The Northwood School Freestyle team traveled to Big Snow in New Jersey. Big Snow is in the American Dream Mall, the second-largest mall in North America. Big Snow describes itself as “North America’s first and only indoor, real-snow, year-round ski and snow resort.”
This is a full-day commitment: a 5-hour drive there, two hours on snow and a 5-hour drive back. The skiers only ski for 2 hours, so they must make the most of every run. The team made this trip two weekends in a row, and they were satisfied with the skiing, as it was “better than nothing.”
The Freestyle team does not go on any international preseason trips like the race teams, and they do not go to Copper, Colorado preseason either. Big Snow is their best preseason trip. The reason they do not go on these trips with the ski racers is because those places where the race team travels don’t have terrain parks that are worth the trip that early in the season.
Killington, which is in Vermont, is a mountain that is known for opening exceedingly early in comparison to other mountains in the East. Killington has the Woodward Park crew at their mountain, one of the best in the world. Killington tries to open the first weekend of November each year, and the Freestyle Team is hoping to train there soon after it opens.
Overall, Big Snow is the best alternative for a little preseason park riding.