Snow forecast good news for Colorado ski areas as holiday nears

Much of the Western Slope is under a winter weather advisory for 24 hours as another round of snow moves into Colorado, according to the National Weather Service office in Grand Junction.

A trough of low pressure could leave behind up to 7 inches of new snow on much of the northern and central mountains. Higher elevations could see up to 8 inches, according to forecasters. The advisory started at midnight. Skiers will feast on a smorgasbord of newly opened slopes for the Thanksgiving holiday.

Monarch Mountain, Crested Butte and Steamboat open Wednesday. Thursday is the season opening for Aspen Mountain, Snowmass and Telluride. Purgatory at Durango Mountain opens Friday, according to Colorado Ski Country USA. Snow showers but no significant accumulation are expected along the Front Range today.

Ski jumpers denied Games bid

Women ski jumpers have been grounded after a B.C. court denied their appeal but they say they’re fine with men still getting their chance to soar at next year’s Olympics.

The B.C. Court of Appeal ruled Friday that VANOC is not in breach of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms by staging only men’s ski jumping at the Games. In the women’s original lawsuit, they asked that both sexes be allowed to jump or that the men be grounded as well. Spokesman Deborah Folka said the 14 plaintiffs don’t plan to protest at the Olympics: “We will not do anything to take the dignity of events from other athletes,” said Folka.

She said that a very slim possibility of the women being allowed to jump rests with the International Olympic Committtee. “We will not make it to the 2010 Olympics by legal means, but there is still the possibility that the IOC changes its mind,” said Folka. VANOC responded that “(it) remains supportive .... of having women’s ski jumping added to the roster of future Olympic Winter Games.”

Big Opening Weekend for Skiing 09-10

Many of the world's major resorts in at least 10 countries are opening for 2009-10 season this weekend. In Europe, the ski season begins in Andorra with Grandvalira opening a fortnight early after heavy snowfall in the Pyrenees.

In the French Alps, Europe's highest major resort, Val Thorens is the second resort to open in France, joining Tignes which has been open for nearly two months already. In Austria, Obergurgl is opening and in Switzerland, Andermatt, Davos, Klosters, Flims and Laax join Engelberg, Zermatt, Verbier, Les Diablerets and Saas Fee which are already open.

In Italy, Livigno is opening early and is running its lifts free of charge this week with no lift pass required. More resorts are opening in Finland, Norway and Sweden joining the 20 or so already open in Scandinavia.

Across the Atlantic In Canada British Columbia's Big White, Sun peaks and whistler resorts have opened this weekend, joining Alberta's Banff resorts, Lake Louise, Marmot Basin and Nakiska which have opened in recent weeks.

More areas are opening in the today US too including Boreal in California and White Pass, they join the latest openers Mt Baker in Washington State and Breckenridge, Colorado, which opened a few days ago.

Female ski jumpers head back to court

VANCOUVER, British Columbia -- Female ski jumpers are heading back to court Thursday in another attempt to compete in the Vancouver Olympics.

Fourteen jumpers are appealing a lower court's decision that the Vancouver Olympic organizing committee doesn't control whether they can compete. The jumpers argue that organizers are subject to the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and their failure to include women's ski jumping is discrimination.

A British Columbia Supreme Court judge ruled in July that the power to add sports rests solely with the International Olympic Committee. The IOC rejected women's ski jumping for the 2010 Games in 2006, arguing the sport had not yet met the criteria to be included.

The appeal will be heard over two days by a panel of judges in Vancouver.

Alpine ski season off to earliest ever start due to heavy snowfalls

Over the weekend, skiers and snowboarders enjoyed outstanding conditions for this time of year as a handful of European resorts opened earlier than expected following snowfalls of up to 20ins (50cm) in the past week.

In Saas Fee, Switzerland, snow depths have already reached more than 3ft (1m) on upper slopes, while the Austrian resort of Kitzbühel earlier set an 80-year record by opening on October 24.

In Switzerland, the resorts of Zermatt, Saas Fee, and Verbier have lifts running at weekends boasting “excellent” conditions following snowfalls in Thursday and overnight on Saturday. Resorts in France and Italy are also offering weekend skiing.

Despite not being among the highest of the Austrian resorts, Kitzbühel was one of the earliest to open its lifts last month, after heavy falls over the last three weeks.

Many Alpine resorts had been becoming increasingly nervous about the unseasonably warm weather of late, which saw temperatures as high as 65F (18C) – fearing a repeat of the dire season of 2006/7.

Concerns have also been raised over the impact of the global economic crisis and poor exchange rates that have forced up the cost of holidays in Europe, especially for British tourists.

Experts said that a plethora of cheap deals available this year are also helping fuel sales.

Last year many Alpine resorts experienced the best snow conditions in a generation.

Heavy snowfall has some Wash. ski areas opening

MOUNT BAKER, Wash. - Heavy snowfall in the Cascade Range has some Washington ski areas preparing to open.

Mount Baker Ski Area says it's received more than 45 inches of new snow in the last few days, and it plans to open on Thursday.

Crystal Mountain, meanwhile, says it's gotten about 2 feet recently and could open for limited operations on Wednesday.

New season on the Southampton ski slopes

An alpine activity firm is celebrating the launch of its seventh winter season running Southampton’s ski centre.

Filarinskis has been welcoming more than 50,000 skiers and snowboarders a year to the council facility at the sports centre in Bassett. City leisure chiefs hope that the forthcoming Winter Olympics will inspire even more people to give skiing a go on the centre’s dry slopes.