Killington Ski Resort

Killington Mountain Resort & Ski Area
View from the top of Killington Peak (4,241 feet (1,293 m))
Location	Killington, Vermont, US
Nearest city	Rutland
Coordinates	43°37′33″N 72°47′52″W
Vertical	3,050 ft (957 m)
Top elevation	4,241 ft (1,293 m)
Base elevation	1,165 ft (355 m)
Skiable area	752 acres (469 ha)
Runs	141
Longest run	6.2 mi (9.9 km)
Lift system	22 lifts: 2 Gondolas, 5 express quads, 4 quads, 4 triples, 2 doubles, 5 surface lifts
Lift capacity	37,535/hr
Snowfall	250 inches
Snowmaking	71%
Web site	Killington Mountain Resort and Ski Area

Killington Mountain Resort & Ski Area is a ski resort near Killington, Vermont. It is the largest ski area in the Eastern United States, and has the largest vertical in New England as well at 3050 feet.

History

In 1954, Perry H. Merrill, the Father of Vermont's State Parks and Alpine Ski Areas and Vermont State land lease officer, wanted to see a ski resort developed on Killington Peak, the second highest mountain in Vermont. He found Preston Leete Smith who shared the vision. They agreed to work together to develop this area. Killington opened December 13, 1958.

In the 1960s the resort continued to expand at a pace "well above industry standards." Many new trails were created and Smith had beginner trails accessible from every lift. In the 1960s, Killington installed snowmaking equipment, which had been invented in the 1950s, but considered a banana belt luxury. Several low-snow seasons proved their value.

Killington introduced the ticket wicket in 1963 to prevent skiers sharing lift tickets, while also not damaging ski clothing.

Ownership

date	owner	notes
December 1958	Sherburne Corporation	initial development
November 1984	S-K-I Limited	stands for Sherburne-Killington- Investments, a reorganization of Sherburne for stock issue
February 1996	American Skiing Company	originally LBO Resort Enterprises Corporation
May 11, 2007	Powdr Corporation and SP Land Company	Park City-based Powdr Corporation is the operator; SP Land Company will do real estate development, including a ski village, probably beginning in 2009. SP Land is an affiliate of Ski Partners LLC, which is in turn affiliated with E2M Partners LLC, a private equity fund. SP Land was formed in 2004 and acquired most of the developable land at the base of the resort.

Powdr has announced that it will stop honoring "lifetime" lift passes issued by the previous owners after two years. A class action lawsuit was filed on behalf of about 800 pass holders.

Skiing Killington

Located in central Vermont, Killington has 141 trails and 22 lifts, extending across six interconnected mountain peaks. A seventh, Pico Mountain, was purchased by Killington in 1996, but currently operates as a separate resort. There have been plans to connect Killington and Pico with a series of lifts and trails since 1998, but this has not yet happened.

The main peak, Killington Peak (4,241 ft (1,293 m)), is the second highest in Vermont and has the second greatest vertical drop in the east (3,050 ft (930 m)) after Whiteface Mountain in Wilmington, New York (at 3,430 ft (1,050 m)).

The mountains that make up the Killington resort separate the town of Killington (with its access road) from the city of Rutland.

Trails

View of Bear Mountain base from the top of Outer Limits, the steepest mogul run in New England

The resort offers a variety of trails from beginner to expert. Trails include "Outer Limits" a double black diamond mogul trail that is the steepest mogul run in all of New England. The longest trail in the east is the 6.2-mile (9.9 km) "Juggernaut". Part of the mountain is set aside for terrain parks, with five snowboard and alpine parks. Killington has a teaching area for first-time skiers, the "Accelerated Learning Area".

Killington has one of the east's largest half-pipes located at Bear Mountain for a portion of each winter season. Additionally, there is lengthy boarder cross terrain and at least three to five major trails with ramps and jumps.

Mountains

A sign pointing to Devil's Fiddle and Outer Limits, some of the steepest trails at Killington

• Snowshed: A section on the mountain devoted to beginners, Snowshed is serviced by three lifts. It is an open slope, with a lodge and restaurant at the bottom. The adult ski school is located at Snowshed. Most condos and the Grand Hotel are located at the bottom of Snowshed.

• Ramshead: Ramshead has beginner and intermediate trails serviced by an express quad lift. The Ski School for children and teenagers is located at Ramshead base lodge. "Squeeze Play" is a glade trail with wide gaps between trees, ideal for learning glade skiing.

The ski school is split into four groups: the First Tracks program for 1-3 years olds, the Ministars for 4-7 year olds, Superstars for 8-12 year olds, and the Snowzone program for 14-18 year olds.

• Snowdon Mountain: Snowdon provides a variety of beginner, intermediate and expert trails. Among the trails are Conclusion, a double black diamond and Great Northern, a beginner trail. There are two chairlifts (a triple from K-1 and a quad from end of Caper) and a Poma. Trails for advanced skiers include Great Bear and North Star.
• Killington Peak: Part of Killington Peak, the "Canyon Area", is the steepest part of the mountain. There are many double black diamond trails including Cascade, Downdraft, Double Dipper, and the Big Dipper Glade. It is serviced by the K-1 gondola and the Canyon Quad. Two shorter runs here include Rime and Reason, accessible from the North Ridge Triple chair. Easier trails (Great Eastern and Great Northern) connect to the rest of the mountain. There is a restaurant and lodge at the summit and base of Killington Peak. The peak was once accessible by the original Killington gondola (once the only gondola on the mountain). The original gondola base station was located at exactly the same location as the current Skyeship loading station, just off of U.S. Route 4, and had three stages, while the Skyeship, erected in 1994, has two. The original third stage ran from Skye Peak to Killington peak - the structure housing the original unloading station is still intact and visible at the peak, and houses the peak's restaurant. The K-1 gondola was built soon after to replace the Killington peak chairlift.

A view of the North Ridge area of Killington Peak in 2002

• Skye Peak: All types of terrain. Trails include Ovation, a black forming into a double black when it becomes Lower Ovation, the steepest trail on the mountain, and Superstar, a black diamond that is wide and has lots of artificial snow. There are trails for beginners and intermediate skiers. It is serviced by the Superstar Express Quad, the Skye Peak Express Quad, and the Skyeship Express Gondola.

View of Snowshed base, Killington Grand Hotel, and other hotels/condos along East Mountain Road, from Skye Peak

• Bear Mountain: Home to Outer Limits, a very steep double black diamond mogul run, and Devil's Fiddle, another double black diamond (although Devil's Fiddle is infrequently open due to sheer ice and rock cover). Bear Mountain also features many terrain parks, including a superpipe. It is serviced by one lifts and has a lodge and restaurant. Bear Mountain also frequently hosts large scale competitive racing and freestyle events.

Bear Mountain

• Sunrise Mountain: Sunrise Mountain is serviced by one lift and is all beginner terrain. It was developed in the early 1980s, but due to its relatively low elevation, the lower portions of Sunrise had difficulty maintaining snow cover, so they were removed from the trail system. The triple chair, which originally extended further downhill to the southern corner of US-4 and VT-100 in W. Bridgewater, was shortened, and the "Northeast Passage" entrance to Killington ceased to exist in the late 1990s. Lift towers still stand below the existing chairlift. Another reason for the demise of the larger Sunrise Mtn. area was its intended use that did not come to fruition. Killington originally opened Sunrise with the intent of expanding skiing trails and lifts southeast into an area known as Parker's Gore. When these plans were halted due to concerns for bear habitat, Sunrise lost its purpose as a base area to access this terrain, and the costs of snowmaking and maintaining terrain at such a low elevation were not justified by the few skiers utilizing it.

Pico Mountain

Main article: Pico Mountain

Pico Mountain is located on a separate mountain, Pico Peak, away from the main resort. It has 50 trails covering 17 miles (27 km), all serviced by 6 lifts. Popular runs include: The Pike, 49er, Summit Glades, Upper KA, Giant Killer, and Sunset 71. There are hotels, condos, restaurants at the base. It is inaccessible from the main base, except by car or bus. Pico was once an independent ski resort called Pico Peak, and was bought out of bankruptcy by Killington in the mid-1990s. Lift tickets at Killington are valid at Pico. There have been plans to connect Pico to the main Killington resort since it was purchased. Connector trails have been cut; however, the more expensive lift and snowmaking systems that would make such a connection possible have not been installed as of 2010, and many of the building permits for this expansion have expired.

Snow

Killington averages 250 inches (6.4 m) of natural snow each winter. That, coupled with a snowmaking system that covers 71% of the trails, has allowed Killington to offer what is often the longest skiing season in eastern North America, typically lasting from October to May.

Lodging and dining

Killington Grand Hotel, as seen from Snowshed base

There are approximately 120 inns, lodges and condos at Killington, with more than 40 restaurants, pubs, taverns, clubs and hotel dining rooms. The Killington Grand Hotel is accessible by foot from the Snowshed Base area, and is the Killington Resort's flagship luxury hotel. The mountain's summit has an indoor restaurant.

Mountain statistics

The base elevation is 1,165 (325 m). The vertical drop is 3050 feet (930 m).

The following mountains are part of the ski area:

• Summit elevation (Killington Peak) 4,241 ft (1,291 m)
• Pico Peak 3,967 ft (1,189 m)
• Skye Peak 3,800 ft (1,158 m)
• Ramshead Peak 3,610 ft (1,100 m)
• Snowdon Peak 3,592 ft (1,095 m)
• Bear Mountain 3,295 ft (1,004 m)
• Sunrise Mountain 2,456 ft (749 m)

Trails

• 191 trails

• Easier 28 %
• More Difficult 33%
• Most Difficult: 39%

• 71 miles of trail

Lifts

Interior of Skyeship Gondola

• 22 Lifts

• gondolas: 2 currently operating (Original Killington Gondola dismantled in 1993, and replaced with Skyeship)
• quadruples: 9 (5 are high speed)
• triples: 4
• doubles: 2
• surface: 5

Long ski season

Killington had a reputation for being the first ski area every season in the Eastern United States to open, as well as the last to close, although this has changed in recent years. On October 25, 2002, after 41 consecutive years of being the first ski area in the east to open, a small ski area in Connecticut called Woodbury Ski Area opened a very small amount of terrain before Killington could open, thus ending the streak. The resort in the past packed up to 30 feet (9.1 m) of man-made snow each year on Superstar (a single black diamond run on the North side of Skye Peak), but under the recent ownership of ASC snowmaking has been reduced.^{[citation needed]}

In recent years the length of the season has begun to shorten, even though Killington has received normal amounts of snow. For example, in the 15 years between 1986 and 2001, the resort opened in October in every year but one, and never closed earlier than May 21. But in the last five years, opening day has always been in November, and closing day has never made it past May 6.

Summer

Killington has 45 miles (72 km) of hiking and mountain biking trails. Killington Peak has a gondola lift. There is an 18-hole championship golf course. At Pico, there are alpine slides, mini golf, wall climbing, and horseback riding.

External links

• Killington Mountain - official site
• Killington - NewEnglandSkiHistory.com - history and photos