SUGAR MOUNTAIN – When the economy is bad, the best remedy might be a ski weekend.
Lucky for people who live in Western North Carolina, they don’t have to go far for an escape, with seven ski and snow sport areas within a couple of hours’ drive.
“So far, it has been one of our best seasons ever,” said Kim Jochl, marketing director for Sugar Mountain Resort in Avery County. “Weather has always been the biggest challenge. It seems to trump every other variable, including the economy. If we have good weather (meaning cold and snow), we’ll have customers. If we have bad weather, no one will come.”
Jochl thinks that local people might be taking advantage of the ever so short and sweet ski season in the South and escaping their economic woes, but she feels that the downturn in the economy might also be bringing in people from surrounding states.
“The population in the Southeast is so large, when there are challenges in the country, people tend to stay home and drive to ski areas rather than fly out West,” Jochl said.
“We have been pleased with our ski response,” said Tammy Brown, of Cataloochee Ski Area in Maggie Valley, which was the first ski area to open this year. “We anticipate with gas prices going down and being a day’s drive from Atlanta and Florida, we are a more economical ski vacation closer to home.”
Wolf Ridge Ski Resort in Mars Hill will be closed Christmas Day to give staffers a day off before the hoped-for crush of people later in the week, said director John Goin.
He said the ski area has increased its snowmaking capacity this year for the ski slopes, terrain park and tubing runs. New this year, Wolf Ridge is also offering snowshoe rentals for those who want to enjoy the snow at a slower, more level pace.
“The ski area makes about 85 percent of its money Christmas week and after,” Goin said.
“We’ll be happy to see the people coming. We haven’t had winter in four years. The winter has finally come back to us,” he said of the early cold weather that allowed the resort to open the slopes on Thanksgiving this year.
And it looks like things might get even better for the upcoming holiday week between Christmas and New Year’s, with much colder temperatures forecasted for early in the week and possible snow later in the week.
Business at many WNC ski areas start to pick up during the Christmas holidays, when college students are back home, schools are out and many people are off from work. Cataloochee will be open Christmas Day with a visit from Santa, who will be skiing and snowboarding the slopes 1-10 p.m.
“We will be serving turkey and dressing at the lodge,” Brown said. “The holidays represent a significant part of our business. It’s a time when folks are out of school and families are together.”
Santa also will make an appearance at Sugar Mountain on Christmas Eve, skiing until 4:30 p.m., when the slopes close for the day. But the slopes will be open noon-10 p.m. on Christmas Day, along with the outdoor ice skating rink. The ski area will also host a giant New Year’s Eve Party on Dec. 31, complete with live music and fireworks.
There will be a lot more to do on Christmas break at Ski Beech at Beech Mountain Resort this year. The ski area will be open Christmas Eve until 4:30 p.m. and open 12:30 p.m. on Christmas Day, said Gil Adams, director of marketing, and there are many more features.
The resort has added a new tubing park, an advanced terrain park with features such as rails for snowboarding, new quad chairs on the intermediate Oz lift, two new grooming machines, and 56 high-tech snow guns.
The end result, says new director of operations Ryan Costin, will be a vastly improved experience for visitors to Ski Beech and Beech Mountain Resort.
“A plan is in motion to upgrade the resort for the long haul. Folks will see positive changes this year and in years to come,” Costin said.
The resort’s director of marketing, Gil Adams, said the ski area is experiencing a new philosophy. “Everybody in management now is an avid skier, and they’re breathing new life into this place,” Adams said.
He and the other ski area managers are eagerly awaiting the cold that is forecast, the Christmas cheer and the skiers who are sure to show.
“We’re very excited about the season,” said Brown of Cataloochee. “There are great temperatures coming up for the weekend and a possible white Christmas.”
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