WAITSFIELD, Vt. -
The snow predictions are welcome news for skiers, riders, and people whose business relies on them.
Though the timing of this storm is a bit of a concern. The concern is that a Friday/Saturday storm will make it hard for out-of-staters to drive to the region.
But make no mistake ski areas, especially those closed, are excited.
At Mad River Glen in Waitsfield Thursday, general manager Jamey Wimble says the days of good skiing have been gone for awhile.
The single chair lift has been stopped because most of the mountain has been shut down for about a week because of the lack of snow.
Now at the base where there was an inch of snow, Wimble says it would take up to twelve inches of new snow to reopen the mountain.
That's the upper prediction for what the ski area could receive from the snow storm.
"We've been ready for the past four weeks," says Wimble.
These days less traffic off the mountain means fewer people stopping for pizza at Bongiorno's Restaurant.
"If Mad River isn't thriving it hurts my business definitely," says Mike Riccardi, Bongiorno's Restaurant owner.
Riccardi and Mad River, which relies on natural snow, must now wait for the storm to arrive. Mad River says it will decide by Saturday morning at the latest whether to reopen.
"We were calling up staff all day and making sure everybody is prepped and ready to go," says Wimble.
Mad River says 60% of its skiers are from out-of-state. Even if they can't make it there this weekend, staff hope the snow sticks around for a week for the President's Day weekend.
