Resorts count blessings with cold snap

By TOM LAVENTURE

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Ironwood - Area ski hills are calling the recent extreme cold snap both a blessing and the third leg of a perfect storm of a crazy season.

The business adjustments for COVID-19, the low amount of snow, and around 10 days of below zero temperatures are a challenge for any resort, said Bruce Noren, co-owner and general manager of Big Powderhorn Mountain Resort in Ironwood Township. Yet, the season is going better than expected, he said.

The skiers are limited to the amount of time they can be inside the lodge due to pandemic requirements and there aren't any events happening because they were already canceled due to COVID-19, he said. It's unfortunate that the food and beverage departments have taken a hit. The carry-out and outdoor bar and food have helped but sales are far behind an average year.

The prolonged cold snap presented a situation where it's not possible to stay inside or outside.

"A lot of folks are very understanding, cooperative and willing to spend time outside even when it's 20 below zero," Noren said. "That made it pretty nice that folks would still come up and still participate in the outdoor activities."

Powderhorn did close on the previous two Sundays because of the cold, he said. There are relatively few skiers and there isn't any financial reward putting a staff on the hill, and the potential for cold weather injuries that require rapid response times is an unnecessary risk, he said.

The priority is to protect guests and the staff in particular as any positive case of COVID-19 could result in closing the resort for a period of time, he said. That is critical when the ski season is only just 100 to 110 days, he said.

Instead of spending hours on the hill, skiers are adjusting by doing a run or two and then coming inside to warm up before heading back for more, he said. It is more difficult for staff who work outside as lift operators and ski patrol.

"Our lift operators have heated shacks but when there is a constant flow of skiers it is difficult to do that," Noren said.

Staff are provided with hand warmers and guests are advised about the signs of frostbite and to keep track of kids so that nobody gets lost, he said. There are roaming staff who try to watch the guests and staff to be sure all is well, he said.

"A lot of folks I guess wouldn't really see it but there is a lot going on behind the scenes," Noren said.

The staff were asking each other what is worse, standing outside fighting mosquitoes or standing outside when it's 20 below zero, he said.

"We're not quite sure which way we go on that," Noren said.

With daytime temperatures reaching the teens and 20s again, Noren said it's great to see the skiers back in bigger numbers. It's nice to have warm weather again - even if warm is a relative thing, he said.

The pandemic, having approximately 66 inches of snow so far this season, and nearly two weeks of subzero weather, create a "kind of what else can go wrong?" situation, he said. Yet, this ski season is looking better than anticipated.

"We should be grateful for that," Noren said.

The season could go to late March or it could end early, he said. It depends on the amount of natural snow to keep a solid base as the resort is not making any more snow this winter.

"Overall it could be a lot worse," Noren said. "I would say that the number of skiers that we've seen this year has surprised us, and has certainly surprised me. I did not expect that we would see as many as we are and so we are pleasantly surprised by that."

Whitecap Mountains

Whitecap Mountains Ski Resort in Upson, Wisconsin was able to stay open during the entire cold snap, said Ben Bonitz, resort assistant manager. The skiers were encouraged to make the colder days as much about spending quality time with the family inside as being outside on the slopes, he said. 

"Guests were advised to swap out their masks more often and take more breaks," Bonitz said. 

Skiers made a few more stops at the remote "Wine Hut" at the end of the runs than they might have in order to warm up before getting back on the lift, he said. It's also a popular spot for snowmobilers coming off the trails to warm up, he said. 

The resort has a lot of acreage and never really got the base it needed with the low snowfall earlier in the season, Bonitz said. The cold weather was really an opportunity to get the snowmakers out followed by the groomers to build up the base on some of the key hills and the resort's new Terrain Park for freestyle skiers and snowboarders, he said. 

"We used a snow gun and blew snow during the cold weather," Bonitz said. "We had a dismal start without enough cold days this year to make snow and the cold snap helped."

The rest of the season is looking pretty good with the hotel and chalets booked solid and and the weekends are showing excellent turnouts, he said.

"We hope to turn this season around keep that momentum going to the end of the year," Bonitz said.

Officials at Big Snow Ski Resort could not be reached for the story.