Ski Cooper Opens Early for Season

Ski Cooper Opens Early for Season

Is it an early Christmas present? Or perhaps an answered prayer from yesterday’s Thanksgiving Day table? Regardless of the reason, Ski Cooper officially opens today – November 23 – for the 2018/19 season! And that fresh snow is just icing on the cake.

Ski Cooper’s #firstchair will officially swing at 9 a.m. this morning. However, their schedule is somewhat limited until early December. Here is the early season schedule for Cooper:

• November 23-25 Open
• Closed during the week
• December 1-2 Open
• Closed during the week
• December 8-April 7 Open continuously for the season!

So what can ski and board enthusiasts expect from the 2018/19 season? Here’s some Cooper #NewsYouCanUse from the annual Community Day meeting held on October 20, where the Leadville/Lake County community is provided an update on ski area operations, events, and projects. Readers are welcome to view the video update, including presentations from Cooper’s General Manager Dan Torsell and Cooper’s Board Chairman John Clapper.

Want to know how many skier visits Cooper had last season? It’s in there! Want to know where the Wayback Pod Project stands? It’s in there! Check out all the Cooper news in this Leadville Today video.

In the meantime, here are some other Ski Cooper highlights:

• Upgrades: Mountain office renovations, new carpet in the lodge, new website, new trail maps by local artist Kevin Masten and more!
• Numbers: visits up 6+% from last year, revenues up 8+% over prior year, 2 weddings, 8 catering events and 76 is the record number of skiers on Cooper’s Magic Carpet, as noted by VP of Mountain Operations Tim Kerrigan.
• Returns: Twofer Tuesdays, $30 Thursdays, 10th Mountain Division Soldiers and their descendants, and après ski entertainment and fun!

“We’ve probably got some of the best mid and lower-level skiing in the state,” stated Torsell during his Wayback Pod Project update. “And people tell us that they’d be sticking around more if there more top-end terrain to keep them coming back.”

The project includes 46.8 acres of conventional and gladed areas which are already included in the Special Use Permit with the Forest Service, making it an improvement project rather than expanding the area already permitted. The project provides some gradients in the 25-30 degree range, and will also include some tree-skiing.

“We’re trying to move forward and make improvements all while maintaining the character of Ski Cooper,” concluded Torsell. The Wayback Pod Improvement Project hopes to be developed next summer and ready for skiers in the 2019-2020 season. At present, the project is in the environmental analysis stage, which includes collecting and interpreting field data, and, determining potential effects to resources. Upon completion of the analysis, findings and a draft decision will be made available to the public.

Torsell also noted a number of community-oriented programs at Cooper, from the youth-oriented SOS Outreach Learn-To-Ski program. to Special Olympics, to the $15,000 worth of scholarships issued to Lake County High School seniors. This year, Ski Cooper has partnerships with 38 other ski resorts allowing season pass holders to take advantage of three free days at another area. Loveland has been added to the list for the 2018/19. Also new is Cooper’s Reach for the Ridge.  The program builds on each week’s skills for five Saturdays, eventually taking users to the Chicago Ridge for a day of powder skiing and high alpine adventure. So if you’re looking to up your game on the skinnier skis this season, and develop confidence in off-piste skiing, this is a great program – and gift idea!

That’s the last run for this Cooper news post. Now get out there and have some winter fun. And then share your photos and videos, because it’s #skitime in Leadville Today!

Ski Cooper is the perfect ski mountain to improve your board game! Photo: Leadville Today/Brennan Ruegg.