While many of us living in Northeastern Pennsylvania are grumbling under our scarves, hats and heavy coats about the weather, Mark Verrastro has quite a different perception.

“It’s wonderful,” the general manager of Sno Mountain in Scranton said last week. “It’s cold for everybody else, but it’s beautiful for us,” he said, laughing. “I can’t ask for anything better.”

Not only is the weather cooperating for NEPA ski resorts so far this season, but January is also National Learn a Snow Sport Month. Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell declared the state on board, as did 11 other governors.

“It’s really nice to see the state government gave us some attention, because it’s a tough business to be in,” said Mark Siekierka, Sno Mountain’s Ski School director. “Sometimes the weather works with you, and sometimes the weather works against you. To have the state and the governor on our side is a really great thing.”

“We were thrilled that the governor decided to issue this proclamation,” said Gregg Confer, president of the Pennsylvania Ski Areas Association (PSAA), in a recent press release. “It shows he understands the importance of winter outdoor activity and how much the snow sports industry means to Pennsylvania.”

The PSAA is made up of 23 ski areas, and its member resorts will offer $5 discounts on midweek ski and snowboard lessons throughout the month. Individual resorts may offer other specials at their discretion. Of PSAA’s 23 members, 12 are in NEPA, or close to it.

In December, one member resort, Camelback in Tannersville, was visited by Glen Plake, “the godfather of extreme skiing.” Plake, the national spokesman for Learn a Snow Sport Month, gave “The Today Show” co-host Hoda Kotb a ski lesson. The footage aired Jan. 4.

“Luckily, we’re one of the close areas to New York, so ‘The Today Show’ contacted us about coming up to do a piece,” explained Camelback’s Director of Marketing Megan McHugh.

The segment included Kotb taking a lesson with some children, conquering the chair lift and having a few spills.

“We had a very good day and some great snow out there,” McHugh said. “(Kotb) was here for most of the day and had a great time. … It was a great piece, very entertaining.”

A GOOD SEASON

Unlike recent years which saw some warmer temperatures during the winter months, the 2009-10 ski season seems to be shaping up quite well for local resorts.

“Christmas week was the best week we had — ever,” Verrastro shared. “We were averaging about 4,000 skiers a day.”

Though Camelback opened a little later than it did last year, McHugh agreed the season is off to a good start.

“It’s our second best of the last five years,” she said. “We had a great Christmas season, we’re making lots of snow every night and even during the day. As the days are going by, we’re getting more and more people.”

Camelback and Sno Mountain see a large number of skiers from Philadelphia, New York and New Jersey mixed in with locals.

“It makes for a very nice crowd,” Verrastro said.

McHugh chalks the out-of-state visitors up to reputation.

“(Camelback’s) been around a long time, and people know the mountain and know our reputation as far as our snowmaking, great lifts and great trails and lodge,” she said. “Luckily we have a good reputation working behind us.”

Both resorts have also taken to the Internet to communicate slope conditions and other information. They are active on Facebook and Twitter, as well as their own Web sites.

Sno Mountain recently unveiled its brand-new site, which now allows the resort to update daily.

“It’s such a great marketing tool, and it’s helped tremendously,” Verrastro said.

Camelback also updates daily with a night and morning report.

“We try to get the word out there, and if there’s big snow forecasted, we have a Web cam so you can see what’s going on instantly,” McHugh said.

(SKI) SCHOOL’S IN SESSION

Siekierka, the Sno Mountain Ski School director, has been skiing for nearly 30 years, 20 of which he’s been at Sno Mountain. He has a staff of 142 instructors who teach snowboarding, skiing and racing for the Sno Mountain Race Team. Some of those instructors were once students of his when they were children.

“It makes you feel old when you saw them as little 6- and 7- year-olds, and now they’re in front of you as 22-year-olds,” he said, laughing.

Siekierka explained Sno Mountain has several learning tools for new skiers or snowboarders as well as private lessons for children ages 3-5.

“Which really makes a difference because they get the individual attention that they need, rather than putting them in a group lesson with a bunch of 3-, 4-, 5-year olds,” Siekierka said, “because at that age, their attention span isn’t that big.”

One major tool for children is the magic carpet lift, which is a conveyer belt children stand on that takes them to the top of their slope. Adult learners can’t go on the children’s magic carpet, but they can use one used for snowtubing.

“We have a beginner area that we’re making snow in now for that,” Siekierka said. “We take them up about halfway on that one, and the adult learning area is going to up in there.”

The average learners in Sno Mountain’s ski school are children ages 6-10, and snowboarders range from ages 12-20. A basic skiing lesson for beginners of any age starts with boot drills to get people comfortable in their boots. Next comes putting the skis on, then sliding around in a flat area.

“Once we’re able to get them comfortable, we teach them how to climb up an incline and stop and turn,” Siekierka said.

Though the gist is the same, the lessons for children are slightly simpler.

“A children’s lesson has to be much more alive because you want to keep their attention,” Siekierka said. “Adults think about things a little more than children, so they kind of want to know the hows and whys, where the children just want to do it and get out there and have a good time.”

Sno Mountain offered a Learn to Ski program this year, which was open for skiers ages 6-18. For $200, they got a lift ticket, rentals and eight lessons.

“We used to do this a long time ago when we were county owned, and we brought it back this year,” Siekierka said. “People are loving it.”

When asked what he loves most about his job, surprisingly Siekierka didn’t say it’s all his time spent on the slopes. Instead, it’s the people he comes in contact with.

“You meet new people every day from all walks of life and all types of backgrounds,” he said. “Getting them to have a great time and learn a new snow sport is just a great feeling.”

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Nikki M. Mascali - Staff Writer 570.831.7322

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