Vail

 

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Town (pop., 2000: 4,531), west-central Colorado, U.S. Located in the Rocky Mountains west of Denver, it was founded as a resort town in 1962 and built in the style of an Alpine village. The skiable terrain around Vail Mountain extends for 15 sq mi (39 sq km), making Vail the largest ski resort in North America.

(vāl), town (1990 pop. 3,569), Eagle co., W central Colo., on Gore Creek, in the Gore Range of the Rocky Mts.; founded as a ski resort 1962, inc. as a town 1966. Surrounded by the White River National Forest, Vail is one of the nation's largest ski resorts and an important summer recreation area. The Colorado Ski Museum and Colorado Ski Hall of Fame are there.

Vail, Colorado
Logo
Location in Eagle County and the state of Colorado
Coordinates: 39°38′9″N 106°21′47″W / 39.63583, -106.36306
Country	United States
State	Colorado
County	Eagle
Incorporated	1966
Government
- Town Manager	Stan Zemler
Area
- Town	sq mi (km²)
- Land	sq mi ( km²)
- Water	sq mi ( km²)
Elevation	ft ( m)
Population (2000)
- Town
- Density	/sq mi (/km²)
Time zone	MST (UTC-7)
- Summer (DST)	MDT (UTC-6)
ZIP Code	81657
Area code(s)	970
FIPS code	08-80040
GNIS feature ID	0202339
Website: http://www.vailgov.com/

Vail, Colorado is a town in Eagle County, Colorado, USA. According to 2005 Census Bureau estimates, the population of the city is 4,589.^[1] The town was established in 1966 at the base of Vail Ski Resort, which opened in 1962. The town is famous for its skiing and other winter sports in addition to being a year round destination for outdoor activities.

History

The town of Vail incorporated in 1966, four years after construction began on Vail Ski Resort.

Geography

Vail is near the eastern border of Eagle County, on I-70, within White River National Forest.

Vail is located at 39°38′9″N, 106°21′47″W (39.635757, -106.362984)¹. It has an average elevation of 8150 feet.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 11.8 km² (4.5 mi²), with no lakes. There is, however, at least one pond in Vail. Gore Creek flows from east to west through the center of the town.

Mount of the Holy Cross is visible from the top of Vail mountain near the top of the Eagle Bahn Gondola.

Vail is surrounded by the White River National Forest.

Vail Mountain

See also: Vail Ski Resort

Vail Mountain has a maximum elevation of 11,570' and low of 8,120'. It has  acres ( km²) skiable, 33 lifts, and 193 marked trails. Vail has three faces: the front side, the back bowls and Blue Sky Basin. The seven back bowls are Sun Down Bowl, Sun Up Bowl, Teacup Bowl, China Bowl, Siberia Bowl, Inner Mongolia Bowl, and Outer Mongolia Bowl. Vail was ranked as the number one ski resort in a Ski Magazine reader's poll for the 2006/2007 season.^[2]

Demographics

As of the census² of 2000, there were 4,531 people, 2,165 households, and 762 families residing in the town. The population density was 385.3/km² (999.0/mi²). There were 5,389 housing units at an average density of 458.3/km² (1,188.1/mi²). The racial makeup of the town was 94.13% White, 0.29% African American, 0.49% Native American, 1.66% Asian, 0.09% Pacific Islander, 1.43% from other races, and 1.92% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 6.20% of the population.

There were 2,165 households out of which 11.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 30.0% were married couples living together, 3.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 64.8% were non-families. 33.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 2.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.09 and the average family size was 2.62.

In the town the population was spread out with 9.9% under the age of 18, 14.8% from 18 to 24, 47.9% from 25 to 44, 22.6% from 45 to 64, and 4.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females there were 140.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 143.0 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $56,680, and the median income for a family was $66,389. Males had a median income of $33,534 versus $32,065 for females. The per capita income for the town was $42,390. About 1.8% of families and 6.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 0.9% of those under age 18 and 7.2% of those age 65 or over.

Economy

Arts and culture

Annual cultural events

• Vail Film Festival world-class annual film festival taking place in March

Bravo Vail Valley Music Festival

Museums and other points of interest

• Betty Ford Alpine Gardens
• Steadman-Hawkins clinic world renowned clinic for knee injuries
• Colorado Ski Museum
• Vail Ski Resort

Parks and recreation

Government

Vail has a council-manager form of government and is led by a 7-member town council elected-at-large.

Education

Vail's public schools are part of Eagle County School District RE-50 with high school students attending Battle Mountain High School. Eagle County Schools also offers the Vail Ski & Snowboard Academy, a joint program with area ski programs for students in grades 8-12 that are involved in competitive skiing and snowboarding.

Private schools in Vail include Vail Mountain School (K-12), Vail Christian High School (9-12), St. Clare of Assisi Catholic School (K-8) and Eagle Valley Christian Academy (PK-8).

Higher education is offered through the Vail Eagle Valley campus of Colorado Mountain College.

Transportation

Vail is served by Eagle County Airport, which is near Gypsum. Native Americans used to call the area near this airport the "hole in the sky" because storms seemed to avoid it.

Vail is modeled after European ski towns, many of which are car-free, and the town is partially car-free. Vail hosts the largest zero-fare shuttle bus system in the USA and has one Hybrid electric bus (For schedules see Vail Transit, for estimated arrival times visit NextBus). At each of the several bus stops a sign tells you how long until the next two buses arrive.

Major Highways

Interstate 70 runs east-west through the middle of Vail and is the only road to Vail. East of Vail along the highway is Vail Pass and Denver, located 97 miles away. To the west, it passes through Avon, Eagle, Grand Junction and reaches the State of Utah, where it ends at the intersection with Interstate 15.

Media

The Vail Daily and weekly papers Vail Trail and Mountain Weekly are all published by Colorado Mountain News Media.

A broadcast translator for public radio station KUNC allows listeners in the Eagle Valley to listen at 99.7 FM.

Two specialty television networks have stations in Vail, Plum TV and Resort Sports Network. The latter, branded as TV-8, also broadcasts on the low-powered UHF station K45IE.

http://www.realvail.com offers a unique local resource to the Vail Valley, Beaver Creek, and beyond. RealVail is an online journal, updated daily, which provides information geared toward locals, visitors and second homeowners who want to stay in touch with the Vail lifestyle.

Sister cities

• St. Moritz, Switzerland

References

External links

• Official town of Vail Website
• realvail.com - unique local resource & news to the Vail Valley, Beaver Creek, and beyond.
• Vail Daily News Official Website
• Vail Valley Partnership The Chamber and Tourism Bureau
• Vail on Sale Last Minute Lodging
• Lion Square Lodge
• Montaneros in Vail
• Plum TV Vail
• VailPM - Interactive Directory and Calendar
• Vail Tourism Site

• Vail Ski Resort:
  • Vail Mountain Information
  • Vail ski area Info from SnowGuide.org
  • 3dSkiMap of Vail Ski Resort

Coordinates: 39.635757° N 106.362984° W

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