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Ober Update Sunday, January
20, 2008
Tuesday, January 9, 2007 ~ 1:00 PM
Saturday, December 29, 2007 The warm temperatures this week and the rain yesterday have forced us to close the slopes temporarily. The forecast for early next week looks very favorable and we're hoping to re-open the slopes on Wednesday, January 2nd. Happy New Year! Sunday, December 22, 2007 - 9:15pm We started the snow guns about an hour ago and will continue making snow as long as temperatures permit. This morning we had to close Mogul Run due to lack of snow on the right side and upper Bear Run due to lack of snow on the "pig trail" leading from Bear Run to the top of the red lift (Castle Run and Cub Way). We hope to re-open these trails after another good night of snowmaking. Think cold! Monday, December 17, 2007 – 6:30pm We made a couple feet of snow the week of December 3rd, but lost it all with the warm temps and the ˝” + of rain that Sunday, and then the 70°+ degrees last week were depressing to say the least! We started making snow about 10am Sunday morning and the snow guns have been running continuously despite the fluctuations in temperature (up and down from 32° - 19°) and humidity (from 27% - 83%). Optimal snowmaking requires low temperatures and low humidity; we’ve encountered low temps with high humidity and high temps with low humidity, however with our variety of new snow guns/machines we’ve been able to compensate for these variations and keep making snow. Mother Nature’s recent rainfalls have filled our holding ponds so we have sufficient water to make snow. We anticipate opening the slopes around noon on Wednesday – the Ski School area, Castle Run, Cub Way, Mogul Ridge and the upper half of Bear Run…the surface lift and 2 quads running with over 50% of the mountain open – a first for opening day at Ober Gatlinburg! Come on out and enjoy the beginning of our ski season!
Kathy Doyle ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 12/6/07 ~ Letter from Ober's President ~ New for the 2007/08 Ski Season I want to let you know about several improvements we’ve made for the 2007-08 Ski Season. 1) We’ve leased four air compressors for an additional 6,000 CFM (cubic feet per minute) for snowmaking. This should allow us to open more slopes more quickly than in the past. 2) We have purchased an additional Bombardier snow grooming vehicle to replace an old LMC. This groomer is much more powerful and can move more snow than previously possible. We now have two of these machines so will be able to groom the slopes faster and more thoroughly. 3) We have replaced our underground water line from the top of the Black Lift all the way down to the bottom of Grizzly (about a half mile of pipe). This new pipe will increase our snowmaking capacity on Ober Chute and Grizzly. 4) We’ve acquired four new “stick” type snow guns. These snow guns are purported to permit more snowmaking at warmer temperatures. 5) We increased our water capacity for snowmaking by dredging one of our storage ponds for an approximate 12 million gallons total capacity. Making and keeping snow in this part of the country is an on-going challenge. We have spent more than $2 million on snowmaking improvements in the past several years with additional snow guns, compressors, pumps and water storage. We have also re-graded parts of several slopes, and improved slope drainage. Ober will continue to upgrade all aspects of our winter operations as we strive to provide the best skiing and boarding experience. Now we’re looking forward to plenty of cold temperatures so we can put these improvements to good use. Have a great season! Cy Anders
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Ober Gatlinburg Ski Resort &
Amusement Park ~ 1001 Parkway ~ Gatlinburg TN, 37738 ~ (865) 436-5423 |
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