OpenSnow forecasters give some clues about when and why the big snow falls at Colorado ski areas
Arapahoe Basin
Posted inOutdoors
Supply chain issues prevent yet another thing from spinning: new Colorado chairlifts
Supply issues for chairlift manufacturers, including Grand-Junction-based Poma, have stalled openings for new lifts across Colorado, North America
Posted inNews, Outdoors, Outsider
Colorado’s independent ski areas are thriving in the shadow of dueling, consolidating resort giants
In the shadow of battling behemoths, smaller, independent ski areas are thriving. “It’s not just that the big areas are crowded and skiers want to escape crowds,” said Bob Nicolls, the owner of Monarch ski area, which saw record visitation in 2021-22, with income for the ski area climbing 20% above the previous season. “I […]
Posted inBusiness, News, Outdoors, Outsider
Colorado ski resorts are in an uphill battle for workers amid the historic labor shortage
As the first snow of the season covers the high country, Colorado’s ski resorts are starting their search for thousands of workers in what many say is an unprecedented labor crisis. Housing continues to be the albatross for ski resort employers. It was a challenge before the pandemic. “But now it’s gone from ‘very difficult’ […]
Posted inNews, Outdoors
3 ski areas in Colorado are vying to be first to open
Three Front Range ski areas vying for the annual distinction of being the first to open for the season could begin snowmaking operations very soon. They just need Mother Nature to cooperate. In 15 of the past 20 years, at least one of those areas — Arapahoe Basin, Loveland and Keystone — has opened during […]
Posted inClimate, News, Transportation, Wildfire
U.S. 6 over Loveland Pass shut by mudslides, hazmat vehicles must now go through Eisenhower tunnel
A mudslide late Saturday near Arapahoe Basin ski area shut down traffic on U.S. 6 over Loveland Pass which means traffic on Interstate 70 must occasionally stop to allow trucks carrying hazardous materials to pass through Eisenhower-Johnson Memorial Tunnels. The Colorado Department of Transportation on Sunday evening said the road had reopened. Heavy rains across […]
Posted inBusiness, News, Outdoors
Want to ski at a Vail Resorts mountain during coronavirus? You’ll need a reservation.
Vail Resorts on Thursday unveiled the details of the plan for skiing at its 34 North American resorts — beginning Nov. 6 at Keystone — and, as we suspected, the 2020-21 season will be unlike any before. Here are the not-surprising changes: Masks are required for everyone on the mountain. Physical distancing will be the […]
Posted inColoradans, News, Outdoors
He wasn’t the best skier, but he was Colorado’s preeminent ski bum. Farewell, Charlie Toups.
Charlie Toups was the consummate ski bum. He spent more than 30 years of his life sleeping in cars in snowy slopeside parking lots so he could ski all day. He wasn’t the best skier. He didn’t have the latest gear. He didn’t ski the hardest lines or boast the prettiest form. But he was […]
Posted inBusiness, COVID, Crime and Courts, News, Outdoors
Ski resorts push lift-ticket seller Liftopia toward bankruptcy, revealing deep impacts of coronavirus closures
Aspen Skiing Co., Alterra Mountain Co., Arapahoe Basin and Canada’s Cypress Bowl are asking a federal bankruptcy judge to force online lift ticket seller Liftopia into bankruptcy, saying the California-based company owes the resorts more than $2 million. Liftopia, one of the first companies in the world to sell lift tickets online, is fighting the […]
Posted inNews, Outdoors
After 12-day reopening, Arapahoe Basin Ski Area to close on Sunday due to lack of snow
DILLON — The Arapahoe Basin Ski Area announced Thursday that the mountain will close for the season because of a lack of snow. A-Basin Chief Operating Officer Alan Henceroth said the mountain will close Sunday less than two weeks after reopening May 27 following the coronavirus shutdown, the Summit Daily News reported. “Every season, no matter […]