Seven Oaks Recreation Blog

Today

2012-01-28T19:03:00.008-06:00

A lot of folks enjoyed the snow and weather at Seven Oaks today. Here are a few of them that did ............

Tomorrow is going to be another good day.........don't miss it!

And the survey said........

2012-01-21T19:24:00.002-06:00

We want to know your favorite feature in the terrain park today.........leave a comment......

1. The hit (jump)
2. 40 ft rail
3. Battleship
4. The pipe
5. The barrel

I will post your comments.......if they are nice..........

We just keep makin SNOW

2012-01-21T13:04:00.002-06:00

Well we did end up with somewhere between and inch to an inch and a half of snow from the sky Thursday night/early Friday morning...........but you know us..........we weren't satisfied so we made more yesterday..........and have four guns running today.

The objective is to make the Drop Zone wider, so we are running three guns on the east side of the groomed snow............and we have one gun running on the west side of the Freeway at the top........to get it wider as well.

Probably push all the new snow tonight after we close.......then do a full groom.

Today is certainly colder than what we have seen as typical so far this winter...........but there is virtually no wind...........just a little breeze from the east.............so everyone is spending a lot of time on the trails and not so much time in the lodge.

Had five employees come in a little early today to perform some tricks on the boards and skis as Spencer filmed them. He will be putting together a clip of the shots very soon. I was IMPRESSED with the talent these guys demonstrated this morning. Very cool.

Open til 9 tonight.............we are 100% open.............

Oh...My....Gosh

2012-01-18T21:47:00.002-06:00

With the snow made Monday night, Tuesday, Tuesday night and this morning...........the hills were alive with white.........and it groomed up sooo beautiful today. Kenzies Korner is now open with a new hit on Willet's Way, a new jump was built in the park and the 40 ft rail was installed in the park as well............and oh, the upper access from Abbys to the Rail Yard was opened too.

....and now they are saying we could get an inch or so tonite and as much as five inches friday.............and we are making more snow tonite too...........

It's gonna be a great place to be starting tomorrow.............

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

Gracie Celebrated 11th Birthday

2012-01-15T15:10:00.008-06:00

Gracie celebrated her 11th birthday yesterday with friends at Seven Oaks (she is the one in the light pink).

First everyone got to meet the gang in the Rental Dept as they got their boots ...........

Making sure the snowboard boots are a good fit....

......and we help get them laced up correctly the first time..........

Group photo with all the gear and now time for a free lesson..............

And now we are on the snow and have learned a new sport for life......

Happy Birthday Gracie and thanks for celebrating it at Seven Oaks!

SNOW TUBING IS OPEN

2012-01-15T10:26:00.002-06:00

Hoooooooray...............the tubing park is open for day one today. Started with snowmaking Tuesday, I think it was..........and made continuously there til Saturday morning. Pushed the snow to get it level yesterday...........then Joel built the lanes while Bob and Steve and Anthony and Kris and Ken built the load and unload ramps............

.........then we groomed the trails...........

Beautiful warm day with sunshine here today...............some more cold and some more snow headed our way for next week............

See you on the slopes...........

Snowmaking continues

2012-01-12T21:35:00.002-06:00

We have now been blowing snow for the last 26 hours with our system maxed out. With the winds so far a lot of the trails have had a fresh coat. Emphasis continues to be on getting snow tubing covered. Still our target to have it open Sunday afternoon............stay tuned for more updates as we progress. It takes a LOT of snow over there to get everything covered and to get the lanes built. Some progress was made on Kenzies Korner but it will NOT be open Friday. More on that later too.

Forecast looks good. Tomorrow night and this weekend looks great.

Snow Report

2012-01-11T09:54:00.002-06:00

As I am sure you have seen........we are finally supposed to get some snow from the sky today.......maybe just over an inch........we will see..........we will take it whatever we get. Talking to an old guy........yep, older than me.........the other day and he said in all his years he has never seen a winter as snow free and as warm as this one..........like I have said so many times this year......it is crazy isn't it.........

.......I am not a big believer in global warming theories, and here is why. In the grand scheme of things, keeping track of highs and lows and precipitation for the last 100 years just isn't a very long record when compared to the age of the earth........I am not convinced that the weather cycles don't encompass two or three hundred year cycles for repeating weather.......so we possibly haven't even see in our life times or even in the time we humans have kept records the repeat of a cycle yet. Who knows..........

.....What I do know is that the cold front coming through starting today is going to get us into snow making temperatures starting tonight and every night for the next seven days......or more......and it looks like Thursday and Friday during the day will also be snowmaking temps.......

........so, we are going to give a lot of gun time to snow tubing during this stretch..........while the other guns are going to be moved from place to place to get more depth on ski runs that are already open..........and we are going to get more snow on the corner of Abbys Alley so we can get the upper access gate to the Drop Zone from Abby's opened up........

.......that only leaves Kenzies Korner and the upper half of Drop Zone to cover........with a good chance based on the forecast of getting those areas hit towards the end of the week........

......I also know this.......that in spite of the goofy weather, we have maintained good to great ski conditions with temps ideal for skiing and riding with no fear of frostbite...........if you didn't enjoy it, you might have missed some of the best of the season.............

.......however.......even with the cold front coming today.......this weekend's temps look great and with sunshine too.........

......starting next week we begin a big string of school groups on the slopes........that's always fun......especially introducing a person to a sport for life.........

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

2012 NSPS Refresher

2012-01-08T13:21:00.011-06:00

Sunday, January 8.......today.......was/is our annual refresher for the NSPS. Twenty seven Ski Patrol volunteers assembled for their refresher courses in CPR, chairlift evacuation and toboggan......

First was breakfast in the lodge.......

Then it was a little classroom time..........
After classroom, half the group went into CPR training ......

....and the other half started with chairlift evacuation.....

Then the two groups switched places.......

When that was done, everyone was assembled for a quick group photo......

After a noon break, it was time for the on-the-hill-toboggan refresher.......which is still in process this afternoon..........

......we have never had to do a chair evacuation, nor have we had to perform CPR......but it is great that we have trained people to assist, should the need arise!

Next time you are here, thank a patroller for what they do........

WOI TV Web said it so Good!

2012-01-08T11:59:00.003-06:00

This taken from the WOI TV web site on their weather page......."January days without wind is a rare thing. Add temperatures in the mid 40s for highs and you've got a heck of a weekend and that's exactly what we've got on tap."

.....and that's exactly what we've got on tap at Seven Oaks today........which was also the case yesterday.......but that's gone.........today is now........

.......snow groomed perfect last night.........

.....our National Ski Patrol had their CPR refresher, and the chairlift evacuation refresher this morning.........now they are doing their on the hill refresher.........pics to follow........

Sieze the day.....

2012-01-07T18:16:00.003-06:00

Great day today.......

Don't miss another good one tomorrow............

These folks siezed the day.......

I know it is difficult to comprehend when there isn't and hasn't been any snow at your house........but we DO have SNOW and tomorrow is going to be sweet to be riding it........

Short and Sweet

2012-01-04T18:31:00.001-06:00

New snow made awesome conditions

Central Park ski trail is OPEN

Sweet jump built in the park today

Missing you

Pictures

2012-01-03T10:19:00.006-06:00

Started with the snowmaking Sunday night, all night Sunday night, all day on Monday, continuing through Monday night, and still on this Tuesday morning.........

All trails have fresh snow.........and there is enough to open Central Park.........

...........in the one photo of the terrain park you can barely see the box...........it has about 2 to 3 feet of new snow on both sides......

.....open Wednesday at 4 pm.......

Tough but Good

2012-01-02T12:03:00.002-06:00

We talked yesterday on several occasions and finally made the tough call to close today............why you ask?........well, the temps dropped last night and we got the snowmaking system fired up at 7:30 last night............all guns on at 9 pm and by midnight everything was running maximum water.............which is the case right now.......still running maximum at noon.

.....so we decided to give up being open today to make snow uninterrupted all day..........

.....every trail we have had open is getting a fresh blanket of snow.............and we think that after running last night, all day today and all night tonight........we will also get a kicker made in the terrain park and get Central Park opened for the first time this season...............

........it has truly been a wild winter, but know we are doing everything we can to give you the best possible conditions and most trails to ride............

Wednesday night should be sweet conditions for ski and snowboard.........

......have a safe one........

It's Gonna Get COLD for a while.......

2011-12-31T09:53:00.002-06:00

Just checked the weather forecast from four different sites and while they aren't the same......never are........they do all show that we will be cooling down a bit starting tomorrow, New Years Day........in fact, cold enough that we should be able to get some more new snow made at least three nights.........finally.........FINALLY...........

.....snow got soft yesterday but all the trails are in good shape........we pushed snow from 9 pm til 11:30 pm last night in the areas that were rutted and thin..........then went to bed until 3:30 am when we cranked up the cats and did a full groom.........finishing at 6:30 this morning..........then back to bed for a couple more hours of sleep............yawn.......

.....but the trails are lookin good this morning............so it's worth the sleep deprivation.......I think.......

......we open at 10 this morning and have the Family Friendly New Years Eve party tonight til 11 pm..........obviously no snow tubing today or tonight.........but you can ski and/or snowboard on a park pass tonight and have a slice of pizza or hotdog with a soft drink included in your lift ticket......and party favors just before we watch the NYC Times Square ball drop on the big screen in the lodge..........and yes, if you need a lesson we will offer those for free tonight as well.......

......Happy New Year! Come on 2012........give us some snow........

History Lesson

2011-12-30T10:28:00.003-06:00

Here is a little history lesson......recent history that is........you don't have to read it all but you will get a real good idea of what the lesson is just by giving these numbers a quick review.

50.....48.....39.....45.....47.......47.......39.......32......45.......33.....37.......53.......40......32.......39......52.....45......42
...41........

......those are the day time highs for Seven Oaks starting with yesterday and going backwards........pretty amazing isn't it?!

....What else is amazing is that we still have all the trails open that we got open over two weeks ago.......and have pretty decent ski conditions........spring like conditions today.........in spite of all these unusually high temps.......

......we talk to other ski resort owners and managers in the midwest.......some are a little better off than we are......but others have had a tougher time than we have.........a couple not open yet, some partially open.......very few completely open......not that misery loves company but it is reassuring that we are doing EVERYTHING possible to give our patrons the very best conditions we can give them........and that the only real problem is the temps we are getting.......

......so with all that said........we are still open.......we still have snow.......and we are ready for New Years Eve on Saturday.......

......hours today, Friday, are 10 am to 9 pm.........Saturday hours are 10 am to 11 pm........Sunday hours are 11 am to 8 pm.........Monday hours are 10 am to 6 pm.........Tuesday we are closed and then start the regular season days open and hours........

.....I am going to go grab some french fries.........talk to you again soon.......

Snow Update

2011-12-28T09:06:00.003-06:00

We continue to have warmer than normal temperatures........both during the day and night.........but we still have great ski conditions on the seven of eleven trails that are open. We are really close to having enough snow to open Central Park...........my guess is that it will happen the first of the week...........but maybe sooner.

Temps did drop enough at 6 pm last night that we were able to have seven snow guns running til about 8 am this morning.........not a lot of volume but snow none the less. In the areas we chose to set the guns we covered a pretty sizable area with about six inches of fresh snow. Our strategy was to get some more snow on trails that are already open to ensure we didn't have issues the next four days when we are forecasted to see temps in the mid forties.

With all that said, in spite of a goofy December we have been open every day that we were scheduled to be open and have offered really good conditions..........and most important...........a lot of you have came to Seven Oaks to ski and snowboard...........some for their first time ever............and even though I am not a big fan of these temps........it sure has made very comfortable conditions for everyone........

We will be open from 10 am to 6 pm today, Wednesday and again on Thursday. Friday's hours are from 10 am to 9 pm...........

Snow tubing is NOT off our radar........we will get snow there asap............maybe next week...........but like you, we will have to wait and see..........

Looking forward to our Second Family Friendly New Years Eve Party Saturday night.......hope you can be here...

Be safe........

Christmas Break is HERE!

2011-12-26T09:29:00.005-06:00

Here it is already Monday, December 26............hope everyone had a Merry Christmas........and we open today from 10 am to 6 pm.............same hours for Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday this week as well............

Friday we are open from 10 am to 9 pm...........Saturday is New Years Eve and we open regular hours from 10 am to 9 pm .........but.........since it is New Years Eve..........we will be having our family friendly party until 11 pm...........you can find all the details on our web site............

Sunday hours are 11 am to 8 pm..........

No snow tubing yet..........no snow there yet..........but we have 7 of 11 trails covered with snow for those that ski and snowboard...........includes the terrain park open too..........

Here are a couple pics taken this morning...........moments ago.......it's going to be too warm to make snow today..........BUT NOT TOO WARM TO PLAY ON THE SNOW THAT ALREADY EXISTS! Let's have some fun..........

More trails open

2011-12-23T17:59:00.002-06:00

After making a lot of fantastic snow yesterday, last night and this morning, we got the lower half of Drop Zone open today with features set, the first half of Willett's Way open and Elwoods Hideout open.

It's coming together..........

A little help from the sky would help!

Merry Christmas

What a difference 2 degrees can make

2011-12-22T13:04:00.002-06:00

We saw temps drop first thing this morning so we got all the guns going at 10 am and they are still going as I post..........but.......can they stay on all afternoon?........if the temps raise a couple more degrees we will have to shut them off til they drop again..........but for right now we are throttled back but making snow. Temps are supposed to drop into the teens tonight so it should be good snowmaking.

Open at 4 pm today. Had the Ogden Middle School here today and had a good group here last nite too.

Gotta run to Minnesota to get some snow cat parts...........

see you tonite............oh yeah, we open friday (tomorrow) from 10 am to 9 pm.........what a good way to start Christmas break........

Elwood's and Christmas is close!

2011-12-20T23:25:00.002-06:00

With the snow that was made last night, Elwood's Hideout is close to having enough snow to open. We will be making more snow tonight..........which should be enough to open it. Mother nature hasn't been all that cooperative this year so far..........but we are gettting there.........one snowflake at a time.

......And Christmas is only four days away. If you are looking for that last minute gift or a stocking stuffer you might want a Seven Oaks gift certificate or one of our Seven Oaks hoodies, long sleeve T's or a beanie..........

.......We open at 4 pm Wednesday night..........

Merry Christmas

I can't believe it.....

2011-12-18T15:38:00.002-06:00

"I can't believe it" was the comment I heard a LOT yesterday and today from people who came to play when they saw the amount of snow on the trails. Yep, it is kinda hard to believe after the tropical weather pattern but we do have a bunch out there.

Derek told me that we needed more snow. I replied that we would partner up.........he was responsible for getting the cold temps and I would be responsible for making the snow........wish it was that easy.

Small but still nice crowds yesterday and again today. Steve.........head snow makin guy........is coming to the office in a while to strategize with Joel on where to set the guns for the first night of snowmaking. Still looks like Monday night.........that's tomorrow.......we should be able to make snow flakes by the thousands........

Went to the Community Methodist Church Christmas Cantada in Ogden this morning before we opened. They did a really nice job. One grand daughter was in the youth choir at the end and she/they did a great job too. Sure can put you in the Christmas spirit........

....We open Wednesday and Thursday of the coming week at 4 pm for ski and snowboard......see you then........

Until then........

Amazing

2011-12-17T10:35:00.003-06:00

I know I am biased but I really think it is amazing that we have as much snow as we do, have as many trails open as we do and can access both chairlifts............in spite of the 55 degree days with over one inch of RAIN last week! The snow got rode pretty hard last night so the grooming after we closed was awesome. We did yesterday get a loop of snow opened below Central Park and Elwood's Hideout........with three features in it. Then last night Ken and Nick with help of others got the pipe set..........which will give you a little air......

Finally the forecast looks decent for making snow after this weekend..........which is going to be pretty warm...........won't hurt the snow one bit.........will make for great sking and riding today and again tomorrow. Would appear the first we could get snowmaking turned on again is Monday night.........but EVERY night next week looks like it will be cold enough.

I think two good nights of snowmaking will let us open Elwoods, Willet's Way and Central Park from top to bottom..........and let us get the lower half of the Drop Zone open.........which is where we will relocate all the features........

If all goes well, that is the plan.........Push all the snow made Monday night and Tuesday night on Wednesday morning...........and be ready to open next week on Wednesday at 4 pm.

We'll keep you posted............Merry Christmas!

Groomed and ready for tonight!

2011-12-16T11:24:00.004-06:00

Open at 4 pm today. With these pics I don't think I have to say anymore......see you this weekend!

Rain has moved out east to make our neighbors mad now

2011-12-15T15:11:00.002-06:00

Finally, the system with all that Gulf moisture has left our state and moved on east. A friend told me last Saturday that none of the ski areas in the state of New York had been able to open yet..........warm temps and rain........so for us to get open last weekend........the same weekend as the past three years........wasn't so bad........

........all the trails have been groomed twice this morning. Snow guns are all set and ready to fire tonight as soon as the temps drop low enough. Not sure it will get cold enough to go 100% wide open but just to get on again will be GOOD........

.......then we plan to push out the snow on the bottom half of the Drop Zone, Elwoods Hideout and Central Park......and set some more features...........even though the upper half of each trail may not have enough snow to get open.........but you can bet we are trying...........

......at least there is no more hurtful days in the immediate forecast..........

......such is life...........such is Iowa........

see you on the slopes tomorrow night...........

Neither you nor I.........

2011-12-13T07:58:00.002-06:00

Those of us that like winter sports, don't particularly like the forecast for the next couple of days............but clearly there is nothing we can do about it but wait and watch............

.......looks like we are not going to avoid the rain but as of now it does look like it will be heavier rainfall south of us........good........

.......as much as anything, these warm temps are keeping us from making more snow............we are so close to getting the lower half of Drop Zone open and so close to getting Elwoods Hideout and Central Park open too..........

.........what I see is snow making should be possible Thursday night and Friday night............

.......so hang in there with us and we will all wait and see what exactly happens..........and know that we are poised to get the guns on just as soon as we can............

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

It's Saturday Morning - Day 2

2011-12-10T11:47:00.002-06:00

Last night was a great opening day. Lot of people anxious to get on the snow again......and they did just that! It was cold but it didn't seem to bother anyone.

We continued to make snow last night and after we closed, in addition to grooming everything, we got Freeway OPEN.......and at noon today we will have both chairlifts running.

One more good night of snow making and we will have Elwoods open and maybe Central Park too. We also got a great start on making snow in the lower half of the Drop Zone.......which will allow us to put more features out.......and get some jumps built.

Once that is all done we will hit the snow tubing park.....

Ken set the pipe last night on the bend of Abbys Alley and it is getting used a bunch......also have three rails out on the lower end of Carters Crossing.

It is a beautiful day for riding and skiing........hope you can make it out.

We are open!!! Here we go 2011-2012 !

2011-12-09T16:36:00.002-06:00

Thank goodness the temps dropped and we got open on schedule just moments ago. Made a lot of snow since Sunday night. Abbys Alley, Carters Crossing and the School Yard are open. We have enough snow made today to open Freeway tomorrow. Have a couple rails set for tonite. We are also making snow on the lower half of Drop Zone so we can get some features and jumps in there. Also making snow tonight on Elwoods Hideout........

See you soon.........

Keepin on keepin on

2011-12-06T16:42:00.002-06:00

Yep, we are keepin all the snowmaking on.........the snow guns are still gunning snow.........cool.......will start the pushing and grooming early tomorrow morning.

Are you coming to ride this Friday night or Saturday??

It's paying off.......

2011-12-05T21:39:00.002-06:00

Building another pond, going thru each snow gun with a fine toothed comb and investing in a newly rebuilt pump has allowed us to really crank out the snow since we turned on yesterday afternoon. As of 3:30 pm today we have gone 24 straight hours at full throttle..........with no let up for the next 24 hours...........and then it still looks like we will go at least another 12 hours.............awesome...........and we haven't even come close to running out of water..........

........it does appear however that I will delay my first day in the snow cat from what I originally thought would be tomorrow.........Tuesday........til Wednesday morning.............

.......gonna let the guns pound on school yard, carters crossing and abbys all night tonight so we are deep on those three runs............then move to the freeway.............

.......I don't know if we can have the Freeway open Friday night or not.............but there is a shot.........and we are going for it............

..........so who is going to make it out Friday night?????? leave me your comments.............

........this Saturday and Sunday look like highs in the thirties.........but snowmaking temps at night..............let's go.........

tic toc tic toc...........getting close to opening day

2011-12-04T13:04:00.002-06:00

If you are into snow and into riding and into skiing...........then you gotta like the forecast with the falling temps that start in earnest tonight. Finally going to get some 24, no make that 36 or more continuous hours of snow making........

.............. Really getting pumped about spending some hours in the snow cat on Tuesday, getting the snow leveled out on the SchoolYard and Abbys Alley........I love the process.......it is truly one of my most favorite things to do.

The heavy snow yesterday was to our northwest............the heavy rain was to our southeast............so we are OKAY with it all.............lost a little of our snow but not a show stopper at all!

see you on the slopes in a short five more days!!

Friday morning update

2011-12-02T08:20:00.003-06:00

Guns got on about 9 pm last night and the temps continued to drop........we were at maximum capacity at 11 pm and still going strong now.......a lot of snow was made during the night.......the School yard and Abbys Alley are starting to knit together real nice...........about one more night and those two will be in pretty good shape............at least we will be able to get on them with the cats and get the snow leveled out to really know if we need more or not...........

.......then the plan is to move the guns to the Freeway........

......Friday after Five tonite.......with live music, food, cold beverages, good conversation........and the annual sacrifice of skis and snowboard to the snow god.....Ulr......and geez.......based on the forecast it looks like Ulr knows we are going to be doing it based on what is predicted for Saturday weather.......!!

......most of the new Seven Oaks clothing delivered yesterday so Austin will be on hand from 5 to 7 tonight in the sales office if you want to browse through them........

.......did you see the piece on the 10 pm KCCI news last night??........they called at about 4 pm and said they were on their way up to do an interview and shoot some footage in a half hour......and they were here in a half hour..........good update on our snow conditions for everyone........thanks KCCI........Patrick and Spencer for doing that........

we'll be posting to you again soon.........

This Morning.....

2011-11-30T13:57:00.003-06:00

Every snowflake is one step closer to opening day! Stay tuned........

Sunday nite and Tonite

2011-11-28T19:47:00.003-06:00

Quick update. Got to turn the snow guns on about 1 am this morning and run til the sun came up. Best snow was made the last couple hours when we dropped into the teens in the valley.

Tonite we got the guns on about 6:30 and hope the temps and especially the humidity drop as they are keeping us at about the lowest volume you can run right now and still be making snow. This isn't unusual for the end of November....marginal temps that rise and drop often accompanied by wide humidity swings as well. The guys just babysit the equipment all night long and adjust everything in response to changing temps, humidity and wind.......both speed and wind direction.

......tis the season.........

.....but the outlook appears to be in our favor with temps gradually dropping..

stay tuned..........and I will try to get some pics for the next post.........

Looks for sure.........

2011-11-27T10:25:00.002-06:00

........that we will be making snow tonight!! Every weather forecast I checked last night and again this morning would have the temps cold enough tonight to turn the guns on. In fact, when looking at the seven day forecast, the only night that might be too warm to make snow is Monday night. We will have to wait and see. Seems the forecast changes pretty often and the temps in the valley can be a little colder than in town. We are excited.

......Some more of the fence is being put up today, which is generally one of the last things to do before we open.

......I will try to keep everyone updated here on a regular basis from now til we open so you can make your plans accordingly. As ususal, we will focus on the School yard and Abby's Alley and open more trails from there as the snowmaking progresses.

Checked yesterday on the status of the Seven Oaks clothing and it should be on-site Thursday. More on this too as we get closer.

Tuesday night will be on-the-hill training for our new employees and a refresher for those that are returning. What a GREAT group we have on board again this year. Our team is awesome!!

Ready or not, here we go............and we are ready!!

.......See you on the slopes soon........

Oh Man!

2011-11-26T11:51:00.001-06:00

Getting excited here as the list of things to do get shorter and shorter ..........leaving only ...........MAKE SNOW. And the weather forecast finally looks like we are going to get going with earnest..........maybe this weekend.......nights only.......but still it will be great to get a string of nights in...........

......are you ready???? Have you tuned the skis, found your winter equipment, got your season pass??? There is still time but if you want to be among the first on the fresh snow, the clock is running.

The complete line of Seven Oaks clothing will be on site late this week. Austin did a good job with some new colors, new looks.......be sure to check it out. Might be the Christmas gift you were looking for.

Sorry this is short but gotta get back to the ISU vs OU game now....... Go clones!

It Is Started

2011-11-17T10:37:00.006-06:00

The snow making season officially got underway last night.

We turned on the guns at about 10 pm and ran til temps rose this morning at about 5:30 am. We know the immediate forecast is for temps that will not allow more snow to be made but we wanted to test the system. All the guns that were 100% tuned by Kris and the new/rebuilt snow making pump got tested.

The word is that the volume of water, the pressure of water and the snow making efficience from the guns were all MUCH, MUCH better than last season! Great news.

Got the winter season Seven Oaks clothing ordered and in fact it is being printed starting today. It will be on hand before opening day.......for those of you who want a Christmas gift.......or just can't wait to get the new colors.

Here are a couple pics from last night and one this morning after the sun was up.

I don't care who you are........ya gotta think that's cool......

At the top of Abby's Alley.......

Does this give you the bug???

We'll keep you posted on our progress of making MORE snow!! We need more cold nights......

It's getting closer

2011-11-11T16:49:00.003-06:00

The nights are definitely getting colder........more frost........a little lower temps for day time highs......and some snow falling from the sky........all signs that winter is getting a little closer.
And we are 99% ready to get into full swing for the ski, snow board and snowtube season.

Newly rebuilt pump that supplys our snowmaking water is installed and ready. The water lines have been flushed. All the snowguns have been completely gone thru with new nozzles installed. The snowmaking pond is filling. Both chairlifts are serviced. We are ordering new Seven Oaks winter clothing on Tuesday. Yep we are getting closer by the hour.

Last night was the night we interviewed all the applicants that had an interest in working at Seven Oaks this winter. What a great bunch of gals and guys. I estimate there were about 110 or 120 folks present for the presentation and interview process. We had a lot of local people and a lot of DMACC and ISU students as well........and a lot of them had experience working or instructing at other ski areas in the midwest during their high school years. Very cool.

And had a lot of our employees from last season on site as well. That's great!

I will try to now be much more regular with posts throughout the winter season......promise.

I got a feelin this winter is going to be a good one!!!

Playing in the dirt........Again

2011-09-21T13:58:00.008-06:00

Last week was fun.......got to play in the dirt again......this time converting the "borrow pit" that was created to get enough dirt for the unload of the Valley View chairlift into another holding pond for snow making water. By my calculations, this pond will hold enough water when filled to give us another full 24 hours of snowmaking up to even 48 hours. That is cool. That could mean earlier open. That could mean more trails open for first day. Any way you slice it, we like it. ......

........Here are a couple pics of the project as it was in process ............

.....Digging down to the clay that gives a good base for the pond and is good material to construct the dam.

It only took two days......

we'll have over a million gallons of additional water.........

and here is the trench that will hold the pipe used to drain the pond when we are ready for more snowmaking water........

Slip Sliding Away

2011-08-30T07:08:00.005-06:00

I have not posted for almost a month and the time has simply slid right by. Kris, Ken, Joel and Rick went to the MSAA (Midwest Ski Area Association) summer meetings and trade show in Wisconsin earlier in the month for four days of seminars and product show...........and lots of great conversation with others in the industry after dinner every night. We got back home about twelve hours before the Iowa State Fair started..............so we took turns manning the booth for those eleven days...........twelve hours a day..............and saw and spoke to a lot of you that took the time to stop and visit............and tell us your story about experiences at Seven Oaks.............thanks for that...........

Then with the State Fair done on Sunday night, and tearing down the booth on Monday...........we headed to Iowa State University on Wednesday to set up the booth in the Memorial Union so we could take part in the ISU Welcomefest.

All during this time the river couldn't be more perfect and the temps couldn't be more perfect for floating than it has been the entire month of August and still is today............and we have been busy with campers, bikers and a lot of paintball groups as well. And as you would expect, we have had a whole host of folks using the lodge for weddings and wedding receptions and class reunions and business meetings.

Save the date......Sunday, October 16......is our Annual Season Pass Sale and Swap.......

One last thought, it is great to have our friends home from their respective tours of duty overseas.........welcome home Dave and Mike and Jason.......and THANK YOU for serving!

A Quick Update

2011-08-01T13:38:00.003-06:00

Well, where do I start? The past couple of weeks have been busy with full service river floats....temps have been right there where they just beg everyone to come cool off in the water....and the river has been very steadily dropping to the point there are lots of sandbars to enjoy. Not sure when we will get more rain but there is still MORE than ENOUGH water for several more weeks to enjoy a river float......

....had another class reunion in the lodge last Saturday night and another one this coming Saturday night.......but before we get to next Saturday, we have a meeting in the lodge all day tomorrow and three churches from the town of Ogden are holding their ecumenical vacation bible school here all day Wednesday.......for the second year in a row.......

......last Monday we hosted a big company outing in the lodge all day with meals, refreshments and guest speakers......

.....paintball has been very busy even with the temps being what they have been.......and about five more groups have made reservations over the next ten days or so.......

.....have a cross country mountain bike race here Sunday, August 7.......

......several of us also leave Sunday night August 7 for the annual Midwest Ski Area Association Summer Meeting and Trade Show.......this year at Devils Head........near Madison Wisconsin......always a good time to visit and trade stories with others in the ski area business......and to learn what is new in the industry.........but don't worry.......we will have plenty of staff on site to take care of your river floats and paintball games while we are away.........

......get home just in time to open our booth at the Iowa State Fair on Thursday August 11.......stop and see us there too........we are in the same spot as we have been for the past ten years......on the north wall (west half) of the Varied Industries Building........we'll have some sign ups for chances to win some give aways...........

......a reminder to all that this Friday night is our August Friday after Five .........with Big G's Log Cabin BBQ providing the food........music by Billy Club from 7 pm to 10 pm........no cover charge......and the vintage tractor show on the lawn........with no admission fee.........so come on over and enjoy the evening with us........

.....Nick Dell, one of our avid snowboard instructors and all around good guy got his bus license so he can drive one of the shuttle buses for river floats...........but darned if he didn't blow the engine of one of the buses on his first weekend.......hah..........wasn't his fault but I can't resist putting the blame on him!!!!

......still plenty of time to get in some camping, paintball or river float this summer, even though a lot of schools start withing about two weeks or so......and the weather is sure cooperating now........

.......come see us soon

8 PM with Heat Index of 111 degrees

2011-07-18T19:00:00.003-06:00

........and I'm guessing that's why so many were on the river today. One of the few places to cool off on days like this. next several days look to be right there too............hot...........but then again it is summer in Iowa isn't it.

Having some conversations now on the rapidly approaching Iowa State Fair.............what our giveaways will be..........who will work the booth each day and night........when to set up........We are in the same location we've been in for the past eleven years............along the north wall in the varied industries building..........be sure to stop and say hello........

......have a class reunion in the lodge Saturday night...........first of three in a row..........then some more wedding receptions and a couple meetings mid week sprinkled in.........

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

Hot weather

2011-07-13T14:00:00.002-06:00

The forecast for the next several days is for highs in the mid 90"s.......so as you can guess the phone is going pretty wild with reservations.........this Saturday is not booked out but getting closer so don't delay in making your reservations........let the fun begin!

Finnnnnalllly it's SUMMER!

2011-07-07T07:43:00.002-06:00

It took a while for summer to really get here didn't it........and I hope I am not jinxing the weather by even posting this........probably not.......temps are up there where many like them for this time of year and the sunshine puts a whole new take on life for a lot of people........sure helps my attitude .........

I feel horrible for all the folks along the Missouri River........I go to Nebraska City to see family pretty regularly so I know the area along highway 2. Saw pics on facebook taken at that area and it's major flooding......ugly........we certainly had a belly full of the similar mess in 2008 and 2010 so we can appreciate what they feel on the west side of the state.......

Speaking of facebook.........make sure you check out the Seven Oaks giveaway that was posted yesterday..........who knows......YOU might be the winner........and it is pretty cool to read the comments others have posted and are posting.......

The Independence Day Holiday weekend was busy........all the routine fun on the river was in full force and the campground was busy too. Had a wedding anniversary in the lodge Monday the 4th and it sounds like it went well for them......

Had a paintball group on the books for today, had an online reservation for a group that wants to paintball this morning when we came in and I even answered the phone moments ago........which I never do.......and took another reservation for this evening...........must be paintball day.......

Working today on everything that needs done for the State Fair, which will be here before we know it........speaking of which.......I can not believe the number of schools that resume classes in mid August.........right in the middle of the fair...........and family vacations..........I don't get it!

All the ski trails and tubing hill got their first haircut of the season last friday night........sure looks different when everything gets mowed and it looks good too. Most of it got done friday night during our Friday After Five............had a good crowd here.......and Big G's BBQ did the meal ...........with a lot of compliments.........and had a good turnout of classic and vintage cars for the fourth annual car show .....thanks to our friends John and Sharon Tuttle for doing the organizing for the show...........

okay.........I better get to working more on the state fair stuff..........have a good one and be safe......remember the GOAL.........Get Outdoors And Live!

Mid June Busy Time

2011-06-17T11:34:00.004-06:00

When the temps increase this time of year so does the activity here. Paintball groups here yesterday, today, Saturday and Sunday. People floating on the river every day this week and this coming weekend is busy too. Wedding rehersal dinner in the lodge tonight and a large outdoor wedding with reception on site Saturday.

In the meantime we have finished the new barricades (posts and ropes) in the campground to keep vehicles from driving into the camp sites.......had to do it in our minds for safety........don't need some youngster having an accident with a vehicle........I am sure you agree. Our new camp host Josh is doing a good job too.

We have also been discussing what differentiates us from other things people can do with their discretionary time and money .......and came up with this short list.......do you agree?

We provide outdoor recreation

Guests are participants and not just spectators

Many of our activities are unique to Iowa

Our activities are a means to socializing

Our activities are mentally and physically healthy

Our activities are for a diverse age group

Our activities are beginner friendly

Many of our activities are a sport for life

We serve individuals, small groups and large groups

We are family owned and family operated

And I could have added but didn't cause so many do say this but often fall short........Seven Oaks is a very friendly team that will do everything possible to give our clients a memorable and favorable experience........and I really think we do just that as is expressed time after time from our clients that send us a written comment, an email or stop on their way out to praise one or more of our team members that in their opinion went above and beyond the call of duty.........and of course we like that!

......so as we are rapidly approaching July and August......our BUSIEST months for river floats, don't hesitate to make your reservation as soon as you know a date and how many watercraft you need so you won't hear us say "sorry we are sold out that day"..........seriously it does happen especially on Saturdays........

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

It was HOT

2011-06-09T08:39:00.002-06:00

Man, the temps did rise this week didn't they.....which had a lot of folks wanting to enjoy the cool river in order to combat some of the heat. We have had people floating every day this week and unlike the Missouri River, we have levels that continue to drop on the Des Moines River. Looks like we should see all the major sand bars exposed by this weekend at the rate the river is falling right now.

I am writing todays blog from Oskaloosa where it has been raining since 3 am this morning. Heard a couple of good rumbles about then so I got up to check the radar and saw it was headed our way down here. Looks like just a little tip of a cell caught Seven Oaks and that was confirmed in this morning's conversation that the rain was almost enough to get the concrete wet.

Speaking of HOT, I think Monday was the warmest it has been this year and warmer than any day we had last year.........so we utilized the day to set about 30 posts in the tent campground to define parking from camping. It was sooooo hot........you didn't have to do much to break into a good sweat.........and when you did physical labor like we were doing it sapped the energy quickly.......but we did hydrate frequently........ahhhhh..........cool water does quench the thirst.......

Tuesday we had a lot of canoes on the water when it was about as hot as Monday.........the paintball group that was scheduled to play cancelled and I couldn't blame them........I have to believe with the clothing most wear during paintball games would have made it pretty unbearable...........being on the river sounds a lot more refreshing.........so they rescheduled for a different day........

Had another company book the lodge for their meeting in July complete with two meals and break out snacks..........it continues to be a busy place..........if I remember correctly Friday night of this week is a wedding rehersal dinner in the lodge then on Saturday a different group is using the facilities for their wedding reception.......

I think it's going to be a great summer to do some full service floats with us. Get your family or friends together and book your date sooner than later so you don't hear us tell you that we are sold out.........okay........and remember it's always more fun with family and friends........

See you soon........

Let the Summer Begin!

2011-06-01T11:08:00.005-06:00

As the temps increase for the summer so does the activity here. We will be floating again this weekend and the phone is getting active...........it certainly is nice to see the eight day forecast for day time temps all in the mid to upper eighties........it seems like it has been a long time coming.

Of course last summer really didn't happen with the non stop rains and persistent flooding. What a mess. Glad it is nothing but a distant memory now.

Have our annual Jimmy Buffett night for the theme for the June Friday after Five.......Coal Creek Lounge opens at 5 pm and you can order food beginning at 5:30...........Have Tim from Indianola coming to DJ the event.........he has a big business doing special events with as many as four or five of his units doing gigs on the same night........you'll have to come check him out......I am pretty confident he knows what tunes to play for the Seven Oaks gang.......that's this Friday night June 3........

Hope you all had a safe Memorial Weekend..........first honoring our veterans and second having some fun with family and friends. The weather got better each day with Monday temps right where we want them for the kick off to the summer.......we gathered for a grand daughters NINTH Birthday........great time with family.......few games.........enough food for everyone, plus a few more.......very relaxing......

Did you know Brandie has joined the Seven Oaks team?? She started a couple weeks ago handling a lot of the inside sales and is training for the Seven Oaks Event Coordinator position as well.......She will do a great job........Carol has decided to leave her happy family here to pursue a new career with her own business and Dee has needed time to care for her family for some months......but I think you will see Dee some this summer on weekends when it is really hopping and this winter as well..........and Austin who worked in sales this past winter will be helping in sales this summer too........great team as usual......

Red is out mowing the lawn for the fiftieth time this year already....well maybe not that many times but.........man, the grass is really growing but it looks so good........

Had a really neat wedding reception here last Saturday night and another one this Saturday night......in fact there are like seven more here in June.....a lot of Friday nights and then a different group on Saturday night...........

Here is a shot of the lawn in front of the lodge just before all the guests arrived.......

As usual, the lodge was transformed into another look which was again really cool........here is a pic of the inside ........

.....had the opportunity to visit Jester Park down by Saylorville Lake for my first time two weekends ago for a birthday picnic.........for my wife........and I was pretty darned impressed with the park. Nice picnic areas, shelter houses and our shelter house had a nice view of the lake too.

I think our summer commercials start airing on Channel 8 and Channel 13 next week.......right in line with HOT weather.......which is RIVER weather........whether you CANOE or KAYAK or RIVER TUBE...........Let the Summer begin!

Seven Oaks Patroller Ben Upah Recognized

2011-05-07T12:31:00.003-06:00

Last weekend Ben Upah was presented with the highest award that a patroller can get. He was presented with the PURPLE MERIT STAR at the Southern Region awards banquet last weekend in Lake Geneva WI. Fellow patroller Jerry Massengale submitted Ben for the award last winter after finding out that while Ben was on vacation in the summer of 2010 he was accentual in the reviving a 4 year old little girl that had drowned. The little girl is alive and doing well today thanks to Ben. This is why we strive to keep our skills up, you never know when they might be needed. Several fellow patrollers and family members were in attendance including Ben's parents John and Mary Jo, Ben's wife Bev, Patroller Jerry Massengale and his wife Missy.

Congratulations Ben and thanks for doing what you do!!

From one season to the next

2011-04-14T11:25:00.006-06:00

Yep, the snow from the 2010-2011 winter season officially all melted late last week.....by now it should be well on it's way to the Gulf of Mexico via the Mississippi River! ....so all the winter equipment has been cleaned, painted, stored, put away, removed, and so on.........and paintball is underway........here are a couple pics of a group that played late last week at Seven Oaks....... .....and while the paintball has been in action and the lodge has been used for meetings and the like, the team has prepared all the buses, vans, canoes, kayaks, trailers, paddles, life vests and such ready for the summer river business.........which will begin in earnest in a couple short weeks........you ready? ......we are! ......and today the last of the river tubes are being inflated by Frost and Red.......getting ready for multiple trips down the river when the water temp and air temp increase some more........ we are really happy this year with the water level already.......

......people are making reservations for their river floats now.......call soon to insure you get the dates you want.........

.....see you at Seven Oaks.....

Have you seen Seven Oaks?

2011-03-23T17:40:00.002-06:00

Yeah, you probably have but maybe not from 10,000 feet in the air. A friend of my son was flying home to Des Moines a few days ago and was able to spot Seven Oaks due to all the white....snow on the trails. Stood out pretty good. But it continues to melt my friends..

Enjoy the pic.....and yes Jason zoomed in to get this shot......

Is this season finished?

2011-03-07T08:54:00.002-06:00

We called it finished as of last Saturday night, March 5......and it probably is ......but like I said some days ago in the blog that we would be done barring a big snow......and we are watching the weather forecast to see what tomorrow and Wednesday brings Seven Oaks for snow........some are calling for 6 to 8 inches..........

....we have a lot of base and a good snowfall on top would be relatively easy to have ready for friday night.....and we have not put anything away yet.....so we are watching........and waiting.........just like you........

.....do you think we should reopen if we get a big snow????

....had another fun Spring Splash last friday night......had several in costumes, DJ on the patio, Tater playing in the lodge......and ......I would guess about 30 to 40 people tried the pond skim.......that is always fun to watch........and I would guess consistent with years past that about 40% were successful in their attempt to skim the entire length.........with another 40% almost making it.......getting just a little wet at the end.........and then there is the last 20% that took a complete dive..........

.......I think the complete dive is what most of the many spectators were waiting for.........a little bit like a car wreck during a race isn't it........

......but the whole thing was fun to watch.......

....wife's nephew from Nebraska with his family and about 25 other friends came friday night and spent the day Saturday ........a bunch of their kids were learning to ski for their first time.....and had success I might add.........I guess one family was not from Nebraska but from Minnesota.....but they still fit in just fine.........good and fun group.......oh, and the oldest son of our nephew tried the pond skim.........he has only skied about three years.......once per year......and the last time was last year...........yep..........he took a dive..........but he felt good about trying it....

......received notice that Seven Oaks will be featured in the spring/summer Des Moines Convention Bureau things to do publication........that's cool........

.....A BIG THANK YOU to all of YOU that came to Seven Oaks this winter to ski, snowboard and snow tube..........and to all our team members that received so many compliments from so many of you..........and to our ski patrol that spent hours on the trails assisting those in need........it was a fun and it was a great season..........again......

......we'll start getting ready soon for the spring and summer activities.........we are talking about ordering the paintballs and making repairs to the paintball fields.........moving picnic tables back to the tent campgrounds..........getting the buses serviced and inspected for the river floats.......get all the river tubes inflated and ready to go .........and so on........

.......so let's watch the weather this week and see what happens.......be talking to you soon.......

School Day or Snow Day

2011-02-28T17:28:00.006-06:00

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.......

Pics from two weeks ago

2011-02-27T15:52:00.008-06:00

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......

We helped the flurries

2011-02-26T09:21:00.002-06:00

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......

Libby loves Seven Oaks

2011-02-25T08:54:00.003-06:00

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..........

A couple pics

2011-02-23T09:24:00.003-06:00

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...........

Made Snow

2011-02-22T11:35:00.003-06:00

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.......

Let's look forward to next weekend

2011-02-20T18:36:00.002-06:00

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!

2011-02-20T08:15:00.002-06:00

.........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.......

2011-02-19T11:43:00.003-06:00

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........

Forecast Change

2011-02-17T09:05:00.007-06:00

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.......

Got Snow?? We Do !!

2011-02-16T15:38:00.007-06:00

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........

Slow melt

2011-02-15T09:26:00.006-06:00

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........

It was a busy weekend.....

2011-02-14T13:11:00.007-06:00

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.......

Spring conditions today...

2011-02-13T14:18:00.005-06:00

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 .......

And I thought yesterday was beautiful

2011-02-12T13:40:00.003-06:00

........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........

Another incredible day today

2011-02-11T17:34:00.003-06:00

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.......

Mark Your Calendars With These Events

2011-02-07T16:27:00.002-06:00

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

32 Degrees North, South, East, West

2011-02-06T09:05:00.005-06:00

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.......

33 degrees

2011-02-05T08:44:00.007-06:00

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? .....

OMG - It is a Beautiful Day

2011-02-04T13:09:00.009-06:00

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.......

GOAL

2011-02-03T13:31:00.002-06:00

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

Winter Feels Great

2011-02-01T12:50:00.006-06:00

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..........

Family Matters

2011-01-31T14:37:00.008-06:00

Sunday another beautiful day on the slopes......and a LOT of families having a great time........big snow coming today and tomorrow........great conditions Wed, Thur, Fri, Sat, Sun...........gee, I don't know when the great conditions will stop......certainly not this week......and did you see the weekend temps?

.......thanks for these two pics Darci.......

....here are a couple of many pics I took Sunday.......

........if you have some favorite pics you have taken at Seven Oaks, email them to us and I will get them on the blog for all to see...........

Wow to yesterday for two reasons.....

2011-01-30T12:21:00.008-06:00

First it was an awesome day........enjoyed by a lot of you........snow is still great.......more in the forecast for next week........something like Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday.......

....but Second and the best is Mike Schminke surprising his children who were riding (routine event) at Seven Oaks last night as he arrived home for a two week leave (non routine event) from Afganistan.....which is awesome, awesome, awesome.........Thanks Mike and all the other service men and women for doing what you do........which makes it possible for us to do what we do...........and thanks to your family too.......

....and it was just a couple years ago Mike surprised his family at Seven Oaks.....including his wife that time.....when he got home from Iraq.........

......took several pics yesterday and will share with you over the next three days........

......some of the pics we post are serving the purpose of proof to wives that their husbands were in deed skiing at Seven Oaks while they were at dance competitions.........funny.......

I was wrong - today is 100% too!

2011-01-29T14:34:00.001-06:00

Yesterday 100% Today 98%

2011-01-29T09:15:00.009-06:00

Yesterday was probably the absolute most perfect day to be on the slopes that we have had so far this season........I give it a 100 out of a possible 100........sunshine, temp, snow, wind all taken into consideration.......

......based on that scientific calculation, I would give today a 98 out of 100........only because the sun is not quite as blue and the temps are going to be a little less than yesterday.......but the snow will again be incredible........and it groomed great last night............

.....also pleased to report that when using my snow calculator, with new batteries, that the snow loss on the trails was between .001 and .002 yesterday whereas the snow loss in the parking lot was .481 to .677

....so there you have it.........all the reasons to be a little disgruntled that you missed yesterday but every reason to not miss today........

some quick pics from late yesterday

Today's Recipe

2011-01-28T09:53:00.002-06:00

Ingredients

Slopes are open from 10am to 9 pm
Sunshine
35 degrees
Plenty of snow

Add you to the mix for several hours and you will have a batch of FUN......

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

Rail Yard Changed Today

2011-01-26T15:44:00.006-06:00

First with regard to the Rail Yard changes, the entrance to the Park from Abbys Alley has been moved..........further up hill........above tower 4 of the chairlift.........which will let us put more features in that are all accessible from this entrance........

.....and we added the battleship plus..........see pics......

open at 4 today..........ten dollar lift tickets.........weather is warmer today than all of last week......awesome........

Sunday....nothing but blue sky, sun and pics

2011-01-23T12:50:00.008-06:00

Quick Pic

2011-01-22T13:15:00.006-06:00

......took a few new pics shortly after opening..........so we could share with you.......

Left most of the trails this morning with yesterdays snow..........but did groom School Yard, Abby's Alley and Central Park............IT IS A BEAUTIFUL DAY HERE TODAY....

....one more time.............if you want a Late Nite scheduled this year, you are gonna have to let us know.........got two yes comments but takes more than two........

Quick Comment and Quick Question

2011-01-21T13:56:00.002-06:00

Quick comment........today is the first of five consecutive fridays that we will be open from 10 am to 9 pm for ski and snowboard........tubing will remain open from 4 to 9 pm........tell you friends......especially those that don't have school one of these fridays.........got just under two inches of snow this morning.......we will NOT groom it out today........but will groom tonight.......

Quick question......how many of you want us to schedule a Late Nite this winter......we will put at least one on the calendar if we hear from enough of you...........you have to let us know and would be best if you would comment back to us on the blog..........let your voice be heard........

2011-01-19T12:32:00.006-06:00

Finished a busy Monday MLK day and shortly after started grooming as the temps were slowly then quickly dropping as the cold front arrived. Got an inch or less last night so we did not groom Drop Zone, Elwoods and did not groom all of Central Park or Kenzies.......left some fluffy for tonight.......

.....cold but sun is shining bright today.......wind is pretty minimal too.........and......bonus.....more snow tonight even though it sounds like most of it will be further south than what was originally predicted........giving Missouri about four inches instead of us......

....some more random pics... is it follow the leader in Abbys Alley or just a chance shot?

my nephew and his wife...............Gabby and her Sis.......

...wanted to share a bit of this email that came in yesterday.....very cool.........

"I brought my church kids out for the Sunday Park Pass on Jan 16. The kids were super excited when I told them about it eralier this winter and couldn't wait fot he trip. The chance to try all three events was a huge appeal and the price was definitely right.

I knew other groups would be coming for the evening too and was pleasantly surprised at how smooth and quick the check in and payment process was. The rental shop was busy but we got geared up and out the door easily. I have been to Seven Oaks in the past and I really think the new flow of the rental shop really helps!.........in fact all the staff were pretty fantastic.

One of my students, James, is blind and our instructors, Danny B, spent lots of time with him on the bunny hill and helped him learn to ski! It was awesome and made my heart so happy to see James grinning and doing it on his own! Danny even took him on Abbys Alley three times. What a cool memory for him.......and me!

Also one of the tubing hill attendants, Ian, was especially nice and helpful to me, all my kids and he kept an eye out for James when he got to the bottom. Thanks so much!"

WOW.......

Gabby

2011-01-17T09:01:00.007-06:00

......before I get to ramblin too much , I had better one more time mention that Seven Oaks is open today from 10 am to 6 pm for MLK...........got about one inch of snow so far during the night........after we groomed.........

......and I will mention that those of you without season passes will be interested in our special deal for this coming Friday.........January 21.......which is the first of five Fridays we will have extended hours this season.........more on that tomorrow.......

.....but now about Gabby...........Gabby sent us several pics taken Saturday when she was up from Ankeny spending the day on the snow with her hubby Adam (my nephew) and her sis Ashli..........thanks for sharing Gabby........

...a shot of fam on Willet's Way...

....a couple views of Abby's Alley..........from the top looking down.......

........and from near the bottom looking up........

.....and a series showing Gabby.........whom I am interested in hiring as a ski instructor........

....oh, geez........just remembered.......her name is Abby.......not Gabby.......which is why she enjoys Abby's Alley so much.........LOL

It is Sunday and I love this picture....

2011-01-16T11:14:00.004-06:00

......not much wind today......little warmer than yesterday.........snow continues to be great.....several arriving early this morning to get on the slopes at 11...........we will be open tomorrow .......Monday, MLK day from 10 to 6.....

...got a really nice email yesterday from a recent visitor from Ankeny.....paying compliments to Austin in the sales office, ski instructors Bob and Hannah and all the tubing staff ..........thanks Kelly for the kind words........we post those for all employees to see and it makes their day..........mine too........

Water, Rain, Snowman, Otto

2011-01-15T10:32:00.005-06:00

You might have been hearing on the news about the water mains that broke in Boone a couple days ago that forced water users of that system to implement a boil your water order ..........but.......good news.......Seven Oaks is on the Ogden water system so we avoided all that hassle...........whew.....

.....was told that the DSM area saw some freezing rain yesterday afternoon.........understand it was brief but caused some headaches........we only had snow from the same system......light flurries then big flakes for a while.........we avoided that hassle too........

......had Tater playing guitar and singing in the lodge last night........he does a really good job.......

.....got a pic here that demonstrates the artistic abilities of one of our lifties........Mr Snowman (who is only about 8 inches tall) will be on site to welcome you at the Cyclone Chairlift...........til it gets warm one day........

.....some of you know him as Otto......the bus driver.........some of you know him as Chairlift Tony.....and others it is just Tony......our friend...........well, he went thru his surgery in DSM and is now HOME....recovering.........great news........

.....did you know we have a team member with the last name Frost and another team member with the last name Snow.......true.........very fitting that they are at Seven Oaks helping with all our winter sports.........now we need to find someone with the name River or Kayak to work here this summer........

.......snow groomed so great last night..........got a little bit of a late start due to a mechanical issue with one of the groomers........but Kris and Frost got it repaired and we were able to groom last night instead of this morning.........wrapped it up at 12:30 and still got a full nights sleep........the snow was so powder soft that the tiller box was more than full all the time..........and you know that is going to leave sweet cordouroy........

......forecast still has some snow for Monday and Tuesday..........already had some flurries this morning too.........one more time I want to remind you we are open Monday for MLK day.........from 10 am to 6 pm.........

.....one of my granddaughters had her tonsils removed Thursday.....welcome to the world of ice cream, popcicles, juice......etc.......oh she wants to come to Seven Oaks sooooooo bad........but she must stay in where it is warm and keep relatively quiet........what is relatively quiet for a four year old?......

......lots of groups here the next couple of days so I reckon I should get off the computer and do something constructive.........eat........

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

Quick update and Billy Kidd.......

2011-01-14T15:23:00.003-06:00

......yep.........the conditions Wednesday night and Thursday night were awesome.......and a lot of you came to enjoy it........ powder is not an every day occurance so it was nice to see everyone enjoy it..........and it was nice to get the thanks we got for not grooming all the trails......leaving the powder.........

.....today we had school groups here from Coon Rapids and from Fort Dodge.........weather and snow were both great........tonight should also be terrific..........

.....I wasn't around much after we opened Wednesday and wasn't here at all on Thursday so I didn't get to hear much about the changes made to Willet's Way and the Rail Yard.......hope it is liked.......and we will make more changes as we progress along .......

....wanted to remind you that we are open Monday, January 17 for MLK Holiday......10 to 6........that is in addition to our normal hours today, Saturday and Sunday........

.....next time you are in the lodge check out the skis that were mounted on our wall with a plaque that tells a little about them........they were made special for Billy Kidd in his pursuit of Gold in the 1966 World Championship..........as it turns out these 227 cm skiis were not used by Billy due to a leg injury he sustained so he gave them to a partner of his at the time, Gary Kingham who did race with them..........I can't imagine trying to turn those bad boys........ Gary is now a local in our area, skis here........said they performed best for turning at about 60 mph......he thought the skis deserved more visibility than what they were getting at his house..........thanks for sharing them with Seven Oaks......

......more snow in the forecast which is a good thing........right?.....see you on the slopes.......

Two Pics

2011-01-12T14:08:00.003-06:00

Hope you can see from these that we really groomed nothing but the center and we also decided to NOT groom Central Park so it is all natural........

.....I gotta believe conditions tonight will be as good as it gets...........

Powder and Patrol

2011-01-12T10:05:00.007-06:00

Had a couple of questions regarding our grooming status for tonight..........well here is what has happened and what will happen before we open tonight. During the heaviest snowfall Monday night we did groom the centers of the trails but did leave plenty of powder along both sides of the trails. We are going to groom again today with the same objective. We will leave plenty of powder along both sides of the trails but will groom the centers.........and we will groom all of the School Yard.......

.......plus some of the features on Willet's Way and the Rail Yard are being changed right now......

It was a nice snow wasn't it........about 8 or maybe 9 inches of fresh snow.......and flurries today......then there is more snow chance in the forecast too..........

Here are a couple of pics from last Sunday morning's Ski Patrol refresher...........plus our lifties training with them.........we have such a great group of Patrolers and another great group of Lifties this year....

.....each photo captures about one half of the group that was training last Sunday........some on the Cyclone lift while the rest were training on the Valley View lift.........

.....remember the NSP.......National Ski Patrol is made up of volunteers.......so be sure to thank them for doing what they do when you see them.........at any resort..........

.....we now have 28 Patolers at Seven Oaks.........wow.........

thanks for the pics Kelli.............we open at 4 pm today for skiing and snowboarding........and it is TEN DOLLAR lift ticket night.......

Winter Wonderland

2011-01-11T09:13:00.007-06:00

.....the past 36 hours have transformed most of Iowa into a Winter Wonderland.........I know that's the case at Seven Oaks...........somewhere between 8" and 9" of fallen snow is now on the trails and in the woods.......and there are still some light flurries falling this morning...........beautiful.......

........we will be closed today Tuesday 1-11-11 ........as usual.......but open tomorrow night at 4 pm for skiing and snowboarding............remember tubing is closed on Wednesdays.........

.........Wednesday is another $10 lift ticket night.........will be absolutely perfect conditions for the next several days at Seven Oaks..........and if you live in Ames you should consider the free shuttle between Ames and Seven Oaks tomorrow night..........two pick up points and two different pick up times...........free to anyone that wants a ride..........

......we have a private company Christmas Party in the lodge tonight........with tubing for just them........

......here are some pics from Sunday afternoon..........just before sunset..........

.......we always have lots of kids on Sunday as so many are taking advantage of our kids 8 and under ski free with paying adult.......bogo.........

.....a couple of riders coming down Kenzies Korner.........

.....having fun........you bet........especially when Frost says he is going to take a pic to be posted on the blog.........

.....the view today is much different than on Sunday.........a lot more snow........

if you have a favorite pic that you have taken, email it to us and we will use it for all to see............hope to see you Wednesday night........

Happy Birthday!

2011-01-09T15:22:00.003-06:00

Another birthday party today for this group..........lots of fun........lots of energy...........went tubing, skiing and had some pizza..........oh to be eight again!

thanks for choosing Seven Oaks and thanks for sharing your pic with us.........

......it's about 3:30 pm and we have been getting light flurries for about one hour.........come on snow!

Did you see the snow prediction?

2011-01-09T11:07:00.003-06:00

If you like to ski or snowboard, you gotta love the forecast for Sunday night thru Tuesday giving us as much as 7" of snow coming straight down.........sweet......should make for great ......Great conditions Wednesday night............

.......groomed last night........got done a midnight......groomed up really sweet.........

........had our first team breakfast this morning........with ski patrol as well.........fed about 70 and everyone had an appetite........probably Joel and my cooking ! .......ha........

.....also had the chair evac drills this morning for all the patrol and the lifties.........went well.......hope we continue never using the skills.........I will get some pics on as soon as I receive them.........

.....also will get some pics for today as soon as we have a minute to get some taken........

......keep doing your snow dance and I'll be in touch with more later..........

Saturday........Pictures Only......

2011-01-08T15:37:00.008-06:00

What an absolute gorgeous day.........SUNSHINE.......snow in the forecast.......enjoy the pics

Another two fer........

2011-01-07T17:43:00.011-06:00

......geez.....have I gone nuts??? again I bring you two blog entries on the same day !........

.....some pics taken as soon as we opened tonight........ tubing was busy as soon as we opened.....

hi Scott........ Scott is new to the team this year..........does a GREAT job.........

fresh powder.....means fresh tracks......abbys alley......

......taken moments after we opened..........great snow.....great shot.........

It's Friday already........

2011-01-07T16:24:00.003-06:00

......and we are ready to rock and roll. Have a little Christmas Party here tonight........they like to watch everyone tube and ride while enjoying the comforts of the lodge....

....delivered new beanies and hoodies and long sleeve T's today........went with a lot of brighter colors this batch.......some of them are REAL bright........

......this Sunday morning we have our annual chair evac refresher with the ski patrol and our chair lifties..........never had to do it for real.......but it is only smart to be ready.........just in case......knock on wood.......AND Joel and I are serving any employee breakfast Sunday morning that wants to come in a little early before we open.........just a little way to say thanks to the team........we will try to do a couple more as the winter progresses..........

.....strange day with the weather today........had several pretty heavy snow bursts through the day today.......in fact it is snowing right now.........skiers and riders will be seeing mostly groomed trails but some powder especially where the wind today deposited it.........should be fun........

.....had our annual inspection of the facilities yesterday with the inspector coming from Vermont.......and I am pleased to report he had not ONE issue with our operation.........yeah Seven Oaks team.......nicely done.........

......last Wednesday night we had our first shuttle from Ames...........remember it is FREE round trip transportation From Ames to Seven Oaks and back.........our home page of the web has the details........anyone can use it............students, families, individuals, anyone........hope a lot of you take advantage of it and that it fills a niche...........

........purchased flourescent yellow vests for the tubing team to wear.......I think it will help identify them to the public when someone has questions........

........as many of you know our Hallmark Liftie Tony had some surgery Monday and the latest report received today was that things are progressing on schedule for him........he is in a lot of our thoughts and prayers and will continue to be til we get him home...........and on the chairlifts......

......snowing hard again..........cool.........and more in the forecast for Sunday night into Monday.....we'll see what really happens...........

Groomers are parked ........

2011-01-05T14:27:00.004-06:00

.....yes indeed, the crew did make a lot of snow the past three nights.........we elected to leave some of the piles where they were and groom right over them.......will be a change in terrain for you in several trails tonight.....

.....it was a lot of fun grooming today........all the new snow.......did drop the blade in a couple places and smoothed out the piles that were blown..........we actually tilled everthing twice.......second time the snow was so soft that the tiller box was completely full of soft sugar white snow..........you could tell the way the engine was pulling down when driving up the trails......left really nice cordouroy.........

......enjoy these pics of 5 year old Davis and 2 year old Harper that were here skiing four different days last week........can you imagine how good these kids are going to be in a couple of years........Wow........that's great........and their parents ski right along with them too........

thanks for sharing the pics Lynn..........you have to be proud of them......

.....we think the conditions tonight are going to be terrrrrific........see you soon..........

I will be back today.......

2011-01-05T07:50:00.002-06:00

I'll be back today with another blog entry but wanted to drop a quick note to let you know we made snow on all the trails Sunday night, Monday night and all day Monday .........and WOW is there a lot of fresh snow out there to be groomed just as soon as I sign off .............. conditions will be Great tonight when we open at 4...........

More Snow......

2011-01-02T11:55:00.006-06:00

......got the guns on just as soon as we closed last night and made snow from 9 pm to 7 am this morning.........put a lot on Freeway, Abbys Alley, Elwoods Hideout and Central Park........groomed up beautiful.........real cold makes for real powder..........

.......the plan is to make snow every day this week til everything is fresh and deeper........

.......and early in the evening the winds died down to about nothing.....which let us put the snow where we wanted it........and today the wind isn't strong enough to blow the flag at the entrance ......so with that, brilliant sunshine and rising temps it is going to be a great day on the slopes.......

.....when you work up an appetite come on inside for a snack or a meal........

...here are a few pics of some of the team showing you some of our clothing ........

.....gosh they should be models........

.....and here is Austin working at the ticket counter.........

......we will be closed Monday and Tuesday then going into the normal routine of Wed, Thur, Fri open from 4 to 9........Sat open from 10 to 9 and Sun open from 11 to 8..............except for the five Fridays between MLK and Presidents which we will have longer hours........but I will remind you all of that change when we get closer.......

Does two a day make up for zero some days?

2011-01-01T13:36:00.004-06:00

Had to go ahead and post this today......even though I already did the blog earlier.......read on..............

........ another email received moments ago....... "This is my niece last night. I took her skiing and tubing...(skiing for the first time in her life). We had a blast at your New Years party and the whole gang at Seven Oaks were so nice to us and especially her! you guys did out do yourselves and what a bargain! She felt very special and loved every minute......in fact I got a "Can we come back next year?" from her!

.......neat ........ thanks for sharing.......Happy New Year.......

Congratulations and Happy New Year

2011-01-01T12:35:00.002-06:00

First, I want to offer my congratulations to the five volunteers that passed their final test Friday and are offically members of the NSPS...........National Ski Patrol............after hours and hours of classroom training followed by hours on the slopes learning and practicing........a great achievement.........the five are Ken Slaba, Andrew Frost, Kris Schneider, Dillon Newbold and John Perry........the next time you see them or any of the now 28 Seven Oaks Patrollers, give them a quick thank you for their efforts and time........

......got this email this morning......."I just wanted to say, last nights New Years Party was pure Fantastic!!! What a wonderful surprise in Boone! I hope you do it again next year! We had a blast, the employees were fun and fantastic and extremely helpful! You sure got your moneys worth and Wow is all I can say! See you next year!!!"........signed Suzanne .....

....well first thanks to you Suzanne for coming to our first New Years Eve family friendly party and thanks for taking the time to send the email........our team loves the feedback.......and we love to pass it on to all them........your email was posted by the time clock this morning and it brought a smile to a lot of faces as they read it.........

.......the New Year party was a good time.........yeah, mother nature could have been a little kinder with the weather but a good time was had.........and the countdown in the lodge as the big ball dropped in NY was really cool...........but I probably won't pass out the noise makers as early next time.............LOL........

.......just as the ball dropped the snowguns were getting placed on the slopes........pretty much gave all the trails a light fresh coat of pure white snow.........wind was all over the place last night which helped spread the snow ..........everywhere.........but it sure did groom up sweet this morning..........I had to chuckle as I was in one cat I heard one of the snowmakers come over the radio and say temps were on the RISE........already up to 3 degrees this morning at 7 am......

.......temps are rising.......sun is brilliant today and folks are on the slopes.........great way to start the new year.........

Happy New Year everyone!