Greetings Rocky Mountain sliders!

Now, I don't like spending a lot of money on transportation, lodging, or food when I go riding. I drive where I need to, I don't spend a lot of time in the room so why pay a lot, and I bring lots of munchies to offset the cost of resort food (and Lipton Cup O' Soup makes terrific on-the-hill lunches, because resort hot water is free!). My investment lies in the time I spend on quality terrain, and the Mountain Gods planned really well when they created the terrain in Colorado. I can tell you where to get really inexpensive lift tickets, but those resorts won't offer bumps like Mary Jane, back bowls like Vail, or fall lines like Aspen (in fact, they won't even be in Colorado!). You get what you pay for, literally, on the hill. So, save your money on lodging and entertainment and invest in quality time on the quality hills in the Rockies and San Juans!

Thought for the Week: Weekends don't exist for us to recover from our work week, work exists for us to recover from our weekends.

Congratulations to the winners of this week's Random Slide Pick:
frankrw1959 [at] hotmail.com
hmphillips [at] worldent.att.net
You can claim your lift tickets by contacting slidecheap [at] aol.com, and happy trails!

Tip o' the Ski Week: Buyers Beware! Word was routed back to me that some of the lift tickets included in last week's E-bay connection were, in a word, illegal to sell. One resort employee was selling off his comp tickets which the resort can void before you even get to the ticket window, so you both lose - you your investment in a "hot" ticket, and the employee his/her job. When contacting sellers online, ask copious questions about the tickets and their origins, and if you have any doubts, don't take the chance.

Co Snow Repo': Gotta love this: Western Colorado and mountain counties are looking for scattered snow showers through Friday, accumulations from 3 - 12 inches at higher elevations, then clear, cold and windy for the weekend with occasional orographic clouds and snow showers on Sunday. The eastern plains will see snow through Thursday, with clearing on Friday and dry, cold conditions through the weekend. For updated weather conditions, visit our happy sponsors at www.weather.com.

Air News: It's beginning to look a lot like Price Wars again, as United Airlines has just slashed all its fares. F'rinstance, fly Chicago/Denver with 14 day advanced purchase for $99/each way - book online at united.com and it's $94/each way. DIA is a major United hub - for more information visit www.ual.com.

This week's featured resort is Steamboat Springs:
Row, row, row your Boat to this Yampa Valley destination resort on the northwest side of the Rockies. Although they received two feet of fresh powder last week, on MLK day the longest lift line wait was all of five minutes - it took longer to get the free hot cocoa at the base! There are plenty of long, ungroomed runs for big bump action and lots of glades to find secret stashes of fresh. For updated conditions, visit www.steamboat.com. Book a Steamboat getaway for as low as $49 mid-week, $69 weekends between 1/3 and 2/7, (TOTAL COST for two nights, three days for a couple or family of four, lodging and continental breakfast only). Accommodations are at the Bunkhouse Lodge, Fairfield Inn or the Hotel Bristol. A 90-minute timeshare sales presentation regarding Trendwest's new Colorado resort is required, but hey, for that price I can sit still for an hour and a half. 1-888-571-6117 or visit www.coloradokids.net.

Aspen/Snowmass:
Just when you thought Aspen couldn't get any better, it does - stay at the Limelite Lodge in the heart of Aspen (and only two blocks from Silver Queen Gondola) for only $99/night, including continental breakfast, available until 1/30/02 (www.aspen4u.com. Bring your ski-smiles to Mezzaluna at 600 E Cooper Ave for Happy Hour (did you ever hear it called Whiney Hour?!) from 3-5 PM for $5 gourmet pizzas and $2 brews. Oh, and there's free coffee every morning at the base of each mountain, and free hot cider at the top of Ajax. Buy a 4-7 day lift ticket 7 days in advance, and save $7/day, and if you're under 24 and have a valid college ID, tix at Aspen/Snowmass are $49/day and at Highlands/Buttermilk are $39/day. And you thought it would cost you your crampons to ride Aspen…….www.aspensnowmass.com.

Breckenridge:
Breck is bustin' out all over! Beaver Run Resort, 800-525-2253, $111/night/quad occupancy, 1/22-1/31; Vail/Beaver Creek Central Reservations, 877-916-7668, 2BR condos from $195, 1/22-1/28; Summit Mountain Rentals, 800-383-7382, studio/walk to the slopes, $105, 1/21-2/8, some restrictions apply. The hills are alive at www.breckenridge.snow.com!.

Crested Butte:
The $2/hour weekend ski ‘n' stay package has been extended - stay two nights at the Manor Lodge, get a two-day lift ticket, all for $48/pp/pn, available through 2/6/02. And for the best all-you-can-eat skillet-fried chicken, visit Slogar at the corner of 2nd and Whiterock. The family-style restaurant has been around for almost 100 years, so their recipe and reputation are Butte-solid!

Durango Mountain Resort:
Do-rango'll do you one better: ask about the Five of Four. Five nights lodging for the price of four, and four days of riding for the price of three, starting at $238/pp/do. Some restrictions, must be booked by 1/31. www.durangomountainresort.com.

Keystone:
Receive two dinner entrees for the price of one at The Garden Room in the Keystone Lodge, now through 2/1/02. Valet parking is free with your dinner reservation, and you get a complimentary glass of champagne with dessert. Call (970) 496-4FUN for reservations. www.keystone.snow.com.

Loveland:
Gotta get some Love - buy a beginner level Three Class Pass for only $53/adults, $61/kids, learn to ski or board, and receive a Free Love-land season pass for the remainder of the 2001-2 season. The way the snow is falling, you'll be riding until June! www.skiloveland.com.

Powderhorn:
Ski Free? At the Horn of Powder? Read on - one night's lodging and a one-day lift ticket for $35/pp/do. If Nordic or snowshoeing is your choice, it's only $25/pp/do. Visit www.brycelodge.com. or call 970-856-7349.

Tell-U-Ride:
Buy your lift tickets 14 days in advance, and the savings get better the longer you stay, as in $44/day for six days. And the celebration continues for Prospect Bowl through 1/31/02 - book five nights lodging with a four-day lift pass for $84/pp/pn/do. Visit www.tellurideskiresort.com. and hit the Hot Deals link.

Vail:
The $15 R/T Colorado Adventure Mobile is hitting Vail on Sunday, and a new, increased schedule has been posted at www.coloradoadventuremobile.com. because y'all have been so demanding! Catch the US Freeskiing Open this weekend and catch the almost free rooms at Eagle Point - a 2 BR condo goes for $136/night through 1/31/02, 1-888-605-8245. And if you're a Front Ranger and have your Colorado Card (if you don't have it now, it's too late to get it for this season), ride Vail for $49/day/adult or $29/day/kids. www.vail.snow.com.

Winter Park:
You already know how superb the terrain and snow are at Winter Park, so how about the scoop on transportation. If you'd like to take a sentimental journey, book a seat on the Ski Train. Travel is available Friday - Sunday only, and seats are still available in both the Club and Coach Cars. Fares runs from $25/kids/coach to $70/adult/club and will take your R/T through the 29 tunnels between Denver's Union Station and Winter Park's front door, including the 15-minute ride through Moffatt Tunnel. Buy your lift ticket in advance on the train as well for only $44. www.skitrain.com.

Nordic/Backcountry:
The Fraser Valley and adjacent Arapaho National Forest offers hundreds of miles of ungroomed, backcountry trails as well as Snow Mountain Ranch (www.ymcarockies.com) and Devil's Thumb Nordic (www.devilsthumbranch.com) ski areas. Probably the best place to stay if you're a backcountry enthusiast is at the Outpost B&B. It's quiet, remote, surrounded by trees, meadows, and wildlife, and coincidentally they're offering a special rate through 1/31/02 - $85 for all rooms, home-cooked breakfast included, and book three nights and the fourth night is free. The Outpost is a little piece of home away from home and you'll find it at www.outpost-colorado.com.

Till next week, stay low, stay smart, and stay luz,
Your Robin Hood of the Rockies,
Martha
skibabeage [at] hotmail.com