BY LU SNYDER

Family ski days with your little tyke can be both exhilarating and (dare I say it?) a little boring. There’s nothing quite like the thrill of seeing your youngster get a taste of the sport you love, but unless you’re a beginner skier or boarder yourself, green runs can get old, fast.

It doesn’t have to be that way.

Some kids can’t get enough of their time on skis. Our daughter was not among them. It took tremendous effort to get her out the door and on the slopes, and little time before she wanted to go home. On the good days, we’d watch her dip into the powder and the trees, and get a glimmer of hope that she, too, will fall in love with this lifelong sport. But if left to her own devices, our daughter would ski the same run over and over, all season long.
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Eventually, we learned to present our ski day as an adventure. Our favorite route covered a wide range of green trails, offering enough variety to keep it reasonably interesting for my husband and I, with plenty of opportunity for hot chocolate and rest stops, fun little rollers, jumps and quick loops into the trees to maximize our daughter’s energy and enthusiasm.
Start at the Kokomo lift in West Village and head straight to the Lumberjack lift.

​The less travelled West Ten Mile is our favorite. On snow days, we’d search for patches of untracked snow where our daughter could get a feel for powder. As she got tired, we’d try to time it to take Lumberjack up one last time and ski Prospector back to the lodge for an early lunch.

Lunch for kids is easy at Copper: the kids meal incorporates an entrée and side (mac n’ cheese AND fries in one meal!) plus a drink for a great price. It’s a win-win for parents and kids.

Once refueled, we’d head to the Union Creek quad. We like dipping into the terrain features at the top – maybe a quick run through the mini half-pipe and some jumps – before heading down Vein Glory, Scooter or Easy Feelin’ (always in search of little tracks through the trees).
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If the sun was shining and our daughter was still smiling after a few runs on Union Creek, we’d head for the Timberline lift and ski Soliloquy, where we could easily grab some chairs in the sun at T-Rex Grill and hydrate with an energy drink, if necessary, before the long last run to Center Village.

Of all the green slopes Copper has to offer beginners, our daughter’s favorite isn’t even on the map. A galloping little run through the trees off of the top of High Point, Witches Cove is an adventure in itself – an alley filled with fun rollers and plenty of opportunities for air – sure to make most kids smile, even when they’re tired.

From there, we’d make our way to Center Village, to end the day on a sweet note with a half dozen fresh, crispy mini donuts each at Sugar Lips Mini Donuts. The cinnamon sugar are my favorite, but we’ve been known to reward our daughter for a good ski day with a Fancy Schmancy topping. (She almost always picks S’mores.)
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Some might call it a bribe, but we consider a recipe for a successful family ski day.

http://www.coppercolorado.com/culture/blog/all-blogs/a-family-ski-day-at-copper​

With the anticipation building for the 2017-2108 Winter season to begin, we bring you seven facts about Copper Mountain to tide you over until opening day, Friday, 11.10.2107!

7 FACTS ABOUT COPPER MOUNTAIN YOU SHOULD KNOW 
Those who have only heard of Copper Mountain may think of it as just another ski resort. But for those who have visited, it’s much more than that. Copper is a community that welcomes you no matter your ability or where you’re from. It’s a place you can call home, and keep returning to again and again.  

Whether you’re a Copper rookie or are thinking about a visit for the first time, brush up on your knowledge with these facts about Copper Mountain.   

1. COPPER’S FIRST INHABITANTS WERE THE UTE AND ARAPAHO INDIANS Hundreds of years ago between 1100 and 1300 AD, the Ute and Arapaho Indians lived in the area that is home to today’s Copper Mountain. They used the forest and the streams in the area for fishing, trapping, and hunting while also enjoying the beauty of the nature surrounding them. Join one of Copper’s free Ski With a Ranger tours to learn more about the history of Copper Mountain and the wildlife and plants in the area. 

2. IT’S NAMED AFTER THE MINERAL COPPER Fast forward to the mid 1800s when the Colorado gold rush was booming. Miners came to the area looking for gold, but instead they found copper. From then on, the mountain became known as Copper Mountain!  

3. THE COPPER MOUNTAIN SKI RESORT OFFICIALLY OPENED IN 1972 Chuck Lewis is Copper’s founding father, and he had a vision that he shared with his friends saying, "I'm gonna build me a killer ski resort." The planning and building of the resort took a few years, but officially opened in 1972 with 26 miles of trails and 5 lifts. 

4. IT IS ONE OF THE LARGEST SKI RESORTS IN COLORADO With 2,490 skiable acres, Copper falls in the top 10 largest ski resorts in Colorado. The terrain within these acres includes over 140 marked trails and 23 total chair lifts.  

5. IT IS HOME TO THE ONLY EARLY-SEASON, FULL-LENGTH U.S. SKI TEAM DOWNHILL TRAINING COURSE Back in 2011, Copper Mountain became an official U.S. Ski Team downhill training venue with the opening of the U.S. Ski Team Speed Center at Copper. Racers can clock in speeds of up to 75 mph on this course, so keep your eyes peeled or you might miss them! 

6. IT’S KNOWN FOR ITS NATURALLY DIVIDED TERRAIN One of the best reasons for beginners to ski at Copper is the way it’s divided – you can start in West Village for the easiest greens and move your way east to increase in difficulty. It’s one of the only naturally divided resorts in the area, so newcomers don’t need to be so concerned about experts zooming past or taking a wrong turn. To get to know the mountain better, try one of Copper’s free mountain tours where you can ski with a Resort Ambassador. 

7. COPPER RECEIVES AN AVERAGE SNOWFALL OF 304 INCHES PER YEAR
Opt for a March visit to increase your powder day chances. Since Copper’s opening season, March has received an average of 53 inches of snow, making it typically the snowiest month of the year. 
http://www.coppercolorado.com/culture/blog/all-blogs/7-facts-about-copper-mountain-you-should-know%C2%A0

Doughnuts are everywhere. Over the last century, few pastries have inspired as much long-lasting enthusiasm, or as many film and television tributes, as the humble ring of fried dough. But though we’ve been gobbling down doughnuts by the baker's dozens for years, most of us don’t know that much about their delicious history. Here are 15 tasty facts about the iconic pastry to whet your appetite.

1. OVER 10 BILLION DOUGHNUTS ARE MADE IN THE U.S. EACH YEAR.The American doughnut industry is huge, with numerous fast food chainsdedicated to their production. Canada, meanwhile, produces fewer doughnuts (approximately one billion per year), but with its lower population, actually has the most doughnut shops per capita of any country in the world.

2. AS OF 2011, 10 PEOPLE IN THE UNITED STATES HAVE THE LAST NAME “DOUGHNUT” or “DONUT.”It's unclear whether "Doughnut" was their given last name, or whether they changed it out of passion for the pastry. Meanwhile, 13 people have the first name “Donut,” making it the 245,396th most popular name in the United States according to White Pages.

3. WASHINGTON IRVING IS WIDELY CONSIDERED THE FIRST WRITER TO DESCRIBE DOUGHNUTS IN PRINT.Irving, who is best known as the author of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, described the pastry as "balls of sweetened dough, fried in hog's fat, and called doughnuts, or olykoeks.”

4. AN OREGON DOUGHNUT SHOP USED TO OFFER MEDICINAL DOUGHNUTS, COATED WITH NYQUIL OR PEPTO BISMOL.
For a while, the doughnut shop even offered NyQuil- and Pepto Bismol-coated doughnuts (the latter were dipped in Pepto Bismol, sprinkled with Tums, and marketed to customers who’d had too much to drink and wanted a snack that was easy on the stomach). The doughnut shop was eventually forced to retire its medicinal flavors after the FDA stepped in.

5. "SPUDNUTS" HAVE DOUGH MADE OF POTATOES INSTEAD OF FLOUR.
Made with mashed potatoes or potato starch, potato doughnuts were once so popular they had their own fast food chain: Spudnuts. The mostly defunct chain (there are apparently a few independent locations hanging on, but the parent company no longer exists) was founded by two brothers—an appliance salesman and drug store clerk—in the 1940s. They were the first fast food doughnut chain to open in Los Angeles.

6. BOSTON HAS THE MOST DOUGHNUT SHOPS PER PERSON. Bostonians really love their doughnuts: The city has one doughnut shop for every 2480 people according to Adweek.
 
7. THE FRENCH USED TO CALL THEIR DOUGHNUTS "NUN’S FARTS."The airy fried dough fritters—slightly different from the American circular doughnut—are called “Pet de Nonne” in French, which translates to “Nun’s Farts.”

8. THERE’S SOME TRUTH TO THAT "COPS LOVE DOUGHNUTS" STEREOTYPE.Back in the 1950s, police officers on the graveyard shift would stop by doughnut shops—which were among the few establishments open late—to do paperwork and have a snack. Eventually a reciprocal relationship developed: Doughnut shop owners welcomed the protection of police officers, and police officers liked having a place to chow down late at night, so the association stuck around.

9. RENÉE ZELLWEGER SAID SHE ATE 20 DOUGHNUTS A DAY TO GAIN WEIGHT FOR THE BRIDGET JONES SEQUEL.
Zellweger needed to gain weight fast to reprise her role as the eponymous heroine in 2004's Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason. The actress claims to have eaten “a Big Mac and chips, potatoes swimming in butter, pizza, milkshakes and 20 doughnuts” every day to hit her weight goal in time for shooting.

10. DOUGHNUTS WERE ONCE DECLARED "THE HIT FOOD" OF THE CENTURY.At the 1933 Chicago World’s Fair—which was billed as "A Century of Progress"—doughnuts were given the lofty title of "Hit Food of the Century of Progess." Because they were fresh and the automated machines made them quickly, they were cheap and became "a staple of the working class" during the Depression, according to Sally Levitt Steinberg, whose grandfather invented the doughnut machine.

11. CLARK GABLE TAUGHT MOVIE AUDIENCES HOW TO PROPERLY DUNK DOUGHNUTS IN IT HAPPENED ONE NIGHT. 1934's It Happened One Night, Clark Gable's character outlined the rules for proper dunking etiquette to co-star Claudette Colbert. "Dunking's an art," he explained. "Don't let it soak so long. A dip and—plop, into your mouth. If you let it soak so long, it'll get soft and fall off. It's all a matter of timing. I ought to write a book about it."

12. A NEW ENGLAND SHIP CAPTAIN CLAIMED TO HAVE INVENTED THE HOLE IN DOUGHNUTS. Elizabeth Gregory, mother of 19th century ship captain Hanson Gregory, would famously make fried dough pastries for her son and his crew to take on their voyages. But though the elder Gregory may have been an early doughnut innovator (she packed the pastries with nuts, and flavored them with cinnamon and nutmeg), it was Captain Hanson Gregory who claimed to have invented the actual doughnut hole, calling it "the first doughnut hole ever seen by mortal eyes."
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13. DOUGHNUTS WERE SERVED TO SOLDIERS DURING WWI.During World War I, Salvation Army workers would bring soldiers doughnuts and coffee in the trenches of France to cheer them up and remind them of home.

14. ONE CALIFORNIA DOUGHNUT SHOP HAS APPEARED OVER AND OVER IN MOVIES SINCE THE 1980S.
Featuring a massive 32-foot doughnut sculpture atop its low, flat roof, Randy's Donuts is one of the most iconic Hollywood doughnut shops. The store, which opened in the 1950s as part of the now-defunct Big Donut Drive-In chain, has appeared in numerous movies, including Earth Girls are Easy (1988), Get Shorty (1995), The Golden Child (1986), Crocodile Dundee (1986), and Iron Man 2 (2010).

15. THEY WERE ONCE CALLED "OLYKOEKS."Though many countries have independently developed their own version of doughnuts, the Dutch are widely attributed with bringing the fried pastry to America prior to the Revolutionary War, originally calling them "olykoeks," meaning "oily cakes."

http://mentalfloss.com/article/71300/15-delicious-facts-about-doughnuts

How many of  these fun facts did you know about donuts (or as some people write - doughnuts...)?! :) 

It's been a GREAT summer season up at Copper Mountain - but as the kiddos get ready to go back to school and the temperatures begin to cool we are slowly beginning to reduce our hours to get ready for the winter season! 

Check out our hours for the next few weeks:  
8/21 Monday 8:30 - 5 
8/22 Tuesday 8:30 - 5 
CLOSED WED - FRI 
8/26 Saturday 8 - 8
8/27 Sunday 8 - 5 
8/28-9/1 CLOSED 
Opened for Labor Day weekend: 
9/2 Saturday 8 - 6
9/3 Sunday 8 - 5 
9/4 Monday 8 - 5 
9/5 - 9/8 CLOSED 
Saturday 9/9 8 - 6 
Sunday 9/10 8 - 5 
9/11 - 9/15 CLOSED 
Saturday 9/16 8 - 6 
Sunday 9/17 8 - 5 
9/18 - November CLOSED until SKI SEASON STARTS!

There are still plenty of fun happenings up at Copper the first few weekends in September.  Please stop in to see us -- otherwise we hope to see you this winter.  

​Thanks for an awesome summer!! 
Your friends at Sugar Lips! 

The Sugar Shack at Copper Mountain, will be closed until June. 

Come see us this summer!

​Follow our Facebook and Instagram pages to see where the Donut Hole might pop up! 

If you haven't heard Copper Mountain Resort has officially pushed back opening day by one week due to the extremely warm temps and a lack of snow.  

We know there are ski racers (and families) that are in Copper training and have been since the beginning of November, (And might be gone before the resort opens next week) so we will STILL open THIS Friday 11.11 for a few hours in the afternoon! Please follow us on FB to get the latest & greatest,  times we plan to be there,  and any other updates!
Thanks, 
The Sugar Lips Gang

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Ever thought about living and working in a mountain town?  Now is your chance!! We're looking for both part time & full time employees, as well as an assistant manager to wrangle mini donuts and serve up the best coffee in Copper Mountain. 

Now accepting applications for the upcoming 2016-2017  winter season.  

For more information please email: [email protected] with Employment Opportunity in the subject line. 

We can't wait to hear from you!!! 

We kicked off the summer by adding ice cream to the Sugar Shack -- as well as extending our hours to 7PM on the weekdays and 8PM on Friday & Saturday.  There is still a bit of the summer season left to get up here and try one of our decadent, delicious, fancy-schmancy mini donut sundaes, they are NOT to be missed!! (Don't worry all you ski and snowboard bunnies, we will keep this on the menu all winter!!) 

Our mini donut trailer, the Donut Hole 2.0 got a sweet little make-over.  She got all gussied up with a brand new wrap from our friends over at My Vinyl Works just in time for wedding season! (http://www.myvinylworks.com/services.html) 

We've been booking weddings like crazy and really enjoy bringing a special and unique element to each and every one we get to cater.  We are able to set up at a variety of venues -- one of favorites was on Lake Dillon back in June at Windy Point Campground.  

For more information on booking the trailer, please contact Kelly at [email protected] 

Come see us this winter! Opening day is Friday, November 13!! And we anticipate this being our BEST season yet! Old man winter is coming out to play and we hope you do too! See you soon!!!

Hooray! It's National Donut Day! And although we are not opened until next Friday, we wanted to give you a sneak peek of some of the goodness that we will be serving up this summer! We can't wait!!! 
 

What is your favorite donut?  Could it be a mini donut with a fancy-schmancy topping?  Or perhaps a classic little mini sprinkled with cinnamon or powdered sugar?! 

We have so many flavors to try! Donut miss out this summer! :)