Help Needed: Over the Hill Gang Copper Mountain

[Tennessee]

My two dogs and I are considering an extended stay next Winter where I can ski with my IKON pass. We plan to rent a house for a full month. I have (almost) decided on Leadville as a home base (VRBO rental) and will probably ski mostly at Copper. I met a woman a few years ago at Copper that told me about the OHG. I am intrigued. Anyone have any experience with this group? Recommend? Anyone ski Copper regularly that could offer any good tips? I will be driving to the mountain from Leadville and would appreciate any parking tips too — last time I skied there it was a LONG walk. Maybe there is a locker I could rent? I have booked a house with a fenced in back yard for the doggies but can cancel up until November. Not fully committed yet, hence the questions. Thanks in advance for any insights!

 

[santacruz skier]

Not at Copper but I skied with the Over the Hill Gang for a week at Steamboat . That experience really made my trip as my friend I traveled with would rather get her hair done, facials and massages, and shop than ski. Good skiers and fun people. Broke up into two groups by ability and skied every day with them. IIRC a guy in the group looked like Clint Eastwood (late 50's)...

 

[Jenny]

I believe @vickie looked into it when she moved to Denver.

 

[skibum4ever]

We skied with them some years ago at Breckenridge. They had quite a large group and were able to break up easily into small groups of skiers with similar ability. At that time they skied a different area every day - Breck, Vail, Keystone, Copper...

They are breakfast together before skiing and had get a group gathering once a week. They were a really fun group.

 

[Tennessee]

Sounding all good. Thanks!

 

[marzNC]

Paging @Little Lightning

 

[marzNC]

I will be driving to the mountain from Leadville and would appreciate any parking tips too — last time I skied there it was a LONG walk.

I parked in the free lot and took the big shuttle bus. There is also a lift on that side that isn't too far a walk. Have to be willing to ski down a black to get back to your car. As I remember, the trail widened out and was half-groomed so most of the time not that difficult to ski.

 

[vickie]

I read about OHG online when I first moved here 3 seasons ago. As I recall, it was $50/day or $400 for the season. I think there was also an option (and cost) for closer-in parking. I didn't try it ... it felt too cha-ching for me. If I skied there several days a week, every week, it might be worth it.

I usually park in the main lot (Alpine) and take the shuttle over to West Village. The lodge there is pretty low-key, mid-week anyway. I could boot up in the lodge and stash my bag under a table without concern. No idea if that will be an option, post-pandemic. It was not this season, but the day lockers were still accessible. Center Village has more shops and restaurants; for day trips, I prefer to avoid all of that. I don't know what the facilities are like in East Village -- that's closest to the Alpine lot and, as @marzNC posted, requires skiing down a black trail at the end of the day. It says they send a certified instructor out with OHG. The ski school is out of West Village, so I'd expect the OHG to meet there, but that is totally assumption of my part.

This season, I did pay to park ($25-30) when the lot closest to West Village had openings. That was a short walk, not much farther than from where the shuttle would drop me off.

I've never looked into overnight lockers at Copper.

If you decide to hang out at Copper next season, let me know. I'll have an IKON pass and will be there some.

 

[marzNC]

I parked in the free lot and took the big shuttle bus. There is also a lift on that side that isn't too far a walk. Have to be willing to ski down a black to get back to your car. As I remember, the trail widened out and was half-groomed so most of the time not that difficult to ski.

Thinking about it a bit more, given what we skied together at Solitude, you probably wouldn't have any problem skiing down Triple Treat most days. Bill, Jason (my 65-ish ski buddy), and I took Too Much, which was ALL bumps and felt very long. We looked at Triple Treat riding up the Alpine lift. It look much tamer and was clearly groomed that day as an "access" route. I've really only skied about one day at Copper and there wasn't much snow coverage.

In general, I liked Copper. Seemed to have a lot of variety in terms of terrain for all levels. Definitely a destination resort in terms of amenities.

 

[Tennessee]

I read about OHG online when I first moved here 3 seasons ago. As I recall, it was $50/day or $400 for the season. I think there was also an option (and cost) for closer-in parking. I didn't try it ... it felt too cha-ching for me. If I skied there several days a week, every week, it might be worth it.

I usually park in the main lot (Alpine) and take the shuttle over to West Village. The lodge there is pretty low-key, mid-week anyway. I could boot up in the lodge and stash my bag under a table without concern. No idea if that will be an option, post-pandemic. It was not this season, but the day lockers were still accessible. Center Village has more shops and restaurants; for day trips, I prefer to avoid all of that. I don't know what the facilities are like in East Village -- that's closest to the Alpine lot and, as @marzNC posted, requires skiing down a black trail at the end of the day. It says they send a certified instructor out with OHG. The ski school is out of West Village, so I'd expect the OHG to meet there, but that is totally assumption of my part.

This season, I did pay to park ($25-30) when the lot closest to West Village had openings. That was a short walk, not much farther than from where the shuttle would drop me off.

I've never looked into overnight lockers at Copper.

If you decide to hang out at Copper next season, let me know. I'll have an IKON pass and will be there some.

I will do that! Thanks Vickie!

 

[Tennessee]

Where do you live @vickie? Just curious about how far people usually drive...

 

[Tennessee]

Thinking about it a bit more, given what we skied together at Solitude, you probably wouldn't have any problem skiing down Triple Treat most days. Bill, Jason (my 65-ish ski buddy), and I took Too Much, which was ALL bumps and felt very long. We looked at Triple Treat riding up the Alpine lift. It look much tamer and was clearly groomed that day as an "access" route. I've really only skied about one day at Copper and there wasn't much snow coverage.

In general, I liked Copper. Seemed to have a lot of variety in terms of terrain for all levels. Definitely a destination resort in terms of amenities.

Thanks @marzNC. I should have known to ask you! I will let you know if I’m for sure doing this so you can stop by if you’re in the area. I am renting a 3 BR / 2.5 BA house so I will have room for guests!

 

[Little Lightning]

There are 2 Over The Hill Gang organizations. The Steamboat, Breck OTG organizations are part of Over The Hill Gang International out of Colorado Springs. The Copper OTG is independent of that organization. I've not tried it but people I've talked to seem to enjoy the groups.

The free parking lot (Alpine) is off highway 91 near I-70. Shuttle buses transport you to the 3 main base villages. Not much walking involved. Many of the pay lots do involve more walking.

Last year reservations were required for parking so you parked where there was availability. The Triple Treat lot that marzNC mentioned may not be available this year due to a new hotel going in. The advantage of Alpine lot is you can get bus transportation from all 3 villages, East, Center or West. The Triple Treat lot requires one to be on the East side of the mountain. It is ski in/out only.

Between Leadville and Copper on Highway 91 there is 1 mountain pass (Fremont) that is pretty benign. There are a few switchbacks but nothing major. Rarely do we hear that it is closed for weather. We stayed in Leadville many years ago and didn't have any problems with road conditions. There is also bus transportation between Leadville and Copper.

We also ski out of West Village. Basically, it's a green area but there is easy access to some great skiing. Children's ski school is located there. Years ago I participated in Women's Wed. We met at Center Village. I believe that all adult groups operate out of Center Village.

Sorry I can't help you with OTG. Here is Katy Perry's report on Copper's OTG.
https://www.theskidiva.com/forums/i...e-hill-gang-keystone-breck.22458/#post-359289

 

[Tennessee]

Thank you @Little Lightning! That is all good information especially about the parking — and I hadn’t even considered the road between Copper and Leadville might be a problem. Thanks for letting me know that won’t be too much of an issue. I appreciate you taking the time to respond

 

[Little Lightning]

Thank you @Little Lightning! That is all good information especially about the parking — and I hadn’t even considered the road between Copper and Leadville might be a problem. Thanks for letting me know that won’t be too much of an issue. I appreciate you taking the time to respond

You're welcome. I consider Copper my home mountain although I gave up my pass this year. CDOT does a great job of keeping roads clear in the winter. Many towns like Leadville would be very isolated if they didn't.
I have a small condo in Silverthorne and am usually at Copper during the week. I'm hoping this comimg ski season will turn out better than last season.

 

[vickie]

Where do you live @vickie? Just curious about how far people usually drive...

I live in Highlands Ranch, south of Denver. It's about a 1.5-hour drive to Copper on weekdays. I-70 is a zoo on weekends so I stay home.

I met and skied with a guy at Copper a couple of seasons ago. He was staying in Leadville and skiing Copper every day for a month or more. He said the drive took him about 30 minutes.

 

[Tennessee]

I live in Highlands Ranch, south of Denver. It's about a 1.5-hour drive to Copper on weekdays. I-70 is a zoo on weekends so I stay home.

I met and skied with a guy at Copper a couple of seasons ago. He was staying in Leadville and skiing Copper every day for a month or more. He said the drive took him about 30 minutes.

I guess for me the attraction of Leadville is NOT having to drive I-70 to ski and also the authenticity of Leadville as a real town with real history unrelated to the ski industry. Leadville area is also gorgeous as I remember from many trips through there over my younger years (my parents were both from Colorado) although I haven’t visited there lately. I always found the town attractive , albeit a bit “gritty”. I imagine it has probably prettied itself up lately. I hope it has retained it’s somewhat wild appeal. Thanks @vickie !

 

[vickie]

We skied with them some years ago at Breckenridge. They had quite a large group and were able to break up easily into small groups of skiers with similar ability. At that time they skied a different area every day - Breck, Vail, Keystone, Copper...

They are breakfast together before skiing and had get a group gathering once a week. They were a really fun group.

I did some poking around after reading Katy Perry's post about OHG.

The group that skied at Breck and Keystone was OHG International. That was a travel agency that operated like ski clubs I am familiar with -- annual membership fee, multiple ski trips, and off-season trips and activities. In 2008, Vail excused them from Breck and Keystone. They had a Facebook page. The last post was in 2015. And in one of my browsings, I saw "permanently closed" for the Colorado Springs operation. The domain name they used is available for purchase. All indications are that business no longer exists.

I get 404s on Copper's site when I follow links from past articles on their OHG. I searched for Copper's Search function ... to no avail. Their site worked better off my laptop this season, but "better" is not any great compliment. Maybe when they gear up for the new season, they'll publish something on the group, its size, and its benefits.

 

[marzNC]

I guess for me the attraction of Leadville is NOT having to drive I-70 to ski and also the authenticity of Leadville as a real town with real history unrelated to the ski industry. Leadville area is also gorgeous as I remember from many trips through there over my younger years (my parents were both from Colorado) although I haven’t visited there lately. I always found the town attractive , albeit a bit “gritty”. I imagine it has probably prettied itself up lately. I hope it has retained it’s somewhat wild appeal. Thanks @vickie !

We drove through Leadville on the way back to Dillon in February from South Fork after skiing at Wolf Creek for a few days. Looked like a small town that didn't really cater to people who prefer staying slopeside at a destination resort like Copper or Keystone. From what I read, people who stay there are as likely to head to Monarch or Loveland for a powder day as Copper.

In contrast, Dillon felt like a tourist town with all the new shopping centers and clothing outlet stores right off I-70.

 

[Jenny]

March 5-6, 2022 is ski joring festival in Leadville. Would be fun to see.
https://www.leadvilletwinlakes.com/...eadville-ski-joring-crystal-carnival-weekend/