John Jantsch of Coal Creek Canyon and his wife sat down for their usual morning cup of coffee last Friday. The only thing out of the ordinary was they were in Eldora Mountain Resort’s parking lot waiting for the lift to start running on opening day, November 19. Tyler Mais and Shelby Adamchik’s drink of choice was a Bloody Mary replete with lemon, celery, pearl onion, olive, pepperoncini, bacon, and a chunk of Irish cheddar cheese. A DJ blasted tunes as people lined up for the start of the eagerly anticipated ski season.

During the traditional address to skiers and boarders thanking them for their patronage, well-likes and respected President and General Manager Brent Tregaskis half-joked that if any wanted jobs, there are 100 available. The champagne cork popped to uproarious cheers and people began loading onto the Alpenglow chairlift.

Layton Maddox, Tadija Ilac, Ziggy Avjean, Jean-Luc Pineau, Reed Little, and Hunter Chilcote were the first riders up the mountain. For Ilac and Pineau, it was the third year in a row they made first-chair at Eldora and Ziggy’s fifth. To claim the honor, they arrived at midnight and slept in their cars.

Still dark at 5 a.m., another vehicle came upon the scene so they raced to the front of the empty lift line securing their spot. Eating their breakfast there, the six of them would wait for the next four hours to board.

Hornblower to International was the way down with superb early season conditions on evenly groomed trails. At the bottom, the rails by Timbers Lodge were in constant use. More terrain will become operational in the coming days for beginner, intermediate, and expert skiers. Whether it be a single run or the entire mountain to choose from, people were just happy to be skiing and snowboarding again.

For information about tickets, transportation, rentals, events, or up-to-the-minute snow and weather reports, go to www.Eldora.com or call 303-440-8700.