Author Archives: Jill Adler

Aspen Celebrates Skiing With A Classic Cocktail Party

 There’s nothing like a signature cocktail at the end of a valiant ski day but how about celebrating the cocktail rather than the skiing? The Annual Apres Ski Cocktail Classic

in Aspen, Colo., this weekend invites you to raise your glass and recognize the slope-side activity that put Aspen on the map.

Referred to as the Food & Wine Festival of the mixology world, more than 1,600 participants enjoyed libations at the 2013 inaugural event.

Top-shelf premium spirits, artisanal craft cocktails, world-class seminars by award-winning mixologists and world-class tipplers coordinate snow parties, pop-up bars, demonstrations, fireside chats, cocktail-paired dinners, special mountain events through tomorrow March 16, 2014.

The bars at the base are like the 19th hole in golf. We share stories, laughs and connections that solidify our mountain experience. Everyone is invited to the annual Classic for one of the best moments of all; but hurry. The event ends tomorrow with the The Great Apres-Ski Cocktail Classic Pub Crawl. Select venues in Aspen compete for bragging rights for this year’s “Best Après Ski Cocktail.”  Your $30 ticket gets you your credential, wristband, and the signature cocktail at each venue.  The list includes Jimmy’s Restaurant, Justice Snow’s, J Bar @ Hotel Jerome, Chef’s Club @ St. Regis, Chair 9 @ Little Nell, and 39 Degrees at Sky Hotel.

Today check out the Slopeside Grand Tasting Village at the VUE deck in Westin Snowmass Resort. Sample slopeside through a treasure trove of premium spirits, cocktails and toddies. 3- 6 p.m.

Aspen Classic Cocktail Party

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION & TO PURCHASE TICKETS: Visit www.apresskicc.com

 

Snowbasin’s Pots of Gold

Get thee to Snowbasin this Saturday. The resort is calling all leprechauns in celebration of Saint Patty’s Day. They’re placing three pots of gold somewhere on the mountain. They could be in the lodges, on the hill, and anywhere in between. Don’t look for the rainbows though, no one’s giving away the location of these babies easily. There are three valuable prizes up for grabs including a 2014/2015 Adult Premier Pass. The Pots O’s Gold Search begins at 9 a.m. and ends when the last one is found or 4 p.m.; whichever comes first. If none of the pots are found by noon look to Facebook and Twitter for clues every half hour.
When you’ve worked up an appetite, scoot over to Earls, Needles or John Paul Lodge for traditional corned beef and cabbage, Shepard’s Pie, and Guinness Beef Stew. Bag Pipers will also be in Earl’s Lodge during the afternoon spreading some Irish cheer. At 3:30 p.m. Earl’s goes off with ‘This Must Be the Band’- Talking Heads tribute band- on stage for a free concert.

Alta hosts recreational racing on Fridays and Saturdays at the top of Sunnyside from 11 a.m.- 3 p.m., conditions permitting. The races are open to anyone who wants to try for a gold, silver or bronze Alta pin but you’ll need to register at any ticket office or at the top of the race course. A single run is $3, while Unlimited Runs is $10. Awards are based on a handicap system similar to NASTAR- by age and gender, determined by a pace setter’s time. If your time does not qualify for a medal, you still get a white Alta pin for participating.

Brighton shares the Bonanza with you every Friday night: Roast marshmallows with the kids or a romantic date at the bonfire on Fridays. The yumminess begins at 6 p.m. on the deck of the Alpine Rose.

Snowbird brings on the spring party at Creekside Day Lodge in Gad Valley. Local reggae-rockers, Uniphi, play live while the giveaways fly. $8.50 gets you a burger and brew. The bash moves over to the Tram Club where all 21+ can clink green beers and Irish car bombs.

The Canyons wants to see St. Patrick’s weekend as a spring-long event. They kick it off with the 2014 Operation Smile Celebrity Ski Challenge at noon. The annual fun race raises money for the more than 200,000 surgeries performed around the world to give children born with cleft palates and lips a brand new smile. Most of the celebs hanging out today are from TV shows like Barrett Foa (“NCIS: Los Angeles”), Missy Peregrym (“Rookie Blue”), Jason Ritter (“Parenthood”), Nicole Sullivan (“Cougar Town”), Michael Trevino (“Vampire Diaries”), Alan Tudyk (“Suburgatory”), Aisha Tyler (“The Talk”), and Jenna Ushkowitz (“Glee”). Stick around the resort all week for concerts, magicians, jugglers, s’mores at the Umbrella Bar firepit (3-4 p.m.). Folk Hogan will perform at the Resort Village stage today from 3 p.m. – 5 p.m.

Park City Mountain Resort is hosting a Ski Beach in the meadow at the PayDay Lift midstation from noon-3 p.m. today. Families can picnic with games, burgers and drinks for all ages. Look for the fenced in area between PayDay and Heckler Runs. The Ugly Valley Boys open the Miller Lite Après Concert Series at 3 p.m.

2015 Season Ski Passes Already?

Are we really calling the end of the season already? It’s the second week of March and Vail Resorts has just put next year’s Epic Pass on sale while other resorts are rolling out spring pass offerings.

Make a $49 down payment on an Epic Pass before April 13, 2014, and lock in the $729 price for unlimited, unrestricted access to Canyons in Park City, Vail, Beaver Creek, Breckenridge, Keystone and Arapahoe Basin in Colorado; Heavenly, Northstar and Kirkwood at Lake Tahoe; Afton Alps in Minnesota, Mt. Brighton in Michigan, and five consecutive free days at Niseko, Japan,
for the 2014-15 winter season. The remainder of the balance won’t be due until mid-September even though you’ll be able to ride the lifts all summer.

Kirsten Lynch, executive vice president and chief marketing officer of Vail Resorts said, “There’s a reason we sell the Epic Pass in 80 countries and all 50 states. This is the one pass that lets you chase the powder at the world’s finest resorts, including Japan. This is the pass for true skiers and riders.”

The price has gone up $40 but it’s still a decent deal to ski California, Utah, Colorado and Japan. Noticeably absent from the mix, however, are free ski days in Arlberg, Austria, and Verbier, Switzerland, that were part of the 2013/14 Epic Pass.

Purchasers of an Epic Pass will also receive six Buddy Tickets (that’s $74 each at Canyons) and six Ski With A Friend tickets ($91 at Canyons) that can be used this spring; but that’s nothing to rave about when you consider the straight ticket price after March 31, 2014 is $73. Best to save them for next winter.

Snowbird’s $499 spring tram unlimited pass went on sale March 1, 2014, but drops to just $329 on April 1. Most Utah resorts will close in mid-April but let’s hope we get some late season snow storms to keep Snowbird skiing sweet past May. The other Utah resorts have yet to release their 2015 pass pricing details.

 

UPDATE: 

“We are excited to announce a renewed partnership between Vail Resorts and Les 3 Vallées, France, as well as Verbier, Switzerland, providing ongoing access to truly legendary and world-class resorts in Europe. Epic Pass holders that have taken advantage of these partnerships have been nothing short of blown away by the experience that these resorts provide and we couldn’t be more pleased to be able to extend the opportunity for more of our most loyal skiers and riders to ski the world” said Kirsten Lynch, executive vice president and chief marketing officer of Vail Resorts. “Each and every year, we look to further increase the already incredible value of the Epic Pass, and the 2014-2015 season will be no exception, with continued access to the best of Europe, in addition to five free days in Niseko, Japan.”

“We are very happy to continue our partnership with Vail Resorts. Les 3 Vallées is the largest ski area in the world and the premier destination in ski terrain choice, service and gastronomy in Europe” said Vincent Lalanne-Clouté, director of Les 3 Vallées. “It’s no mistake that we are aligned with the preeminent mountain resorts in the world. We look forward to once again having Epic Pass holders experience the special place that is Les 3 Vallées, during the 2014-2015 season.”

Hotel Monte Vista in Flagstaff, Arizona

Drinks at 6:30. Boy, does that sound awesome. I checked into the Freddie Mercury Room at the Hotel Monte Vista in Flagstaff, Arizona, after a crazy ass day just trying to get here.

The place is a hoot. Very historic, old school charm. I love it. Despite it’s history, there are no weird smells or bugs; a few paint chips are fine and I hear the place is haunted.

It was one of those weeks where I couldn’t tell what day it was, what I had to do and when I had to do it. Monday? When was that? I think I ran errands and hung out on my computer; studying for my mediation trial and prepping for Julie-Anne’s short film to come on Tuesday. I had so much to do before my trip to Flagstaff today. Including finding someone to get Sage to school tomorrow and – because she has no school on Friday- someone to watch her all day. Everything was lined up and good to go. I zipped to SLC for a Discovery Channel audition and then straight to the airport. Screw Diamond Parking. I’m recommending to anyone and everyone to avoid this operation. They used to be on top of things; they used to make sense. Not anymore. I self-parked and instead of the shuttle arriving at my car for my lift to the airport, I had to haul my bags all the way up to the entrance- a much greater distance than the shuttle stands at the airport long-term parking. Oh, and I save a whopping .80 a day using Diamond. Wahoo.

Next week I’m going on a mission to discover all of the more economical means available for my next trip. Other lots? Hotels? Personal rides? TRAX?

I can’t wait to go exploring. The last time I was in Flagstaff was right before I moved to Park City. I was thinking of moving here after a TV station offered me a news job. Oh how different my path could have been!

Current Utah Ski Conditions

Cold, snow, hot, melt. It’s a vicious cycle and it just won’t seem to quit. After a week of highs last week a storm rolled in and covered the crusty, rotten snow. I didn’t ski until Friday. I’m not ready for spring skiing just yet. Unfortunately, the Park City side needed a lot more snow than they got so we headed to Big Cottonwood. Brighton skied like butter in most places when I finally went out. There were still scratchy patches on southfacing slopes but overall it was a welcome relief to spring conditions. Another foot fell by Saturday morning bringing totals to about 20 inches in the Cottonwoods and turning everything creamy. The winds buffered the slopes preventing us from experiencing that infamous blower snow. The warmer grapple that fell in the morning created a consistency more like kicking it in a sandbox than surfing whipped cream. Once it was tracked out you had to work for your turns rather than finding that hero experience. Still, it was winter. At Alta on Saturday we found untracked off Supreme in the Catherine’s area as well as in Eagle’s Nest. It was rougher under Collins Lift where winds beat the freshies into submission. Sorry, Folks, I haven’t seen Devils Castle open all season but you can bet I was drooling for it.

Sunday in Park City brought 50-degree temps and spring conditions again at the base. The top was still winter. Snowbird was the ‘it’ resort on Sunday as several areas that were closed due to the heavy snow and avalanche hazard, reopened.  The tram line was ridiculous so it made sense to scoot to Gadzoom to start the day. Snow fell in the evening but it was partly sunny and warm this morning which equates to me staying home to write!

A storm is approaching from the west that’s promising snow showers behind a cold front tonight through tomorrow. Then it clears and warms before another cold front this Thursday. Fingers crossed it brings at least a foot to cover the melting snow. 

1 95 96 97 98 99 147