The Crested Butte News Serving the Gunnison Valley since 1999
CBMR closes October 8, begins snowmaking October 31, opens for winter Nov. 23
By Aimee Eaton
With another busy summer on the books, Crested Butte Mountain Resort is preparing to shutter its doors for the season after one last weekend hurrah, October 7-8. The regular winter ski season will begin on November 23.
“Our original summer/fall closing day was October 1 but this weekend we will have a ‘Bonus Weekend’ and the Silver Queen Express and Adventure Park will be open, along with Coal Breaker Coffee,” said CBMR senior marketing manager Erica Rasmussen. “Those who purchase their 2017-18 Season Pass on or before October 7 and October 8 can use their pass to access the Silver Queen Express this weekend. 2017-2018 Peak Pass Plus pass holders may also access the Adventure Park this weekend.”
The summer at CBMR was marked by free music concerts, bike races, the Thursday farmers market, special events, and new adventures.
“We had another stellar summer season here on the mountain,” said Rasmussen. “As I’m sure most local businesses can attest, it was busy. Evolution Bike Park, Adventure Park, and lift ticket scans were all up from last summer. Not only were we pleased with the volume of guests, the overall amount of time people spent on the mountain, based on ticket scans, was strong.”
The close of summer coincides with the last day to purchase Peak and Peak Plus passes at the discounted rates. Prices will go up on Monday.
CBMR employees will spend the next month and a half gearing up for winter. That means performing lift maintenance, prepping restaurants and culinary outlets, getting ready for snow making, and hiring staff. Snowmaking is scheduled to begin October 31, weather and temperatures permitting.
Opening day at CBMR will fall on Thanksgiving and the season will run through April 8, 2018. The day before opening, CBMR will spin the lifts as part of Donation Day benefitting the Crested Butte Snowsports Foundation. Tickets on Donation Day will be $15.
“We continue to look for ways to improve the guest experience and encourage more guests to try skiing or snowboarding. This summer, we’ve been improving CBMR’s learning area,” said Rasmussen. “Our Mountain Operations team has re-graded the teaching terrain at the base to be more beginner-friendly, and re-oriented and extended one of our beginner Magic Carpets to take advantage of the new terrain topography. These gentle beginner slopes are the perfect spot for new skiers and riders to gain key foundational skills to ideally eventually expand their skills throughout the entire mountain.”
In addition to giving the beginner area a facelift, Rasmussen said the Paradise warming house will also be receiving some love on the culinary side in the form of a pizza oven, a revamped deck and grilling area, and draft beer on tap. The beer, notes Rasmussen, also gets a checkmark for “helping the environment through reducing bottle consumption and transportation of bottles across the resort to get recycled.”
The last program to note, in preparation of the ski season: Kids 12 and under ski free in the early and late season. While kids six and under always ski free, CBMR will continue its ski free program from kids 12 and under from November 23 to December 15 and from April 1 to April 8. A parent lift ticket purchase is not necessary, nor is there a lodging requirement.
For more information about winter events at CBMR, visit www.skicb.com/events. For pass information, check out www.skicb.com/seasonpass.
