This ad isn’t creepy at all.

So came across this in the Denver Craigslist edition. Free lift tickets to Aspen. What’s the catch? There is none as far we can tell. And get this, they’re going to provide all the booze you can handle. Don’t even worry about blacking out…

Welcome to Interstate 70.

You would think that Interstate 70, Colorado’s most crowded winter highway, would be okay on a Monday afternoon. You would be wrong. Two big pileups involving more than 50 vehicles closed down the road for most of the afternoon. And to think, I almost went to Vail this morning to go riding…

Wait a minute? It’s illegal to resell your lift ticket? Surely, they don’t mean parking lot sales where you hook up a fellow ski bum an afternoon of riding for $20. Here’s what Park City wants to do to you monsters:

City Hall attorneys who crafted the language want violations to be class B misdemeanors, a wide-ranging level of offense that includes cases like a typical drunken driving charge. Class B misdemeanors are punishable by up to six months in jail and a $1,000 fine.

The law would be in effect within Park City limits and would focus straight up on parking lots:

The report says a law would target people who are selling lift tickets in the parking lots at the mountain resorts. It says the online selling of lift tickets on the secondary market is not seen as the key concern.

So, Craigslist?

This is rad. Snowbird opened up a bunch of terrain for snowcat tours.

Snowbird Snowcat Skiing for Nature is a guided backcountry ski experience in the previously unaccessed Mary Ellen, lower Mineral Basin and Miller Hill areas south and east of Snowbird Ski and Summer Resort. Half-day tours are available for groups as large as 10 people or may be purchased on an individual basis.

It’s $300 bucks for a half day which includes a lift ticket and lunch. Not recommended for boarders because of some short hikes. See more at the Snowbird site.

Not a Vermont ski area, but whatever, you get the point.

Lawmakers in Vermont have been haggling over whether to impose a $500 fine on riders that duck ropes and then need to be rescued. It looks like for now that the bill has been shelved. Here’s a great quote:

“If we start criminalizing what we all think is dumb, we’d have an endless avalanche of legislation,” said Sen. Joe Benning, R-Caledonia.

“Snowboarding is one of the most deceiving sports of all. Pros like Gretchen Bleiler make it look so easy, but making it down the mountain in one piece requires a rock-solid core, flexibility, agility, and the ability to quickly adapt to unpredictable terrain. Honing all of those skills without spending hours in the gym every day requires a smart training plan.”

Yep. Hours in the gym. That’s definitely how I spend my day and not watching videos of Gretchen Bleiler in tight clothes.

Okay, snowboarding isn’t dead, not even close, but some dude released a report that suggested it’s on a major decline. This led to a media flurry spouting on about the end of days for snowboarding. According to the headlines below, the loss in popularity can be blamed on lost mojo, fancy new school skiing gear, and your parents.

The New York Times: Has Snowboarding Lost Its Edge?  

“Snowboarding lost some of its mojo around 2005, 2006, and we’ve been running on fumes since then,” Mr. Fristoe said. “It’s like any kind of trend: It’s full of all sorts of energy … until it isn’t.”

Seattle Times: Snowboarding craze fades, skiing becomes cool again

The once-hip, ultra-extreme sport for rebels may have lost its lure when Mom and Dad began snowboarding a few years ago.

LA Times: Snowboarding craze cools as new designs make skiing easier

The popularity of snowboarding is declining partly because many older people are shifting to new, easier-to-ride skis. Youths are also embracing skiing.

Time Magazine: Snowboarding May Have Reached Its Peak

Snowboarding is no longer new, no longer extreme, and—now that your mom knows how to ride—no longer quite as cool. No wonder snowboard sales and snowboarder visits at mountain resorts are on the decline.

You just stepped out of the gondola into a strong wind at the peak. It’s cold and you’re weighing whether to drop into that powdery black diamond chute you’ve always dreamt of…or sliding down the nearest blue for hot cider at the base.

• Alyeska Resort – AK
• Aspen Highlands – CO
• Aspen Mountain – CO
• Attitash Mountain Resort – NH
• Big Sky Resort – MT
• Big White Ski Resort – BC
• Breckenridge Ski Resort – CO
• Brighton – UT
• Buttermilk – CO
• Copper Mountain – CO
• Crested Butte Mountain Resort – CO
• Deer Valley Resort – UT
• Granite Gorge – NH
• Heavenly Mountain Resort – CA
• Jackson Hole Mountain Resort – WY
• Lake Louise Ski Area – AB
• Mammoth Mountain – CA
• Mount Bachelor – OR
• Mount Shasta – CA
• Okemo Mountain Resort – VT
• Panorama Mountain Village – BC
• Park City Mountain Resort – UT
• Revelstoke Mountain Resort – BC
• Schweitzer Mountain Resort – ID
• Sierra-at-Tahoe Resort – CA
• Snowbasin – UT
• Snowmass – CO
• Squaw Valley – CA
• Steamboat Ski Resort – CO
• Stowe Mountain Resort – VT
• Sugar Bowl Resort – CA
• Sun Valley Resort – ID
• Telluride Ski Resort – CO
• Vail Mountain – CO
• Whistler Blackcomb – BC
• Wildcat Mountain – NH
• Winter Park Resort – CO