Mt. Bachelor Part II: The Orchestra of Ski Resort Operations

Bend Magazine's The Circling Podcast with Adam Short

On episode 46 of Bend Magazine’s the Circling Podcast, we finish a two-part series highlighting just some of those in leadership roles at one of Central Oregon’s most popular recreational resources, Mt. Bachelor. Though the conversations recorded for this episode occurred prior to the last several storm cycles in the month of January, the content on this episode couldn’t be more relevant. On the second episode in the series, designed to supplement our January/February cover story written by Tim Neville, I start with a great conversation with Director of Base Operations, Ryan Gage. Following my chat with Gage, Alicia Smith and I shoot the breeze in the old maintenance building lunchroom, where she shares her story of how she became the lift Maintenance Electrical Supervisor and gives us a new level of appreciation for just how much effort goes into getting the lifts spinning every morning, especially during a big storm cycle. Lastly, I record my first episode in the cockpit of a snow cat with Grooming manager Ben Suratt, as he works on building up the onramp at the bottom of the new Skyliner lift, all while providing a new level of understanding to just how much the grooming department does, both winter, summer, spring, and fall. For many in our community, myself included, Mt. Bachelor has played a key role in why we live here as it provides some of the best skiing, snowboarding and mt. biking in the Pacific Northwest. As is often the case, it’s the individuals behind the scenes, who work hard to provide an experience that many of us can take for granted, if we’re not careful. Gage, Alicia, Ben, and everyone works hard for Mt. Bachelor, Thank you.

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Luvut

1. Mount Bachelor and Leadership Change (00:00:00)

2. From Skiing to Construction (00:04:59)

3. Northwest Ski Area Camping Experience (00:11:20)

4. Leadership Changes at Mount Bachelor (00:20:30)

5. Memories and Career at Mount Bachelor (00:33:02)

6. Maintenance and Upgrades in Ski Industry (00:38:29)

7. Power Failure and Lift Maintenance Struggles (00:50:28)

8. Life at Mount Bachelor (00:57:05)

9. Ski Resort Job Experience and Duties (01:01:58)

10. Snow Grooming Equipment and Training (01:10:24)

11. Podcast and Magazine Promotion (01:16:34)