At Stevens Pass, workers wait and wonder.
When will there be enough snow to open the slopes?
It’s a question being asked at ski resorts and snowboarding areas across the state.
One thing is for certain: It will be later than usual.
In 15 of the past 22 years, Stevens Pass opened in November. Only three times during that stretch has Stevens Pass opened later in the season than today.
“We operate at the privilege of Mother Nature,” said Christopher Rudolph, marketing director for Stevens Pass Winter Resort, which hosts an average of 400,000 visitors a year.
Skiing and snowboarding are big business in Washington state. About $103 million is spent annually at ski areas and resorts in the state, according to a recent industry report. The same report by Hebert Research found that skiers and snowboarders annually spend $282 million in the state on recreation-related expenses such as equipment and transportation. Indirect spending raises the economic impact to more than $700 million.
So the skeleton crew on hand at Stevens Pass on Friday was heartened to see snow flurries that are expected to continue today and taper off Sunday.
There was just a 6-inch base on Friday morning. It could deepen to 24 inches — “hopefully more” — by Sunday, Rudolph said.
Stevens Pass operations staff will assess the accumulation on Sunday.
It will take between 30 and 36 inches of snow and a good forecast for the pass to open.
“When you start operating, you want to keep operating,” Rudolph said.
Stevens Pass employs about 950 workers at the peak of the skiing and snowboarding season. Between 45 and 50 are full-time, year-round workers, including carpenters and mechanics.
Others simply must wait, including a small army of bartenders, cooks, nurses, members of the ski patrol, and 130 to 150 ski and snowboard instructors. For some, it’s a seasonal calling; for others, it’s their main source of annual income.
Snowboarder Tyler Ketz of Seattle knows the importance of snow at Stevens Pass and other ski areas in Washington.
He works for Bateleon Snowboards in Tacoma and spent more than 80 days on the slopes snowboarding last winter.
“You’re always disappointed when you don’t get to go up,” Ketz said. “The summers seem long enough as it is, but when Opening Day keeps getting pushed back, it definitely gets frustrating. All you can think about is riding up at Stevens Pass, but that makes it even more special when that day finally arrives.”
Ketz worries about the businesses that need snow to make money.
“It’s one thing when the mountains don’t open and it affects you personally,” Ketz said. “Every snowboarder can relate to that; but what most people don’t understand is the pressure it puts on those shops that depend on the mountains for their business.”
Ron Downing and Doug Fraser have made a living for three decades at Mount Pilchuck Ski &Sport in south Everett. They’re planning to retire at the end of the season.
After all those years, late arriving snow in the mountains still makes Downing nervous.
“It should be here by now,” he said. “For us, in this business, early snow is really a good thing. But you can’t make it snow. I would say, better late than never.”
Reporter Eric Stevick: 425-339-3446 or e-mail stevick@heraldnet.com.
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