SNOWBOARDING in Breckenridge by Erin aged 9 and 3/4
S now on the slopes
N o care in the world
O nly me and the board
W ild weather conditions don’t stop me having fun
B eaver Run chairlift takes me high up on the mountain
O nto Greens, Blues then Blacks
A mazing views
R iding so fast,
D odging between trees,
I nto the forest I go
N ever turning back
G one forever
Breckenridge 2016 by mum….
Our arrival on Monday into Breckenridge afternoon was met with a blizzard. Apparently there had been no snow in weeks so, the 5 inches of new snow was a welcome relief and perfect timing for us.
We had headed back to Beaver Run resort at the base of peak 9. Last time we were here was 2008. At that point we were on our 6 month migration trip from London to Sydney. So many memories, not least, when I plugged in my name and DOB in the ski rental company computer database and it brought up our London address and phone numbers. Steve and I looked through our old travelling photos (on the PC) and kids laughed and told us how old we’d become!
The resort has not changed and has aged. There is now, a myriad of nicer resorts, condos and hotels in the area. However for our 5 night stay, our two bedroom condo at Beaver Run was fine and allowed another home cooked meal before the kids had their daily nuggets and chips on the slopes.
Steve’s leg was still causing him a lot of pain so we decided to put the kids in school for 2 days and I ski solo while he stay at base. It can be a bit boring skiing on one’s own so I set myself various challenges. Day one, all black slopes and the next day head over to Peak 6 where I’d heard there was some great skiing. I don’t particularly like moguls anymore as I’m not as agile as I was so I was a bit intrigued how this bowl looking peak had blue slopes. I was not mistaken, as I headed up there wasn’t a non mogul slope in sight. Worse still signage is not great and somehow I went too far laterally and ended up on a shear drop with moguls. As I said a prayer and remembered where the insurance was I headed down hill. It is a miracle I only fell once but am sure the rest of the time I was just flying. It was the definite end of my mogul career. By 1pm my knees felt like they needed replacing and I headed home minus goggles which, had flown off somewhere.
In the meantime Kyran and Erin were cementing their snow boarding skills and Steve, having had enough of going to the gym, looking up at the slopes and sipping lattes decided it was time to get back on the skis. Thursday it was decided I’d be guide and take everyone on easy runs. A very successful day with fun and no accidents so Friday we tried it again. By now the weather had hit 60 degrees and my back pack became loaded with the kids clothes as they stripped off. Some folks were skiing with no tops on. (Steve threatened this but Kyran looked aghast). Kids and Steve even hit some of the simpler black runs and Kyran was ‘taking air’. Even our cautious Erin, whose goal was ‘no falling’ started to speed up. We do have a ‘go pro’ camera which has never come out of it’s box so instead, Iphone in one hand and poles in the other I raced after everyone trying to video. The results are great if you don’t suffer from sea sickness!
I asked everyone this morning whether they liked Park City or Breckenridge. Best. Both are owned by Vail but are two very different areas. We all thought Breck was easy to ski. Very wide slopes, lots of blue slopes and a lot more snow borders. Downside; there seemed to be a lot more ‘flat’ areas at the end which for borders is a total pain. Signage on the slopes is not great so easier to take wrong turns. Breck had fewer restaurants on the slopes (this is being improved in 2016). Nightlife in Breck was excellent and for Spring Breakers this must be a place to go to. Special mention for Breckenridge restaurants: ‘Mountain flying fish sushi bar’. Yes, it felt bizarre to eat raw fish with snow coming down around you but if you have a hot miso soup to start you’ll be ok! Also a hit with the kids and Steve was ‘Erics’ a sports bar with excellent pizzas and an arcade. The 3 chardonnays were ok for mum too!
Overall Park City felt more genteel, possibly because of it’s location in Utah and it’s relation to Mormons??? not sure!! There were, definitely ,less borders on the slopes. The resort next to Park City is called ‘Deer Valley’ which bans borders altogether so may explain the general lack of borders. Park had better signage on the slopes and split the easier blacks and more difficult blues into ‘double blue’. This we liked better. For Europeans I’m told it’s a totally different system and you can’t really compare blue, red and black as it’s not a direct correlation. All I can say is that I felt both resorts had ample for all levels to work on. Steve and Kids preferred Breckenridge but truthfully, this may be because by this stage they had built up a lot of confidence on the slopes which makes any experience better.
So, again I’m writing this as we are about to leave. One thing I haven’t mentioned is the total pain in the neck internet connection is. We rely on ‘hotel’ connections and my email has been hacked twice due to the lack of security. Beaver Creek connection is soooooooooooo slow I gave up trying to post this while there and am now back to posting it at the airport. Funny what a difference 8 years makes. Last time here I looked at the computer only once and that was via the business centre!
Kyran is devastated to be leaving, but off to the heat we go and bye bye winter for 16 months!
