LEARNING MADE EASY  The new Discovery Zone at Panorama Mountain Village will be in operation starting opening day on Friday, December 12th. Photo by Dan Walton

LEARNING MADE EASY The new Discovery Zone at Panorama Mountain Village will be in operation starting opening day on Friday, December 12th. Photo by Dan Walton

Panorama Mountain Village is now delivering bigger doses of winter by opening up the new Discovery Zone and improving its snowmaking fleet.

From the main village area, the Discovery Zone has been designed for beginner and intermediate skiers, who now have more comfortable options to maneuver the hill. The most prominent feature is the new lift the Discovery Quad at the base of the mountain. The chairlift carries riders to where Stinger meets Campbells Canyon, which gives skiers access tomore gradual runs than whats offered from the

Mile One.

If there was a grievance with Panorama, as a new skier, the leap from the lower (beginner part of the) mountain to the Mile One was a big one. It could almost cause regression, said Scott Henderson, Panoramas media representative. We call (Showoff) a green run, but by a lot of standards its pretty steep.

He said the new chair allows novice skiers to practice on low-angle terrain, which will help to bridge the beginner zone and Mile One.

This type of environment will help people to grow with confidence its the perfect place to hone your skills.

Another new piece of equipment in the Discovery Zone will be the Little Ripper carpet, which has approximately the same starting point as the Discovery Chair, but transports skiers up to the Red Carpet. The Red Carpet will take you atop the Silver Platter tow rope, which offers access to the mountains two most painless runs Highway 1 and Beginner.

Previously people would have to walk about 150 metres up the mountain to get to the beginner area, said Mr. Henderson. Now its right off the deck in front of the Great Hall.

And while the temperatures and precipitation have so far complimented Panoramas conditions, new snowmaking operations have further reduced any negative effects that can result from unfavourable weather.

That will guarantee a very consistent snow surface to learn on so its going to be epic, Mr. Henderson said. I think it could create one of the best snow environments on the continent.

With brand new guns and an improved recipe for man-made snow, Panorama is again covering its slopes with state-of-the-art technology.

“We’ve made major improvements to our snowmaking system. We have 30 new snow guns and we’ve upgraded our SnowMax system,” said Panorama’s marketing manager Scott Morgan. “We’ll have more snow, better quality, and we can make it faster.”

Some of the resort’s other features have been rearranged. The terrain park will now be found attached to the Horseshoe run, and will, according to Mr. Henderson, offer a “much more robust, full on terrain experience, which we haven’t offered as much in the past.”

Panorama’s tubing centre was located where the Discovery Zone is now located, and has been removed for this winter season to accommodate the expansion. Management will be revisiting the idea over upcoming seasons.

Because many families don’t want to pay for a day pass just to use the beginner sections, Panorama will be offering exclusive Discovery Zone lift tickets for beginners of the sport.

The ski resort’s first day of public operations for the 2014-2015 season takes place on Friday, December 12th.