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Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow

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By ROBERT WELLER, The Associated Press

Published: January 6, 2008

DENVER - Santa brought just what the nation's ski resorts wanted: the best nationwide snow conditions in several years.

From New England to California, the snow dumped in the days and weeks before Christmas. Even Taos, N.M., in the desert Southwest, had more than 100 inches by New Year's.

"This is our best opening since 1977," said Adriana Blake, marketing director for Taos. The resort couldn't open for Thanksgiving but later got 68 inches in a week. "This is crazy. It never snows like this."

In November, with a few exceptions, some of the most popular resorts in the Rockies and California delayed their openings because of a lack of snow.

Most only offered limited terrain because of an unusually balmy and dry fall that produced disastrous wildfires.

Then the jet stream moved south and the snow began to fall ... and fall ... and fall. Wolf Creek, Colo., which usually has the deepest base in the state, has suffered for the past two years. It debuted in late November with less than 10 inches. A week before Christmas, it had 115 inches.
Sugarbush was close to being 100 percent booked for Christmas, a record for the Vermont resort.

Also in Vermont, Mad River Glen, which relies mostly on natural snow, reported 100 percent open.

New England struggled last year. The Vermont Ski Areas Association said 59 percent of Vermont's 1,242 trails were open as of Dec. 10, compared with 14 percent at the same time the year before.

The snow has been good from the start at Whistler-Blackcomb, British Columbia, the busiest resort in North America.

"This season we have had cumulative snowfall of over 11 feet," said Michelle Leroux, spokeswoman for Whistler.

"If one region suffers, the skiers take note of that and tend to generalize that there is no snow," said Connie Marshall, spokeswoman for Alta, Utah's legendary powder palace.

Mammoth's 14-inch base had grown to 45. Squaw Valley, near Lake Tahoe, went from 5 inches to 40.

Underneath that snow at Vail, Colo., the nation's busiest resort, is $1 billion in improvements in lodging, retail facilities and other amenities such as ice-skating.

"All the streets feel like plazas. East Meadow Drive is so much more inviting - and with the new restaurants and shops, it feels like our own 'Little Italy,'" said Beth Slifer, chairwoman of Vail's Local Marketing District Advisory Council.

"With our European street concept, we've developed a look, a feel and a product that will last 100 years and that encourages shopping, dining and lingering during any season," said her husband, Rod, Vail's mayor.

Aspen's Snowmass resort has added a $17 million, 25,000-square-foot children's center, called the Treehouse Kid's Adventure Center. It has a dedicated four-seat chair just for the kids. Inside are interactive, environmental-themed rooms, including the Butterfly Meadow. It even has rooms for kids who need a little extra care or aren't feeling well.

Colorado's Beaver Creek Resort also just opened a new gondola, connecting the resort with the nearby town of Avon with a three-minute ride. The resort also has a new children's area with customized learning slopes.

Mammoth Mountain, Calif., has replaced a double fixed-grip chairlift with the six-pack Cloud Nine Express, which will cut ride time to the Dragon's Back area in half to six minutes. It will help the busy mountain move snowriders across the mountain more easily, and it is a heavier chair and can operate in more difficult weather conditions, said Laura Johnson, spokeswoman for the resort.

Brighton, Utah, has replaced its last fixed-grip chair, the Millicent, laying claim to becoming the first area in the country in which all terrain is served by high-speed quads. That means more runs and no longer being banged in the bum by chairs.

New England Business Journals reports that areas in Vermont and New Hampshire spent more than $30 million in improvements. An additional $175 million to $200 million was expended by ski areas and private developers in real estate projects.

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