Monday, February 28, 2011

School Day or Snow Day

well for Ft Dodge and Paton Churdan it was both for a bunch of students. A day of school.......on the snow.......

....at Seven Oaks, after everyone is fitted with equipment the students are given a lesson and then must to our instructors satisfaction demonstrate they can turn by sking thru the orange cone and coming to a stop at the bottom.........then their ticket is marked which gives them permission to use the lift and the bigger trails........seems to work well and it is great to see so many learn a new sport for life........

.....been getting a lot of favorable comments via email and facebook from a lot of you remarking on the condition and volume of snow on our trails........thanks......it has been a test of all we know to keep it looking like that........here are a few pics from today.......

Sunday, February 27, 2011

Pics from two weeks ago

had some pics from two weeks ago that I never got posted.......sorry to those that have been looking for their family on here.......but we got er done!

had a good Late Nite ski last night.......and yesterday was a good day too........several groups here today and tonight..........Spring Spash with Pond Skim is next Friday night........see you there........snow is holding up surprisingly well considering all we went thru weatherwise the past two weeks........not as good as we had most of the season but still skiable......






Saturday, February 26, 2011

We helped the flurries

It started dropping snowflakes last night about 5:30 or 6.......and remained steady flurries all night......no real big accumulation from the sky but started making everything white anyway.....so.......we helped it by getting snowmaking running by 9:30 pm last night and shut off this morning at 6 am so we could get the guns moved and get everything groomed for today......

......conditions were good yesterday and will be even better today........should be a great day to be on the slopes........

......I thought to myself as the final passes in the snowcat were being made moments ago what a HUGE contrast from last Sunday with the warm temps and rain and fog.......to transistion to how awesome the trails are today after making snow, pushing out reserves, getting some snow from the sky and grooming the livin daylights out of all the snow.........

......I would say snow tubing is down for the count for the rest of the season barring about a 12 inch snowfall from the sky........which probably isn't going to happen based on the forecast.......but then again the high school basketball tournaments are coming up and several years ago you could count on a major blizzard during those events........

.....based on everybody's forecast that we spent a LOT of time reviewing yesterday, the decision was made to move the Spring Splash ......complete with Pond Skim......to next Friday night.......high temps for the day was forecast to be in the 40's.........wait.......there's more......now everybody is calling for temps to be in the upper 20's next friday........go figure.......

....but Pond Skim we will next Friday night..........should be fun........

.....our ONLY Seven Oaks Late Nite is tonite from 9:30 pm to 1:00 am.........are you going to be here?

....see you on the slopes......

Friday, February 25, 2011

Libby loves Seven Oaks

this photo taken last Saturday night kinda says it all............she is from Chicagoland........

.......her eight year old brother Cole didn't catch on Friday night and was NOT happy about it....in fact he gave up..........but Saturday he decided to give it another try.....with his dad........so I hooked him up with instructor Bob E. and lo and behold Cole was skiing and didn't want to stop when we were closing. Skiing Abbys Alley and Carters Crossing time after time.......always with a smile on his face. It was a wonderful heartwarming experience........for me anyway..........and Cole is now a huge fan of Bob's too......

....... a big Thanks to Bob for his willingness and patience to help this little man learn a sport for life........

....ready to open for a school at 9 this morning.......then reopen at 4 pm as normal........trails ended up pretty darned good last night after grooming a big part of yesterday.........three of the staff rode all the trails while we were grooming and gave us a thumbs up...........

.....talking snow this evening til midnight........that will be a good thing.........we will groom after we close tonight.......

see you this weekend.......the countdown has began..........

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

A couple pics




Here are a couple shots taken before we shutdown snowmaking yesterday......Tuesday.......morning as the temps rose to a point we couldn't make snow. Also could not get on last night with mild temps.......time will tell if we get to make more before friday........some though are calling for snow Friday into Saturday........
....we will groom everything and push out piles on Thursday........stay tuned...........




Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Made Snow

It got cold enough yesterday - Monday - that we got the guns on at 4:30 pm and made snow all night long til about 9:30 am this morning. Concentrated on Abbys Alley...........and top of Freeway.......and load at Valley View Chairlift...........but quite a bit drifted into the RailYard......as there was a pretty stiff west and then northwest wind.......

....we'll make snow this week whenever the temps allow...........also see there is some snow in the forecast for Thursday.........

.....we'll remain closed today, Wednesday and Thursday............

......have a school on site Friday morning and we will be open Friday at 4 pm til normal 9 pm close..........

.......I will try to get some pics posted............the only thing closed is Tubing and the top of Drop Zone...........

.....and it looks like it will stay pretty cold for a while..........except for tomorrow..........

......looks better than it did a week ago!

...happy birthday grand daughter.......love you.......

Sunday, February 20, 2011

Let's look forward to next weekend

Well it certainly has been a crazy ride this week with the weather and the fight to maintain conditions for all of you that came to Seven Oaks.......but we were successful thru Saturday.......but then Sunday we did have to close and we have also decided to stay closed Monday......Presidents Day........darn it........

.....the temps are supposed to get closer to normal and we will make snow every hour this week that the temps permit........and we can all hope we get some snow as predicted........

......the intent is to open friday night at 4 pm............open Saturday......have the Late Nite Saturday night.....and be open Sunday.........to end the month of February..........

......keep checking back.........blog, voice messages, home page of our web for continued progress and status updates.......

.....thanks and I will close with telling you I am considering another sacrafice to the Snow God so we can ski into March!

Mother Nature can't read!

.........cause if Mother Nature could read, she would have seen my blog entry of rain rain go away.....come again some other day.........but rain is what we got this morning in the wee hours......even had some thunder at 4 am this morning........so...........

......Seven Oaks will have to remain closed today, SUNDAY, February 20............but..........

.......we will get on the snow and groom tonight when the temps fall...........push out some more of our reserve snow piles to cover the thin spots..........rebuild the load and unload ramps at the chair lifts.........with the intent of being open Monday February 21 for Presidents Day.........10 am to 6 pm..........

......and the forecasted temps would look like we will be making snow starting Monday night........and hopefully the next three or four nights.........

......see you soon.......

Saturday, February 19, 2011

First......sorry I didn't blog yesterday......we were running hard.......but on to today......


.....here is a quick pic of James and Carrie who drove up from Kansas City this morning to ride at Seven Oaks......and they were kind enough to stop long enough that I could get a quick pic.......thanks..........and yep, as you can see......we have snow.......


......had a very well attended and cool Rail Jam last night.......I think it ended up having 48 contestants in the Rail Yard.........Ken and Nick did a great job getting the approaches to all the features tuned up yesterday morning and installed a couple new features for the event......


......rain rain go away........come again some other day........like April 12th or May 9th........or whatever.........so we like you are watching the weather for tonight.......time will tell if we get any rain versus sleet.......I would take the sleet.........if I had a choice......


......THE PLAN.........well here is the plan if it is possible to put a plan together with these swings in weather we have had for about 8 or 9 days..........looks like it will be cold enough at Seven Oaks to make snow Monday night, Tuesday night and Wednesday night........and we will do just that if the forecast is correct........and everyone is watching the forecast as next Friday gets closer by the hour as most are calling for SNOW covering the state.......hope so........would be nice for our scheduled Late Nite next Saturday night....February 26......


......the high temps on Wednesday and Thursday of last week did melt enough that we were not comfortable trying to open tubing for this weekend.......but we will try to get it operational for NEXT weekend.......I will keep you posted........


.....regardless of what the final weather turns out to be.......get your trip to Seven Oaks soon as we normally don't stay open much past the first weekend of March........

Thursday, February 17, 2011

Forecast Change

During these radical weather times, I track the predictions of four weather stations and without exception, all four have changed their forecast for this weekend starting Sunday by dropping their daytime highs by anywhere from 10 to 20 degrees lower than they were all saying yesterday...........thank goodness........who do you trust?

We did decide to remain closed today as we know the snow will survive the 60 or 70 degree temps better if it is not being skied..........and once again I am glad we have all north face slopes.............

All the trails are still covered this morning despite the strong south winds, increasing temps thru the night and never seeing close to the freezing mark yesterday......here is the plan......

Tonight when we see the lowest temps we will have.......whenever that is.........and whatever the lowest temp is.........some say 30 degrees and others say it will be higher..........we are going to get on the snow with both cats and get snow to the unload ramps so they can be rebuilt tomorrow morning....... we will push snow from the reserves to cover any weak spots....... and we will groom. When we open tomorrow at 10 am it should look pretty darned good for you.........

.....now a couple pics......from this past weekend......





......we have a lot of people take advantage of our birthday parties........and while this young lady didn't do that........her husband brought her to Seven Oaks Saturday to celebrate her birthday.......I know the number but won't share it with you........and surprised her by having her parents and his parents and siblings from Omaha already in the lodge.......


Happy Birthday..........and we will hope to see you on the slopes tomorrow.......

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Got Snow?? We Do !!

Yep, the temps for this time of year are crazy.......and we have been asked a lot as to how close we are to the end of the season at Seven Oaks ........don't know that.......but do know this......Joel did a partial groom last night after it froze in preparation for this mornings school group from South Hamilton.........and there is a lot of snow on the trails as I write this.


We are confident that the temps will NOT cause us to close this weekend. We are open tonight (Wednesday).......CLOSED tomorrow night - THURSDAY FEB. 17 - THE REALLY WARM DAY.........then open Friday and Friday night with the Rail Jam and another school here Friday night........and a lot of groups coming Saturday. Here is a pic taken at 3:45 pm today........like ten minutes ago.......



...........with all that said......we will not lose our snow before this weekend........temps are going to be cooler on Friday and into the weekend......so we feel as though we will ski through the weekend.........


.......crazy isn't it.........here it is February 16 and we are having this discussion......


.......thanks for his pic Darci.......very cool.......





.....thanks for this pic Elizabeth.....and thanks for coming to Seven Oaks........


Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Slow melt

Today is predicted to be warmer than Monday and Wednesday is a little warmer yet and finally Thursday is to be the warmest day of the week...........but we are confident that we will still have snow. We did NOT groom Sunday night, nor Monday, nor today.....as we wanted the snow to remain hard for the warm spell.........but tonight after the sun sets and the freeze in the valley is upon us we will groom for tomorrow's school group. With these changing temps it is quite the game we play deciding "to groom or not to groom" and if it is to groom then it becomes when to groom and how deep should we set the tiller......but we are normally right..........no ........I should have said Joel is normally right with his decision.

So this week we have a school tomorrow. Another school on friday. Open early for the final time this season on friday from 10 am to 9 pm for ski and snowboard. Live music in the lodge Friday night. Armed Forces Days starting Friday and ending Monday. And a niece with her family from Chicago coming Friday night for the weekend and another niece from DSM coming with her family on Sunday.

enjoy a few more pics from this weekend......

see you tomorrow night at 4........

Monday, February 14, 2011

It was a busy weekend.....

Here it is.......Monday, Valentines Day already......(oh, by the way, did I mention that I celebrated my 40th wedding anniversary a couple weeks ago with my valentine?).....back to my original thought.........time to reflect on this past weekend for a moment.......which was awesome. The sunshine and temps were unbelievable which gave reason to a lot of you that had not played on the snow yet this winter to spend some time at Seven Oaks. Met so many new people from all over the state and beyond........it was great.

My sister and her husband and one of their grand daughters came to visit Sunday.....had a good visit......don't seem to see much of my brother in law for the past several months since I retired from the factory life so it was good to catch up on things with him. He and I actually shared an apartment back in the 1800's..........well it was a long time ago anyway.

Many are wondering if this rise in temps means we are done for the season.........well we don't think so. We have so much snow on the trails ........even after the warm weekend that we should make it fine. And our objective would be to blow more snow when we can.........when the temps drop low enough at night........putting a little fresh stuff out there for you........so stay tuned. Some are calling for another snow event this weekend some time.
I will admit it is nice to have north facing slopes so we don't get the brunt of the sun in late winter. It was interesting yesterday to see how much and how many of the trails were in the shade even when the sun was a couple hours from setting........
Here are a couple more pics from the weekend.



see you on the slopes soon.......

Sunday, February 13, 2011

Spring conditions today...




Yesterday was a full house taking advantage of the weather...lots of visitors from the Omaha area enjoyed the day.........and again today.......some pics for you....or of you .......

Saturday, February 12, 2011

And I thought yesterday was beautiful

........and it was.........well so is today...........and a lot of people think like I do cause we are rockin today. Just too gorgeous to pass it up.........sunshine, 40 degrees and lots of white snow.

.......we continue to get those comments we love to hear.........here is an email from last night.......


"Today was my first time skiing at Seven Oaks. Actually, it was my first time to ski (or attempt to). I just want to tell you that I had a great time and it was all due to the staff at Seven Oaks. EVERYONE was so patient, helpful and friendly. Thank You for a wonderful time. I will definietly recommend Seven Oaks to others!!" from Pat.

.......Thanks Pat for taking the time to send the email and for chosing Seven Oaks. We know you have options and we appreciate you coming here.



Tonight should also be awesome on the snow........

Friday, February 11, 2011

Another incredible day today

Today while a little overcast was a super day to be on the snow. Had a few flurries on more than one occasion. Never got much if any above freezing so the snow is all just fine. Parking got a little wet but is already firming up with the sunset bringing cooler temps. Three families from the KC area spent last night and today on the slopes. Great people.

Have a live music in the lodge tonight. First time they have performed here. Also have about 80 high school students here from Roland Story........some tubing only but most are on skis and snowboards.

I gotta believe that based on the forecast for this weekend, both Saturday and Sunday will be awesome. We still don't think with the warmer temps that we will be in trouble keeping enough snow to stay open. Time will tell I guess. Once again when you partner with Mother Nature, anything is possible.

A couple pics taken moments ago as the sun was setting for the day.......


Monday, February 7, 2011

Mark Your Calendars With These Events

  • Wednesday, February 9 - live music in the lodge at 5:30 pm with Keifer, Scott & Franky
  • Friday, February 11 - special hours from 10 am to 9 pm for ski and snowboard; tubing from 4 to 9 pm and live music in the lodge by "Strong Like Bear"
  • Friday, February 18 - special hours from 10 am to 9 pm for ski and snowboard; tubing from 4 to 9 pm and live music in the lodge by Sweet Tater TeRonde
  • Friday, February 18 - Rail Jam - warm ups from 6 - 8 pm & final competition 8 - 10 pm (more info later)
  • Friday, February 18 - Armed Forces Days - discounts to Armed Forces personnel & their families
  • Saturday, February 19 - Armed Forces Days - discounts to Armed Forces personnel & their families
  • Sunday, February 20 - Armed Forces Days - discounts to Armed Forces personnel & their families
  • Monday, February 21 - Armed Forces Days - discounts to Armed Forces personnel & their families
  • Monday, February 21 - Presidents Day Holiday Hours 10 am to 6 pm
  • Saturday, February 26 - Late Nite with Seven Oaks - 9:30 pm to 1:00 am
  • Sunday, March 6 - Spring Splash from 11 am to 5 pm which includes the Annual Pond Skim

Sunday, February 6, 2011

32 Degrees North, South, East, West

No matter from what direction you travel from today, it looks like the temp will be 32 degrees at Seven Oaks........and there is light snow this morning.......it actually started at 12:30 am this morning .......right after the groomers were parked.......

.....and.....we will have live music in the lodge this Wednesday night at 5:30 pm provided by Keifer, Scott & Franky........another bonus to you in addition to the $10 lift tickets.......and free shuttle from Ames if you live there........
.....yesterday was an absolute perfect day to be on the slopes.......at Seven Oaks.......

Saturday, February 5, 2011

33 degrees

The forecast today is 33 ........with snow flurries......looks like it will be a great day outdoors.......here.......

......a few more pics from a couple days ago... do you know any of these riders and skiers? .......are you in a pic? .....
.


Friday, February 4, 2011

OMG - It is a Beautiful Day

Opened at 10 am today for public and have Carroll Schools here with a big group......perfect weather........close at 9 pm tonight........and it is Family Four Pack night too.....
......Greg sent us this photo of his five year old son Ben getting a snowboard lesson from instructor Nick last Sunday......thanks for sharing Greg.....

.........a few pics from last weekend


.....instructor John P with a student last weekend.......


.....we'll try to get a pic of you next time.......be ready.......

Thursday, February 3, 2011

GOAL

I like the acronym I recently saw for the word GOAL.......which is Get Outside And Live........certainly fits what Seven Oaks is all about........

.....there was some question as to whether we should open last night or not, and obviously the answer was yes.......we are a ski area.........and glad we did with so many coming to ski and ride......

......Joel said he got a lot of favorable comments regarding the two new hits built on Willet's Way.....

.....also wanted to share this email received yesterday........I did shorten it a bit.........thanks for the nice comments........

"I wanted to let you know that we had a great time at Seven Oaks this past Friday. It was our first time there and it was wonderful. None of our 4 kids had ever skied before but they can’t wait to come again. The staff was absolutely wonderful. Activities like this are typically not common with a family our size due to the cost.
I specifically wanted to sing the praises of John Perry too. He spent some time with my son, teaching him how to snowboard. Joel is 6 and John was very kind, gentle and encouraging with him. I’m sure you know this already but John is a true asset to your organization. Please pass along my gratitude to him." Thanks Dave

Tuesday, February 1, 2011

Winter Feels Great

I know, my title might be questionable by some today, tonight and even tomorrow, but in general terms winter does feel great. It is especially great if you are outdoors getting some fresh air and some exercise instead of staying cooped up indoors and getting the winter blahs.

With that said, the winds are predicted to be pretty stiff tomorrow and the temps are going to plummet, so do a double check Wednesday to see if we are open before you venture out.

But the forecast for the rest of this week and weekend after Wednesday looks pretty sweet.....especially Friday thru Sunday...........with some more snow in the Monday forecast.......

Joel did a full groom to capture most of the new snow last night and a little worked in before the wind took it to Missouri. As of moments ago Seven Oaks had received another 3 inches since the snowfall started yesterday.
It is my guess that when we do groom before we open we will try to do a middle of the run only, leaving as much powder for everyone to play in as is possible.

And, when Joel was in the cat last night, he went ahead and built two new jumps on Willet's Way for you to enjoy when we open again.

Here are a couple more pics from Sunday.




see you soon..........