KEYSTONE – Skiers and riders logged 13,513,336 vertical feet at Keystone Resort on Friday’s opening day.

The radio frequency chip in each of Vail Resorts’ ski passes logs each skier’s and rider’s vertical feet and tallies it as a resort total.

To celebrate, the company is pooling $1 for every 30,000 vertical feet recorded at the resorts – Vail, Breckenridge, Beaver Creek, Keystone and Heavenly mountains – into a cash giveaway for one randomly selected guest set for Dec. 29. With Keystone’s opening day total, the prize value is “already up to $450,” Keystone spokesman Ryan Whaley said.

It caps at $100,000, “but with five resorts capturing in the near future, we’ll be there soon,” he added. Guests are automatically entered into the drawing when they activate their Epic Mix account between when the application goes live (sometime between Thanksgiving and Christmas) and Dec. 28. Learn more at http://www.epicmix.com.

Though the application isn’t live, guests’ vertical feet and days skied are still being tallied, and that information should be loaded on the account when it’s activated, as well as any special commemorative pins already earned. When the application is launched, guests can share their accomplishments with family and friends.

While Keystone officials are feeling good about the opening weekend turnout, the vibes at Copper Mountain – which also opened Friday – are also good.

“This year’s opening day was amazing,” Copper spokesman David Roth said. “Great conditions, awesome weather, fun apres events, good time had by all.

“The vibe on opening day, especially this one for whatever reason, is incredibly positive. It is the start of a new season filled with joy, powder days, and fun with family and friends.”

SDN reporter Janice Kurbjun can be contacted at (970) 668-4630 or at jkurbjun@summitdaily.com.