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A Blue Mountain winter resort?
Friday, March 10, 2006
Dear Editor,
It was with intense interest that I listened to a BBC Internet radio newscast on March 6. The newscast highlighted a desire on the part of Australian officials to invest some US$40 million to develop a comprehensive winter sport facility on a continent that is considered to be, on average, the warmest, driest and flattest of all.
On hearing this proposal, my mind ran to a recent trip taken to Big Bear mountain resort in California. This resort, lying at an average height of some 6000 to 7000 feet, which has a similar elevation to that of Jamaica's Blue Mountain range, employs artificial snow-making technologies in order to attract a profitable level of tourist arrivals during periods of low precipitation and/or slightly higher temperatures.
Although Jamaica's latitude and distances from the warming influences of the sea are not as favourable as those in southern California, average temperatures on the highest peaks within the Blue Mountain range tend to foster frost and significantly cooler temperatures during the December to March time frame. Such cool Blue Mountain temperatures, which often drop into the 30- to 40-degree Fahrenheit range, seem to offer the climatic conditions that favour the establishment of a mini-winter sport village: one that could both provide Jamaica with a unique Caribbean tourist attraction and a training venue for Jamaica's bobsleigh team.
With an emphasis on snow boarding and car-tyre tube sliding, a Blue Mountain winter resort, using artificial snow technology, could attract droves of foreign visitors by highlighting Jamaica's bobsleigh endeavours. In essence, this Blue Mountain project would promote a mini-bobsleigh theme park and casino: one complete with reggae music, Jamaican cuisine, and if possible, Bob Marley memorabilia.
The Jamaican bobsleigh concept which has attracted visitors to bars and restaurants in the Montego Bay area could conceivably do the same in a well-designed Blue Mountain (winter) resort. A bit far-fetched? Maybe, maybe not! An official comprehensive research study on the possibility for the success of such an unusual project would, however, be of value. Let's think outside the box for Jamaica's ultimate development.
Garfield O Whittaker
[email protected]
A Blue Mountain winter resort?
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