THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, December 9, 1995 TAG: 9512090327
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: D1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY MYLENE MANGALINDAN, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 55 lines
Ahhh...fresh snow.
To children it means snowball fights. To adults it means extra work wiping the car windshield and shoveling the steps.
But to Virginia ski resorts, it means money.
``There was four to six inches of natural snow yesterday,'' said a jubilant Mark Glickman, spokesman for Wintergreen Resort and president of the Virginia Ski Association. ``They're calling for a chance for another 3 to 6 inches by Saturday. This is just a fantastic start for our ski season today.''
The snowfall throughout the state Thursday, which included some melting flakes in Hampton Roads, left ski resort operators feeling pretty upbeat.
A good base of snow means more early season skiers. Some resorts may even be squeezing in a few extra operating days.The early snowfalls bode well for holiday attendance - considered Dec. 26 to Jan. 1 - when resorts get 10 percent to 15 percent of season totals.
``The snow, the skiers we get now is all gravy,'' Wintergreen's Glickman said. ``The heart of the season is from Dec. 26 to February.''
The ski industry in Virginia generates $68 million annually, which includes ski tickets, hotels, food, beverage and ski real estate sales, according to a Virginia tourism department economic impact study in the early '90s. About $12 million of that annual total is spent by out-of-state skiers.
Coming off their second-best ever season last year, Massanutten Ski Resort is opening early.
``Last year, we opened on Dec. 14,'' ski area general manager Steve Showalter said. ``We're already a week ahead of last year.''
Massanutten snared 150,000 skiers last season.
Wintergreen officially planned to open Friday, but the fresh snowfall this week buoyed its 18- to 30-inch base of snow.
Resort officials have two lifts and two slopes operating and have pushed their snowmaking equipment, which was given a $1 million overhaul last year, into high gear.
Virginia's other two ski resorts, The Homestead Ski Area and Brice Resort, are still slated to open on their original dates. Brice Resort welcomes skiers on Dec. 13 and The Homestead opens Dec. 16.
Though some of the resorts won't open any earlier, the abundance of snow helps the resorts public relations efforts, said Manfred Locher, general manager for Brice Resort.
``As soon as the natural snow came, people would call in. Natural snow always helps to get the skiers excited,'' Locher said. ILLUSTRATION: Color file photo
by CNB