Old grooming technology

From a public archive of old photos. Grooming technology has changed along with everything else. This Tucker snowcat was captured in 1974.

 

Old Loge Peak lift

This photo by Ron Hoffman in January 1974 shows the way it used to be near the top of Loge Peak. The Loge Lift always felt like the last step on the way to heaven, especially as it often would not open until the avi danger in Steeplechase was damped down and it was good to go. When Loge opened, everything was suddenly wonderful at Highlands. And few are the folks who will deny that when the lift swayed out over the western side of the ridge just below the summit, they hung on. Tight.

 

Last run on Little Nell, Jan. 1974

Got to say, loving these old photos. Check out the bumps on Nell. Check out the lack of a gondola. Check out the chair running up skier’s right. Check out the corral and the fence. And for those of you old enough, swoon for the glory days of the old Nell deck, bar and dance floor…

 

Partying on the bus to Aspen

Yes, there are plenty of classic shots in these newly released photos. Getting to Aspen has never been easy, but it has always been about what you make it. And hey, 1974 was just a different time in the world. You’re either old enough to look for your wife or ex-girlfriend on this bus, or young enough to look for your mom and dad.

Walking the dogs in downtown Aspen in 1974

Remember when Afghan hounds were all the rage? How about when the malls in downtown Aspen were just blocked-off streets? This shot is from Flickr Commons, a new repository of photos in the public domain. There are a number of shots that turn up when you search for “Aspen.” Here’s the link: http://www.flickr.com/search/commons/?q=Aspen&w=commons&m=all

Are the projects related?

It’s interesting that Related Companies of New York is one of four companies bidding on a development deal at Ground Zero in lower Manhattan, according to a story in Saturday’s New York Times.

“Four major real estate developers are vying to buy a minority stake in the $3.1 billion project and to take over the leasing and operating of the skyscraper," the Times reported. "This week, the developers submitted their final offers to the owner, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which plans to pick a winner by June.

“’The building has real international significance, and it’s important for New York,’ said Stephen M. Ross, chief executive of Related Companies, one of the four companies competing for the $100 million deal.”

No doubt there are many complexities involved in why the big private real estate development company has the ability to go after another big real estate deal in Manhattan, but it can’t find a way to finish the Base Village project.

It’s gotten to the point in Snowmass where the town council is considering classifying the Base Village project as something of a failure so it can find a way to move beyond the unfinished project in what has always been seen as the missing heart of the ski-resort/community. The Snowmass Sun reported this week that the town council was considering “urban renewal authority” status as a way to get the project completed.

“Councilmembers Arnie Mordkin and Butler weighed in on the side of taking the first step in investigating whether urban renewal is the right carrot on a stick for the Village,” the Sun reported.

“’Urban renewal has been used by many, many communities to get inaction off the dime. When you start shaking the sword of urban renewal and condemnation, they start running like rats,’ Mordkin said.”

Someone's in the kitchen with...

…if you’re interested in reading more about the retiring Pitkin County Sheriff Bob Braudis, here is one of the more extensive interviews done recently. It’s with Robert Chalmers of The Independent in London. Chalmers tries to get at what everybody really wants to know: how did Braudis manage to be sheriff and be one of HST's best friend at the same time? The interview includes this exchange:

Braudis: "'Hunter and I developed a protocol, designed to keep me from being compromised. I can't give you the details but it was effective.'"

Chalmers: "'Don't tell me that you had no idea what happened in that kitchen.'"

Braudis: "'I know very well what went on in the kitchen. But I was never compromised by him.'"

Braudis Tales

Thought Curtis Wackerle's article in the Aspen Daily News on Sunday on the pending retirement of Pitkin County Sheriff Bob Braudis was a good read. Not sure, but it is likely that Wackerle spent some time with Braudis in his office in the basement of the Pitkin County Courthouse while working on the piece. The sheriff's office, at least when occupied by Braudis, acts as something of a refuge, as the sheriff has a way of shutting the big wooden door on the rest of the world and giving you his full and complete attention. He makes visitors feel as if he has all the time in the world, and as if you could tell him anything and that it wouldn't go any further. Braudis likely had a lot of confessional conversations in that office with people from all different avenues in Aspen. And in between wandering the back streets of European capitals, there is a good chance he'll be spending some time in the future recounting his experiences as the Pope of Pitkin County. If he writes them down, others are quite likely to read them.

Flight of the off-season statues continues...

The blessing of the waters. In the Shakespeare Garden.

Fairies in the garden...

Signs of spring...

Another off-season photo from a reader...

Hail Columbia, hall of higher learning. (Note statuary).

A different kind of river canyon.

Kings of off-season standing tall.

Send your off-season statuary photos to aspenjournal at gee mail...

Inner sanctum...

Last day of the season prompts "best day" musings

There were some pretty good days this season. Not as many perhaps as the last two seasons, but still, some pretty good days. This one day stands out. Cold. Clear. Fresh snow. The trees frosted in white. No one around, as usual. The snow surface may not have been perfect, but the setting of the day was amazing. That counts, doesn't it? Memorable, in any event.

David Zinman leaves Music Fest

The New York Times reported Friday evening that music director David Zinman has quit the Aspen Music Festival and School, according to an announcement by the Festival late in the day on Friday. The Times reports that Zinman was supposed to conduct five concerts this summer and that Festival CEO Alan Fletcher is now seeking replacements for those concerts as well as a replacement for Zinman. The Times reported that "Mr. Fletcher, who was fired by the festival in October and rehired in November, said that he and Mr. Zinman had disagreed about certain faculty cuts made in response to the recession last year. But he added: 'I have never had any problems with David. He raised the level of everything here and left a great legacy.'" Zinman was a huge part of the Festival. The Aspen Daily News ran several stories about Fletcher's firing, and re-hiring, last fall.

Off-seasons now accepted?

Can we call an end to the long-running false hope of the "four-season" resort? The Reno Gazette-Journal reports today on the three-week closure of the Ritz Carlton in Lake Tahoe this spring. The articles quotes Gary Horvath, managing director of the business research division of the Leeds School of Business at the University of Colorado at Boulder, as saying about the ski industry, “There’s a lot of seasonality to the industry and you have to be able to react to that if you want to stay in business.” Well, sure. And never more so than today. And he points to the seasonal closures at the Little Nell hotel as an example. And indeed, The Nell will be closed from April 11 through April 30 this spring. "This is just business as usual for many luxury ski resorts," Horvath is quoted as saying. Maybe it is now, but for years resorts have fought back against the reality of off season and were trying to be "four-season" resorts. No more?

Kelly Clark, top Snow Angel in Snowmass, in flight.