Topband: Snow plus vertical

[WY7I]

Hi Topbanders,

Here's something that's bugging me, and perhaps a few of you fellow snow-cats can give me some advice. 

I'm considering a triangle of MA160V's (Cushcraft) along with radial plates on each. The problem is that here in Southern Colorado, we receive about 4-8 feet of snow during the winter. It seems obvious that I can't ground mount the hot side of the vertical because it will get covered up. SO, I'm going to raise it up by mounting it on top of a steel tube that runs down into the radial plate. It would look sort of like an umbrella stand for your outside patio umbrella.

I'm not familiar with this antenna yet, but--what will happen if I raise the feed point up? I'm thinking that the 7' tube, being connected to the radial system will work as normal. Will the elevated feed point affect the impedance?

Any comments on this idea? 

Regards to all,

Paul
WY7I