Minturn Mile
It Used To Be The Secret Spot. No matter what kind of snowboarding you do, how old you are, where you are from, how much money you make, how many days you have on your pass and all the other possibilities that would differentiate you from everybody else, we all snowboard because we love it and think it’s fun.
Every mountain has a few secret spots that the locals call their own. Sometimes the secret spot is so much fun and has been around for so long that it's no longer a secret, and that's what happened to the Minturn Mile in Minturn Colorado.
Even though I’m probably going to get a bunch of crap for the info, in this article I’m going to tell you how to get there. You might already know and will agree that the mile is one of those runs that anyone can do.
The more comfortable you are on your board the more fun you will have. It can take you fifteen minutes or it can take you four hours , a few friends from Minturn can’t hurt either. For all the SBX fans the mile is a natural boarder cross run, compressions , banks , jumps , speed even a small creek to jump over, racing your friends to the bottom and avoiding all the gapers on cell phones on some of the corners make it a very interesting run in the middle of March. I’ve ollied over some skiers begging for mercy.
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On a powder day it can be an amazing experience with an open face, waist deep powder and a few rocks to jump. Don’t forget, even though it’s not a dangerous place it is an out of bounds area and ski patrol is not going to give you a ride if you change your mind half way. So if you are ever in Vail this is how to get there. Ah just kidding, I can't tell you how to get there. I owe it to the MM (Minturn Malitia) but once you have found your way , there’s a lot of ways to go, this is the easiest , keep your skiers right almost hugging the rope and enjoy the wonderful powder that due to wind conditions seems to fix itself every night for a wonderful ride even if it hasn’t snowed in a while.
After the powder field you want to cross the creek with out getting stuck so keep your speed and ollie over it, the compression there can be evil. Some trees waiting for you still with good snow and then just follow the path and enjoy the luge. Remember you can’t ride the gully!!!
You can get stuck, for us snowboarders , there’s a few spot where you will have to skate if you don’t have the right wax or if you are the first one to do it . It’s always good to wait until the afternoon if you have never done it before. Once you are in Minturn don’t forget to stop by the Minturn Saloon and have some drinks the way John Wayne used to. Say hello to Bruce and J. Sample for me , tip them well. Oh yeah bring some cash for the bus back to Vail.
Gel
