Ski season uncertain

Much remains uncertain for the upcoming ski season in New Mexico. But ski resort owners all know one thing: They want to ride.

"It's a different year than most," said Michael Adams with Ski Cloudcroft. "Gov. (Michelle Lujan) Grisham hasn't addressed this year yet and what restrictions there will be. We're planning for a bunch of scenarios right now, but what we are anticipating is 50 percent capacity and social distancing. We've watched a lot of videos on how to keep your community and staff safe, and being an outdoor sport helps."

Adams said his resort, which normally opens its season in December, has plans in place to practice social distancing by only allowing a certain number of people inside the ski resort at one time and having everyone wear masks when they are inside. He said people will get their own chair on the ski lift if they came alone and one-way lines will be put into place. He said the restaurant attached to his resort will likely have a limited menu in an attempt to get people in and out quickly.

"(It's) just trying to limit exposure to people you don't know. It has been a challenge trying to figure it all out," Adams said. "The hard part is everyone is coming up with plans, but that may change when a few hundred or 1,000 people get here. We are planning as much as we can to keep our staff and community safe, but you may have to adjust as people come in. It's something I think we'll all get through and figure out."

According to Ski Santa Fe officials, working closely with the state government and the National Ski Areas Association on covid-safe practices has given them hope of being able to open by Thanksgiving.

"Barring a major negative change in our state's covid cases, we are hopeful that we will be able to host at least 50 percent of our normal daily guests," read a Sept. 21 website update from owners Ben and Benny Abruzzo. The update said the resort will limit passes to 1-3 days and will sell a limited number of seasonal passes that will be "pay as you go."

Adams said New Mexico is not alone in its uncertainty with the season. He said even larger resorts in Colorado have many unanswered questions.

"That's a little bit of the helpless feeling you get sometimes is doing everything the right way and still having the possibility of getting shut down," he said. "But that's part of life - try to do your part and look out for the safety of your customers and hope the other guys do their part too."