Executive Protection Transportation in Colorado

How We Plan a Protected Movement

Every protected movement starts with a conversation with the client’s chief of staff, executive assistant, family office or detail lead. We need the arrival details, the residence or hotel, the schedule of venues, the size of the party and support group, and any known concerns. From that we build a movement plan.

Route planning comes first. For a DIA arrival headed to Vail, the primary route is I-70 west through the Eisenhower-Johnson Memorial Tunnel and over Vail Pass, about two hours in good conditions and up to three and a half in winter. We identify the decision points: the tunnel, which closes for storms, crashes and hazmat holds, and Vail Pass, which closes several times each winter. For Breckenridge, the alternate when I-70 closes east of the tunnel is US-285 to Fairplay and Highway 9 north over Hoosier Pass. For Vail there is no practical alternate, so the plan includes a hold location and a communication plan rather than a detour.

Advance work follows. Where the schedule allows, a chauffeur visits each venue before the movement: the entrance the principal will use, where the vehicle can stage, the walk from the car to the door, and how the vehicle exits. In Vail Village and Lionshead that means knowing which loading zone serves which building. In Beaver Creek it means clearing the gated village entry ahead of time. In Aspen it means knowing the West End’s narrow streets and where the core’s hotels take vehicles.

Finally, we settle who the chauffeur reports to, how status is shared, and what happens if the schedule moves.

Mountain Resorts, Events and Private Residences

The resort towns are where most of our protected work takes place, and each has its own considerations.

Breckenridge is our home base. One Ski Hill Place, Grand Colorado on Peak 8 and Beaver Run sit at the ski bases, while private residences on Peaks 7, 8 and 9 are on steep, narrow roads that are snow-packed for much of the winter. Main Street closes to vehicles at times during Ullr Fest and the International Snow Sculpture Championships, which changes the approach to the Historic District.

Vail’s Four Seasons, Sonnenalp, The Arrabelle, Hotel Talisa, Grand Hyatt Vail and The Sebastian each have a porte-cochere or loading zone, and the chauffeur knows which one to use. During the Burton US Open and the GoPro Mountain Games, closures around the village cores are extensive and the plan accounts for them.

Beaver Creek is gated, with separate gated entries for Bachelor Gulch and Arrowhead. The Ritz-Carlton Bachelor Gulch, Park Hyatt Beaver Creek, The Osprey and The Pines Lodge are the primary hotel drop points, and guest access at the gate is part of the advance work.

Aspen and Snowmass Village have the highest concentration of private residences and high-profile events in our area: The Little Nell, Hotel Jerome, the St. Regis, The Limelight, W Aspen and Aspen Meadows in the core; the Viceroy, Limelight Snowmass and Westin Snowmass in Base Village; and West End and ski-in/ski-out homes. The Food & Wine Classic and the X Games at Buttermilk bring crowds and closures. Highway 82 is the single winter road in and out, which makes timing and staging especially important.

Timing, Advance Work and Multi-Day Details

Protected movements need more lead time than ordinary bookings. For a single airport transfer with a known venue, a few days’ notice is enough for route planning and vehicle assignment. For a multi-day itinerary with several venues, private residences and a support group, we prefer a week or more so the advance work can be done properly and the right chauffeurs are scheduled.

A multi-day detail typically runs from an FBO arrival at EGE or ASE and a movement to the residence, through several days of meetings, on-mountain events and dinners, to a departure built around the airline or FBO timing plus the winter margin. The same chauffeur or team stays on the assignment throughout so the plan does not have to be re-briefed.

Timing rules we follow:

• Departures to DIA are planned with the drive time plus 30 to 45 minutes of winter weather margin plus check-in time. Sunday afternoons and holiday Mondays are the slowest eastbound periods on I-70.
• Vail Pass and the Eisenhower Tunnel are checked before every movement that crosses them, and the plan includes a hold point.
• Glenwood Canyon is closure-prone for rockfall and mudslides, and Independence Pass is closed in winter, so Aspen movements from Denver go through Glenwood Springs and Basalt.
• Event weekends add closures in the village cores; the advance work confirms the approach route for each venue.

Itinerary privacy is standard. Details are shared with the assigned chauffeurs and no one else, and we take direction from the client on what may be confirmed by phone or email.