VAIL, Colorado — Ben Towler moved to Vail four months ago and he's already seeking out bragging rights — the 25-year-old arrived at Vail Mountain's Born Free chairlift Friday morning at 5:45 to get first chair.

“I want to start the season off right,” Towler said. “That's pretty much all there is to it. I wanted to get on the mountain first, beat everybody and be able to have those bragging rights.”

Joining him on first chair were Eagle County locals Lauren Arnold, Cesar Hermosillo and Robert Gosiewski, all of whom grew up in the valley.

Arnold, 25, had never gotten first chair until Friday. She said she can now scratch it off her bucket list.

Vail Mountain opened Friday with 160 acres of terrain accessible via the Vista Bahn and Born Free chair lifts, and the Eagle Bahn gondola. The sky remained clear-blue all day as skiers and riders lapped the 10 open runs.

Opening day is always a celebration in Vail. Vail Mountain employees can be heard leading chants, and the vibe is one of optimism and joy.

The day started out that way, but a skier died after an accident on Vail's slopes around 10:15 a.m., adding gloom to the beginning of the winter season. (See related story on page A4.)

Earlier in the morning, just before 9 a.m., Vail Mountain Chief Operating Officer Chris Jarnot stood by the Born Free chair lift Friday morning watching the first skiers and riders of the season get their first 2011-12 lift rides at Vail.

“We've been thinking about (opening day) and planning for it and agonizing over it since we closed in April, so right now you're just excited to get it going and be doing it and get the lifts turning, get people skiing and snowboarding — it's great,” Jarnot said.

Vail Mountain might have officially opened Friday, but Jarnot said the behind-the-scenes work never stops. The resort has been working on next year's capital projects planning for months already, he said.

“It all overlaps,” Jarnot said. “There's always a ton going on.”

EpicMix upgrade ‘unbelievable'

Jarnot looks forward to the ski season every year, but this year especially because of the new Mid-Vail restaurant, The 10th, opening next month, and a new photo feature on the company-wide Epic Mix mobile application and website.

The first chair riders are also excited about Epic Mix's new feature, especially Hermosillo, who came in seventh place overall in EpicMix standings last season, and fourth place at Vail.

He had already started logging check-ins, pins and vertical feet at Keystone this season before Vail's opening.

“But (Vail) is the mountain that counts, so I'm ready to shred it,” Hermosillo said.

Hermosillo said he can't believe the new photo addition to Epic Mix.

“I think it's unbelievable how they can scan your pass, take a photo and it's uploaded almost instantly,” he said. “I think it's a great way to network and share with people.”

EpicMix photographers, Vail Resorts employees who have replaced the Sharp Shooters who took on-mountain pictures in previous seasons, have opened up the on-mountain photography experience to more than just tourists. Many locals stopped for the free photos at Eagle's Nest Friday, too.

Greg Clark, who lives in Intermountain, had a picture taken with his friends. He said he normally wouldn't have gotten a photo taken at Vail.

Jarnot said the evolution of technology as a marketing tool has been incredible.

“Back in the old days, we would hand out postcards and hope that our guests would send postcards of Vail back to their friends and family at home,” Jarnot said. “We've already, before (Vail) even opened, just last week with Keystone and Breckenridge, had over a million impressions on Facebook and Twitter of photos of people having a great time, distributed around the world. The impact of that is just invaluable.”

But beyond marketing, Jarnot said EpicMix photo is helping visitors create memories.

“It's adding that much to their guest experience and creating that for them to remember what a great time they had,” he said.

Community Editor Lauren Glendenning can be reached at 970-748-2983 or lglendenning@vaildaily.com.