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re: Snow Skiing Trip
Posted on 11/3/14 at 3:13 pm to Aubie Spr96
Posted on 11/3/14 at 3:13 pm to Aubie Spr96
1
Posted on 11/3/14 at 3:52 pm to disagreeber
quote:
All jokes aside. There is a snow resort in Alabama.
That place is about an hour of fun.
Posted on 11/3/14 at 3:57 pm to cjared036
quote:Went here with the family a couple years when I was in grade school. Had a ton of fun. Good place for beginners I would guess
Check out Snowshoe WV
Posted on 11/3/14 at 4:10 pm to diddydirtyAubie
quote:
quote:
All jokes aside. There is a snow resort in Alabama.
That place is about an hour of fun.
1. How old are the kids ?
2. Do you think you'll like it ?
Your first day anywhere will tell you whether you'll enjoy getting into skiing. Getting on the slopes at 10,000 feet in Breckenridge to the tune of a couple grand and finding out you hate it is gonna give you a bad day.
Go somewhere local, no matter how puny the ballers claim it is. Get your kids lessons, get yourself lessons. You don't need 3 feet of powder for your first lesson -- quite the opposite in fact, and the instructors at podunk little hills tend to be really good. You know they really love skiing and teaching, or else they wouldn't be there at all.
Try it; personally I think it's great fun, but you're absolutely correct to want to try it as cheaply as possible. You'll be renting equipment (either board or skis) and boots, maybe renting helmets, maybe even renting pants / bibs. All you need is a jacket (you'll be way way warmer than you think you will -- first day is a lot of energy burned) and gloves and a happy attitude.
Oh yeah -- I'm assuming here you can make it a day trip. I.E. "let's give it a try and come right home this evening." Nothing lost but a day at worst. If you're far enough away from anywhere to demand an overnight, then you'll want to pay more attention to how nice the place you'll be is, but for a day trip to just check out skiing, just about any place with at least 100' vertical and a magic carpet (avoid rope-tows) will work.
Have fun.
This post was edited on 11/3/14 at 4:15 pm
Posted on 11/3/14 at 4:25 pm to Aubie Spr96
Everyone here has pretty much nailed it. I went through a phase in college where I was an avid snow skier.
Started at Gatlinberg and hit every place in the Southeast. Sugar, Beech, Boone, etc. Everywhere I could drive to.
Then about 8 of us went up to Snowshoe. Nothing in the southeast compares. It is a pretty legit ski resort and a lot of fun. Silver Creek or Snowshoe, both 10x better than anywhere else east of the rockies. The places in TN and NC are really rinky dink day trips with just a couple of runs you do over and over. Snowshoe you enjoy a full 3 days of skiing and it is an actual resort/mountain lodge.
Course I then went west to Snowmass and Aspen and have never skied the east coast again, but seriously Snowshoe is the only legit choice in the SE or East coast.
Started at Gatlinberg and hit every place in the Southeast. Sugar, Beech, Boone, etc. Everywhere I could drive to.
Then about 8 of us went up to Snowshoe. Nothing in the southeast compares. It is a pretty legit ski resort and a lot of fun. Silver Creek or Snowshoe, both 10x better than anywhere else east of the rockies. The places in TN and NC are really rinky dink day trips with just a couple of runs you do over and over. Snowshoe you enjoy a full 3 days of skiing and it is an actual resort/mountain lodge.
Course I then went west to Snowmass and Aspen and have never skied the east coast again, but seriously Snowshoe is the only legit choice in the SE or East coast.
Posted on 11/3/14 at 4:31 pm to Aubie Spr96
quote:
We will take a look at Snowshoe. My wife and I are in our 40's. Skiing for us will likely result in a blown knee or torn Achilles.
Then you have two options the way I see it:
If you want a day trip to try it out, Sugar/Beech, NC. You will fall down just about all day that first day and you will be in a lot of pain the next day. That may be all you want the first time (that is how I did my first time). But, it really is just a day trip. Maybe spend the night in a motel around there, but even if you are new at it, those places are so limited day 2 isn't worth it.
If you want a weekend, 3 day or so trip - its Snowshoe. As already said, stay in Snowshoe, spend the first day on the runs at Silver Creek. Several beginner type runs there. Then by day 2 or 3, head over to Snowshoe for Widowmaker and Cup Run (I like Cup Run a lot, very long easy run that you can play around and enjoy).
Posted on 11/3/14 at 6:01 pm to The_Joker
quote:
The Apps are boring as frick and not worth it. Go to Breckenridge, Aspen, Keystone or Copper Mountain. Really anywhere in Colorado.
Copper is probably the best bang for the buck. For a little more $ go to Vail - both are huge mountains that you can spend several days on. Aspen is very nice and has 3 mountains but is expensive as frick, Keystone is small but good if you like going off the trails. Breck is full of snowboarder retards and is cold as frick but has a cool little town at the base.
Posted on 11/3/14 at 6:37 pm to Aubie Spr96
Snowshoe, WV
Seven Springs, PA
Wintergreen, VA--very nice resort outside of Charlottesville, VA
Seven Springs, PA
Wintergreen, VA--very nice resort outside of Charlottesville, VA
This post was edited on 11/3/14 at 8:25 pm
Posted on 11/3/14 at 7:36 pm to Aubie Spr96
Since you've never been before and are older, I recommend against anywhere out West to start with. The easiest trails there can put you down and out if you're not careful. Taking on too much to begin with will make you not enjoy something that you might otherwise love if you started with something you can handle and worked your way up.
But you should definitely start somewhere that provides quality skiing, like Snowshoe. Getting somewhere that provides you with more bang for you buck than 15 minutes (Mentone) or 30 (Gatlinburg) is worth it if you take a shine to the sport. If you don't like it, yeah you're out more money, but it's still a one time thing. The risk is worth the reward in my opinion.
If you do enjoy it, and are willing to shell out the money on the regular, go out West immediately so you can get hooked on the best skiing in the States. Winter Park, CO and Copper Mountain, CO are decent places for beginners who have at least skied before. As others have said, it will be expensive, but nothing else will compare. Set a budget and determine if you can and want to do it.
As lift tickets go, you can do better than $80-100/day. Look around for local discounts, or look for short seasonal passes that cost more up front but give you more skiing for the money over the stay of your trip(s).
If you do decide to travel regularly for some real skiing, the cheapest flights to Colorado are out of Nashville.
But you should definitely start somewhere that provides quality skiing, like Snowshoe. Getting somewhere that provides you with more bang for you buck than 15 minutes (Mentone) or 30 (Gatlinburg) is worth it if you take a shine to the sport. If you don't like it, yeah you're out more money, but it's still a one time thing. The risk is worth the reward in my opinion.
If you do enjoy it, and are willing to shell out the money on the regular, go out West immediately so you can get hooked on the best skiing in the States. Winter Park, CO and Copper Mountain, CO are decent places for beginners who have at least skied before. As others have said, it will be expensive, but nothing else will compare. Set a budget and determine if you can and want to do it.
As lift tickets go, you can do better than $80-100/day. Look around for local discounts, or look for short seasonal passes that cost more up front but give you more skiing for the money over the stay of your trip(s).
If you do decide to travel regularly for some real skiing, the cheapest flights to Colorado are out of Nashville.
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