Good Deeds and Big Deeds in Aspen.

Aspen Business Luncheon: Neal & DavToday was a great one in Aspen. TIA...This is Aspen,  the paper featured an article about ACRA complaining about locals "b*tching" about the early season conditions. Click:  ACRA (please play nice) .  Then AspenSpin skied 5 quick laps top to bottom. I love the smell of Spar Gulch in the morning.   Then around 10:30 the lighting changed on Copper. It was as if God had shined a flashlight smack down the middle.  Guess what?? No one else was there, except for the rippers I was with--- who were tooling at nearly 70 MPH.  It was hard and flat...and there were a few rocks---but it was fun.  Market that!!!  Then some really good news for AspenSpin.  We were named the #1 snow sports blogger on twitter.  Wow #1 feels good, but the comp. is tight. See the List, Click;  #1 Blogger

Mid-day we hit Todd Shaver's Aspen Business Luncheon at The Wheeler Opera House.  World Class Mountaineers Chris Davenport and Neal Beidleman presented fascinating personal insights and an epic slide show from their recent trip to the Summit of Mt. Everest.  Their most recent expedition, last Spring was compared  to Neal's fateful trip "into thin air" in 1996.  These guys crushed it on Everest, even getting a rare ski decent on the famous Lhotse Face.   Apparently the POW was pretty good at 8000 meters.   It was clear from the intimate discussion that Neal found some peace of mind on his return to Everest.  His previous trip ended badly, as lives were lost and the entire trip was documented in Jon Krakauer's best selling book.  Although Neal  was considered a hero during that first expedition, his return trip to Everest provided an emotional closure for him.  Chris and Neal did a great job, as always, and The Aspen Business Luncheon was interesting, fun and informative.

Late afternoon we hit the AVSC gear event at Gorsuch.  Over 200 AVSC scholarship kids got free ski equipment for the season courtesy of Gorsuch.   This is one of our favorite events of the season.  The beaming smiles on the faces of the kids and their parents as they got geared up for the season was incredible.  Many of these kids would not be skiing if it weren't for the generosity of Gorsuch, AVSC and Ski Co.   One thing was evident, the Gorsuch staff and the AVSC coaches were smiling just as bright as the kids.

Click 4 Pix.  Good Deeds and Big Deeds in Aspen.

Let's be honest.  Aspen probably has more non-profits per capita than any place else, so there's "a lotta love in this Valley".  What makes the AVSC /Gorsuch event so special is the "hands on nature" of it.  One on one philanthropy.  Fittting a kid with boots, handing out skis and poles, treating them to punch and cookies as well as providing a free beanie to everyone....It's all good dude.  Jeff Gorsuch is a BIG man around here...and he has a BIG heart. He and his entire family along with the Gorsuch staff were clearly thrilled to give something back to the kids.  The smiles were gigantic.   Hopefully the joy that was evident tonight at Gorsuch comes through in the photos below.

Click 4 Pix:   GOOD DEEDS and BIG DEEDS in ASPEN.

The Gorsuch Family doing good deeds for the AVSC kids. Click 4 more pix.Over 200 kids got Skis, Boots and Poles...and plenty of good vibes. Click 4 pix.This kid is ready to shred, thanks to Gorsuch, AVSC and Ski Co. Click 4 Pix.Let's do it....Let's Ski. everybody was thrilled to get geared up at Gorsuch. Click 4 Pix.