By: Pat Turner Kavanaugh
Snow Chronicles Correspondent

LUDLOW, VT - Most snow enthusiasts have encountered at least one mega-corporation resort.

Okemo Mountain Resort, conveniently located in south/central Vermont, on Route 103 and near Route 100 north, has all the amenities of a major resort, yet retains the feeling of a family-owned business.

Because, in fact, it is a family-owned business, purchased by Tim and Diane Mueller in 1982, and improved ever since.

After concentrating on raising Okemo to the highest standard - there was a string of more than 10 years when they added a lift every year - the Muellers took on the operation of Mount Sunapee in New Hampshire and later purchased Crested Butte Mountain Resort in Colorado.

But there’s none of that “cookie cutter” feeling you can get at places owned by big corporations which like to brag of “branding,” and “synergies of scale,” and a teaching method utilized across the country.

You see the Muellers around the resorts - they have a home at each - and their kids are in the business. Son Ethan played a role in the development of Okemo and is now based at Crested Butte , where he is director of operations; daughter Erica, a member of the U.S. Olympic Snowboard Team, competed in a NORAM Snowboard Parallel Giant Slalom Race to the Cup, hosted by the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association at Okemo just before Christmas.

She didn’t do that well, but was quoted by Ski Press as saying, “It’s great to come home and see everybody you know, and it’s great to have the ground you know under your feet.”

Okemo became a ski area in 1956, but it took the Muellers to take it to world-class. In their time there they have added, among other things, more than 70 trails, one of the largest snowmaking systems in the East, two 18-hole golf courses, an acclaimed kids’ program, and wonderful slopeside and mountainside accommodations.

Altogether they’ve invested over $100 million in the resort, and boosted skier visits from 95,000 to 600,000.

Tim and Diane call this the basis for “The Okemo Difference.”

Challenge Bonnie MacPherson, director of public relations there, to explain what this means, and she replies, “People return time and time again for the friendly atmosphere, superior customer service and quality experience that includes consistently excellent snow quality and grooming.”

“Okemo owners Tim and Diane Mueller set the tone here and their commitment to excellence filters down through department heads, directors and managers, who are the cream of the crop in the ski industry, to front line associates who receive regular training, motivation and positive reinforcement for a job well done.”

MacPherson continued, “At Okemo we recognize we have two types of guests: external - the individuals and families who come to experience outdoor recreation during their personal time, and internal guests - our follow associates who deserve the same level of respect and customer service as the folks who are visiting.”

“The Muellers take their business very seriously, but their don’t take themselves too seriously. There’s no reason people shouldn’t enjoy themselves and have fun at work. It’s that attitude, combined with an unparalleled sense of teamwork and dedication to providing the best experience, that truly makes ‘The Okemo Difference’.”

To the family or couple or single guest, MacPherson said, “Okemo is a four-season resort specializing in winter activities to keep families active and happy.”

That is no idle boast.

Look at the numbers. Okemo guests ski and ride on 624 acres of terrain, 95 percent of which is covered by snowmaking, on a total of 117 slopes, trails and glades.

These are spread over five mountain areas, with a good mix of terrain 33 percent novice, 38 percent intermediate and 29 percent advanced and expert), so everyone in the family or group should easily find territory that suits. The longest trail, Mountain Road, is 4 1/2 miles long. The vertical is 2,200 feet, highest in southern Vermont.

All this is served by 18 lifts, including nine quads (of which five are highspeed detachables, a total uphill capacity if 32,250 an hour.

The terrain features are second to none: a superpipe (at more than 500 feet long and walls more than 17 feet high, the biggest in the East,) part of a total of four terrain parks and a skate park.

Keep in mind, pipes and parks are open to skiers and riders alike.

If you want to try something different, check out the dedicated snowskate park and snowskate rentals.

What’s new this season? Ask MacPherson and she starts to spout: a new double black and a black at Jackson Gore Peak, a carpet lift to replace a poma, two new park cats and two new trail grooming machines, the beginnings of an upgrade which will take the snowmaking pond from 70-million gallons to 153 million gallons.

For young people, there’s now a Young Explorers and Young Riders (ages 7-14) full-day session to supplement morning or afternoon offerings, as well as an expanded Mini Stars lesson program for tots, 3 and 4 years old, at the Penguin Playground Day Care Center.

Added to dining opportunities is the Wine Room at the Coleman Brook Tavern in the Jackson Gore Inn. Designed to seat no more than 40, the Wine Room “will cater to an adult clientele,” MacPherson noted.

All this making you hungry? There are 19 separate places to eat at the resort, ranging from Mexican, an outdoor barbecue (weekends and holidays, weather permitting), pizza, fresh salads and sandwiches, Vermont specialty foods, Belgian waffles and Asian.

In the valley are more than 20 recommended culinary offerings, everything from Chinese and pizza and chicken and Italian, to a brew pub, New Vermont cuisine, cafe/deli, and fine dining.

Of course, if you’re staying at one of the mountainside homes you can create some or all of your meals.

The Okemo Mountain Lodging Service, free and available on a toll-free number, can book you in slopeside or on the mountain, or refer you to country inns, bed and breakfasts, motels, hotels, condominiums, and private homes.

Jackson Gore Inn offers such amenities as bell/valet/room service, concierge, underground parking, indoor/outdoor swimming pool, whirlpool spas and heated walkways.

Looking for lessons? The Cutting Edge Leaning Center has a staff of more than 400 professional instructors, available for group and private lessons, starting at age 4 for skiers and 5 for riders, beginners packages, specialty clinics so you make the break through to the next level, ski adventure workshops for bumps, parks and pipes, of whatever else you want to work on.

There are Women’s Alpine Adventures, Alpine Racing Programs (as well as NASTAR, telemark instructions and rentals, and a Nordic Center with trails, lessons and rentals for cross-country skis and snowshoes. Here you’ll find 22 km of cross-country trails, 8 km of skating lanes and 13 km of snowshoe paths, including tree skiing, hillsides and meadows.

Willie Dunn’s Grille at the Nordic Center offers “all natural” specialty selections free of artificial ingredients and preservatives.

Also at the Nordic Center is an indoor golf training center with a 700-square foot putting green, swing stations, a computerized virtual golf simulator and miniature golf.

Not satisfied yet? There’s ice skating and “a great hill for sledding and tobagons,” MacPherson said (bring your own equipment) about five minutes from Okemo, as well as nearby horseback riding and horse-drawn sleigh rides.

Free shuttles serve the condo areas, the Nordic Center, both base areas, and the Ludlow/Proctorsville region, plus Chester, Springfield and Belllows Falls.

Important to families, children 6 and younger ski free; special pricing for teens 13 to 18; the chance to ski or ride free the first hour the lifts are open to test the snow; and a “Sunday Morning Solution Lift Ticket,” good from 8 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.