“We are making it happen!”: Lack of snow at Central Oregon ski resorts is not stopping some winter programs
(Update: adding video, comments from Oregon Adaptive Sports, Mt. Bachelor)
BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) -- The warmer winter so far this year has been affecting the snowpack and operations at Mt. Bachelor and other area ski resorts.
"This is one of those seasons where there is less snow than average. So it's just kind of a balancing act of adjusting our operations based on snowfall." said Mt Bachelor Marketing and Communications Director Lauren Burke.
Although there is a lot less snow so far, some winter programs are still going strong.
One of the programs is Oregon Adaptive Sports, which is holding ski lessons for people with disabilities.
"We've got snow and we are making it happen!" OAS Program Director Leah Persichilli said Friday.
OAS Executive Director Pat Addabbo said, "All skiers and snowboarders, we were doing our snow dances and hoping for more. However, it hasn't slowed us down yet. We have been really busy all this week and last week."
Their program has been running at Mt. Bachelor for 28 years, teaching people with disabilities how to ski.
"That could be an individual that has intellectual disability, and they just need that one-on-one support with our instructor. Other times we're working with people that have a spinal cord injury and they'll be using a sit-down piece of equipment called a bi-ski or a mono-ski," Addabbo said.
"A sit-ski is essentially -- there's a plastic seat that's mounted to a metal frame on top of one or two skis, somebody to balance and ski using only their upper body. And sometimes they're assisted by an instructor. Sometimes they can ski independently."
Volunteers are a critical component of Oregon Adaptive Sports, with 300 volunteers donating more than 4,000 hours for their ski programs.
"We just are so grateful for everybody that chooses to donate their time and make our programs possible," Addabbo said. "We know the whole West is kind of in a little bit of this situation, so we're just happy to be here and be sliding around and just creating more opportunities for access."
The staff at Mt. Bachelor is optimistic that there are many weeks for good skiing and boarding left this winter and spring.
Temperatures also have been too high for the resort to make snow this week. As they start to drop within the next few days, they plan to restart.
"We are seeing business pick up." Burke said. "You know, the last couple of days have been great up here. January looks really good."
If conditions improve with more snow and Hoodoo also is finally able to open for the season, Oregon Adaptive Sports will start offering lessons there Jan. 11.
