Semple: Wintersköl mirrors Aspen’s heart and soul

Lorenzo Semple, Aspen Daily News Columnist • Jan 21,2023

After experiencing the exhilarating Air Force Marching Band, a savory spirited Soupsköl and a vibe-filled Wintersköl last week, I can’t help but think that Aspen might just be ready for a reboot of the good ol’ Wintersköl parade.

It’s the prescription that Dr. Feelgood needs to fill the syringe to be jammed into Aspen’s crêpe-y skin and varicose veins. Let’s show the world, and more importantly ourselves, how funky and irreverent we actually are. More celebrating, less commiserating.

Aspen losing its soul? Pfft. Get real. Not on our watch!

There are two other events we need to resuscitate, thereby fulfilling a prophetic trifecta of prized Wintersköl lunacy: The Snow Motocross and the Ski Splash. I

mention this harebrained scheme now, because really good events take a year to plan. And here’s the other thing: We have the time. We’re not going anywhere.

Don’t tell me this town ain’t got no heart. A spirited Wintersköl this year proved otherwise. My senses were buoyed by the youthfulness I witnessed — young adult locals full of character who reminded me of myself years ago, carrying the torch and corpse of Aspen’s past through the present into the future.

First things first. The Wintersköl parade could conceivably take place next year on Saturday, maybe after skiing, perhaps lavishly billed as the “Grand Aspen Apres Parade.” I think it’s important for people who participate in the parade to have the opportunity to ski during the day, and imaginably more spectators would come as well — maybe even from as far away as Snowmass. Include a canine fashion parade. Tie it in with Soupsköl. Ask Budweiser to bring the Clydesdales back.

Forget Main Street. Start it in front of the Mother Lode heading east, past the fire station, up Galena and around

, and end at the old Boogie’s. This is the classic Aspen High School loop-scoop route. After the parade, a coveted, select section of the route turns into a raucous Soupsköl street party with bands and a beer garden.

Next: The Wintersköl Snow Motocross. It was one of my favorite events as a kid, because we grew up riding BMX bikes and dirt bikes all over town and Smuggler Mountain. The sloppy slushy event was at the city snow pile-impound lot where the recycling center is now. The course was a snowy, muddy mess. Now we have a gigantic city snow pile by Aspen Animal Shelter, with a snowcat there to create. Just think of the insane track they could make out there. I think this would be a wildly successful reboot, as there are more gearheads and moto-maniacs in town now than ever before. Tons of dirt bikers would come up from downvalley for the fun, truly making it a valleywide event. Ah, the smell of two-cycle oil and gas burning in the morning — smells like Wintersköl! Dig around a bit and you’ll find that Aspen has a fascinating history with motorcycle and car races over the years. They used to jump bicycles from a steep ramp into Hallam Lake, for Christ’s sake.

Finally, the third and finishing prong of the Wintersköl trident, the Ski Splash. If we as a community can’t band together, do some rigorous soul searching, start location scouting and find a venue to host a triumphant reboot of the heralded Ski Splash, then we really are struggling. If I were a developer — thank God for the town’s well-being I’m not — I would propose a permanent Ski Splash venue with my next grandiose, garish slope-side monstrosity. The mere utterance of such a nostalgic proposal would strum so dangerously hard on our tender heartstrings, it would surely gain government approval in a heartbeat and expedited construction would begin immediately. If we can’t find a pool to jump into, we could always settle for a pond skim somewhere. If that fails, then perhaps we could jump into an inflatable baby pool.

Everything’s a liability these days, apparently. No more this, no more that, it’s too dangerous. Is it really?

I was at a bar/restaurant in Cave Creek, Arizona, called the Buffalo Chip, and you could get in a ring and ride a live bull. “Hey, hold my beer while I ride a bull!” Can doing snow motocross possibly be any more dangerous than riding an irritated, sweating live bull after eating a plate of barbecue? There must be a wily lawyer among us who could make an indemnifying legalese pretzel permitting this type of tomfoolery.

I’m still kicking myself in the nuts for not participating in the torchlight parade. I’m too old and can’t stay up that late. Next year I promise to ski in the event — that should be a mandatory local litmus test in order to obtain your 100-day pin. (By the way, I was standing at the turnstile the other day and saw someone who scanned his pass and left without riding the lift. There should be a section in the paper with pictures of people who do that.)

I’d like to personally thank the Aspen Chamber Resort Association, along with everyone who planned, attended and contributed to this year’s Wintersköl. From the catchy slogan by Amanda Rae Busch to the last gondola ride up Ajax on Sunday, Wintersköl was a huge hit.