Editing Telluride, Colorado (section)

===Skiing era===
Mining was Telluride's only industry until 1972 when the first [[Chairlift|ski lift]] was installed by [[Telluride Ski Resort]] founder [[Joseph T. Zoline]] and his Telluride Ski Corporation (Telco). Zoline bought the land for the future resort in 1969 and began to craft the slopes. Along with his mountain manager, Telluride native Bill "Sr." Mahoney, they slowly and thoughtfully put together a plan for the sustained development of Telluride and the region. As mining phased out and a new service industry phased in, the local population changed sharply. Mining families fled Telluride to settle in places like [[Moab, Utah]], where uranium mining offered hope of continued employment. Mining families were replaced by what locals referred to as "[[hippie]]s", young people with a 1960s worldview that often clashed with the values of Telluride's old-timers. These newcomers were characterized as idle "trust funders" drawn to the town for a casual lifestyle and outdoor excitements such as [[hang gliding]], [[Mountaineering|mountain climbing]], and [[kayaking]].

The new population opposed town growth and economic expansion, including growth due to tourism and skiing. At one point, a serious effort was made to ban cars from the city limits and force visitors to use horse-drawn carts. The 1970s had fluctuating snowfalls and economic recession, but the town's music and [[Telluride Film Festival|film festivals]] flourished. They exposed hundreds of thousands to the grandeur of the valley for the first time and created iconic associations with elite entertainers. Meanwhile, ski area founder Joe Zoline worked to develop one of the best mountains in North America for expert skiers,{{citation needed|date=July 2020}} and created the infrastructure for tourism that respected Telluride's need to stay small.{{citation needed|date=July 2020}}

As the final ore carts were rolling out of the Pandora mine, tourists began to discover Telluride's views, skiing, and autumn color changes. After the brutal snow drought of 1976 nearly wiped out the embryonic ski and lodging industry, the town started to rebound economically. In 1978, Ron Allred and his partner Jim Wells bought a stake in the ski area to form the Telluride Company. They expanded the infrastructure by adding a gondola connecting Telluride with the Mountain Village.

During the 1980s, Telluride developed a reputation as "Colorado's best-kept secret", which paradoxically made it one of the better-known resort communities. Wealthy skiers flocked to the mountain all winter, and sightseers kept hotel rooms full all summer. Telluride also became notorious in the drug counterculture as a drop point for Mexican smugglers and a favorite place for wealthy importers to enjoy downtime. The town was even featured in the hit song by [[Glenn Frey]] from ''[[Miami Vice]]'', "Smugglers Blues". Telluride was living up to its Wild West history. This type of attention helped differentiate it from [[Aspen, Colorado|Aspen]]. The festivals and Telluride's bad-boy image attracted celebrities like [[Tom Cruise]], [[Oprah Winfrey]], and [[Oliver Stone]]. By the mid-1990s, Telluride had shed both its mining personality and drug image to establish itself as a premier resort town balancing modern culture with fascinating western history. In 2003, Prospect Bowl, an extension to the ski area opened, providing the resort with many new trails and runs. Most lifts in the area are high-speed quad chairs capable of holding four passengers. The highest lift on the mountain reaches {{convert|12570|ft}}.