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Mountain coaster now open at Steamboat Ski Area

By Scott Franz / Steamboat Today
Laura Graves, front, and Sina Good brace as they go into another turn Thursday on the new Outlaw Mountain Coaster at Steamboat Ski Area. The coaster opened to the public at noon Friday.
Scott Franz / Steamboat Today

STEAMBOAT SPRINGS — The newest run at Steamboat Ski Area is bound to make you let out a scream of joy.

“It was awesome. It was plenty fast, just enough scary for me. It was great,” Nancy Perry said after completing her first run down the new Outlaw Mountain Coaster.

The ski area offered test rides to its employees and their dependents on Thursday afternoon.

Riders left with grins on their faces after zooming down the mountain.

With 6,280 feet of track, the coaster is the longest one built in North America.

The ride up in the car takes about two minutes, and the ride down can be completed in one minute, 45 seconds if you don’t apply any brakes.

Maximum speed tops out at 25 miles per hour, which is plenty fast when making the sharp turns.

The coaster opened to the public at noon Friday.

“I really recommend it. We had a lot of fun,” ticket office agent Mona Halsnes said after her first ride.

After the grand opening Friday, the coaster will run from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Fridays to Sundays. The schedule will shift Sept. 24 to 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays.

The attraction will also run in the winter.

A single ride for an adult costs $20, with lower prices for children younger than 7. Riders must be 38 inches tall.

The new mountain coaster is one piece of the ski area’s strategy to bring more people to the base area, especially in the summer.

Other recent investments include a miniature golf course, a 40-foot climbing wall, a ropes course and a tubing hill.

“This will definitely be a place where you can come and spend the day,” Jim Schneider, vice president of skier services, told Steamboat Today when the projects were under construction earlier this summer.

A ride on the mountain coaster is included with the purchase of an all-day pass to the ski area’s Coca-Cola Adventure Zone.

To reach Scott Franz, call 970-871-4210, email scottfranz@SteamboatToday.com or follow him on Twitter @ScottFranz10.


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