Snowbird Ski Resort plans to open terrain for the first time
of the 2012-13-winter season on Tuesday.
The resort received five inches of new snow through Sunday
night. On Monday, Snowbird Ski Patrol members completed several avalanche tests
on previously unopened areas.
Snowbird will open Wilbere Bowl and the Middle Crique
Traverse on Tuesday.
“It was a wild storm,” said Peter Schory, the resort’s
winter operations director. “On top of Hidden Peak we had measured wind gusts
of 113 miles per hour and a one-hour average wind speed of 71 miles per hour.”
The storm was fast moving, starting around 9 p.m. Sunday and
lasting four-to-five hours, Schory said.
The storm was the first measureable precipitation Snowbird
received since Nov. 22.
On Monday, Snowbird opened Great Scott for the first time
this winter.
“We are close to opening a big portion of our terrain that
has been closed so far because of lack of snow,” said Dave Fields,
vice-president of resort operations and the resort’s marketing director. “It was
good to get Great Scott opened, it is one of the steepest runs at Snowbird.”
Along with the new snow, Snowbird also had freezing
temperatures throughout the day Monday for the first time since Nov. 23.
“In addition to the storm producing new snow, it also
allowed us to use our snowmaking program all day Monday,” said Pat Krause, the
resort’s dispatch manager.
Snowbird plans to make snow for as long it can while
temperatures stay below freezing.
“Right now we have four of our 11 lifts open,” Schory said.
“As we continue to receive snow we will evaluate the snowpack and open terrain
we feel is safe for our guests.”
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