Opening day at Breck, So-Gnar Shred Circuit at Copper, 'Obamney' storm on the way

Breckenridge opened for the 2012-'13 ski and snowboard season today, with two lifts and forty acres of terrain, joining Arapahoe Basin, Loveland, Keystone and Copper Mountain. And with the So-Gnar Snowboard Camp Tour kicking off tomorrow at Woodward at Copper and OpenSnow.com (a Westword Best of Denver 2012 winner) dubbing...

By Colin Bane

November 9, 2012

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Breckenridge opened for the 2012-'13 ski and snowboard season today, with two lifts and forty acres of terrain, joining Arapahoe Basin, Loveland, Keystone and Copper Mountain. And with the So-Gnar Snowboard Camp Tour kicking off tomorrow at Woodward at Copper and OpenSnow.com (a Westword Best of Denver 2012 winner) dubbing this weekend's forecasted storm "Obamney", we figured it was time to offer the first This Weekend in Stoke of the season.

Every chair is first chair on opening day! To make the most of Breck's opening, hustle up there today and take a free ride on the GoldRunner Coaster. The TBar at Peak 8 is offering drink specials and live entertainment, and the folks at Snowboard Colorado magazine are presenting a screening of the Burton Snowboards team video, 13, at the opening-day bash at Cecelia's Night Club (520 South Main Street) tonight at 8 p.m.

Burton / 13 / Trailer from Popular on Vimeo.

Shred the gnar! The So-Gnar Snowboard Camp Tour (re-named this year after the Mighty Midwest Snowboard Camp Tour got too big for the britches of its name) and 13-stop Shred Circuit traveling contest series begins on Saturday at Copper Mountain, with registration starting at 11 a.m. at the Woodward at Copper "Cage" (pre-register online). The jam-format sessions start at 1 p.m. (snowboarding) and 1:50 p.m. (skiing) near the base area, where DJ Captain Safety and Raw Russ will be kicking out the jams.

"The Shred Circuit is all about having 100 percent fun while snowboarding," says So-Gnar founder and professional snowboarder Pat Milbery. "The Shred Circuit is a great outlet for the next generation of snowboarders to expand the creative limits of snowboarding with their friends and receive national exposure."

Demo days! Still need to get geared up for the season? Don't miss the Christy Sports Demo Day at Loveland on Saturday, and the Never Summer Industries snowboard demos on Saturday and Sunday, also at Loveland (try Never Summer's Proto CT, a Westword Best of Denver 2012 winner that also recently won a Winter 2013 Gear of the Year award from Outside Magazine). Quit growing, groms! Kids grew out of all of last season's gear? You're not alone. Check out the Kids' Snowsport Mini Expo on Saturday at the Aurora Colorado Ski & Golf location (2650 South Havana Street), where kids ages three to six can ride the Burton Riglet Park (a preview of the new kid-friendly shred program at Keystone), all youngsters can get set up with the $99.99 Junior Trade In program, and fifth- and sixth-graders can register for the Vail Resorts' School of Shred program.

Go West! Powder chasers will want to stay tuned to OpenSnow.com: Boulder-based forecaster Joel Gratz is predicting snow at most of Colorado's ski areas, including a wenty-inch dump at Wolf Creek that ought to be enough to hasten opening day there and a couple of inches to put some frosting on the cake for next week's fiftieth anniversary opening at Vail, on November 16.

For a full insider's guide to all of Colorado's ski and snowboard areas, check out The Edge, Westword's 2012-2013 Winter Activity Guide.

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