Colorado Skiing and Snowboarding – Paul Profiles Breckenridge [PHOTOS, INTERVIEW, VIDEO]

Breckenridge is about 15 minutes south of I-70 on Co-9. It is an historic town and an historic mountain. The resort is celebrating 50 seasons! That's right, when they first opened to the public JFK was President, John Elway was 1, and nobody in America knew what a Beatle was. Since then the mountain and the town has grown in some ways, yet preserved its heritage in others. You can still pan for gold, find solitude on the slopes and peaks and the Colorado skiing and snowboarding are better than ever.

Paul's Perspective

Breckenridge has a special place in my heart. I left Pennsylvania shortly after receiving my degree from Penn State and headed straight to Breck. I had called Beaver Run Resort before heading out there, but the head chef (now owner of Michaels' Italian Restaurant in downtown Breck) wouldn't guarantee me a job because he said that he got too many calls from guys who just didn't show up. Well, I showed up and he and the town welcomed me with open arms. The mountain welcomed me with vast terrain and the best snow I'd ever been on in my life.

Breckenridge is stunning. With wide open groomers for beginners and intermediates to slopes with titles like The Burn, Devil's Crotch, and Solitude, your legs will give out before the terrain does.

When we're in town and it snows an inch, we always say, 'That means three inches up top!' There's some truth to that, and some of Breckenridge's finest assets are the people movers it has above treeline. I hate to give away our secret, but T-Bar to the right has some of the most reliably great snow in Colorado. T-Bar to the left isn't too bad either. Imperial Express Superchair lets you off at 12,840 feet. It's a long way back down to the base elevation of 9,600 feet.

As far as parks and pipes go, there are few that can compare to Breckenridge. In fact, I'm saving that topic for a whole other blog post. Suffice to say that if you like terrain parks, Breckenridge has you taken care of.

I spoke with Kristen Stewart, Communications Manager at Breckenridge Resort and she told me

We have the highest high speed quad in the world. It is a quick ride, about 2.7 minutes to the top of Imperial.

Vital Statistics

Distance from Old Town, Fort Collins - 143 miles, 2 hours 44 minutes Map

Distance from Denver International Airport - 107 miles, 2 hours 7 min Map

Base Elevation: 9,600 feet / 2,926 meters
Summit Elevation: 12,998 feet / 3,963 meters
Vertical Rise: 3,398 feet / 1,036 meters
Lifts: 31 Total

2 high-speed 6-passenger SuperChairs
7 high-speed quad lifts
1 triple lift
6 double lifts
1 8-passenger gondola
5 surface lifts
9 carpet lifts

Lift Capacity: 37,880 people per hour
Operating Since: December 16, 1961
Total Ski/Ride Terrain: 2358 acres / 954 hectares
Groomed Daily: 600 acres / 241 hectares (29% of total terrain)
Bowls: 772 acres / 312 hectares
Terrain Parks: 25 acres / 10 hectares
Snowmaking: 565 acres / 228 hectares
Number of Trails: 155
Longest Trail: Four O'Clock - 3.5 miles / 5.6 kilometers

Source - http://www.breckenridge.com/mountain/mountain-information.aspx