By Richard Chang
rchang@sacbee.com
Sierra Nevada ski resorts are celebrating the heavy snow piling up on their peaks from a series of wet winter storms sweeping across California.
Though snow levels have been mostly above 7,000 feet with these storms, that is still low enough to drop a lot of snow on the ski areas, which are eager for it after relatively sparse snow conditions last year.
"It's been snowing all day, all night," Russ Pecor, spokesman for Heavenly Mountain Resort in South Lake Tahoe, said Friday. "We've got about a foot of new snow in the upper mountain. We could reach 18 inches by the end of the day."
The high winds, though, have shut down many of the resorts for the day because strong winds affect ski lift operations. The closures likely will continue through the weekend.
Pecor isn't worried. "We'll give up a day or two of skiing to get 12 to 24 to 48 inches of snow," he said.
The operators of Sugar Bowl Ski Resort are also elated by the new snowfall.
"It's heavy and wet snow," said Peter Avedschmidt, marketing and sales manager for Sugar Bowl. "This is amazing snow for this time of year."
The wet snow is perfect for building up a good base to cover up rocks and other debris, he noted.
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