Saturday, December 24, 2011



Merry Christmas
The holidays are here and so is winter!
As of today we are skiing 23 runs with 7 lifts turning and Pintail Peak will be open for all of you Christmas day skiers and snowboarders. Holiday night skiing starts this Monday December 26th and will run through January 1st!
We have a ton of stuff going on around Nub's Nob for you and your family to take part in this holiday season.

Dec. 26 - 31 Nub's Nob Sport School Christmas/Holiday Training Camp features 6 days of the best training and coaching for serious ski racers of all ages. Call the Winter Sports School for more information at 800-SKI-NUBS.

Dec. 26 - Holiday Night Skiing & Riding begins and runs from 6 to 10 p.m. on December 26 through January 1 with the exception of New Year’s Eve. Our regular night skiing calendar then begins on Monday, January 2 and runs every Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday until March 10th from 6 to 10 p.m. on Friday and Saturday nights and 5 till 9 p.m. on Monday, Wednesday and Thursday nights. We are also open for holiday night skiing on Sunday January 15 and February 19 from 6 till 10 p.m.

Dec. 27Enjoy entertainer Pete Kehoe in Nub’s Pub from 3 to 6 pm.

Dec. 28 - Enjoy entertainer Mike Ridley in Nub’s Pub from 3 to 6 pm.

Dec. 29, 30, 31 - Holiday Progression Session in the Big Park. Join the Rome SDS & Revolution MFG Teams for 2.5 days of Big Fun in the Big Park featuring instruction, demo's, swag and great coaching. $75/2.5days or $35/day, pizza lunch included for all students as well as free admission to the New Years Eve Rail Jam. Contact the Winter Sports School at 800 SKI NUBS for details and registration.

Dec. 29 - Enjoy entertainers Patrick & Sean Ryan in Nub’s Pub from 3 to 6 pm.

Dec. 30 - Enjoy entertainer Mike Ridley in Nub’s Pub from 3 to 6 pm.

Dec. 31 - Ring in the Gnar year with us in the newly improved Jib Yard Park at Nub's Nob! We'll be using the new t-bar park lift to service this event, which means tons of laps for you and your friends. Plus Rome SDS' very own Great Lakes insurgents Am Team will be in town to judge the event along with riders from the Revolution MFG team out of Utah! Come Gnar it up on New Years Eve at our 1st ever Gnar Years Eve Rail Jam!

Dec. 31 – Enjoy entertainer Pete Kehoe in Nub’s Pub from 3 to 6 pm.

Dec. 31 - New Year's Eve Torchlight Parade beginning at 6 p.m. at the bottom of the Green lift. No charge.

Jan. 1 - Enjoy entertainers Patrick & Sean Ryan in Nub’s Pub from 3 to 6 pm.



Friday, December 23, 2011
Enjoy,
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
Opening week 2011/2012
Saturday December 10th 2011 marked the first day of the 2011/2012 ski & ride season at Nub's Nob!

The fight for first chair of the season had these 4 waiting at the bottom of the green for more than an hour before the lifts started turning!
-from left to right:(Stan Stock, Sean Stock, Ben Postma & Greg Gallhager)-


It's been a great opening week at Nub's Nob despite the unseasonably warm temps that moved into Northern Michigan earlier in the week. Opening day kicked off with 2 chairs and 4 runs open; the Red and Purple lifts along with Big Time, Smokey, Sno Pro and Smooth Sailing as the runs of the weekend. Monday saw open terrain expanding to include Dories Bowl, Birch Run, Scar face, Chute and Valley.
We've had an awesome opening week here at the Nob and we hope to see you out on the hill soon!







Wednesday, December 7, 2011
The guys are hard at work getting ready for this weekends opening!
Saturday, December 3, 2011
Today is December 3rd 2011 and Nub's Nob is officially waiting for better snowmaking temps before attempting to open any number of runs.
The race to be the first ski and snowboard area open in northern lower michigan is a highly publicized event. News papers, t.v stations and radio all talk about it. Winter sports enthusiasts hog bandwidth as they Facebook and blog about weather conditions and check resort webcams in anticipation of opening days. Snowmaking season can be a headache for GM's all over the nation, reading weather reports and and issuing statements to the press, regarding a potential opening date. Lucky for us, Nub's Nob GM Jim Bartlett has been at the wheel since 1987, and has been working in the ski industry for even longer.
We asked "JB" some questions regarding his decision to hold off on opening for the season, in order to allow better snowmaking temps, below are his answers!
1. Northern Michigan just experienced a pretty great Indian Summer, how has that affected snow making efforts at Nub's ?
While all of us have enjoyed the great fall weather here, we are behind in snowmaking hours so far this season. While it's painful to look out my window this morning and watch it raining, this is not a rare occurrence as we have experienced these late starts almost as often as the early openings over the years.

2. Is there a certain weather pattern in play for the 2011/2012 season (la nina, el nino)? And, how does that pattern impact the northern Michigan ski and snowboard season.
This year is forecast to be a mild la nina year which generally bodes well for the Midwest. Here is the latest prediction from the National Weather Service Climate Prediction Center dated 11/10/11:
During November 2011-January 2012, there is an increased chance of above average temperatures across the south-central U.S. with the odds favoring below average temperatures over the north-central U.S. Also, above-average precipitation is favored across the northern tier of states, excluding New England, and drier-than-average conditions are more probable across the southern tier of the U.S.

So, if their prediction materializes, we should see a colder winter with above average precipitation once it gets going. We just need a little patience.

3. Nub's has been blowing snow as the weather allows, and temps have been pretty sporadic; what's it like trying to balance the need to get open vs. the need to have quality snow?
Quality is always first at Nub's. Given that the forecast called for rain all day with occasional periods of freezing rain (which is exactly what we've had since 7am this morning), not opening this weekend on a minimum base depth with unconsolidated snow was an easy call.

4. Well, thanks for sharing with us; Is there anything else you'd like to let the people know about the upcoming season at Nub's Nob?
Keep the faith - winter will show up and we're looking forward to making yours the best it can be!








Monday, November 28, 2011
The 2011 Manna Food Project Rail Jam brought out 100 skiers and riders! Filling 3 bins with canned food items and generating a good cash donation for the Manna Food Project of Harbor Springs.
Skiers and riders of all ages and abilities came out to take their first runs of the 2011/2012 season while donating to a great cause! Riders came from all over Michigan and the Mid-West, Spring Lake, Grand Rapids, Holly, Marquette, Grosse Pointe, Sault Saint Marie (Canada and Michigan) and more.

Nub's Nob General Manager Jim Bartlett had this to say about the event;
"Great job by all - I was very pleased. The participants had a blast, Manna gets a great donation of cash and food and the visual of all of them on the largest patch of snow in the lower peninsula surrounded by grass is stunning."

All photos taken by Charlie Hoffman.





Thursday, November 17, 2011
At 4:30a.m November 17th 2011, the Nub's snowmaking crew fired up the guns for the 1st real snowmaking effort of the season!
There is something to be said for the feeling a winter sports enthusiast experiences upon hearing the guns turn on. Right now, those lucky enough to have heard the steady roar coming from Nub's, are feeling the excitement and undoubtedly spreading the word that the season is quickly approaching!
Below are some photos of our world class snowmaking crew hard at work preparing for the season ahead.












Friday, November 4, 2011
Welcome to the Nub's Nob Blog!
Check back often see what's happening around Nub's, look at photos and video, and see what its like to ski and ride on the "Best in the Midwest".