5 day forecast
Snow sports: Temperatures favorable for weekend
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Overnight temperatures in the low 20s gave local and regional resorts an opportunity to dress up their slopes and trails for a full weekend of skiing, snowboarding and snow tubing.
Blue Knob, Hidden Valley, Seven Springs and Wisp have bases ranging from 14 inches to 40 inches in depth and plan to remain open for the rest of the month. Hidden Valley will close Tuesday through Thursday to conserve its snow and the others will limit their hours and amount of open terrain as a conservation measure.
Blue Knob, which expanded its snowmaking system last summer, is holding its 10th Annual Beer Goddess Parade today that promises a batch of prizes and "the most fun you will ever have on snow."
March Madness also is under way at the resort with a 50 percent discount on lodging, lift tickets, rentals and lessons.
Hidden Valley's Fourth Annual Spring Carnival, a.k.a. Rio de Carnivale, will be from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. today and Sunday with music by DJ Don, carnival culinary creations and a variety of activities, crafts, games and prizes. Register at the customer service office today and Sunday to win a pair of Penguins tickets.
Spokeswoman Laura Argenbright said free activities include snow rafting, an obstacle course, snow golf, a limbo and hula hoop contest, face-painting, coloring contests, snow volleyball and jewelry-making.
The "Amazing Rio Race" will send teams to the slopes in search of clues that will lead to a prize. The "Cupcake Walk," a musical chairs-style event, will award free cupcakes to the fast-seated.
The Hidden Valley Race Club will a race for skiers of all ages and ability levels at 1 p.m. today. The registration fee is $5.
A torchlight parade at 7 p.m. today on the Cobra slope will be followed at 7:15 with "Rio," a G-rated film selected for Family Movie Night Out. The Bricks will perform from 8-11 p.m. in Glaciers Pub.
Seven Springs, which made 10 inches of snow in selected areas Monday night when temperatures dropped to 11 degrees, will have the Packed, Stacked and Jacked Big Air event at noon in The Spot, its nationally acclaimed terrain park. Register from 9-11 a.m. in Willi's.
The resort will host the Mid-Atlantic USASA Halfpipe competition at 11 a.m. Sunday. The event was to have been held at Camelback and Mountain Creek. Seven Springs spokeswoman Anna Weltz said the young competitors wouldn't have been able to qualify for the national event if the resort wouldn't have been able to help out.
Wisp, which wrapped up its Friday Night Rail Jam Series in its Pro terrain park, is making plans for its annual Beachin' Weekend/Cardboard Box Derby next weekend. )
If the weather cooperates, and that could be a big if, the western Maryland resort plans to have a Spring Blast Week from April 1-8 -- "eight days of incredible pricing to get everyone on the slopes for one last winter hurrah."
The deals include discounts on lodging, lift tickets, rentals, lessons, snow tubing, ice skating and the mountain coaster.
Information: www.blueknob.com (1-814-239-5111); www.hiddenvalleyresort.com (1-814-443-8000); www.7springs.com (1-800-452-2223); www.skiwisp.com (1-301-387-4911).
The locals had the atmospheric advantage on their Western competitors in the Second International Afghan Ski Challenge March 2 at Koh-E-Baba, Afghanistan.
After zig-zagging on their skis 1,500 feet up a mountain, 10 Afghan men, accustomed to the thin air of Bamiyan province, had an insurmountable lead on the other racers when they began the downhill part of the race.
See Charles Levinson's story in the March 6 edition of the Wall Street Journal.
First Published March 10, 2012 12:00 am
