Ski bikes are building traction on Colorado slopes

The reason Ryan Madsen is part of a small but growing cadre of ski bike enthusiasts on Colorado slopes isn’t very complicated, and he has a ready answer for anyone who asks.

“Because,” the 46-year-old Texan says, “I suck at skiing.”

He’s taken lessons plenty of times on his annual ski trips with family and friends, but never gotten the hang of it. When others would head for the lifts, he would find something else to do.

“They would always get up on the mountain and enjoy it,” Madsen said, “and the rest of us would just find a bar and drink.”

That changed three years ago at Breckenridge when Madsen noticed a business renting ski bikes and offering introductory tours. He gave one a try with a buddy and was hooked the first day.

“We spent maybe 30 minutes getting the how-to on everything,” Madsen said. “Before we knew it, we were on a blue (run), and after that, we were on a black — on the first day.”

Ski bikes are still only a tiny segment of the snow sports landscape, but the industry appears to be picking up some momentum. That’s partly because they are proving attractive to people with knees and backs that have some mileage on them, not to mention folks who appreciate a learning curve that often proves faster than for skiing and snowboarding.

Most Colorado ski areas allow them, including all four resorts in Summit County, the four Aspen Snowmass mountains, Vail and Beaver Creek, Crested Butte, Steamboat, Copper Mountain and Winter Park. The few that ban them tend to be small or mid-sized areas such as Loveland, Monarch, Sunlight and Wolf Creek.

Ski bikes got some unwelcome publicity earlier this month when a ski biker struck and injured two skiers at Keystone — one of them seriously — and fled the scene. The Summit County Sheriff found and cited a 50-year-old Louisiana man, according to news reports. The case has been sent to the Summit County DA’s office.

Patrick Neelan, chairman of the American SkiBike Association, said he was “unaware of any statistics” regarding ski-bike safety as compared to skiing and snowboarding.

“Because the market share is so small, it has not been studied,” Neelan said. “In my ski-biking career that goes back to 2007, this Keystone accident is the first time I’ve ever heard of someone else being injured by a ski bike.”

Adrienne Saia Isaac, spokeswoman for the Lakewood-based National Ski Areas Association, says the industry welcomes ski bikers to the slopes but stresses that they have the same responsibilities under the Colorado Ski Safety Act as skiers and snowboarders.

Tour guide Matt Barks, left, explains how to ride SnoGo SkiBikes at the ski resort in Winter Park on Friday, Jan. 19, 2024. (Photo by Hyoung Chang/The Denver Post)
Tour guide Matt Barks, left, explains how to ride SnoGo SkiBikes at the ski resort in Winter Park on Friday, Jan. 19, 2024. (Photo by Hyoung Chang/The Denver Post)

“The rules apply to all who slide, irrespective of how you do it,” Isaac said. “No matter what (gear) you’re on, you have a responsibility to stay on scene when an accident happens like that, and to stay in control. I’m hoping that one incident doesn’t tarnish the activity. If you’ve never been on any type of sliding equipment, we recommend you take a lesson so you can prepare yourself for riding and loading and unloading the lift safely, remaining in control, and making sure you’re on the appropriate terrain for your ability level.”

Katie Englen of Arvada, 35, did just that last week at Winter Park. She is coming back from foot surgery that put her in a boot for six months, and now she’s experiencing knee issues she suspects were caused by having spent so much time on crutches. She’s regained enough strength to have skinned up the mountain on skis before her ski bike lesson, but she has been thinking about diversifying her winter recreation.

“I’m hoping to find something that’s a little easier on the knees, for the long term,” Englen said.

Winter Park offers guided introductory and advanced ski bike tours using Sno-Go ski bikes, a leader in the industry. The Sno-Go design is actually a trike with one ski in the front and two in the back. They have handlebars, and riders lean into turns as they would while riding bicycles. They have hooks for hauling them up the mountain on chairlifts.

Englen took a three-hour tour last Friday and said she had a great time.

“I would definitely do it again,” Englen said. “I’d say it’s comparable to skiing, maybe a little easier. If you mountain bike, I think you’re going to pick it up pretty quickly. I wanted to diversify out of skiing, so when my knees are hurting, I have something else I can do on snow.”

Also taking the introductory class at Winter Park that day was Sharon Miller of Denver, 55. She’s a former Division I basketball player who suffered a hyper-extended knee two seasons ago when she was struck by another skier who grabbed and pulled her down. She’s been trying to strengthen that knee, but it’s still not back to normal. After noticing increasing numbers of ski bikes on the slopes, she researched brands, bought a Sno-Go and signed up for the Winter Park tour.

“It was awesome,” Miller said. “I would recommend that tour to anybody. I loved the low impact. And once you get the hang of it, that you’re not steering the bike, that you’re just leaning, it’s a whole different feeling. I had so much fun, I don’t think I’ll get back to skiing. I think this is going to be it for me.”

Ian Hunter of Denver, left, and Diego Montemayor of Phoenix, right, learn how to make turns with SnoGo SkiBike Tours at the ski resort in Winter Park on Friday, Jan. 19, 2024. (Photo by Hyoung Chang/The Denver Post)
Ian Hunter of Denver, left, and Diego Montemayor of Phoenix, right, learn how to make turns with SnoGo SkiBike Tours at the ski resort in Winter Park on Friday, Jan. 19, 2024. (Photo by Hyoung Chang/The Denver Post)

Winter Park is home to one of 17 official Sno-Go Ride Centers around the country where people can try them out, and the only one in Colorado. Winter Park instructors conduct the tours out of the resort’s Adventure & Supply Co, where they also offer guided uphilling, snowshoeing and scenic snowcat rides. The Sno-Go tours, introductory and advanced, last three hours and cost $99.

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