Closing Day

Well, it is June 8, 2008, closing day at Arapahoe Basin for the 2007/08 season. My day started with heavy snow falling about 7 AM. I spent the first 30 minutes shoveling 2" of new snow off the decks and walkways. What a great way to finish the season. The Early Riser Lot is just about full and the sun has popped out. After writing this, I am heading up the mountain to make the last turns of the season and have lunch at Black Mountain Lodge. I imagine I will finish the day with friends sharing a cold one on the A-Frame deck. Not a bad day.

This has been an amazing season. October 10, 2007 to June 8, 2008, 243 days, 8 months of skiing. Although the snow was a little slow starting, once it did get going, it never stopped. Opening Montezuma Bowl was the biggest and most exciting event at Arapahoe Basin in decades. This season had hundreds of great runs, but in my thoughts, there are a dozen epic powder lines in Zuma with face shots every turn. Thanks to all of you who came this season and were a part of exciting experience.

As always, I want to hear from you. Tell me what you like and don't like. We learn from everything you say. Whether your comments are about our people, grooming, lifts, food, the future, or the past, we want to know what you are thinking. Thanks again to all of you for a great season. We will spend the next week closing down and putting gear away. We have some great projects planned for the summer including parking additions, the pedestrian tunnel under the highway, a big deck on the South Side of Black Mountain Lodge, and snowmaking improvements on the Lower Mountain. We are investing substantially in our IT Systems and our website. I hope next season you will our website friendlier and easier to use, especially the e-store. Most of us here will enjoy the summer riding our biking, floating some rivers, enjoying outdoor music, and dozens of other summer activities. This past (8 month) winter has been fantastic. I hope you have enjoyed yourselves as much as we have enjoyed spreading the vibe of this extraordinary place. Keep in touch and it won't be long until we are firing up those snow guns. Take care.

Al