JOINT DISCUSSION
SMOKE SHACKS STAMPED OUT DOES THE DESTRUCTION OF SMOKE SHACKS ON VAIL RESORTS LAND RESOLVE A LEGAL/SAFETY ISSUE OR UNDERMINE A UNIQUE SUBCULTURE? over the last year at Vail, Beaver Creek, Keystone and Breckenridge. On Feb. 14, an “Inside Edition” video showed skiers and riders smoking what appeared to be marijuana inside one such structure at Breckenridge Ski Resort — a two-story building known as “Leo’s.” Officials destroyed the structure using explosives shortly after the video aired. A Facebook page, “Leo’s Rebuild Project,” has received more than 4,000 likes so far. A YouTube video published March 4, “Local’s Edition - Booze
Drinking Skiers (Inside Edition Parody)” has more than 40,000 views, and copies the style and wording of the “Inside Edition” video, just replacing marijuana with alcohol. In a prepared statement, Blaise Carrig, president of Vail Resorts’ Mountain Division, said: “In addition to destroying illegal structures where this kind of illegal activity may be taking place, we are communicating the legalities around marijuana use with our guests and the community.” — Kelsey Fowler
PRO
CON
It’s our responsibility as stewards of that land to work with the Forest Service to identify and dispose of those illegal structures. … The long and short of it is, we don’t need a reason because it’s an illegal structure on the land and that’s within our rights. – RUSS PECORARO, Vail Resorts spokesman
This whole thing was disastrous from the start, and it is very upsetting to know the consequences of opportunistic and tabloid journalism. Blaming and punishing everyone else for those idiots in the video is like categorizing your entire family over its least-desirable member. It was too quick a move. … This has really made me consider, for once in years, to not obtain my Epic Pass next season. The attitude of Vail Resorts is one that has scoffed at the local population, and I don’t think this violent act was the end of their actions. – JOHN HALL, former full-time resident of Breckenridge
Suppose someone went into a structure and got high, and collided into a child, who they killed or hurt. The first question is if we knew about the structure, and if so, why didn’t we tear it down. It’s a safety and liability issue. – BILL KIGHT, USFS public affairs officer The safety of our guests and our employees is our highest priority and we therefore take a zero tolerance approach to skiing or riding under the influence. - BLAISE CARRIG, president of Vail Resorts’ Mountain Division, in a prepared statement It’s pretty clear to us, as far as legality, there’s really no gray area in Amendment 64 as far as it being legal (in public). We support the ski resort keeping it safe, family friendly and following those federal land statutes about not using marijuana. – JORDAN SCHULTZ, coordinator of the Summit County Healthy Futures Initiative Despite Colorado law, marijuana remains illegal on federal lands, period. For the 22 ski areas in Colorado that operate on national forest system lands, marijuana is still prohibited. Let me remind everyone that you can be cited and fined for marijuana use and possession on national forests. I will also add that it is against the law for anyone to build any structures on national forest system lands without a permit. - SCOTT FITZWILLIAMS, forest supervisor for the White River National Forest, in a prepared statement
A number of comments accompanied the Feb. 26 Summit Daily News article about the destruction of the shacks: Again, what about drinking and skiing/riding?????? inside edition made our town/resort look like a bunch of idiots. - JUSTIN SAUNDERS “Using any ski lift, ski slope or trail while under the influence of drugs or alcohol also is prohibited under the Colorado Ski Safety Act.” They openly provide alcohol at most of the resorts. Nobody at the bar goes on the lifts after drinking? - TONY BARONE What a bunch of hypocrites. Selling alchohol [sic] openly and legally all over the mountain while hand-wringing about the dangers of pot. Might want to stick to the safety aspects of having un-permitted structures and leave it at that. - CARLSON PETERS I read with interest these comments as I thought the same thing! Sell booze and let people ride and ski drunk or at least buzzed on booze that Vail makes $$ on... but God forbid anyone has a toke and then skis. Smoking pot at the ski area has been going as long as the ski area has been there... shacks or not. Vail is so hypocritical in so many ways... - MAUREEN HYLAND
DECIDE for YOURSELF
PHOTOS COURTESY OF ZACH BRESCIA. LEO’S SHACK IN BRECKENRIDGE SKI RESORT, BEFORE AND AFTER DEMOLITION.
A SWIRLING STORM of social media backlash hit Vail Resorts as beloved secret structures on ski resort lands were destroyed this spring in an effort to prevent marijuana consumption. A number of structures reportedly associated with prohibited marijuana use, and constructed illegally on U.S. Forest Service land, were razed. The structures, known as “smoke shacks,” have been destroyed as Vail Resorts and the Forest Service are made aware of them. Mountain operations teams and USFS officials have destroyed “several”