SILVERTHORNE, Colo. — Colorado's beloved Ice Castles returns for its 15th season, with December 19 marking the official opening in Silverthorne. While the warmer temperatures presented challenges, these castle crews worked around the clock to bring the frozen fortress to life.
Dan Beck, vice president of construction for Ice Castles, has been with the company since the start. He helps design and plan all of their locations and explained the challenges that came with the warmer weather in Summit County.
"This weather is definitely extremely challenging," said Beck. "A lot of times it's two steps forward, one step back. What we grow overnight, might melt during the day. It's hard, I mean it's always hard, but it's a lot easier when it's ten degrees every night."
Having worked for the company for 15 years, Beck said he first came across a help-wanted sign at the library and showed up with his crampons to get the job.
"We started planning for this site back in the summer. Our manager showed up on site here in September. We got everything set up so we could turn on the water in early November. We had to wait a little while; it's been kind of a warm one," Beck said.
Denver7 has covered the warmer temperatures this winter season and the impact it's had on mountain communities. When it comes to building the castles, Beck said crews were 'glued to the forecasts' and adjusting plans to ensure ice was in the shade.
"So that's been really difficult, and we've had to work really hard in a really compressed time. Our crew here, our manager and assistant manager, they've just done an amazing job of getting things in," said Beck. "If they had been just a couple of days slower on a couple of things, we wouldn't be opening this Friday, but they've done an amazing job and built a beautiful castle that's going to bring a lot of joy to a lot of people."
Michael Petterson, a member of the build crew, has been with the Ice Castles for three seasons. He usually works at the Cripple Creek castle, but came up to the Silverthorne location to help get it ready in time for opening night.
"The sun is definitely a battle," said Petterson. "Everything on the south side that gets exposed to the sun, we have to do a little extra work on trying to get it to grow. While on the north side, we are cutting it away."
Whether it is making slush, carving an igloo, or placing the icicles, every crew member stays busy bringing the magic to life while battling Mother Nature's warm weather. Beck said it takes around 10,000 person-hours once they turn on the water to create the polar playground.
"Just a lot of building, and it has been hard," said castle crew member Josey Gilley. "Just because every day we kind of come in and we see spots that we built on, and it melted away. We're like, 'Oh no,' but yeah, we just we keep doing it. We keep coming in every day and building more. It's getting better, it's really coming together, so we're fighting against the sun."
Now with another build under his belt, Beck reflected on how this ice castle construction became so much more than just a job.
"...This just jumped out and said this is something that could be really interesting and fulfilling, and you can make a career out of it, and it worked out. How often does it work out? This place is like the American dream," Beck said.
Tickets are for sale online for the Silverthorne location, with Santa making a stop on December 22 and 23.
