Skiing the slopes of Telluride: Colorado's Wyndham Mountain Lodge offers the ultimate in resort luxury, while providing some of the finest skiing in the West - Going Places

USA Today (Society for the Advancement of Education), Nov, 2001 by JoAnn Buchbinder

We couldn't help being enticed by the delicious-sounding tasting menu that headlines Scherner's signature dishes paired with a selection of fine wines, but opted for a smaller, though no-less satisfying, meal. Our favorites from the menu that changes nightly included Colorado rack of lamb with cannelini beans, roasted eggplant, tomato chutney, and leek coulis; seared rare bigeye tuna with creamy polenta, roasted fennel, tapenade, and herbed olive oil; and a sumptuous vegetarian plate. This left sufficient room to savor the dessert selection: molten-center chocolate cake with creme fraiche ice cream, toasted hazelnuts, and apricot coulis, and strawberry papaya beignets with lime granita and vanilla and strawberry sauces.

Sunday proved just as beautiful a day, and we put our lessons to good use, skiing all over the varied slopes. We had taken advantage of the ski valet at the Wyndham Lodge, so all we had to do was reclaim our skis, snap them on, and take off down the mountain.

We had arranged for an apres-ski dinner sleigh ride at the Skyline Guest Ranch. The bus dropped us off at the entrance, and we sipped hot apple cider while we waited in the wooden kiosk. Danny started jumping up and down excitedly when he heard the sleighbells and spotted the rustic wooden sleigh, drawn by a pair of draft horses. We climbed aboard, placed the blanket over our legs, and were taken along a looping path under the starlit sky to the Spruce Lodge, which evoked a warm country feel. From the windows, we were treated to panoramic views of the surrounding mountains bathed in the alpen-glow--the reddish light seen near sunset or sunrise on the summits of mountains.

Dinner was as satisfying as the view. Fresh vegetable fettuccine was accompanied by grilled zucchini, caramelized eggplant, peppers, and portobello mushrooms, while the marinated Black Angus tenderloin of beef was succulently rare. The fabulous desserts easily matched the entrees, especially the mouthwateringly rich chocolate fondant cake with ganache.

Sated, we returned to our quarters, lit the tire, and sipped hot chocolate as we packed. We were faced with the unhappy knowledge that we had to get up early the next morning and head home, so we got into bed and spent the next hour planning our return trip to Telluride and this marvelous ski resort.

RELATED ARTICLE: the customized Telluride teaching system.

HOW MUCH OF A DIFFERENCE can one ski lesson make? If it's the Telluride Teaching System's unique Biomechanical Private Lesson, the answer is "all the difference in the world."

According to our instructor, Dick Oursler, many skiers are not using the proper techniques to take advantage of the recent advances in equipment. Worse, that equipment is not fitted and/or calibrated to care for individual needs. By combining instruction with equipment customization and modification, the TTS helps skiers reach the next level.

Our lesson started with Dick videotaping us as we skied a couple of turns around an easy slope. We were instructed to try skiing on one leg at a time in order to understand the principles of balance better. At the base of the slope, we popped out of our skis and headed back to Telluride Sports for a custom fitting.