Frozen Dead Guy Days 2025 in Colorado

Frozen Dead Guy Days (FDGD) is an extraordinary festival dedicated to a unique chapter in the history of cryonics. Scheduled for March 15, 2025, this one-of-a-kind event takes place at the Estes Park Events Complex and The Stanley Hotel in Estes Park, Colorado. Combining live music, quirky competitions, and a fascinating backstory, FDGD offers attendees an experience unlike any other.

Activities and Highlights

The festival’s lineup is packed with peculiar and engaging activities. Key attractions include the famous Coffin Race, human foosball, and a parade of hearses. Visitors can also participate in frozen t-shirt contests, a polar plunge, and other lighthearted competitions that celebrate the festival's frosty theme. Music lovers can enjoy performances by over 30 bands in heated tents, while the Royal Blue Ball showcases live acts such as Flash Mountain Flood, Electric Toast & Buttery Friends, and Dead Floyd.

For those looking to join the fun in costume, Saturday’s parade through Estes Park offers prizes for the best Ice Queen and Grandpa Bredo-inspired outfits, honoring the festival’s unusual origins.

Schedule

The Frozen Dead Guy Days Festival in Estes Park spans the weekend of March 14-16, 2025, with a variety of themed activities. The main festival day, Saturday, March 15, at the Estes Park Events Complex, features the famous coffin races, live music, and wild games.

The festivities kick off on Friday with a Frozen Dead Bar Crawl through local bars and a costume dance party at The Royal Blue Ball at the Stanley Hotel. On Sunday, the excitement continues with The Polar Plunge and a Bands & Bloodys Brunch at the Stanley Hotel.

Tickets

General admission tickets, known as "First Snow Early Bird," are priced at $38, with additional service fees. For groups wanting to compete, Coffin Race team registration costs $120. Attendees are encouraged to purchase tickets early, as the event typically draws large crowds.

Location and Accessibility

Estes Park, located about 40 miles (64 km) north of Nederland, serves as the venue for this year’s festival. It offers a picturesque setting at the gateway to Rocky Mountain National Park. The Estes Park Events Complex and The Stanley Hotel provide modern amenities and ample parking, ensuring visitors can enjoy the festival comfortably. Nearby attractions include hiking trails, scenic drives, and the cryonics museum at The Stanley Hotel's old icehouse, where Grandpa Bredo now resides.

The Story Behind the Festival

The origins of Frozen Dead Guy Days trace back to 1989 when Norwegian Bredo Morstøl passed away from a heart condition. Instead of traditional burial, his body was cryopreserved, first at a facility in California and later in Nederland, Colorado. His grandson, Trygve Bauge, brought him to the United States with hopes of starting a cryonics facility. However, legal and logistical challenges almost ended Grandpa Bredo's frozen state.

Thanks to community efforts, a makeshift shed kept him preserved on dry ice until his relocation in 2023. Today, Bredo’s story is immortalized not only through the festival but also at the Estes Park museum, the only one in the world dedicated to cryonics.