Warren Miller Entertainment’s 64th ski and snowboard film, “Ticket to Ride,” premiered in the Colorado Mesa University Ballroom last Friday night.

Warren Miller’s company has been the authority on snow sports films for the past 30 years. The newest release, “Ticket to Ride,” was a great addition to the epic lineage of legendary ski films.  Filled with endless powder runs and starring a list of Olympic champions and professional free riders, “Ticket to Ride” was shot on location in Alaska, Switzerland, Montana, Greenland, Kazakhstan, Norway, Iceland, and Colorado.

Several members of the CMU Ski Team hosted a raffle with prize packages from the sponsors. Proceeds will help CMU’s Ski Team travel this year.

“We have been selling raffle tickets for the past week. It’s a pretty good way to make some extra cash to help other kids get to ski races and be able to afford going to regionals, and if you make it to nationals, that’s extra,” CMU Ski Team member Sarah Gregory said. “Last year ,I went to nationals. They had no idea what Colorado Mesa was, and now people know we have a good ski team. It’s important so more people can join and hopefully make it a D1 ski team.”

Gregory has put the CMU Ski Team on the map by placing ninth overall at nationals. Gregory hopes to be ranked number one this year.

When asked if she had been in a Warren Miller film, she said, “I have not. My uncle’s been in one. I’ve met a few of those guys, like Kaylin Richardson and Ted Ligety and everyone like that.”

Event sponsors included the CMU Alpine Ski Team, Gene Taylor’s sporting goods, Magic 93.1, Wine Country Inn, Sunlight Mountain resort, LOKI apparel, the Moose 92.3, Powderhorn ski area, Telluride ski area, and Wells Fargo.

The CMU Alpine Ski Coach Jack Harbottle stated, “It’s terrific that the University can host such a quality event at a reasonable price.  The Marketing Department does a really great job organizing everything.”

Telluride ski area has also helped students financially by supporting Colorado Mesa University Global Health and the  Nursing Program.

“Last summer, we went to Nicaragua, and next summer, we’ll go to Nicaragua as well and perhaps Uganda,” CMU nursing student Juliann Stell said. “Telluride helped us out and pretty much funded our whole trip. We got to experience the health care system in a developing country, get our feet wet and help out there.”

This season, families can vacation in Telluride at a discounted rate and help fund CMU Global Health by logging onto www.bit.ly/CMUghp.

akennedy2@mavs.coloradomesa.edu