Storms heat up ski season

0 Comments | Oakland Tribune, Feb 19, 2009 | by David Morrill

Nothing like a snow storm to cure ski-season blues.

After November and much of December saw more brown than white on the slopes, ski executives in the high Sierra are excited after heavy snow storms last week.

"For many, the ski season officially began last weekend," said Robert Brown, president of Orinda-based Mountain News Corp., which publishes OntheSnow.com. "There are some great snow-making capabilities out there, but there's nothing that compares to when Mother Nature responds and brings fresh snow."

Every resort in the area received enough snow to blanket the mountain, with some such as Bear Valley, Alpine Meadows, Kirkwood, and Squaw Valley's base depth at the 100-inch range or beyond.

"November was a bad month because we didn't have much snow, and January was not good, but February is going to be our best month for this season," said Caroline Ross, executive director at Squaw Village Neighborhood Co. "Incredibly, we got 8 feet of powder this month and the skiing has just been phenomenal."

Large snow storms always draw skiers. Last Tuesday, Squaw's Villiage was 50 percent full. After the storm, it went to sold out for that weekend. This week it's at 64 percent capacity.

Ski resorts received timely snow storms just prior to Christmas, New Year's and Martin Luther King Weekend. But overall it's been a tough year. The lack of snow coupled with terrible economic times have forced resorts to be creative in trying to draw those from out of town.

"With the economic times, people are just staying closer to home," Brown said.

Ski stores in the Bay Area have also felt the brunt of the economy, with more skiers opting to go with rentals rather than buying new equipment, said Steve Worth, store manager at Nor-Ski and Sports in Dublin.

"It's been an up and down season for us," he said.

The only slight negative from last week's storms, is that most of it came on the weekend itself, making it difficult to navigate the roads and get to the slopes. If resorts had its choice, the best time for snow storms to come is during the week, setting up for great conditions under blue skies on the weekend.

For those who plan to go skiing this spring, Brown said this is the perfect season to price compare and look for great deals. With the resorts desperately trying to bring in revenues, he says it's not uncommon for new deals to change on a daily basis. Sites such as OntheSnow.com. will have some deals, but because they come at a moment's notice it's best to check with the resorts themselves.

"It's very competitive out there," he said. "Each resort is doing everything it can to fight for more skiers."

Although most resorts opened later than expected, some hope that the past snow storm, and another anticipated this weekend, will allow them to makeup for lost snow days in the back end of the season. Most expect to be open at the end of April, but hope to stay open into May.

Rachael Woods, a spokeswoman for Alpine Meadows, says in the mid 1990's, the resort stayed open until July 4.

"The series of storms we just had has been just wonderful," said Woods, who also represents Homewood Resorts. "It's as if everyone on the mountain is grinning from ear-to-ear because not only does it help us for right now, but sets us up for a good spring."

Staff writer David Morrill can be reached at 925-977-8534 or dmorrill@bayareanewsgroup.com.