On Friday, Oct. 4, the Summit Chamber of Commerce hosted its annual COO Ski Area Summit in preparation for the 2024-25 season.
Taking place a few steps from the ski runs at Copper Mountain Resort, the event featured presentations from the chief operating officers at all five of the Summit County ski areas including Copper, Keystone, Breckenridge, Arapahoe Basin and Loveland.
Although the weather is still quite warm, all five ski areas stoked excitement by providing updates and plans for the upcoming winter.
Copper Mountain Resort
As this year’s host, Copper Mountain Resort President and General Manager Dustin Lyman was the first ski resort executive to present to the crowd.Lyman began his presentation by highlighting that last year marked the biggest single year for investments at Copper Mountain Resort.
“It was led by The Aerie lodge,” Lyman said. “Located at the top of American Eagle, it replaced the old Solitude Station and what an incredible season we had at Aerie. Twenty-five thousand square feet, cafeteria dining on the lower level, we have a full-service restaurant on the top level — Forage and Feast. Most impressive, we have beautiful views of the Gore and Tenmile ranges.”
In addition to the lodge, Copper also invested in parking as well as transportation via the addition of 900 parking spots and the purchase of buses.
“We also increased the size of our parking lots,” Lyman said. “The Far East Lot expanded by 900 spots. Between both the Alpine lot and the Far East lot, we have almost 4,000, free parking spots in our exterior lots.”
The upcoming winter season will most notably feature a newly upgraded Timberline Express lift. Over the offseason, the lift has been enhanced from a four-seated detachable lift to a six-seated detachable lift.
“It will allow quicker, more efficient access to the west side of our mountain,” Lyman said. “We are super excited, it is in great shape. Both top and bottom terminals are fully installed. The towers fly in tomorrow (Oct. 5), so we will put all the towers in a 24-hour time period via helicopter. It is on track for a late November opening.”
As always, Copper will host athletic events, concerts and fun interactives from the start of the season on Nov. 8, until closing day, which Copper expects to be sometime in May.
Although the Dew Tour will not return to Copper in 2025, it will host the Toyota Grand Prix and the X Games’ new Streetstyle Pro competitionfrom Dec. 18-21.
Breckenridge Ski Resort
Last season, Breckenridge Ski Resort saw the completion of a multiyear project to install and upgrade lifts in order to improve circulation across the mountain.
After opening up Freedom SuperChair and Rip’s Ride the past two seasons, Jon Copeland began his first winter as vice president and chief operating officer of the resort by opening up the newly upgraded5-Chair lift on opening day for the 2023-24 season.
Renamed Five SuperChair, the enhanced lift allowed Copeland to see how much the opening of a new lift means to guests as well as resort employees.
“You don’t get to do that every year,” Copeland said. “Opening up the new chair five from the base area of Peak 8, bringing that transformation to life, was super cool. To open a chair that accesses our intermediate terrain and see the amount of people giving me high-fives and congratulating us, was pretty special.”
Copeland also commended his on-mountain snowmaking team for getting creative last season when natural snow was scarce.
“One of the things that I am most proud of is that in early December, late November, when the snow was not working out, was how creative my on-mountain team got with how they opened terrain,” Copeland said. “We provided access into the chair 6 bowls and opened T-bar in a way that we have never done before. We opened Snow White before we opened Whale’s Tail which has never been done at Breckenridge to my understanding.”
Heading into the upcoming winter season, Breckenridge will see improvements to its food and beverage locations via the piloting of an AI check-out system. Breckenridge will also expand upon its grab-and-go offerings at the Horizon Hut at the base of Peak 6 after seeing widespread use last winter.
Out on the slopes, Breckenridge will expand its adventure zones on Peak 9 to provide beginner glade runs that can be accessed by the resort’s ski and ride school as well as families.
In terms of events, Breckenridge will begin the season with Wake Up Breck on Nov. 7, before opening day on Nov. 8. Breckenridge will also host the annual Hartford Ski Spectacular in conjunction with the Breckenridge Outdoor Education Center from Dec. 8-14.
Arapahoe Basin Ski Area
Longtime Arapahoe Basin Ski Area Chief Operating Officer Alan Henceroth walked on stage and after addressing the crowd, quickly commented on A-Basin’s pending sale to Alterra Mountain Co. Although Henceroth was hoping to provide a more in-depth update on the sale, the Department of Justice continues to investigate the sale of the resort from Dream Unlimited Corp. to Alterra.
“DOJ has decided to do their very thorough and long process and that means we are still owned by Dream today,” Henceroth said. “There is very little going on between us and Alterra at this time. There is a little bit of planning work going on, but we are really waiting for DOJ to finish what they are doing.”
Henceroth elaborated that he expects the sale to go through by the end of 2024.
Beyond the pending sale, Henceroth presented what skiers and riders can expect for the upcoming winter season.
The biggest change to A-Basin will be a new parking reservation system. Reservations will be required on weekends, holidays and other peak days from Dec. 21 to May 4, and the ski area hopes it preserves the guest experience.
“Out of about 48 of the busiest days of the year, so Saturdays and Sundays and a handful of holidays, everyone has to make a reservation to come to Arapahoe Basin,” Henceroth said. “You can make it online, the reservation is $20, unless you have four or more people and then it is free. Then we know exactly how many cars are coming.”
Henceroth also reassured skiers and riders in his own confidence with Alterra eventually becoming the new owners of the ski area.
“I think Alterra with the Ikon Pass has created the greatest collection of resorts in the world,” Henceroth said. “I think being part of that entity after being part of Ralston Purina and then Dream, I think we are going to be just fine. I want everybody to know if there is ever a time to ski A-Basin it is now. We are going to have the best year ever.”
Loveland Ski Area
In true Loveland Ski Area fashion, senior vice president and chief operating officer Rob Goodell emphasized the ski area’s continued commitment to preserving the guest experience while also keeping the sport accessible and affordable.
“Not much has changed at Loveland and that is kind of going to be my theme today,” Goodell said. “Sometimes that is not a bad thing. In this ever-changing world, preserving the experience and the culture, while challenging at times, is a worthwhile pursuit.”
Loveland’s parking has changed slightly over the years, but the ski area is proud to still provide free parking in all of its lots. Additionally, Loveland has frozen prices on its passes from last year, demonstrating its commitment to keeping the mountain affordable.
“While not much has changed at Loveland, we renew our commitment to maintain the affordable intrigue and the enjoyment of the sport that we all love in our quest to have the best independent skiing and riding experience in Colorado,”Goodell said.
Keystone Ski Resort
Last but not least, newly appointed Keystone Resort Vice President and General Manager Shannon Buhler took the stage after being introduced by her father — John Buhler— who is the former chief operating officer of Keystone.
Shannon Buhler joinsKeystone Resort after serving as the vice president and general manager at Stowe Mountain Resort and brings nearly 20 years of experience at Vail Resorts to the table. Prior to becoming a figure in the ski industry, Buhler learned from her father while growing up in Summit County.
“I am honored to be back in this community,” Buhler said. “This place has been home. This is where I grew up. This is where I went to elementary school, middle school, played sports for Summit High School, skied these mountains, enjoyed this community and I have so many memories here. I think it was always a dream to get back here. I didn’t know when it would be or what journey I would be on, but it feels amazing.”
After a warm welcome from audience members, Buhler summarized what Keystone achieved last season. Most notably, Keystone unlocked access to Bergman Bowl via the Bergman Express lift.
“Last winter on Dec. 30, Bergman Express opened for the first time, unlocking 555 acres of lift-service skiable terrain and was the first lift-service expansion in 30 years,” Buhler said. “This expansion changed the guest flow and opened the door for so many guests to ski above timberline at almost any skiing ability.”
Keystone also saw transformations to its River Run Village with construction crews continuing to make progress on Kindred Resort. In addition to the new luxury hotel and condominium complex, a Build-A-Bear location is also planned for the village area, giving families a place to visit after a day on the slopes.
“River Run Village is looking a little different these days,” Buhler said. “As many of you may have noticed last year as you load the gondola there is a major transformation occurring — Kindred Resort’s premier luxury development. … I know Kindred Resort is here today, I can’t wait, it is coming soon. “
This winter season, Keystone plans to host a robust calendar of events including the National Brotherhood of Skiers Summit, the resort’s second annual Queer Ski Weekend and the first annual Women’s Weekend. Keystone will also hold fan-favorite events such as the firework show on New Year’s Eve.
“Again, I am honored to be here with you all today,” Buhler said. “I am honored to have the opportunity to lead one of the amazing ski resorts in this incredible community. My wife and two daughters are so happy to be back. I cannot wait to raise my amazing two girls in a place like this. Thank you and bring on the ski season.”
