First off, it is CU, not UC. Secondly, the closest mountian is 30 minutes away. Thirdly, there are some definite pluses of it being expensive- Everyone has houses at the resorts. My roommate has a house on the mountian in Breck, my neighbor has a house in Vail, one of my best friends has a house in Winter Park, another one of my friends has a house in Copper. You don't go up for a day, you go for the weekend, although there is stuff close enough to ski on a week day. Boulder is a better town than Salt Lake and Colorado is a better state than Vermont. Go to CU