Downhill slope: The Rathskeller

I suspect I would drink at Loveland Ski Area’s resident watering hole even if I didn’t have a pass to the mountain. That might be overstating it, but I definitely have a soft spot for the cavernous, vaguely German joint. There are near-daily beer specials, good mountain banter, and 50…

In praise of the winter 14er

14ers are both the Colorado hiker’s hallmark and his/her bane. You can’t help but want to tick them off your personal list and “collect ’em all!” like they’re toys or trophies. Problem is, you’re not the only one, and the tops of all but the hardest can seem like a…

Telluride adds night skiing in superpipe

Echo Mountain near Mt. Evans in the Front Range has long believed that offering park and pipe skiing — with night options — is a viable business model. To date, with the exception of Keystone, the bigger Colorado resorts have left night skiing alone. But last week, Telluride offered a…

Mountain party of the week: Mary Jane’s birthday

It’s Mary Jane’s birthday, and the people at Winter Park have come up with plenty of ways to celebrate, making it worth your while to make the drive this weekend. Always wanted to throw on a pair of skis and get towed around at 30 mph by a horse, but…

Looking to blaze up? Find a smoke shack on the hill

Last week, the Summit Daily reported on the efforts of two U.S. Forest Service officers to bust a pot smoker on the Snowmass chairlift. For the record, smoking any substance, whether legal or illegal, is generally frowned upon while riding the chairlifts. It’s especially vexing when cigarette smokers decide to…

Survey: Brits like to ski drunk

Almost a quarter of British skiers have hit the slopes drunk, according to a recent survey. In a poll of 1,072 skiers, 23 percent said that at some point during the season, they expected to have more than a dozen drinks in a night and ski the next day. Seventy-four…

Ardica-enabled outerwear: Gear you want but don’t need

Developed with Department of Defense grant money, Ardica’s battery-powered heated apparel is ideal for people who are addicted to snow but intolerant of cold (and want their iPhone to last). It’s crossed over from the military-industrial complex in the last few years in the form of Mountain Hardwear jackets like…

Classic Descent: Quandary Peak

Dominating the vista from Breckenridge, Quandary Peak (14,265 feet) is one of Colorado’s most accessible fourteeners, and a popular one for people looking to start the quest for all 54. Quandary’s East Slopes route is a moderate climb, never getting above 40 degrees in steepness. The route is also a…

Ruby Hill Railyard, open for ripping

About 30 rippers, shredders, bros (and even a Betty) were out on Sunday night at Ruby Hill Railyard at Ruby Hill Park (S. Platte River Dr. and Florida Ave.). The free mini-snowboard park opened January 9, and has six boxes and one metal rail to get your jib on with…

Weird science: Skiing on Mars

This intriguing aerial shot of a frosty dune-field on Mars — recently posted on the University of Arizona’s HiRISE site — just begs the question: Could man (or woman) ever ski Mars? There are some tasty stats on the Red Planet out there, like the mind-boggling height of Olympus Mons,…

Mountain party of the week: Ski Jam in Steamboat Springs

Stop reading this, put your skis in your car and start driving toward Steamboat. Wait, no! Keep reading for another minute and then start driving. The seventh annual Ski Jam music festival is going on in Steamboat this weekend, a perfect place to spend the day skiing and the night…

How green is your ski hill?

Lots of Coloradans live the contradiction of composting waste or driving a hybrid while patronizing ski resorts, which are environmental disasters no matter how you slice it. Think about it: Between tearing up slopes for runs, sucking up massive amounts of power, and pumping out boatloads of trash and spent…

Boulder Snowboarding Group presents Rail Riot at Loveland on Saturday

The Boulder Snowboarding Group — a local Meetup group, more than 1,000 strong, that can barely contain itself — is breaking out the SWAT team gear (snowboard weapons and tactics?) this weekend for its Rail Riot event at Loveland.The Saturday contest, open to the first 100 rioters with a lift…

Kidtopia Festival, this week at Keystone

January is Learn a Snow Sport Month, and this week’s as good as any to get your whippersnappers whipped into shape: Keystone is hosting the second of its Kidtopia Festival events, Thursday Jan. 13 through Tuesday Jan. 19, building up to its signature family event next month.Send your spawn careening…

Top 5 reasons to go to Breck’s Ullr Fest

There is no good excuse for hanging in the lowlands. We want more snow, and we need to get Norse snow god Ullr’s attention if we want more snow, and there is no better place to get his attention than Breckenridge right now. And that’s because Ullr Fest is underway…

Feds crack down on Colorado’s storied ski bum

In the U.S., there is a rich tradition of “hoboing.” Famed folk singer Utah Phillips wrote many a song about his years hopping trains. In the 1970s, ski bumming became a way of life for many avid skiers who wanted nothing more out of life than the next powder day…

Name A-Basin’s new chairlift, get $300

A-Basin plans to replace its base-to-mid-mountain lift with a detachable quad this summer after the mountain’s projected June 6 closing. The idea to replace the Exhibition fixed grip triple chair has been five years in the making, and one of the last things left to do is give it a…

New Web TV series follows five outdoors sports athletes

The Season Trailer from Fitz Cahall on Vimeo.The creators of The Dirtbag Diaries — a podcast about outdoor adventures — recently debuted a new 22-episode Web TV series called The Season that looks like it’s worth checking out. The show follows five Pacific Northwest athletes through one season of their…