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| Courtesy of Sun Peaks Resort |
My son tried out a new pair of VOLT heated gloves and these are ultra warm, which meant he was able to ski much longer days than previously. He had been wearing a beaten up old pair of gloves covered with duct tape that were barely water or windproof before the Avalanche X arrived - this glove is VOLT's flagship model of the extreme collection. The rechargeable battery, tucked in the sleeve part high up on the forearm, sends heat throughout the hand to the very finger tips (and thumb tips). There are three settings for varying temps. Just remember to recharge them every night, Rupert!
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| Loved this pic from Sun Peaks' Facebook page |
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| Piste and Village layout at Sun Peaks |
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| Lynne Harrison wearing 'The Sky The Sky' design from her ski brand Alchemy of Ride |
Highlights of this week include meeting many fabulous local people on the slopes and around the town - Marj Knive from ArtZone who is picking me up tonight to attend a meeting of the Fibre Arts Collective, for one. I'm going to take my apres-ski tops (my own designs) and the magical mountainscapes on skiwear that are Alchemy of Ride. The designer, Lynne Harrison, is coming to Sun Peaks at the end of the month and I've been helping set up a Pop-Up Shop for her at the Sun Peaks Grand. More on that later.....
Here's another article from our latest book, A Worldwide Guide to Retirement Destinations:
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| Aspen Snowmass |
Aspen,
Colorado may not be the top of everyone’s retirement list due to lofty real
estate prices, but it is nevertheless a popular retirement destination for high
flyers seeking top quality outdoor living.
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| Aspen Snowmass |
Downtown Aspen prices are the steepest in the area, with Snowmass Village coming in
second. As you move further from the centre of Aspen, homes can be less
expensive but still in the top ratings for Colorado and the USA. It
is almost double the average US cost of living, with higher health care costs,
and house prices averaging $1,026,324 in 2017. However,
groceries rate average, and taxes, utilities and transportation are below
average. The state imposes no tax on Social
Security and pension income up to $20,000 for retirees under age 65, or on the
first $24,000 for those 65 and over.
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| David Wood (right) with TV presenter, Justin Leonard at the Golf Shrine |
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| David Wood at Aspen Snowmass |
The beautiful, historical and remote Rocky Mountain
region is an attractive destination if you have had a lucrative career, like
David Wood who was Chairman and CEO of
Wells Fargo Financial from 1995 until early retirement in 2001. Now clocking up around 100 days skiing every
winter, Wood has reinvented himself as a writer while living in Snowmass Village. The former banker recently wrote a book about the Aspen Snowmass Shrines—memorials dotted around the four ski slopes in the area—as a charity
fund-raiser. “The charity awards college
scholarships to needy and deserving high school students in the Roaring Fork
Valley. So far over $1,500,000 in scholarships have been awarded,” says
Wood. The shrines are hidden in the trees off the ski runs and, although there
are no maps showing the locations and there are no official shrine tours
offered, visitors can sometimes get directions to a shrine from one of the
mountain ambassadors.
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| David Wood's book about the sanctuaries of Aspen Snowmass |
Early retirement at the age of 56 has enabled him to
dedicate quality time to the sport he has always loved: “I have been a long-time skier,
and had always wanted to have a ski place, but I never had the time for it when
I worked. So, as soon as I retired, we went for it and, yes, my wife
Rosalie was 100 percent on board.” Having skied all over the western US and
Canadian slopes, he had already put Colorado at the top of his list. After
scouting both the Keystone and Breckenridge areas, he focused on Aspen Snowmass
where he bought a 4-bedroom home in Snowmass Village right on the slopes. “We like being in Snowmass Village
because Snowmass is our favorite ski mountain of the
four that we have (the
other three are Aspen, Aspen Highlands, and Buttermilk) and, although we ski
all four of them, we ski Snowmass the most. The total skiable area of
Snowmass is more than the other three combined.” Their mountainside home is really close to the skiing: “We have a Snowmass slopeside
parking pass which is very convenient for us. We can park in a lot that is
a 10-minute drive away from our house, and then walk less than 100 yards to get
on the slopes.”
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| Limelight Lounge, Snowmass |
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| Limelight Snowmass Climbing Wall |
One
of the top après-ski
spots in the Aspen area is The Limelight Hotel, long known for its affordable,
and extended, “happy hours” with a casual living room
ambiance. Great breakfasts and daily
live music help make it a true community hub, attracting local workers, residents
and retirees as well as tourists throughout the winter season. A new ski in/ski out
Limelight
opened during the 2018/19 ski season, bringing the same atmosphere to
the centre of Snowmass Village. “As far
as us hosting the retiree market we do have a lot of guests that are no longer
in the work force and are introducing their families and multiple generations
to their love of the mountains,” says Limelight Director of Sales, Connie
Powers. “Skiing is truly one of the
best family activities as everyone can go their own speed and enjoy while
catching up for lunch and hot chocolate. The local senior community definitely
enjoy the Limelight après scene.”
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| Limelight Snowmass skating rink |
Retaining
a family home in Iowa has eradicated any thoughts of homesickness for the
Woods: “We
spend about half our time in Iowa and half in Snowmass Village, so we still see
everyone. We love to have friends and family
visit us. It is rare that we are in Snowmass Village without either family
or friends staying with us.” Although Aspen is four and half hours’ drive from
Denver, it does have its own airport which enhances its accessibility. The
Woods spend Christmases back in Iowa to celebrate with family and old friends.
It also means they miss the peak holiday period at Snowmass: “It is about the only busy week of
the season when there can be liftlines. We ski the first three weeks of
December, go back to Iowa between Christmas and January 1, then back to
Snowmass in early January and ski the rest of the season until
mid-April. There are hardly any liftlines any other time of the year (sometimes
one week in March can be busy because of spring breaks), as opposed to busier
ski resorts.”
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| Aspen Snowmass |
Aspen
attractions include world-class Rocky Mountain skiing and snowboarding from
November to April and the balmy, non-humid climate and outdoor lifestyle around
picturesque areas such as the Maroon Bells in summer. “We ski almost every day
in the winter and I have skied over 100
days a season the last five consecutive years. In the summer we like to
hike and bike and do other outdoors activities, floating the rivers, golf,
etc. And now, after having been in Snowmass Village for almost 20 years,
we have a number of local friends there, and we do lots of things with them.”
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| Me with hubby in a little-known golfers' shrine on Snowmass Mountain |
Although Wood’s wife, an
accomplished downhiller, no longer skis due to the condition of her knees, she
still loves the mountain lifestyle. The community is diverse and
eclectic, a combination of seasonal workers, younger locals with families,
retirees and visiting tourists of all ages. “I don't really think of Aspen Snowmass as a retirement area. There are a lot of young people here,” says
Wood. “It is great for everyone, both retirees and non-retirees, because Aspen Snowmass has it all: A great town, excellent ski terrain, perfect snow,
and no liftlines.”
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| David Wood (left) with me in the Hunter S. Thompson Shrine |
With
excellent restaurant choices in Snowmass Village the Woods are happy to base
their social life around their immediate locality but they do drive the 20
minutes into Aspen itself for dinner occasionally. The city also boasts a
thriving and wide-ranging arts culture year-round.
Highlights include The Aspen Ideas Festival, a world-renowned gathering of some
of the brightest and most innovative minds in the world; the Food & WineClassic; Jazz Aspen Snowmass which draws the biggest acts in the music world;
the Aspen Art Museum, a globally recognized leader in contemporary art; the
Aspen Santa Fe Ballet; and Theatre Aspen.
Ski
resorts all over the USA offer discounted season passes to seniors and Aspen Snowmass is no exception with special reduced rates for ages 65-69 and even
better deals for 70-plus. Something unique to Aspen, though, is BUMPS FOR BOOMERS ®, a ski
instruction course geared entirely for older skiers to foster skiing longevity.
The innovative program was founded by Joe Nevin who moved to Aspen to
launch his own encore career after retiring from Apple in California. Choosing Aspen was key: it is one of the most luxurious
ski resorts in the world.
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| Aspen Snowmass |
Links:
Website: http://www.aspensnowmassshrines.com/
