New Zealand — It’s going to be a critical season for the club-owned ski fields of New Zealand. Last year saw little natural snowfall, resulting in some ski areas not operating at all. One of them was Rainbow Ski Area, which couldn’t operate despite having snowmaking capabilities. Last winter saw only 29 cms of snowfall, which must have been agonizing for the operators. Because of those struggles, their operating strategy has been altered for this upcoming winter.
Last month, Rainbow Ski Area announced modifications to its operational strategy. New Zealand plans to operate only on weekends (Saturday and Sunday), conditions permitting. They could expand to some Midweek dates if the weather abides. In prior years, they had a seven-day-a-week schedule. Snowmaking will be used more conservatively than in prior years. There will be no ski school, and the cafe will have limited offerings. Their workforce has also been reduced, with locals and volunteers helping to fill in the gaps. The announcement follows a difficult past five years for the ski area.
“What we’re seeing with these weather patterns now, it gets cold, you make snow, then you get a big rain event, it all disappears, so you’ve spent thousands of dollars on diesel and people’s time to not get any advantage from it,” said Ian Goldschmidt, chair of Rainbow Ski Club, to RNZ. Great name btw.
The goal is to open for the season on July 18th. However, that’s obviously weather-dependent.
Rainbow isn’t the only New Zealand area that has adjusted its operational strategy. Earlier this year, Mt. Cheeseman Ski Area announced it would reduce its operating schedule. Cheeseman aims to open on July 17th.
If this winter is anything like the last, we’ll likely see more ski fields adjust their schedules, and potentially even close.
Image/Video Credits: Rainbow Ski Area
