Club Colorado  

One of Wolf Creek Ski Area’s Ski Patrollers has some particularly bad breath. I’ve just watched Rico execute a rescue of a buried avalanche victim in a training drill put on by Wolf Creek, and as I congratulate him on a job well done, Rico’s halitosis washes over me and I’m struggling for fresh air, much like the simulated avalanche victim he just rescued. I can’t help but wonder what he had for breakfast.

Having smelled Rico’s breath, my guess would be dog food. And I’d be right, because Rico is one of Wolf Creek Ski Area’s avalanche dogs.

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I hop on the 8 o’clock chair with a few Ski Patrollers at Durango Mountain Resort (DMR). I ask one of the patrollers what he thought of a recent article that seemed to suggest Ski Patrollers across the state lack in training.

“That article made us sound like a bunch of un-trained monkeys!” exclaimed TJ, a veteran patroller at DMR. “I resent that. We’re highly trained monkeys.”

The vibe here is relaxed, even on dawn-patrol. The snow has already begun to soften up on this late-March day. Festivities at the base area, known to locals as “the Beach” will include snow bowling, a pig roast, and of course, beer. Did I mention it’s college day?

“That’ll bring the rabble out for sure.” remarks Scott Clements, director of the Patrol at DMR. I’ve seen closing day at DMR before. It usually means costumes, antics, and lots of fun, so I know it’s going to be a good day to shadow the patrollers.

It takes hard work and dedication to work for Patrol. And a sweet one-piece.

Despite the chucklings about the laid-back vibe of spring skiing in Colorado, Ski Patrol is diligent about their job. It’s business-as-usual in the Patrol Shack. The morning meeting begins with grooming reports, station assignments, and the typical razzing of the rookie. The only think significantly different today is sitting on a table in front of me… (continue reading…)

Skiing with kids can be tough.

As a recovering ski instructor who seemed to always get stuck instructing about thirteen four-year-olds, I can tell you that skiing with kids can make the days stretch on forever, and not in a good way. And skiing with adults ain’t easy for the kids either, especially when they’re learning. Dad wants to rip turns, grom wants to chill on the magic carpet. So what do you do?

The smiles say it all

You head to a place where everyone can get their fix; you head to Monarch Mountain. (continue reading…)

[WARNING: This blog post is NSFW - Employees: if your boss sees you reading it, you can kiss your next powder day goodbye. Kids: do NOT let your parents see this unless they're very cool, or already have the Powder Flu themselves. Read with caution]

You don’t want to be sick, right? But you do want the conditions to be sick out on the slopes. So what happens when you’re not sick, but the conditions are? Colorado Ski Country has the answer. It’s called the powder flu, and it’s extremely contagious around here.

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It’s Colorado Ski Country USA Photo Quiz time. Test your ski cred and see if you can ace the quiz. Winners get bragging rights on Colorado’s greatest skiing Facebook page, and never-ending glory.

Ready for the quiz? Here goes:

QUESTION: What is going on in this picture:

What's going on in this photo?

Multiple choices below:

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Fashion and function are awkward bedfellows when it comes to skiing and snowboarding. Some say that style trumps all – these folks can be seen at nearly any aprés spot, prominently displaying their brand name, slope-chic couture. Others claim that function is what matters, as evidenced by their devotion to cheap hardware store work gloves and the duct tape patches on their Gore-Tex. So which group is right? Style or substance? Fashion or function? Being seen, or being seen skiing? Colorado Ski Country USA’s Mountain Correspondent hit the slopes to find out…

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Ski season’s in full swing in Colorado Ski Country USA. Yes, we had a slow start, but it’s really turning around; every single one of our resorts and ski areas got dumped on at some point over the past week. That’s huge! In my neck of the wods, it loked like it was snowing potato chips at one point. And while it’s NOT Colorado’s first snow, I think that the calming melodies of the good Hank Williams Sr. sum this up:

And while there’s been plenty of snow falling, there’s been something else falling on the slopes in Colorado: us. Falling is part of skiing, and while the twitter-verse and face-spaces are full of photos of all the glorious powder falling in Colorado, I thought I’d change it up a bit with some photos of crashes. Ladies and Gentlemen, I present to you: Augerfest, February 2013. Enjoy!

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