The official kick off to snow season is here – with the first local resort opening runs for riders who have been waiting for the season to start, and boarders getting gear at an annual Snow Carnival put on by Surfside Sports.

With the help of a storm that brought 5 inches on Friday – and conditions cool enough to blow snow – Mountain High in Wrightwood opened at noon on Saturday.

CHECK OUT SOME SNAPS FROM SATURDAY ON THE MOUNTAIN:

CHECK OUT HOW SNOWY IT GOT UP IN WRIGHTWOOD

The mountain will open Sunday at 8:30 a.m., with early season prices at just $45 (instead of $59). You might want to make sure you’re stocked up on gear – snowmaking is happening, so make sure you have gloves, goggles, and a face mask – those little bits of snow blowing into your face can hurt!

There were plenty of people making sure they had all their gear in order at the 20th annual Surfside Sports Snow Carnival, where about 20 retailers set up tents in the Costa Mesa business’ parking lot, with carnival-like games for people to win everything from gloves, beanies, socks, even snowboards.

The Snow Carnival has blown up over the years, and Saturday’s gathering was in full force – Skullcandy had a DJ out for music, the crew at the Vans tent were grilling up hot dogs, and each booth had fun ways to give out prizes and raise money – darts, ring tosses, you name it.

“The whole community is here,” said owner Duke Edukas. “It’s a way for us to give back.”

It’s not all about what kind of swag you can walk away with – this year, all the proceeds help the Blind Children’s Learning Center, specifically 14- month-old Mason Lopes, who is visually impaired because of optic nerve damage.

Mason is the son of Surfside buyer Rupa, and former Surfside employee Charissa Budd.

“We do all kinds of therapy,” said Budd. “You just accept it and move forward with it, and we have a lot of support. It’s huge, it’s pretty awesome.

At the Von Zipper booth, 18-year-old Josh Bor forked over $5 to get a wild hair cut to help with a donation. Throughout the day, the Fullerton snowboarder won beanies, a hat, and a skateboard by stuffing 15 marshmallows in his mouth.

Von Zipper owner Greg Tomlinson (GT) posed for a photo op with Bor, giving his approval: “That’s a great look.”

CHECK OUT SOME OF THE WILD HAPPENINGS AT THE SURFSIDE SNOW CARNIVAL:

Nice haircut. Check out the fun times at the Surfside Snow Carnival

There was plenty going on through the day, with autograph signings with pro riders, photo ops and not to mention the sales on snowboard gear.

“We’re here to support Duke and the community – he supports the sport, and we support him,” said Brent Lantz, director of sales for Analog. “The vibe is great.  The kids are here, the parents are here. You can play games, get raffle tickets to win prizes. We had a great storm,  so now they come here and win all the gear.”

For more snowboard stories, check out some of the articles below:

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