Whitefish, MT - Whitefish Mountain Resort announced a revised policy for winter uphill traffic today, loosening previous restrictions and providing increased opportunities for participation in the increasingly popular winter activity.
The new policy is a revision of a set of guidelines that was agreed upon by Whitefish Mountain Resort and the Flathead National Forest in February, 2010. On March 1, 2010, the resort announced that it would be accepting written comments from the public pertaining to the policy, with the goal of improving the guidelines for the following ski season. Comments were accepted via email or USPS between March 1 and April 4, 2010 (the closing day of the 2009-2010 ski season).
“There are five main things we worry about when it comes to uphill traffic,” said Chester Powell, operations manager for the resort. “People getting too close to heavy grooming equipment in the evenings, potential collisions between uphill and downhill traffic during the day, people getting way too close to high-voltage electrical and high-pressure water lines during early season snow making, people putting themselves in areas where avalanche control work is happening, and people leaving ruts in freshly groomed snow in the evenings that can sometimes set up and be dangerous for skiers the next morning."
Powell said that several incidents involving skiers getting dangerously close to grooming equipment at the beginning of the 2009-2010 ski season made it clear to resort management that something needed to be done.
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