Grooming Economics

Conserving Snow and Money
Budget and Weather
Goals
Race/Event Grooming
Touring Center
Resort with Guests
Ski Club
Back Yard Trail
Municipality Park on a budget
Weekly grooming/contract
Empty Resort
Decisions
Snowcat grooming vs Snowmobile grooming
$100/hour and hard snow
$2.50/mile and soft snow
1 pass vs 2 passes
Skate marks on the edges
Perfect cordoroy
Skate lanes buffing vs complete renovation
Slow snow, but looks nice and is fast….. easy to groom
Fast snow, sturdy and durable surface …. slow to groom
Re-tracking vs not re-tracking
Set up time
Track condition
Glazed track
Safe track
Grooming all of the trails vs. partial trails
Groom the hilly trails to make them safe
Groom the flat trails and close the hilly trails
Leave one trail ungroomed and label it “not groomed” as a groomer appreciation trail
Alternate days for grooming a portion of the trails and post it for skiers to plan their routes
Groom for your audience
Race skiers
Recreational skiers
Classic skiers vs Skate skiers
Groom for the forecast
No new snow for the next few days ….groom conservatively, get a nice firm track in and leave it
New snow daily, start grooming narrow and widening daily to avoid plowing snow off