Video: Why Skiing Is a Ridiculously Good Workout – Time Magazine

The bracing air on your face and the rush of snow beneath your skis: Not many activities intuitively feel as healthful and invigorating as downhill skiing. But is it actually any good for you?

The answer, unequivocally, is “yes”—although how good skiing is for you depends in part on your skill level, how hard you push yourself and the types of terrain you tackle on the slopes.

“Alpine skiing is a mix of endurance and resistance training,” says Dr. Josef Niebauer, a professor of sports medicine and cardiology and director of the Institute for Molecular Sports and Rehabilitation Medicine at Paracelsus Medical University in Salzburg, Austria. “It has positive effects on the heart and circulation, as well as peripheral muscles—predominately the legs.”

Aspen’s Lift One Corridor Taking Shape

The developers of Aspen’s new Lift One Corridor joined together on October 1st to unveil their plans for the new lift, new lodging and amenities along South Aspen Street. They shared their plans with roughly 300 members of the Aspen community at the Limelight Lodge in downtown Aspen.

They stated that the plan is the culmination of more than a year of work by the City of Aspen, the Aspen Skiing Company, Lift One Lodge and Gorsuch Haus. According to the developers, “it is truly a testament to the power of collaboration and couldn’t have been done without the significant participation of the Aspen Historical Society and the generosity of the Dolinsek family.”

The plan highlighted the proposed benefits to the community:

The Skiers Chalet Lodge will be relocated to Dean Street and remodeled to house the Aspen Ski History Museum and will include skier services run by the Aspen Skiing Company.
The Skiers Chalet Steakhouse will be moved down the hill along South Aspen Street and reopened as a restaurant.
The historic bull wheel, one tower and chairs from the original Lift 1 will be renovated and showcased right below the new Lift 1A.
The park space at Dean Street will be greatly improved and expanded with the addition of Dolinsek Gardens, Lift One Park, and Willoughby Park, including a 60-foot wide greenway between the two Lift One Lodge buildings for summer mountain access.
50 public parking spaces, public restrooms, public lockers, and bike racks are all part of the new Dean Street mountain portal

The new Lift 1A will be a telemix, a combination of gondola cars and chairs. This format allows year-round, multimodal use and will give the Aspen Skiing Company the opportunity to explore reopening Ruthie’s Restaurant. This is a historic opportunity to bring Lift 1A back to the core of Aspen and make it as easy to access as the Silver Queen Gondola.

Two lodges are proposed as part of the plan. Gorsuch Haus at the top of South Aspen Street, immediately adjacent to the current site of Lift 1A, and Lift One Lodge on the properties once occupied by the Holland House, Skiers Chalet Lodge and Skiers Chalet Steakhouse. Gorsuch Haus will be an 81-room hotel and Lift One Lodge brings another 104 lodge rooms. These new properties contribute much needed new lodge inventory and provide the bed base that is an important foundation for the vitality of this portal.

The developers asked the townspeople to support “this historic opportunity that has emerged thanks to the insistence of Aspen City Council and the many people in the community who pressed for the return of walk-up access to Aspen’s original base area.”

If approved by voters, developer Michael Brown (Lift One Lodge) said it would take four or five years for all of it to be built. Lift 1A would be out of service for one or two seasons.

Because it involves city land, zoning changes and variances to the land-use code, the plan requires a public vote, which is anticipated for this spring.

Developer Jeff Gorsuch (Gorsuch Haus) asked the room for its support in that election and said the project connects the heart of the mountain with the soul of the town.

More information can be found at: www.LiftOneCorridor.com.

Aspen/Snowmass Give A Flake Video

Here's the latest winter awareness campaign from Aspen Skiing Company - Give a Flake. A winter call to action!

Winter 2018/9 Snowmass Base Village

Snowmass Base Village

The resort out here making the most news this winter isn’t Aspen! Snowmass Ski Area and the new Base Village have captured the spotlight with a host of new development and on-mountain amenities. The 10-year project fully realizes the vision partially developed in 2004 but halted by the great recession in 2008. On Mountain improvements for seasoned skiers such as the super light weight Sheer bliss quad and the new High Alpine quad have opened up access to The Cirque and the Wall like never before. Aspen Snowmass know how to deliver the goods to all levels of skiers.

Even Gwyn’s High Alpine restaurant has had more than a little work done. All in the name of refreshing the way for new generations.

The Snowmass Legacy – A New Chapter

It is all happening now at Base Village.

Only nine miles down the road from Aspen or a quick 20 minute free bus ride, Snowmass Mountain is as big as Aspen Mountain, Aspen Highlands and Buttermilk put together and has always appealed to families with it’s excellent value and emphasis on all-ages fun. The mountain boasts a wide array of terrain for all abilities, including the wide-open cruisers at Elk Camp and Big Burn and the always-rewarding extreme terrain of Hanging Valley Wall. But for many years the resort became mired in on-again, off-again attempts at renovations and expansion. It’s been a resort town with no central focal point. That’s all set to change in a big way.

Snowmass Base Village is a collaboration between East West Partners, Aspen Skiing Company and KSL Capital, all of whom are based in Colorado. The goal is to complete Fritz Benedict’s original master plan crafted back in 1967. Benedict, a celebrated Aspen architect and visionary, viewed Snowmass Ski Area as the ultimate ski-in, ski-out resort anchored by a pedestrian village at the base. The three partners have committed $600 million towards this effort and it’s currently the largest family-oriented mountain resort development in North America.

Update: Limelight construction from Snowmass Base Village on Vimeo.

Builders are hard at work as we speak on the current phase of construction including the new 99-room ski-in, ski-out Limelight Hotel and residences. In fact, their goal is to have the hotel ready for guests when the mountain opens late this November! That’s just the beginning, however. There will be a new public events plaza with an ice-skating rink, new restaurants (including a new Creperie), new bars and a community center.

New Limelight Hotel

The new Limelight Hotel will have an official grand opening on December 15^th and features an indoor/outdoor lounge area, a kids game room, a fitness center, a five-story indoor climbing wall that the public can use, and spa pools right on site. Paired up with the hotel are the Limelight Residences, eleven free market ownership units and the exclusive Snowmass Mountain Club. Members get private access to on-mountain parking, lockers and their own lounge area.

Other parts of the development Lumin, three-private access residences with contemporary interiors and One Snowmass, 41 brand-new condominiums spread across two buildings connected by a shmantzy pants signature glass walkway.

Come Visit

What does this all mean for guests visiting Snowmass this winter? It means that its time to revisit Snowmass explore the new village and checkout the new restaurants as well as taking some laps in Powerline glades! Those of you who have enjoyed winter in Aspen/Snowmass might just like what you see well enough to take the plunge and purchase a place of your own. There is a good range of inventory in Snowmass Village from the swanky new development to classic ski condos in need of a new owner. Single family home prices have seen a full recovery and new homes are replacing the 1970’s chalets.

Call lifestyle guru Gareth 970 309 7649.

Aspen/Snowmass Real Estate Trends

What does the start of September mean for the real estate market? The Colorado Association of Realtors’ most recent market snapshot shows last month’s single family home and townhome/condo median sales price is up across the board year-to-date. A new Pew Research Center report details the one generation of Americans who have fully recovered from the housing crash a decade ago. And a Zillow Research report from last month explains when they believe it will be a buyers market!

Midvalley (Basalt, Willits, El Jebel) was a more mixed bag with transactions per month down 21% versus last year but gross volume (total sales amount) up 8.8%. The total year to date transactions are up by almost 13% over 2017, pointing to tighter inventory but solid overall sales. The numbers are taken from current July 2018 records from Pitkin, Eagle and Garfield Counties.

The Garfield County (Carbondale to Glenwood Springs and westward to Rifle and Battlement Mesa) picture in July 2018 was much better with sales, volume and YTD statistics up across the board. Gross volume was up 31%, transactions up just 1% (169 vs. 167), gross volume YTD up 12.5% and YTD transactions up 10%.

Contact Gareth for more information about how these trends could work in your favor whether you’re a buyer or a seller!

Aspen Real Estate Trends Point to a Robust 2017

While not every indicator points in the same direction, the overall picture of Aspen’s real estate market is one of continued improvement as we enter 2017. While overall sales were down in 2016, new tax revenue, development activity and record offerings all indicate a strong future going forward.

2016 saw total sales of Aspen real estate come in at $1.4 billion, a drop from 2015’s robust showing of over $2 billion.

Gareth Williams and other local experts believe that while the total sales had a surprisingly significant decline from the prior year, they nevertheless reflect a solid showing over the past 10-year span. 2015’s high total sales (second only to the market peaks of 2005, 2006 and 2007) were due to economic recovery and pent-up demand for Aspen property. One notable silver lining in the numbers was that the last few months of the year showed the greatest gains in sales.

Countering the picture painted by the overall sales decline, Aspen’s increased revenue from building permit fees provides better news for the local real estate market. More building activity has generated both new revenue and new economic activity in town.

In Snowmass Village a new partnership of Aspen Skiing Company, KSL Capital and East West purchased the assets to Base Village and are restarting construction on the transformative, yet long delayed project next month. This powerful consortium should provide the necessary boost to generate more activity. Other ancillary evidence of increased economic momentum include robust December sales tax collections in Snowmass Village. Gareth expects permit fees to trend upward in the first half of this year.

One other notable highlight is the remarkable listing of a 3,000 square foot penthouse in downtown Aspen for a record $30 million! Originally listed as a fractional ownership property, the fully-furnished penthouse is being sold as a full-ownership residence and resides in Dancing Bear’s newly-built Mountainside building on Durant Avenue, just two blocks from Aspen Mountain’s Gondola Plaza and one block from Lift 1-A (the finish arena for this year’s FIS World Cup Finals).

According to the Aspen Daily News article, other Dancing Bear fractional-ownership residences, including one recently sold by Gareth, have increased in price by over $200,000 since 2012, a positive trend for current and future fractional purchases in the Aspen Snowmass area.

For more information including a detailed analysis of Pitkin County, Colorado real estate sales since 2010 (including the Aspen Snowmass area), please click here.

All in all, Aspen’s building activity in 2017 should easily eclipse last year. Clients interested in securing a new home or vacation residence could benefit by closing on their properties sooner as most trends point to higher prices on the horizon.

World Cup Finals & Lift 1A

Did you know?

Aspen has been selected as the host for 2017 World Cup Finals. Taking place between March 15^th and 19^thof this coming season, this will be the first return of the event to North America since 1997, and the first time that Aspen plays host to world-cup level men’s alpine racing since 2001. While the World Cup Finals have never been in Aspen before, the first World Cup Championships to be held outside of Europe took place in Aspen way back in 1948.

The author was fortunate enough to watch some of the national teams training in Chile a month ago, and we in the states have a lot to cheer for this season. The American women were there, and boy… do they look strong. Mikaela Shiffrin and Lindsay Vaughn continue to push the limits of alpine racing; and despite a ghastly crash Lindsay is looking fit and poised to break more records this season. Laurenne Ross was absolutely dominating the Super G training track. The narrative can change a lot between now and March, but I for one wouldn’t miss this event for the world.

More info from the Aspen Snowmass page: https://www.aspensnowmass.com/while-you-are-here/events/2017-audi-fis-world-cup-finals

As part of the hosting deal the FIS put significant pressure on Aspen Ski Company to upgrade the lift infrastructure on the Lift 1A side of Aspen Mountain. There has been a lot of talk about what exactly that is going to mean, but it looks as if several things are in the works. Ground has been broken on the construction of a block of new townhomes. There is a plan in place to replace the 1975 double chairlift with a new detachable quad, but the starting of that project hinges on the approval of the building of the new Gorsuch Haus, a planned 60-room luxury lodge that is battling for permissions. Exactly what will happen at Lift 1A is still anybody’s guess, but it should breathe new life into the resort by improving access to that under-utilized side of the mountain, and by creating another fun place for a little après!

Now is the time to book for March, so if you want to join us for the 2017 Alpine World Cup Finals please check out the availability on this website, or e-mail [email protected]

Winter Activities

Planning your winter trip to Aspen? There are so many things to do. Aspen Ski Company has put together a great resource on the Aspen Snowmass web-page for an overview of winter activities on and off the slopes:

https://www.aspensnowmass.com/plan-your-stay/winter-activities

We particularly recommend Ullr nights for families with kids, and snow-cat dinners at Cloud 9 for couples are very cool. As always, Aspen Snowmass proves itself not only the best winter destination for skiers & snowboarders, but also for kids, shoppers, gourmands, music lovers, art fans, and more.

Alive in These Mountains

Alive in these Mountains

Professional surfer Mark Visser connects with Gareth and shares his epic Aspen/Snowmass vacation experience in this fantastic AirBnB video.

July and August 2016 Aspen/Snowmass Housing Statistics

Here are the July and August 2016 local monthly housing statistics based off of sales in the Aspen Board of Realtors FlexMLS program.

The reports are broken down by major area for the Aspen/Glenwood MLS listings. The links are provided here for your convenience. Please feel free to share this valuable information.

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