A Big Deal for a Small Mountain
Back in 1993, the current owners of Plattekill Mountain in Roxbury, NY, came across something they couldn’t pass up – a ski mountain on the auction block, and a dream. Now, 22 years later, this family-owned and operated Upstate NY ski resort, run by the Vajtay Family, in the Catkill Mountains (just 3 hours from NYC) has come a long way with many milestones. This season is no exception as they unveil a new carpet lift in their Learning Center.
One might say, why is this such a big deal - all the mountains have carpets. The answer: unlike larger resorts with big budgets, small private run resorts have to acquire things at a much slower pace. These conveyor carpets have proven to be a dream for students and ski instructors alike as the ease with which to learn has increased tremendously. The only limitation, has been the price tag that comes with one of these such lifts, at around $200,000 new. Truly cost prohibitive for smaller mountains.
For 22 years now, since the Vajtays have operated the mountain, their handle tow has transported thousands of beginner skiers and the Vajtays have sat patiently waiting for these "new" carpet lifts to become “old” to their larger corporate counterparts, and worthy of replacing. Ironically, this happened this summer with Plattekill’s neighbor to the east by 20 miles, Windham Mountain.
And now, after waiting for what seemed like a very long time, Plattekill has said goodbye to their old rope tow. “This is a big deal for us” says Laszlo Vajtay. “We’ve waited a long time for this, and the opportunity was right.”
So, Saturday, September 5 at 4:30pm Plattekill will have the official ribbon cutting of their “Bunny Hop Express” and inaugural spin of their carpet lift. The public is invited and will be followed by a bbq and live music. The ceremonial bottle of champagne will christen the lift to officially open it for the upcoming ski season.