Thursday, 03 December 2009 18:44

Michael Kinsley, a Snowmass/Capitol Creek Caucus board member, recently won the Artist in Wilderness program established by the Wilderness Workshop.  The program gives emerging and established artists the opportunity to create original works inspired by local wildlands.  

Applications are accepted twice annually for residencies in June and September.  Applications are judged by a jury or local artists and art professionals.  The selected applicant receives a stipend of $1500.00, the use of a mountain cabin for a week, and (if needed) travel expenses to Aspen and the use of a 4 x 4 vehicle.  The artist is expected to donate one original painting and limited reproduction rights of other works created during the residency.  

During his residency, Michael traveled to several Hidden Gems proposal areas, mainly in the Crystal River watershed, where he covered an extraordinary amount of ground while taking photos and making sketches.  He has since created a dozen large and small paintings of the areas.

Congratulations to Michael!

Thursday, 03 December 2009 15:17

Founded in 1946, Aspen Skiing Company is headquartered in Aspen, Colorado, a small town in the Roaring Fork Valley of the Rocky Mountains. The company owns four ski resorts; Aspen Mountain, Aspen Highlands, Buttermilk Mountain, and Snowmass, all of which are located within a short distance of its headquarters. These four resorts, together referred to as "Aspen," form one of the world's most famous and popular ski areas. In 1978 the company was purchased by Twentieth Century Fox and subsequently underwent several changes in ownership, eventually coming under the control of the Crown family of Chicago.

Skiing became common in and around Aspen long before the mountains were developed as ski resorts. As early as 1879, when mining prospectors founded the town of Aspen, people were using skis for both transportation and recreation. Two of the original settlers were Swedish, and it was they who introduced "snowshoes," or skis, which were essential during that first winter, when 52 feet of snow fell in the valley of the Roaring Fork River. Bolstered by silver mining in the surrounding mountains, the town's population grew rapidly, from 300 in 1880 to 8,808 in 1890. This would be a golden era for Aspen.

Then, in 1893, when the population hit 12,000, came the great silver panic, which forced Congress to drop silver as a monetary standard. Silver's value plummeted. Aspen, once predicted to reach a population of 100,000, instead suffered an exodus of miners. By 1917 the town had only 700 people; some were still mining for silver, lead, and zinc, while others were ranchers and potato farmers. During these "quiet years," as they came to be known, people still skied, but more often for recreation, as other means of transportation were taking over. Skiing was most popular among kids, some of whom made their own skis from wood stolen out of old, abandoned houses.

Read more: History of the Aspen Skiing Company

Thursday, 03 December 2009 11:04

This summer the Snowmass/Capitol Creek Caucus met on a continuing basis with staff from Community Development to discuss easing some of the agricultural code provisions to facilitate those engaged in agricultural pursuits.  Following are the final recommendations generated by these discussions.

It is the belief of the Snowmass/Capitol Creek Caucus that the existing Land Use Code  (LUC) regarding agriculture is unduly restrictive and not conducive to those who wish to engage in historical agricultural pursuits.  The stated goal of Pitkin County is that the areas outside the main Urban Growth Boundary remain rural in character.  Additionally, the Master Plan of the Caucus is replete with references to preserving the rural character of the Caucus area.  The current language of the Code is counter to these objectives, and often results in individuals ignoring the Code in an effort to protect their animals and agricultural efforts.

BARN SIZE AND HEIGHT

In order to address the underlying issues, the Snowmass/Capitol Creek Caucus analyzed the current Code provisions to better understand the parameters and offer recommendations to make the Code more amenable to rural pursuits.  The ensuing analysis revealed the following.  Current LUC allows that barns up to 58 square feet per acre for parcels ranging from 20 to 159 acres be exempt from Floor Area Ratio (FAR) calculations.  At the lower end of the LUC’s parameters for acreage, the resulting barn allowance is too small to have a practical usage.  A 20 acre parcel, while substantial in area, is only permitted an 1160 square foot barn.  Conceivably, this structure would have to shelter animals, store hay and equipment, and provide room for anything else related to the particular rural activities.   This is not realistic and effectively prohibits smaller parcels from engaging in meaningful agricultural activities.  Further analysis also suggested the existing FAR exemption for larger acreages (more than 70 acres) was adequate to conduct agricultural activities.

Read more: Your Caucus At Work

Thursday, 03 December 2009 09:11

Neighbors Hawley Smith, Jr., Hawley Smith III, Eric Hansen and Jerry Ogier join Connie Harvey, Todd Stoner, Jerermiah Akers, Jeremy Morris, Seth Sachson, James Brundige, Jim and Casey Ward for the annual Harvey Ranch cattle round-up.

An early October snowfall moves in but does not deter the ”cowboys“ committed to the Harvey Ranch Round-up, which has been an annual event since 1962.

Read more: '09 Harvey Ranch Roundup

 

Sunday, 01 November 2009 12:21

Symptom	Cold	Swine Flu
Fever	Fever is rare with a cold	Fever is usually present with the flu in up to 80% of all flu cases.  A temperature of 100 F or higher for 3 to 4 days is associated with the flu
Coughing	A hacking, productive (mucous producing) cough is often present with a cold	A non-productive (non-mucous producing) cough is usually present with the flu (sometimes referred to as dry cough)
Aches	Slight body aches and pains can be part of a cold	Severe aches and pains are common with the flu
Stuffy Nose	Stuffy nose is commonly present with a cold and typically resolves within a week	Stuffy nose is not commonly present with the flu
Chills	Chills are uncommon with a cold	60% of people who have the flu experience chills
Tiredness	Tiredness is fairly mild with a cold	Tiredness is moderate to severe with the flu
Sneezing	Sneezing is commonly present with a cold	Sneezing is not common with the flu
Sudden Symptoms	Cold symptoms tend to develop over a few days	The flu has a rapid onset within 3-6 hours.  The flu hits hard and includes sudden symptoms like high fever, aches and pains
Headache	A headache is fairly uncommon with a cold	A headache is very common with the flu (80%)
Sore Throat	Sore throat is commonly present with a cold	Sore throat is not commonly present with the flu
Chest Discomfort	Chest discomfort is mild to moderate with a cold	Chest discomfort is often severe with the flu

Read more: Do You Know?

Sunday, 01 November 2009 12:01

After having grown up in San Francisco, studying architecture and firefighting at UC Davis, and ski patrolling at Sugar Bowl in the Tahoe area, Eric went in search of a less populated place, with ski slopes and an ice arena to call home. A trip to the Roaring Fork Valley in the mid ‘80s revealed that quiet, unpopulated area.  1817 Shield O Rd became Eric’s new home in 1988.

     Eric is a man of many jobs... Snowmass Ski Patrol, Paramedic for AVH Ambulance Dept., CPR/EMT instructor, Pitkin County Deputy Coroner, Property Manager of three homes in Shield O Terrace (including managing the subdivision itself) and most importantly, learning to be a kid all over again with daughter, Greta!

     Kelly was born and raised in Corpus Christi, TX.  After graduating high school and thinking the planet Earth was flat like South Texas, she ventured out into the big, mountainous world, starting with Santa Barbara, CA during college years and on to Seattle, WA.  She decided to spend the winter of ‘85 in Aspen.  That winter turned into the last 24 years.

     Kelly has been the Office Manager of the Snowmass Urgent Care Clinic at the base of Snowmass Ski Area for 14 years.  Prior to that, she worked for Continental Airlines, which allowed her and Eric to travel to many exotic, faraway lands....but none as amazing as our little valley.

     Kelly and Eric married in 1993.  After many years of fertility issues, Greta Daley Hansen was born in August of 2001, with a little help from some amazing friends.  Locals, Laurie Shipe... egg donor, and Amy Covington... surrogate, helped the Hansens bring Greta into this world.

     
     Greta is 8 years old and a second grader at Aspen Elementary School.  She takes dance classes and loves to ski with her neighbor, Strider Michelson, (son of Kevin and Andrea) who she calls her ‘little brother’. We've got quite the extended family! It truly does take a village!

Sunday, 01 November 2009 11:55

Fasten the stems of older established perennial vines such as climbing hydrangea, trumpet vine, honeysuckle, and hardy wisteria.  This will prevent them from suffering from winter storm damage.

Remove fallen leaves that accumulate on ground covers since they can smother the plants and block the passage of air and water to the root zone

Watering should be done on a limited basis now.  However, if it has been a dry fall without rain or snow, new plants will benefit from a deep watering while the ground remains unfrozen.

Do not fertilize ground covers, vines, and ornamental grasses during this month.  Delay that activity for early spring when growth resumes.

Saturday, 31 October 2009 22:59

  An electrocardiogram or EKG provides doctors with a simple test that records the electrical activity of the heart.  The test may help detect and locate the source of problems within the heart.

  Your heart works by contracting certain sections of the heart muscle in a certain order.  This contraction forces blood to move within the heart’s chambers.  An electrical signal tells the different sections when to contract and when to rest.  An EKG detects and records this signal as it travels across the heart.

  An EKG may uncover a number of problems with the heart including:

• Heart attack
• Reduced blood flow to the heart muscle
• Irregular heart beats
• Problems with the heart not beating forcefully enough
• Enlargement of the heart
• Birth defects
• Diseases of the heart’s valves

  The EKG recording not only shows what the heart is doing at the time of the test, it also indicates problems in the past such as a previous heart attack.  A previous EKG can be used as comparison to help detect problems.

Read more: HEALTH - Understanding EKGs

 

Thursday, 01 October 2009 00:41

How McLain Flats got its name

During the “Quiet Years” of Aspen, before our ski industry developed, before private jets and mega homes, ranchers were growing potatoes on the perfectly flat mesa we now know as McLain Flats. Mac McLain bought an automatic potato picker, claimed to be the first on the Western slope of Colorado. On one fine autumn day, Mac was operating his new potato picker in a field on McLain Flats. Apparently it started to rain and sleet, and kept on raining and sleeting for several days. Mac’s machine got stuck, smack in the middle of the mesa. When things finally dried out enough, ranchers brought in two-four in hand work horse teams to extricate the mud mired equipment. It was said that it took a very long time to move the potato picker from the bog.  As the story goes, it became a joke with the local ranchers, as each day they came across the mesa, the potato picker sat out in the middle of the flats hopelessly stuck.
The potato picker was finally rescued by the teams of horses, but the image of that piece of equipment sitting out there, on the flats for so many days, never left the minds of the locals. And that is the story as it was told to me by Doug McLain, Mac McLain’s son. 

Wednesday, 30 September 2009 18:44

Kevin, Andrea and Strider Michelson moved to the Snowmass Creek Valley in the spring of 2005, upon the completion of their home @ 707 Shield-O Rd.

Kevin grew up in St Louis and has been in the valley off and on since 1989, leaving occasionally to tour the world in his quest for success in the field of whitewater slalom. He was on the National White Water Slalom Team in ’97 and ‘99 and an Olympic hopeful in 2000. He is currently employed by Bill Poss Architecture and Planning, as a project manager, and known around the Shield-O neighborhood as “Nannyman”.

Andrea was raised in Maine, leaving at age 19 to tour the world aboard large private yachts. Her culinary interests, and career as a chef, took her to NY, Italy and Paris to train, and her 10 year stint on boats, ended with a wise move to the Roaring Fork Valley 18 years ago. She continues to provide private chef services under the name “Private Affairs” and specializes in Old Snowmass homes!

Andrea and Kevin married in 2002 on their raw property @ Shield-O, (which Kevin had purchased in 2000). 10 short months later, son Strider was born.

Strider is a zesty 6 year old, who attends first grade @ Basalt Elementary school. His interests include anything w/ Mom and Dad, travel, swimming, skiing, and his Aunt Melinda’s candy store in Maine (his first job!) He considers himself the sibling of Greta Daly Hansen, (daughter of Eric and Kelly) who conveniently lives up the Shield-O hill.

The Michelsons can be reached @ This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , or 970-923-5818 

Wednesday, 30 September 2009 18:25

On a beautiful, sunlit day, the ladies of the Snowmass/Capital Creek valleys met at a “coffee” hosted by Marilyn Ogier and Holly McClain at the Ogier home.  This was the fifth year the event was hosted by the two.  Fabulous fun, food and frivolity were the order of the day as people renewed acquaintances, or made new ones.  Ladies from the area contributed brought an assortment of delicious deserts, salads, and finger foods which were accompanied by Champagne, soft drinks, ice tea, and coffee.  The event has become so popular that ladies from Snowmass Village and Missouri Heights also attended.  Everyone present agreed how blessed we are to live in such a rare place with so many wonderful neighbors and friends.  Does community building get any more fun?!

Read more: Community Building

Wednesday, 30 September 2009 18:18

Ornamental plants are often severely damages by drought during our dry falls.  Sudden changes in temperature can freeze the ground solid thus causing additional damage to our plant life if the soil is dry.

It is important that watering is continued to maintain sufficient moisture in the soil during the fall.  Soak the soil thoroughly before winter.  The best method of watering is by using a soaker attachment, which applies water slowly, and allows the water to soak the area for two to three hours.  The original root care area must receive adequate water during the first year.  Evergreens, especially the broadleaf varieties, are more subject to fall and winter injury by drought and should be checked more frequently and soaked before they get dry.

After dormancy, several other things should be done to benefit plants.  Young tree trunks that haven’t established their adult bar, usually those under 4 inch caliper, should be wrapped with tree wrap us to the lower branches to protect them from winter sun scalding.  It is beneficial to tie large shrubs and upright junipers to ward off snow damage by wrapping with several wraps of stout cord NOT PULLED TOO TIGHTLY.  In the more exposed regions, winter wind protection for young evergreens is recommended.  This can be done by rigidly installing a short length of burlap-covered snow fence a foot from the plant on the windward side.  Roses should be mounded with clean garden soil 6-10 inches and soaked deeply before frost.

 

Tuesday, 01 September 2009 02:29

St. Benedict’s Monastery, located in the Capital Creek Valley, is a peaceful and pristine 3,800 acre natural cathedral, where God’s presence is evident.  There is a saying, ”Hard work is good for a man’s soul”. This is the philosophical thread woven into the productive structure of the monk’s daily lives. To be self sustaining, the monastery Book store, public retreats, cookie making, and hay production are going concerns. As part of the ranch income, the monastery also leases pasture land to Rob Van pelt, agent for 375 head of mixed yearling cows, and Capital Peak Outfitters leases pasture & corral space for their day ride and overnight pack-trip business.
The 300 acres of magnificent irrigated hay meadows yield two cuttings of some of the best horse hay in the Roaring Fork Valley. Brother Raymond, Master of the Hay, oversees his crew of monks who grow, cut, turn, bale, and stack the hay in several hay sheds, which protect the “Holy Hay”.  This wet summer made “putting up hay” a challenge for all the ranchers. But Brother Raymond must have guidance from above, because the Monastery hay never had a drop of rain on it.
If anyone wishes to buy Monastery hay they can call the ranch office at 970-927-3312, and ask for Brother Raymond.