Photo: Brett Schreckengost courtesy of Telluride Ski Resort.
Telluride Ski Resort will officially open for the season on with limited terrain off of Village Express Lift (Lift 4) and the Chondola (Lift 1). Weather permitting, the Resort also plans to open Polar Queen Express (Lift 5) and Apex Lift (Lift 6) on Saturday, December 10th with additional terrain.
This most recent storm brought us helpful natural snowfall, along with temperatures ideal for snowmaking, said Bill Jensen, CEO of Telluride Ski & Golf Resort. We are taking a phased approach to our opening, allowing access to our core Lift 4 terrain while the snowmaking team focuses on the Lift 5/6 loop.
Additionally, there will be a Donation Day preview event off of Lift 4 from 12 pm to 4 pm on Thursday, December 1st to benefit the Telluride Ski & Snowboard Club. Lift tickets for Donation Day will be $25. All skiers and snowboarder must purchase a lift ticket to participate in Donation Day.
Donation Day is a community tradition that we wanted to continue again this season, added Jensen. I know everyone is anxious to get on the snow, and this serves as a great opportunity to do so a bit early, and for a good cause.
On Friday, the lifts will start turning at 9:00 am, with the first four people in line at Village Express Lift (Lift 4) having the honor of breaking the banner to start the season. When the lifts stop for the day, Tomboy Tavern in Mountain Village will be hosting a complementary Austrian beer garden and poster signing from Olympic champion downhill skier Franz Klammer. The beer garden will be open from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. and will be serving a variety of beverages, including Telluride Brewing Company and SweetWater Brewing Company beer.
Also on Friday will be a screening of The Fourth Phase, the newest film from snowboarder Travis Rice, Brain Media and Red Bull Media House at the Telluride Conference Center. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. and the film starts at 7:30 p.m. All proceeds benefit the San Miguel County Search and Rescue and tickets ($10) are available at Bootdoctors.
To streamline Opening Day and make getting to the lift easier, head to the Mountain Village Pass office (open 8 am to 5 pm daily) or the Coonskin Pass office (open 8 am to 4 pm daily) to get your season pass or redeem any purchased pass products. Discounted lift tickets will be available through December 9th at $84 for adults, $47 for children and $68 for seniors. On December 10th, ticket prices will increase to $104 for adults, $56 for children and $79 for seniors with the anticipated lift and terrain expansion.
For up-to-date information on Telluride Ski Resorts Opening Day activities andDonation Day, please visit our website at www.tellurideskiresort.com or our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/telluride.
