CORNWALL, Ontario – Locals can look forward to snapping in their ski boots and speeding down the slopes of Big Ben Ski Centre in early January of 2020.
Gary Woods, Program Coordinator with the Centre, said that it is not uncommon to open up after the holiday season due to unfavourable weather conditions. He is looking forward to seeing participants of group lessons, which are set to begin as early as January 9, if possible.
“There’s colder weather and snow forecasted for next week,” said Woods hopefully.
Woods explained that this is the second year Paris Holdings is running the Centre after taking over from long-time operators Leader Sports.
“The hill has been in operation for close to 45 years now…there’s never been a year that it has been abandoned, so not opening for the season is not an option,” he added.
According to Woods, the hill relies on a lot of natural snow as well as snow that is created for the Centre. Making that snow requires temperatures colder than -5 Celsius. Enough snow is needed to properly groom the slopes, which entails stirring the snow mixture to ensure there are no ice chunks and then covering it over the grass with a machine that is pulled behind a snowmobile.
Although skiing and snowboarding lessons are mainly geared towards younger individuals, roughly between the ages of four and 10 according to Woods, anyone can indulge in some athletic fun.
“Once they learn on this hill, they’re good to go on any hill. The slope is actually pretty steep…you should have no problem on (other) beginner or intermediate slopes,” said Woods.
Woods thanked the hill’s owner and the City of Cornwall Parks and Recreation department for their continued efforts. For more information on Big Ben Ski Centre, call 613-9336377, or check out their Facebook page here.
