My Big Fat Drive to Colorado and back.

[Benny Profane]

Then, five days of skiing in Aspen/Snowmass. Highlands was already closed. Last days for Snowmass, one more week for Aspen. Never skied Snowmass, totally impressed. Very cool mountain, very tough stuff on top. Thought I would be sleeping in Snowmass, but scored a cheap room in the Mountain Chalet in Aspen, two blocks from the gondola. It's been there since 1954, and looks it. But, room was great, free breakfast was awesome, and, did I say two blocks to the gondola? They just sold it for 65 or 85 million (duh, Aspen, two blocks to gondola), so I may have caught it before it's soon gone. The St. Bernards at Taos is closed, too. All these great places filled with so much history are vanishing. Lots of great pictures on the walls of Aspen in the, gulp, 60s!

Needless to say, even on closing week, the street scene and conversations I heard in Aspen is a freak show. Bubble land. Can't imagine Xmas week.

 

[Benny Profane]

Anyway, bingo, got about a foot and a half storm the first few days at Ajax. Knee deep at times. The quality of the local skier there, which was all there was, no tourists except me, was super impressive. Humbling.
Ajax is a great mountain. Crust was still there first day of storm, but, second day, deep.

 

[Benny Profane]

View of Highlands from Ajax. Closed a week before, with a foot plus of fresh. No tracks. Shame

 

[Benny Profane]

Setting up for the final weekend party at Snowmass with a few hot tubs at the upper gondola station. Impressive that they got those things up there just for a few days.

 

[Benny Profane]

Well, this was one that I've filed under kids these days.

Last sunny, slushy day on Ajax I get off the lift and see these girls on the side of the trail posing. Seems that dressing stupid or just nearly naked is not just for gaper day anymore, it's all over at the end of season. I get in a few shots (who wouldn't) and don't hear her saying "no pictures" because I have music playing in my helmet. Then two large young men to my right start blocking me and enforcing the no pics policy. Wtf? And the two young men became three as I laughed at the absurdity of the moment. But, I got my pic, and then one of big guy almost taking out his buddy going into a blocking manuever. Haha. They were pretty fast skiers, though.
I guess I skied into a very testosterone moment. And then they skied away from the girls.

It dawned on me that Aspen is God's proof that rich people should require heirs to work until at least 40 before the money flows.

 

[tirolski]

One of these days I'm doing a Delta specific road trip. Never been to New Orleans, so, that's the finale.

The Delta has good eats and blues music.
Made one trip ever to the Big Easy (French Quarter) after launching-chasing for a ballon from Oxford at a rally in Hammond La.
The Toyota we were riding in got totaled near the Superdome on the way there after the driver got lost on the side streets.
Still made it to The Quarter.
N’awlins is a corrupt freak show but folks know that and still go.
Been that way for awhile.

 

[Benny Profane]

On to Summit County. One day at Copper, three at ABasin. (Did I say this was an Ikon tour?) Copper looked good, and I went out back to see the new Three Bears lift, which is quite impressive (well, new to me, haven't been there for six years). Conditions were very Spring like, trying to find corn before it turned into slow slush. But, coverage was great, and crowds light. My best yard sale of the trip, skiing too fast in cement. I got cheers.

Copper has one of the strangest lifts I've ever seen. They replaced the American Express with a combo six pack and gondola. Seriously. One side, you enter for a gondola box, the other, a six chair. Hard to get a picture to illustrate, but, I tried.

 

[Benny Profane]

Three final days at one of my favorite places in Earth, Arapahoe Basin. It was my home mountain when I lived in Dillon for a few three month seasons, and I've been trying to get back there since they put in the Beavers chair, what, five years ago?
ABasin was less prone to slush mid to late day, as it always was. That's the advantage of a base at 10,000 ft. plus, but, the downside is lack of oxygen, if you're a flatlander. The Beavers was well covered, but, hard as a rock in most places. Two groomed blue runs to the chair, both crudely groomed, the rest awesome trees and some steeps I'd love to experience with a foot of snow. It's Pallavacini but a bit flatter. Very nice addition, but not for the masses.

Did the East Wall a few times when it softened in the afternoon. No climbing.

 

[Benny Profane]

Cool item in the stuff shop.

Huge party on the beach one day that Christy Sports sponsored. If I hear one more white boy bad ska band or the noodling of Garcia over some sound system for an hour while I'm trying to eat, I'm grabbing a gun. Maybe it wasn't such a good idea to legalize pot so much.

 

[tirolski]

Copper has one of the strangest lifts I've ever seen. They replaced the American Express with a combo six pack and gondola. Seriously. One side, you enter for a gondola box, the other, a six chair. Hard to get a picture to illustrate, but, I tried.

Liftblog has some pics ofit too. They use the park snow in the summer for the dang boarders to play with in downtown Copper.

American Eagle – Copper Mountain, CO

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