#Wolf creek ski pass full#

Pitcher’s time on the slopes is punctuated, generally by choice, by radio calls to lift operators and maintenance workers to check on the status of various pieces of the area’s infrastructure. Pitcher has taught some of his staff to build lifts, which creates year-round jobs, saves on costs and sometimes hastens installation times that might otherwise be hindered by a lack of labor. Most resorts purchase turnkey lifts – not Wolf Creek. Of the 10 chairlifts that operate at the resort, Pitcher has helped build every single one. Pitcher’s face gently morphs into an amused smile when describing the inventive methods his staff devise to move snow onto barren runs during early season operations. He describes his work like that of a passionate hobbyist. “I get up in the morning, I think about if we can open new terrain, or if we need to deal with a snow removal issue or something else.

“When I get up in the morning, I don’t go, ‘I’m going to make contacts and see if I can sell the ski area,’” Pitcher said. Pitcher has worked on installing all 10 of the area’s chairlifts himself. Wolf Creek Ski Area owner Davey Pitcher checks out the site of a new chairlift under construction at the resort on July 2, 2018. But with a bright economic outlook and an heir apparent who shares Pitcher’s penchant for hands-on management, the third Pitcher to hold the position of CEO sees no reason to sacrifice any part of Wolf Creek’s independence. And he is too savvy a businessman to say he’d never sell. Pitcher does not harbor a festering grudge against multi-corporate ski resorts. The pass offers users a limited number of days at over 120 independent ski resorts.Īs independent ski resorts around the country have flocked to reap the benefits of multi-resort passes, Wolf Creek’s owner has resisted. In response to the conglomeration of major ski resorts, the Indy Pass emerged. A year later, the resort joined the Ikon Pass under a partnership that limited the number of days pass-holders could ski there. In 2019, Arapahoe Basin left its partnership with Vail after the influx of Epic Pass users caused insurmountable parking problems for the resort. Wolf Creek Ski Area often receives more snow than any other ski area in the state.

The product of these unions has been less than harmonious.Ī view of the base area at Wolf Creek Ski Area in Southwest Colorado. In 2018, Alterra released the Ikon pass, which both affirmed the imposing success of the Vail model and offered a competitor to Vail’s dominance. Seeing Vail’s success, the company that owns Aspen Skiing Co., Henry Crown Co., formed a partnership with a private equity firm to found Alterra Mountain Co.

#Wolf creek ski pass full#

The 2022-23 full Epic Pass, which grants passholders access to a total of 85 resorts, cost skiers $949. It now owns (or operates, in several cases) 38 resorts worldwide. In the decade and a half since, the company has extended its grasp. In 2008, Vail Resorts debuted the $579 Epic Pass – a single pass to ski resorts that offered owners unfettered access to the five resorts that the company owned at the time. The brothers’ father, Kingsbury “Pitch” Pitcher, invested in the resort in 1976 and eventually became the sole owner.Īs resorts around the country fall under the enterprising authority of multi-corporate alliances and buyouts, Wolf Creek Ski Area has not only resisted, but thrived.Īlthough no multi-resort passes will let you ride the lifts at Wolf Creek Ski Area, skiers and snowboarders from all over come to ski the area, which receives more snowfall annually than any other ski area in Colorado. Pitcher has officially held the title of CEO at Wolf Creek Ski Area since 2002, but had helped his older brother, Todd, manage the area for several years before that. “I can’t remember if we built this lift in 2012 or 2013,” Pitcher says as the chair scoops him up and carries him away from the legions of skiers who have come to visit Wolf Creek Ski Area one December day. On the slopes, he drops into gentle telemark turns with agility, but the twisting motion on the chairlift is more difficult for the 60-year-old after a paragliding crash in the spring that resulted in a broken back. WOLF CREEK SKI AREA – As he prepares to recline into the fast-approaching chair, Davey Pitcher cranes his neck attempting to read the numbers inscribed in the concrete foundation of the Treasure Stoke chairlift’s loading terminal. Keith is the son of Davy Pitcher, the CEO of Wolf Creek, and is taking over more of the daily operations of the ski area. Keith Pitcher, assistant lift supervisor at Wolf Creek Ski Area, and his wife, Breanna, ski and ride Wednesday with their dogs Glacier and Couloir.