December 7, 2023 | SPORTS | By Nolan Diffley & Anya Potsiadlo
“Noses are red, toenails are blue, winter is here, you skied at Copper? No way, me too!”
While this isn’t really a conversation that we overheard in Rastall’s Café, it certainly could have been included in a musical reenactment of our daily lunchroom eavesdropping. Last weekend, we saw many Colorado College students hitting the mountains for the first time this winter, so we sat down with a few of them to bring you the inside scoop on the stories that shaped the slopes.
There was no easier task in this project than finding kids who went to Copper Mounain, an Ikon resort located over two hours northwest of campus, last weekend. In fact, we didn’t even have to get up from our seats at the library, where we summoned a passing-by Copper skier, Emma Leschly ’26.
“I skied with my bestest friends in the world,” said Leschly, who chose Copper above other mountains because it had the most runs open, admitting that she, “wanted a little more extra speed” than the only green-trail lineup offered by other mountains.
Leschly, however, admitted that even she had her limits saying, “sometimes I get tired and have to go slow.” She was accompanied on Copper Mountain by the CC Freeride team of which Leschly is co-chair.
Joining Leschly on the slopes was Dillon Fowle ’27, who could be identified by his signature pit viper sunglasses, a later regretted fashion over function decision that rendered his eyes useless against the treacherous winds which characterized Copper’s conditions last weekend.
“It was very windy, so some top layer snow got blown off a little bit,” Fowle said. “There were a couple icy spots but, as an East Coast native, I handled it very well.” With this confident report from both Leschly and Fowle, we look forward to seeing their performance going into this competition season.
Next up we did some investigation on Winter Park, located two and a half hours northwest of campus. With notably less CC representation, we turned to Grey Rager ’26, who justified his choice of resort by shouting out his friend, Nate Barsanti ’26, who rallied a group around a Winter Park trip for his birthday.
Rager attributes his skiing expertise to the Mid Atlantic’s own world-renowned Liberty Mountain. While its name certainly evokes less of a patriotic spirit, Rager was appreciative of Winter Park’s comparatively superior conditions. As he reminisced about his favorite run, which reportedly offered two feet of fresh powder, he wistfully remarked on how, “every time you fell over, it was like you were falling into bed.”
On the drive back, Rager likely wished it washis bed, as the reportedly “treacherous” winds transformed the usual two-hour drive into a grueling four-hour journey.
The only group that seems to have avoided the wind was one that included Oliver Churchill ’27, who is already making great use of his Ikon pass, hitting Steamboat Springs Resort on Saturday and Sunday, then inventing a long weekend due to a reported “Snow-in” on Monday which he took full advantage of.
“Because there was only one run open and it would get skied out really fast, we would try and wake up really early and get first chair and then leave around 1[p.m.],” Churchill said.
Part of their efficient strategy also included opting out of overpriced lodge food and instead filling their pockets with ski-lift-lunches brought from home. As for the quality of those meals, Churchill said, “it kind of got worse as time went on,” which is understandable, considering that they ate sandwiches from Rastall’s on the first day – a favorite of many.
Finally, we spoke with Caden Fuchs ’27, who went with a large crew of other freshmen to Eldora Resort. If you’re hoping to say “hi” to Fuchs on the mountain, just look for someone who may describe himself as “just the fastest snowboarder on the f***ing slopes.”
This, however, could not be said if Fuchs’s 12-year-old self were to make an appearance, as he graciously admitted, “I’m worse than I was when I was 12.”
When discussing his overall experience at Eldora, Fuchs endorsed Diamondback as the best run of the day, although he later backpedaled, saying, “That was the only run that I remember, I don’t even know if it was the best one.” Best or not, there’s something to be said about being memorable.
“The mountains are calling, and I must go,” said John Muir. According to our enthusiastic conversations with CC skiers and snowboarders, we predict that this sentiment will continue to be echoed in what many are predicting will be a season for the books.