Skiing in short sleeves

(Photo from Breck's Bump Buffet, 2007, snagged from Colorado Ski Country USA.)

Ready to hit fresh snow under sunny skies? Luckily, Colorado's the place. Seven ski areas are still open, but Breck, our largest, is closing Sunday.

Here are the closing dates for resorts that remain open:
Arapahoe Basin - June 8
Aspen Highlands - this weekend and next; closing day April 27
Breckenridge - Sunday
Echo Mountain - May 4
Loveland - May 4
Silverton - April 27
Wolf Creek -this weekend and next: closing day April 27

Here are some reasons - other than snow - to make the drive to the mountains:

A-Basin: The Beach

Aspen Highlands: Been working at a ski resort that has already closed for the season? Head to the Highlands and show a current season picture pass and pay just $12 for a lift ticket.

Breckenridge: Sunday's closing day brings the annual Spring Massive party and the 29th Bump Buffet, in which telemark skiers shred the bumps dressed in all sorts of crazy costumes.

Echo Mountain: This is college weekend, and you can get lift tickets for $20, there'll be trick contests, a live DJ, free food, demo tents, bar specials and prizes.
Next weekend is Last Park Standing, a finale season party with $12,000 in cash and $4,000 in prizes, an amateur rail jam and pro slopestyle competition, live music, a sponsor village and more. To register for the competition, go here.

Loveland: April 26 is the Corn Harvest Benefit Ski Party, which helps raise cash for the Colorado Avalanche Information Center.

Silverton: What more do you need? It's Silverton.



Wolf Creek: Lift tickets will be $27 for adults and $16 for children and seniors, no ID required! Lifts will be operating from 9am-4pm.

Snowboarder dies attempting trick

It appears the 33-year-old snowboarder who died at Breckenridge yesterday was attempting a trick at the Park Lake Terrain Park.

Denver news stations and newspapers say James McLean, a podiatrist from Leawood, Kansas, died after landing on his head just before 2 p.m. He was wearing a helmet. The coroner said he died of a fractured neck.

Here's an UPDATE to this post. McLean was starting a career in physical medicine and rehabilitation, not podiatry, as previously noted.

Peace be with James and his family and friends. Man, you just never know when it will happen.

Looking for deals?

Our friends in The Gazette's marketing department created their second Snow Ride Guide mini mag of the season. It's in today's newspaper. There are some useful coupons inside if you're looking for gear or a place to stay on a multi-day mountain trip.

And check out today's Business section for Bill Radford's story about Jon Easdon, who recently opened the area's newest ski/board shop, Blindside. We mentioned it here on the blog before he opened, and Dave checked out some gear in his annual December gear guide.

Jon as worked at various ski shops around town and for a board maker. His goal is to give everyone who comes in individual attention. We could all use a bit more of that when renting and buying gear, for sure.

Blindside is in the giant Angler's Covey building at Highway 24/Cimarron and 21st Street. Don't be afraid to pop in and say hi. You may recognize an ol' slopeside bud.

Burton demos at Copper

(Team Burton crewmembers "work" a few feet of fresh snow in this photo from Burton.com. You should check out the site, it's fun, you'll look up an hour later wondering where the time flew.)

It's demo time. Burton Snowboards is bringing the "largest consumer demo in the snowboard world" to Copper for a long weekend - Friday to Sunday. You can check out new boards, boots and bindings and other gear, and there'll be interactives to keep you busy and entertained. Or maybe you'll be entertaining others...

Stay for the after-party at Endo's Adrenaline Café, on the edge of the Burning Stones Plaza, 4-6 p.m. Saturday. God knows there'll be entertainment there.

Copper has received more than 11 feet of snow, so it should be a great weekend to ride.

New look at Snowmass

Think you know all about Snowmass? Check out the area's new Web site, which highlights the parks, backcountry terrain and freeriding available at this huge ski resort.

You can look at photos and post your own, read about different areas of the resort and locate them on a panoramic photo, and check in on the local pros, too.

Park Lane Terrain Park opens at Breck

Breckenridge opened the first of its new "Park Progression System," Park Lane Terrain Park. Check out Breck's interactive park maps here.

It's an intermediate park on Peak 8, with 6 medium-sized jumps including a double and triple line. Rails and boxes will be added.

Next up are Trygve’s Terrain Park (beginners) and Freeway Terrain Park. (That's Freeway in the photo, by Aaron Dodds of Vail Resorts.)

The idea is you can progress park to park as you gain experience, and watch the pros at the same time.

Breck also has beginner and intermediate parks Country Boy and Eldorado on Peak 9. They're already oepn.

Coloradan No. 1

(photo courtesy of US Ski Team)

Coloradan Gretchen Bleiler took top honors in the women's contest today, at the US Snowboarding Grand Prix in Breckenridge. Gold medalists Kelly Clark and Hannah Teter came in second and third.

Shaun White took the men's competition, just ahead of Coloradan Steve Fisher. Elijah Teter took third place.

You can watch the Grand Prix on Dec. 22 at 1 p.m. on NBC.

Monarch finally getting the white stuff

Doesn't look like the dumping at Silverton, but check out the webcams here: www.skimonarch.com/webcams.asp.

(I'll hyperlink if I get into the office today. Can't do it from home on my Mac.)

Monarch relies on Mother Nature, and has had to delay opening. Same with Ski Cooper. Leadville is reporting 32 degrees and mist, with a couple of inches possible today and tonight. We'll keep checking in to see if these Gems look like they can open anytime soon.

Send us slope reports

I'm just getting over a bout of viral pneumonia - nasty stuff - so I won't be headed up with my board till at least next weekend.

But that shouldn't stop you. If you get up to the powder today, tomorrow, Monday instead of work... send us a report. Add a comment to a post here or e-mail me at dena.rosenberry@gazette.com or add a post to our other winter web site: snowrideguide.com

We talking inches or feet?

Well, I left Monument to head south at midnight and an arctic wind made me believe I'd wake up to a frosty, if not wintry white, Manitou Springs.

Barely a frost.

But what's happening elsewhere? Weather reports still say the high country will see snow all day. Almost every report reported snow overnight with snow continuing to fall. Hmm, something tells me I may not see Dave till Wednesday...

Larry Walrod, lead forecaster for the National Weather Service in Pueblo, told The Gazette: "As time went on with this system, it looked more and more like it was going to pound the mountains and less and less like it would hit the Eastern Plains."

Parts of the San Juan range above 10,000 feet have seen as much as three feet of snow and that total could rise to four feet by the time the storm ebbs Sunday, Walrod said. Western Chaffee and Lake counties have gotten a 1- to 2-foot dump around the Continental Divide, and Leadville has seen about 8 inches, he added.

Here's what ski areas and ski towns are reporting"

Silverton through Telluride: up to 9 inches today with 100% chance of snow today and 80% tonight.

Wolf Creek is reporting 4 inches in 24 hours. Aspen Mountain, 5. Snowmass: 10. Weather reports show another 5 inches or so falling in Aspen today and another 2-4 tonight.

Crested Butte, where it's been bare, got 9. Remember, free skiing at CB through Dec. 15.

Closer to us, Breck and A-Basin are reporting 1 inch. Copper, 4. Keystone, where more terrain and the terrain park are opening today, got 1 inch. The area is expecting 2-4 inches today and another 1-3 tonight. But be ready for blowing snow today.

Loveland's reporting 2.

For a full report, check: www.coloradoski.com/SnowReport

For city by city weather forecasts: www.crh.noaa.gov/gjt/

The scene at Copper

That shot was just before 2 p.m. today at Copper. Check out the web cams. Snow and sunshine = a kickin afternoon.

Copper folks hoped to open top-to-bottom with five lifts. If you went, send us a report.

Snowboarder sentenced

From the AP: A snowboarder who collided with an 8-year-old girl on Vail Mountain was ordered today to do 75 hours of community service and pay fines of $344.

Christopher Dunsmore, 23, also was sentenced to one year of probation and a 30-day suspended jail term that he will not have to serve if he completes other terms of his sentence.

Dunsmore originally was accused of drunken skiing and leaving an accident scene in violation of the state’s Skier Safety Act after the crash in December. He pleaded guilty in April to harassment and could have faced up to six months in jail and a $750 fine.

Skiing in shorts

The Colorado ski season wraps up Sunday at A Basin after a whopping 234 days of fun on the slopes. Gaz photographer Christian Murdock and a crew of reporters and copy editors played in the sun last weekend. Christian says there were a few weak spots, but they were easily avoided and the runs were otherwise in good shape. And the pond skimming was a blast.

Get out and enjoy a few final runs and a BBQ on the beach.

While the rest of us turn to hiking, biking, kayaking and such, the A Basin crew will work at expanding Montezuma Bowl. More on that as we head into next season.

Fresh snow on the way?

The weather's turning again and I'm hearing the s-word. Could it be a slammin' last day for Echo and Loveland? Great spring skiing at A-Basin? Here's what's happening this weekend at...

A-Basin: 4th Annual Huck, Rock & Roll Terrain Park Competition on Saturday, 10 a.m. till it's done. Register 8 to 9:30 a.m. $10 gets you in AND you take home a swag bag. There's also a free concert by New Dialectic's on the ticket office steps from 1 to 4 p.m.


Echo Mountain Park (closes Sunday): End-Of-Season Pro Series Camp, for all abilities, Saturday and Sunday. Pro riders include Jeff Meyer, Pat Milbery, James Frederick and the Never Summer team.

Loveland: Closing Day Party on Sunday with live music from Arnie J Green.