Skiing / Bob Lochner : Early Hopes May Dry Up in Sierra
Although skiing jumped off to an early start in California, with most likely enough snow to carry everyone at least through the Christmas-New Year’s holidays without another storm, the sun has been out lately, and now comes a forecast that this winter may not be so great, after all.
According to Snow Country magazine, five long-range weather forecasters agreed (more or less) that while most of the country will have normal or above-normal snowfalls and generally cold temperatures, these will be the conditions in the High Sierra:
JANUARY--Warm temperatures and less snow than normal.
FEBRUARY--Drier than normal, but cold; perhaps a late storm.
MARCH--Light snow in the mountains, with about-normal temperatures.
Not bad, necessarily, but sort of a letdown after our snowy November. The key, of course, is maintaining cold nighttime temperatures, which enable most of the major resorts to make their own snow.
This is precisely what four Southland ski areas--Mountain High, Snow Valley, Snow Summit and Bear Mountain--are doing at the moment, operating daily on 6 to 30 inches of man-made snow.
In the Sierra, meanwhile, Mammoth Mountain is swinging right along, despite the fact its 18- to 24-inch base, while adequate, is somewhat below what’s available farther north at Lake Tahoe.
The U.S. ski team finally chalked up some World Cup points this week, 9 to be exact, when Felix McGrath finished seventh in the slalom at Sestriere, Italy.
The race was won by Luxembourg’s Marc Girardelli, who has apparently recovered from a serious shoulder injury and is ready to challenge Switzerland’s Pirmin Zurbriggen and Italy’s Alberto Tomba for the overall title.
Zurbriggen, although disqualified for missing a gate in the first run, still leads with 50 points, to Girardelli’s 35.
What about Tomba? Italians prefer that you not ask. The double Olympic gold medalist is overweight and out of shape after a summer of celebrating, and his coach, Josef Messner was quoted as saying: “He may face serious psychological problems if he fails in another race.”
After a fast first run before the home crowd at Sestriere, Tomba hit a gate and failed to finish his second trip.
The men are remaining in Italy to compete in downhills Friday and Saturday at Val Gardena, then in a slalom Sunday at Madonna di Campiglio.
The women will go back into action next Wednesday through Friday at Altenmarkt, Austria, where two downhills, a slalom and a combined are scheduled. France’s Carole Merle tops the standings with 37 points, just 2 ahead of West German Regine Moesenlechner and Austrians Ulrike Meier and Anita Wachter.
Skiing Notes
Taped highlights of two recent World Cup races will go head to head at 3 p.m. Sunday when Channel 7 shows GGP Sports’ coverage of the women’s downhill at Val d’Isere, France, and ESPN carries the men’s giant slalom at Val Thorens, France. . . . Former Olympic and World Cup stars Phil and Steve Mahre signed a 6-year contract to conduct their Mahre Training Center exclusively at Keystone, Colo. . . . The twins and other racers on the U.S. Pro Tour will compete at Waterville Valley, N.H., this weekend, then at Nashoba Valley, Mass., Dec. 15-18 before breaking for the holidays.
Jackson Hole, Wyo., opens for the season Friday with 80 inches of snow at its summit and all lifts in operation. . . . Sun Valley, Ida., which has been open since Thanksgiving, will dedicate its new Challenger quad chairlift Saturday. It’s one of three new quads--each chair carries four skiers--at the resort and has a vertical climb of 3,144 feet. According to spokeswoman Shannon Besoyan, Sun Valley has its “best-quality early snow since 1972.” . . . Brian Head, Utah, said Wednesday it still needs “about another foot” of snow to open. It picked up 4 inches overnight, atop an 18-inch base. So far, Southern Utah has received less snow than the ski areas closer to Salt Lake City, which have been operating for about 3 weeks.
Steve Kanaly, of the “Dallas” television series, has received the Jimmie Heuga Award from the Far West Ski Assn. for his role in raising about $350,000 to support the battle against birth defects since 1984. Kanaly will play host to his sixth annual celebrity races Feb. 11-12 at Bear Mountain. Skiers who would like to participate may contact the March of Dimes at (818) 956-8565.
Some other dates: The tentative Women’s Pro Tour schedule includes two stops in California, March 2-5 at Sierra Summit and March 23-26 at Mammoth Mountain. . . . Alpine Meadows will hold its annual Corporate Ski Challenge March 13-18. . . . The fourth International Winter Special Olympics have been set for the Reno-Lake Tahoe area April 1-8, with Alpine races at Squaw Valley and Nordic events at Royal Gorge.