Colorado Arapahoe Basin Is NOW a Free Agent (8/2/19 Update: A-Basin has joined IKON)

[nay]

Ah, but spring. While everybody else was sweltering on Sat, A-Basin delivered a slushy treat.



And of course, there’s the food. To be earned for sure.





It’s always been more than just about the skiing at A-Basin. It’s a special place, I’d be really sad to not have a pass.

 

[jmeb]

Supposedly a photo from a lift at A Basin today... read carefully.

 

[tball]

^^^ Oh my. It sure would be nice if they announced it before the Ikon price goes up in 12 hours.

 

[jmeb]

I imagine if they haven't announced it already, they aren't allowed to announce it prior to it going up.

 

[tball]

Yeah, or maybe Ikon will announce it and extend the early season Ikon pricing for a bit to drive sales.

At least A-basin pass prices don't go up until May 1.

A possible lifty joke?

 

[jmeb]

A possible lifty joke?

Always possible. If so, doubt management appreciates it much since I've now seen it on a few ski outlets.

 

[Snowflake2420]

Always possible. If so, doubt management appreciates it much since I've now seen it on a few ski outlets.

Really? ugh now this is getting even more complex. Screw it I'll just stick with my A Basin, Loveland plan.

Edit: Never mind I misconstrued above post

 

[nay]

A possible lifty joke?

Or photoshop. I’m trying to figure out what lift at A-Basin has symbols for extreme terrain, freestyle terrain, and no skiing (?).

The only lift where I recall seeing a message board like that is Lenawee.

But my gut sez this is real and it’s 7 days on ikon like we’ve been speculating. Would be a fun way to leak it...

 

[nay]

Google knows nothing, but here’s a clip I found in a Westword article in March.

Loveland marketing and communications director John Sellers dismisses any possibility of Loveland joining the Epic or Ikon passes. "Over the years, our phone has rung a few times," he concedes. "But we've been fortunate to grow on our own, so joining a mega-pass is not something we've really considered. The Ikon Pass is new. But over the years, the Epic Pass has partnered with other mountains, and we've closely watched how that relationship has impacted those mountains. For us, the volume consideration — the number of people — is what's made [joining a larger pass] a non-starter.

"If you're overloading the mountain and opening it up to potentially hundreds of thousands of other pass holders, it's going to have a noticeable impact on operations and the experience at the mountain," he continues. "We just don't want to alienate or frustrate our core customers."

That sure seems what A-Basin was doing...

 

[James]

So is the Abasin Spring pass gone?
I see if you buy next years season pass, you don't get this spring. That blows. I've had several season passes and I only ski like a week in May. Of course, you used to get two seasons out of one if you only ski spring.

 

[nay]

So is the Abasin Spring pass gone?
I see if you buy next years season pass, you don't get this spring. That blows. I've had several season passes and I only ski like a week in May. Of course, you used to get two seasons out of one if you only ski spring.

Spring pass is available for $299, but you can’t buy next season’s pass and get this spring for free.

That was always the deal, because you could get two late seasons in one season pass.

 

[coskigirl]

So is the Abasin Spring pass gone?
I see if you buy next years season pass, you don't get this spring. That blows. I've had several season passes and I only ski like a week in May. Of course, you used to get two seasons out of one if you only ski spring.

Spring and Spring Double Down are still there.

 

[James]

Spring pass is available for $299, but you can’t buy next season’s pass and get this spring for free.

That was always the deal, because you could get two late seasons in one season pass.

Hah, that's what we used to do. It's not like it was that bad a deal for them. But we'd get like two weeks, 2 seasons. Never made it at other times. I've had at least 3 seasons passes like that. That would cover six years.
Maybe it was $100 -150more. I swear I think one year it was $50 more. Can't remember.

@mdf might remember.

 

[nay]

Hah, that's what we used to do. It's not like it was that bad a deal for them. But we'd get like two weeks, 2 seasons. Never made it at other times. I've had at least 3 seasons passes like that. That would cover six years.
Maybe it was $100 -150more. I swear I think one year it was $50 more. Can't remember.

@mdf might remember.

It used to be $199 for spring and $299 for season, so $100 gap, but the big thing was that free spring with next season’s pass, so you only needed a pass every other year like you remember if you only skied after mid-April.

They turned that into the Double Down and I believed that is when the free spring with next season’s pass went away. Double Down is just 2x season price right now, so that’s not a discount at all.

 

[mdf]

@James : They quit giving you spring for free in either 2015 or 2016.
I have a few receipts:

2014 spring+2014-15 pass was $279. They did not call it a spring pass, just sold next year early with current year privileges.

I'm guessing @nay 's numbers fill in this gap:
nay: 2015 spring alone $199,
nay: 2015 spring plus 2015-2016 was $299.

2016 spring alone was $209.
2016 spring plus 2016-17 pass was $349.
I just noticed they balanced the difference -- spring alone $70 less, both $70 more.

2017 spring: no data

2018 spring was $269.
Wasn't sure what I was doing this spring, so did not double down, unfortunately.

This year spring is $299.

 

[tball]

Thanks, @mdf. That's why 2019 spring plus 2019-2020 at $499 is feeling expensive.

The same product was $279 five years ago and $299 four years ago.

It's one thing to raise prices to make ends meet after dropping the Epic partnership. It's another thing to raise prices then join Ikon. Doing both won't sit well.

 

[Tricia]

I wonder how long the courting process will go on. Will it be MPC? Will it Be Ikon? A local option? Is the "8 days" comment a red herring?

Yeah, or maybe Ikon will announce it and extend the early season Ikon pricing for a bit to drive sales.

At least A-basin pass prices don't go up until May 1.

A possible lifty joke?

From the comment about buying the Arapahoe Basin pass if you want to ski 8 days or more at A-Basin next season I suspected that they were going into a partnership with IKON. That being said, its only 7 days on the IKON, not full pass privileges.
At that point, you have to weigh your options of where you ski most.

 

[Ken_R]

If A-Basin is going to be on the Ikon I guess the crapshow will continue next season

Im sticking to my plan.

 

[Tricia]

If A-Basin is going to be on the Ikon I guess the crapshow will continue next season

Im sticking to my plan.

Maybe, but maybe not. IKON limits their pass sales and A-Basin looks like it will only be 7 days on the full IKON pass.

 

[Monique]

This would make my choices seem downright clairvoyant.