The Howelsen Hill snowmaking team was greeted with the failure of its main pump on the first day of the new year, casting doubt on snowmaking operations during an already anemic winter.

But Howelsen Hill and Rodeo Manager Brad Setter and his team quickly pivoted to using an irrigation pump, which is much smaller and less efficient and pulls water from the Yampa River.

“We don’t know why the pump failed,” explained Setter. “We just had to think fast and move ahead. This winter had already been tough enough.”

The terrain park and a few lingering trails and runs were set to be completed when the pump failed.

“We were 95% done with snowmaking on the hill, but hadn’t started on making snow for Winter Carnival yet,” explained Setter. “We’ll keep doing snowmaking when we can, with crews available seven days per week.”

Due to the inability of the irrigation pump to reach the top of Howelsen for snowmaking, Mother Nature will need to finish the job of providing snow on the summit.

Budgets and future plans

The city budgeted snowmaking up until Dec. 31, but Steamboat Springs City Council members approved an indefinite extension.

“It could take two weeks or until the end of the month,” said Setter. “We’re just going to have to play it by ear.”

Setter believes it could cost the city between $30,000 and $40,000.

For a brief moment, the city feared it may not have enough snow for the 113th Steamboat Springs Winter Carnival, set for Feb. 3-8. But Setter and his team are catching up by putting in additional hours.

“Over the past week, we’ve been able to make 30% of the snow we need for Winter Carnival,” Setter said. “So now we feel we’re on the right track.”

The Winter Carnival snow, vital for street events on Lincoln Avenue downtown, is being staged at the rodeo grounds.

A capital improvement plan was in place to upgrade the snowmaking capabilities at Howelsen with a larger pump during the upcoming summer. The currently broken pump would then be used as a backup, but it still needs to be fixed.

“We are still going to fix it, but it’s not an emergency,” said Setter. “We have inquired about fixing it, though.”

Setter has said that he has heard from skiers that the snow on the ground is skiing well.

“We encourage people to come down,” said Setter. “The snow is skiing really well, and the Nordic terrain is open and skiing well.”