Hyper-Local in Aspen

Aspen is a small mountain town at the end of the road, but it's unlike any ski town in America. In addtion to a semi-thriving tourism business  Aspen also has the 3 C's; Community, Camaraderie and Culture.  Aspen maintains a tightly knit, highly nuanced social fabric unlike most resort towns.  This allows the Locals and the Tourists to coexist in harmony (mostly).  Hollywood has it's TMZ (Thirty Mile Zone)...but Aspen has THE TBR...The Three Block Radius. 

Last night AspenSpin pulled a Quad in the TBR,  4 events all within the three block radius.  Niiiiice.

Get the Girls Out Day on Ajax for SheJumps.org.SHEJUMPS.org had their first ever "Get the Girls Out Day" on Aspen Mountain as well several other ski hills throughout the U.S.  SHEJUMPS.org  strives to increase female participation in out door activities by building a supportive community. 

ASPEN YOGA SOCIETY  hosted their first-ever Yoga Rave last night.  An awesome DJ, a big room and plenty of stretching and dancing.  ASPEN YOGA SOCIETY uses yoga as a tool to discover and maximize human potential.

HOCKEY 4 HOPE.  The Aspen Police vs. The Mother Puckers in an ice-hockey tilt to support THE ASPEN HOPE CENTER.  The 2nd annual grudge match raised money and awareness for The Aspen Hopeline (970-925-5858) a 24 hour mental support phone-line.  Click 4 pix: Hockey 4 Hope.

SPELL WHAT?   The first ever full contact spelling bee featuring Aspen Celebs in support of THE ASPEN YOUTH CENTER (AYC).  For 20 years AYC has provided a safe place for thousands of Roaring Fork Valley kids to be a kid.  It's place to connect, learn and grow.   Spell What? was a highly contested, highly public spell off and raised BIG bucks for AYC. Click 4 pix: Spell What?

Yoga Rave with the Aspen Yoga Society. click 4 pix.Inside the huddle with The Mother Puckers at Hockey 4 Hope. click 4 pix.Aspen Ski co. CEO Mike Kaplan and Aspen Mayor, Mick Ireland on the hot seat at Spell What? for the Aspen Youth Center. click for pix.

The Ladies of Aspen

The Boys came out for the Aspen Belles Beach Party. Click 4 pix.Like most ski towns, Aspen, Colorado is mostly guys.  We estimate the ratio in Aspen to be 7 guys for every woman.  Social Media on the other hand is mostly ladies.  70% of the "likes" and "shares" on Facebook come from the ladies.  

So AspenSpin is in the sweet spot.  Being an independent practitioner of the social arts, we get invited to all the fashion shows, fund raisers and "ladies only" events in Aspen.   Last week we shot sick pix at the SHREDLY (Awesome Mountain Bike Apparel for Women) Fashion Show.  Who doesn't like sporty, well designed, technical clothing designed specifically for active ladies?  

Click 4 pix: SHREDLY

Last night we partied with The Aspen Belles synchronized skiing team.  On April 13, 2012, The Aspen Belles will compete in the World Synchronized Skiing Championships on Aspen Mountain. In addition to their own excellence the Belles are raising money and awareness to support paralympic athletes in Aspen.  They turned The Regal into a huge beach party...and guess who they tapped to shoot the sick pix.

Click 4 Pix.  ASPEN BELLES Beach Party

Shredly Fashion show. Awesome Mountain Bike Apparel for Women. Click 4 pix.

The Aspen Belles Beach Party. Click 4 pix.

Super Bowl 2012. Giants 21 Pats 17.

The Super Bowl is one of the biggest social events of the year in the United States and Worldwide.  However, the actual football game is one of the least important parts of the show for many of the 100 million viewers.  

For those who didn't watch, The NY Football Giants prevailed over the favored New England Patriots 21-17 in a very physical and generally well played game.  Eli Manning took home the MVP, but for the Giants it was a true team effort.  The most important play occured on New England's first play from scrimage...a controversial safety call for intentional grounding from the end zone on Tom Brady.  The Giants won the game in the trenches on both sides of the ball.  Although New England had their chances, the Giants made fewer mistakes and controlled the line of scrimage for most of the game.

Super Bowl Sunday is not just about football;

According to the National Chicken Council...over 100 million pounds of chicken wings were consumed in the U.S. during the super bowl...that puts it into persective.

Super Bowl Sunday is the biggest day of the year for illegal gambling...so everyone was getting action.  Did you buy a square?  

A 30 second spot during the Super Bowl sold for approximately $3.5 million.

Madonna, striving to remain relevant layed down a super-duper lip-synced halftime show. She provided 12 minutes of chaos with Nicki Minaj, Cee-Lo Green and LMFAO.

Some of the ads were hits, some misses. Dogs, babies and super models were prevailing themes.

AspenSpin's 3 favorite Super Bowl Ads;

1)  M & M's :  I'm sexy and I know it. (watch vid below)

2)  Sketchers :  Mr. Quiggly moonwalks across the finish

3)  Pepsi:   Elton John with a sick cameo from Flava Flav.

SIA Snow Show (you should go, bro.)

SIA 2012 in Denver. click 4 pix.The 2012 SIA Snow Show took place in Denver last weekend.  It's the greatest show on snow...the biggest skiing and snowboarding trade show.  All the major snow brands are there and many smaller brands and start up's represent too.   

To break it down, The SIA Snow Show is pro skiers and riders, sales execs, retail buyers, models, free food and drinks and bags and bags of swag. It's serious networking and hopefully deal making.  Unfortunately SIA's Snow Show is held at exactly the same time as the Winter X Games in Aspen...so AspenSpin was a pretty busy boy.  Carmelo and I took the quick drive down to Denver to meet up with sponsors and troll for new ones. We got to see what you'll be riding and wearing on the mountain next  Winter.

Our quick visit to Denver for SIA 2012 was fun and exciting.  We scored BIG Time.  Unofficial totals:  t-shirts (12),  hats (15), chapsticks (unlimited), sick headphones (2), awesome socks (4), stickers (325).

Sick PIX:       SIA Day 1              SIA Day 2                Spyder Party

Pow Day in Denver. 1/27/12

AspenSpin's 5 Trends for 2012/13

1) COLORS and GRAPHICS:   The brighter the better.  Both soft goods and hard goods will feature vibrant, bright with colors.  Skis and boards will incorporate even more graphical designs than they currently do.  Animal prints are here to stay...the more exotic the better (see Shaun White).  Cheetah prints, snake-skin prints and more.

2) CROSSOVER:  The bad blood between skiers and shredders is over.  It's all good as long as you can keep up.  Many companies are finally understanding that their styles might appeal to both skiers and riders.   Several brands are creating variations on a theme for both two plankers and knuckle draggers.  Alpine Touring equipment including split boarding is a segment that is growing quickly.

3) CHANGING of the GUARDS:  Some of the smaller, more boutique brands are gaining strength and influencing their HUGE corporate rivals in terms of performance, design and demand. Newer, more adventurous shapes and sick graphics are coming from the little guys. Brands that come to mind, HIGH SOCIETY, ICELANTIC, SKI LOGIC and others.  From the majors, I'm digging the new quivers from KASTLE, ROSSIGNOL and VOLKL. I can't wait to try next year's models.  *AspenSpin did not participate in the on-snow demo events

4) SILHOUETTES : Skiing is always a fashion statement:  Baggy pants are still around, but I'm seeing more and more stylish cuts coming out... even from the American brands.  The Euro-style makers continue to lead the way...but everybody is bringing out sleeker and more technical outer gear.  We are still partial to KJUS from Norway. Their collection for 2012 /13 looks awesome.  Their stuff is performance oriented and stylish.  It even makes me look "slender".

MONKEY SEE / MONKEY DO.   No new revelations here.  It is well known that the snow sports industry is an incestuous community.  Everybody knows everybody else.  Many of the execs, the reps and designers move from company to company.  It's a pretty tight network.  From my perspective as a relative outsider who lives in a small mountain town at the end of the road...I don't see very many unique ideas coming out of the inner sanctum.  The bigger they are..the more resistant they are to change and risk. It's good to see that independent start-ups are taking more risks...and succeeding.  Then everyone jumps on-board.

It was on in Denver for SIA 2012.AspenSpin's 5 TOP moments @ SIA 2012

1) BAGS of SWAG;  You don't have to be a big time blogger to get tons of free stuff. Every booth has some promotional item on their counter.  It's official, I'm a Swag-hoarder...and I love it.

2) WAFFLES on a STICK.  Thanks Vans.  It's the Breakfast of Champions.

3) MARQUES SCOTT:  The internet-famous dub step animation dancer at the Spyder party.

4) SKI LEGENDS:  Meeting and rapping with Glen Plake and Picabo Street...pretty cool.

5) The MODELS:  Like any major convention...there were a lot of "booth girls".

Wrong Gear gettin it done at SIA 2012, The Snow Show. Click for Day 1 pix.2 Legends of Skiing convine at the Snow Show. click for pix.Breakfast of Champions. Day 2 at SIA. Waffles on a Stick. Click for pix.Yeah, They let smowboarders in. SIA Day 2. Click for sick pix.

The Spyder Party went Gonzo at SIA. Click 4 Pix. 

24 Hours of Aspen ( X Games Edition).

Autograph Sesh. in Aspen 4 X Games 2012.My name is AspenSpin and I'm a ski-a-holic.  It may look like I attend all the X Games events at Buttermilk and all the parties...but i don't.  In fact for 2012, I spent 2 1/2 of the 4 days of X Games in Denver attending the Ski Industry Association (SIA) Snow Show...the Ski and Snowboard Industry's main event in the U.S.A.  I spent a 1/2 day sleeping (at night).  That left 1 full day, 24 hours to get it done.

I have a few confessions to make.  I don't like crowds, I hate waiting in line and I try not to ride the bus.  A couple more revelations;  I don't have a VIP pass, free drinks don't excite me and many of the X Games  competitors are young enough to be my grandchildren.  Please realize that in the past 6 years at X Games,  I've snuck into the VIP tent, crashed the Athletes Lounge, been hit on by Athlete's Mom's, been in the production truck, on the  X Games courses and almost had several panic attacks in the crowd.  I've almost done it all.  I've even hit the pipe, the super pipe that is....and dat sh*t is scary.  In fact,  true story... it was just after the first time I rode the Buttermilk halfpipe that I started wearing a helmet.  I digress.   24 Hours of Aspen (X Games Edition).

For 2012 I devised the ultimate X Games strategy.

1)  Watch all the events on TV.

2)  Spend no more than two hours at the venue, Buttermilk.  10am -12am on Sunday.

3)  Grab as much swag as possible.  Free sh*t makes me happy , what can I say.  (Who wants a key chain or wrist band?)

4) Take as many sick pix as possible to capture the energy and excitement of the crowd.

5) Focus on a couple of the main parties.  I can't go to 'em all...mostly because I'm not on the list...but I identified a couple of key events to pinpoint my efforts.  The MARLEY SAFE HOUSE offered One Love and all the comforts of home...so I just chilled there most of the time.

Here are the results;  Please Click my pix.

AUTOGRAPH SESSIONS in ASPEN.

AWOLNation Show

U.S. SkierCross VIP Party

MARLEY SAFE HOUSE

The EXPN ZONE (Put the Swag in the Bag).

Rocky and da shorties at The Marley Safe House in Aspen. Click for more pix..It's good to see Matthew working hard at his craft. Marley Safe House in Aspen. click for pix.

 Swag grabbers delight . Sunday morning at X Fest. clcik for more pix.@braveskimom and her whole clan at the U.S. Skier Cross VIP event in AspenAWOLNation played a kick A$$ set at the base of Aspen Mountain. click 4 pix.