A combination of environmental factors this Olympic year could see the 2010 Winter Olympic Games in Vancouver – Whistler be nearly snow free. The world-class resort of Whistler which will be the scene of many of the skiing events is not fairing too badly, but the locations closer to the city of Vancouver are in real trouble.
VANOC is now considering having snow moved by various methods including by helicopter, to Olympic venues to ensure that they can be ready for the events scheduled there. Sadly the long term weather forecast for the Greater Vancouver area is for more of the same – warm, rainy and windy. Some Vancouver residents are saying, “Told you so”, while many others are wondering how the snow problem will affect the Olympic budget’s bottom line.
The Cypress Mountain ski and snowboard venues will see straw and wood used to help make up for the lack of snow. There are plans to truck and otherwise move snow from other parts of the mountain to the event locations. This is a major reversal of the 1998 Winter Olympic Games in Nagano Japan where there was almost too much snow.
Snow making machines which traditionally help fill in any gaps in snow quality and quantity may not suffice as the need may just be too great – combined with the warm weather Vancouver is currently seeing.
While the lack of snow might be a problem at Cypress Mountain, over at the Whistler Olympic Park where 28 events will be held the snow should not be a problem. A great location for fans as the events are situated close to one-another making viewing multiple events easy, the Whistler Olympic Park will stage 10 events in biathlon, 3 nordic-combined events and 12 cross-country skiing events.
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