Topic: History

Where did the season go? Here we are coming down to the wire for Vail and Beaver Creek’s April 13 closing day, and many of Colorado’s ski areas close even sooner.

If you happen to get a chance in the next few days, take the two-hour drive from Vail to Steamboat Springs.

Steamboat closes for the season April 6, but is still sporting a mountain full of delicious slush after its record-setting 450-inch season. We know how great Vail and Beaver Creek’s snow has been this year, but to put things into perspective, compare Steamboat’s 450 to the Beav’s 365 and Vail’s 385.

Steamboat, sitting more than 1,000 feet lower than Vail, also has an entirely different ambiance. Still sporting a number of full functioning ranches, Steamboat has a rich Western history. Picture the scene in the late 1800s chalk full of cowboys commuting on skis and snowshoes as frequently as they traveled by horse.

For its end-of-the-ski-season weekend April 5-6, the Boat is hosting the legendary Cardboard Classic, wherein creative cardboard crafts makers put together some form of vehicle to take down the mountain, and also pond-skimming contests. Interested in checking out Steamboat Springs? Visit the Steamboat site.

Dr. Kirk Johnson, author of "Cruisin' the Fossil Freeway," and "Gas Trees and Car Turds," sat down with Plum's Tim Stenovec to talk about the ancient artifacts he's found all over the Eagle Valley. Dr. Johnson was visiting Vail and spoke as part of Vail Symposium's "Know Your Valley" series.

Artist Robin Nash stopped by Fresh Tracks to talk about Women's History Month (March), the National Women's History Project and this year's theme of "Women's Art, Women's Vision".

Author Mira Kamdar stopped by Fresh Tracks to discuss her book "Planet India", a study of India's transformation into a microcosm of the world. Kamdar was in town as part of Vail Symposium's Hot Topic series.

LA Times columnist and immigration expert Gregory Rodriguez drops by the Fresh Tracks studio to talk about his new book, Mongrels, Bastards, Orphans and Vagabonds: Mexican Immigration and the Future of Race in America.

Fraidy Aber, executive director of the Vail Symposium, stopped by Fresh Tracks to talk about some of the wonderful progams scheduled for the 2008 winter season. For more info on Vail Symposium 2008, check our preview or www.vailsymposium.org.

The Vail Symposium returns for its 37th year to educate and entertain visitors and locals alike. The Vail Symposium winter schedule will consist of 35 programs throughout the season from January to May. The programs have been divided into eight distinct series: Hot Topics, Unlimited Adventures, Arts and Culture, Documentary Film Series, Active Minds, Know Your Valley, Slow Food and Live From NY’s 92nd St Y. Organizers felt the separation of programs into distinct series better illustrated the wide range of topics covered by the Symposium and hope that the division will make the selection process easier for attendees. Still, you’re bound to find something rewarding in each of the eight series and trying (at least) one of each is strongly encouraged. Variety is, after all, the spice of life.

Hot Topics will feature renowned experts addressing issues of national and international import. The Symposium kicks off its winter season Thursday January 3 with one of these “hot topics” as Dr. Jordan Metzl, a sports medicine practitioner, addresses, among other things, the drug culture in American sports. Lingering questions about the Mitchell Report? Stop by Sonnenalp and ask Dr. Metzl. Unlimited Adventures, one of the Symposium’s free series, invites courageous individuals that have pushed their bodies and minds to the limits to share their amazing accomplishments. Arts and Culture features tours of some of the finest individual art collections in the Valley as well as workshops covering everything from the classics like painting and poetry to the exquisite art of bonsai pruning. The Documentary Film Series, also known as the Beaver Creek Film Series, will feature three outstanding films at VPAC followed by discussions with acclaimed critic Walter Chaw. In both the summer and the winter, the Film Series has consistently been our favorite program. The Vail Symposium has a real knack for picking terrific, oftentimes unheard of films and Walter Chaw’s discussions are always rewarding.

Active Minds, another of the Symposium’s free programs, offers an impartial introduction to on a variety of historical, social, political and religious subjects, and while this series is geared toward seniors all are welcome to attend. Know Your Valley may be the most self-explanatory, yet most adventurous of the Symposium series. Enjoy a behind the scenes look at Vail and Beaver Creek mountains or a guided tour of Camp Hale with a 10th Mountain Division veteran. Slow Food focuses history and revolutionaries in the fields of livestock and produce. Hear cattle industry maverick Mel Coleman Jr. speak about lobbying for reforms in the ‘70s or attend an heirloom vegetable workshop with master gardener Susan Mackin Dolan. You’ll be thinking differently about what’s for dinner. Live From NY’s 92nd St Y features some of the world’s finest minds, from Dr. Madeline Albright to Richard Sonnenfeldt, at Vail Interfaith Chapel, live via satellite.

Wherever your interests lie, there really is no wrong choice as the Vail Symposium has assembled another formidable line-up for the 2008 winter season.

For a complete schedule, check www.vailsymposium.org. For inquiries or to sign up for a program, call 970-476-0954.

Fond memories of the Vail Symposium’s past programs? Share them here, and please enjoy Plum’s coverage of the 2007 Symposium’s Unlimited Adventures series featuring Pasquale Scaturro.

Klaus Obermeyer, the genius and inspiration behind the Obermeyer clothing line, talks about his early history in Vail, his first pairs of skis and the birth of his clothing line.

Dick Hauserman, Vail's first citizen, shares a collection of stories from the town's first years of existence. This vignette highlights the golf academy founded by Dick Hauserman and his partner Arnold Palmer.

Dick Hauserman, Vail's first citizen, shares a collection of stories from the town's first years of existence. This vignette highlights the first time Dick met astronaut Scott Carpenter.