Breckenridge Ski Resort as featured as the No. 9 overall ski resort in the west for 2008 according to SKI Magazine’s readers’ survey.  Within the entire North American continent, Breckenridge scored No. 4 for Terrain Parks, No. 7 for Après-Ski, and No. 8 for Off-Hill Activities. 

This year SKI also addressed the common concerns about the popularity of Breckenridge, beginning with crowds:  “Breckenridge—which has been pulling in record skier visits just about every year since the dawn of the quad chair—is popular for a reason.”  The Breckenridge skiing and boarding adventures combine beautifully with its non-skiing adventure.

Let’s begin with the slopes.  The Resort is expanding its terrain and amenities to accommodate all types of skiing abilities.  But it behooves skiers to know the routes for the lifts.  Those who prefer wide open uninhabited areas need only head out to Peak 10 and “rip the expert bumps on Trinity and Quiver.”  The T-bar takes skiers to the Horseshoe Bowl. 

Take the Peak 8 SuperConnect to Chair 6 for blacks and steeps or to access the groomers and blues on Peak 7.  And Peak 7 itself is getting better every year.  Soon, a new Peak 7 base village will improve mountain access, add slope-side luxury lodging, and open up sit-down dining.  From Crystal Peak Lodge to various skier services, a ski school, ticket sales, a ski shop, and Sevens, the base village at Peak 7 will offer all of the comforts necessary to enjoy the day.

The cold can be beat by choosing warmer activities at times.  Hop on the BreckConnect Gondola to Main Street for après ski or unique culinary pleasures, spas and fireside experiences.  Stroll through downtown shops or plan to burst out on a dogsled tour tomorrow. 

And, if bottlenecks on the Interstate are a concern, travel during the weekdays.

Call Rick Allemang at 970-547-1002 for information about ski properties or real estate in the woods to meet your family’s needs.

West, who lives in real estate in beautiful Breckenridge, along with the best athletes of the modern free ski and snowboard movement will compete in the games.  The Breckenridge Ski Resort and Town of Breckenridge feel privileged to host the amazing talent.  Coverage will be aired by NBC, MTV, MTV2, and USA, ensuring action-packed content for the crowds and fans tuning in to the broadcast.

It will most likely be a fight to the finish as they compete for the Dew Cup and $1.5 million prize purse that will be awarded at the end of a three-stop series.  Other events will be in January and February in West Dover, Vermont and Lake Tahoe, California. 

The incredibly successful AST Dew Tour debuted in 2005 and has been so successful that this inaugural event will kick off Winter AST Dew Tours.  The Summer Dew Tour uses a point system based on cumulative points and the Winter Dew Tour will follow a similar plan.  Participants appreciate that the event is not just a one-day, one-run moment.  It offers the chance find out who is the strongest over the course of an entire season of competition. 

The excitement mounts as the snow industry comes together for events like this.  It is one of the only contests to offer ski and snowboard Slopestyle and Superpipe for both men and women.  Women’s snowboarding has progressed tremendously over the last few years as top female riders push the sport forward.  The professional action-sports athletes will compete in skateboarding (vert and park), BMX (vert, Park, and dirt), freestyle motocross, and each Tour stop will also feature a specialty comp.  Style and technicality are two reigning characteristics of this year’s freeskier bill.

Even as they compete tooth and nail, snowboarders snowboard with friends.  They are quick to encourage one another, congratulate one another, and inspire one another to new tricks.  Friendship is strong and so are these athletes.

Come on out and join the fun.  Key lifestyle elements include Festival Village with video gaming and interactive events and live cutting-edge music.  The Dew Tour partners include Mountain Dew, Toyota, Ball Park, Nike 6.0, PlayStation, Wendy’s and Verizon Wireless. 

Call Rick Allemang at 970-547-1002 for information about ski properties to meet your family’s needs.

November 14, 15 and 16 are the days to preview Summit County Colorado vacation real estate and to pick up new and used ski gear “Nordic, back-country, and telemark equipment” at the Breckenridge Nordic Center. Located at 1200 Ski Hill Road near some of the above exclusive new Breckenridge real estate, the annual event is a community tradition for residents of the Victorian mining Town of Breckenridge.

As Breckenridge Resort improves and grows, so has the Master Development Plan for the Nordic Center. Thirty-two kilometers of ski trails meander through spruce forest and open meadows along with 16 kilometers of scenic snowshoe trails only a mile from downtown along the free shuttle route. Additionally, the BreckConnect Gondola runs from the free skier parking lots, accessing the Breckenridge Nordic Trail System and eventually the new Nordic World Trails on Peak 6. A new skier bridge and two Nordic skier tunnels allow a continuous looped trail system with no road crossings.

Lately the Nordic Center began rolling the terrain and anticipates that after the next good snowstorm it will be able to provide skate lines in the teaching and training areas. Pretty soon the stove will be cranked up in the warming huts at Kathy’s Viewpoint and Hallelujah Hut and skiers can glide over manicured snow with scenic vistas on all sides, exploring the expanded trails on Peak 7 in the White River National Forest.

Participants in the sport enjoy a casual and friendly atmosphere. It is easy to learn and lots of fun. Ski lessons help everyone to get it right from the beginning and progress faster. Lesson, rental, and trail pass packages are affordable. Improvement is rapid for those who take advantage of expert guidance offered by ski instructors certified by the Canadian Association of Nordic Ski Instructors (CANS) or Professional Ski Instructors of America (PSIA). Children start skiing by age four and develop the physique, coordination, stamina, agility, social skills, and a sense of accomplishment. When heading to the hills, it is best bring hats, gloves, sunglasses, and layers of clothing to accommodate the weather and body heat generated by the workout.

Next week (Nov. 21-23) there will be a ski swap at our Frisco Nordic Center. The Annual Nordic ski Swap benefits the Summit Nordic Ski Club. Twenty percent of all sales will be donated to the SNC, a nonprofit organization that assists junior Nordic skiers.

For information about resort real estate to enjoy for years to come, call Rick Allemang of RE/MAX Properties of the Summit at 970-547-1002.

Leading the nation in number of skier visits, Breckenridge Ski Resort has been juggling weekend crowds too long and wants to extend the ski services and terrain onto Peak 6. The Peak 6 development plan proposes to open about 450 acres of terrain north of the ski area’s existing trails, with 285 acres above and 67 acres below the timberline served by a single new lift. At the base of the lift, the resort would build a restaurant and at the top would be a ski patrol and warming hut.

Discussions and impact studies have been ongoing. As people bring up various issues, the Resort, Forest Service, and Town are weighing the considerations. Some say Vail is twice the size, why can’t we too grow? Others say that they like living in a smaller community. Some don’t want more new development; others make a living by building mountain luxury properties. Some want to keep the backcountry on Peak 6 more secluded, and others want to be able to access it more easily. Some are concerned about elk habitat in the Ten Mile Range as herd populations in the state reach record levels. But is limiting development the solution? Most of the ski resort utilizes Forest Service lands and is surrounded by national forest.

With Colorado’s population continuing to grow at a healthy rate, Vail Resorts anticipates weekends will just get more crowded if the plan gets delayed. The goal of the expansion plan is to spread out the skiers, especially on peak days, by providing more intermediate terrain. Peak 6 is easily accessible from Main Street and is relatively safe from avalanches two important reasons for a thumbs up on the plan.

For information about resort real estate to enjoy for years to come, call Rick Allemang of RE/MAX Properties of the Summit at 970-547-1002.

Buyers beginning the journey to custom building second homes or retirement homes in Breckenridge will immediately notice the cutting-edge designs in our mountain luxury real estate, even green buildings. The annual Summit County Parade of Homes is like an art walk displaying impeccable details, loving workmanship, careful planning, coordination, and integration with our special Victorian mountain village and Breckenridge Ski Resort.

Sponsored by the Summit County Builders Association, this year’s Parade of Homes featured twelve marvelous examples of the exclusive mountain dream homes including the fabulous Breckenridge CO homes at 82 Victory Lane, 80 North Woods Lane, 230 Timberlane Circle, 182 Campion Trail. At the north end of town, Breckenridge homes at 159 Spalding Terrace, 1695 Highlands Drive, 155 Glen Eagle Loop, 0018 Buffalo Terrace, 798 Gold Run, 1184 Discovery Hill Drive, 146 Cottonwood Circle, and 299 Shores Lane were open.

The Summit County Builders Association (SCBA) is a nonprofit trade association representing more than 190 builder and associate members doing business in Summit County. The SCBA sponsors the top-of-the-line Parade of Homes and the Home & Outdoor Living Show, drawing people from all parts of the United States and the world to view new products, designs, trends, and innovative ideas.

Affiliated with the Colorado Association of Home Builders and the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), members receive exposure to the latest building standards and techniques, development opportunities, and insight into new trends, designs, and products. Members have the opportunity to participate in the annual Rocky Mountain Builder Conference in Beaver Creek where the NAHB offers certification courses such as “Green Building for Building Professionals” and to attend a wide variety of educational sessions to continually upgrade and stay on top of issues from legalities to sustainable building to business management.

SCBA also conducts charitable activities, donating to The Summit Foundation, a local central charity organization funding many programs and scholarship funds. The Summit County Builders Association has also donated used materials to victims of weather disasters in the United States.

Call Rick Allemang of RE/MAX Properties of the Summit at 970-547-1002 for information about building sites in both Summit County and Park County and existing new homes.

Located in Summit County Colorado, convenient to Keystone CO real estate and Park County CO ranches, Breckenridge CO second homes are solid investments in a popular area about 90 minutes from Denver.

Opening day ushers in the 2008-2009 season a bit early this year with all new terrain, lifts, and services. Although construction on Peak 8 is still in progress, Vail Resorts will host the grand opening festivities at One Ski Hill Place, new luxury Breckenridge real estate on Peak 8. Thanks to some cooler weather, snow-making machines began dressing up the mountain mid October.

The Resort and the Town of Breckenridge will be percolating with the annual Wake Up Breckenridge on Thursday morning when the Town’s leadership will distribute 1,500 free mugs and coffee at Starbucks, Clint’s Bakery & Coffee House, Cool River Coffee House, Helen’s Coffee Cart at City Market, Amazing Grace, Coffee Depot at Main Street Station, and Daylight Donuts.

By Thanksgiving, Peak 9 will be fully open along with all skier services at the village and Beaver Run base areas. By opening Peak 8 early, the Resort is able to offer new experiences on opening day including more open ski runs and lifts. Skiers and riders will have many more choices in terrain. Additionally, the mountain operations team is better able to prepare the mountain for the largest event ever: the AST Winter Dew Tour December 18-21. The Winter Dew Tour will feature freeskiing and snowboarding disciplines for both men and women.  Major television networks will be broadcasting the events.

Highly favored among out-of-state and international travelers, the Resort has been the most popular ski resort in North America for the last few years. From a base elevation at 9,600 feet to the summit at 12,998, there are 2,358 acres of skiable terrain including 155 runs. Over a third of the terrain is labeled “expert” but beginner and intermediate skiers find plenty of exciting runs to practice on.

Peak 8 is normally accessed from the Colorado SuperChair, Rocky Mountain SuperChair, as well as the Peak 8 SuperConnect. The lower terrain is intermediate and advanced. The back bowl can be accessed via 6 Chair or the T-Bar and the westernmost bowls with some very difficult terrain. Advanced skiers and riders hike from the top of the Imperial lift to Peak 8 to be challenged by cornices with soft landings. The Lake Chutes are a series of small chutes with inclines up to 50 degrees and can be reachable from the top of Peak 8.

For information about ski-in/ski-out and other real estate in the resort and surrounding mountain communities, contact Rick Allemang at 970-547-1002.

The 1st Annual Laughs & Lifts Comedy Festival features nationally touring stand-up comedians, movies, seminars, magic, and hypnosis all in good fun. Come on up and get in some belly laughs to the acts of Eddie Gossling of Comedy Central, Chuck Roy from Will and Grace, Denver’s Mile High Sci-Fi presenting The Terminator, Wrist Deep Productions underground comedy, Hypnotist Rusty-Z, and more.

Eddie Gossling’s humor comes from his life and his imagination of the place where the Wizard meets Hip-Hop. He’s been voted the Number 4 Best Special Ever Produced by Comedy Central.

Chuck Roy, host of Monolith Festival 2008, and DJ Klaw present DJ and the Bear with the Hot IQs and the Ideal Fathers described by SPIN Magazine as boasting “witty lyrics, shake-your-knee hooks, a hot female drummer and songs that make you want to dance through an avalanche.”

Denver’s Mile High Sci-Fi is a live comedy show with the movie, “The Terminator” running as the backdrop and the brunt of the jokes. Wrist Deep Productions is described by the Denver Post as, “Smart, aggressive stand-up that shatters expectations without spinning off into abstractions. One writer exclaims, I laughed so hard I couldn’t freaking breathe.”

Hypnotist Rusty-Z brings a unique combination of stand-up comedy and stage hypnosis to with his family friendly Stage Hypnosis Party. His mastery of rapid hypnotic inductions and his comedic background and groovy hipster stage presence makes for good clean fun. Eugene the Nerd playfully entertains audiences all over the United States and Europe for companies and celebrities using a family friendly combination of technology, magic, audience participation, and comedy. Apres Ski Party with MacDonald adds in a sparkling musical comedy show.

Exciting seminars held during the festival include Confident Skiing/Riding through Hypnosis, Easy Magic Tricks for the Family, and an industry roundtable on the Business of Comedy. And do not miss the competition featuring the final seven of Denver’s best new talents such as dick Black, Rob Gleeson, Jordan Zuckerman, Troy Walker, Nathan Lund, Erik Anker, and Ambera.

Admission to all shows is limited by the capacity of the rooms but special VIP seating is available at the four headlining shows. Pick up a 10-show Headliner pass for only $50 that is good for all shows Thursday through Saturday. A variety of tickets, passes, and packages are available at the laughsandlifts website.

For information about resort real estate to enjoy for years to come, call Rick Allemang of RE/MAX Properties of the Summit at 970-547-1002 Benefit from today’s low interest rates and realize your vacation dream home today.