MARS HILL – Wednesdays at Big Rock Ski Area have been traditionally slow, so local officials are trying out a unique concept to bring people out in the middle of the week: free skiing.

Starting Jan. 17, the ski center will offer free lift tickets, rentals and half-hour lessons on Wednesdays on a first-come, first-serve basis. Officials are hoping the “ski free” days, which are being sponsored by local businesses, will help to get new people on the slopes and also show that despite the warm weather, Big Rock has plenty of snow.

The ski area has complete coverage right now – about 8 to 12 inches of snow on all trails – thanks to its snowmaking machines. Big Rock is owned by the nonprofit Maine Winter Sports Center, which has set the goal of re-establishing skiing as a lifestyle in the area.

Ryan Guerrette, Big Rock’s operations manager, said this week that Wednesdays at the ski area have been so slow, officials had looked at closing that day but did not want to eliminate any hours.

He said one of the members of Big Rock’s board of directors “dreamed up” the free ski idea, and that officials “took it and ran with it.”

“I don’t know if it’s ever been done anywhere,” Guerrette said. “But it’s a good way for us to promote skiing, and it’s going to make our Wednesday nights really busy.”

Guerrette explained that for 10 Wednesdays between Jan. 17 and March 28, anybody can ski free from 4 to 9 p.m. He pointed out, though, that the ski area has 125 rentals, so “when they’re gone, they’re gone.”

“We’re using it as a ‘come out and see what Big Rock has to offer on us,’ because it’s not going to cost you anything,” he said.

Guerrette said he expected the free ski nights to start out slow – “I don’t think it’s going to be, boom, we have a lot of people here” – but he does think it’s going to get busier and busier in February and March as the idea catches on.

Guerrette also said the free skiing may return in future seasons.

“If businesses think they’re getting a bang for their dollar, we may do it every year,” he said. “If it doesn’t work, we’ll scrap it. Basically, what we’re trying to do is come up with new ways to generate revenues and generate new interest in skiing.”

Plus, he added, “we would rather just see it busy here all the time.”

For information about Big Rock, visit www.bigrockmaine.com or call 425-6711.