SAM Magazine-Wrightwood, Calif., Oct. 6, 2009-Wth Loveland and Arapahoe Basin opening this week, snowmaking is underway at other resorts, from Mountain High to Vail, as cold temperatures and snowmaking improvements have helped fuel an early start.

Mountain High Resort, California

Vail Mountain, Colorado

Crews began making snow at Mountain High Sunday night, and plan to continue making snow whenever possible. This is the earliest Mountain High has made snow in its history, and it is all due to new automated fan guns and upgraded nozzles that allow the resort to make snow at higher temperatures than ever before. "We never would have been able to make snow this early five years ago," said John McColly, director of marketing. Mountain High has been the first resort to open in Southern California for the past 12 years and expects to keep its streak going.

At Vail, cold temperatures and a new automated snowmaking system at Golden Peak allowed the area to crank up the guns today, even before the new system is fully installed. With the automated system-paid for by Ski & Snowboard Club Vail, so that its teams can get an early start on the season at their home mountain-Vail can now make snow during short windows of cold temperatures, something which its existing manual systems cannot accommodate. The snowmaking upgrade will enable Vail to build and open the Golden Peak terrain park to the public earlier than normal.

Snowmaking began at Copper Mountain Sept. 30, and continues there as the resort gets ready to host race teams and the PSIA and AASI demo teams later this month. \