Tubing is out as Tussey Mountain focuses on skiing, snowboarding. Here’s why
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- Tubing is no longer offered at Tussey Mountain in Boalsburg.
- The former tubing hill was converted into ski and snowboard terrain.
- Officials cited tubing’s logistical challenges and a growing need for more ski slopes.
Centre County residents looking for winter activities no longer have snow tubing as an option after recent changes at Tussey Mountain Ski Area.
The Boalsburg winter recreation hub converted its longtime snow tubing hill into the Lone Pine slope, which now serves as a beginner-friendly option for novice skiers and snowboarders. Tussey Mountain officials said they chose to prioritize the interests of their core audience and phase out tubing, which was often coupled with logistical challenges.
“Our community has really appreciated it,” said Aaron Weyman, Tussey Mountain’s marketing director. “We’re a small ski area with limited terrain, so any chance we can open up more skiable terrain for people is really appreciated. We’ve been open since early December, and the response has been very positive out here.”
Tussey Mountain began moving away from tubing toward the end of the 2024-25 winter season, when it stopped offering tubing and allowed skiers on the slope instead. Tubing was not offered when the resort opened for winter recreation this past December.
The former tubing hill required a deep, durable snow base to provide a quality experience. That was a challenge for Tussey Mountain, whose limited snowmaking capacity prioritized ski slopes.
Optimal conditions for tubing were few and far between, Weyman said. The former tubing hill would sometimes produce muddy terrain due to warmer temperatures and melting snow, preventing some visitors from even reaching the bottom of the hill on their tubes. Tussey Mountain would occasionally need to issue refunds or deal with canceled visits.
“For snow tubing, the window for it is short,” Weyman said. “For the experience to be good over there, we need to have cold weather, and a lot of people don’t want to come out when it’s cold. They like to come out when it’s sunny and warm, and unfortunately, the experience over there had degraded.”
Tussey Mountain’s move away from tubing frees up more room for skiing, according to managing partner Josh Lincoln, who has also coached there since 1996. That’s a huge draw for the “town mountain,” which is now using the former tubing hill as a convenient stepping stone for those transitioning from its most basic ski hill to more advanced slopes.
Catering to skiers is a core focus for Tussey Mountain, which views skiing as perhaps the recreational area’s most important activity. Skiing and snowboarding typically draw far larger and more dedicated audiences than tubing, which was sometimes viewed as more of a novelty than a premium experience.
Ongoing staffing issues, in addition to operational challenges, made tubing’s viability at Tussey Mountain uncertain.
“It’s always hard when you take something away from a community, but it just wasn’t really sustainable for us,” said Lincoln.
Tussey Mountain offers a wide range of ski and snowboard lessons for all ages and skill levels, including private training and group lessons. Visitors are encouraged to book lessons in advance to ensure instructors are available and avoid a day-of less scheduling fee.
The mountain’s latest hours have its ski and snowboard slopes open from noon to 9 p.m. Monday through Friday and from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays. Tussey Mountain’s most recent snow report said nearly every slope is open for skiing and snowboarding.
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