By Elliott Beckstrom, Paly Voice of Campanile

At 4:15 a.m. on a chilly morning, a group of snow-goers congregates in the Sports Basement Ski Shop’s parking lot anticipating the arrival of the Bay Area Ski Bus. The cold morning air foreshadows the crisp, dry and frigid atmosphere of the mountains that the passengers would soon experience.

The gargantuan, cozy bus rolls out of the darkness over to the curb and parks by the waiting crowd of skiers and snowboarders.

The bottom of the bus, where the bags are stored, opens up and a rush of people gather around it to put their ski or snowboard bags inside.

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By Kathryn Reed

OLYMPIC VILLAGE — “You have to look ugly to get better,” Fran Tone told the group of women huddled in Squaw’s Funitel.

The nearly 20 women – all at least advanced intermediate — had gathered for a two-hour session of schussing under the guidance of several instructors. It’s not about standing around watching an instructor ski and having her critique you. It’s about being taught the nuances of the sport and getting down terrain that might have seemed inaccessible at the start of the day.

Jonny Moseley offers advice Dec. 16 during Squaw's WOW session. Photo/Kathryn Reed

Wednesday marked the first WOW (Women of Winter on Wednesdays). It’s neither a clinic nor a lesson. Skiing is the emphasis; not talking.

Tone stressed the importance of making good tactical choices.

On this particular day the visibility is horrible, the moisture coming down would make it nice to have wipers on the goggles, depth perception is gone.

Tone imparts some wisdom – use your poles more to feel the terrain and keep one on the ground at all times when it’s hard to see.

“It helps your brain process whatever pitch you are on,” Tone said.

Other instructors – some on skis, some on snowboards – talked about balance being important, especially when it’s hard to see. Having a strong core, and relying less on quad and hamstring muscles is important.

Squaw plans to offer six more WOW days. Some of them will include a special guest. The first Wednesday featured Olympian Jonny Moseley.

His advice on the ride up the Funitel, “Stretch your neck.” Just in case you fall it will be a little looser.

Moseley is Squaw’s ambassador of sorts.

This wasn’t the only chance people had to hang out with Moseley. He will ski with people at 1pm Dec. 26-Jan 2 – for free. He’ll start off easy and move to more difficult terrain, like the run off KT-22 that bears his name. It will be up to the riders to decide if they can keep up with this skier who turned the dinner roll from something one eats into something one does on the slopes.

WOW dates: Jan. 6, Jan. 20, Feb. 3, March 13 and March 17. Each starts at 10am and is two hours. Cost is $49, plus lift ticket. A package of five is $159. Call (530) 452.7263 for information or to book a session.

By Leslie Kaufman, New York Times

SPARKS — Watching bulldozers pour crushed rocks to force the Truckee River into a more natural serpentine pattern, Mickey Hazelwood, project director for the Nature Conservancy, mused that like many acts of salvation, this one has its roots deep in sin.

For decades, this high-desert site eight miles east of Reno was best known as the home of the Mustang Ranch, the first licensed brothel in the United States. From thin to plump, dwarflike to Amazonian, women hired to suit a range of tastes would line up for inspection by clients in pink stucco buildings tucked into a cottonwood grove 300 yards from the river’s bank.

The brothel reopened a few miles downriver in 2006, after the land was confiscated by the Internal Revenue Service and the name and buildings were sold to the highest bidder. Working 12-hour shifts at their new complex, part of which was airlifted from the old site, the women still greet customers in knee socks, push-up bras and other intimate wear.

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Ads for Lake Tahoe will be allowed to be aired during NFL postseason games.

The league changed the rules this week, saying tourist destinations  like Tahoe, Reno and Las Vegas that have gaming can televise ads during games Jan. 4-Feb. 28.

The league will decide at a later date if it will continue the policy when the season is over.

The memorial service for Steve Wysong, South Lake Tahoe’s longtime city treasurer, is Dec. 19 at 2pm at Edgewood Tahoe Golf Course in Stateline.

Due to severe weather last Saturday’s “Free foreclosure Help” by SaveMeFromforeclosure.com has been moved to Dec 19 at 8am.

Same location: Romero’s Barber Shop 2572 Highway 50, South Lake Tahoe.

If you are behind on payments, bring your latest mortgage statement to find out if you qualify to have your monthly payment reduced, or what other option you have to avoid foreclosure.

For more info, call Paul Romero at (530) 318.2662 or email paul.romero@savemefromforeclosure.com.

Dave Borges will present “The History of the South Lake Tahoe Stateline – Casino development” on Dec. 17 from 6:30-7:30pm. It will be at Explore Tahoe at the Visitor Center in the Stateline Transit Center, 4114 Lake Tahoe Blvd., South Lake Tahoe.

For more information, call (530) 542.4637.

Diamond Peak in Incline Village will open Dec. 17.

Thursday will be a Community Appreciation Day, meaning anyone who shows an ID proving they live within 50 miles of the resort pays $20 for a lift ticket that day. Show your season pass from another resort and it’s $25 at Diamond Peak.

For more info, go to www.diamondpeak.com.

By Jeff Delong and Guy Clifton, Reno Gazette-Journal

Health officials on Tuesday issued another Stage One air pollution alert and ordered a burn ban across the Truckee Meadows as particulates associated with wood burning and vehicle exhaust built to unhealthful levels.

Air quality was in the “red” range, and considered unhealthy for the elderly and sensitive people, said Duane Sikorski, air quality supervisor for the Washoe County District Health Department. Pollution was just below unhealthful levels for the general public.

Last Thursday and Friday, health officials declared a Stage One air pollution alert for fine particulates associated with burning for the first time since 1994. It was caused as wood smoke and exhaust was trapped close to the valley floors by cold air.

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Finish reading all of the stories on Lake Tahoe News, then grab your gear and head for the slopes. This is one of the best weeks to ski — kids are still in school. Here is the ski report brought to you by Curtis Fong, the Guy from Tahoe.