235: Big Sky, Montana & advice on US Multipasses (inc Epic, Ikon, Indy & Mountain Collective)

The Ski Podcast

We find out about Big Sky Resort in Montana and look into the multipass options in the States, including the Epic, Ikon, Indy and Mountain Collective passes.
We also have our regular snow reports, your feedback, Team GB news and equipment expert Al Morgan reports from the SIGB Ski Test in La Clusaz.
Host Iain Martin was joined by Nancy Shiel, Head of Ski Patrol at Big Sky Resort in Montana, and Stuart Winchester, host of the Storm Skiing Podcast.
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SHOW NOTES

Tim Hudson from Inspired Italy is in the Dolomites (5:45)
Alex Armand from Tip Top Ski Coaching is in Les 2 Alpes (7:00)
Alex Irwin from 150 Days of Winter is in Courchevel (7:30)
Mia Brookes finished 3rd at the X Games Slopestyle in Aspen (9:15)
Jasmin Taylor now has three wins this season in the Telemark World Cup (9:30)
Laurie Taylor tied with Dave Ryding for 15th at Kitzbuhel (9:40)
Freddy and Zak Carrick Smith will be taking part in the European Youth Olympics (9:45)
Ski kit expert Al Morgan was out at the SIGB Ski Test in La Clusaz (10:20)
Listen to our equipment episodes or watch them on YouTube (12:45)
Nancy has been working on the ski patrol at Big Sky for over 20 years (13:15)
Watch the Big Sky Ski Patrol in action (15:00)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f896Bsukqi0
“Big Sky is titanic, sprawling, impossible” (16:15)
Big Sky is in south-west Montana (16:45)
You can visit Yellowstone National Park in winter from Big Sky (17:30)
The resort has 5850 acres of skiable terrain and has 400 inches annual of snowfall (18:45)
The Lone Peak Tram is a standout lift (20:00)
Peter Landsman in Episode 181 described it one of the lifts you must ride (20:15)
Stuart is host of the Storm Skiing Podcast (24:00)
“Everyone’s searching for skiing’s soul. I’m trying to find its brains” (24:15)
The Epic Pass started in 2008 (28:00)
The issue of overcrowding in US ski resorts (32:00)
The Ikon Pass has introduced ‘reservations’ to limit overcrowding (33:00)
The Indy Pass is “the coolest thing going” (34:15)
Glencoe and The Snow Centre in the UK are both on the Indy Pass (37:30)
Will there be mergers between the multipasses? (37:45)
Find out about the Mountain Collective Pass (38:30)
Epic Pass sales were down 2% for the 24/25 winter (39:00)
Vail Resorts had to deal with a ski patrol strike in Park City in December (39:15)
Vail Resorts have acquired Andermatt and Crans Montana in Europe (41:00)
If you visit Big Sky, you need to try Uncle Dan’s Cookies (41:30)
You can follow The Ski Podcast on WhatsApp (44:00)
Feedback (42:00)
I enjoy all feedback about the show, I’m always interested to hear what you think, so please do contact me on social @theskipodcast or by email [e-mail]
Charlie Owen: "I enjoyed your interview with Mark Smith – the Man in Seat61"

Charlie Henry Mack: "Episode 232 was great"
Marcus: "I just wanted to drop you a note to say that I have started listening to the podcast on my drive into work and it’s great! Brilliant to have such a good UK-based ski podcast."

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