CBMR wraps up another season

20 percent more tickets scanned,
2014-15 pass prices not yet set

After 131 days, more than 295 inches of snow and nearly countless good times, the lifts on Crested Butte Mountain Resort stopped spinning for the 2014 winter season last Sunday.
It was a season made remarkable not only for its $599 season pass, abundant snowfall, and increased number of visitors, but also for the ski patrol’s efforts to open terrain early and often, the increased involvement of the local community and the efforts of people near and far to recognize CBMR and Crested Butte as a core mountain town.
“When it comes down to it, I think we were all ready for a good season,” said CBMR communications and marketing director Erica Mueller. “This was an awesome winter with a good base and consistently good feelings. In so many ways I think we earned, and lived up, to the Best Ski Town in North America title.”
In the early season while much of the nation was experiencing drought conditions, CBMR was stockpiling manmade and natural snow by the foot. That coupled with the holiday opening of a significant percentage of the extreme terrain led to large jumps in regional and national bookings – a trend that continued throughout the ski season.
“On average we maintained a 20 percent increase in ticket scans over last year throughout the season,” said Mueller. “Winter flights did well overall, and the new Chicago flight did really well. It opened up Crested Butte to some of the major East Coast markets and we believe we’ll see more visitors from areas like Boston, DC and New York in the future.”
Crested Butte also experienced an uptick in visits from people living within the region. According to Mueller the increase in booked room nights at the resort outpaced the number of seats sold on airlines indicating a greater number of people were coming into the valley from the Front Range and other areas within driving distance.
To keep the momentum going into the summer and next year, Mueller said the resort is working on furthering its partnerships with other resorts, airlines and lodging facilities.
“Things like the Rocky Mountain Super Pass, lodging and travel options and other promotional deals are all starting to be discussed and winter packages are being put together,” said Mueller. “Also for this summer we’re working on a new bike pass through MTBParks.com and the development of new bike trails on the mountain. We’ll also be doing some additional glading in preparation for next ski season.”
The one thing CBMR has yet to do is set pass prices for the 2014-2015 season, and after last year’s radical reduction in the cost of a season pass, it’s a hesitation that has many locals wondering just what the resort will do.
“We’re in the final stages of setting prices,” said Mueller. “As soon as a decision is made, we’ll be letting everyone know.”