Wednesday, May 24

The Last Day

By Derek Taylor

It was called crazy by some, genius by others. Neither side disputes that, even in its ninth year, it is still the best deal in skiing. Since 1991, Crested Butte Mountain Resort (CBMR) has lured visitors during traditionally slow periods, by offering free lift passes. But you know what they say about all good things, and on a sunny Colorado spring day, this one also came to an end. On April 16, to little fan-fare, Crested Butte gave away its last no-strings-attached free lift ticket.

The day marked the end of an era, an era that saw Crested Butte grow from an obscure ski area at the end of the road in the wilds of Western Colorado, to national notoriety. The free lift ticket promotion was part of that rise, as were other marketing schemes, like hosting the Winter X Games, as well as the US Extreme Skiing and Snowboarding Championships. But some of Crested Buttes greatest exposure came not from the marketing department, but for the locals unique way of celebrating the last day of the season. Somewhere in the history of Crested Butte, it became tradition to ski the last day without a stitch. But while the free skiing promotion witnessed a demise many locals will argue was overdue, the hay-day of skiing naked around here passed a couple of years before.

Naked Day: From Woodstock, to Woodstock 2000 in Four Short Years

What started as random streaking, with clothes stashed in a backpack for a quick day-ending flashing run, exploded in the spring of 1994. A dismal snow year, that had locals grinding their teeth in frustration, led to a premature closing of the resort. People who werent able to let loose on their skis all season, used the last day to let loose of much more. Rather than the few random streakers, Crested Butte Mountain Resort became a veritable nudist colony with naked skiers riding lifts, hobbling around on decks in nothing but their ski boots, and even bellying up to the bar at various on mountain restaurants.

The event garnered attention right away, as an array of national publications, from Powder to Playboy, began to bill Crested Butte as the place America goes to ski naked. That reputation, coupled with free lift tickets, was like an open invitation to every frat-boy exhibitionist within a days drive to come let it hang.

Though Crested Butte Mountain Resort never sanctioned Naked Day, banning nudity from all lifts and resort-owned restaurants almost immediately, the reputation stuck, and the mass appeal of the last day snowballed. Naked Day at Crested Butte started getting play on Denver newscasts and magazine shows, a slew of amateur pornographers ogled through the lenses of digital cameras. By 1997, Naked Day had blossomed into a full blown MTV-style bender with Juliana Hatfield playing on the Rafters deck for thousands of giggling fanssome clothed, others notraging throughout the base area.

In 1998 the volatile mixture of free skiing and free peep shows almost erupted. Hoping to keep the spring-break atmosphere in check, the Mt. Crested Butte Marshals office made its presence felt early, sending undercover officers to bust traditionally low-key, locals-only shop keggers, and writing tickets for open containers and illicit substances. While this tactic may have made perfect policy sense, especially in a state where the police have a reputation for starting riots (see the 1999 CU/CSU football game, or the Broncos two Super Bowl victories), in reality, it made the situation worse. The busted keggers spilled into already crowded bars, and when out-of-town revelers began hurling bottles to protest liquor and marijuana citations, the local police found few allies among the alienated residents still in attendance.

Amazingly, the scene never erupted. In response to the bottle throwing, several bars were shut down, but even more importantly, the sun eventually dipped behind the mountains, and leaving the party to dissipate into various warmer, indoor climes. Still the damage was done; in the two years since, no CBMR drinking establishment has opened for the last day. The era, in which Crested Butte hosted the most kickin end of the season bash, officially came to a close that April day in 1998.

2000: A Town Returns to Normal

The word hasnt reached everyone, and lingering stories of final days past still lure the media to town, looking for a party. This year at least one cable network came, dragging about a half-dozen Playboy Playmates with them. But when they got here, they found a ghost town. The deck of Rafters, where Hatfield jammed just three years ago, was as empty as a school cafeteria on the first day of summer. Signs at the top of Warming House Hill warned potential nudists that they were entering the resorts liquor license area and that nudity was forbidden. Simply put, the party they came for no longer exists.

What are you going to say? quipped one local when she found out I was writing about Crested Buttes last day. That you went to Crested Butte for the last day and nothing happened? That we misbehaved, and now were all grounded?

Only its not like nothing happened. Its just that, after a decade of being the center of attention, this small, remote town has reverted back in to its own valley. The party that once dominated the base area, and the gossip pages of more than a few ski rags, has scattered to various locations on the hill. People gathered at the Paradise and Twister Warming Houses, even if they were closed, to drain backpacks full of beer. Others sipped martinis at the base of Headwall, and watched as Crested Buttes deep talent base flashed their favorite lines for the last time this season. The Chinese Downhill, an underground event where skiers and snowboarders meet on the peak at a pre-determined time, and race a no rules, no-boundaries speed run to the bottom of the East River lift, saw its second running. Festive locals once again donned crazy costumes, and public nudity regressed to a few isolated glimpses.

And perhaps most significantly, CBMRs open invitation to come check out the mountain for the last two weeks of the season was extended for the last time. (Well replace it with something, says CBMR marketing director Gina Kroft of the free pass promotion. Most likely something with a lodging contingency.) The promotion was so successful, the resort outgrew it, just like the hedonistic end-of-the-season celebration it once hosted, has out grown the resort.

Nothing happened? To the contrary, on Palm Sunday, 2000, after a decade of sanctioned free loading, and public free-ballin, Crested Butte returned to normal.