Cover photo by Grant Whitty with Christian Shackelford

The battle between the multi-resort season passes might finally be coming to a halt. After non-stop additions of resort access to both the Ikon and Epic Pass for the past year, one Colorado resort has said ‘Enough is enough,’ to the pass due to the increase of traffic on and off the mountain.

Arapahoe Basin, a small ski area off the I-70 Corridor known for its early season jib-paradise, has decided to remove itself as a partner resort on the Epic Pass. While the area was never bought by Vail Corporations, their pass partnership has existed since the 1997/1998 winter when the mountain joined forces with Keystone and Breckenridge for the first multi-resort pass in Colorado.

“A-Basin has seen exceptional growth both in popularity and skier visitation after investing 40 million dollars over the last 15 years," stated Chief Operations Officer Alan Henceroth in a press release. "While the mountain still has plenty of room for skiers and riders, the ski area is feeling a pinch on parking and facility space. Due to these constraints, Arapahoe Basin believes its staff can take better care of its guests by separating from Vail Resorts.”

A-basin most likely won’t be the last or the only of the resorts to leave. With a noticeable increase of traffic at resorts on the Epic and Ikon Pass, including Alta and Squaw, it’s possible that other mountains will soon drop-out of the race to join the multi-resort season passes.