Unfortunately, Killington has been seeing heavy rainfall today (1-2 inches predicted) and temperatures of 49 degrees today.  Hopefully this will turn to snow late tonight and snow-making is scheduled to resume on the mountain.

We’ll have to see how the resort base holds up.  We’ll keep you updated…

As the ski season fast approaches, we wanted to let everyone know that we still have some space available in Snowdaze, our Killington Ski Share House.

A ski share is a great way to take advantage of the winter season.  If you’re not familiar with a ski share, it is basically a way to have access to a house throughout the season.  You share the house with various other young professionals from the New York, Boston, Vermont and Connecticut areas.  Our group ranges from the late 20s to the early 40s, is a mix of skiers and snowboarders, and is about 70/30 singles to couples.  Most people do not know each other before the season and a lot of people join on their own.  It’s a great chance to make some new friends and we’ve even had a few marriages too!

In addition to that, with access to a house, you can get a lot more skiing or snowboarding in for the season. Plus, it’s also very economical – the nightly price is probably the cheapest way to stay on the mountain, many people carpool, and we often cook dinners rather than going out.

The house is just off the main Killington access road and less than 2 miles to the slopes, so we have location, location, location!

Email info@snowdaze.com for more info.  Hope to see you this season.

Intrawest, a large resort operator that runs Stratton, Mountain Creek, Whistler, and several others, has issued new helmet rules for the 2009-2010 ski season.

Intrawest is recommending that all skiers and snowboarders visiting their resorts wear helmets and have made it mandatory for anyone under 17 to wear a helmet while participating in their Ski and Snowboard School Programs, as well as for all students participating in freestyle terrain park programs, regardless of their age.  Previously, there had been an “opt-out clause” allowing parents to waive the right for children to wear a helmet, but that now has been removed.

Starting in the 2010-2011 season, Intrawest will join Vail in requiring all on-mountain employees to wear helmets.  They will also be placing an increased focus on showing helmets on skiers and snowboarders in visuals for their web sites and advertising.

“Intrawest is working in conjunction with the ski industry to establish important best practices on behalf of our resort guests and employees,” said Bill Jensen, chief executive officer at Intrawest. “Together, we have established a new baseline for helmet use at our resorts that has received strong support from the NSAA and CWSAA. We will continue to work with all of the ski industry associations in the United States and Canada to raise awareness of this important initiative and the obligation of everyone to ski and ride in a controlled and responsible manner.”

We think it’s a positive step that will help to prevent a lot of injuries and one that will catch on at other resorts as well. Killington does not currently require helmets for any mountain activities.

Welcome to the first edition of our summary of weekly Killington news.  Every week we’ll bring you a quick round up the latest news and updates that have been happening in the Killington area. Be sure to send us anything that you would like to have included!

- Best of the best: Killington Brewfest 2009 hosts Vermont brewers at the height of their craft [Rutland Herald]
Small batch brews, many made in Vermont, will abound at the 14th Annual Killington Brewfest, and some traditional favorites will return. More then 20 craft breweries are attending this year’s event.

- Killington moves to buy land for event tent [Rutland Herald]
Killington took a step toward buying the Fireside Lodge property at 1128 Killington Road. The town hopes to use the land for an entertainment venue. Also visit the town’s web site for the press release and FAQ to get more details.

- Troubled Water [Rutland Herald]
The owner of a public water system that supplies drinking water for 180 people and 39 homes in Killington has been fined $12,000 by the Vermont Agency of Natural Resources for violating more than a dozen state standards for water monitoring.

- Killington Posts Winter Preview and First Snowfall Videos [YouTube]
Killington Resort posts video of the first snowfall of the season and their winter preview video which should really help to get you excited for the season.

We’ve all dreamt about being a snow bum and spending the season skiing or riding, but unfortunately for most of us, a little thing called work gets in the way.  Well, Sun Peaks Resort in British Columbia, Canada wants to change all that.

They’re running the “I Want to be a Snow Bum“ contest and the winner gets to spend three months being a snow bum at Sun Peaks.  This includes around $5000 cash, transportation, free lift tickets, housing, ski gear, ski or board equipment, and more. The only catch is that you have to ski or ride, go to special events (wine festival, terrain park activities, etc), blog, Tweet, post videos to YouTube and update Facebook with your daily escapades.  Ok, so it’s not really a catch, since most of you probably do this already, now you’re going to be doing it as part of your job, not sneaking around behind your boss’ back.

To enter, you have to create a 1 minute video, upload it to YouTube, and fill out an entry form on their site.  All entries must be received before November 15, 2009, so you’d better get moving.

Killington, want to start a similar contest? I’m sure you’d have people lining up to apply.