Events have become a critical part of the Vail Valley’s economy, and the town of Vail puts up a lot of taxpayer money to support them — the Vail Commission on Special Events alone has a budget of nearly $1 million this year, and the town spent $400,000 in reserve funds to support this year’s U.S. Open. But how to direct that money to the right events is more art than science.

With that in mind, the town recently commissioned a study to see just what kind of bang it’s getting for its bucks. That study, from Boulder-based RRC Associates, took an in-depth look at 30 events in 2013 to determine attendance, economic impact and whether or not people coming to Vail would have come without those events. Read more.