Belleayre Mountain Improvements 2014

Belleayre-LogoThere’s a nice list of Belleayre Mountain improvements that are getting attention at ORDA’s new ski area in Pine Hill NY.

Snowmaking and Grooming

The biggest news is the “zoning” of Belleayre’s snowmaking system. Before this season in order to blow snow anywhere on the hill snowmakers were required to charge or pressurize the entire system. Now the system can be sectioned off allowing ops to be much more flexible and cost effective.

In addition Belleayre has added a new electric Cameron Turbo Air 3000 compressor and 25 new Sky Giant flanged heads for snowguns. Coupled together these two improvements will allow the use of high efficiency guns at the top of the mountain.

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Magic Mountain Man: Matt Cote

Magic LogoMagic Mountain seems like our kind of place: an underdog known for its tree skiing that is getting by on natural snow, great terrain, and the dedication of an extremely loyal following.

We caught up with the man who could be its most dedicated fan to find out what makes Magic special.  What follows is our interview with Matt Cote, Magic’s man of steel.


When did you start skiing?

I grew up just outside Springfield, MA. On a trip to Berkshire East, my guide put me on rental snowlerbladez (I think in hindsight they wanted me dead). It was icy, really icy.

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Gore Mountain Improvements: Summer 2014

Recently we had the chance to see the progress that’s been made on Gore’s big summer project: the replacement of the Adirondack Express.  What impressed us was the amount of work that’s required to complete a job of this size.

Gore Mountain improvements: new lift installation

The original lift required twenty-eight towers to cover the 7000 foot expanse from Gore’s base to the saddle on Bear Mountain. The new express will require twenty free-standing lift towers to do the same.

Each one of those twenty towers will sit on a deep footing that will rest below grade on a surface that was blasted out of bedrock. Within each of these craters a form is being built that will contain the rebar, concrete and bolt configuration needed to hold up the massive towers.

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