Snow Trails Fun FactsBetcha' Didn't Know ...
*
Snow Trails was the first commercial ski area in the Midwest to base
their operation on man-made snow. Other snowmaking installations in New
York and Michigan used snow guns only to supplement natural snow in
certain critical areas such as high traffic loading points. Curious
entrepreneurs and other ski area operators came from all over the world
to observe the operations at Snow Trails.
* Snow Trails opened
in December 1961 with two rope tows…one for advanced skiers and the
other for beginners. In fact, the advanced tow only went half-way…a
second rope tow carried skiers to the top of Mt. Mansfield.
*
For the second season, 1962-63, a double chairlift was installed at
Snow Trails. It was the first chair to be operated in Ohio when the
season began in early December and was one of the first in the Midwest
region.
* In 1961, a ski area ticket at Snow Trails…Ohio’s
first ski resort, sold for $4 on weekends, $2 on weekdays. Rental sets
were only $4. A group ski lesson was $2. Nearly 25,000 tickets were
sold that first year of business in Ohio.
* Mansfield, in North
Central Ohio, became the Skiing Capital of the State when Snow Trails
opened in December of 1961. Soon after, other pioneering areas opened
in 1962 and 1963. By 1980, there were seven ski areas in the State of
Ohio. A total of four have come and gone so that there are now just six
ski complexes still in business today: Snow Trails at Mansfield, Mad
River near Bellefontaine, Clear Fork in Butler, and Boston Mills and
Brandywine Southeast of Cleveland as well as Alpine Valley near
Chesterland.
* Ohio’s first ski patrol, organized under the
National Ski Patrol system, began at Snow Trails in the early winter of
1961. The first Patrol numbered 15 volunteers; today’s Patrol has over
80 members.
* The Annual Ohio Winter Ski Carnival was first
held at Snow Trails in February 1962. The 45th Carnival will be the
weekend of February 25 and 26, 2006.
* The Bikini Race became a
featured event at the Ohio Winter Ski Carnival at Snow Trails in 1970.
The Race became world famous when it was covered in the 1989 Warren
Miller movie “White Winter Heat” as well as featured in the Los Angeles
Times and the International Herald Tribune.
* Snow Trails,
Mansfield, has had the same management for all of its 45-year history.
Opening as Ohio’s first ski resort in 1961, Snow Trails has pioneered
most of the trends in the industry including snowmaking and grooming
technology, snowboarding and, most recently terrain parks.
*
The first ski school in Ohio was formed in 1961 with 12 instructors.
The director was Walter Neuron, an Austrian who had served in the
famous 10th Mountain Division in World War II.
* The Possum Run
Valley just south of Mansfield records the coldest temperatures in the
State, usually five to ten degrees colder than the official temperature
at the Mansfield Airport. Mansfield itself, located in the Central
Highlands, is often the coldest in the State.
* Ohio’s
Governors have visited Snow Trails beginning with James A. Rhodes in
1963. John J. Gilligan came in 1973 to present the Ohio Governor’s Cup.
In the 1990’s George Voinovich often skied with his grandchildren and
also when he found time to enjoy the slopes during his travels through
Northcentral Ohio.
* The snowguns at Snow Trails can cover over
six acres of slope with three to four inches of man-made snow in 24
hours when temperatures are at or below 25 degrees Fahrenheit and the
relative humidity is no more than 65%. The cold air found in the Possum
Run Valley south of Mansfield provides more snowmaking days and nights
than any other geographical location in Ohio.
* Alpine racing
was pioneered at Snow Trails in the early 60’s when the United States
Ski Association Central Division, sanctioned racing by the Ohio Alpine
Racing Committee. Slalom and giant slalom ski events were held for
racers from ski clubs throughout Ohio.
* Snowboarding in Ohio
was introduced at Snow Trails in 1980 and instruction was headed by Ray
Sforzo, a pioneer in the sport who later headed the snowboard school at
Vail. Today, about 30 per cent of snowsports participants are on
snowboards.
For more information or story ideas, contact us at 800-OHIO-SKI.
|
