Ex-Extreme: Berthoud’s cliffs once hosted the Colorado Freeriding Championships and still see plenty of action. Photo: Tom Winter/tomwintermedia.com

Berthoud. Its story was a Greek Tragedy: One of the first ski areas to open in Colorado. A historic lodge. A pioneer when it came to snowboarding. More snow than anywhere else in the state. Excellent terrain for veteran skiers and snowboarders. Easy access from Denver. And a series of owners who drove it into bankruptcy and eventual extinction.

The historic lodge has been torn down. The two chairlifts are gone, and the funky old school busses that used to act as additional “lifts” shuttling skiers back up the pass from the bottom of Floral Park and the 80’s and 90’s have probably been sold to scrap. But despite the failings of the resort’s many owners to keep things simple and focus on what the ski area was about—amazing steep and deep skiing with hardly a nod to grooming, beginners or gapers—the terrain and the snow remain, and that’s why the ski area’s old runs and glades still see plenty of tracks. Here’s how to make the most of it.

8:00 a.m.

Start your day with a quick pit stop in nearby Empire. This historic town is home to the original Hard Rock Cafe (303-569-3500), the last best place for coffee as you head to the parking lot at the top of the pass.

8:20 a.m.

On your way up, check out the conditions on Floral Park. These expansive glades tumble down to a switchback on the Empire side of the pass where you’ll hitchhike back to the top or catch a car shuttle driven by the unlucky designated driver.

9:00 a.m.

If it’s nice, you can gear up next to your car, but in blustery conditions you can take advantage of the warming hut that was constructed in part by funds raised by the Friends of Berthoud Pass. This non-profit organization hosts avalanche education classes, knowledge which is highly recommended for Berthoud’s steep, avalanche-prone terrain. In fact, if you are new to the backcountry, you can ski here, but stick to the obvious trails of Powder Line or Main Line, old intermediate runs that are unlikely to slide (but you should still take a class and have the proper gear before you do).

11:00 a.m.

After looping the obvious hike-to terrain on the west side of the pass, including runs like Rush and Plunge, it’s time to rack up more vertical. Rochambeau to see who gets the first round of shuttle driving duty. If conditions are stable, hike to the top of the now vanished Continental Divide lift on the West side of the pass and head for the 80s and 90s and Current Creek. Stay skiers left from the top of the old lift, rather than the obvious lines that lead back to the road. The terrain starts out mellow, but quickly plunges into a series of steep chutes that terminate at a trailhead and parking on the Winter Park side of the pass.

Or, if the weather is good and avalanche conditions stable, skip Current Creek and head for Russell Peak. This 12,240-foot mountain hosted the Colorado Extremes on its rowdy east face back in 2002. One look at the technical lines and mandatory airs and you’ll know why. Go for glory, or ski the shoulder, where the snow drifts in deep and the lines are mellower.

1:00 p.m.

After you’ve finished tearing up the 80’s and 90’s, or punishing yourself on Russell, gather your legs together for one more big hike. The Mines Chutes on the East side of the pass were never part of the ski area, but they offer classic terrain down to a skin track that will take you back up to one of the resort’s old shuttle stops at a switchback on Highway 40 that has plenty of room for parking or thumbing. For the less ambitious, the steep shots of Hell’s Half Acre are easier to get to. Head up from the parking lot and stay to your left along the edge of the old Powder Line run (directly behind the warming hut) before dropping into the rowdy terrain and down onto Highway 40.

2:00 p.m.

Time for one last run. Head for Floral Park. This gladed terrain offers juicy lines through steep trees, and dumps you back out on Highway 40. If you’re lucky one of your group is so crushed from The Mines that they’re happy to act as shuttle driver. Have them meet you at the bottom. From there, you can head back down the pass to the watering holes in nearby Idaho Springs. Or drive a bit farther and kill off the rest of the day at Kermitts (303-567-4113; kermitts.com), a legendary Colorado roadhouse at the junction of Highway 6 and Interstate 70.

Tom Winter is a freelance writer and former Berthoud Pass season pass holder. He was an organizer of the Colorado Freeriding Championships, held at Berthoud Pass in 2000 and 2001.

In the Know

Trail Maps: The best link for trail maps is courtesy of Colorado Ski Authority. These maps will help you get the lay of the land: coloradoskiauthority.com/backcountry/routes/berthoud-pass/

Avalanche Information: Make no mistake about it, Berthoud is prone to avalanches. When operating, the ski area was considered a “Class 3” avalanche area (the most dangerous on the scale) by the U.S. Forest Service. Now that there’s no ski patrol, the backcountry skiing and riding here should be taken even more seriously. Get the current beta on conditions and risk from the Colorado Avalanche Information Center: avalanche.state.co.us

History: Want to learn more about the history of Berthoud and the now vanished ski area? Check out the Colorado Ski History website: coloradoskihistory.org

Is slipping out the gates and riding the lift back up your idea of backcountry? Then pay attention to our guide to the Front Range’s deepest sidecountry stashes.

Colorado is full of great in-bounds skiing. Terrain that challenges, thrills and excites. There’s everything from the steep hike-to terrain of Arapahoe Basin’s West Wall to the powder choked tree skiing found at Steamboat. But despite this bounty, there are days when the stuff inside the ropes isn’t compelling. Maybe it’s because you’re skiing on a Monday, after the weekend hoards have pounded the mountain into submission, or a January dry spell has left the terrain a smorgasbord of icy moguls and rocks.

Regardless, at some point this winter, you’re going to want to head outside the ropes, away from the people, to a place where the snow is softer and the pace of life is slower.

Enter the exit strategy. In Colorado we’re lucky enough to be blessed with levelheaded resort operators and a legislature that recognizes that we have a right to use our public lands at our own risk. This happy confluence means that most of Colorado’s ski areas have backcountry access gates. So, while it’s important to remember that we can’t just cut any rope and ski where we want to, we can leave the mountain at these specially dedicated areas to go into the backcountry for a bit of adventure.

But first a word for the wise. As always, it’s extremely important to be prepared to take care of yourself out there. Avalanches are common in our state and basic avalanche education is the foundation for backcountry skiing or snowboarding in Colorado. You’ll need to carry the tools of the trade (avalanche beacon, probe and shovel). It’s also wise to bring extra clothing, a first aid kit and be ready for anything. Injuries and accidents take on a whole new level of intensity when you’re outside the ropes and the sun is starting to set.

That being said, here are a four of our favorite backcountry access gates. Before your go, gear up, check the avalanche and weather reports and let someone know exactly where you are going and when you will be back. And don’t forget the most important part: have fun.

arapahoe basin
The ‘Basin’s high elevations and ample snow make backcountry excursions a high-risk, high-reward scenario in January or February. Avoid rolling the dice by waiting until the warm spring days of April, when freeze-thaw cycles stabilize the snowpack. A ‘Basin classic is the skiing down to Montezuma. Exit the ski area at the access gate located at on the ridge behind the Lenawee chair and then ski down the backside to a waiting car on Montezuma Road. Or take your chances and hitchhike to Keystone when you hit the bottom. arapahoebasin.com

loveland
Most folks don’t realize that Loveland has a backcountry access gate. Located behind the ski patrol shack at the top of Chair 1, it is hidden. Hike to the top of the ridge and drop into the large mellow bowls and open south facing glades on the north side of Loveland Pass. Unlike skiing to Montezuma (see above) hitchhiking back to your starting point is easy from the road over Loveland Pass. skiloveland.com

eldora
Windy conditions often sweep the high ridges behind Eldora ski area, but all that snow has to go somewhere, and usually ends up in the trees. Exit Eldora’s terrain when the wind calms down to tour west off the top of the ski area’s Corona Bowl into the Lost Lake area. A variety of descents await the intrepid, although route finding can be tricky and, given the wind (which loads up the steeper slopes, creating hard slab avalanche conditions), local knowledge is essential. Bring a buddy who knows the terrain or wait until spring, when you can leave a car down at the old mining hamlet of Eldora for your trip back to civilization (or to Nederland’s Pioneer Inn for a cold one). eldora.com

winterpark
Close to the Front Range and with a low-key vibe, you might just want to stay in-bounds and enjoy the under-rated tree skiing at the ‘Park and next door Mary Jane. But for those days when the trees are tracked out, Winter Park has two gates, one from Vasquez Cirque and a second, higher gate from Perry Peek. From the Parry Peek gate you can access several drainages that lead back to Highway 40, where you can try your luck with your thumb or leave a car for an easy shuttle back to the base area. winterparkresort.com

monarch
It’s not technically on the Front Range but we have to include it here simply because it’s got some of the best sidecountry around …. because it’s in bounds. Monarch’s Mirkwood Bowl is the real deal—you need to hike it and it’s wild terrain with a healthy combination of big bowl and tight tree lines. Best of all, it’s controlled and patrolled (so, yeah, it’s not technically “sidecountry”). Monarch still has that authentic Colorado local vibe. You won’t find execs on cell phones here, just folks who want to charge. One more reason to love the place? It may just offer the single best season pass in the country. For $429 ($279 seniors and students) you get the full Monarch pass and free days of skiing at Angel Fire, NM; China Peak, CA; Durango Mountain Resort, CO; Grand Targhee (early season), WY; INdian Head, MI; Loveland, CO; Parajito, NM; Powderhorn, CO; Red River, NM; Revelstoke, BC; Silverhorn, CO; Sipapu, NM; Sol Vista, CO; and Sunlight, CO. Plus, you get half price tickets at Alta, UT; Snowbowl, AZ; and Taos, NM. That’s a full season of ski bum travel. skimonarch.com

Want to know where to find off-the-radar, core mountain bike rides in Colorado and Utah? We give you the best riding away from the unwashed masses.

You’ve been to Moab, that hip, happening scene in the red rock desert, with more mountain bikers than lizards. You’ve fought the crowds on the trails around your home, hunting for parking spots as the sun scorched the blacktop. You’ve even taken long weekends to exotic locales, battling the credit card blues for tiny hotel rooms at VIP prices to find a stretch of singletrack to call your own. In other words, you’ve worked hard to earn your singletrack stripes, paid your dues and suffered with the best of them. Suffer no more. You don’t have to fight the crowds to find singletrack salvation in the Rocky Mountains, you just have to know where to look for your bliss. Here are a few of our favorite lesser known spots. Each offers different types of riding, in diverse environments ranging from lush aspen forests to slickrock deserts. But despite their diversity, they all have something in common, they’re enough off the beaten path that you’ll never have to worry about finding singletrack solitude—or a parking space—again.

Whazzup Doc? A mix of smooth singletrack, technical challenges and epic ride potential, Rabbit Valley is the least crowded option in Fruita.

rabbit valley
Colorado/Utah
Just east of the Colorado/Utah border, the Rabbit Valley area has long attracted dirt bikers and ATVers to the high desert. It’s now becoming a mountain biking hot spot simply because it’s not controlled, coddled or costly. Thus, while you may have to hear the engines and smell the exhaust of the dirt bikers at the campsite next to you, they’ll also probably share their cold beer (hey, they are on two wheels too). You’ll see more people riding here than, say, the Abajo Mountains (see below), but that’s no reason to avoid Rabbit Valley. In fact, during weekdays the trails are deserted and quiet, all the more reason to make this the first stop on your next road trip while timing your departure for a Friday to move to less traveled areas. There’s also ample riding here, courtesy of the local biking community in nearby Fruita. Easy singletrack like Trails 4 and 5 are perfect for beginners, while advanced riders will appreciate new developments like the Western Rim Trail, an 18-mile loop that features sweet desert singletrack and fantastic views of the Colorado River or the ripping singletrack of Zion Curtain, a 20-mile ride. Check out Rabbit Valley West’s trails including the Westwater Mesa/Overlook trail, where you can combine a series of loops to go as long and as hard as you’d like. The well marked paths allow for plenty of creativity, but watch out, there’s also plenty of sand that will sap your motivation and suck the life out of your legs if you forget to put a few miles in before testing yourself in this playground.
Signature Ride: Western Rim
Camping: Pick a spot, any spot.
Local Bike Shop: Over the Edge Sports (202 East Aspen Avenue, Fruita; 970-858-7220; otesports.com)
More Info: Bob D’Antonio’s Mountain Biking Grand Junction and Fruita (Falcon Press) features the beta on 22 rides in the Fruita area including Rabbit Valley.

Rabbit Valley

the abajo mountains
Utah
Too far south and way too quiet for the Moab crowd, Monticello sits at the base of the Abajo (or Blue) Mountains. This small range features a variety of 4×4 roads, trails and tracks that climb from the desert into the peaks, the tallest of which, Abajo, stands at 11,360 feet. Monticello’s 7,066-foot elevation, means that it’s possible to ride comfortably here even in the scorching haet of mid-summer—but plan on being challenged. The better rides feature steep singletrack climbs, technical descents and enough elevation gain to make you puke. That doesn’t mean the riding is a complete sufferfest: there’s plenty of mellow action too, including the option to use car shuttles on some of the longer rides. But if you want to taste the best that the Blues have to offer, you better be ready to earn it. Take the Shay Ridge Trail, which tops out at approximately 11,000 feet, high enough to leave even strong riders gasping. Or Trail 20, a 50-mile slog that was created by dirt bikers but which also gives those beasts who thought Shay was too easy the opportunity to test themselves. For the rest of us, there’s a variety of singletrack options as well as easy cruisers like Geyser Pass road, which crosses the range. Throw in the opportunity to ride from the top of the Blues into the desert environment of Indian Creek and Utah Highway 211, the southeast entrance to the Needles District of Canyonlands Park, (use a car shuttle for this one) and you have an area that combines a lack of people with rich opportunities to explore—something that’s becoming rare in this day and age.
Signature Ride: Shay Ridge
Camping: Dalton Springs (USFS) or find your own on BLM land.
Local Bike Shop: Good luck in Monticello. Try Chile Pepper in Moab (702 South Main Street; 4350-259-4688; chilebikes.com)
More Info: Moab-Monticello Ranger District; 496 E. Central, Monticello; 435-587-2041

Going all in on Carbondale’s Monte Carlo trail.

carbondale
Colorado
With its community of core athletes,Carbondale scores big when it comes to superb riding—old mining roads, singletrack and even a paved bike path that takes you all the way to Aspen. The trails here feature aspen glades, spruce forests and sagebrush covered hills, and the area’s rich mining history has left a legacy of old roads, some of which, like the Montezuma Basin Road (which features a 3,000 ft elevation gain in just under five miles), are steep and high enough to challenge the world’s best riders (Lance anyone?). Or try the East section of the Government Trail, which crosses Tiehack, Buttermilk and Snowmass Ski Areas and which features a 9.8 miles of mostly singletrack and 1,400 feet of elevation gain. Other highlights include the West section of the Government Trail, one of the most challenging rides in the Carbondale area and the Ragged Mountain trail, a 19 mile epic that drops 2,000 feet in elevation and passes through the largest aspen grove in the world. Head to Red Hill for 15 miles of singletrack makes for loops where the locals may be training. On The Crown, you can head up “Inny” and down “Outty” for singletrack or brave the luge-like downhills of Father and Ginormous. While not as well known as Red Hill, the Prince Creek trails are also worth finding.
Signature Ride: Ragged Mountain Trail
Camping: Avalanche Creek (USFS)
Local Bike Shop: Ute City Cycles, 0580 Highway 133, Carbondale, CO, 970-963-2500
More Info: carbondale.com

Breck’s Epic You can punish yourself on the six-day stage race or just explore it at your own pace.

breckenridge
Colorado
Breck has long been a cycling hotbed, with the locals ditching their skis and boards for the singletrack as soon as they can. Add in old mining roads and a tourist based economy powered by recreation and you have a special slice of the singletrack life that’s within easy driving distance of the Front Range (not to mention that it’s nice and cool up there in July). Trails for all abilities abound, but the hardcore will want to attempt riding the Colorado Trail from Kenosha Pass to Breckenridge over Georgia Pass. The descent from the top of the pass encompasses some of the best singletrack found on the Colorado Trail, and is ample reward for the three plus hour climb over the top. For the rest of us, the Flume Loops offer the chance to connect singletrack in various permutations right outside of town to catch an easy singletrack buzz. True freaks can sign up for the six-stage, 240-mile, 37,000-veritcal Breck Epic (brekepic.com) race in August.
Signature Ride: West Ridge/Swan Valley on the Colorado Trail
Camping: Peak One (USFS)
Local Bike Shop: Avalanche Sports; 540 South Main Street, Breckenridge; 970-453-1461; av-sports.com
More Info: gobreck.com

Alpine style on the Breck Epic.

BEST OF THE REST
Twin Lakes Loop
(Twin Lakes, CO)
This winding singletrack loop around Twin Lakes includes a history lesson at Inter-laken, an abandoned summer resort town founded in the late 1800’s.

High Lonesome
(Winter Park, CO)
Winter Park Ski Area has made a huge investment in mountain biking trails, but the local gem remains High Lonesome.

Indian Creek
(Waterton Canyon, CO)
One of the Front Range’s finest gems, this ride takes in portions of the Colorado Trail.

Happy Jack/Pole Mountain
(Laramie, WY)
Go north, young man, and find solitude and singletrack Wyoming style.

Salt Wash/Sovergn
(Moab, UT)
Yes, you can leave the crowds behind in Moab. Salt Wash is a trip back in time, before everyone and their brother hit Utah with their mountain bikes.

Prospect Trail
(Telluride, CO)
Telluride offers plenty of riding, but locals keep coming back to this sweet slice of singletrack Heaven in the San Juans.

What do you get when you head out on the Colorado Interconnect? In this case, three resorts, thousands of turns and only one blister.

The wind doesn’t like us. It pelts us with icy pellets of snow. It tries to push us over. It tears at our skis, balanced on our shoulders as we scrape across icy scree punctuated with tufts of tundra. The wind owns this ridge. And we are trespassing. But this same wind is about to show us some love. On the lee side of the mountain, a big, classic line called The Professor is catching what the wind is ripping off of this ridge. The Professor is filled with cream. So we straggle across the ridge, blown sideways like ptarmigans and head for the untracked powder.

The Professor is merely one line choice among thousands off of Loveland Pass. Today, though, it’s a superhighway. An autobahn filled with knee-deep fluff straight down to Araphahoe Basin’s Pallavicini lift. And it’s the first real skiing we’ll do as part of the Colorado Interconnect, a day long epic that links three of the state’s ski areas and comprises superlative skiing, big above treeline lines and some grueling climbs.

All You Need Is Love: Will Spilo reaches out and touches pristine powder on Loveland Pass.

The Colorado Interconnect isn’t as well known as its Utah little sister. In Utah, the close proximity of resorts allows for relatively painless tours. In fact, the Utah Interconnect is so easy that while cavemen can’t do it (the loincloths leave something to be desired), lower intermediates certainly can. That’s why when in Utah, you can book a guide (or go yourself) and link Park City to Brighton or Solitude and then drop over to Alta and Snowbird without so much as breaking a sweat. Not so on the big, mean brother of the Utah Interconnect: The Colorado Interconnect. There are no guides to take you on this tour. The elevations are higher and the terrain and route-finding trickier. Cavemen and intermediates should definitely stay at home.

But for those with solid skiing and snowboarding skills, avalanche gear and a sense of adventure, the Colorado Interconnect is worth the effort. The tour includes Loveland ski area, Arapahoe Basin and Keystone Resort. In between, you get to ski Loveland Pass and Arapahoe Basin’s backcountry. You can start at either Keystone or Loveland, and in both cases lifts help ease the pain of gaining early vertical—but that doesn’t mean you won’t hike. However, the hiking is worth it and the pain can be lessened by throwing in a hitchhike to the top of Loveland Pass if you start from Keystone, or getting lucky and catching a tow from a snowmobile in Montezuma basin when you’re heading for Keystone. Arapahoe Basin’s new Montezuma Bowl lift also eases the pain for those heading to Loveland. In fact, the addition of this lift as well as recent expansions to Keystone have made the Colorado Interconnect less of a sufferfest and substantially more accessible.

The suffering starts for us at the top of Loveland’s Chair 1. It’s here that we head out the backcountry gate hidden behind the patrol shack at the top of the lift for the Continental Divide.

Deep Thoughts: Chris Albers floats through A-Basin backcountry en route to Montezuma.

Soon, we have to make our first decision. Do we drop in directly behind the ski area and follow the mellow pitch down to the popular hitchhiking point on Highway 6 and catch a ride to the top before skiing down to Arapahoe Basin?  Or do we earn our turns by touring across and around the bowl on the ridge to the top of powder-heavy runs? Is there really a choice? We choose the latter and get rewarded by perfect effortless powder. The run spits us out directly across the highway from Arapahoe Basin.

One of the oldest ski areas in Colorado, The Basin, as locals call it, has a long tradition of touring and backcountry skiing. In fact, hiking is a way of life here, as locals brave the high elevations (the ski area’s lifts top out at just under 12,500 feet) above the lifts to head to the lines that snake down the imposing East Wall. From the highest point—the North Pole—you start at a breathless 13,050 feet, with nothing but steeps, rocks and chutes below you, all in plain view of the punters on the Lenawee lift. It’s showboat big mountain skiing at its best, but the terrain is so vast that sometimes it’s hard to distinguish the skiers from the rocks.

We forego the East Wall to drop over into Arapahoe’s 400-acre expansion in Montezuma Bowl. Before the resort extended operations into the bowl, the area offered sunkissed backcountry lines that were popular with locals who skied down to Highway 5 and the town of Montezuma. We ski along the skier’s right of the new terrain, on a run called Bierstadt that quickly plunges into the trees. At the traverse back to the Zuma lift, we hug the rope and then, out of sight, drop out of bounds into unpatrolled territory, heading for the valley floor and Highway 5. Once at 5 it’s decision time. If daylight is plentiful, you’re feeling energetic and you’ve had an early start, you can head up 5 to Montezuma and County Road 275, which takes you to the abandoned mining town of Saints John and the climb up and over an above-treeline ridge to Keystone ski area. Otherwise, highway 5 is an escape route back to civilization and cold beers.

Because we’ve caught first chair at Loveland and because the wind has stopped and because the warmth of an encroaching spring is lengthening the hours in the day, we go for it. We gain even more time by scoring a ride in the back of a pickup truck when we hit Highway 5 to Montezuma and CR 275, the first segment of the Montezuma to Keystone link. The tour up the valley goes fast with a packed trail, well used by snowmobilers and snowshoers, and it’s not long before we pass the abandoned mining structures of Saints John. The site of the first silver strike in Colorado in 1861, Saints John is named after both St. John the Baptist and St. John the Evangelist. Much of the town remains private property, including the Saints John Mine, so we stay on the trail and resist the temptation to poke around in the abandoned structures.

The High Road: You can always use your thumb if you don’t want to walk.

While we’re tempted to take a break at Saints John and soak in the history there—the town was unique in that it had no saloons but there was a library—we forgo stops, rest breaks and even hydration in a go-for-broke push up to the top of the ridge. With avalanche danger minimal, we power up and, sweat dripping in our eyes, hit the shoulder of Keystone Mountain. The views are superlative. Behind us, the backside of Arapahoe Basin, the town of Montezuma and dozens of high peaks flocked with snow. In front of us is the last challenge: a moderate climb around the flank of Keystone Mountain.

A contouring traverse to our left takes us into the ski areas terrain and before we know it, we’re riding the Ruby Express towards the home stretch. A fast groomer from the top of the mountain allows us to take it easy on our legs and coast for the last 10 minutes of the trip, a good thing, because we’re gassed.

We find our shuttle vehicle at the parking lot at the base of Keystone Village. Once at the car we collapse with barely enough strength to peel off our boots (the removal of one revealing a massive blister on the heel of our split boarders), throw the gear in the car and stagger into the Village in search of greasy hamburgers and cold pints. •

Veteran ski industry journalist Tom Winter learned how to ski at Arapahoe Basin. On most days, you’ll find him in the backcountry.

THE RUNDOWN

How to Interconnect the Dots

This tour spans high altitudes and avalanche terrain. Because of this danger, participants should be fit and familiar with avalanche safety, backcountry gear—beacons, shovels and probes at the very least—and have AT, telemark or split snowboard bindings (see page 22) appropriate for backcountry travel. It’s also wise to attempt the tour in the spring when conditions are less severe. An Epic pass, valid at Arapahoe Basin and Keystone, will also ease the financial pain of buying single-day lift tickets at all three areas (although it is possible to purchase joint Arapahoe Basin and Keystone tickets). Loveland sells four-hour flex tickets that will get you started on the first leg, or save time and money by beginning your tour at the top of Loveland Pass.

Logistics are made easier by booking a two-night stay at Keystone. (Spend the day before the tour at the resort.) You can leave a shuttle car at Keystone, then drive over Loveland Pass to Loveland ski area on the morning of the tour in a second car. The drive is an opportunity to check out snow and weather conditions. And when you hit Keystone at the end of your day, you’ll be mighty happy that you’ve got a bed close by. Pick up your second shuttle vehicle at Loveland on your trip back to the Front Range the next day.