Arapahoe Basin Ski Area

History:

Arapahoe Basin was diversified from Vail Resorts, Inc. in August 1997. Dundee Resort Development, a subsidiary of Dream Unlimited Corporation ("Dream) of Toronto, Canada acquired A-Basin.

Dream has made improvements to the ski area, keeping its technology up-to-date without compromising its local feel. A snowmaking system, installed in 2002, helped A-Basin become the first ski area to open in the nation for both the 06/07 and the 07/08 seasons.  An environmentally friendly warming hut and ski patrol headquarters were constructed in 2004. The chairlift at Lenawee was replaced in 2005 as to efficiently move more skiers and riders to the summit. In 05/06, a new snowsports building was constructed in the base area, housing lessons, rentals and a tune shop. A new mid-mountain restaurant, Black Mountain Lodge, was opened in the spring of 2007 and new deck was added in the summer of 2008.

In January of 2008, Arapahoe Basin expanded by 80 percent with the addition of Montezuma Bowl on the backside of the mountain. This expansion was the biggest terrain expansion in North America in 2008. A $1.2 million parking expansion and reconfiguration took place in the summer of 2008 which included a pedestrian tunnel under Highway 6,300 additional parking spaces and a new shuttle bus system to transport guests from the upper parking lot to the base area.

In 2010, A-Basin began construction on a new detachable quad chairlift, the Black Mountain Express. The lift replaced the Exhibition fixed grip triple chair located in the base area which was installed in 1978. The Black Mountain Express has a capacity of 2000 people per hour, a length of 2877 feet, a vertical rise of 719 feet and cost approximately $4 million. The ride time from the base to mid-mountain is just under three minutes, half the time of the old Exhibition lift ride.