GHENT, W.Va. --When Winterplace president Terry Pfeiffer began working at West Virginia's southernmost ski resort in the early 1990s, snowmaking was a relatively slow, labor-intensive process.

"Our whole system was manually operated," he said. "It took three or four hours to get it running at full capacity. Someone had to go to each snow gun, hook up the hose, turn on the hydrant, and make sure the air and water nozzles were flowing properly. If they weren't, you had to thaw them out with a torch."

These days, 75 percent of Winterplace's snowmaking gear is fully automated. "Each snow gun has an onboard weather station that monitors air temperature and humidity," Pfeiffer said. "When the conditions are right to make snow, an icon of the snow gun turns blue on a computer screen, and when we click on the icon, the snow gun's nozzles and compressor start heating, and the gun will start operating automatically after everything's warmed. Now it takes 20 minutes to get operating at full capacity."

It's that kind of snowmaking capability that has helped Winterplace and West Virginia's other snow resorts make the most of a snow-challenged winter.

Despite receiving only 32.5 inches of natural snow this season as of Friday morning, Winterplace had 25 of its 27 slopes open, with a base ranging from 2  to 4 feet deep. 

"We can now produce significantly more snow at a much faster rate that we were able to do years ago," said Pfeiffer. "That's been critical in a winter like this, with its roller coaster of temperatures."

Investment in snowmaking technology has allowed West Virginia's snow resorts to not only remain open, but to produce quality trail conditions for the 800,000 people who ride and ski the state's slopes each year.

"West Virginia has the most open terrain in the region, and trail conditions in the states surrounding us aren't as good," said Joe Stevens, spokesman for the West Virginia Ski Areas Association.

Officials at Virginia's Wintergreen Resort announced last week that they were considering laying off employees and reducing operating hours for some resort amenities to help compensate for projected revenue losses of $4 million to $4.5 million due to warm winter weather and reduced skier traffic. The Lynchburg News & Advance reported that fewer than 12 full-time jobs were expected to be unlimited under the cost-saving plan.

High temperatures forced West Virginia ski areas to open later than normal this season, but once temperatures dropped enough to make snowmaking possible, they began to make up for lost time.

By not being able to open until early to mid-December, "we're down about 10 percent below where we should be," Stevens said.  But all resorts were up and running in time for the Christmas-New Year holiday, and the recent Martin Luther King holiday weekend attracted above-normal numbers of skiers and snowboarders.

"Getting this season started was like kick-starting a 747," said Stevens. "But the number of people we're seeing on the slopes now is actually a little higher than it was at this time last year. This has been a most trying year for convincing people that there's plenty of snow for skiing and snowboarding in West Virginia, but I think the word is starting to get out that we're in pretty good shape."

To help spread the word to potential customers living in places where trees are budding and perennial flowers are beginning to bloom, the West Virginia Ski Areas Association produced a video showcasing the state's snowmaking capabilities and climatic advantages. The video has been posted on the state's Division of Tourism Website, www.wvtourism.com, the West Virginia Ski Areas Association's site at www.goskiwv.com, and on www.skisoutheast.com.

West Virginia's five alpine ski areas -- Winterplace, Timberline, Canaan Valley, Snowshoe Mountain and Oglebay -- have a combined snowmaking capacity capable of producing 20,000 tons of snow per hour, in temperatures lower than 20 degrees. That equates to covering a football field in 20 feet of snow in 60 minutes, according to the video.

All of the ski areas have opened terrain parks, and snow-tubing lanes are open at Winterplace, Snowshoe Mountain and Canaan Valley.

"When it comes to putting snow on the slopes, I'd put our snowmakers up against anyone," said Stevens. "This season, every resort in the state has taken advantage of every second of subfreezing temperatures to make snow."

Optimum snowmaking conditions prevail when temperatures dip into the teens and humidity is low. Snow can be made even if ambient air temperatures rise a few degrees above freezing, if humidity is sufficiently low.

Ski slopes can retain their snow base even when temperatures rise above 32 degrees. "Since the slopes are groomed nightly, they are well compacted," Pfeiffer said. "It's not the same as the snow that's fallen on your backyard and melts the next day. It may have taken 8 feet of snow to make the 4 feet of base we have on a trail. It's a very dense substance that takes a long time to melt."

As of Friday, 74 inches of natural snow had fallen on Snowshoe Mountain Resort so far this season. Average annual snowfall at the Pocahontas County resort is 180 inches. About 78 inches of snow had fallen on Canaan Valley and Timberline resorts in Tucker County, out of a seasonal average snowfall of 150 inches. Winterplace, which had accumulated 32.5 inches of natural snow so far this season, normally receives about 100 during the course of a winter.

All West Virginia snow resorts make use of real-time webcams to let skiers and snowboarders in the lowlands see for themselves that snow is in fact on the slopes.

"We get a lot of people from North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Georgia and Florida," said Pfeiffer. "Our Slope Cam lets them see that even if it's warm where they are, they can see snow and people skiing on it where we are."

"It's 15 to 20 degrees colder at our ski areas than it is in the lowlands," said Stevens. "If it's raining where you live, chances are it's snowing in our mountains."