Officials from Vail Resorts and the U.S. Forest Service dig up some wet dirt Thursday morning at the top of the new McCoy Park area at Beaver Creek. From left are Bill Kennedy, Carl Orlowski, Kyle Griffith, Gary Shimanowitz, Nadia Guerriero, Leanne Veldhuis, Carl Eaton, Dan Ramker and Addy McCord. Guerriero, Beaver Creek’s chief operating officer, got to hold on to her gold shovel as a keepsake.
Vail Resorts/Special to the Daily
Beaver Creek and U.S. Forest Service officials broke ground Thursday on the ski area’s new McCoy Park project, a 250-acre expansion of lift-served terrain that will include two new quads and 17 new trails.
John LaConte/jlaconte@vaildaily.com
BEAVER CREEK With wildlife closures expiring for the season Thursday, Beaver Creek began work on the ski area’s expansion of lift-served terrain in the area of the resort known as McCoy Park.
Beaver Creek Chief Operating Officer Nadia Guerriero said the earliest of the crews got to work during the 4 a.m. hour, as time is of the essence on the project.
“We’re putting in two quad lifts, 17 new trails, building a warming hut, building compostable toilets, a pit toilet down at the bottom of the chairlift for employees, so there’s a lot to do,” Guerriero said. “We’ve been spending a ton of time planning and getting everything situated and ready to go, so we were ready to hit the ground running this morning.”
July 1, 2021, 9:39 pm
From left to right, Gary Shimanowitz, Nadia Guerriero, Eagle-Holy Cross District Ranger Leanne Veldhuis, Carl Eaton and Dan Ramker, director of mountain operations at Beaver Creek (David O. Williams photo).
Beaver Creek on Thursday broke ground on a 250-acre expansion of beginner and intermediate ski terrain high atop the mountain with expansive views of the Sawatch and Gore Mountain ranges.
Its new McCoy Park terrain will include two new quad lifts, 17 new alpine skiing trails and a smaller network of Nordic trails. In all, the expansion, which will be open for the 2021-22 ski season, takes Beaver Creek up to 2,082 skiable alpine acres, 25 lifts and 167 trails.
Chris Dillmann/cdillmann@vaildaily.com
The longest year. The hardest year. Whatever you want to call it, 2020 has been a year unlike any in our lifetimes, and the impacts from a global public health crisis a century in the making will be lasting.
COVID-19 reshaped our world and left us grieving for lives lost, jobs lost and businesses shuttered. Lockdowns and closures of local schools and ski resorts tested our stamina. We kept loved ones at a distance and sacrificed beloved traditions and gatherings for the greater good.
Nearly 350,000 Americans have died from the virus as of this writing. More than 3,400 Eagle County residents have gotten the virus, and 14 have died from it.