Annual SKI Magazine's rankings

SUMMIT COUNTY - Three Summit County resorts ranked in the top half of SKI Magazine's annual Reader Resort Survey this year.

Breckenridge Ski Resort was the only local ski area to break the top 10, coming in at number seven, down a spot from last year.

Copper Mountain jumped five spots in the poll landing at number 14 out of 30, matching its highest rank ever, which was first set in 1993.

Readers touted Copper Mountain for its naturally-divided terrain and laid-back atmosphere.

Copper Mountain spokesperson Lauren Pelletreau attributed the resort's improvement in the minds of SKI Magazine readers to ongoing improvements at the mountain and the resort's dedication

"Some of the major events we've hosted over the years, the Gravity Games and the U.S. Freeskiing Open (which returns on Feb. 1 next year) only helps to bring Copper into the light and into the general minds of consumers and writers at SKI ... Magazine," Pelletreau said.

Keystone also improved its ranking this year, rising from number 14 to 11.

Readers highlighted Keystone's terrain park, tree skiing, night skiing and convenience to Denver as its best attributes.

"I think ... the three-spot jump for Keystone represents a lot of hard work, a lot of time and effort put into listening to guest feedback and developing a strategy that is working, and there's been a lot momentum and a lot of energy and buzz about Keystone not only in the magazines but more importantly in the marketplace and locally," resort spokeswoman Amy Kemp said.

SKI Magazine readers also ranked Keystone's A-51 Terrain Park number 6 and Breck's park came in third. Breckenridge also garnered top 10 mentions for off-hill activities and aprés ski.

Loveland Ski Area gained the top mention for value, while Arapahoe Basin came in fourth in that category. Loveland and Copper Mountain both ranked in the top 10 for access.

Readers voted Vail Mountain 2nd overall behind Utah's Deer Valley and Beaver Creek came in eighth.

Twelve of Colorado's 26 ski areas made it into this year's survey.



Nicole Formosa can be reached at (970) 668-4629, or at nformosa@summitdaily.com.