Any snow day is a good day, as far as Joel Gratz is concerned. Especially if it's the sort of storm accompanied by dire predictions of icy streets and ravaged grocery shelves.

"When traditional weather forecasters say, 'Don't go outside tomorrow and get your milk and eggs now,' that's the kind of really, really fun weather for most of us," says Boulder meteorologist Gratz, the operating force behind ColoradoPowderForecast.com.

"That's when we go out and have a good time."

His website has become required reading for the breed of powder hounds so devoted to skiing and riding that they routinely call in sick whenever a powerful winter storm system rolls into Colorado.

"Love what you do for us junkies," wrote a commenter using the tag "ishredall," regarding Gratz's Quick Forecast last week.