Snowshoe Expansion
November 20, 2006
A thread over on skisoutheast.com cites that snowshoe will be adding 6 trails in the widowmaker area next year... can anyone here confirm this?
Saw the same thread.
That board has alot of humour (not a bad thing), sometimes it is hard to judge what it true and what is just made up.
6 trails in the Widowmaker area, and possible expansion on the Western Territory?
The guy who posted it usually knows his stuff so I'd say there's something to it. At least the Widowmaker expansion portion of the story.
To clean up my previous post, I did not believe parisandrewsdaddy was wrong, I was simply stating that It was, at first, hard to distinguish between what was true facts and what was simple fun.
I'm sure one day they will expand it's just each year people keep saying next year. Kind of makes you skeptical after a while. I'd wait till I see an official announcement from SS.
Snowshoe hasn't hidden the fact that they intend to expand into that area. Putting in the high-speed quad this year was the first step -- that will anchor new terrain. Expanding Shavers Lake a few years ago was also a necessary step, to increase snowmaking capacity. But cutting new trails requires an environmental study, and the timing of that isn't necessarily in Snowshoe's control. (Remember the West Virginia Northern Flying Squirrel and the Cheat Mountain Salamander -- two protected endangered species that are both found at Snowshoe.)
The final decision on when to pull the trigger might also depend on how well this ski season goes in terms of skier visits and revenue. The new terrain is probably inevitable (it's been in Snowshoe's "master plan" that they pitch to prospective property owners), but it may be premature to say it will be in place next year. Snowshoe usually doesn't announce capital improvement projects until early summer, and they often don't make a final decision until shortly before they announce it. There's not much benefit to announcing expansion too early, other than to imply it (without being too specific) to encourage real estate investment by giving people an idea of where the resort plans to go.
But, clearly people can read something into the installation of the new Soaring Eagle lift. After all, it is not often that a ski resort places a high-speed lift at the very edge of their trail system.
Last I heard, the permits have all been granted. They are just waiting to get approval and funding from Intrawest/Fortress. I was told it takes around $700,000 to add a new slope which covers the cost of adding the snowmaking equipment.
I'm not sure how accurate the picture in the link below are but its the developers link for the new gated community by the Soaring Eagle Lodge. It has a few references to where the a few of the new slopes will be.
http://www.sawmillvillage.com/siteplan.html
Wow. Thanks for the link.
Correct me if im wrong, but wouldnt the 'new slope' be going over what is now the entrance to the Cheat Mountain Ridge trail?
Id also like to point something out in the link-
Before, the Widowmaker lift went over what was close to the center of the trail. Now, the drawing has the Soaring Eagle Lift along the skiers right of the slope. More room?
Quote:
BTW - It would be called Soaring Eagle Express Expansion. Widowmaker is no more. 
Snowshoe Trail Listings
Express? How did the "Express" get into a trail name. Thats kind of awkward. Just 'Soaring Eagle' would be fine.
But aside from tat, I am sad to see that Widowmaker is no more.
The new lift is called Soaring Eagle Express and it runs to skiers right of Widowmaker trail.
The Colonel
True about the lift. But according to the Trail listing, The name Widowmaker is no longer there. Replaces by 'Soaring Eagle Express'.
To help clear up some questions - The Soaring Eagle Express is the name of the lift that replaces the Widowmaker lift. It is named after the new Soaring Eagle Lodge, the owners of which partially financed the new lift (naming rights). Widowmaker trail still exists. It is a bit wider and longer (higher up and further down) - thanks to the new lift. Additional ski terrain (40 acres) has been approved on the basin side by the DEP/EPA through a habitat conservation plan. Expansion is currently on hold by the parent company Intrawest/Fortress - until they deem the capital allocation worthy. New trails will most definately center on the new lift and will include something around the south basin. SS has been careful not to mention/suggest any new trails when talking about the new lift. The Saw Mill Village development, which shows "future trails" is a non-SS/Intrawest development (as is the Soaring Eagle Lodge). It is possible that Saw Mill will also partner with SS to develop new trails to support thier development. These type partnerships are a part of Intrawest's business model.
Quote:
The Saw Mill Village development, which shows "future trails" is a non-SS/Intrawest development (as is the Soaring Eagle Lodge).
If the future trails are non Snowshoe, would you need a seperate lift ticket?
No - It would all still be managed by Snowshoe, and the terrain would still be owned by SS, however it is possible that a third party developer (i.e Saw Mill) could help move certain terrain/infrastructure along by throwing in some cash or building thier own access trails and contributing to snowmaking, etc. That would allow them to sell thier condos for a higher price, the resort would get more terrain for less money - everybody wins. I'm not saying that is how they plan to do it - just that similar things have been done elsewhere (and with Soaring Eagle).
