Who Needs Snow?
Ski Resorts Get Creative to Fill the Summer Slopes

By Cindy Loose
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, July 5, 2006

Ryan Locher, who has the enviable title of "mountain manager" at Virginia's Bryce Resort, was in Italy for an international grass-skiing championship when he saw pictures of a coming attraction: a snow-tubing ride that required no snow. Instead, the Italian system replaces the cold stuff with a long chute of molded plastic that is draped down a mountainside. Riders are pulled up the mountain in inner tubes by the same tow used for snow tubing, but once they get to the top, they barrel down the chute's fake grass.

"I gotta have a few of those," Locher thought. Last year, three of them arrived at Bryce -- the first ever in the United States, so far as Locher knows. Then the mountain manager at nearby Massanutten Resort got a look at them, and late this spring, they arrived on Massanutten Mountain.

Not to be outdone, the folks at Wisp Resort in Western Maryland ordered theirs, which they hope will be up and running in a matter of days.

It's all part of the never-ending quest -- from tubing on plastic to lifts that carry mountain bikes -- to bring you to area ski resorts long before, and long after, the ski season.

"The ski resort business is changing," explains Deanna Painter, a spokeswoman for Pennsylvania's Liberty Mountain Resort. "It's very costly to have a lot of land and a big facility, and there has to be a way to attract people all year long."

Thus the inventions: skiing on grass with tank treads attached to your boots; tobogganing on wheeled sleds; zooming down the mountain on a device that's a cross between a snowboard and in-line skates. And now, the latest, tubing down the mountain.

I decided to try the new tubing ride at Massanutten Resort, whose brochures and Web site promised "over 125 things to do," even before opening what they're calling Peaked Mountain Express.

Just as with snow tubing, my favorite part is the bouncing tow ride up the mountain on an inner tube -- a short but satisfying trip, without being at all scary.

From the bottom, the "express" doesn't look that imposing, but from the top, the 660-foot slide looks much longer. The vertical drop of 125 feet at the speed of a good ski run provides enough excitement for a couple of screams on the way, and 15 seconds later, it's time for another trip up.

The ride seems about the same speed, and delivers the same rush, as snow tubing, just without the cold and snow. Two rides, which aren't enough, cost $4, while two hours, which is too much, costs $10. One hour, which also costs $10, was just about right.

If you're spending, say, 48 hours at the resort, that leaves you another 47. Massanutten has devised all kinds of ways to fill those hours.

The two 13-year-old girls I'd brought along and I considered tubing the river, but a torrential downpour drove us inside the massive water park on the resort grounds. Outside, fake snow tubing. Inside, fake river, along with the usual array of pools and slides. The park boasts three major slides big enough to entertain a teen, and the latest in water park inventiveness: a machine that makes continuous waves big enough for surfing on a boogie board.

What will they think of next?

Here are some off-season offerings at area ski resorts with summer lodging rates.

Massanutten Resort (1822 Resort Dr., Massanutten, Va., about 130 miles from Washington, 540-289-9441, http://www.massresort.com/ ) holds numerous special events. Two 18-hole golf courses and a water park are the biggest and most obvious attractions. The resort also arranges rafting and tubing trips on a nearby river, and has a miniature golf course; tennis, basketball and volleyball courts; a skate park; chairlift rides; and horseback riding. A wide range of classes is offered, including arts and crafts, yoga, couples massage and a healing herbs workshop. The mountain tubing ride is open only during the week. Double rooms begin at $96 a night. Condominiums are also available.

Blue Knob All Seasons Resort (Overland Pass, Claysburg, Pa., about 160 miles from Washington, 800-458-3403 or 814-239-5111, http://www.blueknob.com/ ) has a nine-hole golf course, outdoor and indoor pools, tennis and volleyball courts, and hot tubs and saunas, high in the Allegheny Mountains. Hiking and mountain biking are popular attractions. All rooms are in condos; studios are $115, two-bedrooms $150.

Bryce Resort (1982 Fairway Dr., Basye, Va., about 115 miles from Washington, 800-821-1444, http://www.bryceresort.com/ ) offers swimming, boating and fishing on a 45-acre private lake and is a center for grass skiing -- you wear regular ski boots and use regular poles but attach something similar to tank treads to your boots. Ski slopes are also used off-season for mountain boarding -- a cross between snowboarding and skateboarding -- and the resort claims to have the first mountain tubing park in the United States. (One of the tubing slides has banked curves, making a more exciting ride than a straight path down the slope.) Among numerous other outdoor adventures: horseback riding, miniature golf, tennis and summer sports camps. Condos, townhouses and chalets are rented for a minimum of two nights by private agencies listed at the Bryce Web site and begin at $210 for two nights.

Liberty Mountain Resort (78 Country Club Trail, Carroll Valley, Pa., about 75 miles from the District, 717-642-8282, http://www.libertymountainresort.com/ ) has an outdoor pool with lounge chairs, hiking in nearby mountains, fishing on the property and an 18-hole golf course across the street from the hotel. It recently opened a challenge and team-building course for groups, with eight low elements -- such as scrambling through a web woven in the trees -- and eight high elements, including a zip line with a 225-foot descent and a climbing wall. Prices vary by time and the group's composition, but use of the zip line and wall alone is $20 per hour, or $2 per person for a group of 10. A major draw for the resort in summer: proximity to nearby attractions, including golf courses, outlet shopping and the battlefields of Gettysburg, about 10 miles west of the resort. Rates for a double begin at $79 from late spring until Dec. 1.

Seven Springs Mountain Resort (777 Waterwheel Dr., Champion, Pa., about 190 miles from Washington, 800-452-2223, http://www.7springs.com/ ) is fully equipped for summer visitors, with dozens of sports, including golf, tennis, rock climbing, fishing and bowling. There are summer camps for kids and teenagers, a schedule of concerts and other special events, a paintball field and challenge courses. Ride chairlifts or horses, take a hayride or barrel down the mountain on a four-wheeled alpine sled. Rates at the hotel for a double in summer begin at $152 midweek, $168 weekends. The resort also has cabins, chalets and, for groups of up to 14, dorm-style rooms.

Whitetail Resort (13805 Blairs Valley Rd., Mercersburg, Pa., about 90 miles from Washington, 717-328-9400, http://www.skiwhitetail.com/ ) acquired an 18-hole golf course this spring, about a mile from the slopes. The resort also offers a fly-fishing course for beginners, with some classroom work and casting on a nearby stream and ponds. All rooms are in condos and townhouses, with one- and two-bedrooms beginning at $130.

Wisp Resort (296 Marsh Hill Rd., McHenry, Md., about 180 miles from Washington, 800-462-9477, http://www.skiwisp.com/ ) is on Deep Creek Lake and has a full array of activities year-round. New this year: a Short Game Learning Center where golfers can take specialized lessons in chipping, pitching and putting. Also new, an X-ball course, which is basically paintball but with inflatable bunkers that make the course more interesting. A summer tubing park is slated to open soon. The property also has a golf course, a skate park and an area for mountain boarding. Biking, kayaking and swimming are featured outdoors, while a spa and fitness center are indoors. Double rooms in summer begin at $129. A $204 summer special for a family of four includes a room and a choice of various activities.