Cold winter heats up ski resorts' business.

• Position: Western

The weather outside was frightful, but Tar Heel ski resorts apparently racked up a delightful year because of it. Ideal snow-making temperatures and ample natural snowfall trumped a bleak economy. The timing of crucial three- and four-day winter holiday weekends also helped, says Mike Doble, whose Boone-based SkiNorthCarolina tracks industry conditions. When all figures are in, he says, "I'd lay money on it being a record setter."

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Doble estimates as many as 550,000 people visited the state's six ski resorts and two snow-tubing parks, eclipsing the previous best season, 2002-03. About 540,000 came then, according to a study by Appalachian State University faculty. The economic impact probably was about $150 million for the 2008-09, about $30 million more than in 2002-03.

The industry trade group--the North Carolina Ski Areas Association--had a slightly less positive view, though President Gil Adams believes the season will be among the best in recent years. He and Doble agree that proximity created prosperity. About 40% of skiers on Tar Heel slopes come from inside the state. Some who would have flown to New England or western slopes in better times stayed closer to home. "The ski industry is pretty much bombproof when it comes to recession," Doble says. "People are going to find a way to make a ski trip or two during the season." But weather clearly was the biggest factor. It...