SkiBabyMD
Certified Ski Diva
Happy New Year Ski Divas! I’ve received so much help from this forum! Hope this contribution helps others.
Getting there
Arrived at DEN airport, rented an SUV from the offsite rental car location, and proceeded to make the two hour drive to Breckenridge. The weather was cold at about 5 degrees and snowy. Our windshield kept icing up ruining visibility, until we bought some -20 degree washer fluid. The rental car had California plates and probably had the wrong washer fluid. No chain requirements on I-70.
Altitude
Breckenridge sits at 9,600 ft above sea level. Our entire family premedicated with Diamox and that seemed to help, although my DH still had headaches and insomnia. We measured his oxygen saturation and it was 88% (normal should be around 98%). We rented an oxygen machine and that helped some, but when he was off of it, the symptoms returned. Strangely, he was still able to ski… hmm. Most people recommend staying a night at Denver to acclimate, but our schedule didn’t allow for that. Would recommend staying hydrated as much as possible (use humidifiers if available), drink lots of liquids, and bring extra chapstick for those chapped lips!
Gear
We rented in town from Christy Sports. They had a 20% off deal when booking online and also free kids rental with each adult. Much cheaper than the on-mountain option. We rented 3 pairs of skis (Santa Ana 93, QST Lux 92, K2 Missy) with poles, as well as a kid’s Burton snowboard. We actually brought along our own ski boots and helmets/goggles, so didn’t need to rent those.
The mountain
Breckenridge is a huge mountain with 5 peaks from Peak 6 to Peak 10 (named for the 10 peaks over 10 miles). We mainly stayed on one or two peaks per day, as traversing the entire mountain would eat up too much time.
I’m an intermediate skier mainly on blues and easy blacks, so my assessment is somewhat limited, but my advanced DH says that there is a lot of variety from fast groomers to steep technical terrain. He mainly hung around chair E and 6. My DS10 said the terrain parks were great! Imperial Express is a neat chair that’s the highest in North America at 12,840 ft. The views were fantastic.
There were a few parts of the mountain that weren’t open due to coverage and some runs with exposed rocks and stumps. Locals say that February-March is prime time. We did get lucky with a 7” powder day that was super fun.
Breckenridge is the busiest ski resort in North America. The lift lines reflected that, with some waits of up to 25 minutes. I guess the best strategy is to avoid the lifts at the base and try and hang out midmountain and above. The mountain does handle the crowd well, except near closing time when the lower half gets really trafficy. The 3.5-mile Four O'Clock trail from the top of Peak 8 all the way back to the Village is a fun way to get back to the car.
Dining
Spencer’s at the base of Peak 9 is the only “on mountain” restaurant that takes reservations for lunch. You can order off the menu or do a soup-salad buffet or a full buffet (i.e. meat options). Buffet costs were $14 and $20, respectively. They vary their buffet items daily. There’s a private dining room that can seat about 14. It was surprisingly not crowded and we were able to make reservations easily the day before. Alternatively, there are a few restaurants a short walk away from Peak 9.
Our family didn’t explore other dining options. But, each mountain eatery has its own “theme” food, like BBQ or Asian/ramen, etc. DS10 loved the packaged sweet fried bao buns from Overlook. This link summarizes it well: https://www.breckenridge.com/explore-the-resort/during-your-stay/dining.aspx
Instruction
We were a large group of 15 (ages 3 to adults) and worked with a number of really great private instructors. I can personally comment on those with asterisks as they were the instructors that taught my immediate family members. PM me if you have questions. Overall, everyone was excellent. In fact, some of the best instruction we’ve ever had! At the end of the trip, I was able to make it down sizeable moguls slopes, navigate through trees, steer through fluffy powder, and even make it down an (easy) double black diamond… things I’ve never done before!
We met a few “famous” people — who I admittedly did not know about prior to this trip, but who I got to meet personally via our wonderful ski instructors (the instructors here all seem to know each other and are buddies with these “famous” regulars on the mountain) — including CJ Mueller, Ron LeMaster, and Ryan Knapton. They gave us some tips, so I figure that counts as instruction.
Apres
Resort traffic around 4p is really congested! Download the “Passport Parking” app on your phone to pay for parking around town. It’s variable rate from $1-10/hr.
There are a lot of cute stores in town. My DD12 loved this one candle shop that had these interesting ”bowl” candles. We also did Mountain Time Escape Rooms where we were stuck in a cabin caught in an Avalanche. SUPER fun, well organized, and age-appropriate. The kids begged to try the Sasquatch one, but we didn’t have enough time. We ate at Empire Burgers just across from the Escape Room plaza, which was excellent (those fry dipping sauces!). Can’t comment on other local restaurants as we opted to cook at home as it was challenging to mobilize the entire family.
Other
DH always needs to be connected for work. In terms of coverage and speed, we found Verizon > AT&T > T-mobile. Locals agreed.
We also had an on mountain injury. Breck handled it expertly from getting him off the mountain to transporting him to the local hospital (Saint Anthony Medical Center in Frisco, 20 min away). Everyone at Saint Anthony’s Hospital was so amazing and nice. Unfortunately, he had to have surgery but I knew he was in good hands. The surgeon, Dr. Aaron Black, is a US Ski Team physician and has cared for Mikaela Shiffrin!
Conclusion
Overall a fantastic trip and would definitely return.
Getting there
Arrived at DEN airport, rented an SUV from the offsite rental car location, and proceeded to make the two hour drive to Breckenridge. The weather was cold at about 5 degrees and snowy. Our windshield kept icing up ruining visibility, until we bought some -20 degree washer fluid. The rental car had California plates and probably had the wrong washer fluid. No chain requirements on I-70.
Altitude
Breckenridge sits at 9,600 ft above sea level. Our entire family premedicated with Diamox and that seemed to help, although my DH still had headaches and insomnia. We measured his oxygen saturation and it was 88% (normal should be around 98%). We rented an oxygen machine and that helped some, but when he was off of it, the symptoms returned. Strangely, he was still able to ski… hmm. Most people recommend staying a night at Denver to acclimate, but our schedule didn’t allow for that. Would recommend staying hydrated as much as possible (use humidifiers if available), drink lots of liquids, and bring extra chapstick for those chapped lips!
Gear
We rented in town from Christy Sports. They had a 20% off deal when booking online and also free kids rental with each adult. Much cheaper than the on-mountain option. We rented 3 pairs of skis (Santa Ana 93, QST Lux 92, K2 Missy) with poles, as well as a kid’s Burton snowboard. We actually brought along our own ski boots and helmets/goggles, so didn’t need to rent those.
The mountain
Breckenridge is a huge mountain with 5 peaks from Peak 6 to Peak 10 (named for the 10 peaks over 10 miles). We mainly stayed on one or two peaks per day, as traversing the entire mountain would eat up too much time.
I’m an intermediate skier mainly on blues and easy blacks, so my assessment is somewhat limited, but my advanced DH says that there is a lot of variety from fast groomers to steep technical terrain. He mainly hung around chair E and 6. My DS10 said the terrain parks were great! Imperial Express is a neat chair that’s the highest in North America at 12,840 ft. The views were fantastic.
There were a few parts of the mountain that weren’t open due to coverage and some runs with exposed rocks and stumps. Locals say that February-March is prime time. We did get lucky with a 7” powder day that was super fun.
Breckenridge is the busiest ski resort in North America. The lift lines reflected that, with some waits of up to 25 minutes. I guess the best strategy is to avoid the lifts at the base and try and hang out midmountain and above. The mountain does handle the crowd well, except near closing time when the lower half gets really trafficy. The 3.5-mile Four O'Clock trail from the top of Peak 8 all the way back to the Village is a fun way to get back to the car.
Dining
Spencer’s at the base of Peak 9 is the only “on mountain” restaurant that takes reservations for lunch. You can order off the menu or do a soup-salad buffet or a full buffet (i.e. meat options). Buffet costs were $14 and $20, respectively. They vary their buffet items daily. There’s a private dining room that can seat about 14. It was surprisingly not crowded and we were able to make reservations easily the day before. Alternatively, there are a few restaurants a short walk away from Peak 9.
Our family didn’t explore other dining options. But, each mountain eatery has its own “theme” food, like BBQ or Asian/ramen, etc. DS10 loved the packaged sweet fried bao buns from Overlook. This link summarizes it well: https://www.breckenridge.com/explore-the-resort/during-your-stay/dining.aspx
Instruction
We were a large group of 15 (ages 3 to adults) and worked with a number of really great private instructors. I can personally comment on those with asterisks as they were the instructors that taught my immediate family members. PM me if you have questions. Overall, everyone was excellent. In fact, some of the best instruction we’ve ever had! At the end of the trip, I was able to make it down sizeable moguls slopes, navigate through trees, steer through fluffy powder, and even make it down an (easy) double black diamond… things I’ve never done before!
- Caitlyn Ward
- Carlena Ceccon *
- Courtney Shelden
- Eric Zerowin *
- Jackie Mir
- Jenn Losch *
- Jesse Yedwab *
- Jessi Gearhart *
- Kevin Eddy
- Larissa Galens
- Mark Hanks
- Matt Belleville *
- Mike Stanley
- Patti Banks *
- Pattie Grady
- Ward Malek *
We met a few “famous” people — who I admittedly did not know about prior to this trip, but who I got to meet personally via our wonderful ski instructors (the instructors here all seem to know each other and are buddies with these “famous” regulars on the mountain) — including CJ Mueller, Ron LeMaster, and Ryan Knapton. They gave us some tips, so I figure that counts as instruction.
Apres
Resort traffic around 4p is really congested! Download the “Passport Parking” app on your phone to pay for parking around town. It’s variable rate from $1-10/hr.
There are a lot of cute stores in town. My DD12 loved this one candle shop that had these interesting ”bowl” candles. We also did Mountain Time Escape Rooms where we were stuck in a cabin caught in an Avalanche. SUPER fun, well organized, and age-appropriate. The kids begged to try the Sasquatch one, but we didn’t have enough time. We ate at Empire Burgers just across from the Escape Room plaza, which was excellent (those fry dipping sauces!). Can’t comment on other local restaurants as we opted to cook at home as it was challenging to mobilize the entire family.
Other
DH always needs to be connected for work. In terms of coverage and speed, we found Verizon > AT&T > T-mobile. Locals agreed.
We also had an on mountain injury. Breck handled it expertly from getting him off the mountain to transporting him to the local hospital (Saint Anthony Medical Center in Frisco, 20 min away). Everyone at Saint Anthony’s Hospital was so amazing and nice. Unfortunately, he had to have surgery but I knew he was in good hands. The surgeon, Dr. Aaron Black, is a US Ski Team physician and has cared for Mikaela Shiffrin!
Conclusion
Overall a fantastic trip and would definitely return.
