Summit Voice: Most-view & weekend headlines

Posted on May 29, 2012 by Bob Berwyn

Crime, wildfires and climate …

Week in review.

The roundup is sponsored Trippons. Click the logo to find E-coupons for your mountain town.

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY — A short initial story about a rare local murder was the most-viewed story of the past week, followed by reports on regional wildfire and stories about last week’s solar eclipse. Google searches and Google News referrals were the big traffic drivers, along with a decent number of referrals from Facebook and Twitter.

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Top stories, weekend headlines

Posted on October 25, 2010 by Bob Berwyn

Moonrise over the Rockies.

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY — For the first time, one of the Summit Voice daily photoblogs topped the list of most-viewed stories over the weekend. The photo essay described the challenges of taking moonrise pictures while looking after a pesky pre-teen and walking a frisky dog.Other top stories included the weatherblog announcing the first winter storm warnings and watches of the year, and another report that showed how scientists are tracking global warming impacts to Colorado‘s alpine flora. Click on the headlines to read the stories and share them with the social media buttons at the end of the post.

Here are some of the weekend headlines:

Skiing: The Hausberg

Ski season under way in Colorado

Euro travel: Frisbee, fussball and self-cleaning toilets

Warming Arctic pushing jet stream farther south

Roan Plateau drilling plan heading back to court

Ophir Mountain logging aims at long-term forest health

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Mountain News: 100 years of yodeling

Posted on May 15, 2010 by Bob Berwyn

Researchers are investigating the cause of a dwindling moose population in the Jackson Hole area. PHOTO COURTESY THE COLORADO DIVISION OF WILDLIFE.

147 avalanche deaths in the Alps

We’re starting this week’s mountain news roundup in the Alps, where PlanetSki reports that 147 people died in avalanches this past winter. It may sound like a high number compared to the totals in Colorado and the U.S. but it’s fairly close to average for a European winter. The biggest number of avalanche deaths for the season, 37, well above the average annual death toll of 26. In Switzerland, 28 people died in avalanches. One trend that bears watching is the increased number of avalanche deaths among ski professionals. An unusual number of guides and rescue workers were caught in slides in the Alps this winter, according to PlanetSki. Get more details here.

100 years of yodeling
On a happier Alpine note, PlanetSki is also reporting that the Swiss yodeling Association is celebrating its centennial this year. There will be yodeling festivals and competitions, no doubt, and while the very thought of yodeling is annoying to some people, to others, it’s an indispensable part of Alpine folklore. And if the traditional version of yodeling doesn’t do it for you, the Swiss band Sonalp incorporates an updated brand of the ululating vocalization in its World Music repertoire. Check out the PlanetSki story here and watch this YouTube video for some Swiss folk-punk, which includes Alphorns being played like didgeridoos.

Retreating glaciers
The latest reports are in and they show that 91 percent of Austria’s glaciers retreated  last year, with some of them receding as much as 150 feet. Some of the biggest shrinkages occurred in the Tyrolean mountains, where glaciers are an iconic part of the cultural landscape. Austrians have taken climate change very seriously for quite a while, knowing that some their essential cultural fabric is based on a connection with the mountains. Rising summer temperatures are cited as the main cause for the glacier retreat. Read more …

Much more, including news about skiing in Bulgaria and dwindling moose populations in Jackson Hole, after the break … (more…)

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Mountain news roundup: San Miguel goes solar

Posted on May 6, 2010 by Bob Berwyn

Mountain news from around the world each week at Summit Voice.

Steamboat sales tax revenue down, Durango impact fees delayed and late-season skiing in France and Scotland

Less Taser action in Wyoming

Our weekly spin around the mountains this week begins in Wyoming, where the Jackson Hole News & Guide reports that local law enforcement agencies have modified their Taser policies to disallow their use to force compliance by people who do not pose an immediate threat.

The change comes after an April 7 incident in which a Jackson police officer attempted to arrest a man and then used the Taser to stun him when he resisted. The News & Guide reports that Jackson Police Chief Todd Smith said that use of Tasers  will no longer be allowed if suspects are not physically aggressive toward officers. Read the rest of the story here.

Richest county?
The News & Guide is also reporting that Teton County is the “richest” county in the country, with the highest adjusted gross income — $142,048 — per tax return for 2008, the latest year available, according to the IRS. The U.S. average was $55,361. Wyoming’s average was $62,077. The next wealthiest county after Teton is Fairfield County, Conn., location of the town of Danbury. Adjusted income per return in that location was $118,286 for 2008. Lowest in the U.S. was Douglas County, Mo., at $18,262.

Steamboat sales tax revenue down
Steamboat Springs is seeing some ups and downs in sales tax revenue, according to the Steamboat Pilot, which reported that, after an encouraging February, March sales tax figures dropped by about 8 percent — the lowest level since 2004. The year-to-date total for the first quarter of 2010 is lagging about 5.5 percent behind an-already dismal 2009, but within the city’s budgeted 10 percent projected decline for 2010. The Pilot reported that the area’s lodging industry continued to struggle, with March revenue dropping 10.8 percent after an 11.5 decline in February. The decline in tax revenues has lasted for 19 months in Steamboat, dating back to August 2008, the last time monthly revenues showed an increase from the previous year. Read the story here. (more…)

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Mountain news: Trophy home in national park?

Posted on April 20, 2010 by Bob Berwyn

Mountain town headlines and links delivered weekly in Summit Voice in the mountain news roundup.

Sage grouse conservation in Wyoming, Olympic luge death final report and a Tom Chapman in this week’s mountain town headlines

Construction down in Aspen

The Aspen Daily News reports that all aspects of the building industry have declined during the recession, including the average value of building permits, from $800,000 in 2007 at the peak of the bubble to only $166,698 this year to-date. Building officials said they’re no longer seeing pie-in-the-sky speculation, but more remodeling jobs. The total amount of building, electrical, mechanical and plumbing permits is  averaging 62 per month, down from a high of 176 per month in 2007 and 116 last year. The story goes on to describe impacts to the Aspen economy, along with interviews with local builders. Get the details here.

Property rights in Telluride?
The Telluride Daily Planet caught up with notorious land speculator Tom Chapman, known for buying private land like mining claims surrounded by national forest land and then selling them or trading them for a profit. In his latex move, Chapman bought a series of mining claims bordering Telluride ski area terrain, and said he won’t permit skiing on those parcels. In a rare interview, Chapman describes himself as a staunch advocate for private property rights, “evening things out” with the federal government. He claims that Telluride in particular, and Colorado in general, don’t respect private property rights. Kudos to the Telluride paper for nabbing the interview. It’s a great read.

Chapman redux
Meanwhile, the Telluride Watch ran another story on Chapman’s plans to build a 25,000 square-foot home on the highest point within the boundaries of Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park. To be clear, the home is to be built on a private inholding in the park. The Telluride Watch story describes some of Chapman’s previous inholding developments, including construction of a log cabin on an inholding in the West Elk Wilderness near Paonia. He stopped construction of the cabin after negotiating a land trade with the Forest Service for 105 acres near Telluride. He later sold that property for more than $4 million. Park officials said there’s little they can do, while public land advocates accused Chapman of manipulation. Read the full story in the Watch here.

More mountain headlines and links after the break … (more…)

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Mountain news: Steamboat voters say no to 700 plan

Posted on March 22, 2010 by Bob Berwyn

Burton won't be making any more boards in the U.S. after June. The company announced it will lay off 43 workers and move remaining production overseas.

Burton shuts down U.S. production, Aspen-area mountain bikers split over wilderness and Telluride eyes guided skiing in Bear Creek

Steamboat voters nix massive development plan

This week’s mountain news roundup starts in Steamboat Springs, where voters rejected a huge annexation and development proposal by a 61 to 39 percent margin. The Steamboat 700 annexation would have added 700 acres of land to the west side of the city, slated for development of up to 2,200 homes, including hundreds of deed-restricted units.
Nearly two-thirds of Steamboat’s registered voters returned their mail-in ballots after a fierce David versus Goliath campaign in which proponents of the annexation spent more than $100,000, while the grassroots opposition spent less than $10,000.

The Steamboat City Council had previously approved the plan. The no vote throws the development question back into the hands of Routt County, since the project developers said they won’t try to revamp the negotiated annexation agreement with the city. Read the full story at Steamboatpilot.com.

2022 Denver Olympics?
Colorado Independent writer and Vail resident Dave Williams offers an insider look at some Olympic history — and the potential for a Denver Olympic bid in the future. Williams has reported on several Olympics, including Torino 2006 and the most recent Vancouver games, which he calls a golden global fleece job for Canada. The total cost of $6 billion means that each of Canada’s 14 gold medals cost $430 million.

He says cost will also be an issue for the next host city, Sochi, which is planning to invest $7.6 billion in infrastructure this year alone. Williams says he expects those games to be a disaster, and goes on to compare operations at several recent Olympic venues. His multi-part series on a potential Olympic bid will be continued in the Independent. Click here to read part one and to sign up for the follow-up stories.

Burton moves board production to Asia and Europe
The Burlington Free Press reports that Burton will close its Vermont snowboard factory in June, moving production to Austria and Asia, thereby costing 43 jobs.

The company will only continue to build a relatively small number of prototypes in the U.S. Those boards will not be available for sale to the general public. Burton execs said it costs them more to build boards in Vermont than they can be sold for, with labor, utility and real estate costs being key factors. Burton CEO Laurent Potdevin said manufacturing costs are much lower in Austria.

According to the Free Press, most of Burton’s boards have long been built outside the U.S. with only 7 percent of the total production taking place in Vermont in recent years. Burton’s top-line boards will now be built in Uttendorf, Austria.

Read the rest of the roundup after the break. (more…)

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Mountain news roundup: Is the Matterhorn falling apart?

Posted on March 8, 2010 by Bob Berwyn

Swiss researchers are studying melting permafrost that has resulted in more frequent rockfalls on the famed Matterhorn. PHOTO COURTESY OF THE ZERMATT TOURIST OFFICE.

Telluride announces Bluegrass lineup, Aspen locals debate pass prices and Scottish skiers set a record for kilt (not kite) skiing …

Swiss debate avalanche penalties
We start our weekly mountain news roundup with a trio of stories from PlanetSki, a Euro-based web site reporting with excellent reporting from the Alps. A PlanetSki correspondent based in Zermatt reported that Swiss authorities  are considering pressing charges against off-piste skiers who triggered avalanches that subsequently ran across marked ski trails. According to the story, Swiss law already includes provisions for prosecuting skiers in those situations.

Two recent avalanche incidents prompted renewed discussion about the measures in the Swiss media. The first was at Anzere, near Crans Montana, where a party of three off-piste skiers triggered a slide that hit two other skiers on a marked trail. They were unhurt. Most recently, a group of snowboarders in Zermatt triggered a slide that ran from outside the ski area boundary back on to a marked trail. In both cases, the off-piste skiers have been questioned by police.

Kilted at Cairgorn
PlanetSki is also reporting that a group of 235 kilt-wearing skiers at Scotland’s Cairngorn resort set a new record for the largest number kilted skiers and snowboarders to gather together for a run. Check out the post, which includes some great pictures and video. The gathering was to help celebrate the best conditions Scotland ski areas have seen in quite some time, and to raise money for charity and school ski program.

Read the rest of our roundup after the break. (more…)

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Mountain news: Inbounds avalanche death at Sun Valley

Posted on January 24, 2010 by Bob Berwyn

PHOTO COURTESY SAWTOOTH NATIONAL FOREST AVALANCHE CENTER. A slide running out of a gladed area killed a skier at Sun Valley Friday. The victim was found in the trees above the person visible in the photo. The avalanche extended above the trees near the top of the photo.

Inbounds avalanche death at Sun Valley

New West is reporting that a 54-year-old Ketchum man was killed Friday by an in-bounds avalanche on Sun Valley’s Bald Mountain. Sun Valley Resort officials said rescue workers found the skier in a slide below Fire Trail Lane above Lower Broadway. CPR was started and the skier was transported to St. Luke’s Wood River Medical Center. The avalanche danger was rated high by the Sawtooth National Forest Avalanche Center. Read the full New West story here.

Swiss two-fer at Hahnenkamm

PlanetSki’s reporting from the famed Hahnenkamm race in Kitzbühel, Austria includes some video links, with the big news being that Swiss veteran Didier Cuche, 35, won both the downhill and the Super-G. Bode Miller was an also-ran on the Streif, placing 17th. Check out the PlanetSki report here.

Outdoor Retailer report
The Salt Lake Tribune did some in-depth reporting from the Outdoor Retailer Winter Show, where retailers, travel providers and gear manufacturers are all reporting some hopeful signs that business may be looking up in the year ahead. Some vendors reported strong orders and a general sense of optimism at the show. According to the Tribune story, Black Diamond president Peter Metcalf said buyers are looking to build up their inventory as they expect consumer interest to grow. Read the story here.

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