Purgatory set for Black Friday opening
The Friday typically reserved for shopping showdowns at dawn will instead mark the beginning of Durango Mountain Resort’s winter season.
The resort plans to open the slopes Nov. 25 and has dubbed the day “Ride the Whites on Black Friday.”

The official percentage of open terrain is still unknown with time for a winter weather intervention; however, some portion of the front side of the mountain will be open for business on a combination of manmade and natural snow.

According to Mike McCormack, senior vice president of mountain operations, the snow-making crews have been busy working since the first of November.

“Hopefully we’ll get some cooperation from Mother Nature,” he added.

The National Weather Service is calling for a chance of the white stuff on Friday and Saturday with highs in the low to mid-30s.
The resort will be open Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays only, until Mother Nature does decide to open the snow-gates and permit daily operations to commence.

Kim Oyler, director of communications, said ticket prices for the long weekend will be discounted from the regular season cost, but the amount has yet to be determined.

The regular price for a 2011-12 lift ticket is $75 for adults; $42 for kids ages 6-12; $58 for students; and $60 for seniors; and, the resort will offer late arrival rates for customers who arrive after 12:30 p.m.

Plenty of happenings dot the resort’s events calendar this season, like the annual Snowdown Winter Festival, themed “Once Upon a Snowdown,” and Locals Benefit Days, when portions of the ticket sales go to local nonprofit organizations.

Locals Benefit Days, which began in 1992, have raised more than $250,000 in funds.This year, four recipients were chosen among 24 applicants.
The first beneficiary is the Durango Foundation for Educational Excellence, a group that promotes educational programs in the 9-R School District. The event takes place Sun., Dec. 18, with reduced tickets prices of $40 for adults, $32 for students/seniors, and $25 for kids.

The other three recipients and dates this season are Community Connections, Inc. on Jan. 22; Durango Independent Film Festival on Feb. 12; and Durango Devo on March 25.

Some additional events include Backcountry Experience’s BrewSki Demofest, which highlights local breweries Ska and Steamworks, on Dec. 17-18 and Winterfest, which features alternative mountain activities like ice climbing and dog sledding, on Jan. 14-16.

Once the 1,360 acres at Purgatory have sufficient snow cover, the resort will be able to show off two new elements: the Pinkerton Starter Park and high-angle grooming.

The park will offer smaller features for newcomers looking to hone their skills. The grooming will leave smooth, vertical corduroy on the right side of some of the expert, bump runs; and the left side will be left in its natural state.

The Purgatory Plunge Zipline, introduced this summer, will also be available to adventurers who show up on opening day. Customers can cruise across Purgatory Beach and Purgy’s patio at 35 mph for about the length of a football field, according to the resort’s website.

Former Mayor Rendon moving on
Michael Rendon is stepping down as the executive director for the Sexual Assault Services Organization, he said Tuesday.

Rendon said he originally made a three-year commitment to the organization, and those three years have come to an end. The time spent at SASO, Rendon said, was challenging emotionally, but he will miss his co-workers and the nonprofit group. “They’re amazing people,” he added. “That’s been the best part of the job.”

An avid international traveler, Rendon and his wife, Minna Jain, plan to move to a Zen Buddhist monastery and farm north of San Francisco next summer. Although the two will spend their days meditating and gardening, Rendon, a Colorado native who has spent most of his last 18 years in La Plata County, said Durango will always be his home.

Rendon will give up the reigns at SASO in mid-January and take a couple of weeks off to travel the Northwest before heading to the farm. He believes

SASO will have no trouble finding a qualified candidate to take over.
In addition to his role at SASO, Rendon served on the Durango City Council from 2007-11 and is the former director of the Fort Lewis College Environmental Center. He also served on the city’s Affordable Housing Board of Directors and was instrumental in implementing a solar hot water system on top of the city Rec Center. He was active in Local First’s “Be Local” program, and in his spare time, he plays violin with his Gypsy band, Carute Roma.

Wildcat gets approval with caveat
The controversial May Day Idaho Mine in La Plata Canyon came a step closer to striking gold last week, but with strings attached. Last Wednesday, the Colorado Mined Land Reclamation Board unanimously approved a conditional permit for Wildcat Ming Corp. with the provision that Wildcat first clean up the site and rectify safety and environmental issues.

Since acquiring the 275-acre parcels and announcing its plans in 2006, Wildcat has run afoul of local and state regulations. It was forced to withdraw its original permit application for failure to pay state-required bonds. Later, illegal activities, such as road construction, portal blasting and construction without a permit, earned Wildcat a cease-and-desist order from the State of Colorado as well as the ire of neighbors.

The illegally blasted portals have since collapsed; water is leaking from the mine; and the illegally built road is posing a threat to the La Plata River and La Plata Canyon Road, aka County Road 124.

During the MLRB’s monthly meeting held in Denver, board members emphasized that the approval is only to facilitate cleanup and does not authorize mining or milling of any sort.

Nevertheless, Wildcat deemed the approval a victory. “The Board’s unanimous vote will allow Wildcat Mining to move forward in a measured fashion to resolve existing issues on the project site,” Randall Oser, Wildcat Mining President, said. “We are pleased with the Board’s work to ensure that all stakeholders have been informed and involved.”

The conditional will allow Wildcat to correct outstanding issues that were unresolved due to the cease-and-desist order, he said.

Incorporated in Nevada in 2005, Wildcat Mining Corp. recently underwent a change in management. Varca Ventures, a publicly traded mineral and natural resource exploration company, acquired Wildcat in early November, ousting then-CEO/owner Mike Clements. According to the company’s web site, Wildcat’s remaining four board members were appointed as the directors of Varca, with Oser as president, and Roger Tichenor as new CEO.
– Missy ­­Votel and Tracy Chamberlin