Pictures from the trip
Set 1
Set 2
Set 3
I will get final numbers out this week but I owe money to a few of you.
My favorite runs in the entire region were probably
1. runs on skiiers right of elk camp, through the trees
2. the runs on skiiers left of the big burn
3. silver bell on aspen mtn.
Rather interestingly, after touching down in NYC, and at basically sea level, I hit the gym and felt pretty charged up so was able to do 45 min on the elliptical at a little higher speed than usual. Being at alitude seems to help some kinds of training.
On the down side, I have had a persistent ear ache since returning.
Ajax looked pretty darn steep once one got away from the blue rated gullies & basins.
One impressive thing about Snowmass, especially vis-a-vis Vail, is how much real vertical you can get on all the lifts. Vail has lots of lifts that give you 1000-1400 vert on each lift, but not that many that give you 2000+ Snowmass seemed to have plenty in the 1800+ zone.
Supposedly snowbasin has a 2300 vert lift.
The more you look into this, nothing quite compares to Sun Valley's Challenger and lift 5, which give more real vert per minute than anything else.
Tuesday, January 31, 2006
Friday, January 20, 2006
Snow & Weather Report
'It doesn't get better than this year'
Fresh dump adds to already copious snowfall
By Joel Stonington
January 20, 2006
Yet another big dump had skiers screaming with joy as they ate snow on major face shots all day Thursday.
The storm Wednesday night brought more than a foot to all four mountains. That adds to a year in which the upper Colorado River basin, which includes Aspen, is about 130 percent of average snowfall.
National Weather Service forecaster Mike Chamberlain said all the storms are coming out of the Northwest. Thus, the northern and central mountains in Colorado are doing quite nicely, while the southern mountains are far below average. The upper Rio Grande watershed is at 35 percent of normal and the San Miguel (Durango area) is 47 percent of normal.
The professional weather forecasters, though, rarely put the conditions in the terms of Aspen weather watcher Jim Markalunas.
"It's the best snow conditions I can remember in one hell of a long time," Markalunas said. "It doesn't get better than this year. It's one of those kinds of winters that people talk about - 'Remember when we had all that snow back in such and such?' It's a biggie. No question about it."
Markalunas watches the weather and measures the snow every day; he has done so since the 1950s. One thing he looks out for are big dumps, when it snows more than 10 inches in 24 hours.
So far, Thursday marked the first big dump of the year, according to his measurements at his West End home. And really, a big dump should be celebrated.
He said that every 20 years three dumps happen in one year. A four-dump year comes along every half-century.
"We've had a lot of snow," Markalunas said, "but they've all been small increments, 4, 5 or 6 inches."
There haven't been many big dumps in the last decade or so - 2003, 2002, 1999, 1998, 1997 were all years without one. The last truly epic year, a four-dump year, was 1984, Markalunas said.
Aspen Skiing Co. spokesman Jeff Hanle said the official reading at Highlands showed 16 inches in 48 hours, though wind-loading in many areas contributed to many reports of waist-deep snow.
But with all the excitement about this storm and the incredible snow year, there isn't anything quite like a National Weather Service forecaster to bring it back to reality.
"There's nothing abnormal about this storm, nothing unusual about it," Chamberlain said. "It's wintertime; we get snowstorms."
He did mention there is a chance for more soon, though not much more.
"Another weaker storm will move into the area over the weekend," he said. "We're not really expecting a whole lot of punch, maybe a couple of inches."
Fresh dump adds to already copious snowfall
By Joel Stonington
January 20, 2006
Yet another big dump had skiers screaming with joy as they ate snow on major face shots all day Thursday.
The storm Wednesday night brought more than a foot to all four mountains. That adds to a year in which the upper Colorado River basin, which includes Aspen, is about 130 percent of average snowfall.
National Weather Service forecaster Mike Chamberlain said all the storms are coming out of the Northwest. Thus, the northern and central mountains in Colorado are doing quite nicely, while the southern mountains are far below average. The upper Rio Grande watershed is at 35 percent of normal and the San Miguel (Durango area) is 47 percent of normal.
The professional weather forecasters, though, rarely put the conditions in the terms of Aspen weather watcher Jim Markalunas.
"It's the best snow conditions I can remember in one hell of a long time," Markalunas said. "It doesn't get better than this year. It's one of those kinds of winters that people talk about - 'Remember when we had all that snow back in such and such?' It's a biggie. No question about it."
Markalunas watches the weather and measures the snow every day; he has done so since the 1950s. One thing he looks out for are big dumps, when it snows more than 10 inches in 24 hours.
So far, Thursday marked the first big dump of the year, according to his measurements at his West End home. And really, a big dump should be celebrated.
He said that every 20 years three dumps happen in one year. A four-dump year comes along every half-century.
"We've had a lot of snow," Markalunas said, "but they've all been small increments, 4, 5 or 6 inches."
There haven't been many big dumps in the last decade or so - 2003, 2002, 1999, 1998, 1997 were all years without one. The last truly epic year, a four-dump year, was 1984, Markalunas said.
Aspen Skiing Co. spokesman Jeff Hanle said the official reading at Highlands showed 16 inches in 48 hours, though wind-loading in many areas contributed to many reports of waist-deep snow.
But with all the excitement about this storm and the incredible snow year, there isn't anything quite like a National Weather Service forecaster to bring it back to reality.
"There's nothing abnormal about this storm, nothing unusual about it," Chamberlain said. "It's wintertime; we get snowstorms."
He did mention there is a chance for more soon, though not much more.
"Another weaker storm will move into the area over the weekend," he said. "We're not really expecting a whole lot of punch, maybe a couple of inches."
Thursday, January 19, 2006
Last Details
1. Sparky is joining us, we will have to pick him up late on Saturday night from the Snowmass Post Office. He's going back to Vail/EGE the same day Waldo is.
2. There has been a ton of snow out there, pretty much every single day this week has been a powder day. Last night Snowmass got another foot. You may want to pack powder bibs if you have them.
3. Here is the weather forecast for Saturday for Aspen - hopefully our travel plans will not be impacted.
Saturday January 21
Hi Temp: 10/ 25°F (top/base)
Lo Temp: -10/ -01°F (top/base)
Sky Condition:
Partly to mostly cloudy and chilly with west breezes and winds with isolated light snow showers at times.
Precipitation:
Isolated snow showers - snowfall potential; A trace of snowfall is possible.
Wind:
Variable at 4 - 12mph, increasing to W at 10 - 20 gusts to 25mph
4. Here is everyone's cell phone numbers
Plant 646 342 9018
Bruha 011 44 788 798 7366
Yuji-san 617 271-8634
SPAM 630 631-1012
Sparky 917 971-5152
DH 617 413 1645
Guano 780 905-9218
Doug 614-226-6046
Waldo "old school"
5. Don't forget to pack your digital cameras, wine if you are playing mule for us, and trip T-Shirts if you already have them.
6. Nice little article on what to do in Aspen in the NYT today, below this.
I cannot wait to see all you guys - this week is pretty much the highlight of every winter for me!!!
Plant
2. There has been a ton of snow out there, pretty much every single day this week has been a powder day. Last night Snowmass got another foot. You may want to pack powder bibs if you have them.
3. Here is the weather forecast for Saturday for Aspen - hopefully our travel plans will not be impacted.
Saturday January 21
Hi Temp: 10/ 25°F (top/base)
Lo Temp: -10/ -01°F (top/base)
Sky Condition:
Partly to mostly cloudy and chilly with west breezes and winds with isolated light snow showers at times.
Precipitation:
Isolated snow showers - snowfall potential; A trace of snowfall is possible.
Wind:
Variable at 4 - 12mph, increasing to W at 10 - 20 gusts to 25mph
4. Here is everyone's cell phone numbers
Plant 646 342 9018
Bruha 011 44 788 798 7366
Yuji-san 617 271-8634
SPAM 630 631-1012
Sparky 917 971-5152
DH 617 413 1645
Guano 780 905-9218
Doug 614-226-6046
Waldo "old school"
5. Don't forget to pack your digital cameras, wine if you are playing mule for us, and trip T-Shirts if you already have them.
6. Nice little article on what to do in Aspen in the NYT today, below this.
I cannot wait to see all you guys - this week is pretty much the highlight of every winter for me!!!
Plant
Play Hard, Party Harder in Aspen
Play Hard, Party Harder in Aspen
By ALISON BERKLEY
A LINE formed around the block as hundreds of sweatshirt-clad professional snowboarders and their navel-ringed girlfriends crammed into the Caribou Club in downtown Aspen, Colo., for FHM magazine's "Girls of the X Games" party during the ESPN Winter X Games, in January 2004. The private club normally charges $1,000 for a temporary weeklong membership during the holidays and another $12 for a cocktail on top of that, but during this Winter X Games soiree, entrance to the club and drinks were free for anyone who managed to get on the guest list, which seemed to be just about everyone who is under 30 and just happened to be in town.
Other weeks of the year, the below-ground club, with its mahogany wood paneling, oversized upholstered furniture, and dead animals mounted on the walls, is typically frequented by celebrities and jet setters who summon flights out of Aspen on the red house phone that provides a direct line to a local private jet charter. On this night, teeming with hard-partying youth, the stodgy old members-only club looked more like a scene out of the Playboy Mansion, with hordes of scantily clad hard bodies draped all over the deep upholstered furniture. Guests of honor included Aspen's own hometown star, Gretchen Bleiler, an X Games Superpipe champion who was featured on the cover of FHM alongside two other X Games athletes in nothing but body paint.
Forget gawking at fur coats, monster homes and little dogs in sweaters. Ever since the X Games came to town in 2002, Aspen has undergone an annual (and brief) metamorphosis soon after the new year. This year, from Jan. 28 to 31, the only sights worth catching there are all those extreme winter action sports athletes, flipping and spinning their way to X Games glory. An estimated 65,000 fans will transform the town into a stadium for an adrenaline-filled party that's part circus, part athletic competition and part rock concert. The vibe is almost naughty, like having a party at someone's parents' house while they're out of town.
It's more than a little funny that this sports event would land in the same resort that banned snowboarding on Aspen Mountain until 2001. Eager to ditch the stigma of being a winter country club for the rich and famous, Aspen embraced the ultrahip Winter X with open arms. In the celebrity-studded 80's and afterward, the counterculture in and around Aspen that was personified by Hunter S. Thompson was replaced with designer labels and luxury police cars. The focus shifted from mountain town living to five-star dining and boutique shopping: the place to ski and be seen.
Despite the odd coupling of a youth-oriented sports scene with a resort for the ultrawealthy, the relationship seems to work. ESPN extended its contract with Aspen Skiing Company to seven years. In contrast to the high cost of everything in Aspen, the X Games are free. Five days of snowboarding, skiing, snowmobiling, on-snow motocross competitions and the X Games Concert Series don't cost spectators a dime.
With the X Games scheduled less than two weeks before the Winter Olympics begins in Italy, all eyes will be on Olympic medal hopefuls like Ms. Bleiler and Shaun White, who won the first two Olympic qualifying events back-to-back.
The event is held at the base of Buttermilk, the smallest of Aspen's four ski areas, since 2002. Since there are three ski areas nearby - Aspen Mountain, Snowmass, and Aspen Highlands - the X Games doesn't really interfere with the resort's skiing business. Buttermilk, has a flat, wide-open base area that provides the perfect place for ESPN to set up camp. A sizable fleet of 18-wheelers and production trailers make the parking lot look like a highway truck stop. The base area is overrun with sponsor booths and a merchandising area that doles out free swag like candy on Halloween. Children of all ages run around with plastic bags stuffed with giveaways, wearing T-shirts covered with athletes' autographs over their winter coats.
The constant buzzing of motorcycle and snowmobile engines sounds in the background, and occasionally an upside down airborne athlete soars above the crowd. Two or three events are held simultaneously and can all be seen from the base area, so it's hard to know what to focus on. Giant television screens glow in the night sky, the commentary echoes through the valley, and the screams of the crowd cause sensory overload.
At last year's men's Superpipe preliminary competition, three young girls from Aspen, Polly Lopes, Nichole Bechamps and Victoria Morris, screamed like Beatles fans while waving Mountain Dew glow sticks with "I love Shaun White" - their favorite snowboarder - painted on their cheeks and foreheads in eyeliner. Aspen public school students are given the Friday of the X Games off, a decision made by Aspen High School's principal, Kendall Evans when 380 of 470 students failed to show up for school when the X Games made its debut in Aspen in 2002.
Even though the venue is three miles west of downtown Aspen, the party spills over into town as soon as the evening competition is over. The X Games crowd isn't interested in trying to get reservations at upscale restaurants like Matsuhisa or lounging around extravagant hotel lobbies like the one at the Little Nell. Crowds overrun more casual spots, places so relaxed they're virtually unprepared. Last year, the Cantina, a Mexican restaurant on the corner of Main and Mill Streets, ran out of beans and limes. New York Pizza, the cheapest eating place in town and the only one that stays open to feed the drunken masses when the bars close at 2 a.m., had to close early because it ran out of dough. The Red Onion, an Aspen watering hole since the 1890's that still feels as gritty as it probably did during the mining era, had a line stretching out the door.
Streets are closed down for block parties and free live outdoor concerts. The band Offspring played in 2004 in front of 6,000 people who turned out despite 17-degree weather. Restaurants and hotel ballrooms are rented out for private parties, with the banquet room at the Hotel Jerome, taken over for the Powder Magazine Awards, converted into something like a fraternity house. Young athletes and industry people indulged in the best of Aspen luxury at the expense of sponsors who wanted to show their clients a good time. As far as the staff at Carl's Pharmacy liquor store could tell, no one was enforcing open container laws. "There was a permanent party going on in our parking lot for five days straight," said one, Maurice Eaton, 35. "It was pretty crazy, but no one seemed to mind."
IF YOU GO
The ESPN Winter X Games take place Jan. 28 to 31. Details are available online at www.expn.com and www.aspensnowmass.com.
GETTING THERE
Aspen is 220 miles west of Denver. Flights from New York to Aspen on United Airlines require a change of planes in Denver. American Airlines flies directly from New York to Eagle/Vail, 70 miles from Aspen. Denver is three and a half hours from Aspen by road and driving can be treacherous in winter. Round-trip air fares in early January for X Games week from New York to Aspen or Vail started at $352 to $366.
GETTING AROUND
Cars are not necessary in Aspen and parking during X Games is a nightmare, so use public transportation. Buses from the center of Aspen to the X Games are free and run frequently.
WHERE TO STAY
The best way to cope with Aspen's high lodging costs is to rent a condominium with a group. In early January, availability included a three-bedroom condo that sleeps eight people for $499 a night and a two-bedroom that sleeps six for $470. Condos typically require a five-night minimum stay. For online booking and information go to the Web at www.stayaspensnowmass.com or www.ski.com.
The lowest-priced hotel rooms start at $200 a night. They generally sell out early. The Annabelle Inn, 232 West Main Street, 970-925-3822, on the Web at www.annabelleinn.com, newly rebuilt with funky, charming rooms, two hot tubs , and a courtyard with waterfalls and a fire pit. Rooms are $225 to $375 during the X Games. The Limelite Lodge, 228 East Cooper Avenue, 970-925-3025, www.limelite-lodge.com, is an Aspen institution, family-owned for four generations. During the games, rooms range from $150 to $269.
WHERE TO EAT
Finding restaurants with entrees for under $20 in Aspen is a challenge. The Cantina, 411 East Main Street, 970-925-3663, serves Tex-Mex food with a portion-to-price ratio that is one of the best in town with giant combo plates bubbling in melted cheese for and one of the only late night menus in town, serving food until after midnight. Jimmy's, a bar, upstairs at 205 South Mill Street, 970-925-6020, serves food until midnight. Try its inexpensive fare, like a side dish of macaroni and cheese for $4, the best crab cake in town for $10 and chicken or beef quesadillas for $8.
WHERE TO PARTY
In a town where 80 bars and restaurants are packed into 10 square blocks, there's a distinct circuit for the bar hopping crowd. You can revisit the gritty mining era with a pint of Colorado microbrew beer at one of the town's historic bars, like Bentley's, 970-920-2240, in the Wheeler Opera House at 328 East Hyman Avenue, The Red Onion, 420 East Cooper Avenue, 970-925-9043, or the J Bar at the Hotel Jerome, 330 East Main Street, 970-429-7674.
At 11 p.m., follow the herd to Eric's Bar, 315 East Hyman Avenue, 970-920-6707, where you're likely to run into everyone you know and a few beautiful people you might wish knew you.
Catch last call on the dance floor at Chelsea or Lava, Aspen's only two dance clubs, both on the Cooper Street Mall.
There is live music most nights at Belly Up, Aspen, 450 South Galena Street, 970-544-9800. Check www.bellyupaspen.com for listings.
By ALISON BERKLEY
A LINE formed around the block as hundreds of sweatshirt-clad professional snowboarders and their navel-ringed girlfriends crammed into the Caribou Club in downtown Aspen, Colo., for FHM magazine's "Girls of the X Games" party during the ESPN Winter X Games, in January 2004. The private club normally charges $1,000 for a temporary weeklong membership during the holidays and another $12 for a cocktail on top of that, but during this Winter X Games soiree, entrance to the club and drinks were free for anyone who managed to get on the guest list, which seemed to be just about everyone who is under 30 and just happened to be in town.
Other weeks of the year, the below-ground club, with its mahogany wood paneling, oversized upholstered furniture, and dead animals mounted on the walls, is typically frequented by celebrities and jet setters who summon flights out of Aspen on the red house phone that provides a direct line to a local private jet charter. On this night, teeming with hard-partying youth, the stodgy old members-only club looked more like a scene out of the Playboy Mansion, with hordes of scantily clad hard bodies draped all over the deep upholstered furniture. Guests of honor included Aspen's own hometown star, Gretchen Bleiler, an X Games Superpipe champion who was featured on the cover of FHM alongside two other X Games athletes in nothing but body paint.
Forget gawking at fur coats, monster homes and little dogs in sweaters. Ever since the X Games came to town in 2002, Aspen has undergone an annual (and brief) metamorphosis soon after the new year. This year, from Jan. 28 to 31, the only sights worth catching there are all those extreme winter action sports athletes, flipping and spinning their way to X Games glory. An estimated 65,000 fans will transform the town into a stadium for an adrenaline-filled party that's part circus, part athletic competition and part rock concert. The vibe is almost naughty, like having a party at someone's parents' house while they're out of town.
It's more than a little funny that this sports event would land in the same resort that banned snowboarding on Aspen Mountain until 2001. Eager to ditch the stigma of being a winter country club for the rich and famous, Aspen embraced the ultrahip Winter X with open arms. In the celebrity-studded 80's and afterward, the counterculture in and around Aspen that was personified by Hunter S. Thompson was replaced with designer labels and luxury police cars. The focus shifted from mountain town living to five-star dining and boutique shopping: the place to ski and be seen.
Despite the odd coupling of a youth-oriented sports scene with a resort for the ultrawealthy, the relationship seems to work. ESPN extended its contract with Aspen Skiing Company to seven years. In contrast to the high cost of everything in Aspen, the X Games are free. Five days of snowboarding, skiing, snowmobiling, on-snow motocross competitions and the X Games Concert Series don't cost spectators a dime.
With the X Games scheduled less than two weeks before the Winter Olympics begins in Italy, all eyes will be on Olympic medal hopefuls like Ms. Bleiler and Shaun White, who won the first two Olympic qualifying events back-to-back.
The event is held at the base of Buttermilk, the smallest of Aspen's four ski areas, since 2002. Since there are three ski areas nearby - Aspen Mountain, Snowmass, and Aspen Highlands - the X Games doesn't really interfere with the resort's skiing business. Buttermilk, has a flat, wide-open base area that provides the perfect place for ESPN to set up camp. A sizable fleet of 18-wheelers and production trailers make the parking lot look like a highway truck stop. The base area is overrun with sponsor booths and a merchandising area that doles out free swag like candy on Halloween. Children of all ages run around with plastic bags stuffed with giveaways, wearing T-shirts covered with athletes' autographs over their winter coats.
The constant buzzing of motorcycle and snowmobile engines sounds in the background, and occasionally an upside down airborne athlete soars above the crowd. Two or three events are held simultaneously and can all be seen from the base area, so it's hard to know what to focus on. Giant television screens glow in the night sky, the commentary echoes through the valley, and the screams of the crowd cause sensory overload.
At last year's men's Superpipe preliminary competition, three young girls from Aspen, Polly Lopes, Nichole Bechamps and Victoria Morris, screamed like Beatles fans while waving Mountain Dew glow sticks with "I love Shaun White" - their favorite snowboarder - painted on their cheeks and foreheads in eyeliner. Aspen public school students are given the Friday of the X Games off, a decision made by Aspen High School's principal, Kendall Evans when 380 of 470 students failed to show up for school when the X Games made its debut in Aspen in 2002.
Even though the venue is three miles west of downtown Aspen, the party spills over into town as soon as the evening competition is over. The X Games crowd isn't interested in trying to get reservations at upscale restaurants like Matsuhisa or lounging around extravagant hotel lobbies like the one at the Little Nell. Crowds overrun more casual spots, places so relaxed they're virtually unprepared. Last year, the Cantina, a Mexican restaurant on the corner of Main and Mill Streets, ran out of beans and limes. New York Pizza, the cheapest eating place in town and the only one that stays open to feed the drunken masses when the bars close at 2 a.m., had to close early because it ran out of dough. The Red Onion, an Aspen watering hole since the 1890's that still feels as gritty as it probably did during the mining era, had a line stretching out the door.
Streets are closed down for block parties and free live outdoor concerts. The band Offspring played in 2004 in front of 6,000 people who turned out despite 17-degree weather. Restaurants and hotel ballrooms are rented out for private parties, with the banquet room at the Hotel Jerome, taken over for the Powder Magazine Awards, converted into something like a fraternity house. Young athletes and industry people indulged in the best of Aspen luxury at the expense of sponsors who wanted to show their clients a good time. As far as the staff at Carl's Pharmacy liquor store could tell, no one was enforcing open container laws. "There was a permanent party going on in our parking lot for five days straight," said one, Maurice Eaton, 35. "It was pretty crazy, but no one seemed to mind."
IF YOU GO
The ESPN Winter X Games take place Jan. 28 to 31. Details are available online at www.expn.com and www.aspensnowmass.com.
GETTING THERE
Aspen is 220 miles west of Denver. Flights from New York to Aspen on United Airlines require a change of planes in Denver. American Airlines flies directly from New York to Eagle/Vail, 70 miles from Aspen. Denver is three and a half hours from Aspen by road and driving can be treacherous in winter. Round-trip air fares in early January for X Games week from New York to Aspen or Vail started at $352 to $366.
GETTING AROUND
Cars are not necessary in Aspen and parking during X Games is a nightmare, so use public transportation. Buses from the center of Aspen to the X Games are free and run frequently.
WHERE TO STAY
The best way to cope with Aspen's high lodging costs is to rent a condominium with a group. In early January, availability included a three-bedroom condo that sleeps eight people for $499 a night and a two-bedroom that sleeps six for $470. Condos typically require a five-night minimum stay. For online booking and information go to the Web at www.stayaspensnowmass.com or www.ski.com.
The lowest-priced hotel rooms start at $200 a night. They generally sell out early. The Annabelle Inn, 232 West Main Street, 970-925-3822, on the Web at www.annabelleinn.com, newly rebuilt with funky, charming rooms, two hot tubs , and a courtyard with waterfalls and a fire pit. Rooms are $225 to $375 during the X Games. The Limelite Lodge, 228 East Cooper Avenue, 970-925-3025, www.limelite-lodge.com, is an Aspen institution, family-owned for four generations. During the games, rooms range from $150 to $269.
WHERE TO EAT
Finding restaurants with entrees for under $20 in Aspen is a challenge. The Cantina, 411 East Main Street, 970-925-3663, serves Tex-Mex food with a portion-to-price ratio that is one of the best in town with giant combo plates bubbling in melted cheese for and one of the only late night menus in town, serving food until after midnight. Jimmy's, a bar, upstairs at 205 South Mill Street, 970-925-6020, serves food until midnight. Try its inexpensive fare, like a side dish of macaroni and cheese for $4, the best crab cake in town for $10 and chicken or beef quesadillas for $8.
WHERE TO PARTY
In a town where 80 bars and restaurants are packed into 10 square blocks, there's a distinct circuit for the bar hopping crowd. You can revisit the gritty mining era with a pint of Colorado microbrew beer at one of the town's historic bars, like Bentley's, 970-920-2240, in the Wheeler Opera House at 328 East Hyman Avenue, The Red Onion, 420 East Cooper Avenue, 970-925-9043, or the J Bar at the Hotel Jerome, 330 East Main Street, 970-429-7674.
At 11 p.m., follow the herd to Eric's Bar, 315 East Hyman Avenue, 970-920-6707, where you're likely to run into everyone you know and a few beautiful people you might wish knew you.
Catch last call on the dance floor at Chelsea or Lava, Aspen's only two dance clubs, both on the Cooper Street Mall.
There is live music most nights at Belly Up, Aspen, 450 South Galena Street, 970-544-9800. Check www.bellyupaspen.com for listings.
Wednesday, January 11, 2006
Ski Food
Eat To Live: Can't we get good ski food?
2006-01-11 12:19 (New York)
By JULIA WATSON
After six days' skiing in the Rockies, I've come to the conclusion it's the
most fattening form of exercise there is.
According to HealthStatus.com, 60 minutes of downhill skiing will burn 495
calories off a person weighing 125 pounds. That sounds heartening, given that --
with the extortionate cost of lift tickets -- skiers are generally impelling
themselves up and down the mountain about six hours a day.
But, as the Web site will tell you, "To lose one U.S. pound (.454 kg), you must
burn 3,500 more calories than you take in as food." And that's where the
trouble starts.
Come off the ski runs for lunch at a mountain restaurant, and what is on offer?
A sampling at Vail describes a pretty universal American ski resort menu.
Fresh-cooked options are foot-long hot dogs or burgers in rolls with the
texture of wall insulation, offered with fries. From warm holding tanks come
bottled marinara-soused pastas, chili and some kind of soup. On heated serving
circles lie wedges of flabby pizza.
The fresh option is a salad bar with the usual chain-eatery mix of canned beans
and vegetables, chopped leaves and fruit chunks, to dredge with thick processed
dressings -- a small bowl for $5 before tax. The exotic is covered by the
"Wraps" section, which produces something akin to a filled diaper, except that
one version is green.
You'll need a bottled water or soda to swill any of these delicacies down,
forcing the price of your tray into orbit somewhere around $8.
But more costly are the calories. Those six-inches-wide-at-the-crust pizza
slices probably weigh in at around 600 calories. The bulging wraps with their
guacamole, sour cream, cheese, chicken and a drift of chopped salad must be at
least a solid 500. This is guesswork, I admit. But just looking at the stuff
makes you feel bloated.
After three consecutive ski lunches, you come off the mountain screaming for
something that tastes fresh and pure in the mouth. The après ski offerings of
buffalo wings flopping loosely in their hot-sauced socks of pale skin don't cut
it.
Why can't we get ski food like they serve in the Alps? Whether you're skiing in
the French or Italian mountains, or those of Austria or Germany, the resorts
all know what pleases their skiers and what will feed them best and most
healthily.
In these ski lodges, lunch is assumed to be part of the day's enjoyment and is
cooked accordingly. It isn't a fueling interval. The meals, though they can be
eaten with due dispatch, aren't cooked as fast food. Thought has gone into what
will leave an eater who has come in from the cold satisfied but not slothful.
Menus are given proper consideration and enjoyed with the same.
Wherever you go, you'll see Raclette on the menu. It's a plate of melted cheese
scraped from half a wheel held to heat that you eat with small freshly boiled
potatoes in their skins, pickled gherkins (cornichons), tiny pickled onions and
salad.
There are piles of real -- not processed -- sausages, plates of local cold cuts
like salamis, ham and wind-dried beef.
There's Röschti, a kind of griddled potato latke, or cheese tartlets, both
eaten with fresh green salad; dishes of smoked pork, sausage and sauerkraut
served with mashed potato; veal stews.
Toasted sandwiches like Croque Monsieur that marry slices of cheese and ham, or
grilled cheese on artisan toast, are made fresh on the spot.
To do Vail justice, there is one spot on the front of the mountain you should
head for. The lodge at Wildwood grills smoked chickens to order and serves
great brisket and pulled pork (in dreadful buns), as well as scrumptious and
original thick soups. Bravo them.
The point of Alpen skiing food is it's good enough to eat at home. Try this
adapted version of Raclette. In Switzerland they have a machine not unlike an
electric toasted sandwich maker to produce it domestically. It's generally made
with mountain cheeses like Bagnes, Gomser or Belalp. However, you can more
easily buy a cheese that is called Raclette in good food markets.
-- With any of these, line a grill pan with foil, lay ¼-inch thick slices of
these cheeses on top and broil under high heat.
-- As soon as they melt, scrape them onto warm plates already set with a
serving of washed but unpeeled boiled potatoes. Yukon Gold or fingerlings are
best.
-- Eat with a salad of Butter or Boston lettuce, a dish of pickled onions and
gherkins on the side and lashings of freshly ground pepper and a good sea salt
like Maldon.
-- Alternatively, buy the hard Greek cheese, Kefalotiri, and put ¼ inch slices
in a hot and lightly oiled sauté pan. It will melt internally without running
all over the pan and hardening too fast.
2006-01-11 12:19 (New York)
By JULIA WATSON
After six days' skiing in the Rockies, I've come to the conclusion it's the
most fattening form of exercise there is.
According to HealthStatus.com, 60 minutes of downhill skiing will burn 495
calories off a person weighing 125 pounds. That sounds heartening, given that --
with the extortionate cost of lift tickets -- skiers are generally impelling
themselves up and down the mountain about six hours a day.
But, as the Web site will tell you, "To lose one U.S. pound (.454 kg), you must
burn 3,500 more calories than you take in as food." And that's where the
trouble starts.
Come off the ski runs for lunch at a mountain restaurant, and what is on offer?
A sampling at Vail describes a pretty universal American ski resort menu.
Fresh-cooked options are foot-long hot dogs or burgers in rolls with the
texture of wall insulation, offered with fries. From warm holding tanks come
bottled marinara-soused pastas, chili and some kind of soup. On heated serving
circles lie wedges of flabby pizza.
The fresh option is a salad bar with the usual chain-eatery mix of canned beans
and vegetables, chopped leaves and fruit chunks, to dredge with thick processed
dressings -- a small bowl for $5 before tax. The exotic is covered by the
"Wraps" section, which produces something akin to a filled diaper, except that
one version is green.
You'll need a bottled water or soda to swill any of these delicacies down,
forcing the price of your tray into orbit somewhere around $8.
But more costly are the calories. Those six-inches-wide-at-the-crust pizza
slices probably weigh in at around 600 calories. The bulging wraps with their
guacamole, sour cream, cheese, chicken and a drift of chopped salad must be at
least a solid 500. This is guesswork, I admit. But just looking at the stuff
makes you feel bloated.
After three consecutive ski lunches, you come off the mountain screaming for
something that tastes fresh and pure in the mouth. The après ski offerings of
buffalo wings flopping loosely in their hot-sauced socks of pale skin don't cut
it.
Why can't we get ski food like they serve in the Alps? Whether you're skiing in
the French or Italian mountains, or those of Austria or Germany, the resorts
all know what pleases their skiers and what will feed them best and most
healthily.
In these ski lodges, lunch is assumed to be part of the day's enjoyment and is
cooked accordingly. It isn't a fueling interval. The meals, though they can be
eaten with due dispatch, aren't cooked as fast food. Thought has gone into what
will leave an eater who has come in from the cold satisfied but not slothful.
Menus are given proper consideration and enjoyed with the same.
Wherever you go, you'll see Raclette on the menu. It's a plate of melted cheese
scraped from half a wheel held to heat that you eat with small freshly boiled
potatoes in their skins, pickled gherkins (cornichons), tiny pickled onions and
salad.
There are piles of real -- not processed -- sausages, plates of local cold cuts
like salamis, ham and wind-dried beef.
There's Röschti, a kind of griddled potato latke, or cheese tartlets, both
eaten with fresh green salad; dishes of smoked pork, sausage and sauerkraut
served with mashed potato; veal stews.
Toasted sandwiches like Croque Monsieur that marry slices of cheese and ham, or
grilled cheese on artisan toast, are made fresh on the spot.
To do Vail justice, there is one spot on the front of the mountain you should
head for. The lodge at Wildwood grills smoked chickens to order and serves
great brisket and pulled pork (in dreadful buns), as well as scrumptious and
original thick soups. Bravo them.
The point of Alpen skiing food is it's good enough to eat at home. Try this
adapted version of Raclette. In Switzerland they have a machine not unlike an
electric toasted sandwich maker to produce it domestically. It's generally made
with mountain cheeses like Bagnes, Gomser or Belalp. However, you can more
easily buy a cheese that is called Raclette in good food markets.
-- With any of these, line a grill pan with foil, lay ¼-inch thick slices of
these cheeses on top and broil under high heat.
-- As soon as they melt, scrape them onto warm plates already set with a
serving of washed but unpeeled boiled potatoes. Yukon Gold or fingerlings are
best.
-- Eat with a salad of Butter or Boston lettuce, a dish of pickled onions and
gherkins on the side and lashings of freshly ground pepper and a good sea salt
like Maldon.
-- Alternatively, buy the hard Greek cheese, Kefalotiri, and put ¼ inch slices
in a hot and lightly oiled sauté pan. It will melt internally without running
all over the pan and hardening too fast.
Tuesday, January 10, 2006
More aftermath of Bode's ill considered comments
Miller Criticized for His Drunken Skiing Comment
By NATHANIEL VINTON
WENGEN, Switzerland, Jan. 9 - The chief executive of the United States ski team said Monday that Bode Miller's comments about alcohol use in conjunction with competition were unacceptable, and that he would discuss the issue with Miller this week.
Toward the end of a profile on the CBS program "60 Minutes" on Sunday night, Miller, the reigning World Cup champion, said he had been in "tough shape" at the start of a race. "Talk about a hard challenge right there," Miller said. "If you ever tried to ski when you're wasted, it's not easy."
Bill Marolt, the chief executive of the United States Ski and Snowboard Association, which includes the national ski team, is expected to arrive in Switzerland on Tuesday to meet with Miller. He said he wanted "to work with him to both recognize the seriousness of his comments and to reach a positive outcome."
Miller could not be reached on his cellphone Monday. He is in the Wengen area, preparing for the 76th annual Lauberhorn downhill, part of a three-race series Jan. 13-15.
Lowell Taub, Miller's agent in New York, said he expected Miller to release a statement before those races. "Bode has to both talk to ski team officials, and do a little soul searching on his own," Taub said in a telephone interview.
Taub would not say if Miller had been asked to apologize, but he did say that Miller was upset that CBS issued a news release in advance of the profile entitled "World Cup Ski Champ Admits to Being Drunk on the Slopes."
"I know firsthand that he feels badly that a CBS release painted the picture to youth that he thinks it's cool to drink before a race, which everyone who knows him as a person or a skier knows is simply not the case," Taub said.
Miller's sponsors are apparently staying with him, but the U.S.S.A. has received complaints about the controversy from donors and corporate sponsors, said Tom Kelly, a spokesman for the United States ski team. The International Ski Federation has criticized Miller's comments for setting a bad example.
Miller is also profiled this month in Maxim magazine. In an online version of the article, he goes "glass for glass" with the writer and talks about going out on the mountain drunk from the previous night, "just sobering up by the first round," and winning runs.
In interviews with ESPN the Magazine posted this week at ESPN.com three of Miller's family members said they were concerned with his lifestyle, but Miller's longtime friend and teammate Erik Schlopy said Sunday that he was not worried about Miller.
"Regardless of what happens from here on out, he's had a great ski career, so I'm not worried about him," said Schlopy, who has been out of touch with Miller for months because Miller travels the circuit in a motor home.
Miller has a reputation as a nonconformist on the World Cup stage; skiers who enjoy the nightlife are highly visible in the small towns of the circuit. Miller, 28, has never hidden his party habits while continuing to excel in World Cup events. This season, he is tied with Daron Rahlves, a fellow American, for second in the overall Cup standings.
Although he has been inconsistent in the first half of the season, Miller is still one of the best American skiers headed to Turin for the Winter Games on Feb. 10-26.
Miller has always been outspoken, and for years has been a beloved figure in the ski racing community for his outsize candor and talent. Last year, he won the overall World Cup title, the most prestigious award in the sport, but he returned to competition this season complaining of a lack of motivation.
He also turned up the anti-authoritarian rhetoric this season, starting out by arguing for the liberalization of anti-doping programs. Miller's arguments were sophisticated, if impolitic, and have evolved over the season.
In December, he was sanctioned by the international federation for refusing to submit to a routine equipment test. He threatened to quit the sport instead of paying a $762 fine, but the United States ski team paid it for him, said Philip McNichol, the head coach of the team.
"He talks a lot, and I think that's great," said Marco Buechel, a top-ranked downhiller from Liechtenstein who trains with the Swiss team. "I appreciate Bode, but sometimes I think the things he says are not so good. Bode says stuff that nobody on our team would say out loud."
Miller's agent was happy with the "60 Minutes" profile. "The piece was awesome," Taub said. "It showed that he is charismatic and intelligent and likeable and something that we as Americans can be proud of."
With the figure skater injured, Miller is one of the most visible American athletes headed to the Olympics. Kwan is not controversial, but Miller has a longstanding image as a rebel with a brilliant if completely unorthodox ski racing technique to match.
Monday, January 09, 2006
The World's #1 Racer advocates SUI
Miller's Drinking Comments `Inappropriate,' U.S. Ski Chief Says
By Pete Coates Jan. 9 (Bloomberg) -- World Cup ski champion Bode Miller'scomments about drinking alcohol and racing send a ``dangerouslyinappropriate message,'' the head of the U.S. team said. Bill Marolt, the president and chief executive of the U.S.Ski and Snowboard Association, said the comments made by Millerduring an interview on CBS News's ``60 Minutes'' were``unacceptable'' and ``irresponsible.'' ``Not only is the use of alcohol irresponsible on the partof an athlete, but it is also a dangerously inappropriatemessage to send to participants in our sport, especially youngskiers and snowboarders,'' Marolt said in a statement posted onthe U.S. Ski Team's Web site. Marolt said he will meet with Miller this week to discussthe comments. Lowell Taub, Miller's agent, didn't immediatelyreturn a telephone message left with a representative at SFXSports Group in Washington. The 28-year-old Miller, preparing to ski on the U.S. teamin next month's Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy, said in aninterview telecast last night by the Viacom Inc. network that at
times ``I've been in really tough shape at the top of thecourse.'' ``If you ever tried to ski when you're wasted, it's noteasy,'' Miller said during the interview. ``Like driving drunk,only there are no rules about it in ski racing.'' Miller won two silver medals at the 2002 Winter Games inSalt Lake City. Last year, he became the first U.S. skier since1983 to win the overall World Cup title. He has been criticized by Olympic officials for saying ininterviews that athletes should be allowed to use performance-enhancing drugs.
By Pete Coates Jan. 9 (Bloomberg) -- World Cup ski champion Bode Miller'scomments about drinking alcohol and racing send a ``dangerouslyinappropriate message,'' the head of the U.S. team said. Bill Marolt, the president and chief executive of the U.S.Ski and Snowboard Association, said the comments made by Millerduring an interview on CBS News's ``60 Minutes'' were``unacceptable'' and ``irresponsible.'' ``Not only is the use of alcohol irresponsible on the partof an athlete, but it is also a dangerously inappropriatemessage to send to participants in our sport, especially youngskiers and snowboarders,'' Marolt said in a statement posted onthe U.S. Ski Team's Web site. Marolt said he will meet with Miller this week to discussthe comments. Lowell Taub, Miller's agent, didn't immediatelyreturn a telephone message left with a representative at SFXSports Group in Washington. The 28-year-old Miller, preparing to ski on the U.S. teamin next month's Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy, said in aninterview telecast last night by the Viacom Inc. network that at
times ``I've been in really tough shape at the top of thecourse.'' ``If you ever tried to ski when you're wasted, it's noteasy,'' Miller said during the interview. ``Like driving drunk,only there are no rules about it in ski racing.'' Miller won two silver medals at the 2002 Winter Games inSalt Lake City. Last year, he became the first U.S. skier since1983 to win the overall World Cup title. He has been criticized by Olympic officials for saying ininterviews that athletes should be allowed to use performance-enhancing drugs.
Group Flight Info
Flying in to Denver
Bruha (Jan 20 in 16:15, Jan 28 out 18:10)note that this has changed
Flying in to Aspen
Spam (Jan 21 in 10:30 am , Jan 29 out 8:55 am )
Doug (Jan 21 in 2:00 pm, Jan 25 out 4:53 pm)
Yuji (Jan 25 in 12:52 pm, Jan 29 out 11:15 am)
Alex (Jan 21 in 7:39 pm, Jan 26th out 6:49 pm )
Andy (Jan 21 in 7:39 pm, Jan 28 out 3:36 pm)
Flying in to Eagle/Vail
Eggplant (Jan 21 in 10:30 am , Jan 28 out 9:30 am)
Waldo (Jan 21 in 10:09 am, Jan 27 out 2:38 pm)
Sparky (Jan 21 in 7:49 pm, Jan 27 out 9:50 am)
Projected housing costs
8 days @ $750 per = $6000
7 attendees $857
8 attendees $750
9 attendees $667
I am assuming that everyone can live with those costs; they are more than last year's lodging costs. Hopefully, we can avoid excessive rental car expenses.
PS:Check out http://www.forbes.com/lifestyle/2005/11/08/luxury-skiresorts-travel-cx_sb_1109feat_ls.html to see some truly shockingly expensive ski vacations.
Sunday, January 08, 2006
Deep Temerity
The Jan 1 NYT has a little article about Aspen Highlands for anyone who wants to read about the Deep Temerity lift. It services terrain with a 53 degree pitch, which is pretty freaking terrifying. To put it into perspective, the run Warm Springs at Sun Valley, a pretty steep blue by anyone's standards is about 35 degrees at the top. At most mountains that would not be an intermediate offering.
Anyways here is the link
http://travel2.nytimes.com/2006/01/01/travel/01surf.html?n=Top%2fFeatures%2fTravel%2fActivities%20and%20Interests%2fSkiing
Saturday, January 07, 2006
Room Rap (updated and more info added)
Plant - paid 11/7
Bru - paid 11/7
Spam - paid 11/7
Waldo - paid 11/7
Guano - paid 11/10
Doug - paid 11/14 (mid week shifty shifty)
Yuji paid 11/25 (mid week switchy switchy)
Alex - paid 12/19
Sparky - to pay 1/21
Oddly enough, 3 checks arrived the first, so four of us are tied for first room rap. Clearly, the only way this can be equitably resolved will be with the application of gin. We will have The Guano adjuciate that.
Bottom line, I think we may want to recruit one more person, to keep costs in line, especially if someone cancels. We do have the beds so that's not an issue. I have not solicited the PiLam web, but if that is something that is going to be done, sooner would be better than later since we are at T+3 weeks.
I sent two checks for $6500 (total and including deposit) to the owner to hold the place. Also, if the last few of you have finalized your flight bookings, please let us know so I can add them to that blog. My hope is that a number of us can either taxi pool or share a rental from various landing zones.
As far as I can determine, a few of you will need to arrange for the shuttle bus or a taxi bus to get you to the house. CME (the link is in the upper right corner) is pretty good for this; I used them about ten years ago or so. Here is my ground travel summary:
Plant & Waldo: We will drive from Vail to Aspen with the rental truck on arrival date. Waldo will need a shuttle back to Eagle for his departure date. (Can you get that moved possibly?)
SPAM: please take taxi from airport to house on Saturday when you arrive. If your flight is late for some reason then we can pick you up when we get Doug at 2pm. We will have the house keys and assume we'll arrive by 3pm.
Yuji: One of us will pick you up on Wed 1/25 arrival date. Presumably for your departure you, Guano and SPAM can share a cab to the airport.
Bruha: We will pick you up at Eagle Vail Airport at 12pm. If you wanted, we could take you back to Eagle on 1/28 but I'm not sure if that's much help.
Doug: We will pick/drop you off on your arrival/departure date, assuming no drastic weather issues for either.
DH: We will pick/drop you off on your arrival/departure date, assuming no drastic weather issues for either.
Guano: We will pick you up on your arrival date. Presumably for your departure you, Yuji and SPAM can share a cab to the airport.
Sparky: We will get you from the Snowmass post office on arrival date , but we need you to call us on arrival, or impending arrival.
Plant
PS: Despite the recent tragedy, we are still having the PiLam New Years weekend ski fest up in Vermont so consider yourselves all requested and required to be there ! Some of you may be alarmed or delighted that el Diablo (Ed Herranz) is going to be joining us then. He does not know it yet, but his old nemesis, Ron Bacardi, will also be paying a visit. The trip will be a little shorter than usual so that we can return back to NYC in time for the Jan 2, 5pm eulogy for Paul Valentin.
Wednesday, January 04, 2006
Address & Directions to the Snowmass Home
The house is at
112 Elk Ridge Lane
Snowmass Village, CO 81615
970 923 5897
To get there from the airport:
- Take highway 82 toward Snowmass.
- Take a left on Brush Creek Road.
- Take a left on Faraway Creek Road.
- Take a right on Maple Ridge.
- Take a left on Elk Ridge Lane.
The house is up the hill on the left.
The owners sent me the set of keys, so it will be tricky for you guys to get in until I arrive. I am forecasting that Waldo and I arrive there at 3:00 pm
- 10:30 arrival at Vail
- 11:30 finish baggage claim and rental pickup
- 1:30 arrive in Aspen
- 2:00 pick up Doug at Airport
I'm leaving an hour in that schedule as a margin of safety. If we are running ahead of schedule I will call SPAM so he can come by the house. Also we have added the bus schedule to the link table on the right.
Thanks and see you soon. Don't forget your digital cameras, shirts, and wine bottles. I will make a one page cheat sheet you can print out for the travel day as well.
Some of you still owe me funds and airline schedules; please get those in.
Thanks
Plant
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