Ski-worthy snow is still a few months off but Thompson Ski Club volunteers have been busy over the summer, sowing the seeds for what the club hopes will be a winter of more skiing and less maintenance at Mystery Mountain Winter Park.

The biggest step the club has taken was the purchase of a new-to-Mystery Mountain 2006 BR 350 groomer to replace the 1983 Bombardier groomer that the Thompson Ski Club purchased secondhand from another ski hill 23 years ago.

"After many years of service, it has begun to break down with frequency during the ski season," says Thompson Ski Club past president Geoff Lamontagne. "Over $100,000 on repairs and labour has been spent on it during the last five years. This has meant that volunteers who normally handle programs such as learn to ski, youth freestyle programs, and other kids-oriented functions are spending time helping to repair the old groomer, or manually grooming with a snowmobile on steep slopes, creating a hazard to both the volunteers grooming, and the skiers who may not be used to navigating down a non-groomed slope."

The difference in capabilities is vast.

"It's like going from a '70s Zamboni to a Zamboni from 2010," said Thompson Ski Club vice-president Steve Carpenter, who is also the vice-president technical of the Manitoba Freestyle Ski Association.

To accommodate the new groomer, which has a wider apron and groomer surface than the old model, Mystery Mountain Winter Park developed a partnership with McDonald Youth Services to have their students perform brushing services on the ski runs over the summer. In return, Mystery Mountain will supply day passes and freestyle skiing training to program participants, said Lamontagne.

"A lot of the things we do at our hill depend on grooming," says Lamontagne, especially when the snow doesn't come as early or as often as it has in the past. "The kids have done a lot of work out there."

"Without a groomer, you're not going to have a ski hill," says Carpenter. Using the old machine, all that could be created was a flat run, he explains, while the new groomer, which has more motion in the blade, will give the ski club the ability to create humps, bumps and more exciting terrain, as well as improved sculpting capabilities for the terrain park.

"It's like going from a Ford Model T to a Cadillac," said Carpenter.

The improvement will benefit all skiers, especially those who volunteer their time to keep the lifts running.

"It's frustrating when you're a small group trying to please everyone," said Lamontagne. "The good thing about getting a new groomer is that it makes you more sustainable."

This is not only because it is more fuel-efficient than the old model, but also because it places less stress on the volunteer base to keep it running, which helps prevent burnout.

If they're not spending time doing repairs and covering for those who are, volunteers are more apt to do what they really enjoy - helping people discover and enjoy skiing and snowboarding.

"We've got an ex-snowboarding pro coming up to do some lessons," said Carpenter. The snowboarder works as a flight attendant for Calm Air and is excited about the opportunity to pass on some knowledge in Thompson. "She's gung-ho to come up."

As a non-profit organization, it's important to keep costs down, and as an outdoor recreation facility, minimizing the environmental impact is also important.

"We're trying to be eco-friendly here," said Lamontagne, who says the only trees the ski club burns are deadfall and that they will be introducing new high-efficiency nozzles to make the snowmaking process easier and more affordable, since they rely only on water pressure and do not require the use of a compressor.

Lamontagne admits he'd like to see a little more support from all levels of government.

"I think we need a little government assistance," he said, noting that members work every month of the year to keep the facility running, volunteering at bingo and pursuing grant funding. "It's a tough road to travel on when you're always fundraising."