Mammoth just got a lot closer!

This winter marks the debut of daily flights on Horizon Air. Now California's favorite outdoor playground is just an hour flight from Los Angeles International Airport. Once you land, you're only fifteen minutes from the slopes! Fllights begin Dec. 18.

• Daily flights depart LAX at 2:20pm and arrive MMH at 3:25pm.
• Return flights depart Mammoth at 4:05pm and arrive LAX at 5:10pm*.
• Rates as low as $79 select days in December and January.  Rates starting at $99 most other times.*
  

Book online through Horizon Air or call 800.MAMMOTH.

Complimentary transfer service from/to Mammoth Airport when you stay at any Mammoth Mountain property.
Please call 800.MAMMOTH for transportation arrangements.

 Mountain High is bringing a rocking college party to the mountains this winter with its brand new program, College Night at Mountain High. College Night at Mountain High is a series of three Thursday night parties created for Southern California college students and will take place from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Dec. 11, 2008, Feb. 12, and March 12.  

"After talking with local collegiate ski and snowboard teams, we realized the need for a series of events that would bring Southern California colleges together on the mountain," said Laura Johnson, Marketing Manager at Mountain High. "The idea received really strong support from the industry and we're excited to be working with an awesome collection of partners."

 College Night will take place at the Bullwheel Bar & Grill at Mountain High's West Resort and will feature live DJs, $1 hot dogs, $20 night lift tickets (with college ID), and hookups from a collection of industry partners. Active Ride Shop, BNQT, ForUs Magazine, FUEL TV, Southern California Collegiate Snowsports Conference (SCCSC), S.W.A.T., and Transworld Snowboarding will be in attendance, ensuring College Night rocks to its fullest potential.

Hookups include:

 Awesome giveaways like a four day S.W.A.T. snowboard trip and passes to live tapings of The Daily Habit on FUEL TV.

• Discounted subscriptions and giveaways from Transworld Snowboarding.
• A chance to preview FUEL TV's new snowboard shows like "Snowboard Diaries" and "Flipside".
• Special college discounts and giveaways from Active.
• Hookups and party photos from ForUs.
• Event coverage from BNQT, FUEL TV, and Transworld.

 Join crews of kids from dozens of college campuses and bring your friends for a rocking college party on College Night at Mountain High. Check out mthigh.com/college for details.

 Mountain High is bringing a rocking college party to the mountains this winter with its brand new program, College Night at Mountain High. College Night at Mountain High is a series of three Thursday night parties created for Southern California college students and will take place from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Dec. 11, 2008, Feb. 12, and March 12.  

"After talking with local collegiate ski and snowboard teams, we realized the need for a series of events that would bring Southern California colleges together on the mountain," said Laura Johnson, Marketing Manager at Mountain High. "The idea received really strong support from the industry and we're excited to be working with an awesome collection of partners."

 College Night will take place at the Bullwheel Bar & Grill at Mountain High's West Resort and will feature live DJs, $1 hot dogs, $20 night lift tickets (with college ID), and hookups from a collection of industry partners. Active Ride Shop, BNQT, ForUs Magazine, FUEL TV, Southern California Collegiate Snowsports Conference (SCCSC), S.W.A.T., and Transworld Snowboarding will be in attendance, ensuring College Night rocks to its fullest potential.

Hookups include:

 Awesome giveaways like a four day S.W.A.T. snowboard trip and passes to live tapings of The Daily Habit on FUEL TV.

• Discounted subscriptions and giveaways from Transworld Snowboarding.
• A chance to preview FUEL TV's new snowboard shows like "Snowboard Diaries" and "Flipside".
• Special college discounts and giveaways from Active.
• Hookups and party photos from ForUs.
• Event coverage from BNQT, FUEL TV, and Transworld.

 Join crews of kids from dozens of college campuses and bring your friends for a rocking college party on College Night at Mountain High. Check out mthigh.com/college for details.

Continuing the tradition of offering the longest ski season in Utah, Snowbird Ski Resort opened Friday, Nov. 7. This year's opening marks the second earliest start to a season in the resort's 38-year history. 

"This storm and the subsequent lake effect have provided a timely blanket of snow in Little Cottonwood Canyon," said Snowbird President Bob Bonar. "Skiing early season powder is a great way to kick off the season."

 More than 3 feet of snow has fallen in November, and cold temperatures have allowed snow guns to operate, adding to the already impressive early season snow totals.  Last year, Snowbird received 611 inches of  snow and had a 183-day season with skiing and riding from Nov. 30 to June 22.  

Snowbird is offering an early season ticket price of $62 and chair passes will be honored to access the Tram until additional terrain opens. Early season lodging packages are currently available starting at $99/night through much of December.

 Snowbird, along with neighboring Alta, was recently named the No. 1 ski destination in North America by Outside Magazine. Recent area improvements include renovations of the Tram Club and the Aerie Sushi Bar, located on the top floor of the Cliff Lodge. Kids 12 and under will ski free at Snowbird for 2008-09 with all lodging packages booked through Snowbird Central Reservations or www.snowbird.com. Snowbird's Mountain School has also added new pre-season pricing to its private lesson offering.

 

Heavenly Mountain Resort (www.skiheavenly.com) began making snow last night - signaling that the Lake Tahoe snowsports season is just days away if temperatures continue to cooperate.

The West Coast's largest snowmaking system, combined with recent storms that have dropped another five inches of new snow on Heavenly's slopes, gives the resort's guests confidence that they will be skiing and riding on the best snow surfaces in Tahoe on Heavenly's opening day, scheduled for Friday, Nov. 21. 

Under optimum conditions, Heavenly can cover 73 percent of its trails in machine-made snow, by far the most in the Lake Tahoe basin. In more visual terms, Heavenly can produce three-and-a-half feet of snow over one acre in an hour.

 That's enough snow to blanket a football field with eight-and-a-half feet during an average three-hour game. 

"It's comforting to know that when it's cold, we have snow," said John Wagnon, Heavenly's vice president of marketing and sales. "Our guests can be confident that come opening day they'll be skiing and riding on the best and most consistent snow surface at Lake Tahoe." 

With cold temperatures finally upon us, Heavenly officials felt it was time to give Mother Nature a helping hand by laying down a base of snow for the winter. For this season Heavenly's snowmaking has been expanded to include Stagecoach run; covering an additional eight acres of terrain with snowmaking. 

 "Snowmaking is really all about putting down a solid product skiers and riders can depend on from the get-go," said Jim Larmore, Heavenly's director of snow surfaces. "This system is so efficient; it packs more punch than all the other snowmaking systems in the Tahoe basin combined." 

Heavenly has begun making snow at the top of the Gondola, on Orion and upper Comet, two of its signature runs on the Nevada side. 

For information on booking a snowsports vacation package or purchasing a Heavenly season pass, or to monitor the snowmaking process via Heavenly's web cams, visit www.skiheavenly.com.

The wait is over.  Mammoth Mountain opened for the 2008/09 season today.  Broadway Express began running at 9 a.m. with a base of 6-12 inches of natural and manmade snow.

Mammoth Mountain is once again the first resort to open in California.  The recent storm left more snow at higher elevations and we anticipate opening more terrain later in the week.

Special early season ticket prices are:
$52 for adults
$39 for teens
$26 for children and seniors
Main Lodge ticket windows will be open at 8:30 a.m. this morning and lifts are scheduled to run until 4 p.m.
 
All other services will be open in the Main Lodge including Broadway Marketplace, and Rental and Repair shops.

Please remember that obstacles do exist so always ride with caution. 

Loveland Ski Area, 53 miles west of Denver, will open for the season on Wednesday, Oct. 15.  The ski area began making snow on Sept. 24, but warm weather forced a stoppage until the temperatures cooled again on Oct. 4. 

 

"Our crew has been working hard to make sure we could take advantage of every opportunity to make snow over the last couple of weeks," said Manager Eric Johnstone.  "It finally paid off and we will start the lifts tomorrow with an 18-inch base and tree to tree coverage."

 

Skiers and snowboarders will have access to a top to bottom run consisting of 1,000 vertical feet via Chair 1.  The trails Catwalk, Mambo and Homerun make up this opening day run which is over a mile in length. 

 

"The start of the ski season is always an exciting time," said Rob Goodell, Director of Business Operations.  "We are opening a little bit earlier than anyone expected, but the mountain is ready and we are proud to offer the quality coverage our opening day skiers and riders have come to expect from Loveland."

 

Loveland's regular hours are Monday through Friday, 9 a.m.  to 4 p.m. and 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. on weekends and designated holidays.  Early season lift tickets are $44 for adults and $21 for children ages 6-14. 

Visit www.skiloveland.com for snow conditions, live web cams and info.

And so it begins, here is the forecast for Big Sky, Montana. If you've ever skied at this great mountain, you know how exciting it is to see the snow fly:

Today: Snow flurries and snow showers. High 39F. Winds ENE at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of snow 50%. A slushy accumulation of less than one inch.

Tonight: Cloudy with snow showers this evening and steady snow likely after midnight. Low around 20F. Winds NE at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of snow 70%. 1 to 3 inches of snow expected.

Tomorrow: Snow likely. Cold. High 29F. Winds NE at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of snow 70%. Snow accumulating 5 to 8 inches.

Tomorrow night: Periods of snow. Low 17F. Winds NE at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of snow 70%. Significant snow accumulation possible.

Saturday: Snow. Highs in the upper 20s and lows in the mid teens.

Sunday: Chance of a few snow showers. Highs in the upper 20s and lows in the low teens.

Monday: Partly cloudy. Highs in the upper 30s and lows in the low 20s.

To help offset added airline fees, Vail Resorts is offering a "Baggage Bailout" for skiers and snowboarders staying at Vail, Beaver Creek, Breckenridge, Keystone and Heavenly this winter. Guests will receive a $50 credit when they book at least a four-day, four-night ski or snowboard vacation by Dec. 1 through Vail Resorts at (866) 949-2573.  

 

"At Vail Resorts, we have decided to help carry the load for our guests by addressing airline baggage fees," said Rob Katz, chief executive officer for Vail Resorts.

To qualify for a "Baggage Bailout," guests must call Vail Resorts Reservations at (866) 949-2573 and book four or more nights of lodging at any lodging property at one of the Company's five mountain resorts and buy at least four days of adult lift tickets by Dec. 1 (for travel this ski season through April 20, 2008). Vail Resorts Reservations offers one-stop shopping on an entire winter mountain vacation for guests including airline reservations, ground transfers, lodging, lift tickets, ski school lessons and other activities.

Most airlines charge extra fees for almost all luggage now. Just think what they'll charge for your skiis and snowboards on flights to ski destinations.

The solution: forget the excess baggage fees and use the money to sample a variety of cutting edge demo equipment on the next trip to the slopes by opting for the convenience of www.rentskis.com. 

For the past few years, www.rentskis.com has offered top-of-the-line demo equipment onsite while providing an appealing alternative to dragging equipment through busy airports, from distant satellite parking lots, and across icy pavement. 

Skiers and riders can reserve their equipment in advance and their gear is ready and waiting at one of the dozens of major resorts in the western United States.

Renters select their equipment and then find the shop closest to their lodging.  Gear, including boots, can be reserved either online at www.rentskis.com or toll free at 800-544-6648.  Once they arrive at the resort, they simply go to the shop to sign their paperwork and get their reserved equipment fitted before heading out the door.

With many locations in Colorado, California, Utah, and the Rocky Mountain states, skiers and riders can now simplify their winter vacation.  Travelocity, Expedia, MountainReservations, Orbitz, Ski.com, and Skireport.com all use rentskis.com as their preferred equipment provider. 

Most shops are slopeside for maximum convenience with additional locations in a variety of mountain communities as well as at metropolitan ski shops in Denver, Salt Lake City and San Francisco. 

Rates vary on time of season and location. For every set of adult performance or demo equipment rented, a junior (age 12 or younger) gets a free rental for the same number of days at selected stores during non-peak periods.  Renters even have a guarantee--if the equipment isn't satisfactory, they receive a refund for that day's rental and can exchange their board(s) for another set-up.

Options range from the Sport Package for beginners through intermediates with rates ranging from $15-$47/day, the Performance Package for intermediate to advanced skiers with prices ranging from $18- $52/day, and Demos for the most cutting-edge equipment including popular skis from K2 and the most sought after models from Rossignol, Salomon, Volkl, and Dynastar ranging in price from $26 - $62/day. 

Advance reservations receive up to 20 percent off the regular, walk-in daily price so advance planning can save some cash.  Snowboarders can choose from Burton's entire line including their innovative Learn to Ride equipment or the selection from Salomon and Ride.