Reactions to the cold weather
By Deborah Jeanne Sergeant
Whether you love it or hate it, snow comes to the Upstate New York every year. We’ve asked a few area residents for their opinions on the white stuff.
“I do enjoy the wintertime. I’ve been an Upstate New York resident for a long time though I’ve lived in other, warmer states. I love the change of season, including snow. It does allow a variety of exercises to have that change of season. I was a big skier growing up and I’m starting to get back into it. It’s a great way to work on your health. I like playing with the dogs in the snow.”
— Scott Kirchner; Head athletic trainer, Crunch Fitness, Dewitt
“I hate it! It’s cold. I tend to hibernate in the winter. I go to work, the gym and the grocery store and that’s it. Another reason why I don’t like it is it disrupts travel. If I get clients who are stranded, I have to work extra hard to get them ‘un-stranded.’ I prefer 85-degree weather. I’m definitely not one who enjoys the snow. I prefer the summer.”
— Lynn Kistner, Travel agent, Canalview Travel Service, Inc., Fulton
“Coming out of last year where it was lots of stops and starts, I’m excited. We have a backyard ice rink and track the conditions. Never have I seen a year with that many starts and stops for ice melting and rebuilding. Last year was the first year we didn’t get a season pass to the mountains in over a decade. We go to Song Mountain and Labrador. They had only one trail open. It was a rough season. Normally, we go 20 to 30 times for snowboarding. I grew up in Oswego and Oswego is the snow globe of the world with five months of winter and great lake effect snow. It’s nice having four rich seasons in our area and one of them being winter. Last year was disappointing. I was excited with the forecast sounding like we’ll have a really good winter. We start our rink building around Thanksgiving. We stage everything and usually we hope for a cold snap right before Christmas to get it going. We have the rink lit up at night. The neighbors are all very supportive. The last couple of years were anomalies. We have weird warm spells that offset the ecosystem of winter and the snow melts. It’s about having the right gear and enjoying what Mother Nature brings along. There’s so much to do outdoors in our area. You can be busy for years with the amazing things in Oswego County and Upstate New York.”
— Bob Ruggio, Adjunct professor in SUNY Oswego’s online MBA project management program
“Wintertime brings some challenges for the real estate business. We have to make sure driveways and sidewalks are shoveled for easy access. Sometimes it’s hard to put our signs up where they can be seen. But the snow brings about many buyers to our area looking for recreational fun.”
— William R Galloway, Realtor and broker, Century 21 Galloway Realty, Oswego
“I love snow up until the middle of January. Then it could be spring and then summer again. I love the change of seasons and snow for the holidays and snow for a certain portion of winter. But I’m not a big snow guy.”
— Nathan Emmons, Owner of Just Push Play Productions, Oswego
“I absolutely love it. I love our four seasons. I think we’re blessed to have four unique seasons. Winter beauty to me is off the charts gorgeous. I love going to state parks in the midst of a snowstorm or right after one. Some of the best vistas in our region are right after a snowstorm. I love winter beauty which is why I chose to live my life here. Winter is so beautiful and it’s so lasting.”
— John Kucko, Digital content creator and former Channel 8 anchor
“I grew up in Vermont. You have to adapt if you live in this kind of climate. It’s important to have a winter activity. My wife and I downhill ski. I run in the snow. I don’t care. It’s really pretty. A lot of the clients run in the snow, too. You have to dress appropriately to be active in this climate. There’s also snowshoeing. We live in a wonderful area that supports winter activities, whether downhill, cross country or snowshoeing.”
— Randy Sabourin, Owner of Metro Fitness in Syracuse