Aspen Sports Summit

Aspen is one of the fittest towns in the World.   Locals around here take their sporting lives very seriously. It's been said that in Aspen...there is no recreational division.  

Click 4 Pix:  ASPEN SPORTS SUMMIT

The Aspen Sports Summit brought together health, fitness and sports medicine professionals from across America to educate and inform athletes of all shapes and sizes.  Presented by Bill Fabrocini and The Aspen Club, The Aspen Sports Summit (website) was an educational event attended by a wide variety of participants. Leaders from all facets of the fitness industry were on hand as speakers, coaches and participants.   The Aspen Sports Summit provided continuing education credits for professional fitness trainers and physical therapists.  The line-up of speakers was phenomenal including M.D.'s, pro athletes and movement experts. It was a hands on conference with plenty of opportunities to stretch it out and try new exercises. Fabrocini and his fellow presenters made it clear that posture and movement are key elements in getting the maximum performance out of your body and preventing injuries.  Click here to see the list of speakers. 

The event was held at the posh Doerr-Hosier Center on the Campus of The Aspen Institute.  In addition to the mission of education, Aspen Sports Summit raised funds and awareness for it's philanthropic partners MERCY & SHARING and THE MARSHALL DIRECT FUND.    Mercy and sharing works with kids in Haiti, while Marshall Direct  educates and empowers women in 3rd world countries.

By all measures, Aspen Sports Summit was a rousing success.  Education with Mission...the stated objective of the conference was exceeded.  Attendees learned about the human body, the philosophy and science behind an effective exercise and fitness routine and how important that is to leading a full and productive life.  The flow of information and the sharing of ideas was front and center at Aspen Sports Summit.

Thanks to Bill Fabrocini and The Aspen Club for providing a great forum to learn and grow.  We are already looking forward to next year.   

Click 4 Pix:  ASPEN SPORTS SUMMIT

The Wapiyapi Classic in Aspen.

There is no better feeling than seeing unrestrained joy on the face of a sick kid. 

WAPIYAPI is a Colorado organization that offers help and support to families facing childhood cancer.  Since 1998 Wapiyapi has provided no cost programs to kids with cancer and their families.  Wapiyapi is a Lakota Sioux word which means help and healing. Founded by University of Colorado Medical Students, Wapiyapi and more than 300 volunteers have provided year-round support to more than 1500 kids.

Click 4 pix:  Wapyapi Classic

The 2011 Wapiyapi Classic, a fundraiser and a bicycle ride recently took place in Aspen with a special guest leading the pack, 7-time Tour-de-France winner Lance Armstrong.  With 50 mile and 25 mile options and a picture perfect Fall day, the Wapiyapi Classic was a rousing success as more than 200 riders partook in the awesomeness.  The 20 top Wapiyapi fundraisers got to start their ride with Lance, although he eventually pulled away from the peloton to finish his 50 mile segment well ahead of anyone else.

Aspen Spin got to meet some of the Wapiyapi kids and their families.  It was obvious that a week at Wapiyapi Summer Camp was the highlight of the year for most of the kids.  We kept hearing how good it felt to be a "normal kid" and to participate in a wide variety of activities "just like the other kids".  If you've ever attended summer camp then you know about the camaraderie that develops between the campers.  Recurring themes kept popping up...color war, talent show, arts and crafts and clearly the most important memory for most of the kids...the zip line.  These kids spend a lot of time in hospital, so to get outside for a week of fun and activities with kids "just like me" is extrememly meaningful and a tremendous aid in healing.

Healing occurs in a variety of ways, not just with doctors and medicine.  At Wapiyapi, building friendships, gaining new experiences, bonding with others all contribute to the process.  Riding bikes with Lance Armstrong is part of the program too. 

Click WAPIYAPI to learn more and to support their programs. 

Click: Wapiyapi Classic for more photos.

Getting ready for the 2011 Wapiyapi Classic with Lance Armstrong. Click 4 more pix.The top fundraiser collected $17,000. She rode w/ Lance.The Wapiyapi Classic 2011 in Aspen, Colorado. Click for pix.

Ski,Stretch and Ice

Cold One Ice TherapyEveryone thinks skiing every day and partying every night is such a cake job.  They assume it's a no brainer and all we do is snarf POW and meet tons of models and other beautiful people.  YES, AspenSpin does make it look easy, but in reality its a very difficult job.  Sure the perq.s are pretty good, but the side effects can kill. 

Being on the mountain for over 100 days a season can be tough on your body.  Extended time in ski boots can wreak havoc on your feet. Plantar Fasciitis, hammer toe are occupational hazzards.  The Winnebago sized moguls on Aspen Mountain can make your knees weak.   Up and down all day,  every day, launching accidental airs on the Ridge of Bell and so forth. 

 The Aspen Club and Cold One have kept AspenSpin in the game all season. The pros at The Aspen Club have devised a custom program of exercises and stretches that promote strength and flexibility.  We've been doing them religiously all season.  The folks at COLD ONE turned us on to Ice Compression Therapy.  Every day...we ski, we stretch and we ice.  Cold One makes it easy with their fitted, re-freezeable compression wraps.  The cold therapy has been quite helpful combating muscle pain and soft tissue issues.  Cold One gives us a complete solution for Icing.   You can benefit from our experience and get a special AspenSpin discount of 10%.   Click COLD ONE and enter the code ASPIN2011.

It been a great season so far.  Stretching and Icing have helped make it pain free.

 

 

Aspen:The Fittest Town in the World with Rip-Core /FX

Aspenites take their fitness training very seriously.  To fully embrace the Mountain Lifestyle in Aspen, one has to be in shape and be ready to hike, bike, climb and ski all year long. The Aspen Club is one of the most progressive and well respected fitness facilities on the globe. Its not unusual to see World Class athletes at The Aspen Club working out or re-habbing.  Lance Armstrong, Matina Navratilova, David Robinson and Alex Rodriguez choose The Aspen Club to get (or stay) in shape.  Regular folks work out at The Aspen Club too, its not just Olympians and Professional Athletes ---although the gym at The Aspen Club is a good place to find the pros.   

Bill and Pete prep the group for Rip-Core/FX Innovation met motivation at The Aspen Club recently with the official launch of RIP-CORE/FX a new training tool and fitness technique developed right here in Aspen.  RIP-CORE/FX is a simple yet effective fitness method that focuses on spinal stability, core fitness and functional strength.  Rip-Core looks easy, but after a 20 minute mini-session led by Olympic medalist Chris Klug,the sweat was flowing heavily.  About 60 people worked out with Rip-Core at the launch event at the Aspen Club.  Rip-Core/FX allows for 3 dimentional exercise, keeping one's spine in a neutral position at all times.  Rip-Core builds strength, flexibility, stability, balance and power---- all you need to supply is the athletic talent. 

Bill Fabrocini and Pete Holman the guys behind Rip-Core/FXInvented by world renown physical therapist Bill Fabrocini and former Tae Kwon-do National Champ Pete Holman --both Aspen Locals,  Rip-Core/ Fx is poised to take off.  The equipment is highly portable, so its easy to take on the road and with a wide variety of Rip-Core excercises you can get a full body work-out in a very short time. 

To learn more, click  RIP-CORE/ FX  or inquire at The Aspen Club. RIP-CORE will be coming soon to your neighborhood gym.  You don't have to be an Olympian,  but RIP-CORE can help you train like one. 

 Bronze Medalist and 2-time Olympian Chris Klug leads a group session with RIP-CORE/FX X-Games Gold Medalist Peter Olenick getting ready to rip with RIP-CORE/ FX RIP-CORE/FX can help anyone gain strength, flexibility and power.

The RIP-Core / FX dream team. Michael David Cook, Chris Klug and Pete Holman.

The first group class at the Rip-Core/FX Launch at The Aspen Club

Aspen Club's Michael Fox and Rip-Core's Bill Fabrocini and Bianca Holman enjoyed the successful launch event for RIP-CORE/FX

Could Andy-Party's core get any more ripped? Doubtful.