News Archive

·         Dec. 16, 2011 was Breckenridge Ski Resort’s 50th Birthday

·         155 trails on over 2,358 acres on Peaks 7 – 10 of the 10-mile Mountain Range (approx. 600 acres are groomed daily)

·         Base elevation 9,600 feet – for our European guests that is almost 3k meters

·         Summit elevation 12,998 feet (top of Peak 8) - for our European guests that is almost 4k meters

·         Vertical rise 3,398 feet to top of Peak 8 (Colorado chair 1,325 feet)

·         Avg annual snowfall 360 inches – 2011 was a record snow year with 519 inches.

·         Our terrain is 14% Beginner, 31% More Difficult, 19% Most Difficult, 36% Expert

·         Our longest run is 4 O’Clock at 3.5 miles

·         Our lifts can service 37,880k people per hour

·         We can make snow on 540 acres of our terrain

 

·         In 1961, Breckenridge was founded by Bill Rounds of Porter & Rounds Lumber Company from Wichita, KS

·         In 1970 Aspen Ski Corporation (A.S.C.) buys Breckenridge Ski Corporation and in 1978 sells 100% of it’s shares to Twentieth Century Fox (who was trying to invest the enormous profits from Star Wars)

·         By 1981 Twentieth Century Fox is purchased by Martin Davis, Denver billionaire and Aspen Ski Company (A.S.C.) is spun off and after another sale in 1983, Breck is still owned and controlled by A.S.C.

·         In 1988 a major Tokyo retailer of sporting goods and ski equipment – Victoria Co. Ltd purchases Breckenridge Ski Area – the local community is pleased as they believe Aspen Ski Corp. was treating Breckenridge like a “step child” for many years

·         In 1993 Ralston Purina (Ralcorp) purchases Breckenridge, Keystone and Arapahoe Basin – ending long standing competition amongst the resorts, generating concern and uncertainty

·         In 1996 Ralcorp announces merger with the parent of Vail, Beaver Creek and Arrowhead

·         In 1997 the merger is approved and Vail Resorts, Inc. (VRI) is created – Ralcorp ends up with 21.9% equity in the newly created VRI

 

·         In 1961 the mountain opened on Peak 8 with one double chairlift and a short t-bar – lift tickets were $4/adult and $2.50/child, runs included portions of Rounders, High Anxiety, Northstar, Dukes, Springmeier, Crescendo and Swinger (runs were not named they were numbered)

·         In the 1960’s, a Poma lift was added to service the Contest Bowl and the trails were named

·         Rounders named after Bill Rounds – original Breckenridge founding family

·         Calley’s Alley –Caroline “Callie” Rounds’ favorite run – original Breck founding family

·         Springmeier –a local family

·         Trygves –former ski school director Trygve Berge

·         Four O’Clock – always been considered the run to bring you back to town at the end of the day

·         Mach 1 –speed of sound had just been broken and you could feel you were going to break it skiing down the trail

·         In 1971 Peak 9 opened to skiing as Royal Tiger Mountain with ticket prices at $12/day

·         In 1973 I-70 opened for business with the Eisenhower tunnel, reducing drive time from Denver to 1.5 hrs

·         During the 1970’s the alpine slide opened during the summer, trails expanded (most named after local mines or personalities) including such runs as Inferno, Devil’s Crotch and Tom’s Baby

·         During the 1980-81 season SNOW DROUGHT - only 86” the entire season! The resort is forced to close from Dec. 26th through mid-February, skier numbers drop to under 200k and it takes the resort three seasons to see skier numbers recover to start

·         During the 1980’s the T-Bar opened up the North Bowl, Beaver Run Resort was built, Peak 10 opened, the Colorado chair replaced the original Breckenridge Lift (#1), The Kid’s Kastle, the administration building and the locker room were built and SKIER VISITS TOP 1 MILLION!

·         In the early 1990’s the Imperial Bowl opens for skiing to the public – making the top of Peak 8 in bounds, making Peak 8 the highest in bounds skiing in North America, Mercury Super chair replaced the D lift and Peak 7 Bowl terrain opened as in bounds skiing and the Snowflake Lift (formerly I lift) opened with a unique 45° turn in the middle – making many of the condos on Four O’Clock run “ski-in” and “ski-out”

·         The 1990’s ended with HUGE improvements after the VRI creation/purchase, two “magic carpets” were installed for beginners, the Freeway Terrain Park opened – bringing the Vans Triple Crown, Beaver Run and Falcon super chairs opened, 220 state of the art snow guns were installed on Peak 8, TenMile Station opened, The Bergenhof and The Great Divide Lodge were renovated, and Vail Resorts purchased The Village at Breckenridge Resort

·         By 2000 Breckenridge was serving over 1.4M skiers, lift tickets begin the decade at $55/adult

·         In 2001 the nation’s first double-loading 6-passenger chairlift, Quicksilver Super6 opens – (carrying up to 4,200 skiers per hour) opened. 

·         In 2002, Peak 7 opened, serviced by the Independence SuperChair, Peak 9 and Peak 8 are “connected” by the Peak8 SuperConnect, replacing Chair 4 and facelifts are given to the Vista Haus and The Maggie.

·         In 2005-2006 ski season Breckenridge opened the highest lift in North America, The Imperial Express Superchair. Reaching a peak elevation 12,840 feet (3,910 m) the superchair can be accessed from 6 Chair and the T-Bar.

·         Construction of a new 8-person gondola was announced on March 12, 2006 and the grand opening was January 18, 2007. The eight passenger gondola runs from the downtown Breckenridge transportation center to a mid-station at Shock Hill, through the Cucumber Gulch Preserve, to a mid-station at the Peak 7 base area and ends at the Peak 8 base area.

·         2010 marked the opening of several new facilities on Peak 8, including One Ski Hill Place, A RockResort, the new on-mountain room Ski Hill Grill, The T-Bar and the Gold Runner Alpine coaster. Breckenridge also makes history opening the largest known 22 ft half-pipe, open all season long from the Dew Tour in December to closing day in April.

 

·         Four O’Clock run was the filming location for the scene in the movie Christmas Vacation where Chevy Chase took the sled ride into the Wal-mart parking lot

·         A Chair was the filming location for the scene in the movie Dumb and Dumber where “Harry” gets his tongue stuck on the chair and it goes round and round

·         On July 23, 1887, the largest gold nugget ever found in the State of Colorado was discovered in Breckenridge. Tom Groves walked into the town cradling the blanket wrapped bundle in his arms, and it was appropriately named "Tom's Baby", weighing in at 13.5 lbs. Three days later the nugget was sent to Denver via train... it then disappeared for 85 years. Rumors surrounding the nugget's 85 years of freedom are abundant, including that it was shown at the Smithsonian, the Peabody Museum, Harvard University and Chicago's Field Museum, but none could be verified. Tom's Baby was essentially kidnapped. In 1972, the Colorado State Historical Museum was prodded into examining gold specimens that had been deposited in a Denver bank in 1926. Sure enough, Tom's Baby was found, but over 5 lbs are still missing.

·         In 1898 it snowed for 79 days straight! People had to build snow tunnels to get around town.

·         Kingdom of Breckenridge or “No Man’s Land” – It was discovered in 1936 that the initial US map surveys had miscalculated the Continental Divide (one survey had it to our west, one to our east). Thus, excluding a strip of land 90 miles long and 30 miles wide of which Breckenridge was part. For many years, there was a heritage festival held every year in August celebrating sovereignty – proclaiming us the “Kingdom of Breckenridge”.2012 – 2013 Winter Breckenridge Fast Facts

Resort Contact:
Kristen Petitt
Communications Manager
970-453-3210 (phone)
kpetitt@vailresorts.com

Mailing Address:
Breckenridge Ski Resort
P.O. Box 1058
Breckenridge, CO 80424

Dates and Hours
Ski Season: Nov. 11, 2011 - April 15, 2012
Hours of Operation: 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Location & transportation– Breckenridge sits two hours west of Denver International Airport (DEN) and 2.5 hours northwest of the Colorado Springs Airport (COS). From Denver, visitors drive 98 miles (159 km) west via I-70, then take exit 203 (Highway 9) south nine miles to Breckenridge. From Colorado Springs, visitors drive 110 miles (178 km) west through South Park and over Hoosier Pass, or via I-25 to C-470 to I-70.

High altitude precautions– The elevation can affect people in different ways. Visitors should be aware of the effects of altitude and make sure to always wear sunscreen, drink plenty of water and limit the consumption of alcohol and caffeine. If symptoms such as headache, nausea, lethargy or shortness of breath persist, visitors should seek immediate medical attention.

Elevations
Base Elevation: 9,600 ft.
Summit Elevation: 12,998 ft.
Vertical Rise: 3,398 ft.

Snow
Snowmaking: 650 acres
Avg. Annual Snowfall: 366 inches

Acreage
Total Skiable Area: 2,358 acres
Miles east-west: 2.9 miles
Miles north-south: 2.3 miles

Trail Classification (Total Mountain Acreage)
36% Expert
19% Advanced
31% Intermediate
14% Beginner
Conventional Trails: 155
Longest Run: Four O'Clock at 3.5 miles/5.6 km
Terrain Parks: 5
Halfpipes: 2
Bowls: 772 acres

Lifts
Total Number of Lifts: 29
Gondola: 1
Six-passenger high-speed lift: 2
High-speed quad: 7
Triple chair: 1
Double chair: 6
T-Bars: 1
Ropes: 1
Platters: 2
Magic Carpets: 8

Average winter temperature

• Day: 28 degrees F (-2 degrees C)
• Night: 15 degrees (-9 degrees C)

Town of Breckenridge Facts
2: Nordic Centers
88: Restaurants and bars
188: Shops and boutiques
300 days: Yearly average sunshine
1859: Year Breckenridge founded
3,000: Estimated number of units – hotel/condo/B&B/private homes
3,583: Permanent population
12,840: Summit of Imperial Express SuperChair, highest chairlift in North America
34,000: 2011 International Snow Sculpture Championships attendees

Town size
3,702 acres / 5.5 square miles
3,900 acres of open space property
41 acres of community parks

Need more statistics?
For more information about Breckenridge government, employment, economic indicators, education and more, visit www.townofbreckenridge.com.