Lightning & Lifts

We had over 1,000 people take a ride on the lift yesterday to check out the best colors in years. I know many of you were unable to get your ride in due to the lighting that approached at the end of the day.

When lightning comes into the area, we must unload the lift as soon as possible and count 30 minutes until we can load again. So when we hear thunder, we start our watch. If we hear more we start over. As soon as we can count 30 minutes without any strikes nearby we will load the lift again. Who wants to be on a big metal thing with lightning in the area? Not me.

But we apologize to any of you that were turned away. Safety first!

Check out some photos from Color Sunday yesterday

Change of Venue

Just a quick note to let you all know that the Warren Miller show has been changed back to Two Rivers Convention Center from the Avalon. Show times TBA

Wow

Blogging at you from the best Color Sunday in years! Almost 700 people have taken the roundtrip ride on the lift catching the best colors we've had in years. A thunderstorm is trying to move in and rain on our parade. But as they say, "just wait 5 minutes..."

If you just can't make it today, catch the story tonight on KREX or check our website tomorrow for some great pictures!

Color Sample

Here are some pictures taken today from various locations on the Grand Mesa

Colorful Language

We're seeing dramatic changes in the colors every day right now. It's setting up for the perfect Color Sunday this weekend.

Check out this story by NBC11 News to see what the Grand Mesa is looking like...well as of yesterday. If you're out letting nature wow you this week, stop by the resort. Both the Wildewood Restaurant and the Alpine Trader & Cafe are open all week.

Wildewood Restaurant
8am-3pm

Alpine Trader & Cafe
9am-4pm

Officially Fall

Today, at precisely 9:44am, is the beginning of fall. We are now one season closer to THE season! Over 600 people enjoyed a trip on the Take Four quad yesterday checking out the beginnings of the color change. The mountain looks different as the trees are changing pretty quickly now. This Sunday is our 2nd Color Sunday and it should be perfect. You can watch the webcam this week to keep track of the changes.

Trivia

We have a great way to win a pair of lift tickets each month. Play the Powderhorn e-news trivia! Each month in our newsletter we give you an opportunity to win lift tickets. Check out the current newsletter here. Signup to receive these here.

The current question is: What year did Powderhorn get the first double-chair lift?
Email your answer to ski@powderhorn.com so we have your email address. Winners will be chosen from correct answers.

So far these people have answered correctly:

Roger Blind
Steve Foster
Brian Berry
Larry Mills
Julie Schleper
Jeffrey Porter

Hint: the answer is on our website...or hunt down the people above and force them to tell you.

Warren Miller Update

The new Warren Miller film "Children of Winter" will be showing in Grand Junction on Nov. 8 (same day as the ski swap).

Location this year is the Avalon Theatre and there will be 2 shows- 7 & 9:30pm
Each ticket to the show will be good for a Buy One, Get One Free lift ticket any day of the season at Powderhorn.

Scroll down a few posts to check out the trailer. Think snow!

Goodbye Sarge

Bill "Sarge" Brown, a Colorado ski insustry pioneer and Powderhorn friend, died at his home Sunday. Bill stopped by the mountain regularly and always had a box of chocolates for us. He will be missed by our entire staff.

From the Daily Sentinel: After Brown joined the U.S. Army in 1942, he was stationed at Camp Hale in Colorado and became a member of the 10th Mountain Division. He retired from the Army in 1966 as a senior sergeant major. Upon his retirement, Brown was invited to become Vail’s mountain manager. He was inducted into the Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame in 1982.

Ike Hits Powderhorn

You wouldn't think that Hurricane Ike could affect us at this rocky mountain ski resort but it managed just that. Our website is hosted in a couple locations in Ohio which was hit yesterday with part of Ike. They had 70 mph winds and all the power was knocked out. So our website went down in the storm. They are working to restore power at the data centers ASAP so we'll just have to wait and see!

If you need to order a season pass, just call us and we'll take care of it for you.
970-268-5700

Quit Your Day Job

So you can work for us! Want to see what it's like for your office to be 1600 acres on a mountain? Oh and the view isn't too shabby either.

We are hiring for all seasonal positions:

Cashiers, Line Cooks, Lift Operators, Lodging Front Desk, Wait Staff, Rental/Repair Shop, Ticket Checkers, Ski/Snowboard Instructors, Retail, Ski Patrol (Cert. Required), Bartenders, Lift Ticket Sales, Dishwashers, Parking Attendants/Snow Removal

Job Fair: Nov. 15, 9am-noon at Powderhorn

All Powderhorn employees get a free season pass and free skiing at 16 other Colorado resorts.

Interviewing NOW for Terrain Park Manager. Must be 21 or older, mature, understand terrain park construction, layout, and management.
Call Dana Sekal at 970-268-5700

Powderhorn Invades GJ

Powderhorn representatives are going to be swarming Grand Junction for the next month. It's all a part of our diabolical scheme to make it easy for you to get info, purchase a pass, or have your pass photo taken. Evil genius!

Sept. 20
Colorado Mtn. Winefest- Palisade
10:30am-5pm
Stop by and grab some free stickers, buy a Plus Card, or check out the new trail map. You'll find us right next to Canyon Wind Winery...I see many tasty wine samples in our future.

Sept. 21 & 28
Color Sundays
Lift Rides- 10am-3pm
Plus live music, lots of great food, Alpine Trader sales, kid's art corral, and bump-n-jump. Ok so this isn't down in the valley but they are important events nonetheless!

Oct. 4
Gene Taylor's Sporting Goods
10am-4pm
Get your pass photo and drool over their huge selection of new gear for 08-09! Our fashion consultants will be standing by to help you pick out that perfect ski outfit.

Oct. 11
Sports Authority- Mesa Mall
10am-4pm
It's the Sniagrab kickoff! Get your pass photo along with ridiculous deals on new gear.

Nov. 8
Ski Swap- Two Rivers Convention Center
7am-4pm (Starbucks for our staff is much appreciated. I take mine skinny)
The popular annual event- pass photos, Plus Cards, deals deals deals

Nov. 7-9
Ski & Snowboard Expo- Denver
All day, every day
If you're a front ranger, stop by our booth and say heeeeey! We'll have some killer lift ticket deals.

Nov. 14-15
Jean's Westerner- Montrose
All day
Snag a Plus Card for deals all season long.

Bear Claw

Work continues on Bear Claw, the second of the new runs for the 08-09 season. All the trees are almost cut and the run is close to meeting with Redeye. Cutting down all those trees is just the first part. We have to get them out of there somehow! The guys spent countless hours skidding the trees and stacking them in neat little piles. Most of this timber will be sold by the forest service, so it is going to good use.

As most of you know, the Grand Mesa is pretty rocky. Our guys then go in with the big equipment and start plowing the big rocks out of the run. It will eventually look like Hooligan does now:

Warren Miller- Children of Winter

The new Warren Miller film trailer just came out



It's just not ski season without that voice....."See you next year. Same time, same place."

That place and time is Saturday night of the Ski Swap at Two Rivers Convention Center. Show is TBA...waiting on the Warren Miller guys to call us with the details.

Buuurrrrrr

What is this strange sensation I feel? Wow, it's coldness! Temperatures were in the low 40s here at the mountain this morning. For the first time in months we all were COLD! It's a great feeling. We acutally had to turn the furnace on for a little while.

It took forever for my hands to warm up enough to type. It was hilarious trying to write emails this morning. I was coming up with words like "Tahdnks" "qiuesrtiohns"

Mavericks

Another reminder to all the Mesa State students...

Season Pass Sale
THIS THURSDAY the 4th
Academic Quad
10am-2pm
$275

You need to bring your valid MavCard, a form of payment (mom's credit card, debit, cash or check), and your happy smile because winter is coming!