Riding Out the Old Year

They’re be a party on the mountain tonight, and perhaps some snowboarding, too.

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0CU0VAAtpK8]

In New Hampshire, for example, Gunstock will offer skiing and riding until midnight, along with smores, jugglers, and music.

In Minnesota, the wheels will be turning at Afton Alps until midnight.

A number of Colorado resorts have events tonight, though most are of the non-skiing or riding variety. Beaver Creek, for example, will have a “glow-worm ski down from the top of the Buckaroo Express gondola.”

Northstar-at-Tahoe calls its event Fire & Ice. It features music and skating, but no skiing.

Many (perhaps most) areas don’t have night skiing or riding, and those that do may close the lifts at 9pm or even 8. At Squaw Valley, for example, skiing and riding end at 8:30 night. But a few–perhaps most commonly in the Midwest, where ski areas depend on evening customers–will let you ride until midnight.

Just two cautions: Be prepared for evening temperatures, and don’t drive–your car or your board–intoxicated.