Six sick ways to play in “storm of the century” powder this weekend

Last week’s storms brought the deepest 24- and 48-hour snowfall totals since the 2000-2001 season, prompting Vail Resorts’ marketing team to dub it the “storm of the century.” We can’t argue with that, especially since the snow’s been falling pretty much ever since, punctuated with bluebird days perfect for making…

Photos: What’s new in winter sports gear at the SIA Snow Show

Only the insiders get inside at the the annual SIA Snow Show, where the latest ski gear and technology is on display in the Colorado Convention Center for retailers and the media to drool over, as they look ahead to next year’s in-store winter sports season. But photographer Brandon Marshall…

X Games, Beaver Creek Food & Wine, Mary Jane’s birthday and more

Five more years! ESPN and the Aspen Skiing Company announced this week that the Winter X Games will remain in Colorado through at least 2019. This weekend’s events — free for spectators — include Snowboard Slopestyle, Snowmobile Long Jump, Women’s Snowboard SuperPipe, and Ski Big Air on Saturday, and Ski…

Three ways to stay safer on the slopes this season

For all their popularity, skiing and snowboarding can be risky sports, a point driven home by the death of skier and Vail scion Tony Seibert in an avalanche last week. According to the Colorado Avalanche Information Center, four people have been caught in slides so far this season, with two,…

Chill! Breckenridge opens ice castle

Ice sits in the bottom of glasses, decorates parties in elaborate formations, makes snowy Colorado roads slick in the winter. It also forms glittery structures, one of which stands tall at Breckenridge Riverwalk Center, on West Adams Avenue. The ice castle opened on December 26 there — just the third…

Colorado’s can’t-miss ski and snowboard events for the week

“A potent combination of moisture and arctic air left significant amounts of new snow throughout the high country over the last couple of days,” reports Colorado Ski Country USA spokesman Patrick Byrne. Translation? With some Colorado ski areas getting as much as nineteen inches of snow from this week’s storm,…

Five ways to make the most of early winter this weekend

“Get ready for a snowy weekend,” reports Joel Gratz, forecaster for OpenSnow.com and a repeat Westword Best of Denver Best Way to Plan a “Sick” Day winner. Gratz is predicting light snow in the mountains this evening and a heavier storm late Saturday, and says he’s headed to Wolf Creek…

Voormi Outdoor Clothing wins Something Independent’s 2013 Wright Award

WA 3 Voormi from Something Independent on Vimeo. Voormi, a Pagosa Springs-based manufacturer of technical wool outdoor clothing and gear, won the 2013 Something Independent Wright Award for entrepreneurship last night at a pre-launch event hosted by Session Kitchen. “This is about the best treat I could have, to be…

Arapahoe Basin opening 2013-’14 ski season Sunday

The annual race to be the first mountain to open Colorado’s ski season will go to Arapahoe Basin again, thanks to six inches of natural snow last night and a couple of weeks’ worth of ideal snowmaking conditions. “This is a very exciting time for us, and all of Colorado,”…

This just in from Winter Park: Snow!!

If this fall-like weather has you pining for snowy slopes, here’s an antidote: The folks at Winter Park are sharing these photos of the resort’s first noticeable dusting of snow, with a note: The first full day of fall brought plenty of snow to Winter Park Resort, which has already…

Photos: Snowboard on the Block gets Colorado ready for the season

It’s not powder season quite yet, but on Saturday, a pack of pro snowboarders made the streets of Denver their own personal terrain park at Snowboard on the Block. The board-centric event featured a rail jam with riders including Scotty Vine and Tim Humphreys, as well as music and snowboard…