Campaign Surpasses the $5 Million Mark!

The Preserve Our Paradise Campaign reached a major milestone this week as total gifts & pledges surpassed the $5 million mark! On Wednesday, April 17, the same day that Mad River Glen set a record for days of operation in a single season, General Manager Matt Lillard moved the skier significantly further up the line on the Single Chair campaign progress display. The new total for the campaign is $5,088,496. Thank you to so many generous donors who have made this possible!

We’re getting closer every day, but there’s still a long way to go, and the campaign ends on April 30! In order to fully fund all the building and mountain projects that remain, the campaign will need to hit $5,600,000. Your gifts are urgently needed to get us over the top! Let’s get this job done, all gifts through April 30 will be doubled*!

* Up to $200,000.

From left to right: Fourth generation MRG skiers, Beau and Eleanor Hume; MRG Accounting Manager Andrew Snow; MRG GM Matt Lillard; Campaign Co-Chair Annika Holtan; and Lu Putnam (MRG skier since 1949).

Conceptual Drawings for Building Projects Unveiled

At the recent Mad River Glen Shareholder's meeting, the Facilities Committee showed preliminary conceptual drawings and renderings for the two largest projects that will be funded by the campaign, the Basebox renovations, and a rebuilt Patrol Building. The committee is currently working with Mad River's management and Vermont Integrated Architects to define the scope of work, develop preliminary cost estimates, and refine these conceptual drawings.

Behind the scenes, our beloved Basebox is suffering from decades of deferred maintenance, and there is significant work required for fire safety, accessibility, and mechanical systems. The planning remains a work in progress and the actual scope of the projects will be determined in the coming months, depending upon the final total raised by the campaign and the ongoing work by the team. Key requirements that are being addressed include better traffic flow, additional bathrooms & gear storage, more efficient food operations, and energy efficiency. 

The exterior of the Basebox will show only modest changes, primarily to the northeast corner of the building, which will house an additional stairway to the second and third floors, as well as a code-mandated elevator.

On the main level of the Basebox, the current food preparation room near the entrance will be removed, opening up the entrance area and allowing a window to the bar where drinks can be ordered. The current dish room will be replaced by two bathrooms and additional seating. A new fire exit will be added to General Stark's Pub. The kitchen will be reconfigured to be much more efficient and accommodate the moved areas. The blue areas indicate essential renovations mandated by code; green are elective areas that are currently deemed to be essential; and yellow indicates elective features that are desirable but would add to the current project cost. On this level, elective areas include removing the half wall by the cafeteria, and adding acoustic treatment to the Pub.  

On the basement level, the new elevator and stairway are shown on the top right. Essential structural work needs to be performed to the foundation on the left, as well as significant mechanical, plumbing & electrical work. Bathrooms would be remodeled and the entrance to the Ski School area widened. Expanding the kids lunch area is an elective which has received popular support.

On the third floor, in addition to the new stairway and elevator, proposed elective elements include removing some of the existing half walls, adding a family bathroom, and removing an existing office to provide more seating space.

This rendering of the proposed new Patrol Building shows a simple new structure on the same footprint and with a similar profile, but with a raised roof to provide more interior space. Our architects have determined it is more cost-effective to build a new structure than to renovate the existing building.

The new building will enable a larger patient treatment area with an additional private treatment bed, as well as additional meeting and gear area for both the Patrol and the Ski School staff, while preserving the existing basement storage space.

 We still need to raise additional funds for both of these vital projects. Your help is needed!

It’s not just the buildings!

In addition to the building projects described above, there are several other significant projects left in the campaign. The biggest mountain project will be to upgrade the venerable 1967 Birdland lift with a new base terminal and other components as needed. Plus, we still need to replace one more grooming machine, wrap up the snowmaking improvements, and perform additional trail, glade, and drainage improvements.

Your support is needed in these final days of the campaign!

Double your donation today!

Campaign Improvements Transform our Kids Programs

Recently, Jim Komarmi, Director of the Mad River Ski Club Race Program, explained just how much the snowmaking and grooming improvements funded by the campaign have helped the Race, Freeski, and Kids programs:

It’s a near complete paradigm shift for us!

• We held the first high school race of the season for all of Vermont on December 14. We could not have dreamed of this in years past. This was a new race for us, so additional revenue we would not have had otherwise.

• We did not visit Sugarbush or Bolton once this season because we could not pull off training at MRG.

• We hosted Harwood Duals (modeled on Stowe Duals) with two pieces of terrain; a roll on the top flats and large, 3+ foot drop/pro jump near the bottom of the race hill. The roll and the jump are not possible without the snow depths and groomer. 

• We added a U14 race back to the schedule. Again, a race we would not have otherwise had if we didn’t have the snowmaking. Additional revenue to the mountain. 

• We built a spine under Lift 4 and built four rollers (washboard) on the race trail flats above Eaton’s for ski school and race to play/train on.

• The trail width under Lift 4 flats is because of additional snowmaking. It has given us space for the park and a trail. 

• Additional grooming on the upper mountain has given us access to train on Porky and Loon; this additional space is critical for quality training and to safely prepare our kids for the increasing challenges of youth races.

• We hosted the Rockefeller Challenge safely in part to grooming. The additional snowmaking filled in the compression at the bottom of the pitch so it wasn’t a hard compression and we could install safety netting which requires adequate snow depths. 

• Our race start is higher and wider because they were able to make more snow to build the mound higher. 

• The additional snowmaking on the pitch allowed us to set several courses down the hill making better use of our hill space and training time. It also allows for users of the jump to land and turn “right” on good snow as opposed to turn “left,” avoid rocks/bare spots and arc into the hill where training is going on, creating a safety issue.

• The additional snow means our drills and drill bits (which are silly expensive) last longer and our gates go in the ground to proper depths. 

• Safety netting requires a minimum snow depth to be set in and to properly function. This cannot be overstated. We cannot host or really train without safety netting.

To help fund continued improvements such as this, please donate today. All donations will be doubled until the end of the campaign on April 30!

Campaign Passes the $4.5M Mark!

Thanks to the recent receipt of a major gift, the Preserve Our Paradise Campaign has raised $4,545,532 in contributions and pledges as of March 20. This past weekend, we moved the skier further up on the campaign progress installation on the side of the Single Chair! Thanks so much to all our generous donors who have made this achievement possible! Your commitment to the future of Mad River Glen is truly appreciated.

We’ve still got a long way to go to meet our $6.5M goal, and we now need to fund our largest projects, the urgent renovations to the Basebox and Patrol Building. All your generous donations (up to $200,000) will be doubled through the end of the public campaign on April 30, so if you haven’t given yet, now is the best time to maximize the impact of your donation!

All Donations Doubled! The Campaign Ends April 30!

The Preserve Our Paradise Campaign will end on April 30! From now until the end of the campaign, all donations of any size will be matched dollar-for-dollar, up to a total of $200,000. The Preserve Our Paradise campaign has already made a big difference to our operations and skiing experience. Learn more about what’s been accomplished and what’s still to come.

Now, it’s time to tackle the campaign’s largest projects. We urgently need to address many years of deferred maintenance on the Basebox, and the inadequate facilities for our legendary ski patrol. Planning is currently underway for essential renovations to the Basebox and Patrol buildings. The budget for these building projects will depend upon your support by April 30!

Every donation of $250 or more through April 30 will be entered into a raffle for a full Mad River Glen season pass.

Don’t miss this chance to maximize your gift and preserve & protect this special place!

Double your donation today!