Vail

During World War II, the Army's Tenth Mountain Division conducted survival training in Vail's backcountry. After the war ended, many of the men who trained there were drawn back to Vail's Gore Range to settle down. Vail's founders, Pete Siebert and Earl Eaton, kept Vail's legacy alive and made it into the world-renowned ski resort that it is today.

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To prepare for opening day on Dec. 15, 1962, construction crews worked all summer to build a Bell gondola from Vail Village to Mid Vail, two chairlifts, many condos, and base facilities. Winter in Colorado started off mildly that year, allowing work to continue late into the fall as opening day approached.

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Vail Village grew at an incredible rate in the 1960s. During the 1968-69 season, Bell Gondola installed the Lionshead Gondola, a six-cabin tramway for the newly developed Lionshead Base. President Gerald Ford first traveled to Vail that same year and was so impressed that he began to make annual trips and purchase property in Vail.

The Ute Indians first inhabited the Gore Creek Valley long before settlers moved west. The valley offered a summer home for the Utes, who spent winters in the more arid lands of Western Colorado. The Utes called the majestic peaks of the Gore Range that overlook the valley "The Shining Mountains." Settlers moved west into the Gore Creek Valley in the mid-1800s, turning the area into ranching and grazing land.

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During World War II, the United States Army created a training center south of the valley called Camp Hale, where the 10th Mountain Division trained for alpine combat. Made up of excellent skiers and mountaineers, the 10th fought in mountainous Northern Italy. Upon return, they became major players in the quickly growing ski industry, founding or working at over 50 resorts in the U.S.

One veteran of the 10th Mountain Division, Pete Seibert, returned to Colorado skiing after the war to join the Aspen Ski Patrol and Aspen Ski School, and eventually became the manager of Loveland Basin Ski Area.

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Seibert and Eaton first climbed Vail Mountain during the winter of 1957, and both agreed it would be the perfect ski area.

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To get the ski area rolling, Seibert and Eaton needed something that neither of them had—money. Seibert quickly secured investors, which was crucial because Vail needed $1 million in the bank in order to obtain a permit from the USFS. Initial investors paid a mere $10,000 for a condo unit and lifetime season pass.