Taos Ski Valley becomes first resort in country to use electric snowcat
TAOS SKI VALLEY, N.M. — Taos Ski Valley is already a world-renowned resort but they’re attracting even more attention for a first they say could ensure their survival.
They became the first ski resort in North America to add an electric snowcat to their lineup. It’s continuing a journey that began years ago.
In 2017, they became the first B Corporation ski resort in the world, pledging to social and environmental responsibility.
Four years later, they became a carbon-neutral company.
“I just hope other ski resorts start to catch on to what we’re doing here, reducing our carbon footprint, if we want to protect our winters, this is their first step,” said Tommy Murray, the director of mountain maintenance at Taos Ski Valley.
Murray says the industry has to start somewhere and they want to take the lead to advance that. As a result, they’ve transformed their lineup to include more electric vehicles, like snowmobiles.
“We purchased nine of those this year. And we’re looking at purchasing more for next year after testing this winter. They really worked out well for us,” Murray said. We did purchase a hybrid snowcat as well this year. This is a snowcat that runs on diesel and it also runs on electric. We’re saving 1500-1800 gallons of diesel just on that one machine alone.”
The electric snowcat is another step in that direction. With a battery life of around three hours, it’s gotten some special use.
“We use it for cleaning out underneath all of our lifts. We get into some of the tight areas to clean out after snowstorms with it. Also, we use it for our Bavarian Sleigh Ride or dinner sleigh rides,” Murray said.
Plus, seminars on the snowcat have attracted attention from resorts in Canada and Italy.
With all this attention on Taos Ski Valley, some may wonder what’s next.
“I can’t ever see our owner selling. He has invested too much and loves this place too much. This is a gem and, as all of us locals here in Taos know, it is a gem. It’s something that I think will be around and will be independently owned,” Murray stressed.