Installing even a smallish pipe sucks up operational resources, such as cat time, staff time, snowmaking time, etc. And it can do a number on a budget because of the need for specialized and expensive equipment.
If you’re going to go to all that trouble, make sure you do it right.
Pat Malendoski understands the importance of getting it right as well as anyone. Malendoski has worked almost exclusively on the world’s largest snowboarding events, including the halfpipe for the 2002 Olympics in Salt Lake City. Now he’s shifting his focus to raising the level of pipe and park building generally. His new goal: help resorts of all sizes develop terrain features which match their resources and market, and do so in the most cost-efficient way.
Terrain-Building Basics
He has volumes of advice on the most efficient ways for resorts to approach terrain feature development.
Up-front planning. Consider the process of building your pipe and park, and not just what you want the finished product to look like. “Most substandard pipes and parks come from starting out with a fixed idea of the finished product before really considering the process by which it will be created,” he says.
For example, planning for a pipe starts long before the first snow. It is cheaper to move dirt than snow, so resorts should consider excavating their pipes out of dirt. This means that the choice of location must involve consideration of ground conditions and accessibility for digging machinery, as well as natural gravity flow and relation to existing runs.
“Of course it is far more complex than that,” he says. “Every mountain is different in so many ways, from terrain, to resources, to mountain flow, to weather and snow conditions. Every variable must be considered and this determines the most feasible construction process. And that is almost always a compromise between dozens of different factors.”
Snowmaking issues. Areas commonly assume that it will be easiest to set up snowguns to blow snow directly into the pipe, or to roughly form a terrain feature. But over several eight-hour snowmaking sessions, many different consistencies of snow accumulate. If these are put directly into a pipe or feature, the snow will have strata (like cliff bands) and won’t hold together as the layers wear and decay at different rates.
“It is usually best making snow somewhere nearby and bringing it to the pipe. So part of the vital planning process is to have a suitable location to make the snow,” says Malendoski.
Locations for making and storing snow should be above the pipe to avoid pushing snow uphill. Another common error: putting hydrants too close to the pipe because snow buildup can block access.
Snow from other sources. An alternative is to take snow from trails or woods. Try to avoid using up the snow adjacent to the pipe first, cautions Malendoski. Operators then have to bring in snow banked further away, which means driving over the newly bare patches, churning whatever cover is left and ending up with an increasingly muddy mess.
Terrain park design. Building terrain parks is just as complex as pipes, and should be considered as a process also.
“It’s best to gently grade the slope following natural contours and snow accumulations,” says Malendoski. “Start with a plan to build jumps from the base up, always using gentle gradients, or the jumps will be top heavy and collapse. Snow doesn’t like to be stacked as a vertical wall any more than sand.
“And you need to be aware of the plan for the whole park when you start. If you just leap into building kickers and work down the slope, you probably won’t have any snow left by the time you get to the bottom of the run,” he says.
Operator Skills
In addition to planning, operators need to learn basic skills. Cutting a perfectly straight 500-foot wall is no easy task.
Inexperienced operators often try to push too much snow at a time, which strains the machines. They get stuck and start churning snow.
Another error: choosing a slope that’s too steep. The pitch should be 10 to 12 degrees at most—anything more and riders will need to scrub speed. In addition, Malendoski says, include features in the park that all riders and skiers can use. And make sure that whoever builds the park has time to ride it as well.
“You have to learn not to overwork the snow or it can start to deteriorate. This often depends on the type of snow. Every mountain is different and all snow is different. Even watching the weather forecast is vital for maximum efficiency. For example, in New England at the end of the season, a warm rain can soften things up. Then the temperature will drop rapidly. Getting out on the slope at the right time means the snow is first easy to cut and will then set up for you perfectly. Get the timing wrong by just an hour or two and you are trying to cut into ice,” says Malendoski.
“It’s all about flexibility in differing conditions and establishing a process for handling all the different variables,” he says. Get the process right, and there’s a good chance the pipe and park will remain in great shape all season long, with relatively little maintenance. “Get the process wrong and you will be behind the eight ball the whole season,” he says.
Malendoski has also created hand tools for shapers to do the minor repairs pipes and jumps need everyday, but for which a grooming machine is overkill. Prices start at around $125. For details, see www.Planetsnowtools.com.
