As Telluride resort closure and ski patroller strike enters day 5, visitation drops as nearby resorts salvage holiday

Source: Colorado Sun

Patrollers say Telluride Ski and Golf has not reached out to resume contract negotiations as the resort makes snow and promises “a safe re-opening as soon as possible.”

Jason Blevins 4:00 AM MST on Jan 1, 2026

Tom “Socko” Sokolowski has lived in Telluride for 54 years.

“But I’ve only been patrolling for 53 years,” the 80-year-old said after a day of picketing with his fellow ski patrollers in front of the quiet ski hill.

Jan. 1 marks day five of the ski patroller strike at the Telluride ski area, which the owner has closed in response to the strike. Neither the owner, Chuck Horning, nor the patrollers appear ready to restart stalled contract negotiations. The Telluride Ski and Golf company and the 78-member Telluride Professional Ski Patrol Union met nearly 20 times over several months, trying to hammer out new wages for a three-year contract that expired in August.

Telluride Ski and Golf, which has been owned by Southern California real estate investor Horning since 2005, in early December offered patrollers a new contract that increases the hourly pay of each patroller by $3.89 for a median wage of $30 with a range of pay from $23.50 an hour for first-years to $46 an hour for veterans.

The ski patroller union is seeking an increase of $7.78 an hour for a median wage of $35.09 with a wage range from $26 to $53 an hour. The patrollers argue they are asking for wages that allow them to better keep skiers safe by retaining veterans who don’t leave for higher paying jobs in the region.


Members of the Telluride Professional Ski Patrol Association march through downtown Telluride, during their first day of a work stoppage strike, Saturday morning December 27, 2025. (William Woody, Special to The Colorado Sun)

FULL title: As Telluride resort closure and ski patroller strike enters day 5, visitation drops as nearby resorts salvage holiday ski vacations

Read more: https://coloradosun.com/2026/01/01/telluride-ski-patroller-strike-resort-closure/