Weather may be affecting ski resorts on President’s Day

Recent rain and wind may not be ideal for skiers but is it keeping them off the slopes on President’s Day?

The slopes at Pebble Creek Ski Resort were definitely more empty than full Monday, especially for a day with so many people off work.

Pebble Creek said in other years President’s Day has been one of their busiest ski days, but things were a little slow Monday.

Though the slopes weren’t full, it didn’t keep away all skiers and snowboarders.

One skier said the wind doesn’t bother him.

“I’ve skied in 30 below conditions before, so the wind doesn’t bother me at all,” said Larrie Hansen, an expert skier. “I’ve got good goggles and so the wind’s not going to affect me.”

Instructors said even with the wind and wet snow, the conditions on the slopes were fine.

“The wind’s actually not too bad today,” said Scott Rockwood, a ski instructor. “We had a little rain last night but we’ve also had 12 inches of new snow over the last 48 hours. So it’s been good skiing, it’s been good skiing all year.”

Even though it was good skiing today, Pebble Creek still had some precautions. Because the rain made the top of the mountain by Skyline trail icy, they made it “experts only” for the day. The resort encouraged intermediate and beginning skiers to stay on the lower parts of the mountain.

Monday was also a special Boy Scouts Day event. Twice a year, Pebble Creek holds a day where Boy Scouts can come out and learn how to ski or snowboard. They can also take a skill test and earn their snow sports merit badge.

Instructors teach the boys the basics of skiing and snowboarding, as well as safety on the slopes.

Fifteen boy scouts and one girl scout participated and seven of them took the skills test to earn their badge.

Resort operators said they’re glad they had enough snow to be open Monday and have people come out for the holiday.

They said they had gotten 150 inches of snow at the end of January. That’s way ahead of what they were in 2015.

Valentine’s weekend 2015, the resort had to close even the beginner lifts because it was so warm.

Fast-forward to the same time this year and they’ve got a lot more snow. They plan to remain open and running through April.

Pebble Creek’s next special event will be the annual freestyle rally on Feb. 27. For more information on events, pricing and weather conditions, you can visit the website athttp://pebblecreekskiarea.com/.