And Then There Were Three

Taos Opens Lifts to Snowboarders

By Carson Bennett, 3-24-08

	Nothing But Love, Baby

It finally happened. One of the last remaining skiers-only strongholds has fallen. Now only three mountains, Deer Valley and Alta in Utah, and Mad River Glen in Vermont still ban snowboarders. On Wednesday, March 19, 2008, Taos Ski Valley opened its lifts to our single-planked brethren.

We’ve been talking about it on this blog since the season began and the folks at Taos announced their plan to allow boarders in March. Skiers were stunned. The announcement was the only subject of conversation at Taos on December 14. At the top of every run: “Those boarders are going to completely f*** up this run.” On the lifts: “Enjoy the smooth ride now. Snowboarders don’t know how to ride a chair without either jamming up the bottom or falling off the top.” Hiking the ridge: “Patrol is going to have to watch out for boarders up here. They can’t do this steep stuff. They’re just going to hurt themselves.” In the bar: “When the boarders get here, this place is going to be too crowded and noisy.” And on and on.

I have to admit, I didn’t know what to expect. There has been a lot of tension between my skier friends and my snowboarder friends over the last few months. My snowboarder friends telling me they were going to “pull some wicked shit” that would make me realize how much better snowboarding is. My skier friends telling me that they would either not be there on the 19th, or they “wouldn’t take any crap” from the younger, rowdier, more confrontational contingent of snowsports enthusiasts. I didn’t know which side to be on. I hoped for peace and tranquility on opening day, but didn’t expect it.

I knew it was going to be busy (as it was spring break and skiers and snowboarders in Texas, Oklahoma, and Kansas embarked on a mass exodus, filling Colorado and New Mexico ski areas to the brim) but I didn’t expect the parking lot to be nearly full an hour and a half before first chair. I didn’t expect the base area to be packed shoulder to shoulder, like a college house party, with snowboarders and skiers alike. I also didn’t expect to see faces full of unadulterated joy. But this is what I found.

The Burton snowboarding company (formally an antagonist of Taos Ski Valley, offering $5000 to snowboarders for the best poaching video) showed their new appreciation for Taos by setting up tents, assisting with snowboard rentals and lessons. 78 year old Sherman Poppen, the inventor of the snowboard, was on site rallying the troops. When chair one jumped to life, snowboarders held their boards aloft, cheers rippled through the crowd in waves for the next thirty minutes straight. Skiers and snowboarders, many of whom were locals from Taos, Santa Fe, and Albuquerque, rode the lifts together.

As I expected, most of the weekend warrior boarders spent their time in the terrain park, while a few big mountain boarders relished the hikeable terrain. But I also expected fistfights in the lift lines, or trash talking at the very least. What I found was a bunch of young boarders checking out the mountain, respecting the skiers and vice-versa, just happy to be there. We’ll have to wait to see what happens next season, when snowboarders will be on the mountain from day one, but for now it seems boarders and skiers will peacefully coexist at Taos Ski Valley.

Which mountain will fall next?

Like this story? Get more! Sign up for our free newsletters.

Like to receive our print magazine, The New West? Click here for free subscription information.