The 50 Year Party

Every March for the past 50 years a core group of visitors have gotten their party on in Aspen.   Cheeseburger in Paradise, Sneak-A-Peak, The Wine Party, The After Wine Party and a few that we missed.  Some of the hosts and guests are Hall of Famers, veterans in their 80's.  The Ladies range in age from about 25 to 80.  Everyone gets after it.  If you're on the right mailing list (snail mail) you're in for a great time.  MARCH in ASPEN.

Click for pix. 

SNEAK-a-PEAK    and     50 YEAR PARTY.

Still Partyin' in Aspen. The 50th Annual Wine Party on Ajax.Brittish Invasion at Sneak A Peak in Aspen. 

Chuck Leavell in Aspen

Chuck Leavell at The Wheeler Opera House in Aspen.The historic Wheeler Opera House has been the scene for many great shows since 1889.  Last Saturday another legend was added to the list of stellar performers who have played The Wheeler.  Rock and Roll pianist Chuck Leavell tickled the ivories in Aspen in front of a very enthusiastic and packed house.

Leavell has played keyboards with all the greats including The Allman Brothers, The Rolling Stones, Eric Clapton, George Harrison, The Black Crowes and Gov't Mule among others. See his bio, click Chuck Leavell. A highly sought after session musician, Leavell ripped the black and whites on his Steinway Grand live in Aspen.  Leavell not only played songs from the various artists he has worked with, he shared some interesting stories about his life in Rock and Roll.  Leavell is a self taught musician who dropped out of High School to pursue his dream.  He is probably best know for his Southern boogie-woogie style---but his talents on the piano are vast...and legendary.   In addition to his music, Leavell resides in Macon, Georgia where he is a tree farmer, author and conservationist.

The Wheeler is constantly bringing BIG name acts to Aspen.  Two upcoming events are red-marked on AspenSpin's calander.   The ASPEN LAFF FESTIVAL (March 16-19) is expected to be hilarious, and  7908, The ASPEN SONGWRITERs FESTIVAL (March 30 -April 2) co-produced with John Oates will be a celebration of picking, playing and storytelling.  

Click WHEELER for info and tickets.

Gorsuch: # 1 Ski Shop in Aspen.

Gorsuch is very easy to find in Aspen, at the base of Aspen Mountain in Gondola Plaza.  Gorsuch, a family owned business actually has 4 shops in Aspen ( Gondola Plaza (2) Little Nell and Cooper Street) along with stores in Vail, Beaver Creek and Keystone.   For more than 40 years the Gorsuch name has been synonymous with quality and impeccable style on the Colorado ski slopes.

Click GORSUCH to shop, read the story or request a catalog.

Gorsuch is the #1 Ski Shop in Aspen, hands down, no questions asked.  Style, selection and service are all crucial elements in the long-term success of any retail business, Gorsuch has it all.  Gorsuch is always on top of all the major brands. The ski industry is notoriously fickle and last year's hot ski can be this years bust.  Jeff Gorsuch and his team at the ski shop including managers Jared Ettlinger and David Stapleton know their stuff.  They can set you up with the ultimate pair of sticks, or a whole quiver...perfect for all conditions and your skiing style.  The whole team in the hard goods shop is first-class all the way. The top dogs in Aspen.

The Little Nell store and Elements carry top-of-the-line clothing for men and women.  Fashionable alpine inspired fine clothing for everyone.  The Cooper Street shop extends the offerings to the home and more.  If you want to get stylish in Aspen, Gorsuch should be your first stop.

Sladdin and Jared at Gorsuch, The #1 Ski Shop in Aspen.

 Ed, Will and Chris always give the best tunes in Aspen.

The Ladies at Gorsuch in Gondola Plaza. Fine clothing for men and women. Gorsuch's Elements at The Little Nell hosted a trunk show for Sonia Bogner, the classic RTW line from Bogner.

The Million Dollar March (The Parade of Parties)

Aspen in March.  There's nothing better.  Beautiful, warm, crystal clear, sun-baked, bluebird days for spring skiing and late, bacchanalian party-filled nights.  March is the time when "everybody who is anybody" turns up in Aspen.   The show ponies are in Aspen.   Everyone wants to "see and be seen" and get a head start on summer with a Rocky Mountain tan.

For AspenSpin.com the photo opp's come fast and furious.  Celeb's, beautiful people, gapers, spring break party girls, CEO's as well as some very photogenic people who cannot be categorized.  Aspen Spin is not paparazzi, we always ask permission before capturing an image on digital, so rest assured no people we harmed in the taking of these photographs.

Here's a few pix to get your Friday started.

MILLION DOLLAR MARCH                  ASPEN PARTY WEEK.

Fur runs Wild in Aspen.     Cheeseburger in Paradise party on Ajax.

Aspen: The Most Beautiful Town in America

Aspen, Colorado. The most beautiful town in America.AspenSpin.com missed a huge story on Friday. Our tweet deck was blowing up all day, but we didn't re-tweet once. Excuse us for partaking in a super-sick POWDER DAY.  8 to 10" of fresh pow pow will always be our first choice...no matter what.  The Wall Street Journal scooped us in our own town, Aspen, Colorado.  ZG, Ute City, Fat City, The 81611, The Capital of Skiing.  The WSJ published an article about Aspen entitled  The Most Expensive Town in America. Click  MOST EXPENSIVE  to read it.   Is this article a positive?  Is this what Aspen is really famous for?  Seriously ---what's your take??   Click  ASPEN SPIN to share your own comments.  Do we really want to "forge our own orbit"...as the article touts in the second line.

AspenSpin has spent the past 5 years studying social media so we've seen plenty of puff pieces.  We know one when we see one.  It's anybody's guess how this article in the WSJ came about and we've heard the old adage "any press is good press" ....but WTF is up at WSJ??  The Aspen Ski Co. has been known to fete certain journalists with first class accommodations, lift tickets, rentals, dinners etc to get good PR.  That theory gets thrown out because the Ski Co. agenda was barely mentioned.  The article focused mostly on real estate prices (it is the WSJ for cripe's sake) so there were several brilliant quotes from Aspen's esteemed Real Estate brokers.  Those guys sure are smart.   ACRA ...they're busy having meetings and blowing holes in the community plan....oh yeah, and taking a few boondoggles.   The City of Aspen, naaaa probably not , their PR person now works at Ski.Co. and I don't think Mayor Mick would allow such a story to be planted under his watch.  It a curious conundrum. 

Natural Beauty surrounds Aspen, Colorado.The numbers don't lie.  There's no debate, Aspen is an extremely expensive place to live. To most of us that live here, it's worth the premium.  What the article failed to mention when it quoted a Turkish Financial Services exec about buying a fractional interest, is that Aspen, Colorado is  

THE MOST BEAUTIFUL TOWN in AMERICA. 

The Russian Supermarket Czar who layed down $13 mil for a pad (cost to the build $15 mil...that's just an estimate) did so for a reason.  Its gorgeous here, and the active lifestyle coupled with the vast cultural and social opportunities are unrivaled.  The skiing and riding, the fishing, the biking and hiking were not even mentioned in the article.  Author Nancy Keates cited the growth of AYPA as an indication of the excellent job prospects in Aspen.  She did not mention the number of workers who get to ride their bike to work, or estimate the number of people with Master's Degrees who tend bar or check coats at night so they can shred the GNAR during the day. 

Is that it? Aspen is for the elite only?  That's the rap??  When A. Party was a kid, our neighbors used to drive a motor home full of Michiganders out to Aspen to ski for Christmas break.  It didn't seem elitist back then... it just seemed really cool.  Our friends got to ski in the Rocky Mountains in the deep POW, while we got Pine Knob or a 4 hour drive up I-75 to Boyne Country.  Aspen wasn't a status symbol back then...but the passion for skiing and the beauty is what we all dreamed about.   Aspen has always been a tourist destination, a "rich man's town", a place to ski...not work,  a place to relax, not stress.  It used to be a town that attracted guests because of its natural splendor, its mountains and forests, the POWDER and 300 days of sunshine every year.  If you believe the Wall Street Journal, our slogan could be, Aspen; Where the rich people go.

Aspen is much more than "the most expensive town in America".  The Wall Street Journal is selling us short.   Aspen might be the richest town in America, but  wealth is not always measured in terms of money.  We measure our lifestyle in beauty, experiences and quality of life.  Aspen is much more than just "Disney for adults" as the article claims.  Aspen is a real town, with real History and a real community. Aspen will probably never be able to shed the reputation of "most expensive" and plenty of people still get off on that, but the real story of Aspen is much deeper and nuanced.  We've been profiled...and put into a category that doesn't begin to tell the whole story.  The WSJ simply glossed over the real story.

The 5 Best Reasons to Live in Aspen.. 

The Natural Beauty (no further explanation needed)

The POW POW (again, pretty obvious).

Small Town, BIG Time Culture.  (Music, Art, Events, Community etc.)

Social Activities (Its always BIG fun in Aspen. 100 bars/restaurants within walking distance).

The Experiential Lifestyle (Just do it. ski it, hike it, bike it, fish it..etc.)

Share your thoughts.  Click  Aspen Spin.