Altogether, Massanutten’s adventure park area exemplifies the resort’s signature family focus.

When I was a towheaded imp faced with impossible choices, say a trip to High’s Ice Cream or a romp in the park, my impatient father would say, “Rainey, you can’t go on all the rides.”

It’s a maxim I’ve challenged for decades and recently, Dad’s wisdom was once again tested.

With the season of “Hell’s Front Porch” bearing down on Tidewater, I headed west, past Richmond, beyond Charlottesville’s rolling hills, and then turned north toward a twisty, ear-popping byway to arrive at Massanutten. Here, I planned to check out the changes in this once quaint ski resort perched atop the mountain for which it is named.

Family-focused Massanutten Resort has roots going back to 1875 when customers alighted horse and carriages to soak in the “restorative waters” and enjoy rounds of croquet and jousting. The ski resort opened nearly a century later in 1973 with six slopes and a parking garage.

My, oh my, how things have changed.

Your Inner Child

A sprawling building trimmed in light green sits atop a slight ridge where the aroma of barbecue beckons. It’s the home of Virginia BBQ & Pizza Co., where an SUV-sized smoker has been stoked. But I and my sidekick, Chris, must ignore the meaty siren call because this is where we check into our Regal Vistas accommodations, a gated, luxury neighborhood that is the newest among Massanutten’s 13 lodging complexes. A 600-unit, 55+ community is also in the works.

After our three-and-a-half hour drive from Tidewater (subtracting 30 glum minutes stuck on the HRBT), we were ready for a short respite. This neighborhood of identical duplex-style units has a clever mirrored design with a shared door that allows for larger groups to occupy both sides, yet retain some privacy.

Our surgically-clean, two-bedroom unit, like the others, offered bucolic views of the gray-blue mountains. It featured two full baths, comfortable beds and bedding, two electric fireplaces, a single car garage, a well-equipped kitchen, and best of all, a spacious jacuzzi tub...which would eventually present a challenge.

Now we’re not the types to linger indoors while on expedition. So off we went for a short drive across the now 6,000-acre, four-season resort to check out a couple of a la carte options. Would it be Perfect Break, where video gamers get their fix at a bank of state-of-the-art consoles while others (like us) compete in virtual sports, such as golf and soccer, by aiming balls at an animated screen? Or would we channel our inner child at the go-carts and bumper cars across the way? Or both?

Both!

We enjoyed the bumper cars most of all, big, rainbow-colored, throne-like vehicles with bulls’ eye targets on the sides. Hitting the bull’s eye sends an opponent’s car spinning round and round and round. We couldn’t stop laughing and left the ride breathless. Who knew bumper cars could be an aerobic activity?

With the day winding down, it was time for dinner.

I don’t recall a restaurant at the Massanutten of my youth. Today, the resort has four full-service restaurants, serving everything from craft cocktails to pork belly-kimchi sammies to grilled mahi mahi. Most have a kids’ menu.

We settled into al fresco seats at the indoor-outdoor Base Camp restaurant within view of ski lifts and runs, and where on Mondays at dusk, it’s movie night. After just a short wait, we were tucking into plates of grilled salmon with a vodka-lemon drizzle and an oh-so-filling plate of Mediterranean Pasta, a swirl of pesto-slicked linguini studded with artichokes, heirloom tomatoes, mushrooms, and more.

Back at the cottage, we looked longingly at the jacuzzi, but exhausted, we instead went to bed.

Twirling Backwards

“You can do this,” the guide gently insisted.

The next afternoon, I stood on a wooden platform about two stories above ground shaking my head “no” while wearing a harness and more hardware than on the deck of a sailboat. Stepping into nothingness just didn’t seem right.

That day, we had already perused the wonderful Wednesday farmers’ market, where we split a savory egg-and-cheese breakfast crepe made with sausage from the famed Polyface Farm. Afterwards, at the resort’s expansive, indoor/outdoor WaterPark (think Ocean Breeze, but bigger), we lolled in a spacious cabana outfitted with sofas, a ceiling fan, and butler service and learned about plans for upgrades and an adjacent hotel.

After a rest, we lugged inner tubes up several flights of stairs and screamed the whole way down a corkscrew tunnel before being shot out onto a U-shaped ramp that flung us up, up, up and then twirling down backwards for one final thrill.

But standing at the edge of that platform staring into nothingness wasn’t thrilling. It was scary. I had just whizzed to the end of the resort’s Adventure Park zipline, a modest affair as ziplines go, but I didn’t foresee this final descent. When I finally inhaled and stepped off, it was a surprisingly short, smooth drop to terra firma.

Then, keeping with the “all the rides’’ philosophy, Chris tried the nearby 24-foot climbing wall—16- and 30-foot climbs are also available—and found it super challenging. We were too tall for the Kids Adventure Park, but the tottering rope bridges and giant spider web crawl sure looked fun. Under construction is Mountain Mayhem, a 3,380 feet smooth gliding mountain coaster with two 360-degree spirals along the track. The six-minute ride is suitable for all ages. Altogether, the adventure park area exemplifies the resort’s signature family focus.

“Parents, grandparents, and kids can come and do group activities together,” said Kameron Tucker, the park’s mountain sports director. “But if you want to jump off of a 30-foot tower, we’ve got that, too.”

Flying over Flatlands

What next? Mountain biking! But on ebikes, a new experience for both of us. It’s like having a three-speed surge button to speed you up those inclines and flying over flatlands.

“Ebikes are an absolute game changer,” said lead supervisor Adelia Valadez, who would later guide us along a twisting, rocky path through the western slopes woods, where 30 miles of biking and hiking trails await. Crazier thrill seekers ride the ski lift up and go blazing down snowless slopes wearing something called body armor, available for rent.

Over the next day-and-a-half, we’d stroll onto one of the resort’s two golf courses to try the up-and-coming sport of fling golf, a lacrosse-golf hybrid perfect for families. We made terrariums, went to a revelatory stretch clinic at the spa, successfully emerged from a first-class escape room, attended a four-course wine dinner featuring a local vintner, sipped an outrageous S’mores Martini at the log cabin Campfire Grill restaurant, and ended the trip back at the spa with an expert massage.

But there just wasn’t time to do everything, so we missed out on taking a painting class, playing tennis, fishing the well-stocked ponds, riding horseback, visiting the petting zoo, taking a charcuterie class, enjoying a scenic chairlift ride, and kayaking the Shenandoah River.

We did eventually relax in the jacuzzi, but with all the other activities, it felt like a challenge to fit it in. As we packed up to leave, I couldn’t help but remember my father saying, “Rainey, you can’t go on all the rides.”

At Massanutten, we tried, but ultimately Dad had it right.

About the resort:

Massanutten Resort is located at 1822 Resort Drive, Massanutten, VA 22840. Ph. 540-289-9441. Website: massresort.com

Massanutten Resort a la carte:

While some activities at the resort are free to guests, others charge admission and many require reservations. Here’s a sampling of prices:

• At press time, nightly accommodation pricing for a week in late-July for two adults and two children averaged from $459 at Regal Vistas to $129 at Massanutten Resort Hotels.

• Bumper cars and go carts, $10 per ride

• Zip lining, $20 for one ride, $30 for two

• Fling golf, nine holes, $15 adults, $10 for juniors 17 and under; 18 holes, $25. FlingStick rental, $10 adults, $5 juniors

• E-bike mountain bike tours, 90-minutes on Western Slope trails, $65; e-bike rentals, $50 for four hours, $110 for 24 hours

• WaterPark admission, 42-inches and taller, $40 to $80, depending on the season; cabana rentals, $130 to $295

• Kids’ menu meals, $7 to $11

Lorraine Eaton, formerly with the Virginian-Pilot, is co-author of the “Food Lover’s Guide to Virginia,” and author of “Tidewater Table,” a local bestseller. She has won numerous writing awards, and her work has been included in “Best Food Writing.” Lorraine lives in Va. Beach.