Bluewood Opens With New Perks

SKI BLUEWOOD - Joe Amend pulls his visor down over his face, fires up his welding torch and, sparks flying, tools around on the surface of a steel tube in the shop downstairs from the lodge at Ski Bluewood. After a few minutes he calls over Travis Stephenson, the mountain's new general manager, to show him the results. Down the length of the rounded metal he has "writ­ten" the letters "B.wood" for Bluewood as though he had a hair to scratch his name in the bark of his favorite tree. The moment is fitting. Even though the name for the re­gional ski resort remains the same, the new owners are al­ready putting their own mark on the mountain. The steel tube that now bears its name is part of a "rainbow rail" that will become a feature of a new freestyle terrain park on the resort's Baby Face run in the next few weeks. Ski Bluewood used to have a terrain park just down from the top of the Triple Nickel lift, but the steel struc­ture that formed the freestyle features under the snow be­gan to age and needed to be replaced. Now Stephenson and his younger brother Brian, who will be in charge of the proj­ect,

say they want to move the structure to another part of the mountain and make it bigger and better. The park will be about 400 yards long and 100 yards wide. Aside from the rainbow rail, it will have a battleship fun box and several step-down rails.

The terrain park is just one of several improvements the Stephensons, including principal co-owners Mike and Kelly Stephenson, have already made to the moun­tain, which opened its season on Friday, Dec. 3. "It looks better," said Cole Janovich of Waitsburg, a 2007 WHS graduate who has been skiing at Bluewood for eight years. He pointed out that the bathroom floors are cleaner, some areas have fresh paint and there is a friendlier atmosphere. In part, moods are better among the staff because the new owners have done a bet­ter job attracting employees with better attitudes, said Lucan Gerke, a 2009 WHS graduate who works in the rental shop.

Now that opening day is behind them and their purchase of Bluewood from Stan and Nancy Goodell is final, the Stephenson issue a collective sigh of relief. "Things are beginning to settle down," Kelly Stephen­son said in between helping her new employees trouble­shoot small tasks. "There will be a few speed bumps, but we've had very positive comments." One new Bluewood perk that stole some hearts this weekend was better coffee. A week after its first day of the season, the new espres­so stand was up and running with veteran barista and re­tired coffee shop owner Bill Pogue in charge. He crafted a creamy, smooth latte using Zoka coffee roasted in Seattle and a nearly brand new La­Marzocco espresso machine.

The former owner of Bar­racuda Coffee in Richland is helping set up the new ski­ers'

comfort corner, which includes some lounge seating and a Christmas tree - all with a splendid view of the mountain.

His Jackhammer coffee stand offers such aptly named beverages as Avalanche (white coffee, white chocolate and vanilla), Triple Nickel (white chocolate caramel and nut­meg), Scorpio (chocolate, hon­ey and cinnamon) and Baby Sweet (very, very vanilla).

That's in addition to the usual lattes, cappuccinos, mochas and americanos. The higher-quality coffee beans and Bluewood spring water make for tasty core-warming beverages.

"It was my first-ever ski season here last year, and Mike Stephenson) was my first instructor," Pogue said. "When found out he was going to be the new owner, I said, 'You got to do espresso up there.' He said, 'Come on up.'" The first weekend's turnout among skiers was solid. On Saturday, Dec. 4, 355 people showed up on the mountain. On Sunday, there were 407 as word spread that Bluewood was open for the season. This past weekend, with fresh snow descending on the runs, the lift was full after lunch. At the top of Skyline Express, skiers were greeted by tunes from the Stones and Pink Floyd. Beginners and advanced beginners could be seen following their instruc­tors down the slopes. A week into the season, which usually starts around this time because of Blue­wood's

high base elevation, there was a quiet excitement - and gratitude - among skiers and workers from the region about their continued access to the once-threatened mountain. "I wasn't looking forward to driving all the way to White Pass, Mission Ridge or Spokane," Janovich said. "I'm glad it stays open."