The History of Skiing on the Grand Mesa (part 2)

The Mesa Creek Ski Area saw several improvements as skiing grew. A Poma Lift, funded by the Lions Club and the community, replaced one of the rope tows. This same lift, known as “Lion’s Lift,” was later moved and used at Powderhorn Resort until 2005. More terrain was opened at Mesa Creek and the management group became known as Grand Mesa Winter Sports, Inc. At that time, family season passes were $95. The first ski school in the area was started in 1952 by Don Larsh, a member of the 1948 US Olympic Ski Team.



The area became more and more popular and it was soon apparent that a different location was necessary. The US Forest Service recommended development of the Big Beaver Creek Basin but funds for the move and expansion were very limited. A group of private individuals got together and formed the Colorado Grand Mesa Ski Corporation which began the process of building a new ski area.



Next post: The birth of Powderhorn Ski Resort

History of Skiing on the Grand Mesa (part 1)

In case you haven't heard, this season is Powderhorn's 40th Anniversary! But we don't look a day over 30. With the Anniversary Celebration week fast approaching (January 8-14) I thought it would be a good idea to explore the history of skiing on the Grand Mesa. It has a great story which I'll break up into a few days' posts since it could get long. I know a lot of you read this blog at work, so I wouldn't want you to single handedly submarine the productivity rates on our account.

Skiing on the Grand Mesa has roots going back to the 1930s. In 1935 the first sport skiing began on Grand Mesa at a location near Land’s End Road. A club operation began skiing the mesa in 1938 just a couple hundred yards from Mesa Lakes Resort. A rope tow provided access to two runs. This tow was powered by an old truck which required a fresh battery every day. This battery was often lugged up the hill on skis first thing in the morning.

In the mid 1940s skiing was moved to the Mesa Creek area or what is now commonly referred to as “Old Powderhorn.” This location provided more variety of terrain for beginners and more advanced skiers. The road up the mesa was not paved at this time and cars parked wherever they could make space. There were two rope tows installed over the first two seasons. A Ford Model A motor ran the shorter tow and a Buick hearse motor ran the longer tow.

Next post: the developement of Mesa Creek Ski Area and the search for new terrain

Watch the Pros

There are tons of professional ski and snowboard competitions in Colorado every year. These events are a blast to attend and usually completely free! If you've never checked out the X Games live before, you've gotta do it! Parking is free, the shuttle is free, the event is free...but the food is expesive so brown bag it.

Here's some details on big events happening around CO this year. Some are televised, so if work or school gets in the way you can still catch it.

Winter X Games
Buttermilk
January 25-28
The biggest event of the year. Ski & Snowboard half pipe and slopestyle not to mention crazy Moto X Big Air, Skier & Snowboarder Cross, and Snowmobile racing.

US Freeskiing Open
Copper Mountain
January 17-21
Ski half pipe, Slopestyle, and Big Air

Breckenridge Ski Tour
Breckenridge
February 1-4
Ski half pipe & slopestyle

Aspen/Snowmass Open
Buttermilk
February 8-11
Ski & Snowboard slopestyle & half pipe

16th Annual US Freeskiing Championships
Crested Butte
February 20-24
This one is intense! Skiers navigate the steepest of the steep with mandatory cliff drops.

Unfortunately for the riders, there isn't a ton of pro snowboard comps in Colorado. If you really want to travel, the US Open Snowboarding Championships are in Stratton, VT.

Make sure you check out Powderhorn's very own Thunder Mt. Freestyle Fest this year! It's a new event and it's going to be BIG. Mark the calendar for February 10-11. Saturday we'll have the Terrain Park Challenge which is a slopestyle competition. The top 2 in each category will qualify for regionals in the nationwide Jeep Terrain Park Challenge series. Cash and swag are also up for grabs. The competition will be judged by the Jibij Pro Team themselves. Then we'll get to watch them go crazy in the park, get autographs, chill with the team. Also on Saturday- ski & snowboard demos, live music, tons of giveaways, and watch professional photo shoots. Then Sunday we'll have a rail jam, high ollie contest, ski & snowboard demos, giveaways, and anything else we can add to the event to make it amazing.

January Events

Well another Christmas has passed. I don't know about you but I'm seriously tired. I'm pretty sure I don't need to eat for a couple days, I can just live off of what I consumed yesterday.

But it's time to get going on our upcoming events. There's a ton happening just in January alone! Here's the rundown of events and clinics for the month of January. If you want a handy-dandy calendar of your own, look for our half-page calendar in Sunday's Daily Sentinel.

New Year's Eve- this is a biggie! Torchlight Parade & Fireworks, Prime Rib Buffet, Rail Jam, music by the Williams Brothers Band, giveaways all night including a snowboard!

Jan 6 Venture Snowboards Demo Day
Jan 10 Women's Clinic
Jan 11 Young at Heart begins
Jan 8-14 Powderhorn's 40th Anniversary Week- get 2 lift tickets for $66 all week
Jan 13-14 40th Birthday Party- Bump-n-Jump, memorabilia room, cake, baloons, giveaways, treasure hunt, live music, food specials, toboggan rides, obstacle course, equipment demos, and a chance to win a portable DVD player
Jan 13 Women's Clinic, Freeriders, Powdercats
Jan 14 Freeriders, Powdercats
Jan 17 Women's Clinic
Jan 20 Slopestyle Competition in the Mt. Dew Junction Park
Jan 20 Women's Clinic, Freeriders, Powdercats
Jan 21 Mt. Dew Vertical Challenge & Sobe Rail Jam
Jan 21 Freeriders, Powdercats
Jan 24 Women's Clinic
Jan 27-28 2nd Annual TeleFest
Jan 27 Women's Clinic, Freeriders, Powdercats
Jan 28 Freeriders, Powdercats
Jan 31 Women's Clinic

Merry Christmas

All of the staff at Powderhorn would like to wish you and your family a very merry Christmas. We hope this is a season of peace and that your time with family and friends will be truly blessed.

Thank you for supporting Powderhorn! We hope that we provide a fun atmosphere for you to enjoy the time you spend with those you love. I personally get excited when I can hear people laughing outisde my office and see people smiling or taking pictures with their kids. I hope that this is another season with great memories at Powderhorn!

Sarah Allen
Sales & Marketing Administrator

Ski with Santa

Skip the scary mall Santa experience...

And bring the kids up to Powderhorn to ski with Santa! We have it on good authority that he'll be stopping at Powderhorn Christmas Eve for some skiing before hitting the night skies. Come join him for some great skiing with family and friends!

Calling All Photographers

By photographers we mean anyone with a camera. We would love to see your pictures! As you're riding the mountain this season, snap some pictures and send them our way. Send in pictures of you and your family/friends, powder shots, scenic shots, or pictures of you showing off.

If you send in something amazing we just might use it! If we'd like to use your picture we will first contact you for permission. Please send contact info with pictures. You can send them to ski@powderhorn.com

As I type this, I know there is at least one person already cooking up an idea to send us a shot of themselves mooning the camera or something. Please don't send us that....no one wants to see that. Seriously, no obscenity please.

p.s. it snowed 8 inches in the last 24 hours, a foot in the last 48 hours. This weekend should be goooooood, come join us!

Snow Reporting

Apparently there was some confusion yesterday. Because it snowed in Grand Junction, I can understand that everyone thought we had received tons of new snow. When our snow report said 0" people thought we just decided to sleep in or something. But the truth is, as of 5:00am yesterday we had not received any snow. It's definitely rare that it snows in GJ and not here but that's in fact what happened. It did start snowing lightly in the morning and we've now had 4 incehs of snow in the last 24 hours. We sure wish this storm had brought more but we'll always take what we get too. As of right now it is trying to snow but very lightly. The forecast calls for a possible 1-2 inches more today.

As one of the snow reporters, I assure you we keep an accurate report that is tracked all season long. Please keep in mind that there is nothing we can do about it snowing or not. If we had our way, it would always be a powder day!

Bruised Egos (among other things)

Crashing is just part of learning and progressing in skiing/snowboarding. Sometimes it's best to just laugh at ourselves....and our friends....as long as we make sure they're ok first. We get a lot of pictures over the season. Here are a few of the crashes we've caught along the way, lots of them seem to come from the park. And just to show that I'm a good sport, there's one of me in there.

Behind the Scenes

Have you ever wondered what goes on at Powderhorn to make the place run? I know I used to think that a ski area pretty much just turned the lift on and said "Go for it!" Here's what really goes on each day...

The lifts close at 4:00 every day. At this time, ski patrol does the final load on the lift to do "sweep." Patrols spread out across the mountain and ski every run slowly, stopping at checkpoints. They are looking for anyone that may not have made it off the mountain yet.

Next the groomers come out. These guys generally work shifts of 4:00pm to midnight and midnight to 8:00am. Each groomer has his list of runs to maintain. They have great stories of things they've seen running around the mountain in the middle of the night (no sasquatch yet though). We also do snowmaking at night during the early season period. Temperatures have to be at or below about 25 degrees. Our guns blow the snow into large piles which the groomers then spread out evenly around the base area. Snow is also made to build the jumps and features in the terrain parks.

Once everything has been groomed, the guys call in the report around 4:00am to a special voicemail box. Then, either myself or our communications director pulls ourselves out of bed around 5am or 5:30am to listen to their report and put out the snow report. We update Colorado Ski Country's website, the Powderhorn site, and record the phone message that you all get to listen to. Hopefully we sound perky and fool you into thinking we've been up for hours. Usually I've been up for 5 minutes and I'm in my PJs. Then it's shower, breakfast, and off to the mountain.

Our snow removal team is sometimes the first to arrive when it has been snowing. This crew is here at the crack of dark to plow everything. Our lift crew starts to arrive around 7:00 and gets to their positions at the 3 lifts. Ski Patrol is also arriving at this time to start putting up the fences, slow signs, etc (this stuff is removed every night for the grooming). Food & Beverage is also showing up around this time to start cooking up a tasty breakfast, especially those killer cinnamon rolls.

The lift crew performs safety and service checks on all the lifts and then makes a radio call to our mountain dispatcher when each lift is ready for the public. In the meantime, ticket office has opened the windows and ski school is in their morning meeting. By 8:30 the rental shop is getting tons of skis and snowboards adjusted to each individual foot. When the clock strikes 9, we start loading and the day has begun. At 10:30 the first batch of lessons begin and instructors take their groups to the different teaching areas on the mountain.

All day long we are communicating on the radios between departments trying to make everything run smooth. At about 3:30 the terrain parks close and each feature gets maintenance and raking. When 4:00 comes around again, the lifts get "toned out." This is a tone that is broadcast to all our radios with an announcement that all lifts are officially closed. Then the whole process begins again!

Big Doins

We're having a better-than-ever New Year's Bash this year at Powderhorn! Here's the plan:

Skiing/riding all day
New Year's Rail Jam around 4:00
Torchlight Parade & Fireworks 6:30
Prime Rib buffet at Wildewood Restaurant
Live music all night in the Sunset Grille by Williams Brothers Band
Giveaways all night long
Champagne toast at midnight (we'll even sing that New Year's song that no one knows the words to)

And here's the really good news- Laidlaw is providing an extended bus schedule so you don't have to drive to the party! Cost is $8 round trip.
Departs GJ
6:50am Sutherlands (Mesa Mall) and Mesa State College
7:10am Holiday Inn (Horizon Drive) and McDonald's (Clifton)
10:00am All locations
3:00pm All locations

Departs Powderhorn
4:30pm and 12:30am

Hope to ring in 2007 with all of you!

Death by Rabbit

I'm just wondering if anyone else has had this experience before. You're out skiing, just cruising along and out of nowhere something white and fast is running out right in front of you. Startled and trying to dodge this furry creature, you end up in a massive yard sale. This happened to me one day while skiing at my home mountain in Wyoming. I look back up the hill and a Snowshoe Hare is sitting safely on the side of the run laughing. Hmmm much like that Geico commercial.

I've had squirrels, chipmunks, and rabbits do this before in my ski life but not as often since I've been at Powderhorn. Then one day the weirdest little animal I had ever seen ran across my path on the West End. Turns out it was an ermine. I had never even heard of them before. They are small short-tailed weasels, long cute little things. Their coat is brown in the summer and then turns all white for the winter except the tip of their tail which stays brown. Ermines are nocturnal animals but can be spotted around Powderhorn every once in awhile so keep an eye out for them. Sometimes you can spot them from the lift running between the aspens.

Maybe our mascot should be the Ernie the Ermine?

American Cancer Society Vertical Rally

This is a really cool event that Powderhorn is hosting this year. It's a chance to find out how many vertical feet you can ski/ride in a day while benefiting the American Cancer Society. You can sign up as a team or individually and compete for prizes. All the proceeds go to the fight against cancer!

Saturday, Feb. 17

Register at www.cancer.org/vertical

Text Messaging

Now you can get powder alerts, ticket specials and event details delivered right to your cell phone! Go to http://www.powderhorn.com/content/view/109/151/ to sign up

This is a free service but keep in mind fees may apply based on your wireless plan.

Opening Day

Opening Day went off! Thanks to everyone who came up. I apologize for a rushed blog but here's a few pictures from the day

Tomorrow's the Day!

It's finally here! Opening Day is tomorrow, Dec. 7. Here are the details on terrain and everything:

50% of the mountain will be open
2 of 3 lifts
22" base
6-7 features in the terrain park
Reduced early season ticket prices

Chick-fil-A will be up here handing out coupons for free food
Magic, KJoy, the Moose, and KStar will be broadcasting live starting at 6am

Text Messaging
Now you can get powder alerts, ticket specials and event info deliver right to your phone! It's a free service from Powderhorn, just remember that charges may apply based on your service and carrier. Sign up at http://www.powderhorn.com/content/view/109/151/

Look forward to having you all up here!

3 Days To Go

The wait was so long yet its almost here already! We're opening Thursday for the 06-07 season. Time to use one of those sick days.

The mountain is in really good shape with a 30" base and we should have a terrain report of opening day for you tomorrow. Things are certainly picking up around here. Ski Patrol is out scouting all the runs and placing pads, fencing, etc. The snow guns have been active and the grooming crew (the nocturnals) have been packing and shaping the snow. I just saw our terrain parks manager hike up the mountain carrying a vacuum cleaner. Apparently he likes a really clean terrain park. Otherwise kitchen supplies are being ordered, press releases prepared, and ticket systems fired up.

A wise person told me last year that opening day is like giving birth. There is A LOT of labor involved but it's exciting. And that's definitely the mood this week. Everyone is probably burning twice the normal amount of calories but we're really excited.

Oh and another gift idea- Powderhorn Cash Cards. These can be used for tickets, lessons, rentals, food, Alpine Trader, and lodging. You can call us (970-268-5700) to order one or buy a preloaded card at Board & Buckle or Traz.

Catch the Bus

That's right, the bus is back! Laidlaw will be providing bus service to Powderhorn on weekends all season long. In addition, the bus will run December 23 through January 7, January 15, and March 12-18. The bus will not run Christmas Day. A round trip bus ride is $8.

Here's the schedule-

Depart: 6:50am Sutherlands (Mesa Mall)
Depart: 7:10am Holiday Inn (Horizon Drive)
Depart: 6:50am Mesa State College (Saunders Fieldhouse)
Depart: 7:10am McDonald's (Clifton)

Arrives at Powderhorn at 8:15am
Departs Powderhorn at 4:30pm sharp

Arrives in Grand Junction @ 5:30pm- same locations as departures

Children under 10 must be accompanied by an adult. Please have exact change for bus driver. And please respect this service or there will be no service!

Ski & Snowboard Magazines

Winter sport magazines are a great way to get stoked for season, get tips , keep up with the athletes, get competition details, read good editorials, and hear about those far off places that most of us will ever have the money to experience.

Here's a rundown of the different ski & snowboard magazines out there.

Snowboarder Magazine
http://www.snowboardermag.com/

Transworld Snowboarding
http://www.transworldsnowboarding.com/snow/

Frequency Magazine
http://www.frqncy.com

White Lines Magazine
http://www.whitelines.com/

Snowboard Magazine
http://www.snowboard-mag.com/

Method Magazine
http://www.methodmag.com/

Snowboard Canada
http://www.snowboardcanada.com/

Freeskier Magazine
http://www.freeskier.com

Powder Magazine
http://powdermag.com

Ski Time Magazine
http://www.skitimemag.com

Ski and Skiing Magazines
http://www.skinet.com/skinet/

SBC Skier
http://www.sbcskier.com/

Backcountry Magazine
http://www.backcountrymagazine.com/

Couloir Magazine
http://www.couloirmag.com/

Telemark Skier Magazine
http://www.telemarkskier.com/

p.s. Subscriptions make good gifts. I just saved you a trip to the mall. You owe me.

It's Still Coming Down

Yep it's still snowing....and we aren't complaining! Here's the report as of 9:00 this morning:

New snow 24hrs- 9"
Total from this storm- 20"
Settled base- 31"
Current temperature- 9 degrees

We are making snow today and tonight. The high today is only 12 degrees and tonight it should dip to -11. For a great Grand Mesa forecast check out http://www.crh.noaa.gov/forecast/MapClick.php?CityName=Grand+Mesa&state=CO&site=GJT

Snow Update

Let it snow! As of 9:00 this morning we had received 8 inches of snow. It has been snowing heavily and nonstop so far all day. I would venture a guess that there is at least a foot out there now. Some of us delinquents couldn't resist playing a little as you can see.

We are updating the snow report on our website daily now although we are not opening until December 7. Updated snow totals will be available around 3:00 today.

Tech at the Mountain

John, a recent poster, had some great questions regarding wireless services at the mountain. We are indeed offering WiFi access this year in our base lodge and at the Inn at Wildewood (although some fees apply). We are excited to be able to offer this service this year and hope it enhances the visit to the mountain.

As far as cell phone service goes, this is something we've been working on for several years. Because of our physical location, we tend to be in a small black hole when it comes to service. From what I understand, there have been conversations with different companies to have a tower placed on the rim therefore providing perfect service not only for Powderhorn, but most of the Grand Mesa. Several companies have expressed strong interest although we have not seen a new tower yet.

Oh and check out the forecast, it's looking good for the next few days. We'll keep you updated!

Wax On Wax Off

If you haven't done it already, it's time to get your skis and boards tuned up and waiting by the door! Here's a do-it-yourself guide on waxing skis and snowboards if you've never done it before:

Skis
http://www.wikihow.com/Tune-a-Ski

Snowboard
http://www.wikihow.com/Wax-a-Snowboard

Or you can have our Rental Shop get all your gear ready for the year. Check out the details at http://www.powderhorn.com/content/view/61/67/

Know Your Lingo

To help you get prepared for season, here are some terms to familiarize yourself with so you can talk the talk on the chairlift:

BAFL- "Big Air, Flat Landing" which can resulte in an explosion of equipment and body parts
Boilerplate/Bulletproof- snow that is so hard you might as well trade in for ice skates
Fib- a horrible attempt at covering up a fall by saying "I caught an edge"
Gnar- one of those ambiguous terms that makes you sound intense "I was shredding the gnar" a.k.a I was really just sipping tea in the lodge
Coach- Psycho babble for instructor (Powderhorn does have the best instructors & coaches)
Vermin- the easily spotted groups of skiers or snowboarders blocking access to a run, usually made up of "bros"
Bros- Fellow skiers and snowboarders living to slide the mountain. And yes, females can be bros
Sick- an adjective used to describe anything whether it makes sense or not. Most often spoken in the terrain park
Throw Down- can be used in past or present tense. Usually just means you did or are about to do something- "I'm going to go throw down on that rail" a.k.a. I'm just gonna go ride that rail.
Disco Sticks- super short slalom and twin tip skis capable of very short turns
Expert- Someone who is lying about their abilities
Face Plant- A fall that happens so quick that your face is the first thing to make contact with snow
Trustafarian- a rich but rugged ski bum pretending to be poor
Code Zero- Ski School radio call for lost child (ok being serious now: this does not happen at Powderhorn)
Toilet Turns- sloppy turns made from a you-know-what kind of position
Snotsicle- frozen discharge of the nose
Ski Bum- someone who has found a great alternative to working
Extreme- should only be taken seriously when used on trail maps (Extreme Terrain) otherwise it's just a silly marketing word
Screaming Starfish- someone yelling for help while cartwheeling down the hill
Poodle Turns- show dog turns made by Instructors even when not teaching
Manky or Danky- the smell of polyester underwear after a day on the mountain
Kodak Courage- trying something you otherwise would never do just because your buddy has a camera

Check out our NEW Website!

Our website has a new look! Check it out at www.powderhorn.com

The new site has been a big project for us this year but it was really fun and interesting to go through the process. We will be adding more information to the site daily. Please feel free to email us from the site with any questions or if you've found something goofy, we'll get it taken care of. The Contact Us area can be used to ask questions or request brochures. Also make sure and sign up for the Powderhorn newsletter if you want the latest information on deals, events, etc.

TGR's Anomaly Premiere

Anomaly TGR's newest 16mm and HD ski and snowboard release showcases the freakish and abnormal abilities of today's top athletes as they push the boundary of what is humanly possible. Don't miss out on this one!

When: Friday, Nov 17th 7:00pm
Saturday, Nov 18th 7:00pm
Doors open 45 minutes before show
Where: Liff Auditorium, Mesa State College
Cost: $5

The Inside Scoop

A lot of you have been writing comments, emails, calling us, and sending telegrams (ok that one is a lie) asking if we are looking at an early opening. So I'll address those questions right now.

We are still scheduled to open Dec. 7 but if it's at all possible we will open early. But no, we will not open anytime around Thanksgiving next week. The base isn't quite built up enough for that yet. As soon as I hear anything official on an early opening I'll write about it on here, we'll have the info on our main website, our myspace, and you'll hear about it on the radio.

The current weather update: snow flurries are still coming off and on but the winds are gusting around 30 mph. That's making accumulation difficult. Another 1-3 inches is expected this afternoon and a 20% chance of snow tonight. By Friday the high is supposed to be 50 though! Let's hope not.

This is a great site for Grand Mesa weather http://www.crh.noaa.gov/forecasts/COZ009.php?warncounty=COC029&city=Grand+Mesa

So keep up those snow dances and check back for updates. Oh and a quick shout out to the folks from Hawaii coming early December- I hope we get to open for you guys!

Snow Update

The clouds unloaded as they passed by Powderhorn this weekend! We've received 21 inches at the top of the mountain and 10 at the base area. Snowmaking operations have begun and season approaches even faster!

Snow is expected today through tomorrow night. We'll keep you updated on snow totals as it falls so check back often!

What Are We Up To?

People often ask what it is we are doing up here when there is no snow or during pre-season. The answer: running around like chickens with our heads cut off! Ok there is actually more order than that.

But we are extremely busy preparing for the 06-07 season. Powderhorn employs a staff of about 25 people full time/year round. This is made up of administration, marketing, food & beverage (we host 25-30 weddings every summer), Inn at Wildewood, maintenance, and mountain operations. Our staff size will jump to about 250 for the winter season.

So what is it we are up to right now? Well, as I type this, the mountain guys are placing the picinic tables and ski racks around the base lodge. Then they will work on getting the snowmaking operations ready. Lift Maintenance is finishing all the final checks and certifications for all lifts. Food & Beverage has the Sunset Grille looking like a bomb went off trying to get everything turned over for season. Ticket office is cranking out season passes as fast as their fingers can fly over the keyboards. The Rental Shop is checking in all the new gear. Alpine Trader is burried in tons of new stuff, the manager has to be checked on periodically to make sure she isn't suffocating under a pile of hoodies. Inn at Wildewood has a couple weeks to take a breather and get those little projects in before season starts. Everyone in Administration seems to be on the phone all the time. Our IT Manager is setting up new computers, getting the ticket system ready to go and, as always, answering our stupid questions about why our computer KEEPS TYPING LIKE THIS WHEN WE DON'T WANT IT TO. And us marketing/sales folks just got back in town from another ski show, this time in Denver.

Whew! But all this makes us extremely excited because that means we're close....close to seeing cars pull in with skis and snowboards on top...close to powder days...close to getting people on skis or a snowboard for the first time...close another season of fun and making memories!

Smith Limo at Powderhorn

We're excited to announce that the Smith Limo will be stopping by Powderhorn this year for a Rail Jam! You can jib the same thing you see in the magazines and videos. And it you don't want to risk flying off a limousine, it'll still be fun to watch everyone.

The limo will be here March 31 to celebrate our closing weekend. It's a ways off but just another thing to get excited for!

In case you aren't quite sure what the Smith Limo is:

Warren Miller Is On The Way!

It's the unofficial kickoff to every ski season! The new Warren Miller film "Off the Grid" will be showing THIS SATURDAY the 4th in the Colorado River Room of Two Rivers Convention Center. There is only one show at 8:30. You can purchase tickets earlier that day at the Ski Swap which runs from 7am to 4pm at the convention center. Keep your ticket stub from the movie...that gets you a FREE lift ticket at Powderhorn!

So Saturday is a huge day! You can get some new gear, get your season pass photo taken or pick up a Powderhorn Plus Card, and then take in a ski & snowboard film. What better way to get ready for season?

Preseason at Powderhorn

First of all, welcome to the Powderhorn Blog! This is the place to find out what's going on at Powderhorn, how things work behind the scenes, goofy stories, athlete interviews, and ski industry news.

We're extremely excited for the 06-07 season. It's Powderhorn's 40th Anniversary this year and we'll be celebrating all year long with a full events calendar! To check out what's on tap go to: http://www.powderhorn.com/whatshappening.html More events and clinics will be added to the schedule so check back often. Also, before the season kicks off, we'll launch our NEW website so keep an eye out for that.

And now to what everyone wants to know...what's the scoop on snow?? We've had 34 inches of snow to date. This last storm dumped 16 inches on the summit! It's the season where it snows, then melts a little, then snows some more. But it's very encouraging considering we had not seen snow yet this time last year. So the big question is...will we open early? The answer is- if we can we will. We have to wait and watch so do those snow dances!

Check back here for updates and info!