Time to start thinking snow

Ah, August. The sun is shining. The birds are singing. The skis are selling.
Yep, although it seems absurdly early to be thinking about skiing, Labor Day is the traditional start of the ski preseason, when snowboarders and two-plankers alike check out the new gear, score a pass or a four-pack and start to dream of the frozen days to come.

Two of the area's biggest ski sales happen this weekend: Colorado Ski & Golf 's "Ski Rex" and the Sports Authority's "Sniagrab." (Both sales start Saturday.)

"It is a very important weekend for us," said Dave Williams, regional manager for Colorado Ski & Golf. "We sell a couple thousand skis out of all the stores over the weekend, plus snowboards and all that other kind of stuff."

Labor Day is as early as it can get this year, Sept. 1, making the transition from summer sun to winter fun a little harder to wrap one's mind around. Nevertheless, ski season is all downhill from here.

Even the ski areas are busy this weekend, selling passes at the big ski sales.

"This is a real busy weekend for all the ski areas down in the Front Range," said John Sellers, marketing director for Loveland.

And ski season is closer than you think: Arapahoe Basin opened for the season Oct. 11 last year. If the resort matches that this year, it's only 43 days away. Sellers said Loveland brings in snowmakers from New Zealand every year in mid-September - and this season, they're coming early.

"We're just going to keep doing what we're doing and get the lifts going as soon as we can," he said.

Not everyone, even in the ski business, is ready to kiss summer goodbye, though.

At The Ski Shop on South Tejon Street owner Rick Uhl said it's too early to think about snow, even though he opened for the season two weeks ago and has sale prices, too.

"Sitting in a tent in a parking lot in 95-degree weather selling ski gear?" he said, "I couldn't do it."

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CONTACT THE WRITER: 636-0275 or awineke@gazette.com

SUDDENLY SNOW SEASON

• Ski Rex - Colorado Ski and Golf, 2454 Montebello Square Drive, www.coloradoskiandgolf.com  

• Sniagrab - Sports Authority, 7730 N. Academy Blvd. and 1409 N. Academy Blvd., www.sportsauthority.com