You may have spent the winter perfecting your pizza, but the spring presents another shredding skill to conquer: pond skimming. This month, most resorts in Colorado will host end-of-season blowouts featuring the event, in which participants attempt to ski down a steep slope and across a small body of water in front of rowdy revelers. But don’t be intimidated.

To ace this slush cup, simply gain enough downhill speed to propel yourself across the icy pool and keep your weight centered to avoid the most common types of wipeouts—belly flops and turtle shells (read: skidding across the water on your back). Then again, getting wet is the best way to make a splash. “Honestly, the most boring thing that can happen is an ordinary, successful traverse across the pond,” says Tyler Lindsay, Aspen Skiing Co.’s senior events and marketing manager and the emcee of the pond-skim challenge at Snowmass Ski Resort’s free closing-day soiree (April 19).

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His favorite skimmers last year? A trio of teenagers who mounted three sets of bindings onto a single pair of skis, resulting in an epic wipeout. At the very least, Lindsay says, put on a quirky costume: “We don’t want people so loose that they’re injuring themselves, but we want to foster an environment where people can let their freak flags fly and be their whole selves.”

Read More: Fun Things to Do in the Mountains this Month

This article was originally published in 5280 April 2025.
Michelle Shortall
Michelle Shortall
Michelle Shortall is a senior editor at 5280, where she manages Compass and writes and edits home stories for 5280.com.