Mountain Women Magazine - Issue 7

WOMEN WHO ROCK THE ROCKIES

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Mountain Home

WELCOME

Happy Spring! Some might find it odd to have a skier on our cover, but honestly, this is the best time of year to get out. The snow is soft and sweet and we ski into the summer months. The cover image is of my friend Kendra slaying Arapahoe Basin’s Steep Gullies. (Not only is she a great skier but she is a PhD and Professor of Epidemiology with research focused on type 1 Diabetes). It was an incredible Spring outing with our friend Robin, in a place I would say we have grown up skiing.

Our opening story is about a Snowmass ski adventure. I had just gotten in from a whirlwind week, which by anyone’s accounting would be considered incredibly decadent. Then the world shut down due to Covid-19. I did not get to publish this story. I loved the experience, the mountain, and the resort. I am so happy to finally share it with you.

Snow makes the Rivers Flow and rafting is at its height at this time of year. We have a great story about Women on the River. This is followed up by Hockey Mom’s (cause Hockey is just about a year-round sport), Favorite Things, a powerful Chef’s story, a Farmers feature, and a ton more.

The very last story is about a fabulous man who has crafted a cohesive coaching experience that invigorates the whole body through physical, mental and emotional strength training. We fondly named this section The Token Male.

A little bit of history about our magazine. Back in 2014, I was flipping through our kin publication, Mountain Town Magazine, which I publish. I noticed that almost every article we published was about a man. Honestly, it was a bit unsettling. Not that we do not love men, we most certainly do, but women do not get enough recognition in mountain town/ski and ride media.

I looked around and saw so many badass Women. Women athletes, entrepreneurs, artists, philanthropists, chefs, educators, musicians, mothers, and even those rocking the world with their skills in the grandma arts (you know, knitting, crocheting, needlepoint). We decided right then to change that and introduced Mountain Town Magazine’s first issue of Women Who Rock the Rockies. Five Years after that we launched Mountain Women Magazine.

That edition and subsequent issues continue to celebrate women in our mountain towns who are significant in their contributions to their communities, have achieved personal successes in their field, and are recognized with stories that feature their talents. Our contributions and rights are being

eroded. Some references are being complete wiped out, as if they never existed. Now more than ever Women need to be recognized and honored.

In this issue, you will find our 7th Women Who Rock the Rockies feature. We asked friends and friends of friends to nominate Women they thought deserved that accolade and the responses were fantastic!

Being a mountain woman does not necessarily mean that you have to live in the mountains to belong, it is more of having the spirit of the mountain in you. As John Muir said, “you are not in the mountains, the mountains are in you.”

We are Girls, Mothers, Ladies, Lassies, Lovers, Babes, and Bad Asses! We are Women and a magazine for those ladies filled with a passion for living life in the mountains in the Colorado Rockies and beyond. Today more than ever we need to lift one another up and help each other climb higher.

With Gratitude,

Holly Battista-Resignolo, Publisher Publisher and Wearer of Many Hats and Helmets

In the heart of the Rocky Mountains lies a mountain chic oasis. One filled with excitement, refinement, elegance and escape. Go wild on two floors of gaming. Escape to Spa Monarch 23 floors above Black Hawk.

Indulge in five distinct dining options. Discover the peak of play at Monarch.

published by

MTN Town Media Productions

publisher

Holly Resignolo

art director

Pepper Hamilton communications

Gaynia Battista sales & development

Noelle Resignolo, Caren Austin contributors

Shauna Farnell, Holly Resignolo, Lisa Blake, Auika Skogen, Julie Bielenberg, Dori Welch, Anna Winger, Sara Mock, Caren Austin, Sarah Olson visionaries

Linda Rokos Watts, Meredith Guinan, Rachel Ratcliff, The Carbone Family

cover image

Arapahoe Basin Steep Gullies

Holly GoSpritely Media method behind the means

Publications Printers, Online Distribution, Social Media Platforms, Chambers & Tourism Bureaus

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features

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HUMBLE SUDS BUTTn’ SKI

You never know where the inspiration is going to come from. In this case, Silverthorne’s Kelly Mazanti-Nelson’s Mom received a pair of fleece shorts in the late 80’s from a ski instructor at Stevens Pass in Washington State. They were home-sewn and designed to keep your butt warm while you ski, sit on cold chairlifts in the PNW rain, and provide an additional layer of warmth over your long under- wear and under your ski pants.

Kelly decided to revive the idea with more style, greater functionality, and a better fit with her modern “OG” mid-layer ski shorts and her Blue River Down Joggers, all designed to keep your bottom warm, no matter what the weather is doing or where you are. Now you can get off your butt-n-go ski or ride!

www.buttnski.com

Humble Suds is your answer to all natural cleaning products. Born and raised in Evergreen Colorado in 2018, and woman owned, Humble Suds produces cleaning products that are effective, gentle, pro- nounceable and enjoyable. Made in glass, reusable bottles and available in different scents, Humble suds products are good for the environment and for you. Even their spray nozzles are recyclable. The Laundry soap is the most popular, and the all-purpose cleaner is a big seller as well. “Get ready to love laundry days” is one of their slogans. Their products can be found at select retail and grocery stores, and online at:

www.humblesuds.com

SKEA

The Boyer family started SKEA in 1972 and they have truly made their mark on the ski fashion industry with their beautiful, tech-oriented outerwear. For 50 Years a passion for skiing, mountains, and the outdoors is what has driven this brand. Jocelyn Boyer and her husband Georges started the company with Jocelyn designing SKEA’s iconic skiwear. Her vision was to design and embrace femininity while maintaining functionality and performance on the mountain and off.

www.skea.com

LOWDOWN HELMETS

Brother and sister team of Steve and Courtney of Carbondale, Colorado, have crafted a unique new, family-owned company, LowDown Helmets. A ski and snowboard helmet company inspired by a once-in-a-lifetime family trip to Italy, where they discovered old-school classic retro-style motorcycle helmets.

From that moment on, their vision of blending a sleek retro look with modern safety stand- ards and unparalleled comfort took root, and LowDown Helmets emerged. These protective ski and snowboard helmets offer full-coverage helmets with a cool and unique aesthetic. Check them out here:

www.lowdownhelmets.com

GNARA

Mountain Women, adventurous girls, answering nature’s call just got a lot easier. Gnara, previously known as SheFly Apparel, has crafted super comfortable pants and shorts featuring a patented zipper design that will change your life the next time you answer nature’s call outside. What makes their pants unique is a second zipper that extends from beneath the first zipper (that allows you to take your pants on and off) to the back of the waistband. This design allows you to unzip only as far as you need to maximize privacy on the trail, in the woods, or anywhere else nature may call. This rising company in Gunnison, Colorado is transforming women’s outdoor apparel into comfortable, fashionable pieces of gear you will treasure on your outings.

www.gnara.com

FAUX FLORALS

Spruce up your mountain cabin! Tina Leix has always had a love for wreaths. To her, they’re not just for the holidays, but always had trouble finding one that’s well made, with special touches. After the loss of her mother and having two small child children she was inspired to begin designing her own products and leave the corporate life behind.

Tina’s Wreath and Home Co. everyday & seasonal wreaths are crafted from her home workspace. They are works of art.

In the latest expansion of her business she has moved in to crafting beautiful forever bloom bouquets and center pieces that will last a lifetime. Perfect for your home or a special event.

www.tinaleixwreathco.com.com

a girls spring ski getaway

AN ADVENTUROUS ESCAPE

by Holly Battista-Resignolo

Just days before Covid-19 changed the world, I had a ski day for the record books at Snowmass, Colorado. I had come in to tour the new Limelight Hotel Snowmass and meet up with a friend for two days out on the mountain. It was exciting as the hotel was very stylish yet laid back with exceptional amenities and a terrific vibe. Limelight Snowmass offers posh and cozy rooms and residences with ski-in/ ski-out access, perfect for guests who are all about stepping outside to explore the slopes of Snowmass or to shop and enjoy exceptional restaurants in Snowmass Village. Music, delicious food, people from around the world, fun activities, and a great bar scene marked the 48 hours I was able to spend there.

But it wasn’t just the vibe of the scene or the beautifully appointed room where I rested my head, It was the opportunity to ski with two women whose skills matched one another’s as we headed out for a day on the mountain.

From the opportunity to rip freshly groomed corduroy before anyone else was on the mountain through Snowmass’s First Tracks program to traversing the resort’s terrain into steep chutes and crevices, I felt my entire being come to life.

It was so much fun sharing time with two women who have both been involved in the ski industry for the majority of their lives. We realized this industry is a small

world and we all know someone who knows each one of us through our work at various resorts in Colorado’s mountain towns.

Both ladies knew Snowmass’s mountain like the back of their hand, and it was good fun to be toured about, dropping some sweet lines with these badass mountain women. After a ton of runs, a warm cookie from Up 4 Pizza was the perfect break to keep our legs going before heading to a late lunch at Sam’s (where the food is a culinarian’s delight). The sugar, snow and warm sun made it possible to continue enjoying the resort’s long runs of bumps and wide open terrain.

We were quite ready to step into Sam’s on mountain restaurant later

that afternoon to enjoy the establishments splendid menu and intoxicating views. We indulged in a variety of perfectly prepared small plates, refreshing beverages and attentive service.

The thigh burn back to the Limelight Hotel was real but worth the pain from each and every turn earlier that day.

After a quick change, we joined up for après in the Limelight Lounge. The scene was happening. Locals and visitors alike were mingling in the livingroom-like atmosphere to enjoy local brews, signature cocktails, and creative comfort food, Stories of each person’s day outside skiing and snow-

boarding could be heard over the din of the crowd.

We stepped out to enjoy Snowmass Village and right into The Collective, a bright and colorful gathering space for folks of all ages. Foosball, pool, an interactive wall mural, engaging games like skee-ball, board games, full-size gaming area, and selfie space are all housed inside. Mawa McQueen’s Mawaita also offers delicious dining too. A large skating rink marks the entertainment area outside.

After a stroll through The Collective, we headed out into Snowmass Village to grab dinner. The selections in the village are vast with Sushi, Thai Food, American Food,  Mexican Cui-

sine, Seafood, and Steaks; there is something for everyone. We chose to enjoy Aurum, a restaurant that you can find in Steamboat Springs, Breckenridge, and Maui, Hawaii. Its slopeside windows frame the resort’s beauty and the hospitality group’s carefully curated cuisine is a delight to the diner. It was a great way to close out the day.

The next morning we got out, grabbed a Crepe at The Crepe Shack, and took a few more runs. Before we retired we sunned our faces and relived the weekend at the on-mountain restaurant and bar, the Cabin, and reluctantly headed back to the Limelight Hotel.  The bell staff assisted me, reluctantly, to my car and I headed home giddy from a day and night of bonding on the snow knowing that I will definitely be back.

I highly recommend grabbing your girlfriends and escaping to this great mountain resort. www.aspensnowmass.com

“Savage

BY

RATCLIFF

INSPIRED BY MY MOTHER’S DREAM

Beauty”

RACHEL

HIGH QUALITY PRINT ON PAPER

GOING WITH THE FLOW

What the River Teaches Us About Ourselves and Our Children

by Lisa Blake

When I married a river-soaked, pony-tailed, PFDtan-lined whitewater raft guide — now a high school principal — 11 years ago, I had no idea the river would teach us our most valued parenting lessons. We’ve held river time close to our souls as we embarked on parenthood, teaching our toddler river safety, potty training from the boat’s bow, battling sunburn and bug bites while welcoming Paco pad power naps under makeshift umbrellas — all perfectly messy and magical.

From the Arkansas to the Salmon to the Rogue and the Snake, we’ve witnessed our first-timer 18-month-old boater sprout into a capable nineyear-old, loading and unloading the raft, reading water and rowing waves, setting up camp, unplugging and hearing us and, as we’d hoped, mirroring our love and respect for the river.

When I started canvasing Colorado mamas for their favorite river stories, I was met with enthusiasm, nostalgia and a common thread that appeared in a yearning to bottle up and pass down river lessons learned and earned as a family.

Colorado mamas share the rewards and pearls of wisdom that emerge from time on the water. These are their tales. And my inspiration.

Celebrating the Gifts

Summit County mom Jen McAtamney was introduced to the river by her husband, who passed away suddenly last year at age 61. She remembers taking their girls on the Colorado River when they were just two and four (they’re now 21 and 24 and guiding their own river trips).

Images:

Right - Grand Canyon by Katie Girtman

Page 22 - Top West Water by Katie Girtman, Kids on Dish Duty, Baby in Basket, Group Photo by Anna Marie Murrell Author, Lisa Blake with her son

“We were hooked,” Jen says. “The opportunity to be in such exquisite wilderness where there’s such inherent danger and a rhythm in which you have to live is something special. It’s always been a space for us as a family to unplug.” In the wake of her husband’s passing, the river called to her and, teaming up with rafting family friends, Jen and her girls stacked, towed and guided two boats down the river. “It was in celebration of all it had given us over the years,” she says.

Jen’s tip for multi-day trips with young kids: Bring prizes and hand them out as reward for collecting the most micro trash as families pack up camp each day.

Getting Back to Basics

For Anna Marie Murrell, river time brings a priceless period of no phones, no iPads and — here’s the kicker — no complaints of boredom. The mother of two boys says after ingraining river safety, the next family float priority is to make it entertaining and engaging, noting the smiles that spread when moms see kids creating stick castles and giant sleeping pad water slides.

“It’s been really fun over the years watching them go from taking naps on the boat in the afternoon to rowing the boat completely on their own,” she says. “Which has also allowed us to take more toys, such as paddle boards and duckies.”

Anna Marie’s tip: Give kids jobs. Helping cook dinner, build a fire or do dishes makes them feel like part of the collective river family. “It always seems kind of crazy how they love to do the dishes on the river, but not so much at home,” she laughs.

Close Calls and Bucket List Trips

Katie Girtman and her husband Victor worked for Inland Drifters in Carbondale in the early 90s, raising their daughter Brandi in canoes and kayaks on the Colorado, Roaring Fork and Crystal rivers. Swim lessons were mandatory for Brandi before she was even walking and river safety checklists were the pre-launch norm. Prac-

ticing the river safety position (if you fall in, keep your head up, feet down river) helped Brandi get to shore during a canoe flip in Cemetery Rapid on the Roaring Fork when she was eight.

“The current was super strong that day and the water levels were higher than normal,” Katie says. “They flipped the canoe on a rock and our friend panicked and grabbed onto our daughter. Brandi kicked him off and got in river position like we had taught her. It was scary for all of us. But she learned at a young age about how to handle a situation like this. Which helped for many more raft trips to come.”

Brandi is now 35 and the family is grateful to check off lifetime river experiences together. In 2014, they enjoyed a 28-day Grand Canyon trip. “When Brandi got back, her boyfriend missed her so much he proposed to her as soon as she returned. And now they are married!” Katie says.

Katie’s top tip: Never skip the river safety talk. Teach your kids how to stay calm and self-rescue.

Disconnecting to Reconnect

Single mother Courtney Despos has been a fly fishing guide for the last 10 years. As one of the first female row guides in Colorado, she remembers taking her four-year-old son (now 14) on fishing trips, keeping him occupied throwing rocks and building sand castles while she squeezed in that crucial mom mental health time.

“It’s a balance between getting him outside and exposing him to the outdoors and making sure I was taking care of myself,” she says. Today, it’s their bonding time away from electronics and a way for them to be in the moment together.

“Our kids are growing up in such a go-go-go world. You have to build in that disconnect time or they won’t have it,” Courtney says. “On the river, without to-do lists and social media, I can see the stress and anxiety leave him, physically. It’s so amazing to watch.”

Courtney’s river mom tip: Make traditions that your kids will cherish and remember. She and her son raft the Upper Colorado River every year, stopping on their favorite beach to write his name and the year in the sand and snap a pic. “Every year, he’s asking when we are going to go get that picture,” she says. “He has an attachment to that moment, to that tradition.”

Canyon Magic and Lifelong Stewardship

Durango mom Ashleigh Tucker ensured all of her kids were on the river by four months old. The mother of three kids, ages 9 months, 6 years and 8 years, loves to share the environmental and educational side of rafting, venturing into canyons and pointing out various birds — seeing who can spot the first great blue heron (the infamous GBH).

“The river is a magical place to share with our children,” Ashleigh says. “We are creating future river stewards while enjoying the canyon walls and all that it offers. This is where I met my husband and I have so much love for the river and being able to check out of life for a few days and enjoy it.”

Ashleigh’s river tip: Add a splash of education. Teach littles about the importance of leaving a place better than when you arrived.

Days on the river close with nights tucking in stronger, wilder children, kids that are more in tune with the Earth. They’re writing their own river stories. As mothers, we’re here to hand them the oars (and the snacks while we slather on the sunscreen, of course).

~

As a closing note, we wanted to include this poem by Ellen Titensor about her Father. It is beautiful:

I Wonder If He Knew

By Ellen Titensor

So many years ago, when I was just 16 and he gave me that boat, how it would shape the woman I would become…sparking confidence which grew to competence, revealing courage and capacity, and teaching me to be smarter than the rest because I wouldn’t be stronger.

I wonder if he knew…

…all of the fantastical places with fantastical names it would take me… places like Cowpie, Tootsie Roll, Big Kahuna, Lunchcounter, Hell’s Half Mile, Rattlesnake Cave, Disaster Falls, Moonshine, Warm Springs, Double Drop, Ladle, Little Niagra, Westwater, Mishawaka, Pineview, Royal Gorge, Pinball, Zume Flume, Widowmaker, Quartzite, Desolation, Hell’s Canyon, Wild Sheep, Green Room, and Trespass Flats (if you know, you know)…

…and all of the even more fantastical people we would meet along the way who would forever change my life.

I wonder if he knew…

…that I would fall in love on that boat. She would be the ultimate test of any interested suitor and would reveal to me the man who would win my heart.

I wonder if he knew…

…that I would raise, with the help of that boat, 5 children who are brave enough to do hard things, can bait and set a hook, read a current, swim a rapid, kayak and row class IV rapids, spot a hydraulic, catch an eddy, use a groover, pitch a tent in under 3 minutes, cook over charcoal, manage cold feet, withstand snowstorms and sandstorms, row against the wind, work as a team, stand accountable for mistakes and learn from them, value experiences more than things, and cheer each other on…

…and that they would raise his great-grandchildren to do the same.

I wonder if he knew…

…just how devastating it would feel the day I watched that boat exhale a deafening, final breath on the river… how it would drop me to my knees to see the end of that gift of 32 years…how my heartbreak would be so much more about gratitude than it was about grief.

I wonder if he knew.

CHICKS WITH STICKS

Women Swapping Sidelines for Ice Time

by Lisa Blake

I was amazed at how Breck Betties supports women, mothers and grandmothers as they hit the ice for the first time.

Jealous of my son and husband’s ice time, I skated off the sidelines and onto the ice as a first-timer on a local ladies hockey league at age 43. Signing up for Breckenridge Betties hockey after spending the previous three winters cheering my family on was one of the most empowering and courageous things I’ve done in a while.

I entered the rink scared shitless and beyond excited. And finished the season with minor bruises, elevated bravery and a stronger sense of self and community. The veteran Betties players prioritize support over points — oftentimes passing the puck to give a first-timer that rush of skating it to the net instead of whizzing by and scoring one themselves. They teach newbies the game from the bench, pointing out positioning and passing tactics while shar-

ing their Honey Stinger energy chews. They’ll even point you toward quality used elbow pads and shin guards or just give you their old ones.

“When someone new scores a goal, that’s the happiness, the buzz we’re looking to share,” says Gini Bradley, a longtime Breck Betties player and former team captain — a role that floats around to spread leadership. “I really enjoy connecting with the younger women and I think they really enjoy learning from us old ladies.”

Bradley, 65, and Julie Comstock have played every Betties season since the league was formed in 2007. Bradley was inspired to start playing when her daughter Ray (now in her late-twenties) picked up hockey at age 7, playing on the boy’s Mites youth team.

Bradley applauds the Town of Breckenridge and Ice Programs Coordinator Randy Gill for expanding the sport, working hard to market Breck Betties to new female players and boosting numbers in recent years. In

recent seasons, Betties had 60 women lacing up for its Sunday afternoon games at the Stephen C. West Ice Arena, an all-time high for the program that allowed Betties to expand from four to six teams.

“We have beginners all the way up to former Division 1 college players,” says one of Betties’ founding players Joyce Copeland. “We also welcome all ages and have several players in their sixties. We are fortunate to live in a community that supports the women’s game.”

At the beginning of each season, there’s a coached practice where new and returning players are divided into groups to run through drills. Volunteer captains help draft players into evenly distributed teams that encourage teamwork, skill improvement and camaraderie.

Former Town of Breck Recreation Program Manager and Breck Betties founder Bree Hare launched the Betties women’s league in 2007 as an off-

season summer training outlet for Women’s Association of Colorado Hockey (WACH) teams, the Fury and the Blizzard.

“We had over 40 women register,” Hare says. “We had this whole new group of women who had an interest in hockey or they figure skated way back when, or they had kids who played. It gave them that opportunity to get on the ice in a supportive, not super competitive way.”

Hare’s roommate designed the Breck Bettie’s logo (in exchange for a hockey stick out of the pro shop) after the league name won out over contending monikers like the Mountain Town Hotties and Summit County Cougars.

That female camaraderie, lift-you-up learning environment and nixing co-ed on-ice intimidation is the draw for a lot of Betties players. Margaret Carlson, 57, started playing co-ed hockey when she was 30 just after the rink was built in Breckenridge. “Eventually, the testosterone on the ice (mostly from other teams) made the co-ed experience a little less fun and I joined an all-women’s travel team,” Carlson says. “I’d highly recommend Betties to anyone who’s wondering if they could or should try hockey. Hockey really is for everyone, and Betties is proof of that.”

For New England transplant Emily Gilbert, hockey has always been present. The 37-year-old grew up playing pond hockey and joined her high school’s first all-girls team. Today, Gilbert holds her own with the guys on Summit County co-ed leagues, but says there’s something special about playing with Betties. “I really love the camaraderie of women playing together,” Gilbert says. “The women are respectful and encouraging and I’ve made some great friends through the league.”

Inspired by her NHL player cousin Nathan Gerbe, Leslie Vickrey turned 50 and decided it was the perfect time to start playing hockey. The Michigan native says a season of Betties hockey gave her a priceless amount of transferable leadership skills. One of her biggest takeaways? Fear is not always a foe. “I was nervous to get out on the ice with women who had been playing for years, but that fear was also motivating. It made me work harder and learn faster,” Vickrey says.

“When I scored my first goal, the wisdom of the phenomenal Abby Wombach rang in my head: ‘When you score a goal, you better start pointing.’ I’m pointing in gratitude to the teammates who welcomed and taught me, to the husband who told me I could, and to my seven-year-old who chooses to come watch mom play.”

Visit www.breckenridgerecreation.com to sign up for the next Betties season and remember, it’s never too late in life to learn how to play hockey.

Visit www.breckenridgerecreation.com to sign up for the next Betties season or head to you local rink.It’s never too late in life to learn how to play hockey.

WORDS WE NEED

No Ordinary Assignment: A Memoir by Jane Ferguson

This is an essential read that I highly recommend. I had the privilege of meeting Jane Ferguson after hearing her speak at an Ordinary Thinkers event in Telluride. An awardwinning journalist, Ferguson has spent her career covering wars, uprisings, and political turmoil across the globe.

Growing up in Northern Ireland in the ‘80s and ‘90s, Ferguson was surrounded by sectarian violence. Bomb threats and military checkpoints were part of daily life. Reading and Wactching the news offered her an escape and inspiration. An opportunity to study Arabic in Yemen became her way out—unltimately a path to the journalism career she longed for.

Lacking family wealth or industry connections, she started as a one-woman reporting team, often with only a borrowed camera. Networks dismissed her, claiming she had the wrong accent, the wrong look, or not enough dramatic, front-line footage. Drama was really waht they were looking for. Yet, she repeatedly put herself in danger, committed to telling the stories of civilians caught in the crosshairs of war. For her, bearing witness to suffering was a small but vital act of justice.

Ferguson has since reported on nearly every major war zone and humanitarian crisis of our time. She covered Yemen as protests escalated into the Arab Spring, secured rare access to rebel-held Syria despite a ban on foreign journalists, and remained in Kabul as the Taliban seized control in 2021—one of the last Western reporters on the ground as Afghans, and her own colleagues, scrambled to escape

Her memoir, No Ordinary Assignment, captures both the courage and heartbreak of her work. More than just a personal account, it offers look at the world’s political landscape. It is a mind-opening read that will leave you with a deeper understanding of global conflicts—and the human lives behind them.

by Holly Resignolo

Where Are Your Men? Rafting Western Rivers With The Ladies

by Zan Merrill and Nikki Naiser

What do a bunch of well-seasoned river gals do on river trips without their men? Everything you might imagine, and more. These stories invite you to relive experiences of women who have been running rivers for decades and find themselves back out on whitewater year after year. You’ll find tales of difficult rescues and the kind of unexpected adventures western river runners love to share. Through a variety of stories, haikus, poems, and essays, this anthology goes deeper. The personal accounts explore the beauty of both the rivers and trusted friendships forged over the years. Sharing life’s celebrations and tragedies, these women navigate the waters of their lives.

www.whereareyourmen.com

ASSISTING PEOPLE IN EMPOWERING THEMSELVES

FINDING THE PATH TO YOUR CENTER

by Shauna Farnell

All services at Clairvergence Wellness Center in Breckenridge lead to an ultimate goal of personal alignment

As a student of neurobiology, physiology and psychology at the University of Maryland, Katherine Grimm had original aspirations of becoming a doctor. Instead, after ventures in government contracting, travel nursing consultation and the cannabis industry, her heart’s path unwittingly led her to open a wellness clinic in Breckenridge.

Specializing in yoga, meditation, reiki, ear acupuncture, tarot card reading, craniosacral massage and sound bathing, Clairvergence is a wellness center aimed at helping people find their own centers.

“It’s about empowering folks,” Grimm says.

Because individuals find their inner alignment differently, Grimm explains that Tarot card reading is for people who like to process hurdles mentally and verbally. Yoga practice, is of course, a more physical form of processing. Craniosacral therapy involves lying down on a cot as Grimm administers light touches to the skull. It’s like “a massage from the inside out” and leads to “a nervous system reset.” More subtle, a sound bath is a relaxing, meditative practice involving the humming, reverberating tones produced by bowls. With Reiki, Grimm moves energy around a client’s body without actually touching them. Both of the latter services help the body, mind and soul relax so that the body’s own healing response can kick in. Acudetox, or ear acupuncture, incorporates reflexology as Grimm places acupuncture needles around the ear, releasing stress and trauma stored in the body. A similar treatment, ear seeds are beads that remain on acupressure points for two to four days.

Grimm learned each of these tools during what she refers to as her 10 years of wandering. She studied yoga at intensive, 30-day retreats at Sivananda Ashram in the Bahamas and learned the art of Reiki with a gymnast in Tahoe, Calif. She went to Boulder for Acudetox training with individual specialists and did her Craniosacral therapy study with a shaman. She began meditation study as a volunteer at the Shambhala Mountain Center near Fort Collins and is self-taught in tarot card reading and sound bathing techniques.

“I love learning,” she says. “During my wandering phase, I jumped on training opportunities as they presented themselves. I’ve always had a sense of a connection. Raised evangelical Christian, I grew up calling it the Holy Spirit. The same connection I used to feel singing in church, I feel sitting in meditation. I’ve always been good at seeing through people’s masks and getting to the root of people’s issues.”

People come into Clairvergence for a number of reasons. Some are simply looking to loosen up and relax. Some are hoping to sleep better. Others are hoping for insight or clarity regarding a challenge in their lives.

Some of Grimm’s most rewarding moments have been getting to know a group of friends that come in for sessions together every week, or a bachelorette party that collectively discovered a shared depth of emotion and kinship.

“By the time we finished, everyone is crying and looking around saying, I thought I was the only one crying? I’m watching that connection and I’m ending these sessions crying, too,” Grimm says.

There was a visiting family with a special needs child who, Grimm says, “found the space to shine.” There have been many clients to uncover buried memories or release childhood trauma. Sometimes, Grimm says the most rewarding moment is “hearing the relief in people’s voices when they report back that they’ve slept.”

While Grimm enlists a great deal of her own energy to connect with clients and their individual goals, she knows she’s hit a high point when she finds herself far from exhausted after a session.

“When I’m at my best, my most-centered, there’s no drain, but an actual re-energization,” she says. “I actually feel better on the other side. I go home and feel better than when I went to work.”

Located at the south end of Breckenridge Main Street, Clairvergence is open Thursday through Monday. Popin sessions start at $95 and go up to $1,500 for full-day retreats. Grimm also offers online classes and personal coaching sessions.

Visit www.Clairvergence.com to discover more.

CURIOUS CREATURES

by Holly Resignolo

Meet Natasha Woodworth, the founder and designer behind the brand Curious Creatures bike gear. Her products come from an extensive background of athleticism and product design. She served 10+ years at Patagonia on the design team, responsible for the launch of Patagonia’s MTB line and women’s touring. Prior to that... she was a designer at Quicksilver and also worked in fashion/design for Lady Gaga and Marc Jacobs, traveling the world and its city streets.

Natasha however is most inspired in the mountains and felt it was time to change it up and headed to Montana where Curious Creatures is headquartered and crafted. Bozeman is home, where she can sew up some shorts and pedal out the door to test a new fabric, concept or pattern.

Her attention to detail and curves stand out in the brand’s design, with comfort as the distinguishing feature of her outerwear. These products are Natasha’s signature creations. Her goal of making stylish mountain bike apparel that felt like clothes, not a costume, has come to fruition with a line of fantastic garments that cater to women (but there is a small men’s line, too).

So, the name... Curious Creatures is derived from how she and her team feel about getting out and exploring, respecting, and appreciating the magic of the unknown. We really like the quote on her website, “Just a bunch of weirdos obsessed with exploring our world by bike. We grew tired of hearing our friends say they didn’t feel “like themselves” when putting on the standard overbuilt, over-designed, Neo from the matrix inspired mountain bike gear”.

We get it and highly recommend her bike wear which we cross over into anytime/activity wear. We love our Women’s Sun Dog Shorts and Pants. We have worn them biking on high mountain peaks, Sedona sandstone, and along Gulf Coast shores. We wouldn’t mind getting a flowery Creature Suit too.

www.wearecuriouscreatures.com

MOSAICS BY SUSAN

by Caren Austin

W e were lucky to catch up with Susan Wechsler recently and have shared our conversation below.

Susan, appreciate you joining us today. Have you been able to earn a full-time living from your creative work? If so, can you walk us through your journey and how you made it happen? Was it like that from day one? If not, what were some of the major steps and milestones and do you think you could have sped up the process somehow knowing what you know now?

When I went to college, my father advised me to take business classes along with my art classes. I failed out of economics 101 so then took the path my mom suggested and went into Theatre design. They felt I could never support myself on my art but that the theatre would be a good path to a creative field I could live on. I never loved working on sets and never felt it was my creative calling. So 1

day I walked into a gallery with my new work- mosaics! and got my first show. I sold $10,000 worth of art and the confidence I needed to say, ” I can do this! ” If you follow your true calling and work hard at it, you will always be happy and successful.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

My grandma had passed away and I was sitting on the floor of her dining room with my cousin going through her old china. Sitting there I had fawn memories of large family dinners, laughing and sharing stories, at this very table. My cousin didn’t want the china, so I took it home. When I found a few broken pieces, I made something out of the tessera and the rest is mosaic history! I am a self taught mosaic artist and don’t fit into any “mosaic” mold, therefore I break every mosaic rule and went out on my own. My techniques are uniquely mine which is what gave me Global notoriety. Social media has been a useful tool to get my work out there to a broader audience. I am now known Worldwide for my unique techniques and creative vision. www.mosaicsbysusan.com

PHOTO CREDIT:SUSAN WECHSLER

FENCING FAYE

SKI TOT TURNED CHAMPIONSHIP FENCER

by Julie Bielenberg

Faye VanMoorsel was born into a skiing legacy. Her grandfather is the Senior Director of Design and Construction for Aspen Snowmass Ski Company and her mother grew up on Aspen Mountain. However, Faye found a sport off the slopes in which she could thrive and work for enrichment. “I was 11 or 12 years old and fencing was offered at an afterschool access program. I was hesitant at first about it, but after sticking with it for a couple weeks, I realized I really, really enjoyed this sport,” explains Faye. “I remember my first foil I got for the sport, I still have it, and it’s the only blade that hasn’t ever broken on me.”

The then middle-schooler expanded her practice and began attending fencing lessons through the Roaring Fork Fencing Club run by Coach Greg Domashovetz. As of her sophomore year, she is now practicing four days a week; in Glenwood Springs at The Center for the Arts, and in Aspen, at the Red Brick Center. There are 25 consistent fencers in the club; therefore, Faye has expanded her competition, now traveling across the country for fencing tournaments.

“My first tournament in which I was able to travel outside of Colorado was when I was 13. We went to Fort Worth, Texas, and I was overwhelmed and excited to see so many people my age participating in the sport. Here, from Aspen to Grand Junction, the community is small and we know almost every fencing family,” notes Faye. In the past couple years, Faye’s competition schedule has expanded to Chicago, Minneapolis, Richmond, Anaheim, Columbus, Los Angeles, Phoenix, Boston and more. “My favorite tournament I have fenced in was my first summer nationals in Minneapolis. The city was so much fun and I met so many new people that I am still in touch with from the sport.”

Last summer, Faye competed in the 2023 Junior Olympics in Denver. “The competition was hard, it was a lot of ups and downs for me personally as a fencer, but I was still happy with my top half finish.” She also earned State titles, top finishes and firsts at regionals in the last couple years. It’s the lifelong skills that Faye is also gaining that make her a standout. “I had to learn time management, how to prioritize school work, maintain a social / emotional balance,

budgeting and how to engage with adults.” Recently, Faye returned from the 2024 Summer Nations, her best performance.

And, if you think ski gear is a lot to remember, fencing apparel is even more intense. There’s the actual foil, which can break, as Faye can attest to dozens of times, mask, laments, body cords, mask cords, fencing pants, fencing socks, jacket, chest protector and more. Obviously, growing up responsible for ski gear translated well for Faye’s traveling fencing journeys where she has to pack and maintain equipment for tournaments. To learn more about where Faye fences, visit: www.roaringforkfc.com

WHO ROCK THE ROCKIES

The 7th Annual Women Who Rock the Rockies highlights Women making in difference in their communities and the world.

Cheryl Jensen

Founder of the Vail Veterans Program and recipient of the Outstanding Public Service Medal from the Secretary of Defense, Snowsports Hall of Fame Inductee Cheryl Jensen shows us what it means to live and give with your whole heart.

by Lisa Blake

In 1988, Cheryl Jensen volunteered as a counselor at a California summer camp for kids with terminal cancer. Life was never the same after that.

“I remember coming back and thinking ‘wow, what just happened?’” she says. “I think I got more out of this than some of the campers. That feeling that we get inside when we give back is pretty remarkable. That was the first time I had ever felt that.”

Jensen, 62, was born in California and grew up in the Bay Area, Tahoe and Golden, Colorado. After spending 20 years in Tahoe, she and her now husband moved to Breckenridge where he launched a career with Breckenridge Ski Resort and she started volunteering with the Breckenridge Outdoor Education Center. Eventually, the couple relocated to Vail and Jensen began teaching Nordic skiing while her husband continued his career with Vail Resorts.

One day, he came home with a conundrum — The resort had been storing old employee uniforms on property for years and they were stacking up with no sustainable way to dispose of them. Jensen formulated a way to distribute the warm, insulated coats to Africa, Nepal and beyond. Soon, she found herself driving a U-Haul around, gathering retired uniforms from resorts across Colorado and founding the nonprofit Sharing Warmth Around the Globe in 2000. That give-back buzz

was coursing through her veins once again and it felt good.

On a trip to Washington, D.C. peddling coats to the Department of Defense to ship them to faraway places, Jensen went to dinner with a friend who’d had an emotional day. She’d been working with wounded warriors at the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center.

“I immediately thought, ‘well we need to get them skiing,’” Jensen says.

The seed was planted, but she had no idea how she was going to do it. Until she went to a cocktail party in Vail and met Retired Army Colonel David Rozelle, a vet who had lost his leg below the knee. Jensen told him about her idea to bring wounded soldiers to Vail for an adaptive ski and snowboard program. Colonel Rozelle agreed to gather wounded soldiers and, in March of 2004, the Vail Veterans Program became the first organization to take severely injured service members out of a hospital setting and bring them skiing.“It’s amazing to know it’s been almost 20 years and we’ve had about 3,500 folks come through

the program, including their families,” Jensen says. “We’re never afraid to think outside the box if it means we can have a positive effect on someone. They’ve seen others killed. Their friends have died. Their bodies are different. We put them in nature and hope that they take some of that home with them. Watching that transformation take place is incredible.”

It’s that make-it-happen-no-matterwhat attitude that earned Jensen a spot in the Colorado Snowsports Museums’ Hall of Fame, an award she accepted on a Sunday in August 2023. The Vail Veterans Program now works directly with hospitals and their therapists to recruit service members for recreational therapy and has expanded its offerings to include caregiver programs and family support programs that benefit caretakers of wounded service members and summer programming that features rafting, golf and climbing opportunities.

For Jensen, the inspiration lies in the resilience of the human spirit.

“We’re not a vacation club,” Jensen says. “We see people come here as one person and leave as another. There’s a newfound confidence in themselves, realizing there are so many things that they can do. They embrace life to the fullest, even after everything they’ve been through.”

Learn more about the Vail Veterans Program at:

www.vailveteransprogram.org

WOMEN WHO ROCK THE ROCKIES

Karen Hoskin

by Lisa Blake

We sat down to learn about this passionate entrepreneur. Lean in as Karen Hoskin shares tales of birthing a Colorado craft distillery, growing and selling it and finding her next great path.

Shattering glass ceilings in the traditionally male-dominated distilling industry, Karen Hoskin, affectionately referred to as “Ren” by her friends, speaks worldwide about environmental and social sustainability in business, the importance of gender diversity in the workplace, and the art of craft distilling. The 56-year-old mother of two grown sons founded Crested Butte’s Montanya Distillers and Zoetica, a social entrepreneurship company focused on zero-waste products and consulting.

It was love at first sip when Hoskin, at the age of 21, tried Indian dark rum on a beach in Goa, India. Two decades and careers in graphic design and brand building later, Hoskin learned to distill, outfitted a distillery, obtained permits and opened Montanya Distillers in Silverton. That was 2008. Since then, Hoskin and Montanya have relocated to Crested Butte, opened an ancillary tasting room, earned almost every award in the spirits world, and changed the way cocktail fans view rum. This past year, Hoskin made the decision to sell Montanya.

Here’s a look into where this female industry powerhouse has been and where she’s going.

MTN Women Magazine: So, why rum?

Karen Hoskin: I don’t drink a lot so when I do, I am incredibly choosy about what I consume. I have adored the rum world. It is more fun and inclusive than any other spirit category. Rum is an odyssey of culture from Barbados to Jamaica to Colombia to Colorado to Ghana. I have been so blessed to be included in this wild and celebratory community of makers.

MW: How have you changed folks’ perceptions over the years?

KH: I think my colleagues would agree that I started a lot of important conversations over the last 15 years about gender and inclusion (the US spirits industry was very white and male when I started in 2008), as well as sustainability. I also brought a lot of attention to premium rum in America and its storied history even in the Colorado mountains. I mentored a lot of people who were getting started and I taught a lot about entrepreneurship from University of Denver to Colorado College. It wasn’t all sweetness and light. I encountered more sexism in the routine course of business than I care to expound upon, even in 2023.

MW: Where have you found inspiration?

KH: My dad was an entrepreneur from the time I was in 4th grade. We lived in a tiny apartment over his business for years while he toiled for

12 hours a day, so I had no illusions that it would be easy. I was inspired very early on by Master Blenders Joy Spence (Jamaica) and Lorena Vasquez (Guatemala).

Probably my greatest inspiration was Kim Jordan from New Belgium. She and I were both raising kids while our companies grew and she was choosing to sell to employees. I listened to her interview on How I Built This with Guy Raz and had to pull over on the side of the road. I was crying so hard that I couldn’t see. I was just so damn proud of her for how she built that company and the choices she made to do things differently.

MW: What have you learned about yourself?

KH: I have learned that my work needs to be meaningful and soulful for me to feel joy from it. Let me tell you, negotiating with a commercial landlord, hustling for venture capital, navigating fire code compliance or installing an ethanol alarm are about the least soulful things I have ever done. As a company grows, it’s easy for its leader to get pulled away from the meaningful work they love.

MW: Why sell now?

KH: After 15 years, I was struggling to find the right harmony between what I love about being an entrepreneur and what I was actually doing each day. I believe there is a lifecycle to growing companies. Founders can become, instead of a catalyst, an impediment to growth

Karen Hoskin, Founder of Montanya Rum and Instinctive Nutrition

and evolution of a brand. I felt like I was standing in the way of what Montanya could become between 15 and 20 or 25 years of its lifespan. It needed new energy, new breath. I had always dreamed of selling to employees and when that opportunity presented itself, I jumped on it.

MW: What’s next?

KH: I have had two distinct ca-

reers in my 34 years of work. After a break for a few months, I hope to be bringing them together in a careerculminating decade of meaningful work. I am not ready to retire. I’m mildly obsessed (my husband would say not so “mildly” because he has to listen to me talk about it all the time) with the science of the microbiome. My Master of Science degree is in Public Health and Epidemiology and

I worked in healthcare for a decade. A number of companies/brands are emerging to help us live healthier lives with precision nutrition. Rather than working for a health and wellness brand, I decided to go back to school and become certified in integrative nutrition and now have my own practice Instictive Nutrition to help people nourish themselves optimally. www.instinctivenutrition.co

WOMEN WHO ROCK THE ROCKIES

Jaime Billesbach

The Queen of Showing Entreprenuers the Way

by Anna Winger

Entrepreneurship is not for the faint of heart. From waking up with an inkling of an idea, to pushing past all the reasons you probably shouldn’t go out on this proverbial limb, to committing to the idea, is a journey in itself. The people and programs that come into your life to help you understand how to get an idea from your brain, to paper, to a bank, to real life are the true heroes in the uncomfortable, invigorating, sleepless, and addicting world of creating something awesome for the world.

Jamie Billesbach, Executive Director of the CMSBDC (Central Mountain Small Business Development Center), is an actual Queen of showing entrepreneurs the way. As she approaches retirement this fall, we’re so happy to have the chance to write about all of the ideas she’s helped get out of the brains and into our small mountain communities, leading to thriving and healthy business environments.

In a career spanning over 30 years, Jamie knows she was born with the gene to see the big picture and create. Raised by interior designer parents in Chicago, she started working in a 5,000 square foot western retail store when she was 14, and by the time she was 16, she was taking night-school and managing the entire store. The grit and love for hard work came to Jamie in a time many early teens groan at getting out of bed.

When her first daughter was 6 weeks old, Jamie began working at

a coffee shop in a mall, part-time, for holiday help. Within a couple of years, she had worked her way up to Vice-President of marketing and purchasing, and helped the chain grow from 9 stores to 100 stores. She calls this time of her life her “Camelot Years”, “To me, I was creating this business, I was on top. We were in 14 states and we had around 120 stores, I got to travel internationally for the specialized coffee trade, and I just got to create,” remembers Jamie.

After 20 years of consulting for brands such as Clif Bar and Hershey’s, it was a natural jump when the job came up at the CMSBDC. The job description was literally what Jamie as doing as a job, and to be a local source in a community she loves, was a dream come true. When she arrived at her new job, there was not much to go off of, a skeleton curriculum if you will. “I got to create things. There was nothing – am empty office. I called the director and said ‘What do I do’? and he said, ‘Do what you do best’! That was music to my ears. I started doing that, “ Jamie said. “They just let me do it, and that was a true gift.”

In a few years, she built the program from almost nothing to 2 staff members and over 14 consultants. “If you build it, they will come”. And come they did, Jamie’s work at the center has brought preschools, restaurants, affordable housing, physical therapy centers, and so much more, to Chaffee County.

Jamie has also created irreplaceable curriculums to help small businesses get from point A to open. From 2022 to 2025, she created and implemented the LeanUP & Scale business planning series. This series is held twice a year, spring and fall. She also customizes it for in-person entrepreneurial training at the Buena Vista Correctional Facility. “We have helped many businesses with this simple, yet very strategic business development process that they will and can use continually for all stages of their business life cycle.”

In addition, Jamie also created and ran “The Power of WE (Woman Entrepreneur) Conference from 2020-2024. This inspirational conference gathered women from all different types of backgrounds as keynote speakers and quickly became a sold-out event that truly helped women gain the confidence to move forward with their ideas and dreams. “It has truly been a passion project with a heart center focus for attendees and me! The positive energy and inspiration for those conferences has been like nothing I have ever done or experienced,” Jamie says.

“My whole life I have been fighting for the underdog and/or wanting to be of service. I love, love, love knowing all of the businesses in our community that we have helped and have that inner knowing that we really have made a difference, not just assisting to enable their dreams of running a business come true, as we have also given them the tools to manage their business. To me, our clients are awe-inspiring. I feel

connected to most of them. There are many I consider friends,” she remarks.

Jamie is planning on a “preferment” after she retires from the CMSBDC. This fall She hopes to take on clients at a slower rate and in avenues she “prefers”. Any entrepreneur that is lucky enough to work with her,

will undoubtedly gain an immense toolbox of tricks and tips to scale, grow, get financing, and make their vision come to life.

“I cannot think of a better end of a career job than being the Executive Director of Central Mountain SBDC. It has allowed me to explore the way, see the big picture, create

things, facilitate change, and empower others,” states Jamie.

So many of us gritty mountain business owners owe Jamie and her team the world, so from Mountain Women Magazine, THANK YOU, Jamie, for all that you’ve done and continue to do!

Mary Logan Bringing New Safety Measure to Ski Patrol and Inspiring Women in Every Occupation

By Dori Welch

It was an unremarkable day on the mountain, and Mary Logan was getting ready to return to the top with an empty toboggan for the next inevitable unlucky passenger. An audible gasp escaped a woman waiting in line as she watched the ski patrollers load the chairlift.

“… But I thought she was just a LITTLE girl!”

Justifiably impressed, the woman watched as Mary, with her petite frame and bouncing blonde ponytail shining in the sunlight, hoisted the 8-foot-long toboggan weighing over half of Mary’s weight onto the lift. The chair swung away to begin the journey up.

Mary, or as I know her, Mom, likely physically grew in that woman’s eyes. Mom was anything but a small person on the mountain, even if first glance could lead you to believe otherwise.

Mary’s skills in assessment, skiing, and hauling rigs quickly erased any first impression of her size. An injured skier at the top of a steep, bumpy run looked at Mary incredulously when she arrived with a toboggan to bring him to the clinic. He would tower over her had he been standing. He nervously asked if she would be the patroller taking him down. As one of the strongest skiers on patrol, Mary confidently informed him she would, and she did. When they reached the

bottom of the long, steep stretch there were cheers and applause from the chairlift above.

Mary came to Breckenridge in the beginning of the 1970s to ski and teach skiing. Main Street was dirt and the sidewalks were wooden. She quickly figured out that patrolling, not teaching, was her true calling and found her soulmate Nick (I call him Dad) among the patrollers.

Recently, Nick found a magazine among some of Mary’s things that had a note referring to page 19. It held a column about unionizing workers and about the tactics used to frighten those who try. Page 19 made me realize how much strength I have derived from watching her set the example of refusing to be intimidated, anywhere in life.

“Mary was one of the few women on ski patrol when I met her, and she set

an incredible example for other women who wanted to patrol. She was strong, confident, and a natural leader,” Butch Peel, an old coworker and long-term friend of hers told me. “She was a key figure in the growth and improvement of the Breckenridge Ski Patrol, and she was a good friend.”

A season started out with patrollers signing up on crews under the name of an assigned Crew Chief. With her leadership skills and known support for her coworkers, Mary’s crew filled fast and first.

Winter season 1981-82, Mary had a daughter, Taya, at home and was expecting her second. Mary chose to ski patrol that year and scheduled a week off prior to her due date of January 28th. In midJanuary a local reporter interviewed her about working on patrol while pregnant. The article, printed on January 22nd, noted that she would be giving birth in just 6 days. The kicker? I had been born the previous morning, mere hours after she finished her scheduled shift on the mountain. Joe Neel, a friend and coworker who I imagine greeted Mom on the ‘other side’ with a good joke and deep belly laugh, called the hospital to congratulate her. “Are you going to be back to work today for sweep, Mary?” he asked.

One of Mary’s favorite parts of patrolling was consistently getting first tracks on early morning avalanche routes before the mountain opened to the public. Snow had fallen in measurements of feet the night before she ran an explosives route in the Peak 8 bowl. Pushing through the deep snow in the flatter terrain below the bowl proved difficult. She finally reached a phone at the bottom of #2 Chair to report her route clear, getting criticized for the delay. Recognizing a system failure, she became determined to get radios for real time field communication.

Radios, equipment allowances, and proving the professional nature of ski patrol were a few of the things Mary did while heading up union organization. After treating someone who had hit a tree and required CPR, Mary insisted on

procuring one-way masks and mechanical suction to be available for the safety of her team while they performed lifesaving measures. Equipment granted.

“My clearest memory was the day Peak 7 bowl slid in 1987. Mary witnessed it while riding on the T-bar and was one of the first patrollers on scene, taking a critical role in the rescue/recovery effort,” said Butch. “I was so impressed! Calm under pressure during an unprecedented event.” Mary organized the rescue efforts smoothly and remained diligent for three days until the last person was recovered. Deservedly, she received the award for Patroller of the Year that season.

Mom told me her dreams had included living on a hill looking toward a ski area, working on the mountain and in medical, and having a family. She and Dad built their dream life in just such a home. A tick-borne illness turned tragically chronic forced Mary to retire long before she wanted to. She remained a hero to her friends and family, especially her daughters in whom she instilled lifelong characteristics and credence.

Good leadership is through example, respect, and fairness. Gratitude is always accessible, no matter the circumstances. Do not allow someone to intimidate you.

If you stay silent in the face of oppression you are taking the side of the oppressor.

Live life on your terms and build your dreams.

Love your family fiercely.

The same month Mom departed this earth, a young rookie Breckenridge Ski Patroller moved into my lock off apartment. No doubt he will be utilizing some of the tools and practices Mary helped implement decades ago. His dedication, excitement, and overall high vibration feels like a complete circle with renewed vitality, ready to go around again.

Dedicated to Mary Logan, July 7, 1952 - September 17, 2024

The Women’s Desk Reporters

story by Lea Tucker

Aspen Public Radio is Launching a Women’s Desk

Aspen Public Radio is launching a Women’s Desk, which will seek to understand women’s status through economic, sociocultural, regulatory, technological, and news-making contexts. Challenging the reality that men remain the vast majority of quoted experts and sources throughout traditional media, this reporting effort will aim to uplift women’s voices to create a more diverse and inclusive news landscape.

While women make up more than half the population in our country, and worldwide women are expected to outnumber men within the next 50 years, the underrepresentation of women in news and media results in the perspective of women often missing or misunderstood, whether that’s when reporting on issues of health, education, politics, environment, or the arts.

Over the last four months, women throughout the Roaring Fork Valley have been inspired –and inspired others beyond our region –to fund a full-time reporter at Aspen Public Radio to center women’s voices, bringing their perspectives and experiences to our local reporting efforts.

Sarah Tory has been working as an independent journalist for over a decade, telling stories about the environment, migration, and rural communities. Her award-winning reporting has taken her across the western United States and beyond, for a variety of publications, including Aspen Journalism, Hakai, Mother Jones, Sierra, The Colorado Trust and others. A resident of the Roaring Fork Valley since 2018, Tory has previously worked as a correspondent for High Country News.

In this new role, Tory plans to follow in the footsteps of Social Justice Desk reporter Eleanor Bennett and immerse herself in diverse communities of women from Aspen to Parachute to develop mean-

ingful collaborative relationships with sources. Her work will be driven by the experiences and insights of women who are impacted by today’s biggest issues — and the innovative solutions being explored to address them.

“I am so inspired by this idea and honored to be Aspen Public Radio’s inaugural Women’s Desk reporter,” says Tory. “My experience as a journalist has consistently looked to lift up women’s voices in meaningful ways, and I look forward to expanding my storytelling skills into audio production and broadcast journalism.”

As part of this initiative, Aspen Public Radio will be joining The 19th News Network, a collective of national, regional and local publishers seeking to advance racial and gender equity in politics and policy journalism. The 19th established the network in 2024 to shine a light on stories that elevate the voices of women and LGBTQ+ Americans of diverse backgrounds.

In addition to other opportunities for regional and national distribution, stories produced on the women’s desk will be translated into Spanish, archived online as part of Noticias en Español, and provided at no cost for publication in our region’s weekly Spanish-language newspaper, Sol del Valle, to make this reporting widely available for Spanish-speaking residents, as well.

Rep. Elizabeth Velasco of Colorado House District 57 provided the following statement in celebration of the launch:

“While I wish I could be there today supporting Aspen Public Radio in this historic moment, I’m at the Capitol in Denver, fighting for all women. Just this week, on the House floor we are debating the right to same sex marriage, and the right to safety

from gun violence. It’s so important that we are informed, and looking through the lens of how issues impact women in particular will bring to light critical perspectives that would otherwise be ignored. There is no pressing issue of the moment that is not also a women’s issue. Immigration is a women’s issue, trans rights are a women’s issue, housing is a women’s issue, education, healthcare, and safety from violence are all women’s issues. Thank you, Aspen Public Radio, for taking this important step! Congratulations!”

The founding members of the Aspen Public Radio Women’s Desk are: Tori Adams, Brooke Allen, Carolyn Buck-Luce, Ameì Damaso, Lori Dresner, Jessica Fullerton, Glenda Greenwald, Jody Guralnick, Soledad Hurst, Jaidyn Hurst, Melinda Payson & Devon Judith Payson Wilson, Sara Ransford, Sally Sakin, Carole Segal, Donna Slade, SPURR —with gifts from Tina Staley, Amie Knox, Gael Neeson, Jackie Merrill, Christy Mahon and Jocelyn Childs— Susan Taylor, and the Laurie M Tisch Illumination Fund.

A celebration of this historic launch took place on Friday, March 21, hosted by The Little Nell in downtown Aspen, in celebration of Rachael Liggett-Draper, Sommelier and Barbara Marcos, Pastry Chef.

“We are proud to partner with Aspen Public Radio to host this event,” said Henning Rahm, General

Manager of The Little Nell. “We are dedicated to delivering exceptional experiences and are honored to have incredibly talented women paving the way for excellence, especially in our culinary program. This includes Rachael Liggett-Draper – the first woman on our award-winning wine team – and Pastry Chef Barbara Marcos, known widely for her innovative approach to desserts. We are thrilled to join the station as we meaningfully engage our community and celebrate these incredible women, together.”

Sarah Tory will be joining a robust newsroom at Aspen Public Radio, including associate editor, reporter, and All Things Considered host Halle Zander; Arts & Culture reporter Regan Mertz; Social Justice reporter Eleanor Bennett; and Aspen Daily News reporters Josie Taris and Lucy Peterson, who also file stories for the radio station.

Aspen Public Radio broadcasts local newscasts and radio features from 7-9 a.m. and 4-6 p.m., Monday through Friday, within national programming along with producing a daily local news podcast each weekday morning and publishing daily .

You can learn more about the Aspen Public Radio team here.

www.aspenpublicradio.org

Claudia Carbone

Story by Holly Battista-Resignolo and the Carbone Family photos by The Carbone Family

A prolific writer who championed the Ski Industry and the Women who Love It

We close out Women Who Rock the Rockies by honoring a wonderful friend and writer, Claudia Carbone. She was a champion for women skiers and was a wonderful cheerleader in my pursuit of crafting a magazine for our Colorado Mountain Towns and often contributed to our collection of stories. She was loved by so many. Her beautiful Obituary sums up her exceptional life:

Claudia Carbone relinquished her magnificent life of 81 years on Oct. 9, 2023.

Claudia enjoyed an illustrious career as a ski and travel journalist, however her greatest work was raising her five children: Susan, David, Michael, Kathleen and Nicholas.

In addition to her children, she is survived by seven grandchildren: Amanda, Madilynn, John Dylan (JD), Anthony, Avery, Isabella and Leona.

“She was the matriarch of our family. We will miss her dearly and she will always be with us”.

Claudia is affectionately known as Nonni, our fam- ily’s version of grandmother in Italian. She modeled her life after her mother, the late Ada (Aiello) Carbone and her father John A. Carbone -- a wonderful, esteemed couple that built the foundation of family love and support Claudia so eagerly emulated. She is preceded in death by her parents,

her brother, John A. Carbone Jr., her first husband, John L. Chambers and her grandson, Galen Chambers. Claudia is also survived by her loving partner, Larry Haack, and youngest brother, William Carbone.

A Denver native, Claudia Carbone began a career in journalism when she was hired as the first ski column- ist for the Villager Newspaper in Englewood in 1984 covering skiing and ski resorts. Since then, her work as a freelance travel writer, restaurant and performing arts reviewer and blogger has brought her to places around the globe and her writing has been seen in national newspapers, including The Denver Post, and countless magazines.

Claudia published the groundbreaking book, “WomenSki,” in 1994. As an expert in women’s issues in alpine skiing she appeared on The Today Show, NBC Nightly News and scores of other media. A crusader and consultant for women’s ski equipment and ski clinics, her writing focus was to encourage women by redefining skiing and campaigning for changes in equipment and instruction.

Claudia served as national spokeswoman for the first National Women’s Ski & Snowboard Week and is a founder of Snow Sports Association for Women. Clau- dia served as president of North American Snowsports Journalists Association from 2002-2004. She also was a member of the Society of American Travel Writers and North American Travel Journalists Association.

She received many awards for her writing from North American Snowsports Journalists Association (NASJA), Colorado Ski Country (Freelance Writer of the Year 1992), Westword Magazine (Best Ski Book for Women 1995) and the Denver Woman’s Press Club. In her later years, she and her companion, Larry, traveled around the world reviewing luxury hotels and restaurants for her blog called “Sleepin’ Around” for GoWorldTravel.com.

Claudia was immensely proud of her Italian heritage. The Carbone family rebranded A. Carbone & Company into the largest liquor dis- tributor west of the Mississippi. Immediately following the repeal of National Prohibition in 1933, Denver-based A. Carbone & Company launched the first licensed and bonded winery in Colorado under the label Carbone Wine.

Today, Claudia and her three sons and one grandson have revitalized this legacy by selecting and producing quality Colorado wines and spirits. AC&C (CarboneWine.com) is located near the Great Sand Dunes in Mosca, CO.

Claudia was the majority shareholder of this project, and it was a great source of pride for her in her later years.

She was cherished by so many.

SPAS OF NOTE

by Holly GoSpritely

The Well & Being Spa at The Hythe in Vail was an absolute treat that offered more than just a body treatment. It was an escape that brought together wellness and adventure that transforms.

After a day skiing Vail Mountain I sunk into the luxurious relaxation room of the Well & Being Spa to rehydrate prior to my Well & Being Grounding Massage. This massage offering is inspired by the Japanese tradition of Shinrin-Yoku, a practice which encourages spending time in the forests for its health benefits. It is similar to Forest Bathing but it is 80 minutes of bliss incorporating a blend of native forest oils, Frankincense, Sandalwood, and Bergamot to create a serene grounding effect for your body.

The massage was spectacular but the experience didn’t end there. After a light rinse I was able to relax and explore. The spa offers a Himalayan Salt Therapy Inhalation Room which you will want to spend some time in. In a secondary Recovery Room I found a variety of self administered therapies including compression pants, jade mat, and hypervolt thera guns. I felt like a little kid experiencing each offering. There is a fantastic Hot Tub and access to the pool as well.

This Spa is a wellness destination and offers many other body treatments, facials, hair removal and nail services.

www.thehythevail.com/wellness/spa/spa-services

YAMPAH MINERAL BATHS

THERAPY FOR THE MIND BODY & SOUL

Glenwood Hot Springs Resort recently unveiled their new Yampah Mineral Baths. This serene collection of five beautiful pools, a shade pergola, and an outdoor lounging area with a gas-flame hearth is a delightful new addition. This entirely new area is east of the historic Therapy Pool. The five pools offer varying temperatures and are part of an innovative design that includes relaxing waterfalls, infinity edges, and a natural stone grotto. The natural geothermal water for Yampah Mineral Baths flows in from Yampah Source Spring, and the pools range in temperature from 97° to 104°F.

Glenwood Hot Springs Resort has priced their entry fee so all of the pool’s amenities are available for use at no extra charge. Head to the Yampah Mineral Baths later in the day for an adult only experience.

FIVE POOLS

• Cascade Waters – 100° to 104°F with the natural sounds of a waterfall.

• Sacred Waters – 97° to 102°F This infinity-edge pool has an expansive view of the resort.

• Falling Waters – 95° to 100°F Stand beneath the waterfalls in the grotto for a natural massage on shoulders, neck and back.

• Inhale – 52° to °60F Experience the dramatic effects of cold-water therapy.

• Exhale – 75° to °80F Try this less extreme coldcontrast bath to increase focus and energy levels.

This is the perfect retreat after a day of skiing and Snowboarding at Vail, Beaver Creek, Powderhorn, Aspen, Snowmass or Sunlight Mountain Resort. It will keep getting better too with the additon of their new lodging plans.

www.hotspringspool.com

BLUE SAGE SPA

LOCAL LUXURY IN BRECKENRIDGE

Originally founded in 1999 and now one of the best known spas in Summit County, Colorado, this Breckenridge retreat has secured the best staff, a unique mix of treatments, and quality products to deliver exceptional service to their clients.

Massage, Facials, Body Treatments, Waxing, IPL’S, Injectables, Micro Needling, Laser Hair Removal, Tanning, Waxing & Tinting, LED Light Therapy, and Acupuncture are among Blue Sage Spa’s Offerings.

Amy Beckett, owner, and her team can design a personal package for you and your friends for any special occasion. Try a One hour massage, Blue Sage Facial, one hour body scrub. Whatever you choose you will feel delightful after a day of TLC in Breckenridge, CO. www.bluesagespa.com

HIDDEN VALLEY HEALING

by Lisa Blake

How Beyul Retreat is championing the digital detox and forest reset pursuit

There’s a tucked away chunk of land along the canyon-carving Frying Pan River that’s catching the eye of retreat leaders, yogis, progressive Colorado families, and artists like Brett Dennen and Rising Appalachia.

Beyul Retreat rests along a winding high mountain road at 8,300 feet just east of Basalt and down the road from Ruedi Reservoir. Once upon a time, the wild 32-acre mountain valley was called Diamond J Ranch. Since 1927, men would come to this special crux of meadows, forest, creeks and waterfalls to hunt while women plucked wildflowers. In November of 2020, former Yerba Mate Tea marketing director Reuben Sadowsky and Abby Stern, a heart-centered leadership and wellbeing event curator with Aspenbased Lead with Love, partnered up and purchased the ranch.

“Beyul is Tibetan for ‘hidden lands’ and we’re all about finding the hidden layers and hidden spaces within yourself while you’re here,” says Stern, Beyul Retreat GM and cofounder.

While everyday folks can discover Beyul on Airbnb, booking.com and Expedia — think a higher-end hut trip with elevated amenities — the property’s twostory home sleeping 12, four historic studio cabins, lodge hotel rooms, onsite chef, event barn, sauna and cold plunge draw groups spanning corporate holidays to silent meditation retreats.

“Events are aligned with slowing down and reconnecting,” Stern says. “We have tech-heavy companies coming here to unplug and reboot as a team.” Sometimes, Stern adds, families book the big cabin on Airbnb and get upset when they arrive and see zero bars on their iPhones. (Beyul is out there. There’s no cell service and no wifi in the cabins — an intentional feature to spur guests to read, hike and connect with each other.)

After a few days of untethered time together, taking yoga classes, fly fishing, rock climbing, paddleboarding and star gazing, those same scrolling teens and email blasting parents are professing gratitude for the unfiltered family connection time.

“That’s what we want,” Stern says of her dog- and kid-friendly slice of seclusion. “Settle in and really be here. Spend time with yourself and whoever you arrived with.”

Beyul’s main focus during warmer months is full property buyouts. Events, retreats and weddings hosting up to 100 guests are the bread and butter. The isolated address is also proving attractive to creatives, looking for space to think. Last winter, two musicians took up cabin residencies to work on an album and a writer enjoyed a three-week stay to gain clarity.

Beyul’s event barn will see speakers, workshops and concerts while yoga will flow in the aspen groves. In late June, a conscious and playful women-only Expression Camp invites heart-centered females to take a nourishing weekend. Early July welcomes Ape Co Movement for four days of deep dive movement education training. Later in July, folk/pop singersongwriter Brett Dennen will host a four-day summer camp wrapped around creative workshops, outdoor adventures, communal farm-to-table meals and good old-fashioned campfire gatherings.

“We want to be known for the way you feel when you leave,” Stern says. “I want people to feel inspired in some way. Like they’re ready to go back to their everyday lives with a fresh perspective.”

www.beyulretreat.com

HYGGE

story by Sara Mock

Tucked in the Rocky Mountains, beneath Vail’s majestic ski slopes, lies an oasis that invites visitors to slow down, unwind, and embrace a simpler, more meaningful way of life: Hygge Life.

Hygge, a Danish term with no direct English translation, describes a mood of coziness and contentment, often found in life’s simplest moments, like sipping hot cocoa by a fire, sharing a home-cooked meal with friends or reading a good book on a snowy evening.

The Origins of Hygge Life: Showroom and Cafe

Hygge Life is the brainchild of Alexandra Gove and her husband Koen van Renswoude. What started as a small online shop in 2016 has bloomed into a brick-andmortar sanctuary that seamlessly combines the timeless principles of hygge with the rustic charm of mountain living. This year, the couple welcomed son, Luc into their lives. Deepening their connection of family ties to Vail.

The café, which began five years ago, was designed to complement the showroom by providing a screen-free space to slow down and enjoy a cozy, hygge experience. Serving coffee, tea, and locally baked pastries, it invites visitors to relax inside or on the patio, said Gove. Over time, Hygge Life has expanded its offerings, adding interior styling services, gifts, and more.

At its core, Hygge Life’s showroom offers a thoughtfully curated selection of home goods - ranging anywhere from plush sheepskin rugs and handwoven blankets, to minimalist Scandinavian furniture and ceramic tableware. Gove’s carefully curated selection offers the tools to bring a sense of tranquility into everyday life.

time to time.

“Hygge isn’t just for the winter months or for when it’s cold outside,” Gove said. “It’s a mindset that you can bring into every season, into every aspect of your life. Through our passion for design and hospitality, we have found that well-crafted furniture and decor can help to cultivate this more attentive, intentional perspective.”

A Space for Community and Connection

“The heart of hygge is about connection… connecting with yourself, with others, and with the environment around you,” Gove said. “In a place like Vail, where adventure is all around, Hygge Life gives people a chance to pause, reflect, and enjoy the simple pleasures of life.”

To Gove and Van Renswoud, Hygge Life is not just their everyday business but a way of life. Their hope is to inspire others to embrace the slower, more intentional moments of life, especially in a world that often feels disconnected from

Beyond being a boutique, Hygge Life fosters a sense of community. The couple have intentionally designed the store to be a gathering place, hosting hygge-inspired workshops, events,

“The heart of hygge is about connection… connecting with yourself, with others, and with the environment around you

~ Alexandra Gove

Bettina Neset & Lindsay Jamison, left

Salt & Lime, top

Mazzola’s, right

Playful wallpaper in their restaurants, far right

and pop-up dinners that bring people together in celebration of slow living. These gatherings are centered around creating moments of warmth and joy—whether it’s learning how to craft the perfect charcuterie board, joining a candle-making workshop, or experiencing a farm-to-table feast with friends new and old.

Looking to the future, Gove hints that “Hygge Lodge, a boutique hotel, may be on the horizon.” For now, though, becoming parents has been one of their greatest joys, alongside nurturing new ideas for Hygge Life. Hygge Life owner’s plan to continue providing high-quality products and hosting special events within the Vail community.

“Hygge Life has become a destination in the Vail Valley,” Gove said, “We love creating a space and offering that is welcoming to everyone in our community.”

Bringing Hygge into Your Home

If you can’t make it to Vail, Hygge Life’s online shop brings the essence of coziness directly to your doorstep. From handcrafted candles and textured pillows to Danish furniture, Alexandra and Koen carefully source products that blend function with beauty, allowing anyone to create their own hygge-inspired sanctuary.

Over the past seven years, the shop has undergone two expansions, adding interior styling services, clothing, jewelry, and more to its carefully curated collection, which continues to attract both locals and tourists.

Hygge Life gives you an experience centered around

Life Dinners top left

top right

Sauna bottom right

warmth, comfort, and the beauty of intentional living. For those seeking a reprieve from the hustle and bustle of mountain life, Hygge Life is the perfect cozy retreat.

Looking to create memories? Check out the infamous Sauna Saturdays offered during the winter months. Hygge’s pop-up December Holiday Market is a local favorite. Check out their website for the next event. You can sign up for Sauna Saturdays here: Sauna Saturday! – Hygge Life and find out more about their dining events here: Experiences - New – Hygge Life.

Hygge

Boutique

SUMMIT SOMMELIER

For a young woman to take out a second mortgage to open a wine bar in beer-centric Breckenridge requires a leap of faith. But who better to take that leap than a former U.S. Ski Team freestyle skier accustomed to spinning through the air and trusting the landing.

by Lisa Blake

Anne Dowling landed well in her leap from competitive skier to wine boutique owner and certified sommelier. In 2000, Anne opened Ridge Street Wine and ushered in a new era of higher end libations in Breckenridge.

Stop by the shop today and relish the extensive variety of European vintages mixed with California and Colorado wines. Wine is the focus. The cooler holds only a few cases of crafted beers mixed in with the whites, for their beer-loving friends. Budget-wise bottles can be found on the $10 rack. And everything you can taste by the glass is available for purchase by the bottle.

Anne selects every product herself. Wine requires constant education, learning about regions, terroir, vineyards, and wine-making styles. Every day, Anne immerses herself in the wine world. In addition to running her own wine shop with husband Ken Buck, she represents wine sales to restaurants in Breckenridge, Vail and Summit County.

“Being a wine rep really keeps me on the pulse of the wine business,” Anne said, citing new vintages, wineries and winemakers as sources of inspiration.

Before diving into the world of wine, Anne competed as a freestyle skier on the U.S. Ski Team and then on the Pro Mogul Tour. Raised in a skiing family with three older brothers, she started competing at age 5 in freestyle combined. Growing up, she traveled the world to pursue her sport.

Anne remembers participating as a teen

Early in her career, Anne earned her Sommelier certification to further her education and connect with experts in the field, providing a deep background to talk about wine. For many years, Anne taught wine tasting at Colorado Mountain College. Now at the wine bar, Anne offers seminars several times a year on a specific region or grape varietal. These popular classes include cheeses and foods to complement the wine along with plenty of time to taste and discuss each pour.

Cheeses come from Breckenridge Cheese & Chocolate behind the neighboring door. Anne imports gourmet foods from out-of-the-way places. This is where you’ll find the wine bar as Colorado’s liquor laws require service be separate from sales.

in competitions in Breckenridge with the ballet and aerials at Beaver Run Resort, and moguls on Solitude or Mach I. Later in her skiing career, Anne specialized in moguls with top U.S. finishes and several winning seasons as a professional. After retirement, she coached young athletes with Team Breck.

On a Pro Mogul Tour stop in California, a canceled event opened the door for Anne’s next career. Pivoting from the ski slopes to Napa Valley, Anne fell in love with the beauty of wine country, “gorgeous lunches and the lifestyle of wine.” She defines that as good living, enjoying well prepared foods, paying attention to ingredients, and pairing food with wines of the same region.

“At age 25, I was tired of living out of a suitcase. I always loved Breckenridge with the small-town feel, historic charm and the amazing ski mountain. My brother was coaching Team Breck, so this is where I came after competitive skiing,” she added.

Working in a local restaurant, she found a business card on the floor. “Fine Wine Specialist” it said. Bells went off. “That’s what I want to do,” she told herself.

A stint in France inspired the wine bar. “I wanted to create a community around wine, where people can come in and talk about wine without feeling rushed, sit and relax with good cheeses, catch up with friends, and share their day.”

The upstairs wine bar feels like stepping across the globe to Europe. High open ceilings, warm colors, and local artwork invite relaxation, assisted by a cheese plate and dozens of vintages to sample from the Italian-made Enomatic wine dispenser.

Summer allows time to sit at the tables outside, chat with friends, listen to live music, warm up by the firepit, and enjoy wine and cheeses. “We call it Romance Alley,” Anne explained, just what she envisioned when she started the business 23 years ago.

Today Ridge Street Wine and Breckenridge Cheese & Chocolate epitomize a local, family-run business. Anne buys the wine, manages the back of the house, and is at the shop as much as possible. Kenny is the daily face of the business. Teenage son Finn, also a competitive skier, washes dishes.

With the changing environment in liquor sales in Colorado, where grocery stores are now allowed to sell wine, Anne and Ken’s shop contributes to the community’s character and success. It’s a place to try and buy distinctive, hand-picked wines, cheeses and chocolates, sit, chill out, and soak in Breckenridge.

www.ridgestreetwine.com

SEVEN SUMMER COCKTAILS

FROM THE BRECKENRIDGE DISTILLERY

SOME OF THE BEST SUMMER MEMORIES ARE MADE IN FLIP FLOPS WITH A REFRESHING COCKTAIL IN HAND. THESE 7 COCKTAILS FROM BRECKENRIDGE DISTILLERY ARE SURE TO KEEP YOUR SUMMERS COOL. MAKE THEM AT HOME. COCKTAILS HAND-CRAFTED BY LIQUID CHEF BILLIE KEITHLEY

1 JAZZ HANDS

» 1 1/2 oz. Breckenridge Bourbon

» 1/2 oz. honey simple syrup*

» Blueberry/raspberry cube**

Shake all ingredients vigorously until the cube is mostly gone or close to.

*Honey Simple Syrup: over medium heat add 1 cup water, 1/2 cup of honey and 1/2 cup sugar. Stir until dissolved and let cool.

**Fruit cubes: blend equal portions of blueberries and raspberries until puréed and strain into large cube trays.

2 THE FLAMINGO

» 1 1/2 oz. Breckenridge Vodka

» 1 oz. strawberry & hibiscus simple syrup*

» Fever Tree Sparkling Grapefruit

Add all ingredients over ice. Stir gently. Garnish with strawberries.

*Strawberry & hibiscus simple syrup: over lowmedium heat add 16 oz fresh strawberries, 3 tablespoons dried hibiscus, 2 cups water, 1/2 cup raw sugar and 1/2 cup monk fruit sweetener. While heating, muddle and then let it simmer for 10 minutes. Let cool and strain.

3 OF ALL THE GIN JOINTS

» 2 oz. Breckenridge Gin

» 1 oz. apple & basil simple syrup*

» 3/4 oz. fresh lime juice

Shake all ingredients with ice. Serve up. Garnish with mixed basil.

*Apple and basil simple syrup: over medium heat, combine 1 cup of apple juice, 1 cup sugar and stir until dissolved. Add 12 basil leaves and let rest for 2 hours.

4

THAI IN THE COCONUT

» 1 1/2 oz. Breckenridge Spiced Rum

» 2 oz. Perfect Puree’s Thai Basil Black Pepper Puree

» 1 oz. cream of coconut

» 1/4 oz. lime juice

» 2 drops Pandan Extract

» Coconut soda

Shake the top 5 ingredients with ice. Strain and add crushed ice. Top with coconut soda. Garnish with mixed basil.

5 WHISKEY MANGO FOXTROT

» 1 1/2 oz. Breckenridge Spiced Whiskey

» 1 oz. mango/pineapple juice

» 2 oz. mango sorbet, softened

» 1/4 oz. lime juice

Shake all ingredients with ice and strain up. Garnish with fresh mango.

6 RUM CASK MINT JULEP

» 2 oz. Breckenridge Rum Cask Finish

» 1/4 oz. raw simple syrup*

» 6 mint leaves

Muddle mint and syrup. Add 1/2 cup of crushed ice, then add Rum Cask Finish and stir to incorporate. Top with crushed ice and form into a dome. Garnish with mint and powdered sugar.

*Raw Simple Syrup: over medium heat add 1 cup sugar in the raw, 1 cup water. Simmer until dissolved.

7 HIGH COUNTRY HIGHBALL

» 2 oz. Breckenridge Bourbon

» Fever Tree Orange Spiced Ginger Ale

» 2 dashes Angostura Bitters

» Lime

Add top 2 ingredients with crushed ice. Add 2 dashes of Angostura Bitters and squeeze of quarter lime.

CHEF DANA RODRIGUEZ

THE HEAT OF THE KITCHEN AND LIFE SHAPED THIS CHEFS SUCCESS

by Caren Austin

Women climbing mountains, that’s what Mountain Women Magazine is all about, but the mountains that some women climb aren’t always about reaching the top of a 14,000 ft summit. Women can climb mountains emotionally and spiritually as well. The obstacles that stand in their way are the same, tough, scary, and sometimes they seem hopeless. But alas, we are women, hear us roar; and chef, restaurant owner, and visionary Dana Rodriguez met those challenges head on. My story about Dana started a bit backwards as I ate at her newest restaurant Carne a few months ago, and then decided I simply must write an article about this extraordinary woman. When I interviewed this James Beard recognized chef, I realized that I was speaking to a woman on a true mission, a force in the industry, and most of all, a woman with as big of a heart as you can imagine.

Dana’s success stems from how hard she worked to get to where she is, a past that is truly remarkable. Dana was born on Chihuahua Mexico and grew up on a farm with a

love for rice, beans and always fresh tortillas. She moved to Juarez at nine, and to Monterrey Mexico as a teen. At the age of twenty-four, Dana decided to move to the United States. She wanted to work and found her way to Colorado. She started working at Panzano as a cleaner, then a dishwasher, quickly moving to prep cook, and from there, all the way to sous chef. Throughout the years, she worked at Tamayo, Cheesecake Factory, and many others. In 2004, Dana helped open Rioja with mentor Jen Jasinski and Beth Gruitch as a sous chef, and as of today, she remains a partner there. In 2011, she worked at Bistro Vendome as Chef De Cuisine.

In 2014, Dana was skilled and ready to open her first restaurant on her own, Work & Class in the RINO district of Denver. She is owner and executive chef, and Work & Class is still thriving today. I had the chance to dine there, and I can tell you, it’s perfection. Dana calls it a “stiff drink, and a square meal at a fair price”. It’s simple food with Dana’s twist on it. Try the shrimp and grits, it’s to die for

and don’t forget to get the cornbread muffins to sop up all the delicious sauces that accompany the entrees. The lamb is out of this world, so tender and juicy, it was my favorite.

In 2018, Super Mega Bien opened. Think Latin American, Portuguese, and Spanish Dim Sum, what could be better? This restaurant is so unique in Denver. The roving cart, and family style entrees make it a great place to go with friends or family. In 2021 Dana became the Culinary Director for the very famous Casa Bonita. They revamped and then reopened with Dana’s recipes, and it has been a huge hit with a waiting list a mile long. I hope I get to visit someday… hint hint.

Carne opened in 2024. The restaurant is a globally inspired steakhouse in the RINO district of Denver This mid-century modern decorated restaurant had all the good feels the second I walked in. The recipes are inspired by Dana’s global travels and the food is exceptional. Dana wants you to feel at home here, and you certainly will. There is chicken, lamb, beef, veal and duck on the menu, plus lots of veggies options as well. Try the Argentinian Bife De Chorizo, and the Peruvian Pollo Asado. They both are a global explosion of flavor that cannot be missed. Cocktails are very inventive and delicious. Don’t miss the shag carpet lounge area upstairs for a before or after dinner drink.

Dana comes from a family of “givers”. Her mother always said, “Leave a legacy”. She told her to work hard, and you can accomplish anything, and Dana stands by that tenfold today. Dana pays it forward to the community, giving to victims of domestic violence, children with Cancer, the Latino community, and so many more. Whether it’s a hot meal, or a program to help women be successful, Dana is there. She wants women to know that they can have a second opportunity. She takes care of all her employees; they are her family. She believes that “you are no one without good employees. Appreciate and respect them. I could go on and on about Dana Rodriguez’s unbelievable qualities, she is beyond inspiring.

After our interview, I immediately felt empowered. As women, we got this, and if you have a dream, you can certainly make it happen with hard work and dedication. It isn’t always easy to crawl your way to the top, but when you get there, you can take a deep breath and realize that you left your mark on every step you made to get to the finish line. You then can realize the journey was well worth it. Dana always stays true to herself, and truly believes that “You have a purpose in life when you do something”. Thank you, Chef Dana Rodriguez, for showing me and many others that all women can to do the same. After all, girl power is something no one can deny.

FLOWERING FARM

KNOW HARPER, KNOW YOUR FOOD

Harper Kaufman, owner of Two Roots Farm in Basalt, is all about bringing colorful cheer and organic nourishment to families in Colorado’s high country. Originally from Edwards, the now-Roaring Fork Valley gal is over a decade into her Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) journey. Owner of Two Roots Farm, a vegetables, herbs, and flowers outlet using regenerative methods, the bucolic farm in Basalt, in the shadows of Mt. Sopris produces a bounty of products for locals and numerous non-profits.

“I first found farming in college in Missoula, worked on farms in California and Montana, and then moved to the Roaring Fork Valley for an agricultural manager job at ACES Rock Bottom Ranch,” describes Harper of her journey. “In 2015, I started Two Roots on leased land, in 2018, Two Roots secured a long term lease with Pitkin County on Emma Open Space, where I am based now.”

What makes Harper’s operation even more unique, is her flower share, a rarity for CSA. Typically fruits, herbs, and vegetables are gathered, rather Harper plants for pure happiness and distributes flowers throughout the Valley. Two Roots Farm has a U-Pick flower share where folks have the opportunity to come to the farm and pick their own bouquet with varieties changing throughout the months.

“We find that folks really enjoy the meditative experience among the flowers and all the joy and beauty they bring in the field and at home,” explains Harper Kaufman. “As the season progresses, the flower offerings evolve and our CSA members really get to see the fields grow through the season.” Harper’s gardens include zinnias, snapdragons, dahlias, sunflowers, peonies, larkspur, columbine, gorgeous filler flowers, and numerous others.

The farm has 200 CSA members who pick up vegetables from Two Roots Farm on a weekly basis during the growing season, and many of them opt for U-pick flowers as well. Harper also sells bouquets at her CSA pick up and farm stand which is open every Friday, in season, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

“We have done various renditions of our flower CSA over the past seven years, but this season is bound to be the best one yet,” exclaims Harper. Her team has brought on a new maiden flower-lover, Marieta Bialek, to manage the flower garden and spread her flower farming and design experience to the flower CSA.

Two Roots Farm truly is unique in what it offers to the local community. “Here in the Roaring Fork Valley, there are other flower CSAs, but not any U-Pick flower shares that I know of,” notes Harper. June through October, visit Harper and the farm crew on Sopris Road for their weekly farmstand.

www.tworootsfarm.com

SISTERS SUMMIT

by Aunika Scrogen

Nothing quite compares to a party lap on a powder day, especially when shared with a bunch of your closest girlfriends. Whooping and hollering, bouncing off pillows, and enjoying soft face shots with a group of girls is hard to beat, the vibe is just different. There’s a change in energy when a group of gals gets together to shred. Feminine friendships are sacred, and in the professional ski industry, often scarce.

Enter the Sister Summit, the brainchild of professional skiers and snowboarders, Lexi Dupont, Hedvig Wessel, Fanny Avril and Leanne Pelosi. The Sister Summit is an annual event where a group of professional female skiers and snowboarders enjoy a week long retreat, skiing pow, learning from each other, building relationships and overall raising their feminine frequency. In an industry dominated by men, it’s always been a challenge for women to break through as professional skiers, and be taken seriously - let alone do it surrounded by close girl friends.

Sister Summit encourages women to inspire each other in a competition free environment. It’s a place where these gals can cultivate professional and personal relationships with each other. Where they can seek advice from those with experience while building a community of support. That’s what makes the Sister Summit special. It’s one-of-a-kind.

“Sister Summit was created because

we were all missing community and support in our industry.” says CoFounder Lexi Dupont.

Dupont and Wessel met competing on the Freeride World Tour and quickly became close friends. It was Dupont’s first season on the circuit. Wessel, a veteran, took Dupont under her wing, helping her scope lines and create strategies that would elevate her game. Dupont recognized how special this relationship was and saw a need in the industry for women to women support. Women thrive off of community. Professional skiing is an intense sport, yet it was missing a community for its female athletes.

“We also realized that everything we do in skiing and snowboarding has been designed and organized by men, and our holistic feminine approach is the exact magic this world needs,” Dupont stated.

Last year, November 2022, Sister Summit 1.0 took place in Canada. There were opportunities for athletes to make brand deals with photo opps, as well as a safe space for them to practice tricks, honing their discipline with coaching and support from peers.

This year the athletes will spend time on the slopes progressing their skills - building jumps, hitting cliffs and skiing pow. Off the slopes, they’ll be learning how to nourish their bodies, amplifying longevity in the sport they love.

“Sister Summit is a community that supports women’s multidimensional nature. It’s all about collaboration, connection, and pushing ourselves to be the best we can be mentally, physically and emotionally” Dupont said.

After the success of Sister Summit last year, the team is hosting two events this season. Sister Summit 2.0 will be held at the end of November 2023 at Eagle Pass Heli in Revelstoke, Canada, and in April 2024, at Ski Lodge Engelberg in Switzerland.

With Sister Summit still in its infancy, the future for this event is limitless. After the success of Sister Summit 1.0 last season, the event has caught the attention of other sports in the outdoor industry. Sports like surfing, skateboarding, and biking, to name a few, could all benefit from a stronger community for its female athletes.

“We never expected this thing to blow up the way it has, which is proof that it is soooo needed. You don’t have to be a skier or a snowboarder to understand that” Dupont believes.

Women thrive off of community. We work best inspiring, learning and feeding off of each other’s energy. Sister Summit is proof of that. It’s making waves in the outdoor industry by opening doors for women, building strong relationships, providing rookies with mentorships, and pushing each other to succeed to the summit and beyond..

ON THE ROAD

by Holly GoSpritely

TEST DRIVING THE MAZDA CX 50 ON HIGH PISTE PASSES AND MOUNTAIN TOWN VALLEY’S

Mazda has a hot look for cool roads, and it handles every tight turn and slick surface beautifully. We had the opportunity to test-drive the 2025 Mazda CX-50 Turbo Premium Plus, putting this sweet SUV to the test by loading it up with a ton of cargo and hitting Grand County, Summit County, and the Vail Valley with smooth, powerful driving.

This low-profile SUV is easy on the eyes, inside and out. The Soul Red Crystal Metallic finish is stunning and entices you to step inside. The sporty exterior complements the suave interior, which keeps the beat high with Bose surround sound speakers. It’s a Sports Utility Vehicle with a sports car vibe.

Inside the 2025 Mazda CX-50 Turbo Premium Plus, you’ll find heated and ventilated seats with memory settings and lumbar support for the driver. All of your dashboard controls are located on the center console with an easy-access dial, displayed on the Mazda’s instrument panel screen. I especially loved the heads-up speed information projected on the windshield.

Your passengers will stay comfortable in the front and back seats, and they’ll be entranced by the panoramic moonroof overhead. The view of the mountains couldn’t be better.

The rear offers 31 cubic feet of space, with a power liftgate that can be controlled from the driver’s seat, the rear hatch button, or the key fob. You’ll have no problem loading this sweet machine up with all your gear, and if necessary, camping inside is quite roomy with the back seats folded down.

I was impressed by the Mazda’s power. I loaded the vehicle with magazines and took it over Berthoud Pass. It accelerated powerfully up and over to Winter Park from I-70. Upon returning, I had the chance to fully test its handling as a snowstorm moved in, blanketing the road with slush and ice. The SUV met the challenge and brought me home safely. By the way, the 2025 Mazda CX-50 Turbo Premium Plus has earned the highest safety accolades, including an “IIHS Top Safety Pick+” award and a 5-star overall safety rating from NHTSA.

The vehicle’s mileage was great. The 2025 Mazda CX-50 Turbo Premium Plus offers 25 mpg in the city and 31 mpg on the highway. I felt it sipped gas even while powering up and over Colorado’s mountain passes and through its towns.

For those who geek out on engines, here are some specs: The CX-50 2.5 S models are powered by a Skyactiv-G 2.5L naturally aspirated four-cylinder engine, producing 187 horsepower and 185 lb-ft of torque on regular 87-octane fuel.

The 2025 Mazda CX-50 Turbo Premium Plus has a very nice price point, starting at an MSRP of $30,500 (not including destination and handling, taxes, title, or additional fees).

It’s an SUV I would seriously consider for my next vehicle purchase. For more information on this beautifully engineered Japanese vehicle, visit: www.mazdausa.com

COSTA RICA’S TRUE PURA VIDA

This wilderness lodge on the Osa Peninsula prioritizes sustainability, preservation and passion for nature

By Shauna Farnell & Meredith Guinan

“Pura vida,” the Costa Rican catchphrase, philosophy and M.O., has never proven truer than at Corcovado Wilderness Lodge, a property occupying a remote swath of beach and rainforest on the Osa Peninsula bordering Corcovado National Park.

Having visited Costa Rica’s more touristy regions, my partner and I felt compelled to travel to a less frequented corner of the country. The possibility of experiencing Corcovado Wilderness Lodge – a property overhauled last year by ecoconscious brand Soul Community Planet (SCP) – became a reality this November. Occupying 189 acres of private reserve adjacent to Corcovado National Park –the most biodiverse slice of the planet – the property proved adventurous even before we stepped foot onto its shores. And by step foot, I mean splashed out of the boat after it was maneuvered through a series of tight rocks and crashing waves into knee-deep ocean. The lodge, like the national park, can only be reached by boat. The route we chose took us on a small (12-seater) plane from San Jose to Drake Bay, where lodge staff picked us up to drive through shallow rivers to board the small boat the same way we disembarked – wading through ebbing waves. Another means of accessing the lodge involves driving to the riverside town of Sierpe and taking a 1.5-hour boat ride through the mangrove-lined river and along the coastline.

Paradise Arrival

The beachfront section of the lodge’s property is home to a vibrantly green expanse of grass, fruit trees, flowering bushes and towering palm trees. As we arrived, the trees were swaying in the breeze and serving as the snacking

ground for about 12 scarlet macaws. A miracle of natural color, these large, rainbow-flecked birds soared overhead throughout our five days in the area, nuzzled their life partners on branches and glided from tree to tree in perfect synchronicity.

A vehicle took us to the footbridge leading to our treehouse villa, one of 20 newly constructed during SCP’s recent overhaul of the property, which also included installing a massive solar garden and onsite water sanitation plant. We reached our rainforest villa on elevated paths through ancient trees and vibrant flowers where a series of butterflies, including the surreal blue Morpho –Costa Rica’s national emblem – fluttered magically.

Our spacious villa was equipped with air-conditioning, toilet, shower, coffee station, outdoor bath and king-sized bed. Two walls were glass, including the sliding glass doors that led to the massive, elevated patio, featuring a hammock, chairs and outdoor bathtub. Providing front row access to our own stationary safari, watching the jungle and its creatures with the Pacific glistening in the background – was one of my favorite parts of the whole experience.

Prioritizing Environmental Preservation

Like the rest of the country, more than 95 percent of which is run on renewable energy, the lodge prioritizes conservation and protecting its abundant surrounding landscapes. No single-use plastics are allowed on property, signs in the village remind visitors to turn off AC and lights when leaving and meals are comprised of locally sourced ingredients – including produce from the property’s gardens. The lodge strikes a balance between luxury and minimalism, serving small portions and repurposing all organic waste for compost. All meals are served at the three lodge restaurants, rotating depending on our activities.

The Lodge partners with local nonprofits – Nama Feline Monitoring Center, Innoceana Marine Conservation, Restor Forest Research Lab, Pristine Playa, Adopt A Coral and Blue Warriors. Visitors can learn all about the work, the unique species in the area and threats they face in a dedicated research bungalow. There’s even a state-of-the-art microscope where you can bring in items from the forest floor (we zoomed in on a tropical pinecone used as a “monkey brush”) and investigate their intricacies. Every employee exemplifies the pura vida philosophy, particular in their genuine passion for nature and wildlife, the access to which is the ultimate reason to come here.

Excursions include a guided tour of the park, accessed from the property’s own entrance. The park tour was the first of our planned activities, led by a guide named Michael, who’d grown up on the Caribbean side of the Peninsula and seemed to know the medicinal qualities of every single plant and tree we encountered as well as the sound and footprint of every animal and insect (Corcovado is home to more of each than anywhere else in the world – 13 tropical ecosystems). Honestly, compared to the wildlife we’d already seen up close on the lodge property, the tour was more educational than abundant in sightings.

Exotic Wildlife

Michael recognized the call of rare birds, somehow spotting a few amid the jungle’s density of leaves and vines. He pointed out a fist-sized Golden Silk Orb-Weaver spider, explaining its unique web-building skills and harmlessness. Howler and Spider monkeys occasionally screeched and leapt between 100-foothigh treetops of the thousand-year-old trees, whose roots, in some cases, grew together horizontally across a soccerfield distance, snaking over, under and around the surrounding minefield of

other vegetation. We were told by guides of other groups we encountered – which, once we reached the main entrance of the park, seemed numerous compared to the human sparsity of our lodge property – that a puma had been sighted wandering the park’s trails, and was probably responsible for the uncharacteristic quiet of our surroundings. We did see an anteater – curled into a black and white ball on a high tree branch, it resembled a panda – as well as a throng of coatis (the racoons of Costa Rica) zigzagging across our path.

Upon returning to the villa, we saw

another anteater shuffling through the leaves right in front of our patio and later, a whole swarm of peccaries –doe-eyed, bristly wild pigs – shuffling through the thick foliage right before our eyes.

As I was walking up to the bar area to refill my water bottle one afternoon, a staff member ran up and asked if I’d like to see the tapir – a large mammal resembling a baby elephant – that had been spotted eating grass near the beach. We watched it in awe for about 30 minutes as it peacefully ate and wandered.

Magical Marine Creatures

The other excursions included a snorkeling tour off the shores of Caño Island – an uninhabited chunk of land lying about 11 miles across the Pacific from Corcovado. Although the water was somewhat murky due to recent landslides caused by climate change, we saw an abundance of marine life, including reef sharks, schools of colorful parrotfish, triggerfish and even a couple of large sea turtles, who swam majestically from the ocean floor to the surface for intermittent breaths of air.

Arguably our most magical wildlife encounters arrived on the whale watching tour. Shortly after leaving the shores of Corcovado, we encountered an enormous mother Humpback whale teaching its baby how to use its blowhole. We watched as the mother’s sleek back slowly emerged through the water like an island surfacing. We heard the chug of her breath through the spout of water shooting from her head. She would then roll forward like a giant wheel turning. A second or two later, the baby would emerge and imitate this routine. Our guide – a young and passionate marine biologist named Fabiola – explained that the mother was swimming under the young whale, pushing it upward to guide it through this sequence.

After we left the scene, only a few minutes passed before our next marine show. A pod of spotted dolphins sud-

denly appeared, leaping and weaving around the boat. We also witnessed an intermittent airshow of brown boobies flying low and sweeping up sardines, as well as a rare Nazca booby that traveled to the area from the Galapagos. One of the most surreal experiences on the trip was coming across a pack of false killer whales – a type of orca that looks like a large dolphin, but which, in fact, feeds on dolphins as well as other large fish. In fact, one of the whales had a large tuna in its mouth, which we could clearly see as it unbelievably continued to swim alongside, and under and around our boat. Several of its friends joined it, as if guiding us somewhere. Fabiola tentatively put her GoPro camera under water to film for a few seconds. One of the whales approached, pausing in front of her hand, almost as if it were communicating.

The grand finale was watching a sunset

from 150 feet off the ground in a tree net. Using a winch harness on a long, dangling rope, we ascended an ancient Baco tree. Focusing on the canopy overhead rather than on the jungle floor becoming smaller and smaller as the winch hummed up the rope, we reached the net and got the monkey’s eye view of the surroundings. From here, we watched the sunset over the ocean while sipping a local beer with our two guides before harnessing back onto the rope and repelling down.

By the time I left the property, the purity of the natural world around me had settled my soul. The experience is the ultimate getaway for nature lovers. It provides a true reminder of the miracle of life in its countless, stunningly beautiful iterations. This is pura vida at its best.

www.corcovadowildernesslodge.com

WHY ANTARCTICA?

BY SARAH

“Why Antarctica?” That’s a question I’ve been asked time and time again. You’d think by now I’d have a better answer, considering how many times I’ve tried to explain it. But to my surprise, it’s not just a flat piece of ice dominated by cold and wind— though, okay, the cold and wind part might be true.

It’s so much more than that. If you try to compare it to the beauty of our “green world,” you’ll miss the beauty in the ice. But when you look at it for what it is—a desolate expanse with sparkling white snow in every direction, ruled by cold and wind—you start to see Antarctica for itself. Comparing the green world to the ice world is like comparing apples to oranges.

Depending on the time of year, it’s either 100% daylight or 100% night sky. Personally, I’ve only experienced the endless daylight. Maybe I’d see the continent differently if I’d been there for the total darkness.

Look closely at the ice and sky on a sunny day, and you’ll see the rainbow that dances across the top layer of snow. The flakes reflect colors—yellow to orange to blue to violet. Notice how it’s

everything but white? But when Antarctica wants a storm, she gets a storm. In minutes, clouds turn furious, blocking out the sun and making the world feel like a black-and-white movie. The bright reds of tractors fade, and the ocean shifts from aquamarine to a choppy, angry black, threatening the shore. Sometimes these storms last hours, sometimes days, and sometimes weeks. But just as quickly as it left, the sun returns—turning snow into a blur of colors, transforming icy waters back into playgrounds for penguins.

And that’s just the landscape. I could write a novel about the people. But since publication probably doesn’t allow for a 100-page, 12-point Times New Roman essay raving about the folks at the bottom of the world, I’ll be brief. Imagine 600 people, dropped off by a U.S. Air Force C-130 at McMurdo Station, Antarctica. Planes that carry about 100 people—and every single one of them chose to be there. They went through an intense hiring process just to get shipped off to the bottom of the world for half a year. Prestigious doctors and scientists become food stewards. A carpenter from Louisiana drives tractors. Someone from California comes to weld. People come from all around the world, each with

different reasons: a childhood dream, the desire to say they’ve been, or, in the rarer case, to conduct groundbreaking research. No matter who you meet at McMurdo, you all have one thing in common: you chose to be there. It creates an incredible culture and atmosphere.

This year will be a bit different. At the beginning of October, I’ll fly to McMurdo like usual, but I’ll only stay for about two weeks. In mid-October, my soon-to-be partner in crime, roommate, coworker—the only other person I’ll see every day—will head out with me to our remote field camp. The excitement and anticipation overshadow any nerves. Every day, the realization that Antarctica is just around the corner hits, reminding me to start packing and making me restless with excitement.

Right now, I’m not afraid of the isolation. I think the environment will speak loudly enough to keep me company. I look forward to learning how to think like ice thinks, hear like wind speaks, endure like glaciers move, and let my body dance in the wild.

So, if someone asks me again, “Why Antarctica?” Well, I guess that’s why.

OLSON

PSYFI

Physical, Spiritual, Incredible

Meet David Mykel, the founder of the Psychology-Fitness™ industry and PSYFI Performance Psychology, the country’s first performance psychology company that trains the Brain, Body & Breath as one. As a personalized performance coach, David takes a holistic approach to well-being, focusing on the interconnectedness of physical, mental, and emotional health. He empowers individuals to transform their minds through their bodies—and their bodies through their minds. David’s comprehensive method supports mental health journeys while building physical strength, fostering resilience, and unlocking peak performance for his clients.

As a child, he discovered that he excelled as an athlete and that gift could help lift him from the poor immigrant community he was raised in. He realized baseball was his way out and became a rising star on the east coast with dozens of scholarships to Division-1 schools. Immediately after graduating from high school, he played catcher in the Miami Marlins organization before attending College in New York. While refereeing ice hockey his last year of college, an unthinkable injury shattered David’s knee and the opportunity to fulfill his 17 year major league baseball dream.

Unable to play, he chose to continue his education in psychology and performance, his other passions, graduating first in his graduate school class, which propelled him into a 13-year Litigation Psychologist career. Like baseball, David rose to become one of the best in the country, but the immense pressures of this industry caused him to quit and sent him on a three-year journey traveling the world, to find himself.

However, instead of an existential revelation, he found himself back in a corner office consulting in litigation, but this time, instead of battling opponents in the courtroom, he was battling for his life against suicidal depression.

“I became obsessed with the how (neuroscience) and the why (psychology) of our brains and committed to beat depression and take my life back.” said Mykel.

In 2017 he founded the Psychology-Fitness™ industry and began assisting others in their journey to become physically, mentally and emotionally stronger by integrating their Brain, Body & Breath, not separating them, which is what most programs do. He combined his education and experience as a psychologist, personal trainer, breakwork teacher, and meditation instructor, all in one package.

David arrived in the mountains three years ago after a pro-snowboard client suggested Colorado. David landed in Copper Mountain. Since his arrival he has assited hundreds of individuals helping them overcome burnout and achieve personal and professional balance through a unique coaching experience.

David’s PSYFI System™ seamlessly combines psychology-based tools, physical fitness moves, emotional intelligence and guided breathwork for optimal performance in minutes, instead of years, like traditional therapy.

If you’re feeling anxious, overwhelmed or burnt out while juggling work, family, societal pressure, and sports, PSYFI has you covered with real, evidence-based strategies to

help you regain control, maintain focus and make sustainable changes.

David’s patented PSYFI System™ integrates psychology, fitness, and emotional intelligence into one seamless program. PSYFI offers one-on-one and group/team coaching sessions in a safe space that include on-demand text support for daily challenges, tailored fitness plans that meet you where you are, and effective 2-minute scientifically validated stress-relief tools that put you in charge. His patented system integrates psychology, fitness, and emotional intelligence into one seamless program.

Personalized guidance from an accredited psychologist, certified personal trainer, breathwork expert, and meditation instructor—all rolled into one cohesive coaching experience is what this entrepreneur has crafted through his - The B3 Methodology™ - PSYFI’s signature Brain, Body & Breath approach.

This teacher helps invigorate the spirit through physical, mental and emotional strength and resiliencytools we need to keep us motivated on our individual journeys and beyond.

www.psyfi.CO