Colorado’s record-breaking warm winter is reshaping one of the state’s most unusual annual ski festivals.
is a female-focused event that brings women and nonbinary individuals together for a weekend of skiing, live music and all-around good vibes each spring. Started in 2021, the festival has become famous for its naked lap, during which attendees disrobe and ski a run with their unmentionables to the wind.
That is, during a normal snow year anyway — and the 2025/26 winter has been anything but normal. In addition to experiencing an uncharacteristically dry winter, a so-called has brought summer-like temperatures to Colorado in recent weeks. Snow has been melting quickly, inspiring many ski resorts to close early.
So when Boot Tan Fest comes to Sunlight Mountain Resort near Glenwood Springs on April 10-12, skiing and snowboarding likely won’t be possible. The resort to the public on March 22, two weeks earlier than originally planned, and chairlifts won’t be spinning during the event, said festival founder Jenny Verrochi.
“We asked Sunlight if we could run just the lower lift, and there’s no possible way,” she said on Wednesday. “My producer and I visited Sunlight yesterday and there’s a river running through it. There’s zero snow and there’s nothing we can do about it.”
Weather was probably the biggest challenge to face Boot Tan this year, but not the only one. According to Verrochi, the U.S. Forest Service received two complaints about the festival being open exclusively to women. To be able to continue on with the event, she had to revise certain language used to market the festival, such as “private,” “no men allowed,” and “naked lap” — even though nakedness is not prohibited on federal land, Verrochi said.
Despite all that, the show will go on. This year, Boot Tan Fest will host both a fashion show and a talent show that attendees can participate in, as well as DJ and band performances. There will also be yoga classes, saunas, cold plunges, onsite tattoo artists, a tailgate competition for campers, raffles, art and a vendor village spotlighting female-owned small businesses.
Skiing naked is the ultimate form of female empowerment at this Colorado festival
In lieu of the naked lap, Verrochi plans to have a “guided movement to music” session. She did not comment on the dress code, citing the aforementioned marketing restrictions.
Since changes to Boot Tan Fest were publicized, about not being able to get a refund since this is a ski festival that no longer includes skiing. Verrochi said it is commonplace for festival and event tickets to be nonrefundable, adding that refunds were available up to a month ahead of the event.
She hopes the 740 people who already bought tickets will still come to Boot Tan Fest so that it can sustain and return next year. Hopefully, snow will too.
“We hope Boot Tan Fest survives,” Verrochi said. “It's still a one-of-a-kind festival. People who have been understand the magic is within the safe space Boot Tan creates... we know people will show up to celebrate womanhood in the mountains."
Boot Tan Fest comes to Sunlight Mountain Resort, 10901 Co Rd. 117 in Glenwood Springs, on April 10-12. Tickets cost $275 at . Don't forget to bring glitter.
