Arizona has the first snowfall of the season

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The Arizona Snowbowl Gondola offers a different perspective in the summer. With some stations already lightly dusted, it won’t be long before this view is covered in a blanket of snow. (Photo courtesy of Arizona Snowbowl)

PHOENIX – Winter doesn’t officially begin for 82 days, but workers at an Arizona ski resort woke up to a fresh coat of powder Thursday morning.

“We got about two inches overnight and it was still snowing a bit this morning,” said Tyler Shultz, marketing manager for Sunrise Park Resort on the eastern outskirts of the state.

Not everyone thinks of Arizona as a ski destination. And Arizona skiers would probably prefer it to be that way. Thousands of them make the trip each season to ski at resorts across the state, Arizona Snowbowl in Flagstaff, Sunrise Park Resort near Greer, and Mount Lemmon Ski Valley outside of Tucson.

As winter approaches, Arizona ski resorts and specialty stores have had to switch modes in anticipation of what could be another unconventional ski season. New variant strains of COVID have raised more questions and challenges.

“A year ago at this point we really knew what we were doing in terms of our game plan. This year we’re going and we don’t really have a clue, ”said Rob Linde, Managing Director of Snowbowl. “There are a lot of considerations. In some ways I think it will be more difficult because of the unknowns.

This might be the best thing for Snowbowl since Linde preached the importance of adapting. With the change in COVID regulations, meeting the state’s mandate has become the easiest way for these niche businesses to stay open.

“We’re basing it on the CDC and what the state or county has said,” said Michael Marshall, a Ski Pro employee in Phoenix. “We just follow whatever we need to stay open. A few of us might wear masks once there are new people, just to be on the safe side. “

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Being adaptable and ready for anything will come in hand as the Old Farmer’s Almanac calls for an unusually cold winter in 2022. It specifically predicts a cold, dry winter in northern Arizona, and a mild, dry winter towards the southern region of Arizona. the state.

Despite the forecast for the coming winter, Linde and Jack Kannapel, owner and founder of Ski Pro, both expect business this year to be at least a little slower for their respective businesses than winter. last, when they said they had experienced booming seasons.

“I expect things to be worse now that COVID is better,” Kannapel said. “I can’t imagine business being any better than during COVID because people were all focused on going out because they couldn’t go out to dinner or go on vacation wherever they wanted.”

While Snowbowl and Ski Pro employees expect a slightly worse season than last year, Sunrise is preparing the contrary. This is more due to the problems that Sunrise experienced last year.

“We expect this year to be a better season,” said Shultz. “We in particular had some issues with marketing and higher level staff turnover just before the season started last year, including our GM being brand new a month before we opened last year. “

Sunrise again has a new Managing Director, hired in August. There is also hope that Sunrise snowfall will return to what it normally is for this season. On average, Sunrise receives 250 inches of snow per season, but last year only received 170 inches.

Arizona ski resorts tend to start their lifts for the winter season from mid-November to late November. This year is unlikely to be any different with Snowbowl slated to open on November 19, while Sunrise ski passes go on sale October 9, with the intention of starting the season on December 3. That means almost seven months, from May to November, the stations have to transform to continue making a profit.

This past season was unlike any the stations had experienced due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite the challenges, Snowbowl officials say they have had a great summer thanks in part to a significantly lower attendance rate than the winter season and a loosening of COVID-19 regulations. Employees also learned a few things from the previous winter season that made for a more open operation.

“This summer has gone really well, but it was almost completely outside,” said Linde. “One of the things we’ve learned is that the risk of COVID spreading is significantly lower outdoors than in confined spaces. So we kept the gondola windows open and continued to deep clean the toilets. But because most of the operations take place outside, it worked perfectly for us. “

A Ski Pro technician, Justin “Moontown” Monge, spends most of the summer season preparing skis for winter. (Photo by Jerry Walker / Cronkite News)

During the summer, Snowbowl transformed its new gondola into a scenic ride that allows visitors to see the entire surrounding valley. These rides took visitors up to 11,500 feet, which is almost Arizona’s highest point, beaten only by Humphreys Peak at 12,633 feet above sea level, which happens to be the top of the same mountain as Snowbowl. Snowbowl also offered other summer activities, including snorkeling and bungee jumping.

Sunrise took a similar summer route, turning its highest chairlift into a scenic ride. The White Mountains resort also offered a number of other activities that Snowbowl did not offer, such as rock climbing, horseback riding, and mountain biking.

A number of new mountain biking trails were added to Sunrise last summer, helping to attract visitors. Sunrise now has around 15 trails for cyclists.

“We have had a fantastic summer this year,” said Shultz. “Last year we didn’t really have a summer because of COVID and the year before we had a decent season, but this year has been one of our best summer seasons in a time. “

Mount Lemmon, Arizona’s smallest ski area, may only open a few days a week during ski season, depending on winter weather. Activities other than skiing are key to keeping the business afloat, but with just 200 acres, the resort has to get creative with scenic chairlift rides and hosting a number of events. This includes the popular Oktoberfest which takes place over four weekends from mid-September to the second weekend in October.

It’s not just the ski resorts that have benefited from the pandemic. Some Arizona ski shops also flourished during the shutdown.

“We’ve had a killer summer,” said Steve Andrews, Ski Pro director and water sports buyer. “We’ve also sold almost all of our produce this year, and we’ll see how next year goes and continue to pray for more good seasons.”

While it’s easy for Snowbowl and other outdoor spaces to switch to other activities, it doesn’t necessarily hold true for stores like Ski Pro who have to return their merchandise from one season to the next. In winter it is full of skis and snowboards; in summer, water sports equipment takes up a large part of the space.

“Skiing and the other thing we do, boating, is a situation where a group of people come together and do something that is not part of their everyday life,” Kannapel said. “I think there’s a natural appeal there and it’s at least exhilarating for some people. There is a bit of a thrill that goes with it, similar to water sports.


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