The Thursday before the Martin Luther King long weekend we watched weather forecasts, wondering what we could expect for the weekend.

Temperatures near 50 and rain continued into Friday morning when temperatures started to drop. That left less than 24 hours to get ready for a big holiday weekend.

At Saddleback, the rain turned to heavy wet snow by midmorning Friday and the area remained closed to let it drain and set up. As soon as temperatures permitted, snowmakers and groomers went to work.

Saturday-morning skiers reported good conditions. Lost Valley also closed Friday and Diane Moreau said cold temperatures made it possible for groomers to have everything ready for the weekend which turned out to be fine. Ed Rock told a similar story at Shawnee Peak. Temperatures fell just in time to salvage the weekend, and Saturday-morning skiers were using their cell phones to tell friends about the improved conditions.

We checked with other ski areas and got the same story. When as temperatures drop fast, ski areas can recover from a thaw in little time. While nothing can be done about the rain, managers and supervisors line up their crews to hit the mountain as soon as temperatures fall.

Some trails can be brought back by grooming alone, while in other places snowmakers go to work. The entire effort is coordinated to make as many runs as possible ready for the weekend. Here in the Northeast this kind of effort is commonplace.

They do it almost every year. That’s why we can sit at home and watch the rain mid week knowing we can plan a weekend of skiing. This is an example of how quickly they can recover from weather event and it’s why the Northeast has some of the most dependable skiing anywhere.

First, as we were finally getting some normal January weather, the local doom and gloom forecasters were telling us about Arctic cold and wind chills.

At the same time, snowmakers looked forward to produce the season’s best output. Knowledgeable skiers were happy to hear daytime highs would be in the teens and 20s for good skiing. They should take another look at those wind-chill charts. Fact: There are no dangerous wind chills unless the actual temperature is below zero! So when the forecasters are blathering about wind chills, dress warm and go skiing.

Stay inbounds

From the news, we also learned that there is such a thing as too much snow. I looked at a daily report from Mammoth in California and the base was listed as 13 to 15 feet. Down in the San Bernardino Mountains, skiers couldn’t get to Big Bear and Snow Summit, and those who were there couldn’t go anywhere. Snow had cut off highways. Then we got word from Utah that skiers were trapped in an avalanche skiing outside the area boundaries. They have plenty of snow inside the boundaries, but some skiers just can’t stand looking at untracked powder beyond the area.

The only body found had no avalanche gear such as a transceiver, which would lead rescuers to a buried skier. He was not prepared to be out of bounds, and obviously either had no knowledge of avalanche danger or ignored it.

We haven’t had the kind of natural snow that would lead a lot of skiers out of bounds here in the East, but there have already been several rescues.

Four Pennsylvania skiers might be getting a bill for their adventure. They left the area at Killington and spent a cold night in the woods before being rescued by a crew and a National Guard helicopter. Vermont State Police said such rescues cost $5,000 to $7,000, and the law allows them to bill the skiers. The state police are considering that to deter skiers from heading out of the marker area.

These rescues not only cost money, they also put the rescue teams in harm’s way. As a former patrolman, I know what it’s like when a skier goes missing in the darkness. We should all remember that sign that I cite often at the top Killington: “The mountains will be just as cold and lonely tonight as they were 200 years ago.”

Around the slopes

Nearby we have some important events coming up. Next Friday night, Lost Valley is working with the Seeds of Peace Camp to put on a fund-raiser for Tsunami relief. Ski till midnight for $20 and half of the proceeds from lift tickets will go to the kids from the camp’s effort to raise funds. All of the details hadn’t been put together when I talked with Diane Moreau. Whether there will be other ways to lend support was still being worked on, but certainly all donations in addition to purchasing a lift ticket will be gratefully accepted. Call Lost Valley at 207-784-1561 for information.

Shawnee Peak has been recognized for making skiing available to the families if Maine military personnel deployed to Iraq. MSG Darrell Whitney of the US Air Force presented general manager Ed Rock with an American Flag that had flown over Mosul, Iraq on Christmas Day to show his appreciation for the Military Family Pass program.

For the 23rd year Sugarloaf will host the Special Olympics Winter Games Jan. 31 to Feb. 1. More the 500 athletes from 70 Maine communities will take part in alpine and nordic skiing, ice skating and snow shoeing. The entire Sugarloaf community gets involved in this one and the students at CVA take two days off from school to work with the athletes.

Dave Irons is a freelance writer who lives in Westbrook.