Beaver Creek Celebrates Grand Opening of Red Buffalo Park and Red Buffalo Express Lift (#5) on Friday, December 22
Grand Opening celebration will be held at the base of Red Buffalo Express Lift (#5) Friday at 9:15 a.m.
Red Buffalo Park to open with skiing on Red Buffalo, Lower Booth Gardens, Lower Powell, and Grand Traverse trails
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BEAVER CREEK, Colo. – December 19, 2017 – On Friday, December 22 at 9:15 a.m., Beaver Creek Resort will debut Red Buffalo Park, a family learning area located at the mountain’s highest elevation, 11,440 feet. At the heart of Red Buffalo Park, the new Red Buffalo Express Lift (#5), a high-speed quad, will debut to provide an increase in uphill capacity and a shorter, 4.3 minute ride to the top of the mountain. A Grand Opening celebration will commence at the base of Red Buffalo Express Lift (#5) on Friday at 9:15 a.m. with an official ribbon cutting, commemorative pins and Beaver Creek’s famed chocolate chip cookies. Beginning Friday, skiers and snowboarders will have access to 338 acres of terrain, including an additional 43 acres of terrain on Red Buffalo, Lower Booth Gardens, Lower Powell, and Grand Traverse trails in Red Buffalo Park.
Red Buffalo Park will provide a total of 13 trails designated as a family learning area. Red Buffalo Park amenities include Kids’ Adventure Zones, five snow sculptures throughout the area, Park 101 and Zoom Room terrain parks, and a dedicated Ski School Skills Zone on Upper Sheephorn trail. Beaver Creek Ski & Snowboard School students will have access to the new Cookie Cabin, a mountaintop haven serving Beaver Creek’s famed, fresh-baked chocolate chip cookies daily.
Red Buffalo Park
Unlike most beginner learning areas, Beaver Creek’s Red Buffalo Park is located at 11,440 feet, the highest point of the mountain. The gentle slope of the designated learning trails provides terrain fitting for beginner and intermediate skiers and riders, plus breathtaking panoramic views of the Gore Range. Guests can ride the new Red Buffalo Express Lift (#5), located at the heart of Red Buffalo Park, for quick access to trails in the area.
Red Buffalo Express Lift (#5)
The new Red Buffalo Express Lift (#5) is named after the signature, beginner Red Buffalo trail, which provides incredible views of the Gore Range and is named after two signature peaks of the Gore Range, the Red peak and Buffalo peak. The new lift will reduce ride time by 50 percent, from 8.6 minutes to 4.3 minutes, and will increase uphill capacity by 75 percent. With the upgrade, all primary lifts on Beaver Creek will be high-speed.
New Ski School Experiences at Red Buffalo Park
Cookie Cabin Guests enrolled in Beaver Creek Ski & Snowboard School will have access to the Cookie Cabin, located at the top of Red Buffalo Express Lift (#5). Serving up Beaver Creek’s famed, fresh-baked chocolate chip cookies all-day long, the Cookie Cabin provides the perfect rejuvenation during a day on the slopes.
Sheephorn Ski School Skills Zone Upper Sheephorn, a signature trail in Red Buffalo Park, is designated as a Ski School Skills Zone. The wide trail with sweeping views of the Gore Range is the perfect place for guests to refine their skills. After mastering the Sheephorn Skills Zone, guests can move on to explore the rest of the mountaintop terrain offered at Red Buffalo Park.
Activities & Events in Red Buffalo Park
Snow Sculptures Explore Red Buffalo Park to discover various snow sculptures located alongside the trails – this year guests can find Bucky Beaver, Fred the Fox, Hooter the Owl, Rascal Rabbit, and Bighorn Sheep Bob. Guests might even see Beaver Creek’s master snow sculptor, JW Busby, hard at work on his masterpieces. JW Busby, a member of Beaver Creek Ski Patrol since 1981, has been Beaver Creek’s resident snow sculptor since 1983. His larger than life creations have become a mountain tradition that guests have been looking forward to for the past 34 seasons. This year, five of JW’s masterpieces can be found throughout Red Buffalo Park.
Kids’ Adventure Zones With banked turns, covered wagons, teepees and more, these fun areas are perfect to build confidence and challenge children’s skiing and riding abilities. Discover a sense of adventure on these runs designed just for kids within Red Buffalo Park.
Jack Rabbit Alley: This is a perennial favorite for kids of all ages. This trail starts at the very top of the mountain and winds its way through the trees of Red Buffalo Park challenging advanced and intermediate skiers.
Wild West Trail: A little bit of the Wild West built into Jack Rabbit Alley. Ski through a covered Calistoga wagon or explore the inside of a Native American teepee.
Mystic Maze: A fun interpretive trail winding through the lower trees just off the Ski School Skills Zone. This is a great piece of terrain for intermediate skiers to explore and learn about the animals on Beaver Creek Mountain.
Terrain Parks
Park 101: This beginner terrain park is great for people who are just learning the basics of freestyle snowboarding or freeskiing. The entry-level park contains small jumps, boxes, rails, and stall features designed for beginner riders and skiers to learn the basics of a terrain park.
Zoom Room: An intermediate-level park designed to flow through a variety of different and unique features including boxes, rails, log-slides, stall features, and jumps. Zoom Room is the natural progression once skiers and riders get comfortable with the basics.
