Opening dates announced for five Colorado resorts

With temperatures dropping into the lower 70s next week, Vail Resorts has announced tentative opening dates for its five Colorado ski resorts.

Keystone’s snowmakers are targeting “mid-October, pending early-season conditions,” according to a news release. Breckenridge is scheduled for Nov. 7 and Vail for Nov. 14. Beaver Creek and Crested Butte are set for Nov. 26. Thanksgiving this year falls on Nov. 27.

Like Keystone, officials at Arapahoe Basin, Loveland and Winter Park say they will open as soon as conditions allow. Last year, Arapahoe Basin and Keystone opened Nov. 2, with Breckenridge and Winter Park following on Nov. 8. Loveland opened on Nov. 9. Arapahoe Basin and Keystone typically open in October.

Copper Mountain will focus early-season snowmaking operations on preparing a race course that will welcome the world’s best alpine racers — including Colorado’s Mikaela Shiffrin, the winningest ski racer in history — for World Cup races Nov. 27-30. That’s only 71 days before the Winter Olympics begin in Italy on Feb. 6. The women will race slalom and giant slalom at Copper, while the men will race giant slalom and super-G.

The following week, Beaver Creek will host four days of men’s World Cup races, including two downhills, a super-G and a giant slalom.

— John Meyer, The Denver Post

Biplane goes off runway

A single-engine biplane went off a runway at Centennial Airport on Friday morning, leaving no injuries but damaging the aircraft.

As the pilot landed, the plane went off the runway and ended up on its nose, said Samantha Blymyer, the spokeswoman for Centennial Airport.

South Metro Fire Rescue reported “an aircraft emergency” about 8:50 a.m. at the regional airport.

SMFR officials later posted a photo of the plane, saying “one soul on board with no injuries.” Crews also mitigated a small fuel leak, according to the post.

A rescue team later righted the plane and returned it to its owner.

— Elliott Wenzler, The Denver Post