In between events, the athletes guzzled hot drinks, adjusted their number bibs, and waxed their skis. Even with an artificial hill and that year's sub-par snow quality, these Eesti Suusapäevad (Estonian Ski Days) were a success, with events happening in Narva, Tallinn, and Tartu. The publication's piece about the events tell of a record number of spectators at the events, and athletes performing at the top of their game, proving “that skiing has become a mass sport for us.”
Consider then the Kiviõli Seikluskeskus (Kiviõli Adventure Centre) in Ida-Virumaa. As suggested by the name of the town, refining oil shale was a big part of the area's economic activity for decades. It also devastated the local salmon population and the river fishing that had benefited from that fish. Starting in 2001, Janek Maar and Kaja Kreisman worked together to take one of the old waste heaps, sometimes referred to as the “ash hill”, created by the nearby refinery and turn it into a ride-worthy set of four slopes, between 400 and 700m in length, with lifts. In a town facing post-industrial decline, the hill has since restored a sense of pride in the community and created a destination for visitors and locals.
