Pink Snow: news from the slopes

Colorado’s newest slopes

Last year’s bumper snowfalls in Colorado have given a boost to an already thriving ski industry there. At least 14.8mn skiers visited the state’s resorts in the 2022-23 season, a million more than the previous record and up 18 per cent over the five-year average, according to the trade association Colorado Ski Country.

For the start of the new season, two of its largest resorts are unveiling major expansions. Aspen Snowmass is opening a new lift that will whisk skiers to a high, north-facing portion of Aspen Mountain for the first time. It will be the mountain’s first major expansion since 1985 and increase terrain served by lifts by 153 acres, or 20 per cent, adding 19 “chutes” (known in Europe as couloirs), three gladed areas for tree-skiing and four pistes.

About 60 miles to the north, Steamboat is spending $220mn to improve its offering for beginners and experts and to broaden its reputation from being a largely intermediates’ resort. There’s a new gondola and chairlift, the beginners’ area has been moved up to the “Greenhorn Ranch” at mid-mountain, and there are 650 acres of new experts’ terrain at Mahogany Ridge. The expansion will make Steamboat the second-largest resort in Colorado, after Vail.

Both Steamboat and Aspen acknowledged their high-altitude expansions were in part an attempt to fend off global warming. “It will be a hedge against climate change,” says Jeff Hanle, Aspen Snowmass’s vice-president of communications, adding that Aspen has also been moving snow-making higher up the mountain. Aspensnowmass.com; steamboat.com

The ‘Uber of ski lifts’

This winter, the Swiss resort of Flims Laax is to get the world’s first “on-demand” ski lift. While most gondola ski lifts have passenger cabins continually circulating, the new (and to English ears unfortunately named) FlemXpress sends cabins out only upon request. “With a conventional gondola lift, around 90 per cent of the cabins travel empty,” says Roland Bartholet, chief of Bartholet Maschinenbau, the company that built the lift. “With FlemXpress, at least one person will be present in the cabin, and the gondola goes wherever you want it to.”

The route is T-shaped, with four stations in a straight line from the village of Flims at 1,095m to Segnes at about 2,100m, then two branches, one turning left up to Nagens Sura, the other right to Cassons, a freeride-only area at about 2,500m. Passengers press a button to choose their destination before entering a stationary cabin that manoeuvres under its own electrical power before attaching to the main cable.

As well as showing the potential for multi-destination lifts, the company claims the system will reduce energy consumption by 50 per cent compared to the chairlifts it replaces. The SFr80mn (£72mn) project has been in development for 15 years. The first two stages from Flims to Startgels will open this winter, followed by the full route next year. Flemxpress.ch

The future of boot rental?

Vail Resorts, the largest ski operator in North America, is planning to shake up the equipment market by piloting a scheme that does away with rental shops. Instead of trying on boots in a shop, users will scan their feet using a smartphone app, then have boots and skis delivered to them. Membership of the programme costs $50, and rental of skis and boots costs $50 per day, with free delivery within the resort. It’s being tested at Vail, Beaver Creek, Breckenridge and Keystone resorts this winter, with a full launch planned for next year.

The scheme has clear benefits for the company’s goal to “increase guest capture and spend”, but has been met with scepticism by some in the industry who believe ski boots have to be tried on to ensure a good fit. A report from analysts at Truist Securities also highlighted the potential for tension. “We have to think there may be blowback from local businesses and mountain communities, where [Vail] arguably already has strained relationships.” Vailresorts.com

By train to the snow

British tour operator Inghams is attempting to steer customers away from flying by introducing rail options for its holidays in 22 resorts across France, Austria, Switzerland and Italy. The company, which wants to halve its carbon output by 2030, says 59 per cent of emissions associated with a ski holiday are from flights. While booking train transport from the UK to the Alps is typically much more expensive, Inghams is keeping pricing the same on many trips. Some use Eurostar’s “Snow Train” to travel from London to Moûtiers and Bourg-Saint-Maurice in France, changing at Lille. Others use regular high-speed services via Paris, Zürich and Lausanne. inghams.co.uk