We awoke early on Saturday morning to drive up to Copper Mountain for some early season skiing. I wasn't sure what the terrain would be like. The area got alot of snow throughout the week, but I still wasn't sure how it would compare with my typical Jan-Feb skiing.
Most of the high speed lifts were open, so the lines were never a problem. Quite a few of the runs were closed, so we had to be pretty strategic about which runs to take to which lifts.
Several of the runs had snowmaking machines blowing snow over bare spots. The machines were pretty noisy since they pump air through the line to vaporize the water.
Thankfully, the area received plenty of snow to have an enjoyable day skiing. Turning was never a problem...few icy spots. My skis grabbed some limbs extending through the snow, but I never wiped out or anything. Other than many of the runs being closed, I found the conditions to be great.
The guys I skied with were much more experienced than me. One had been skiing for 24 years and had raced while growing up. The other felt that regular skiing wasn't challenging enough and is a telemark skier. This type of skiing is much more strenuous since you have to duck your knee almost to the ground for every turn. It looks cool as he is going down the slope though.
We grabbed a nice lunch and took in several more runs afterwards. We left a bit early to avoid I-70 traffic...and probably to avoid injury since we were all pretty wore out.
This enjoyable day of skiing was one of many fantastic reasons I moved to Colorado. It was so great knowing that I don't have to squeeze as much skiing as I can into just 2 or 3 days a year. I rented skis for the season and can go as often as I want. Come on out and join me! It is too much fun! 
Most of the high speed lifts were open, so the lines were never a problem. Quite a few of the runs were closed, so we had to be pretty strategic about which runs to take to which lifts.
Several of the runs had snowmaking machines blowing snow over bare spots. The machines were pretty noisy since they pump air through the line to vaporize the water.
Thankfully, the area received plenty of snow to have an enjoyable day skiing. Turning was never a problem...few icy spots. My skis grabbed some limbs extending through the snow, but I never wiped out or anything. Other than many of the runs being closed, I found the conditions to be great.
The guys I skied with were much more experienced than me. One had been skiing for 24 years and had raced while growing up. The other felt that regular skiing wasn't challenging enough and is a telemark skier. This type of skiing is much more strenuous since you have to duck your knee almost to the ground for every turn. It looks cool as he is going down the slope though.
Since there wasn't any black runs open, we were still able to ski alot together. I started out pretty rusty, but it came back pretty quickly. I enjoyed alot of green and blue runs. Thankfully, my legs never felt too bad. I felt good with my improvement throughout the day.
We grabbed a nice lunch and took in several more runs afterwards. We left a bit early to avoid I-70 traffic...and probably to avoid injury since we were all pretty wore out.
This enjoyable day of skiing was one of many fantastic reasons I moved to Colorado. It was so great knowing that I don't have to squeeze as much skiing as I can into just 2 or 3 days a year. I rented skis for the season and can go as often as I want. Come on out and join me! It is too much fun! On Sunday, I went to church and did a bunch of Christmas shopping. The weather was fantastic...around 65 degrees, so I went mountain biking on South Table Mountain.
The trail overlooks the Coors plant in Golden.
It was pretty amazing to ski and mountain bike in ideal conditions on the same weekend. I love this place!
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