Breckenridge discount ski vacation condo

On a Colorado mountain sits a blue spruce tree loaded with Mardi Gras beads. Skiiers drop the beads from the Thunderhead Express ski lift at Steamboat Ski Area in Steamboat Springs to the tree below. Beads aren't the only things hanging from its branches. Silky bras and lace panties catch each gust of wind, too.

Colorado ski trips have become a Mardi Gras tradition for many Baton Rougeans who want a break from the parades and throw-me-something-mister festivities of South Louisiana.

They pack up the spouse and kids, bags of frozen gumbo and jambalaya, rent a condominium close to the slopes and spend a few days in mad dashes up mountains--and back down--in an effort to get the most out of a brief time with snow.

What they lack in skiing finesse and fitness they more than make up for with an uncanny ability to "laissez les bon temps roulez" in Rocky Mountain night spots that now throb with Mardi Gras music during Carnival time.

One town, Snowmass, welcomes Louisianans with its very own parade on Mardi Gras day.

Those who make the pilgrimage from Baton Rouge are passionate about the sport. They spend more than a little money on equipment, lodging, dining, drinks and ski lessons.

It's worth every cent, they say. Colorado ski vacations are a blast. One sweet swoop down a mountain, and you're hooked.

Want to give it a slide? Here's a breakdown of what you're in for.

Head over heels

Michael Mauldin will always remember the first time he went skiing. He came home covered in bruises and cursing the sport.

"I went on a ski trip to a place called Round Top, Pa.," says Mauldin, an attorney and partner with Jones Walker law firm. "They had no snow, and they had to make snow with a snow machine. I, of course, was on the "bunny" (beginner) slope for two or three hours and then felt like I wanted to try the mountain. I did, and I regretted it."

A few years later, a friend talked Mauldin into giving it another shot in Deer Valley, Utah.

This time, Mauldin took private lessons and fell in love with skiing. He goes to Colorado regularly and is planning a Mardi Gras trip to Steamboat Springs this year with his wife, Patty.

His advice to first-time skiers: Take lessons. " If you can afford to get private lessons, that's even better, because you have the instructor with you all day and you can do it in half-day increments."

Private lessons can cost hundreds of dollars at some resorts. Breckenridge Ski Resort charges up to $480 for six hours with an instructor. Steamboat charges $430 for a full day.

Mauldin usually rents skis but bought his own pair of boots a few years ago.

"That was one of the best things I ever did," he says. "If your feet hurt when you're skiing, you're miserable."

Mauldin's favorite place to dine in ski country is a restaurant called Hazie's in Steamboat Springs. It's located on top of a mountain, but it's not as inconvenient as it sounds. Guests ride up in a gondola.

"At night, it's just beautiful, and when you come down the mountain, you see the lights of Steamboat."

Here's a sampling from Hazie's menu: Petite lobster tail and scallops pasta, $27.95. Veal Scaloppini topped with crabmeat, $24.95. Crispy Asian BBQ duck, $24.95.

Start-up costs

It's a week before Christmas, and Dale Matthews is swamped. He owns The Backpacker, an outdoor sporting goods store on Jefferson Highway that happens to be one of the few places in town where you can buy ski equipment.

Matthews also runs a tour business, setting up Colorado ski trips at New Year's and Mardi Gras.

Matthews estimates he garners a third of his net income from the ski trips, and 25 percent of his retail business comes from the sale of what he calls "soft goods" needed for skiing--everything from ski jackets to fanny packs.

Matthews generally has competitive prices on ski vacation packages because he buys tickets in bulk and has brought a lot of customers to Colorado's best ski resorts over the years.

"I've skied every ski area, just about, in the West," Matthews says. The best place to go? Colorado, by a long shot, he says. Why? Because it's got "powder," a dreamy, fluffy type of snow that gets churned out by the clouds of the Centennial State.

His packages range in price from a few hundred dollars for ground-only trips to more than a thousand for longer trips that include flights from Baton Rouge or New Orleans.

A weeklong trip to Steamboat Springs during Mardi Gras with a direct flight from Baton Rouge to Steamboat and lodging in a slope side condo (with four to six people) costs $1,189 a person.

Matthew's trips to other Colorado resorts--Aspen, Snowmass, Vail, Copper Mountain and Winter Park--are close to that price for a weeklong stint, give or take a few hundred dollars.

If you go on one of his trips, you get a slight discount on gear.

Board meetings on ice

Rick Crew used to watch "The Wide World of Sports" and wish he could hurl down a mountain at top speed like professional snow skiers.

On his first ski trip, he got frustrated. Snow skiing was the opposite of water skiing, he discovered. He fell. A lot.

"I really didn't like it at all. It was so different to me," he says.

The second trip was better, though, and now Crew, president of Industrial Screw and Supply, gets up to Colorado as often as he can.

This year, he's heading to Steamboat with his 16-year-old son, Erick, who likes to snowboard.

Crew's business partners love to ski, too. In fact, for a few years, they held board meetings in Breckenridge at the Beaver Run Resort & Conference Center.

The resort has accomodations for meetings of 10 to 700, more than 35,000. square feet of meeting space, audiovisual equipment and catering services.

Crew says that by holding business meetings in Colorado, he was able to write off some of the costs. Crew recommends staying in a condo or hotel near the slopes.

"That way, you don't have to lug your skis."

Ski by day, party at night

Becoming a Louisiana skier brings with it a certain amount of heartache. Peter Couhig feels it every time he checks the Weather Channel to go duck hunting. He gets a sinking feeling when the ski report pops on the screen, especially during a year like this.

"They've gotten blasted. There was a 10-foot base and back country skiing in October."

Couhig talks like a ski bum because he was one.

Now vice president in charge of portfolio management at Source Capital LLC, Couhig spent the winters of 1996 and 1997 working in a bar in Steamboat Springs by night and skiing by day.

"They were the two biggest winters," he says. "We literally got 24 feet of snow each January. There was a foot of fresh powder every day"

A broken back in 1997 brought the Catholic High grad back to Baton Rouge--"I needed to grow up," he says--where he went to work at Source Capital.

Couhig still likes to ski when he can but steers clear of crazy stunts like the free-fall off a cliff that broke his back. His wife,. Finney, skis, and so will his baby daughter, Anna Reese, if Couhig has anything to say about it.

He won't be able to make it to the mountains this winter, though, and it's killing him. One day, he says, he'd like to own a home in Colorado.

Even when the snow isn't great, there's always the ski country nightlife, which Couhig says rivals New Orleans in terms of music and revelry.

"Some New Orleans bands make their yearly nut in Colorado."

Couhig lists the best Colorado nightclubs the way a grandmother might tell you the names of her grandchildren. He reels them off affectionately, even lovingly.

In Steamboat, there's The Inferno, where a "shot wheel" spun by the bartender determines the price of shots each hour.

In Aspen, he likes The Double Diamond, which Playboy magazine calls "Aspen's favorite roadhouse."

In Vail, there's 8150; in Breckenridge, The Purple Alligator.

Couhig's advice to first-time skiers: "Go up there to enjoy yourself, not to be a pro."

RELATED ARTICLE: WHERE TO GO AND WHAT YOU'LL PAY

RESORTS/SKIING

Breckenridge Ski Resort

Breckenridge, Colo.

Originally a mining haven for gold and silver in the mid 19th century. Today, the Victorian-style Main Street is lined with shops and restaurants.

Beaver Run Resort & Conference Center

Breckenridge, Colo.

Posh resort with more than 500 rooms. Extras include hot tubs, tennis courts and children's play area. 800-288-1282.

Steamboat Ski Area

Steamboat Springs, Colo.

Almost 3,000 acres of ski terrain with more than half of trails for beginners. (970) 879-6111.

DINING/NIGHT SPOTS

Club 8150

Vail, Colo.

Dance and live music club established a decade ago to rave reviews. More than 7,000 square feet of sights and sounds for younger vacationers.

The Double Diamond

Aspen, Colo.

Nightclub in downtown Aspen that accommodates about 400 and features live music. (970) 920-6905.

Hazie's Restaurant

Steamboat Springs, Colo.

Steak and seafood hot spot for lunch or dinner. Stunning views. (970) 879-6111