MUSKEGON, Mich. (WOOD) — Snow means good business for Muskegon Luge Adventure Sports Park, which opened two of its winter sport trails after the warm January caused a major meltdown, leaving the trails bare.
The winter warm-up left people like Zack Dutcher without a winter sport.
“Yeah, we hadn’t had a lot of snow this year so we haven’t been able to really get out here. So we are pretty excited to go and explore the trails,” said Dutcher.
The executive director of the sports park said this snowfall will help the facility catch up on business.
“To lose the majority of January was tough on the bottom line,” said Jim Rudicil. “We’re hoping with the great winter weather in February that if it sticks around, we can double up to catch up.”
The ice rink, skate trail and luge track are temporarily closed, but the ski and the snowshoe trails are open for people to enjoy. People like Bethany Dutcher were prepared for this snowfall and opening of the trails.
“We were actually looking forward to coming out here. I was keeping track of the weather because I was excited. It’s our first time doing it this season,” said Dutcher.
As quickly as the snow fell, it was put to good use. Eight-hundred and fifty feet of track needs to be filled with snow to create the luge, which is not an easy task without snow.
“They worked around the clock for 36 hours trucking in snow from area parking lots because there wasn’t enough on the ground here. So, in fact, we were looking at bringing in snow from Grayling prior to this snowfall that just fell here,” said Rudicil. “They were able to truck in snow and build the luge track in 24 hours record time and they put the first coat on the ice rink today, locking that in.”
More ice sports are expected to open Wednesday.
“We are hoping we can keep our fingers crossed and always check the website before visiting our facility but for this weekend, we are going to have some fabulous cross country skiing and snowshoeing,” said Rudicil.
It is always recommended to check the weather before planning a trip to the Muskegon luge, or before heading out on the roads.