New things ahead for Steamboat and the Ikon Pass
The Snow Gods have decided to bless the Yampa Valley early this year with inches upon inches of snow falling throughout the past week. With the early snowfall, an overwhelming feeling of excitement for the upcoming ski season has spread across Steamboat.
Here are a few of the many improvements ahead for the upcoming season.
Alterra Mountain Company
Alterra Mountain Company entered the Steamboat scene in 2017. Comprised of 14 ski resorts across the world and looking to take on big competition, Alterra has moved quickly with improvements. David Perry, president and COO of Alterra Mountain Company announced $555 million in capital improvements is to be allocated over the next 5 years across their ski resorts. $181 million of those improvements are slated just for the 19/20 ski season.
Earlier this year, Alterra announced a multi-year partnership with both The North Face and Smartwool as Smartwool was founded in Steamboat – This big news for our town!
Ikon Pass 2019/2020
With 14 ski resorts across the world, and an opportunity for year-round skiing, the Ikon Pass was a strong contender when it first entered the market for the 2018/2019 season. This year alone, Arapahoe Basin (Colorado), Zermatt (Switzerland), and Mt. Buller (Australia) have been added to the 2019/2020 ski pass. The addition of Arapahoe Basin in particular is a big win for us Colorado pass holders that now have yet another ski resort on the Ikon Pass.
Steamboat’s New Gondola
As part of the planned capital improvements, Alterra Mountain Company announced at the end of 2018 a plan to invest $15 million into a new gondola for Steamboat Ski Resort. Construction began immediately following the 2018/2019 ski season and is on track to be ready for opening day on November 23rd.
Gondola Improvements:
All new brakes, drives, line equipment, towers, and gondola cars
Decreasing the gondola ride from 12 minutes to under 10 minutes
Adding 12 new 8-person gondola cars
Increasing capacity by 38% (moving 3,600 people per hour)
Own a Piece of Steamboat
Additional improvements at Steamboat Ski Resort this year include, replacing 30 trail signs with new ones. The ski resort has decided to auction off the 30 signs being replaced in a public auction. Proceeds from this auction will benefit Steamboat Ski Resort’s Environmental Fund at the Yampa Valley Community Foundation. Better hurry, the auction closes on October 31t at 11:59pm.
For more information on the trail sign auction please visit the auction website.