Get ready for plenty of fresh snow.
Well, not exactly. While the forecast remains clear for now, a new batch of equipment at Tussey Mountain has the ski resort ready to pump out the powder faster than ever before.
Since closing its slopes last spring, Tussey Mountain has added almost a mile of waterline pipe, 10 new water hydrants, a new motor and a pump house to power it all.
“The pipeline has increased our water pressure by 50 PSI and we have a 400 horsepower frequency motor,” Tussey Mountain marketing director Aaron Weyman says. “We’ve been able to start making snow sooner than we have before and we’re able to get everything done quicker. We’re hoping to have a great season.”
Plans to update equipment have been in the works for the past few years. According to Weyman, Tussey’s old equipment was perfectly functional but needed some additional muscle.
Now, with the ability to create snow at a faster rate, the resort has already gotten to work on getting the slopes ready for the winter. Still, Mother Nature has interfered to some extent.
“It was pretty cold and we were able to start making some snow which is sooner than usual,” Weyman says. “Now, it’s been getting a little bit warmer, hanging up in the 30s, so we’ve had to cut back. There should be some cold nights coming up where we’ll be able to make some more.”
With eight ski and snowboard slopes and a snow tube park that cover 50 acres of mountain, having a reliable snow system is extremely helpful since the ski area can’t always rely on natural snow.
“Last year we were able to stay open until April so we should be able to do that again this year if not longer,” Weyman says. “Obviously we’re in an area that doesn’t get as much snow as other ski resorts so this really helps and it’s great for our customers.”
Because of the changing weather, the resort has not been able to announce an official opening date for the slopes yet. Still, Weyman fully believes they will be operating in a few weeks and certainly before Christmas.
As soon as a date is set, the resort will post it on its website in addition to sending it out on social media and mailing list.
“We’d love to be able to have a set day but things change on a dime in this business,” Weyman says. “We could wake up tomorrow and have a ton of snow. [A few weeks ago] we got a couple of inches and then it was almost 70 degrees the next few days.”
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