Lynchburg, VA – Construction on America’s first year-’round ski slope on the campus of Liberty University in Lynchburg is well underway, and is expected to be completed by mid-summer.n

Initial earthworks on the hillside above the campus of the institution founded by the late evangelist Jerry Falwell are complete, as is the misting system, and workers began installing the first Snowflex tiles on the 110 vertical-foot slope on May 1. Snowflex tiles are plastic mats invented in the U.K. in 1993 to simulate the sensation of a snow-covered ski slope when dampened by water misters. They have been installed in several facilities throughout Europe, but Liberty University’s 40,537 square-foot ski slope marks their first U.S. installation.

The tiles will be configured in a series of terrain park features, including various jumps and rails as well as an 11-foot quarterpipe. A poma lift will return skiers and snowboarders to the top. A beginner slope is also being constructed adjacent to the 4,000 square-foot ski lodge and equipment rental center at the base of the hill. Tubing will also be offered. The ski area will be open to the public, although students will receive priority in both pricing and usage.

Falwell announced the construction of the Liberty Mountain Snowflex Centre one week before his death in 2008.

“There are no beer bashes at Liberty, and no coed dorms, but it doesn’t have to be a monastery. We’re breaking the stereotype that Christian education is synonymous with boredom,” Liberty University Chancellor Jerry Falwell, Jr. explained when the project was first announced.