1 year ago: Dry spell limits Summit County ski trail openings

Terrain expansions have slowed for local ski areas following a weeklong dry spell that began after the Christmas holiday. This comes after the state hit the 8th percentile for its snowpack, which is generally about 60-70% percent of the 30-year median for snow water levels, due to the lack of snowstorms hitting the Rocky Mountains. Keystone Resort planned to open three trails, Breckenridge Ski Resort readied one new run, Copper Mountain Resort prepared to open a few terrain parks and Loveland Ski Area opened one additional run. Arapahoe Basin Ski Area’s reported total open terrain had decreased by 4% in the week between Dec. 27, 2023, and Jan. 3, 2024.

— From the Jan. 5, 2024, edition of the Summit Daily News

5 years ago: County sheriff’s office to get dedicated traffic units

The Summit County Sheriff’s Office is getting a couple new deputies in 2020 to help address community concerns regarding traffic enforcement around the county. In December 2019, the Summit Board of County Commissioners signed off on two new deputies that will work solely as dedicated traffic enforcement units for the sheriff’s office, a move officials hope will help to make roadways safer and put the minds of anxious citizens at ease.

— From the Jan. 2, 2020, edition of the Summit Daily News

10 years ago: Former Silverthorne mayor dies in house fire

The Summit County Coroner’s Office confirmed that the victim of a Jan. 2, 2015, house fire in Silverthorne, 81-year-old Warren Alloway, died shortly after he was brought to St. Anthony Summit Medical Center. Alloway was a resident of Silverthorne for nearly 60 years and was the town’s first full-time mayor, between 1968 and 1976. Around 1 p.m., authorities received a report of smoke coming from a house at 914 Blue River Parkway. The first firefighting team to enter the building found Alloway unconscious. The team removed him from the building and immediately began performing CPR. He was then transported to Summit Medical Center. By 2:30 p.m., the fire was completely contained.

— From the Jan. 3, 2015, edition of the Summit Daily News

15 years ago: Ski-parachuter crashes on Quandary Peak

A 40-year-old Michigan man suffered a compound leg fracture on Quandary Peak and was assisted off the mountain on Dec. 29, 2009. The man and a companion hiked to the top of Quandary and began “speed gliding” — a hybrid of skiing and paragliding that involves a small parachute attached to a skier, which allows them to lift off the ground intermittently — down the mountain. The man’s companion successfully sailed to the bottom of the peak along the south side of the mountain, but his parachute quickly “lost wind” and sent him crashing to some rocks near the summit.

— From the Dec. 29, 2009, edition of the Summit Daily News

125 years ago: Frisco residents enjoy many holiday festivities

The days around Christmas were quietly spent by Friscoites entertaining friends in and out of town. A Christmas tree adorned every house that had a child and that evening James Myers gathered up any willing dancers from the vicinity and brought them on a sleigh ride to Dillon and back, before retiring to the town hall and dancing until the “wee small hours” of the night. The next day, Mrs. Meyers gave a party in honor of her son, which included music, food and an hour of charades. At the end of the week, on Dec. 30, 1899, several residents took a sleigh ride to the Excelsior Mine to attend a dance hosted by Mrs. Borstadt, the landlady of the mine’s boarding house. The evening of New Year’s Day saw young and old enjoy the first dance of the year at the town hall.

— From the Jan. 6, 1900, edition of the Summit County Journal