Sad story out of Breckenridge today:

A 14-year-old Colorado Springs girl has died after an accident on an intermediate trail at Breckenridge Ski Resort, the first on-the-slopes fatality in Colorado this ski season.

Haley Rose Gans was on a day ski trip Friday, when, at 11:48 a.m. she hit a tree on the Spruce trail. She was taken to a hospital, where she was pronounced dead.

She was wearing a helmet, but Summit County Coroner Joanne Richardson said she was seen skiing very fast before the accident.The coroner said the victim was home-schooled, and died from chest injuries.

A mountain employee said Friday snow conditions have been icy from the freeze-thaw cycle, with little new snow.

The Summit County Sheriff’s Office said only that it is being investigated as an accident.

Breckenridge opened for the season Nov. 12.

Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar today announced an extensive public service radio campaign urging Americans to connect with nature and visit a National Wildlife Refuge.

The public service radio campaign consists of eight 60-second spots extolling the sights and sounds of refuges and their efforts to preserve some of these species. Listen to them here.

(Photo from the Durango Herald)

Apparently the First Amendment doesn’t apply at Durango Mountain Resort.

There’s a story from the Durango Herald, which went out on the AP wires this afternoon, about a skier who complained about the resort changing its schedule in an article in the tiny newspaper. Apparently they are only opening Friday through Sunday in early and late season, and some who have weekday only passes are upset.

So the resort, in a move that defies logic, decided to yank her pass, and refunded her $539. Here’s their letter, as reported by the Herald:

“While we have never met, I understand from your calls to The Durango Herald and your conversation with our general manager that you are most unhappy with the approach that Durango Mountain Resort takes in trying to meet the skiing and riding needs of both our local and out-of-town customers. Our general manager tried very hard to explain our early/late additional weekend days, but it is evident that the offering and services we provide are not meeting your expectations.

“Accordingly, we held a meeting with our management team and determined that it would be best if we part ways and refund you the all-season pass you purchased so you can find another place to ski/ride that better meets your expectations,” the letter reads. “We have refunded your credit card $539 and we have discontinued your pass privileges.

“On behalf of our 800-plus employees, we wish you well and want you to know that we will continue to do our very best to meet or exceed the expectations of all our customers, regardless of where they live,” the letter concludes.

Um - you would think a massive ski resort could afford a single public relations person. Nearby Telluride can, and they shrewdly offered the woman a pass.

Mountain opens the day before Thanksgiving for its 70th season. Read the ski area history Monarch has received 60 inches of snow so far this season and currently has a 36 inch mid-mountain base.  The forecast is calling for snow showers this weekend. The area will have 3 chairlifts; Pioneer, Panorama & Tumbelina and the Children’s Ski School carpet lifts in operation.  Garfield and Breezeway chairs will open the following Saturday.

In addition to my story in today’s Out There on ski trends, we also had a sider from Scott on great ski fads that have come and gone.

When we first talked about that story, we were all, “Ski fads, hi-larious.” But when it came time to actually think of fads… it was a little harder to pin them down. Monoskis? Sure. But were stretch pants really a fad? I dunno. The hot pink accents I had on my boots in the ’80s were certainly a fashion faux pas, but I’m not sure they were a fad.

Scott’s actual list was monoskis, bota bags (?), ski blades (which I still see at Keystone all the time), speed skiing (which was probably more of a novelty than a fad, per se), skiing in blue jeans, and the two-person chairlift (which was more a technological waypoint, right? I mean, were 8-tracks a fad, or just a dead-end?).

So can you guys think of faddier fads than what Scotty came up with? Is reverse-camber a fad? Soft-shell boots? Groomer skis with 105mm waists? Racing poles? Swallowtails? Weigh in.

I’m not even going to rewrite this press release in an ironic way because it is just so silly all by itself:

Utah’s Deer Valley Resort kicks off its winter ski season again with its annual Deer Valley Celebrity SkiFest, Dec. 5-6. The invitational ski event pairs former Olympic ski legends with television and film celebrities.

The Deer Valley Celebrity SkiFest will include giant slalom races on both Saturday, Dec. 5 and Sunday, Dec. 6 on Deer Valley’s Birdseye ski run. The competition will be televised by CBS on Sunday, Dec. 20 at 5 p.m. EST following the NFL.

Celebrities scheduled to attend at this time include: Cheryl Tiegs, Larry David, Bobby Kennedy, Jr., Max Kennedy, Chris Kennedy, Cheryl Hines, Gloria Rueben, Rob Morrow, Neil Patrick Harris, Dylan Bruno and David Conrad.

While I am willing to admit that child surgeon Dougie Howzer may also have mad ski skills,  I pitty the Olympian who gets stuck with Larry David.

Who will be the three snarky judges at the bottom who critique the stars’ turns? And who will win?

(An architect’s rendering of a new Helen Hunt Falls Visitor Center)

Check out today’s story on the conundrum facing supporters of North Cheyenne Canon Park in the Springs. The Friends of Cheyenne Canon and Bristol Brewing Co. have raised about $50,000 for a new visitors center at Helen Hunt Falls, but because of city budget cuts, there may be nobody to staff it, casting doubt on the whole endeavor.

They’re now trying to raise a total of $100,000 to build it and help the city staff it.

So how can you help?

Have a beer. Bristol donates all proceeds from the sale of its Cheyenne Canon Ale, a nutty brew made with pinon nuts, to the park .It won a silver medal at the Great American Beer Festival and is sold in 22-ounce “bombers.”

Also visit the Friends’ Web site here.

The old-school, Denver City-owned ski area, which is now managed by IntraWest, first opened in 1939. Today it opens for its 70th season with 33 acres, three chairlifts, two trails and the Sorensen Park beginner area. Seven features in the Re-railer terrain park, including rails and jibs, will also be open.

“We’ve put finishing touches on The Village at Winter Park, the ski train from Denver is back and we have great deals for early season guests, like free lift tickets with a two-night stay now through Christmas day,” said Rob Perlman, vice president of sales and marketing at Winter Park Resort.

Early season lift ticket prices are adult: $65; child: $45; senior: $55, 70+: $35; half-day: $59. Season passes begin at $369, available at www.skicolorado.com.

Was just at Red Rock Canyon, and boy this slow melt is making everything super muddy. Avoid the usual suspects: Stratton Open Space, the east end of Red Rock Canyon, parts of Cheyenne Mountain State Park.

From the Denver Post:

Canada’s Intrawest, a pillar in the ski resort development industry and host to next year’s Winter Olympics in Whistler, is selling Summit County’s Copper Mountain to Utah-based Powdr Corp.

The deal, announced today, is expected to close in December, pending approval by the U.S. Forest Service.

In a statement released today, company officials said the deal will have no impact on Copper operations, including its pass products and vacation reservations.

Read the entire story here.

It sounds like passes will work the same this year, but you have to wonder if the Winter Park- Copper pass, which is the only real competition for Vail Resorts’ Colorado Pass on the Front Range, will be offered next year. Here’s a prediction: If not, your Colorado Pass will cost you a heck of a lot more next year.

UPDATE: Oh yeah, I should have mentioned, Winter Park, one of the resorts Intrawest still operates in Colorado, opens Wednesday, with two trails and 33 acres. Have, um, fun…..

(The summit of Pikes Peak Tuesday morning, still a winter wonderland)

Remember Saturday, when the smarter among us were huddling for warmth and shelter? Well, people were still apparently climbing Pikes Peak. A post on 14ers.com by some guys who climbed it Saturday from The Crags  talks about deep and blowing snow, no visibility and a shuttered Summit House. But it apparently didn’t stop them from reaching the top….

I know Pikes has a reputation among  fourteeners as a mountain people climb all year, but I guess I’m a fair-weather-fan.

Awesome story about a quest to uncover the legendary lost whiskey of Antarctic explorer Ernest Shackleton.

That said, can I heartily disagree with this comment? “Fastier said he did not want to sample the contents. ‘It’s better to imagine it than to taste it,’ he said. ‘That way it keeps its mystery.’”

I was feeling a little sorry for myself this morning when reached the bottom of the Manitou Incline at about 5:45 a.m. It was cold and snowy and I didn’t really feel like climbing 2000 feet before breakfast, but what with having a seven-month-old, if I don’t go early, I don’t go at all. Anyway, I put on my Micro Spikes and trudge up the ties. About 1,500 feet up, I ran into one of those Scout and Atticus moments where you learn your lot in life is not so tough. A platoon of young grunts in full battle gear (minus rifles) was lugging huge packs up the Incline, struggling to stay upright on the slick snow in their combat boots. I bet their sergeant got them out of bed at 4 a.m.

Summit county seems to have received about a quarter of that. Pikes just has a dusting up high.

But this may be a good year to plan on some backcountry adventures  on Pikes Peak. El Nino is setting up in the Pacific, which generally gives Pikes a healthy snowpack, especially in the spring. Maybe it will be a year to ski from the train down the east cirque.

Monarch Pass as of 1:25 p.m. Friday. Nice.

OK, now it’s hitting Summit County. Here’s Breck:

Above is a map showing Colorado counties that voted in 2006 for Amendment 44 — a law that would have made possession of a small amount of weed legal. Below is a map of Colorado’s ski resorts. Notice any overlap? Aspen Times has a funny story about it here.

The wizards at the 10th Mountain Huts system have done it - there is a yurt on the flank of Resolution Mountain where the Fowler-Hilliard hut once stood. You can read the whole story here, but the key thing is that the yurt is there and accepting reservations (although, unless a huge number of people with reservations cancel, you’ll be limited to midweek or Sunday night trips and the max group size has been reduced to 12).

As I’ve said before, Fowler-Hilliard probably has the best combination of views and front-door skiing of any hut in the system. Totally worth a trip, especially if you’ve done huts before, but never stayed in a yurt. They’re planning to rebuild the hut next summer, so this may be your only chance.