Ways to Get a Free Ski Pass
When living in a county that has five ski resorts all within 30 minutes of each other, everyone is eager all summer long to get back out on the hill. While some people work on the mountain to get that free ski pass, others have to either pay for the pass or they can take up some of the awesome volunteer opportunities Colorado’s mountain towns have to offer.
- Copper Mountain: Located right off of I-70 before Vail Pass and housing 2,465 skiable acres, you can find yourself alone from everyone in the trees on a nice run in the middle of the day. Copper Mountain is one of the few resorts not owned by Vail in the high rockies. When deciding what mountain you want to ski most out of your winter season, you better choose wisely. Copper Mountain has a few opportunities to get a free pass to get out on the hill. Boot packing is a great way to get in shape for the winter season and an even better way to earn a free ski pass. It entails walking around the ski area when fresh snow has fallen or been blown the night before. This is packing the snow down to have skiable trails. No experience is necessary, but already being adjusted to the altitude is a big plus. You can endure hiking up to 1,000 vertical feet and even more throughout the course of your day. You are expected to put in eight-hour days with an hour lunch break (probably for a nap). Having water is a must for this volunteer opportunity, and snacks are a definite plus for a quick break. Most people learn from this experience of trampling through the snow at the beginning of the season and cherish their free ski pass the rest of winter.
- Breckenridge: Breckenridge’s ski resort ranges from Peak 6 to Peak 10 along the Tenmile Range. Breckenridge has endless amounts of trails to explore ranging from easy to difficult. While the Breckenridge Outdoor Education Center (BOEC) helps motivate people with disabilities the volunteer part is probably the most rewarding. If you volunteer for 15 days for the season, you are able to receive a pass after those 15 days are completed. The BOEC empowers the outdoor experience with people who have physical and cogitative disabilities, “at-risk” teens, youth, and people living with serious injuries or illness. The BOEC is a non-profit organization that has been around for over 40 years and is a very active volunteer group here in Summit County.
- Winter Park: Winter Park has 3,081 skiable acres and is around one hour northeast of Summit County. With the Amtrak running through Denver to Winter Park, transportation is fairly simple for Denver locals to get up to the mountain to volunteer. Winter Parks offers volunteer options through competitions in the summer and winter. Every five hours you work, you earn one-day pass that is good to you, your friend or family and you are able to use throughout the whole winter season. You can work endless hours throughout the year and rack up days if Winter Park is your preferred mountain to ski.
There are plenty more options, just be sure to talk with locals or look them up online! With a bunch of great opportunities helping our local ski resorts and helping people at the same time, a bunch of volunteer work is available for getting that free ski pass for the winter season.