LUDLOW–Okemo Mountain Resort’s Amp Energy Superpipe made its season debut on Tuesday, Jan. 20. Measuring 500 feet in overall length, the Amp Energy Superpipe has 18-foot high walls and a span of 54 feet between decks. The slope angle is 16 degrees, achieved with a depth of 14 feet of snow under the bottom of the pipe at the high end. The total amount of snow required to build the Amp Energy Superpipe was 51 acre-feet, which required more than 10 million gallons of water.
“It’s a big project,” said Okemo director of mountain operations Eb Kinney. “Once the first wall is built, we chainsaw-cut the vert and shape it somewhat with an excavator. This speeds up the process for cutting with the Zaugg pipe cutter. It took approximately 12 hours of excavator time and 145 hours of Cat time. We feel the pipe is a major part of Okemo’s park program and we all take a lot of pride getting this pipe open.”
Okemo’s commitment to providing skiers and riders with a quality halfpipe experience includes the use of laser technology. By affixing adjustable laser units to a stationary base at the bottom of the superpipe and attaching a receptor device to the arm of the Zaugg pipe cutter, Okemo’s groomer operators can monitor superpipe shaping for better construction and upkeep.
“We start setting up our lasers in late fall and get all of our points of reference in place so once it gets cold and the mountain is in good shape, we’re ready to start work on the pipe,” said Kinney. “The lasers help us keep a straight line for the vertical and elevation of the floor and decks.”
In addition to being home to one of the East’s first superpipes this season, Okemo offers a variety of terrain parks, bump runs, glades and ungroomed trails with natural conditions.
Okemo Mountain Resort and Snow Park Technologies (SPT), the world’s leading consulting team for special projects on snow, have partnered to reimagine the terrain park experience at Okemo and offer guests access to some of the most innovative parks in the East. Okemo is working with SPT to enhance all aspects of its terrain park program, including design collaboration and the introduction of new learning-based terrain. One of the biggest changes this season includes the relocation of the resort’s signature Rockstar Terrain Park from Nor’easter to Upper and Lower Tomahawk, offering skiers and riders an improved terrain experience with highly creative features.
Visit Okemo’s Parks and Pipe page for updates and for more information about Okemo, or call (802) 228-1600.
Photo courtesy of Okemo Mountain
