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Sugar Mountain’s Eleventh Annual ‘SugarFest’ Promises to Be a Weekend of Family-Friendly Fun for All

by Madison V. Fisler

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Dec. 11, 2013. First started in 2003, Sugar Mountain’s SugarFest has become a weekend that everyone in the High Country looks forward to every single year. This year, SugarFest will take place Dec. 13-15 with a weekend stuffed full of family-friendly festivities for all to enjoy including ski clinics, ice skating, the SugarFeast, demonstrations, demos and more!

“Everything is very open and accessible,” said Kim Jochl, marketing manager at Sugar Mountain Resort.

“It’s all about coming to do what you want and participating in whatever you want. It is a fantastic weekend.”

This year’s SugarFest promises to be even better than last year.

“Last year we had challenging winter conditions that caused us to cancel the ski clinic because the weather was not cooperating,” Jochl said.

“This year we are going to have really great winter weather. We already have a good base of snow down and will have even more for the weekend. This year promises to be a fantastic winter experience.”

It all starts on Friday, when the 20th annual Pre-Season Ski Clinic begins the first of three days of personalized slope instruction with Olympic Gold Medalist Diann Roffe open to ski racing enthusiasts. 

At 7:30 p.m. Olympic Silver Medalist Paul Wylie will perform his signature iceskating routines for the public free of charge and the event will even provide an opportunity for spectators to hold a real Olympic medal!

Wylie and several of his students will perform on the 10,000 square foot outdoor ice skating rink and there will be daily ice skating sessions offered at 10 a.m., 12 p.m., 2 p.m., 4 p.m., 6 p.m. and 8 p.m. for $15 per session including skate rentals. 

“I love the Paul Wylie performance,” Jochl said. “But everything is about what each person would like to do. You may want to do several things, or just a few. It all depends on what you are coming here for and that’s the unique thing about it. Different people come for different things and everyone can find something to love about SugarFest.”

And don’t forget about the delicious SugarFeast which will take place during the skate show on the ice rink. A hot chocolate and whip cream bar will be available to satisfy even the most voracious sweet tooth. SugarFeast will continue throughout the duration of SugarFest, including a soup safari, North Carolina barbeque and sweet tea. 

Saturday ushers in the two-day ski and snowboard demo inventory show, with brands including Volkl, Salomon, Burton, Nordica, Never Summer, Head, K2, Ride, Line, Atomic, Rossignol and more. Test drives for equipment are available both days from 9 a.m.-3 p.m. brought to you by Ski Country Sports. 

And after you are tired from all of the activities, don’t forget to stick around for the fireworks display at 6 p.m. on the deck at the base lodge. Enjoy delicious warm drinks and live bluegrass music from Boss Hawg. Don’t forget to try out some exciting snowtubing while you are there, or maybe try snowshoeing for something a little different. 

In fact, several lodging agencies are offering discounted accommodations for the weekend, so there’s really no reason not to come out for this weekend stuffed full of fun activities. What better way to usher in the winter weather than with Sugar Mountain Resort’s 11th annual SugarFest?