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Ripley

Blue Showdown, MT

Steepest pitch20°
Vertical557 ft
Length2,630 ft
Average pitch12°
FacesSE
Top7,915 ft

Ripley drops 557 vertical feet over 2,630 feet of skiing, with a steepest pitch of 20° about 120 feet below the top. That's steeper than 38% of the 5,615 blue runs we've measured in North America, and the 21st steepest of 34 named runs at Showdown. It faces southeast.

How well Ripley holds snow

Snow preservationPoor

Facing southeast at an average 12°, Ripley gets about 119% of the winter sun that flat ground at Showdown does, December through March. That's sunnier than 86% of the runs we've measured, and the 10th sunniest named run at Showdown. Its top sits at 7,920 feet.

Angled toward the low winter sun, it bakes: powder turns heavy soon after a storm, and in spring it softens early in the day and refreezes hard overnight. Shading from ridges and trees isn't counted yet.

Ripley profile

under 25°25–35°35–45°45°+ Hover to follow the line on the map.

Where it is on the mountain

Runs like Ripley elsewhere

Nearby at Showdown

Measured by ZRankings from 1-meter USGS lidar. Steepest pitch is the steepest stretch of about 50 vertical feet along the skiable line. Run lines come from OpenStreetMap and can sit a little off the skied path.