Street party caps
ski season
By GREG STAHL
Express Staff Writer
Fantastic spring skiing conditions, some splashes of rain, a flash of
lighting and a gala street party combined to cap the 99/2000 ski season on Saturday.
A couple hundred locals converged on Picabo Street in Warm Springs on
Saturday. On Sunday, Baldys lifts ground to a halt until next Thanksgivingfor
skiers, at least.
The Bobos and lead singer B-B-Q Bob filled the street with that favorite
Sun Valley rock and roll sound, and nectars flowed freely from the areas watering
holes.
Sun Valley Co. spokesman Jack Sibbach said this years skier count
will certainly be down from last year. He didnt have exact numbers yesterday.
"It was a fair season for Sun Valley," he said, " but we
dont measure success just by skier count."
Sales and customer satisfaction are among the other things Sun Valley Co.
uses, he said.
With only 137 inches of natural snow over the course of the season,
Sibbach praised the Sun Valley mountain department for maintaining quality skiing all
season long. The average season garners 165 inches, and last year 191 inches fell.
"I think the mountain department did a heck of a job," he said.
"I never heard any complaints about any snow conditions."
Throughout the day Saturday, costume-clad riders and skiers appeared. The
slopes became crowded then empty as rain came and went several times.
And one nutty Ketchum ski instructor attempted to ski from the summit of
Baldy on a pair of 2x4s.
Wray Farmin, 46, whos been teaching skiing for Sun Valley for 17
years rode a pair of 203 centimeter, Test 2000 (written in black magic marker) wooden
planks he crafted at home.
"I skied Warm Springs in about a half an hour," he said.
"They didnt flex and the tips dug in."
And thats the spirit of a final ski weekend on Bald Mountain:
experimentation, fun and revelry.