Ear to the ground  

“Alcohol is like a bad boyfriend. It treats me like crap, but I keep going back for more.”

– A local woman on the perils of partying

Fashionably late

The year 1982 has officially returned to the ski hill. Day-glo ski gear is back in style, and neons are popping up in lift lines all over the country.

Beth Pappas, a sales associate with Orage ski wear, told theSummit Daily News that the 2010-11 ski season is sure to be a bright one. Skiers and boarders can expect wide swaths of “glacier blues and mauves,” a surge in “1980s lime green” and the return of “skinny pants,” that bastion of fashion before function. The one-piece suit is also making a comeback as skiers reach deep into the wardrobe and resurrect their old Eurobags.

Professional athletes are helping push this return to the bright ages, according to The Associated Press. Snowboarders Torah Bright and Gretchen Bleiler and skiers Sarah Bruke and Lindsey Vonn have all embraced the “trendy touches” of yesteryear.

The snow bunny has also climbed back out of its deep, dark hole and is returning to the corduroy. Sarah DeStefano, of Aspen, argued that the look has really never gone out of style (at least in Aspen and Vail).

“They’re just very sexy looking,” she told theSummit Daily News. “The whole outfit matches, fur around hood, gloves match their outfit, it’s tightly fitted.”

Luckily for Durango, ski fashion is also very regional. While neons, Montcler one-pieces and snow bunnies have officially overrun areas like Snowmass and Vail, the movement has not been catching on as quickly in the Southwest. Skiers in areas like Telluride, Durango and Crested Butte are still wearing outerwear with a backcountry focus, according to Pappas.

“Vail and Aspen come across as more fashionable overall,” she said.

Beetles for Christmas

Bark beetles are playing the part of Scrooge this year. Christmas tree permits are off limits to Summit County residents as the Forest Service has put a block on the holiday tradition for safety concerns.

Because of the bark beetle epidemic, most of the lodgepole pine in Summit County has died or is dying. A sea of standing dead trees is what’s left of the scourge, and lodgepole pine is notoriously shallow rooted.

To ensure that none fall on would-be St. Nicks out cutting trees for Christmas, the Forest Service is not selling any permits this year. The forest also needs more time to recover before it finds its way into various great rooms in Breckenridge, Keystone and Copper Mountain.