I have a lot to be thankful for. I have a fantastic husband, a great family, terrific friends, and good health. I have a roof over my head and I don’t have to worry about where my next meal is coming from. And I get to ski weekdays, when the crowds are pretty low.
All in all, life is pretty good.
In my last Thanksgiving post , I talked about why I was thankful for skiing. And though one of the things I mentioned was how it’s helped me appreciate certain technological advances, this year I wanted to focus on one that stands out from the rest:
Snowmaking.
Snowmaking is the reason that most of us, at least in the east, are skiing right now. Without it, we’d be standing at the top of a hill looking down at grass and rocks. And how sad that would be.
Ah, the miracle of modern science.
Here’s a good example: Okemo (VT), November 8. Pretty amazing, isn’t it? And it’s all because of snowmaking.
Okemo, VT, November 8, 2012
If you’re like me, you probably don’t know a whole lot about how snowmaking works. Oh, sure, I’ve seen the guys out there, dragging the hoses and positioning the guns where they’ll do the most good. And I know that it can be pretty wicked to ski through a snowgun in action. But I wanted to learn more. So I tracked down two videos from OnTheSnow.com that do a pretty good job explaining how snowmaking works (Part 1), as well as the economics involved (Part 2).
Forget the Macy’s parade. Here’s some real Thanksgiving entertainment. Eat your turkey, then gather ’round and take a look at these. And when you get out on the hill, thank your local snow maker.
Enjoy! And have a happy Thanksgiving!
