FORT QU’APPELLE – The extreme cold last winter meant numerous unscheduled closures for Mission Ridge Winter Park, which took a hit on the ski hill’s bottom line.
“That’s one of the frustrating things about the ski business is you kind of deal with the temperature as it comes,” said Anders Svenson, snow school director with Mission Ridge.
While the ski season is only halfway through, all signs point to a much more profitable year.
“We’ve been really fortunate. We had our largest Friday ever two days ago,” said Svenson. “Percentage wise, we’re probably up 50 to 60 per cent so far.”
Although snowfall has been minimal in the region this winter, Mission Ridge has been fully operational since the start of December.
“We rely solely on manmade snow. So by the beginning of the season, we’re set up till March without any help from mother nature,” said Svenson. “We invested quite a bit of money in snow making this year as far as underground lines and hydrants to expand our operation.”
Mission Ridge pumps in 10 million gallons of water each season in order to make snow.