Little snow hurts East Coast resorts

In Canada, ski resorts across the province of Ontario have had to improvise, blowing manmade snow across their ski slopes. The neighboring French-speaking province of Quebec is faring better, since temperatures there are typically colder, and ski resorts are reporting good conditions.

In Western Canada, however, freezing temperatures are creating so much snow that some resorts are having to deal with avalanche warnings.

Back East, the problems trickle down to the businesses that feed on the resorts.

Mike Owen owns four Ski Barn equipment rental shops in West Virginia and Virginia. Some are doing better than others, depending on weather patterns and elevation.

At the shop outside of Snowshoe, W.Va., "we're actually having a pretty good turnout," Owen said.

Outside of Winterplace, the parking lots were empty at a hotel, a gas station and a few ski shops. But changes were on the horizon.

"It's going to get busy here this weekend regardless," said Ben Monast, general manager at the Ski Shop.

Some resorts that had been shut down for much of the past month reopened at midweek. Machines at Mount Brighton northwest of Detroit spit out artificial snow for two straight days, but the 15-inch snow base may not hold up with rain forecast on Friday.

"If we have too many more winters like this, there won't be a Mount Brighton," said Ryan Wilson, who works at a nearby ski shop in Brighton, Mich.

When Mount Brighton was inactive, Wilson used the Internet to sell ski equipment nationwide, particularly in the west.

Meanwhile, an Aspen-Colo.-based Web site is offering a $50 per-person discount on vacation packages of four nights or more if at least one traveler holds a season pass to a resort where lift service is under half capacity.

Other efforts to lure skiers include extending early-season rates at Winterplace and offering reduced lodging rates at Canaan Valley in Davis, W.Va., for the upcoming holiday weekend, when temperatures were expected to reach the mid-50s in some areas. Operators say many skiers are pushing back their reservations to later in the season.

Even when it's not snowing, some Eastern operators believe the biggest challenge isn't the weather, but changing public attitudes — coaxing skiers to buy winter coats, goggles, gloves — and lift tickets.

"It's getting the people in the cities to think about winter. It's the mind-set (and) letting people know the skiing is there," said Alex Kaufman, spokesman for Maine's Sunday River resort, which caters to folks from as far away as Boston and Providence, R.I. The resort dumped two truckloads of snow and built rails and jumps outside a Portland, Me., snowboard shop Thursday, when temperatures dropped to 25 degrees, as a way to attract skiers.

While operators agree this has been the most unusual start to winter they've experienced, there's far too much time and equipment invested to give up.

"We've got a lot of winter left," said Terry Pfeiffer, Winterplace's president. "We're making lots of snow. All the long-range forecasters are saying we're getting a nice cold burst. So, hey, we're still in the game."

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