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 […]
Monarch
Posted inBusiness, Climate, Culture, Environment, News, Outdoors, Water
PHOTOS: Short on powder, Colorado’s ski resorts let snowmakers rip
Ski resorts across the country are leaning more heavily on snowmaking guns as warmer, shorter winters threaten a business model based on snow. In Colorado, the reliance on man-made snow has been essential to the start of the 2021-22 ski season, with all of the state’s 13 major river basins reporting precipitation through November well […]
Posted inBusiness, News, Outdoors
Smaller ski areas retain their workers with help of federal coronavirus stimulus money
At least 10 of Colorado’s smallest ski areas together received at least $5 million — and as much as $12.7 million — in federal loans from the Paycheck Protection Program. While the big-league operators like Alterra Mountain Co., Vail Resorts and Aspen Skiing were too large to qualify for the federal stimulus loans, the so […]
Posted inCulture, Outdoors
Skim or swim: Colorado ski season winds down with a splash, not a schuss
Spring break, long ago, Stowe, Vermont. Eight inches of powder. And then, something I remember even better: The ski area had filled a lined pit with water and I stood agog watching one person after another ski across or swim, cruise or cartwheel into the drink. Only two girls entered, neither getting far, and I […]