And with those thoughts, deeply philosophical questions begin to emerge in the young man's head, such as: "Can I eke one more season out of this board that's a core shot away from becoming deck furniture?"; "What's the Old Farmer's Almanac predict about the snowfall amounts this winter?"; "Is it perhaps time to replace these capilene longjohns with a new set that's less, shall we say, 'stinky?' "
(Yes, the young man really does ponder these questions and the voice in his head sounds disturbingly like Daniel Stern's voiceover in The Wonder Years.)
But eventually, the Ultimate Question arises from the murky depths of the collective wintery unconscious: Where am I getting a pass this winter?
Today, we look at the 2009/10 season pass prices for two northern Vermont favorites, Stowe and Sugarbush. After a little digging online, I found the following prices for restriction-free season passes (i.e., you're allowed to celebrate the Great Emancipator on the slopes) at both resorts.
Stowe: $1452.00
Sugarbush: 1149.00
At a glance, these prices reflect the historic disparity between Stowe and Sugarbush: Stowe's somewhat more expensive. Note that these prices are for passes purchased prior to 10/30/09 (Stowe) and 9/17/09 (Sugarbush) – so you've got an extra month and a half to make that $300 extra bucks you need for the Stowe pass.
Now, Snowblind! is not about to get into a subjective discussion of the relative merits of either resort. I've held passes at both (though not at the same time) and I like them both. A lot. Both Stowe and Sugarbush offer a passel of perks (discounts on lessons, services, stores, etc.) some of which might appeal to you, or might not. The Sugarbush Adult All Mountain-7 pass does include a season's pass for one child under the age of 12 – Stowe has a separate pass that does this for an additional $405 (though it's for kids ages 18 and under). As you can see, when you get into the details it starts getting confusing.
Next up: Jay Peak and Smugglers Notch
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