When it comes to skiing, I’m like the grouchy old-timer, always reminiscing about how good things used to be.
I remember when you could get lunch at the lodge for less than $10, when lift lines were only as long as it took you to yell “single” and when day trips were spent mostly on the slopes — not the interstate.
Yes, really.
For many, the day trip has been dead for years. In 2001, we lost the title of most skier visits to California — with drive time in Colorado cited as the No. 1 reason for defection. In a 2006 cover story, Colorado Biz magazine declared “The Death of the Day Skier.”
But the stubborn skiers and riders among us have braved Interstate 70 in recent years to keep the day trip on life support. In the glory days, a skier could expect to get at minimum the same amount of time on the slopes as they had spent on the road getting there. In order to live that dream now, skiers have to make the morning drive in the moonlight.
But as of this weekend’s , the day trip’s prognosis is greatly improved, at least for this skier. The shoulder of 13 miles of eastbound I-70 from the Eisenhower Tunnel to the top of Floyd Hill will operate as a third, tolled travel lane during peak travel periods. .
I, for one, say Glory Hallelujah!
The most passholders will ever pay is $30 (they add on a processing fee if you pay the toll by having your license plate read and a bill sent to you). I’ve been skiing 20 days (give or take a few days) a season for 45 years. If I was stuck in traffic for an hour on each trip (which is well below average now, and above average for my early days of skiing), that means I’ve spent 37½ days sucking exhaust on I-70. I say $30 is a small price to pay to get some of those hours of my life back. Even those not paying to use the Express Lane will enjoy the traffic relief from those of us who do.
Part of the Colorado Department of Transportation’s plan to improve travel in the I-70 mountain corridor, the toll lane is projected by CDOT to cut travel time along the stretch in half — to a mere 30 minutes.
This fall it still took me an hour longer than it used to to get to Arapahoe Basin and Loveland. For contrast: Non-I-70 tethered Eldora, the third in the trifecta of resorts closest to the Front Range, had no delay and was 90 minutes from my doorstep to the lift line.
Reason dictates that a day trip that puts you on the slopes at high noon couldn’t possibly be deemed a success, but this is where timing has come in for me this early season.
When I went up to A-Basin in mid-November, the early crowd was leaving when I arrived. At Loveland, two weeks later, they opened up the South Chutes while I was getting my lift ticket.
Being there when they drop the rope to open new terrain is hitting the early season jackpot. Floating down the pristine powder stacked up from fall storms is just the kind of thing skiers and riders dream of all summer.
Improvements over the summer are further shoring up Loveland’s rank as the preferred habitat for this day-tripper. Lift 1 (the one directly south of the base lodge) has always been a great place to do laps and get a lot of skiing in when you’re short on time.
Now the new Ptarmigan Lift offers the same opportunity to ski hard, ski fast and head home. Lift 2, which used to slog west across most of the length of the resort, now ends at midmountain and services only beginner terrain. The new fixed-grip triple lift takes skiers from midmountain up to the summit, where Lift 2 used to unload, making it possible to do laps on the upper terrain.
The new lift let me do eight heart-pumping laps on the Chutes, see five beautiful white ptarmigan in the trees, stop at the Ptarmigan Cafe at the top of the Ptarmigan Lift for a satisfying bowl of soup (without Ptarmigan) and get home in time to fix dinner.
I’m imagining how much skiing I’ll get in when the new Express Lane is open — and there are plans to open one on westbound I-70 if the eastbound one is a success.
The resurrection of the day trip has me wondering what else we can bring back from the glory days of skiing. … I vote for stretch pants!
Chryss Cada is a freelance writer and adjunct professor at Colorado State University. Visit her at Chryss.com.
