Local knowledge: Coping with the holiday ski crush
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- Created on Thursday, 17 June 2010 22:33
- Written by Nathan
By DAVE PHILIPPS, The Gazette
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Christmas is a time for giving.
At Colorado ski resorts, it is a time when locals typically give the slopes to thousands and thousands of out-of-state revelers who take over for about two weeks before disappearing again until Spring Break.
For some locals, the holiday rush is a reason not to ski.
For others, it is one of the few chances for family and friends to hit the slopes together. Even if that is the case, there is no reason to suffer.
Here are a few simple steps to make enjoying the ski season a breeze.
1. Pay to cut the line
Yes, there is a way to skip that 20-minute lift line. It’s called a lesson. Sign up for an all-day group lesson, which costs between $90 and $130, depending on the mountain. The higher your level of skill, the more likely you are to have the lesson to yourself. Use your instructor as a guide to powder stashes, then let him or her escort you to the front of the line.
2. Ignore Google maps
While the almighty Google may advise drivers to reach Summit County resorts and Vail by driving through Denver and taking I-70, the route is fraught with crashes and traffic jams. A better option is U.S. Highway 24 to Colorado Highway 9, over Hoosier Pass. Likewise, don’t believe Google when it says the fastest way to Monarch Mountain is through Cañon City. Taking U.S. Highway 24 west to U.S. Highway 285 is seven miles longer, but about 25 minutes faster.
3. Ski Cooper
Sure, this tiny ski area owned by the city of Leadville doesn’t boast much in terms of acres or vertical feet, but it packs plenty of family fun while being easy on the wallet (Free parking, discount tickets at liftopia.com). Maybe best of all, the Cooper crowd is almost strictly locals, so the Christmas rush doesn’t amount to much.
4. Study the patterns
Out of state skiers aren’t like locals. While locals will run over their own mothers to get to the mountain early, tourists sleep in, make breakfast, and fuss around at the rental counter. They usually don’t hit the snow until 10 a.m., then take a few runs, have a long lunch, and go back out to ski until close. The trick is to be skiing when the tourists aren’t. Show up early, ski until 10:30 a.m., take a break, go back out at 11:30, then call it a day at 1:30.
5. Quit early
If you paid an ungodly sum for a lift ticket, ending the ski day at lunch may not have much appeal. But skiers with a season pass should eschew the deteriorating snow conditions after lunch and instead go ice skating, snowshoeing or window shopping. It will keep your legs fresh for the next day, and maybe keep you out of the emergency room since most ski accidents occur in the afternoon.
6. Stake your claim as a spectator
The headline event of the holiday season is Breckenridge’s Winter Dew Tour (Dec. 17-20), which boasts amazing (and free) airborne theatrics by some of the world’s best skiers and snowboarders. Getting the most out of it is all about scoring a spot with the best view. For up-close action, hike halfway up either of the huge snow berms that form the pipe and plant yourself just above the TV cameras to capture the action.
7. Forget about presents
Christmas morning is one of the few windows of sanity in the holiday rush. While the rest of the world is unwrapping gifts, strap on your boots, catch the first chair, tell the kids to stop crying, and tear up the snow until the crowds hit the slopes at about 11 a.m., then retire for a festive Christmas lunch.
8. Tailgate
Skip the lines and the outrageous prices at on-mountain restaurants by packing your own. Our favorite trick: Wrap bratwurst, sauerkraut and a splash of beer in foil and throw it on a portable gas grill. Just make sure you keep your lunch items in a cooler — to keep them from freezing.
9. Ski on the travel days
The coming and going of out-of-state tourists tends to follow predictable patterns, with peak travel days generally on the Saturday or Sunday after a holiday. The day they are all at the airport is one of the best times to be on the slopes. In 2009, those days will likely fall on Dec. 26 and 27 and Jan. 2.
10. Fire it up
Several ski areas hold torch-light parades that snake down the dark slopes on New Year’s Eve. They are cool to watch, but even cooler to be in. Only Monarch makes it easy for regular old folks to be one of the torch bearers. It’s fun, challenging, and the best way to find out what 200 road flares all burning smells like. Just remember to wear old clothes. To register, call 800-996-7669, ext. 5050.
11. Once in a blue moon
New Year’s Eve in resort towns often means restaurants and bars charging outrageous covers. Why not spend an evening in the great outdoors? New Year’s Eve 2009 is not only a full moon, it’s a blue moon (the second full moon in a month), perfect for a moonlight snowshoe or ski — libations for toasting the new year optional.
12. Teetotaler
Skip the alcohol-fueled revelry on New Year’s Eve so you can revel in short lift lines New Year’s morning. Most people sleep in, nursing hang-overs. Catch first chair and you can have a few hours of crowd-free skiing.
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Contact the writer at 636-0223.
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