BRECKENRIDGE SKI RESORT 

by George Schissler

My last visit to Breckenridge Ski Resort in Colorado, was six years ago. Since then things have moved onward and upward, but I didn’t expect upwards to be the addition of 939 more vertical feet. 

The added vertical took place during the summer of 2005 with the installation of the Imperial Express Superchair. 

This new high speed quad is different.   It is now the highest reaching chairlift in North America topping off at 12,840 feet carrying skiers to the summit of Peak 8.  Helicopters put in place nine towers to support the 2,714.8 foot length of cable needed to carry the 30 chairs, and 1200 skiers per hour to the summit.  In the past skiers wishing to access the expert-plus terrain were faced with enduring a 45 minute climb to the 12,840 foot level.  Now reached by the chair they can do it in comfort in only 2.7 minutes (seems things are measured right down to the tenth here) leaving more than 42.3 more minutes to ski. Every second counts when you are having fun!  But there is much more to Breckenridge than the Imperial Express Superchair. It is only one of the 28 lifts--2 high speed six-passenger chairs, 7 high speed quads, 1 triple, 6 doubles, 4 surface lifts, and 8 carpets--which can carry 37,280 skiers per hour to whichever uphill destination they enjoy skiing. With the base elevation at 9,600 feet and a vertical of 3,240 lift-served-feet skiers are treated to some of the best and most varied terrain in North America.  The 2,208 acres of skiable terrain provides steep and deep in the bowls and tree skiing for the more adventurous skier. There are also 600 acres of daily groomed cruisers (29% of the total terrain), 516 acres with snowmaking and 147 trails, the longest being the 3.5 mile Four O’clock). 

We--my son George, his wife Kelayna and I--recently spent five days at Breckenridge and luck was on our side as the resort had experienced a record-breaking snowfall for the season.  Grooming here takes a back seat to no one. Every morning we made first tracks on a couple of inches of new powder and “corduroy “.  It was as good as skiing can get—light on the skis and the easy edging required little work. 

At the end of each day we would return to the Grand Timber Lodge, a ski in-ski out time share resort, and highlight our map with the territory we skied that day.  It went like this… 

On day one we explored the runs on Peak 7 serviced by the Independence Super Chair which provided access to mostly intermediate cruising trails, such as, Pioneer and Claimjumper, then we moved to the center of the resort to Peak 8 and the Rocky Mountain Super Chair and the Colorado Super Chair to glide down Northstar, Crescendo, Springmeier then back up the Colorado S. C. to head down on Four O’clock to Lower Sawmill to Snowflake and home. It was everything a first day at a ski resort should be, but the thought of tomorrow and riding the Imperial Express Super Chair to its 12,840 foot drop-off was the topic of the night. 

But day two dawned cold, windy and overcast and the ride to the top had to wait another day. High winds and low visibility made us hold off for better conditions so we elected to stay lower and explore Peak 9 venues. 

Day three, although clear and sunny, was not devoted to skiing.   Instead we walked around the Town of Breckenridge which we highly recommend doing.  It’s a pleasant experience to browse through the many interesting and varied shops and restaurants, conversing with the locals, although finding a true “local” may be difficult.  It seems that people from all 50 states wish to call Breckenridge home. 

Day four brought another clear, sunny day and a trip to the top.  First we took the T-bar which dropped us off just short of the Imperial Express Super Chair. We warmed up with a few runs in the North Bowl on Pika and Ptarmigan which paralleled the T-bar and then finally to THE chair at the top of the world.   No desire to climb higher we watched as many skiers were climbing to the summit of 12,998 feet to give them a full vertical of 3,398 ft.  Skiers and boarders (intermediate and experts) can drop off into Art’s Bowl, Imperial Bowl, North Bowl and experts can head for the in-bounds extreme territory in the Lake Chutes.  We challenged ourselves in Imperial Bowl which, although steep is also wide and allows intermediates to test their skills without getting in over their heads. On this day the bowl was covered with a couple of inches of powder and packed powder providing a manageable descent and a feeling of accomplishment when looking back up into the bowl.  From the run through the bowl we headed for the Vista House via Psychopath for a welcome noon time break.  The afternoon took us to Peak 9 on the Beaver Run and Mercury Super Chairs and we skied the remainder of the day on American, Columbia, Bonanza, Cashier (a favorite) and cruised on Upper Lehman before calling it another great day. 

Day five saw us pretty much ski each chair and each peak selecting whichever trail fit our fancy, but my favorite slope, Centennial, on Peak 10 was saved for the afternoon. I have skied Centennial many times and whenever in Breckenridge make it a point to spend time there. The long, steady slope to my mind is one of the most enjoyable runs here or anywhere and it remains number one in my book. 

Snowboarders are welcome with open arms.  The resort has put out the welcome sign for snowboarders by constructing four parks and four pipes, including Freeway Terrain Park and Pipe that attracts world class free riders.  The three smaller parks and pipes serve as learning facilities for all levels of skiers and riders. 

Anyone looking for a memorable ski vacation will certainly find what they are looking for at Breckenridge. The resort has something for every skill level.  The beginner terrain (15%) will give confidence to first-timers with its great amount of very wide, gentle slopes.  Intermediates (53%) can comfortably cruise the entire mountain.  The experts (32%) will manage to find the bumps and steep and deep on their own. 

In the years since my last visit I had forgotten just how big Breckenridge is, but after this visit I will never forget how good it can be!  

For more information go to www.whitebookski.com/  or www.breckenridge.com/