Every day’s a big air day

FOR Warren Miller, the thrill is never gone. And even though the veteran snow king no longer single-handedly makes the films he started more than half a century ago, the company that bears his name (Warren Miller Entertainment, a subsidiary of Time Warner Inc.) shoots scenes that play out in strange off-slope ways, ratcheting up the wow factor for the X Games crowd. In “Higher Ground,” which shows Thursday in Rancho Cucamonga, there’s the usual carving of remote pristine powder in places such as Blue River, British Columbia, and big-air jumps by boarders such as Chelone Miller, right, brother of Olympic skier Bode Miller, in Courchevel, France. But then there’s the truly smiley-face stuff: Brooklyn firefighters navigating a slalom course while holding onto a fire hose; a guy in a squirrel suit who goes “terrain surfing” at Mont Blanc; and “Extreme Gene,” who revels in extreme skipping around New York City -- rebelliously. Stick to skiers hurtling at 85 mph behind a snowmobile for the vintage rush. “Higher Ground” shows at Rancho Cucamonga Central Park (RC Hall, 11200 Baseline Road) at 7 p.m. Tickets, available at REI stores, cost $15; proceeds benefit the Special Olympics Winter Games. Call (909) 646-8360.

-- Mary Forgione