Loveland

After an amazingly long hiatus, I finally went skiing this past weekend.  After moving to Colorado 15 years ago, I naturally wanted to enjoy some of the area’s natural wonders.  I skied 15 days that first season and became interested in rock climbing.  Over the next several years, I skied progressively less, but was still a regular.  I went white water rafting and mountain biked quite a bit. 

As life has gotten busier and I am not as apt to bounce back from minor aches and pains, I have not made an effort to ski in Colorado in at least 7 years.  In fact the last ski trip I recall was in Lake Tahoe in 2005?  It has been much easier for me to opt for a bike ride, run or swim workout for exercise without the logistical challenges of skiing or other more committed sport.

One of the challenges is the drive up there and back which can take 2.5 hours in each direction.  Season passes can be quite reasonable but depend upon a skier getting up about 6 times to make it worthwhile.  I am paying for a daily pass which can cost $60 to $70.  Also my equipment was a bit dated and I finally bit the bullet and got fitted for new boots and plan on renting skis for a couple of years.

My wife finally got the ball rolling by deciding that we would take a day off of work and go skiing together.  She went last winter and had a great time while I took care of the girls.  We decided to go up to Loveland Ski Resort and had a great time.  It was pretty windy which is not unusual, but the snow conditions were great and we probably got an inch or two of snow while we were there.  The staff is friendly and the mountain has a good variety of beginner terrain.

We did a couple of warm up runs off of lift 7 in Loveland Valley and then went over to Loveland Basin for a few runs off of lift 2.  We then took a break for lunch and headed back to Loveland Valley.  I did a run off of lift 3 and really enjoyed it.

I will probably not meet my goal of 4 ski days this year, but I had a lot of fun and would definitely return to Loveland again.

I rented equipment from Colorado Ski & Golf in Arvada and was very impressed with their team.  This is also where I bought my Technica boots a few months ago.

I did notice that helmets were very popular on the slopes.  I do not own one and decided not to rent one.  However, I do feel that for around $100 they provide some extra piece of mind as there are inherent risks involved with skiing.  Even if you are at a familiar resort and are experienced, the unexpected does occur and other skiers are a risk that is impossible to control.  Before my next trip, I will buy a helmet.