect to which instructor you get. If you need to rent gear, take advantage of the mid week rates to get the EZ package at Whitetail. I don't know if Liberty also has the mid week rates, but she should get the all mountain package over there. Private lessons are definitely cheaper here than out West. If you want a recommendation for a private instructor, please PM me with more preference info (e.g. male/female, quiet/loud, young/old/same age, special learning needs etc.) Please note however, that I'm going to be offline for the next 10 days.

In the meantime, the snow looks FANTASTIC on the web cams. This weekend is going to be PRIMO OUTSTANDING!