Most resorts are using some variation of a reservation system to manage crowds. For example, Copper Mountain is using parking reservations to limit the number of people who show up. At least one resort, Arapahoe Basin, has taken to pleading with its pass holders to ski less over the upcoming weekend so as not to overwhelm limited capacity.
“Is it possible to move your ski day to a weekday? If you were going to ski two days over the next three, could you ski just one?” A-Basis COO Alan Henceroth wrote in a blog post yesterday.
The high demand so far is a good sign for ski resorts — and for the state’s economy. It’s notable that people are willing to fly across the country to ski during a pandemic. Colorado accounts for roughly a quarter of all ski visits in the U.S., according to the most recent data from the Colorado University Leed School of Business.
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Still, the surge in cases could put a damper on the season. Keystone had to further reduce capacity at dining establishments when the Colorado Department of Health and Environment moved Summit County to a high-risk level days before the resort opened, Vail’s Huff said.
Any reduction in traffic at the ski resorts filters down to the restaurants, hotels and shops in surrounding communities that rely heavily on winter tourism.
Small businesses got crushed during the first wave of the pandemic, said Will Cook, the president and CEO of Vail Health, a health care system with locations in Eagle and Summit counties. A lockdown similar to what the state experienced in March and April could be devastating, he said.
“We’re all trying like heck to stop the most recent surge,” Cook said. “Mostly to protect patients, but also to keep the ski mountains open.”
Outdoor activities like skiing — where people have plenty of room to spread out — are relatively safe, said Michelle Barron, who specializes in infectious disease at the University of Colorado hospital. It’s not difficult to maintain six feet of distance when you’ve got skis on, she said. Additionally, most people are accustomed to wearing some kind of face covering on the mountain, she said.
The real test is what happens when people are done skiing.
“It’s apres skiing, it's maybe some hot tubbing and condo life and that concerns me because I think that those are the instances in which spread, obviously, could occur,” Barron said.
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November 13, 2020 at 06:00PM
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Colorado Ski Resorts Were Poised To Open For Winter. A Record Spike In Coronavirus Cases Is Testing Their Plans - Colorado Public Radio
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