DENVER—What mud season?
This is supposed to be the time of year when skiers and snowboarders are lured to baseball stadiums and golf courses, and seasonal Colorado resort employees are long gone. But with snow still falling well past its closing day in mid-April, Aspen Mountain is reopening 136 acres at the top for Memorial Day weekend, using salaried staff.
Closer to Denver, Arapahoe Basin had long planned to stay open daily through June 5, but so much late spring snow has fallen that it will now reopen Fridays through Sundays for two more weekends after that.
Lift tickets for the extended season are cheaper than normal, with Aspen offering deeper discounts to resort workers and visitors with season passes from other ski areas. Still, Aspen and A-Basin both hope to at least break even.
“We don’t look at this as a huge money maker, but historically we try to cover our costs, and we’ve been able to do that,” said Rich Burkley, vice president of mountain operations for Aspen Skiing Co.
Both mountains plan to keep going on weekends as long as the snow sticks around, though A-Basin says it won’t stay open past July 4 no matter what, before the quality of snow and demand nosedive.
Running lifts in late spring takes having enough snow to cover trails and keep riders stoked to ski. In 2008, Aspen Skiing Co. offered skiing in mid-June, and A-Basin has made it to July 4 four times. A-Basin’s latest closing day ever was Aug. 10 in 1995.
This month visits at A-Basin have been down slightly from March and April, but 500 to 1,000 people have still been there each weekday in recent weeks, and that usually doubles on weekends, ski area spokeswoman Leigh Hierholzer said.
“I don’t think it’s a time of year when people are making huge profits. It’s a time of year when it’s just fun to be out there. It’s a little bit of an added bonus for loyal skiers,” said Melanie Mills, head of the industry group Colorado Ski Country USA.
Arapahoe Basin had 11 inches of new snow in a three-day span this week, and its base is around 95 inches. Aspen said Thursday its base at the top of the mountain was 71 inches.
“The skiing is not going to change your life, but it’s really fun to come up and take three or four turns in the middle of the summer,” Burkley said.
Most seasonal resort employees have left for the summer. So when Aspen Mountain starts running a lift again Saturday, about 35 salaried employees, including executives dusting off skills from their early careers, will do everything from avalanche control to ski patrol.
Burkley expects mostly Coloradans to ski at Aspen on Memorial Day weekend. He expects a few to arrive in bikinis too.
“Historically when we do this, the party scene is pretty powerful,” he said. “It becomes like a beach.”
Area business owners aren’t sure if it will wake up their sleepy offseason though.
Just two guests were at the eight-room Snow Queen Victorian Bed and Breakfast in Aspen earlier this week, owner Norma Dolle said.
“It might attract some business,” she said, “although most people have put their ski things away.”
Skier Anda Smalls, 41, of Aspen, is pulling out her kids’ gear again. “There’s definitely people getting over the snow, but we never have enough,” she said.
