Anyone who loves food, wine and decadent desserts must be in Aspen the week of June 15^th-17^th to join the Food & Wine Classic as it celebrates its thirtieth year exploring new foods and creating fantastic food trends. As with every year, the Food & Wine Classic will host the best of the best in the food industry. Once again top name chefs will offer classes and seminars in which they will share the secrets of their trade. Because the Food & Wine Classic loves fresh and wholesome food so very much, in addition to learning about new techniques of preparation and tasting new foods, the Food & Wine Classic always reminds its visitors and chefs to support local growers and good food production practices. The exciting schedule combined with the warm weather and the Aspen ambiance will create the perfect recipe for the best Food & Classic yet.

Courses of particular interest on this year’s schedule vary from Asian BBQ with Ming Tsai, Knife Skills 101 with Bob Kramer, South American Smack down: Argentina vs. Chile, Meatless Mondays with Michael Symon, to Stellar Sakes.  Sessions are broken down throughout the day, with ample breaks between session to grab another bite to eat, wander around Aspen, chat with other foodies and chefs about the food, classes and the industry, or to attend private tastings and events. However with this exciting line-up, attendees will have a hard time deciding which talks to attend.

For those within the industry special events make the Food & Wine Classic more than an opportunity to simply show off their talents, it also provides an opportunity to become familiar with new trends, new products and to make new connections within the industry. The Private Trade Grand Tasting is the perfect opportunity to expand your wine pallet at the same time. The Grand Tastings offered twice on Friday and Saturday, as well as once on Sunday, allow chefs to rub elbows with celebrities and a few hardcore foodies as well.

Of course after 30 years of incredible food, a celebration is in order. Elvis Costello & The Blue Beguilers will do the honors on the evening of June 16^th by giving an exclusive concert. Dinner will also be served on the lawn of the Benedict Music Tent, where for the first time the residents from the City of Aspen and Food & Wine attendees will come together to celebrate the Food & Wine Classic.

While this event is all about food, organizers would like to emphasize the local food movement and green food production and consumption. To this end the Food & Wine Classic Grow for Good Pass will be available again this year. This year proceeds from these tickets will support local farms and sustainable agriculture in the U.S. The Grow for Good Pass also gives pass holders access to VIP tastings, a welcome reception, a direct donation and many other perks.

For those wanting to burn off a few of the calories consumed during the Food & Wine Classic, the 5K Charity Run with Bobby Flay is a great opportunity to trim your waistline and benefit the Grow for Good campaign as well. A special Run with the Chefs race will start just a few minutes prior to the official race. Racers participating in the Run with the Chefs will have an opportunity to meet their favorite chefs and a photo opportunity as well.

Pack your knife and fork and head to Aspen this June to learn the recipe for the sweet life! Once you see the ingredients; friendly residents, worldwide festivals and celebrations combined in the beautiful surroundings of the Elk Mountains, you will realize the only thing missing is you!

Be the next ingredient in the Aspen/Snowmass Village recipe! Click here to see homes, condos and investment properties in the area today!

This year Aspen will play a pivotal role in what the Competitor Magazine has called the, “Best cycling event in 2011,” as the Denver Post Ride the Rockies bike race hits town on June 12^th. Riders will pass through Aspen as they head from Carbondale toward Leadville on Highway 82 through the renowned Independence Pass.

The Denver Post created the Ride the Rockies Colorado Bicycle Tour back in 1986. Every year since The Post has selected a new and exciting route highlighting cities throughout the Rockies. Aspen has been the host city in the past, but this year will enjoy simply watching racers zip through town and cheering them as they pass.

This year’s Ride the Rockies course will be a total of 442 miles and will begin in Gunnison with stopovers in Hotchkiss, Carbondale, Leadville, Granby, Estes Park and finally ending in Fort Collins. This six-day race will include 5 scenic mountain passes, 2 national parks and 1-century option, along with 24,937 vertical feet.

The Ride the Rockies race is so anticipated by bikers throughout Colorado and the country, that a lottery system has been in place since 1989 to determine the 2,000 racers. Last year over 4,000 applicants were in competition for these spots. That number is expected to be even greater this year.

According to The Aspen Times, the city of Carbondale has planned to serve riders lunch as they arrive on June 11^th and to host a block party in honor of the racers. Hotels in town began to be booked back in February for the event, meaning the best spot to catch the race in action this year will be Aspen.

Accustomed to hosting large events, Aspen has multiple luxury hotels, with incredible accommodations. Likewise, Aspen has restaurants, cafes and dining facilities for any and every need or whim. Beyond a warm bed, and good food, Aspen loves any excuse to throw a party. The Ride the Rockies is the perfect excuse to gather in the streets, cheer the riders and have a great time with friends, neighbors and visitors!

For friends, family and supporters of riders in the race, having an encouraging face and a loud cheer right before riders head out onto Independence Pass will make all the difference. Riders in the USA Pro Cycling Challenge have dubbed this stretch, “The King of the Mountain,” due to the strenuous nature of this particular climb in the road.

Whether coming to Aspen for the Ride the Rockies Race or for the Food & Wine Classic, or the Outside in Aspen festival (events that bookend the Ride the Rockies on the calendar) there is always something happening in and around Aspen during the month of June. Come a few days early, or stay a few days longer – and catch the fun, the excitement and the energy – better yet, Find a more permanent lodging arrangement, where you and your family will be right on hand for any and every event you don’t want to miss!

Residences, condos and homes are available in and around Snowmass Village and Aspen. The summer is the perfect time to settle in. Click here to see the latest properties on the market!

Just recently, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration released new climate norms for the U.S. and the world based on the last ten years of data collected by scientists. In this report, the NOAA found that the average temperature in America has risen by half of degree. This year’s Aspen Environment Forum will focus on this report and its ramifications for Americans and the world on June 22-25 in Aspen, Colorado.

Historically, the Aspen Environment Forum has broached controversial and provocative subject matter including reproductive rights and its role in climate change and population control, early man and the long-term capacity of the planet. Hosted by the Aspen Institute in conjunction with the National Geographic, the Aspen Environment Forum aspires to find solutions for these challenging topics through informed and educated discussion and the exchange of ideas.

This year, the fifth year of the forum, will feature top scientists from throughout the world to discuss man’s ability to adapt to the new normal climate conditions. This forum is not designed to be a discussion of the science of climate change, but rather an opportunity to plan for the reality facing the earth.

Just a few of the qualified speakers expected at this year’s forum to discuss this topic are: David Hayes, Deputy Secretary Department of the Interior, Fred Krupp, President of the Environmental Defense Fund, Hari Sreenivasan, President, Walter Isaacson, CEO of The Aspen Institute and E.O. Wilson Professor Emeritus of Harvard University, among many others. Among topics of conversation expected at this meeting, will be more than simply adaptation, but also rectification and reversal of the causes of climate change.

Not only will attendees be part of an environmentally friendly forum, they will also see responsible behavior in action. The Aspen Institute, founded in 1949, was based upon the concepts of humanist Johann von Goethe. The closing documents from their first official gathering stated their mission, “The formation of a world council of international relations to continue the work pioneered at these sessions.”

Today these efforts translate into collaborative carbon offsetting program through which attendees to Aspen Institute events are asked to offset their carbon footprint in their travels to the events, and to practice ‘green policies’ during their time at the forum, and upon their return home. The real power of Aspen Institute events is the lessons translations into real life, away from the conversations and gatherings of like-minded individuals.

As residents of the world, the United States and Aspen come to grips with the ‘new normal’ of our planet and climate, conversations like those taking place in Aspen in late June, will be instrumental to adaptation, preservation and continuation of life on this earth.

Join the conversation this June and be part of the long-term solution; click here to see homes, condos and residences in the Aspen and Snowmass Village area where people are seeking solutions through conversation, debate and action for the world’s social and environmental problems.

Summer’s almost here and things in Snowmass Village are getting hotter by the minute. Residents, businesses and officials of Snowmass Village have been pulling out all of the stops to prepare for the rapidly approaching summer season. Just a few of this year’s many exciting activities and opportunities are the updated trail systems and the Snowmass Ice Age Discovery Summer Program in addition to longtime local favorites like the Thursday Night Free Concerts and the Wild West Show.

Elk Camp Gondola & Ski Cab will open in late mid-June allowing bikers access to Bike Snowmass for the third year in a row. This Bike Snowmass mountain bike park offers a wide variety of trails and courses for every rider. The entire family can head up the mountain for a day on the trails with age appropriate challenges and invigorating downhill experiences. After much anticipation, the Valhalla Trail will open for the first time this summer.

As a member of the Regional Trails Summit, Snowmass Tourism has long been committed to the improvement and promotion of the bike trail system in and around Pitkin County. This year the RTS has been actively pursuing a grant in order to improve the usability of the trails and accessibility of information about the trails. In discussion is an online version, a website, a mobile app as well as QR codes and signage along the bike trail system. As this project proceeds, the biking trail through Snowmass Village will become an even greater asset to the community.

For the past two years mastodons and Ice Age animals have been the talk of the town. This summer children and parents alike can get in on the conversation with The Snowmass Ice Age Discovery Summer Program. The program will offer tours every Tuesday through Saturday from 1:00-3:00 p.m. throughout the summer led by the Aspen Center for Environmental Studies. In addition to these tours, special speakers from the both the Colorado Mountain College and the Denver Museum of Nature and Science will make presentations at various times throughout the summer. Special presentations for groups are available for interested parties.

The dates are set and the line-up is complete for this summer’s Thursday Night Free Concert series. On June 28^th FireFall, a country rock band will get the summer music started, with many genres of music taking their turn on the stage. In addition to music, the Family Fun Zone will be back with face painting, clowns and a bouncy house along with the new addition of a craft area. Microbrews, wine and cocktails are available for purchase for those who would like to unwind a bit while taking in the music and ambiance. A complete lineup of performers is available through the Snowmass tourism website.

It simply wouldn’t be summer without the Wild West Show. This year the wild will roll into town on July 6-8^th, a Pioneer Village will include booths of Indian jewelry, butter, broom, cider and candle making. A mountain man competition will make things really interesting, while the Cowboy Hat Maker and Blacksmith will show off their trade. The Wild West show will get started Friday night at 4:30 followed by the Snowmass Rodeo, Saturday night the show will begin at 6:30.

Summer promises to be non-stop fun in Snowmass Village. Take a moment to make your own candle, ride your bike down the hills and around town and learn about the prehistoric residents of the area, when you’re done, you’ll never want to leave. Click here to see homes, residences and condos in the heart of Snowmass Village and join the fun in Snowmass Village every summer and every season of the year!     

“A bird doesn’t sing because it has an answer, it sings because it has a song.”
Maya Angelou

The crisp mountain mornings are the perfect time in Aspen and Snowmass Village to grab a mug of hot coffee and wander out into Nature to witness the cacophony of music the birds produce, to catch them in the natural habitat and to enjoy the serenity, and simplicity of a bird’s life.

Rebecca Weiss from the Aspen Center for Environmental Studies will be ready and waiting with hot coffee and lots of birding information on select Tuesdays and Thursday throughout the entire summer at Hallam Lake. Regardless of whether you are a first time birder, or a lifetime ornithologist, these mornings by the lake will be well worth the time. Ms. Weiss will have local guidebooks, binoculars and volumes of birding knowledge available to borrow. Mother Nature will provide the birds. The morning of June 7^th will be the first time Ms. Weiss will head out to Hallam Lake for morning coffee. Birders ought to arrive at the lake around 6:30 a.m. and plan to stay until around 9 a.m.

Of course enjoying the birds is just one aspect of the ACES summer program this year. The May Garden Volunteer Series has been taking place at the Hallam Lake organic garden every Tuesday night beginning at 5:30 p.m. since early May and will continue into the first two weeks of June. Working alongside plant experts and Master Gardeners allows amateur gardeners the opportunity to really grown in knowledge and plant expertise to take along to share in their own community or backyard gardens. In addition to knowledge gained, friendships gleaned from the ACES soil tend to be planted in the rich soil of hard work, mutual respect and hours of good old-fashioned fun.

The ACES offers this same knowledge, fun and experience to the whole family.  In the Garden and Me: Planting series to take place June 4, 11 and 18, parents and children will nurture the soil, plant seed and experience the excitement of seeing the seeds grow. In conjunction with this class, an entire summer of classes for families provides learning opportunities for every age and interest as well as the opportunity to enjoy Aspen and Snowmass Village together – as a family. These classes include; Living Simply, Snakes, Sense of Wonder, Nature Journaling, Water Creatures, Up Close and Personal, A Hundred Years Ago and a Harvesting class in which students will harvest the plants they planted earlier in the summer.

June also marks the beginning of the Daily Walks and Programs with the ACES. Guided hikes through some of Aspen and Snowmass Village’s most well known hikes offer an in depth understanding of the ecology of the land, the history and the animals. With an entire hike dedicated to Eagles, Hawks and Owls, and other focused on Beavers, hikers will see the habitats of these animals, and with a little luck – the animals themselves.

There is so much to do in Aspen and Snowmass Village during the summer months, be sure to listen to the birds, to smell the flowers and to heed the call of the wild.

Afterward, click here to see homes, properties and townhouses surrounded in wildflowers, visited by wildlife and serenaded by the birds. Don’t miss another Aspen/Snowmass season!

This June in Aspen and Snowmass Village, green is the new black. On June 8^th – 10^th the Aspen Eco Fest will show the businesses and citizens to live fashionably, happily and well while simultaneously living in an environmentally kind manner.

For the first time the Eco Fest has come to Aspen in June, foregoing its typical Earth Day celebration to embrace and relish in the literal and physical green that inundates Aspen and Snowmass Village in the month of June.

More than simply a festival exposing the Aspen and Snowmass community to green products and environmentally kind companies, the Aspen Eco Fest begins with educating the public about environmental issues facing the planet and the Aspen community specifically. The Green Living Project will host at the Wheeler Opera House an Eco and Environmental Film Showcase on Friday, June 8^th. According to the Aspen Eco Fest website these films will focus on “global sustainability issues, projects including, wildlife issues and protection, the ‘new food movement,’ ecotourism, environmental education and community issues.”

Saturday will allow residents and visitors and opportunity to visit vendors of the festival at the Eco Marketplace where they can get to know the companies and practices of these vendors as well as sample products and goods. The Sustainable Food Court will feature healthy foods, juices and snacks throughout the day. The Trashion Show will also take place on Saturday. Here green fashionistas can strut their stuff on the runway. The audience will vote for the best and most ‘trashy’ ensemble. Following the Trashion Show, Rod Stryker, author, founder and creator of ParaYoga will demonstrate and discuss the premise of his latest book, “The Four Desires: Creating a Life of Purpose, Prosperity, Happiness and Freedom.”  After this in-depth session in which participants will explore their soul’s deepest desires, focus their energy and overcome their most destructive habits, the Yoga Rave will lighten the mood with a yoga dance party with a live DJ. This event promises to be a healthy, fun way to wrap up a fantastic day.

Bright and early Sunday morning the Yoga Day of Action will kick off at 9 a.m. at the Paepke Park where a huge yoga session will allow residents and visitors to experience different yoga instructors and yoga philosophies from the Aspen and Snowmass Village area. A kid’s yoga session will take place immediately following to illustrate to parents and children alike that a healthy focused lifestyle is a family affair. Vendors and sustainable food will be available all day to replenish participants after their exertions.

Go green in Aspen and Snowmass Village this summer with the Eco Fest, and enjoy the benefits all year round in this beautiful and environmentally in tune community. Unlike many resort communities, Aspen/Snowmass Village offer a luxury lifestyle in perfect harmony with an environmentally responsible focus. Click here to see environmentally friendly homes, residences and condos in the Aspen/Snowmass Village area and then take some time between yoga sessions and environmentally conscious shopping to tour these properties to find your dream, green home today.

The true marker of summer’s arrival in Aspen/Snowmass is the opening of Independence Pass. Last year, while crews worked overtime to clear the Pass, skiers were flying down the slopes of the mountains soaking in the long and late winter. In sharp contrast, this year the Pass will open two whole weeks early – Friday in fact!

Every year, CDOT crews work to clear the snow before the traditional opening date of the Thursday before Memorial Day Weekend. In addition to clearing snow and ensuring the road is safe against avalanche and rockslide, crews work to move concrete barriers, repair railing, clear ditches, move precarious rocks and haul debris out of ditches. According to the Aspen Times, this year’s low snowpack, only 12 feet, and unseasonably warm winter have allowed CDOT crews to commence work earlier.

The iconic Independence Pass is a favorite drive among locals and tourists. It has seen, during its long history dating back to miners traveling to Aspen from Leadville in the late 1800’s, Aspen transform from a small mining town into a social, cultural and athletic center. Unfortunately, The Pass did not go unscathed during this transformation. As residents and visitors flocked to the town, the road was scraped out of the side of the mountain causing erosion and extensive damage to the landscape and vegetation.

In an effort to restore the Pass to its original state, the Independence Pass Foundation was established in 1989. Since that time, the Foundation has worked with the community and CDOT to replant native vegetation and to formulate a long term and effective plan for allowing safe travel on this beautiful roadway, and to maintain the environmental health of the area as well. As so often is the case, restoring the land to its original state will actually benefit the people in the area and the travelers on the road, as the vegetation on the mountains will help prevent the massive erosion that has posed rockslide dangers and avalanche threats to the road and its travelers.

Together with volunteers in the Aspen/Snowmass Village area, inmates from Colorado prisons, CDOT, and local middle school students, the land has in the last 20 years seen an incredible improvement. Every May middle school students take a day to plant trees on the slopes of the Pass. CDOT has worked in conjunction with the Foundation to gain grants for work on the rockslide dangers in addition to heading up the general maintenance of the road.  Colorado inmates have also planted seed, removed rock debris and served the community in making the Pass more beautiful and a safer road to travel.

The largest annual fundraiser the Independence Pass Foundation hosts is the Ride for the Pass Race, taking place on May 19^th, 2012. Typically this race is held just before the Pass opens up to cars and the general public. This year for the first time, the Pass will be reclosed for the day to allow the race to carry on uninterrupted and will reopen immediately following the race. All proceeds from this ten mile, 2000 ft. elevation gain race will directly benefit the ongoing work on the restoration of the Pass.

Celebrate the arrival of summer in Aspen and Snowmass Village by taking a quiet drive along Highway 82; enjoy the wonder and beauty of Independence Pass, the beauty of the land and the hard work of the Independence Pass Foundation. When you pull back in town, take a moment to see homes, condos and investment properties in Snowmass Village and Aspen. Click here to see just a few on the market today! Enjoy a community dedicated to its long term beauty, longevity and environmental health!

When one thinks of the Winter X-Games a few images come to mind; breath taking tricks, vibrant, young skiers and snowboarders decked out in colorful attire, great music, snow, 108,000 people and Aspen, Colorado.

However, as the ESPN Winter X-Games wrapped up this past winter, a question mark hung over Aspen/Snowmass’ role in the future of the games. ESPN had opened the games up to bid in May of 2011. In recent years ESPN has sought to branch out the X-Games to a more worldwide audience. In addition to opening the games up to bid they have also decided to add additional X-Game competitions in venues throughout the world both in the winter and the summer.

Despite the questions surrounding the future of the X-Games in Aspen/Snowmass, the X-Game party this year was better than ever with record breaking attendance, unforgettable VIP parties, after-parties, Bud Light concerts and the not-to-matched Après ski scene, food and shopping of Aspen.

Meanwhile behind the festivities, both the Snowmass Village and Aspen communities pulled together to make their bid the most inviting in the world. Everyone from the Aspen City Council to the Snowmass town government, to city transportation authorities, and lodging associations within the area came together to ensure Aspen as the home to the X-Games

The hard work and fun have paid off, as the Aspen Times reported last week that Skico and ESPN have announced a two-year extension of the original contract, ensuring Aspen remains synonymous with X-Games for the foreseeable future. According to the Aspen Times the twenty-twelve winter games will also be held in Tignes, France; the summer games will be held in Los Angeles Brazil, Germany and Spain in keeping with ESPN’s aspirations to expand their demographic.

For many in the community the X-Games have been a breath of fresh air within the community. Often perceived as an exclusive community, the X-Games has brought the fun and lighthearted side of Aspen to the attention of the world. While most of the audience is not the big spending tourist that Aspen/Snowmass typically attracts, the ESPN X-Games attract the young winter sports enthusiast. By hosting these guests now, Aspen and Snowmass Village will have established themselves in the mind of these consumers as fun, hip and exciting places to visit in the future, perhaps at a time in their life when they might have more disposable income.

Mayor Mick Ireland expressed his excitement to the Aspen Times saying, “It’s more than we could ever expect, given the competition and desire for a worldwide venue.”  Both Ireland and the Aspen City Council attribute the success of the Skico bid to the community at large.

Of course Skico, and the larger Aspen/Snowmass community would love to see an indefinite contract, extending the X-Games/Aspen connection beyond the next two years.

John Rigney, Skico vice president of sales and events, told the Aspen Times,  “We are definitely in it for the long haul,” voicing the sentiment of most Aspenites. This deeper commitment will be proven to the world as a whole, ESPN, athletes and the X-Games fans over the next two years, reminding them – there really is no place better in all the world than Aspen and Snowmass Village, for the X-Games or really, anything else for that matter.

Discover that deeper commitment yourself in Aspen and Snowmass Village; click here to see homes, residences and condos in the home of the Winter X-Games.

June 9^th is National Get Outdoors Day, and there is no better way to spend it than outdoors in Aspen/Snowmass Village, Colorado. As this is a well-known fact throughout the world, the city of Aspen, Outside magazine and many local sponsors have thrown caution to wind and come together to make it a full-scale event every year with the Outside in Aspen Festival. Beginning on June 8^th outdoor enthusiasts of every level will be arriving in town to take advantage of the wide variety of outdoor activities taking place during this weekend.

With the warm weather beating down on this mountain town, the water may be calling. In that case there are more than a few water activities during the Outside in Aspen event.  Whitewater rafting, kayaking and Stand-Up Paddle Boarding are all world-renowned experiences in the rivers around Aspen and Snowmass Village. Each activity offers beginner, intermediate and advanced experiences allowing those new to the sport to try it, and those who are already advanced in the sport independence to experience this favorite sport in new and exciting waters.

Summer in the Rockies offers outdoorsmen and women the almost irresistible urge to take on a 14er. Outside in Aspen offers just this opportunity with professional guides to take climbers up into the Elk Range and to the top of Castle Peak. This activity is for intermediate or advanced athletes, consisting of a 6-8 hour hike beginning at 5:30a.m. Saturday morning in order to avoid late afternoon thunderstorms common in the Colorado Mountains.  Rock climbing, and other hiking and trail running sessions are also available throughout the weekend at different levels of expertise creating the perfect mountain experience for every individual.

Only Aspen and Snowmass can offer whitewater rafting one day and backcountry skiing/snowboarding the next.  AMGA guides will take those still craving powder up to Independence Pass early Sunday morning for an exclusive backcountry skiing/snowboarding experience.

Saturday morning will also offer a short triathlon, the Outside in Aspen Triathlon. In this 800yd pool swim, 17 mile bike ride and four-mile run, beginner triathletes can get their feet wet, while more experienced triathletes can push their times and enjoy this sprint event. For the first year ever, Outside in Aspen is offering training help before the actual festival. Triathlon coach Matt Dixon is offering interactive, online training programs to those registered for the race, encouraging athletes to be outdoors and to be active all year long.

Don’t forget Fido! The Outdoor in Aspen weekend has workshops just for him! Train your dog to be the best hiking/biking/water or camping dog imaginable and never go out on those adventures alone again. After a few dog-training sessions an Adventure Sports photography session will ensure the best action shots imaginable of Fido.

Between high adventure activities take a deep breath – literally, of the mountain air and take part in outdoor yoga sessions. There is nothing like the pure, clean air in Aspen and Snowmass Village. Yoga classes can help the body and soul refocus, reenergize and relax.

Of course there will be mountain biking and road cycling seminars, along with fly fishing sessions, base camp fun and many, many other opportunities to get outside in Aspen to experience the best of the best of summer mountain activities.

Join us in celebrating the Great Outdoors! One weekend of this intense, amazing mountain adventure will convince you – the only thing better than Outside in Aspen is a home in Aspen/Snowmass, Colorado. Click here to see homes, investment properties and vacation properties in the area today and begin your Aspen/Snowmass adventure!

In Aspen and Snowmass Village everywhere one looks, people are living their dream. Whether that looks like pursuing an Olympic ski team dream, a lifestyle of luxury and comfort, a life of intellectual thought and discussion or life filled with extreme adventure, the people in and around Aspen and Snowmass Village are prioritizing their ambitions in life and pursuing them with enthusiasm.

For those whose dream includes adventure and extreme sports, Aspen/Snowmass, home of the Winter X Games, is one of the best places on the planet to pursue this dream. It is not however limited to winter extreme sports. May is a great time to check out the warm weather extremes going on in these mountain towns due to warmer weather and smaller crowds.

Mountain boarding is a great summer companion to snowboarding. In this sport, riders can go down mountains, through BMX courses and virtually anywhere their heart desires. Originating in the mid-nineties, the sport of mountainboarding marries surfing, skateboarding and snowboarding concepts together to create a versatile extreme sport in its own right. For those unfamiliar to the sport, or just getting started, Aspen/Snowmass offers classes to help establish a good understanding of safety, basic skills and to get riders out on their wheels enjoying the beautiful spring weather in Aspen. In addition to the lifts and the great mountains to practice this sport, Aspen also has its own skate park, where mountainboarders can practice skills, get comfortable with this different type of board and tap into the mountainboarding community.

As the weather warms up, paragliding is a great way to really see Aspen and Snowmass Village. Aspen Paragliders offers two-hour tandem flights beginning at 7:00 a.m. in the morning until 5p.m. each night. Flights take off from both Snowmass Mountain and Aspen Mountain. All flights are subject to weather restrictions and may have to be rescheduled. Aspen Paragliders recommends those interested provide enough cushion in their schedule to be able to reschedule their flight time. For those seeking single flight experiences, Aspen Paragliders also offers flight school.  In addition to certification and instruction, fliers will receive access to clinics instructing them on mountain and thermal flight, glider inspection and repair. This course is recognized as one of the best paraglider courses in the country, ensuring safe, and exciting extreme flight.

With mountains on every horizon, it goes without saying that any discussion about extreme sports in Aspen/Snowmass must include mountain biking. Gondolas run throughout the summer allowing mountain bikers the opportunity to ride up with their bike, and experience the speed and exhilaration of a down-mountain ride. Mountain bike tours are available through a number of bike shops in the Aspen and Snowmass area. These tours can show visitors and those new to town, the best trails, the greatest thrills and the most fun they have ever had on a bike before.

Whatever your dream may be, from extreme sports to fantastic art and culture, come to Aspen and Snowmass Village, embrace their motto ~ and live your dream. Click here to see your dream home, condo or investment property today!