In New England: Spend Easter pond skimming at ski resorts

``It's like you're at the beach, but you're on the snow,'' a skier at Vermont's Smugglers' Notch (800-419-4615, www.smuggs.com) commented on spring skiing.

For those who love to ski, but don't love the cold, it's the best of both worlds. And New England ski areas do their best to make spring skiing fun - even a little crazy.

For the uninitiated, pond skimming contests are the universal way to celebrate the spring meltdown. Skiers and boarders race downhill and across a pool at the bottom, judged on the distance they go before sinking into the icy water.

Another old standard is cardboard box races featuring "cars" made of cardboard, judged on appearance, speed and whether they actually hold together long enough to reach the bottom of the ski hill.

The annual shenanigans begin in late March, with many ski resorts adding these events to their Easter weekend lineup this year. Several ski resorts, including New Hampshire's Waterville Valley (603-468-2553, www.waterville.com), begin the day on March 23 with Easter services.

And then it's all fun, from egg hunts to bikini parties. Vermont's Okemo (800-78-OKEMO, www.okemo.com) sweetens its egg hunt with a golden egg, good for a pair of skis or a snowboard. At Maine's Sugarloaf (800-THE-LOAF; www.sugarloaf.com) the weekend includes an Easter Costume Parade, with prizes.

In southern New Hampshire, Pats Peak (888-729-7732, www.patspeak.com) and Crotched Mountain (603-588-3668, www.crotchedmountain.com) pile on the fun with pond skimming, a cardboard car race and live music. Wildcat (888-SKI-WILD, www.skiwildcat.com), in New Hampshire's White Mountains, adds a Reggae party and barbecue to pond skimming and a traditional Easter egg hunt.

In the Berkshires, Jiminy Peak's Easter weekend Spring Fling (413-738-5500, www.jiminypeak.com) includes the popular Bikini Slalom (yes, hot bods on skis), barbecue, kids' contests and a Cardboard Box Derby.

The fun continues: March 29-30, Mount Sunapee's annual Slush Cup (603-763-3500, www.mountsunapee.com) has skiers skimming across a 90-foot pond. That same weekend, Ascutney (800-243-0011, www.ascutney.com) in Vermont goes Reggae for two days with live bands, authentic Jamaican barbecue and a limbo contest on skis.

Spring also brings the best bargains of the season on lift tickets and lodging packages. For instance, on April 1 you can ski all day at Waterville Valley for $1. No fooling!