Telluride, Colorado — A part of the argument made against Telluride Ski Resort during the strike turned out to be not true.
Before the strike commenced, an unnamed elected official told the Telluride Times that the ski resort’s plan to hire workers to cover for striking ski patrollers had been rejected by the US Forest Service. The town official was reportedly told this by workers at the ski resort. In response, a spokesperson for the ski resort rejected that claim. Since the ski resort is on public land, it needed to obtain approval for an updated operating plan.
As shown by a public records request (through FOIA) submitted by the Telluride Times, the plan had actually been accepted by the US Forest Service on December 26th. This explains why Telluride was able to operate at limited capacity after the strikes began.
Operations were planned to be limited to Lifts 1 and 4. More lift openings were possible from there, but would have required ski patrollers to cross the picket line or acquire additional workers.
The approved plan was to find 24-30 workers to replace the ski patrollers. These “qualified individuals” would include ski school workers with zipline experience and backup medical response. There was also the consideration to work with the Montrose Regional Hospital “to contract with qualified health providers who will provide on-mountain first aid and emergency medical response.”
Avalanche mitigation would be provided by experienced professionals, including the ski resort’s snow safety manager (who remained active during the strike). Future lift openings from there would have needed more qualified workers.
Starting on January 5th, Telluride operated during a portion of the ski patrol strike. However, this was limited to Lift 1 and a few surface lifts. The strike ended on January 8th, which led to a gradual reopening of other terrain pods.
Chuck Vs. Telluride
It’s the latest revealed mistake by local officials in their feud with TelSki owner Chuck Horning. Horning’s outspoken personality has clashed with locals since he bought the ski resort in 2003. During the strike, two local officials traveled to Horning’s place in Southern California to present him with a deal that would have affluent locals take over a portion of the ski resort’s equity. Horning eventually rejected it and likely helped leak details about the meeting’s questionable nature to the press. This resulted in resignations from officials in the Towns of Telluride and Mountain Village.
Image/Video Credits: Telluride Ski Resort, Alpine Lodging Telluride
