Start Swimming Now “Winter is the best time to start swimming because it’s cold and dark outside, but warm and bright in the pool. You can gain fitness with almost no chance of injury, cross train a variety of muscle groups you typically don’t use, and last but not least, it’s a great opportunity to strut around in your Speedo.” —Lee Simril, certified USA swimming coach
Kiss Winter Goodbye Yes, winter is giving way to spring, but that means it’s time for ski slope parties. Snowshoe hosts the Cuervo Games of Winter, with tug-o-war, slopeside DJs, a box car derby, and post-ski parties at The Connection (March 3-5), while Beech has an epic pond skimming competition (March 19).
Celebrate Spring
The Irish Spring Festival in Ireland, W.Va. could be the most interesting spring festival in the country. Originally created to commemorate a local who supposedly lived to be 114 years old, the festival now includes fried-potato eating contests, a snake chase, Irish jig dances, and a road bowling competition, where “athletes” roll 28-ounce cannonballs down a two-mile stretch of road. March 19-20.
