Although some fresh snow fell earlier that morning, Vienna resident Jann Cassady was surprised to see that no one was out sledding on Nottoway Park's slopes Friday. When she, her son, and her neighbors arrived at the park, they found the hill was theirs.
"It's good. They've got a jump right here, but you get airborne, so you've got to be careful," Cassady said. She and the others were testing the hills and judging which of their sleds was the fastest.
Area students and their teachers experienced yet another round of snow days last week, as Fairfax County public schools closed both Thursday and Friday in anticipation of snow. The final snow that did fall measured between two to four inches, far from the estimated two feet that fell on Presidents' Day weekend.
Yet even the allure of speeding down a hill started to wear off for some, who wanted life to return to normal.
"I'm anxious to get back to school, but you've got to make the best of it. Might as well enjoy it," said Cassady's neighbor, Catherine Browning, before she sped down the slope. A history teacher at Oakton High School, Browning had given her students a lot reading and Web work to do before the latest snow came. "Like everybody, you just assume there's going to be a snow day."
Cassady agreed, "I think they like the time off, but they're getting a little bit bored."
Not so, said third grader Forrest Schmidt.
"I don't want to be in school," Forrest said. "It's just a lot of fun sledding."