Let's move on from the Mass Stinks thread and continue the DCSkiers dialogue on this new thread. Ken at Massanutten was kind enough to jump in the other thread and try to answer some visitor's concerns....as several posters have said, let us honor his bravery and use this thread to post new thoughts about the NUT.
The Colonel

Enjoy Massanutten this weekend.

I hear you. Sorry for bumping the other thread. Massanutten was challenging the weekend I skied there. The best skier I've ever dated went to James Madison and learned to ski the hard stuff at Mass o' nuttin' (with the help of their ski school). Just beautiful to see her on icy conditions, so smooth, relaxed. Sigh.

Good to hear from Massanutten Ken that they are trying to let the moguls grow on Dixie and Paradise.

The family and I have always enjoyed ourselved there. Big props to Steve K. (skibumsp) for his tireless work there on patrol making it safe for all.

Ken,

You should feel fortunate to have such a great person on staff there. Thanks for taking the time to post here. It is nice to know that you are working so hard to improve an already great place. We will get out there again before the season is up.

This is my third year as a proud season pass holder at Massanutten. Rod nailed it on the head when he said that great skiers are made up there - if you're able to learn how to ski hardpack well (something I'm still learning) you can ski almost anywhere.

I also always find it amazing how they are able to keep any snow on their slopes considering the warm temperatures and limited (or nonexistent) natural snowfall we receive in this area.

Props to the 'nut!

PS - It's snowing in Harrisonburg right now, woohoo!

As I've noted elsewhere, I really like the Slopesliders program. My daughter always had a good time and made steady progress. She could handle Diamond Jim well at age 7 in her third season. The transition was easy since she'd been on Upper Rebel Yell several times with the blue class and with me.

Now that she and her ski buddy are older, we make use of the 90-min clinics.

I like the new flex ticket. Although I like to get first chair, it's nice to still get a full day even if we don't make it onto the slopes until 10am. Seems to help eliminate the long lines that used to happen 20-30 min before 4:30. Really nice on weekdays to be able to start any time and get a full 4 hours.

I am glad to see that this has moved to the new title post. Now we can all drink the cool aid and talk about how good skiers are made at weak resorts with tiny slopes. Give me a break here guys!

World Cup ski racers Kristina Koznick and Lindsey Vonn learned to ski and race at Buck Hill, Minnesota.

Vonn won the overall World Cup title in 2008.

Their coach at Buck Hill, Erich Sailer, was inducted into National Ski Hall of Fame in 2006.

Buck Hill's Vertical = 309 feet.

Awesome conditions at the nut last night. Didn't decide to drive up there until around 7:30 pm and am so glad that I did. By far the best conditions I've experienced there in years. I was fairly surprised that the snow actually had a somewhat powdery texture to it.

The snow had accumulated a lot quicker on the slopes than it did on the grassy surfaces here in town - I'd say they had between 4-5" on the slopes when I grabbed last chair at 9:50 pm - and it was still coming down really hard when I left.

Planning to head back up there today as soon as I get off work!

Glad you "valley guys" are getting your fair share this time. Enjoy it while you can as next weeks weather forecast looks bad down ya'lls way.

Me and the family were up at Mass this past weekend. My son continued his progress in Slope Sliders - he's on yellow now and skiing Geronimo. Won't be long and he'll be up on DJ with MarzNC's kid!

I thought the weather and conditions were fantastic Friday and Saturday. Granted, it did crowd up on Sat as expected, and there was a brief outage of the lift on Southern Comfort which looked to cause some chaos, but overall I had a great time, my family had a great time, and our friends had a great time.

Oh, and I also had some Jomo Lager from the bar!

Massanutten and Wintergreen were the two places where I got back to skiing after a military career being posted in places where scuba diving made more sense than skiing. I can't say that I adored the timeshare high-pressure sales people, but quickly learned to shoo them off with a courteous and firm "NO". Mountain wise, it had the challenge I needed to get back on my ski legs. If I hadn't purchased a condo at Snowshoe, I'd probably still be skiing these two mountains.

I don't think it is drinking the cool aid so much, and just accepting it for what it is. A small ski area in Virginia. It's never going to compare to the challenge of out west, New England (or heck ever parts of PA).

(voice of reason)I have calmed down. Is it over-priced? Sure, but all of them are. They have to get their $$$$ while they can (short season). It is about on par with Wintergreen, Winterplace and Bryce. It not as challenging as the rest in the Mid-Atlantic. Sorry you got your hopes up and were disappointed. Look for 2-for-1 coupons and try it during the week for a day trip, it is not so bad.(/end voice of reason)

Sounds like a fun time. SC lift is always slow when there are lots of beginners around. I'm glad Yee Ha is open so there is an alternative way to get to Lift 6 for getting to the top.

OK Teleman, You put me in my place. I guess my question should have been. How many skiing legends have come out of THE NUT?

Let's come to a reality check here. Do you really think that you will see a Tanner Hall or a Pep Fujas or Shane McConkey come out of a liberty or Whitetail resort? I highly doubt it. Let's at least realize what I was stating here. The odds are not in anyones favor from one of our local resort.

I hear what you are saying. I agree with what you are saying on some levels. My main concern is the price for what is being offered. I would hope that they could at least buy some new rental skis for the patrons of their resort. Especially since they charge more than other resorts. It seems rediculous that they don't have new skis. Seriously. They are almost 2 decades old in technology. Those skis wouldn;t even sell for a penny on ebay, yet they expect someone to rent them for $35 or so. That is why I am really upset with the place. Most resorts can afford to replace all of their gear every 5 years. But THE NUT can't find the money once every 19 years or so? Give me a break Massanutten.

But you didn't stay. You moved away from the mountains that weren't as good as what you had found elsewhere. Exactly my point. Thanks for the help.

That is definetily the way PSIA/AASI feel, they treat the south like a redheaded stepchild. If your in the south and have any ideas that you are going to get a level III without spending tons of money to travel north, it ain't gonna happen. I have been told countless times that the terrain isn't up to par for level III certification. Seems to me they spend just enough time and effort to get instructors from the south into the paying end of the program/club but then offer vary little variety as far as training in the south. Just my opinion as former member and as someone who organized half a dozen or so level I/II events.

But Jaime I got a name for you KC Gandee - massanutten home grown snowboard instructor who rose to National Development Team member.

Hey JaGoff the odds of seeing a Pep Fujas or Shane McConkey come out of ANY resort are slim. BTW you ever heard of Diane Roffe?

A bit misleading. Diane Roffe didn't get good by skiing at Roundtop. She's actually from some small area in Upstate New York (which *may* be a nub of a hill.) I wonder how that area would compare to those in the Mid-Atlantic?

Race programs are probably the best way to develop expert skills on small hills.

...sorry to hijack the subject line, but seems the topic has swayed, and besides, this overall topic is kind of beat and tiresome!

But Diane Roffe grew up at a true 'bump' of hill in Upstate/Western NY named Brantling. It has maybe, maybe 200 ft vertical (just saw it 240 - so I was a bit off!). Check out the trail map on their website and get a sense. All rope tows and t-bars. Brantling web page

Another local racing product at the time was A.J. Kitt - from Swain - also in Western NY. Still one of the best downhillers the US ever had. Swain is about 650 vertical.

Unfortunately my parallel racing career at that age took a fatal hit at age 13 when my father was transferred to Dallas. All I can claim is being a ski patroller today. ;-)

But there are so many advantages to training and learning at a smaller ski hill as you get a lot more reps through the gates. Coaching is also key. I sense AJ was just pure talent, but I recall Brantling having a tremendous European coach who produced some of the top racers in the East.

Point well taken. Guess I have never looked at their rentals, so I will agree with you on this. A ski area in VA that has a large population of beginners should indeed have decent equipment to get them started on. Especially at those prices, you are correct.

Conditions were pretty good at the 'nut last night. Definitely a few patches of ice out there but most everything was carveable.

It looked to me like their snowmaking pond was just about dry... and it seemed there has been limited snowmaking over the past few days - which is quite unfortunate considering the very cold temps we've been having. I guess that will all change after the big thaw we have coming up!

Anyone been up to Massanutten lately... do the slopes still have pretty good coverage?