Killington Peak - basking emerald green in the August sun. 

....thinking about what to do this weekend?

There really isn't any other choice... Killington and the Green Mountains are just resplendent in August. And there is a lot "to do". On the mountain, the "Cooler in the Mountains" series features Vermont based jam band Twiddle. The concert starts at 3:30 on Saturday at the K1 Base Lodge.

The Circus is also in town.....no not the clowns who represent us in Washington. Thankfully they are all in Iowa this weekend. No it's "Circus Smirkus" at Pico Mountain with shows on Sunday and Monday. "Circus Smirkus", now in its 23 year, is a traveling youth circus designed to inspire young people to engage in life-changing adventures.

This weekend is also the 50th birthday of "Art in the Park" hosted by the Chaffee Art Center in Main Street Park in Rutland. The Chaffee Art Center was built by George Thrail Chaffee, the eponymous great grand father to the skier Suzy Chaffee. "Art in the Park" brings artists from all over the north country to Rutland to show their work in a juried exhibition. Roughly 80 artists working in all different types of media and materials will be on hand for "Art in the Park".

And of course, if you want something a little more participatory than attending a concert, a circus, of an art show...the mountain with its peaceful hiking trails awaits. Or you can chase the little white ball down the fairways on any of the 18 golf courses within a 30 minute drive of Killington...or paddle a kayak on Kent Pond...or...

So much to do... so little time. Where ever you may be, keep it in the fairway, and don't forget your sun screen!

Are you spartan tough? 

About 2000 competitors are heading towards Killington this weekend to participate in the first of its kind "Spartan Beast Race" at Killington.

For a little background, the Spartan Race Series is an offshoot of the popular "Death Race" held each year at Aimee Farm in Pittsfield VT. The concept is for competitors to be challenged by a obstacle course where personal injury risks are non-zero. In theory, it requires physical endurance, plus some brain power, to solve the course.

How the Spartan Race will play out at Killington is anyones guess as it is the first time for the event. Race officials are creating obstacles which are visible all over the mountain. Ranging from simple barriers to mud pits and more, modern day Spartans will be in for a challenge just running up and down the slopes of Killington.

In addition to the Spartans taking over the mountain, the "Cooler In the Mountains" Concert series features "Badfish, a tribute to sublime" this weekend. The concert starts at 3:30 PM at the K1 Base Lodge.

It all should make for an interesting weekend at Killington.

Where ever you may be, keep it in the fairway, and don't forget your sun screen!

News about the Town of Killington 

Monday night Killington voters made history! A broad coalition of voters, for the second time in as many months, decided to change how future matters of town government will be decided.... by the ballot box.

Killington, like all towns in Vermont, is governed by a Town Meeting concept. Since being incorporated 250 years ago, Killington has held an annual town meeting where citizens get together and discuss/vote on town issues. Votes were taken "from the floor". A citizen needed to be in attendance, otherwise they could not vote. It did not matter if you were a fireman out saving someone's life, a member of the military defending people lives, or just some working adult trying to make a living. If you were not in attendance, you did not have the right to vote on any town issue.

And now that has all changed.

Over a series of 3 floor votes taken in the gymnasium of the Killington Elementary School, citizens of the town decided that future votes on the town budget, articles/initiatives up for consideration at town meeting, and elected officials will now all be done using an "Australian Ballot" , better know as "Secret Ballot", system.

At a special town meeting in May, Killington voters had initially approved using an Australian Ballot to decide future town issues. However, as allowed by Vermont Statutes, that vote was formally challenged by 48 voters, who petitioned Killington's Selectboard to bring the decision up for reconsideration. As the number of citizens requesting reconsideration was greater than 5% of the registered voters in town, and since the matter was one of town governance, the Selectboard was required to call a separate special town meeting to reconsider the matter.

Once again, the majority of town voters in attendance agreed that changing the way voting is conducted in Killington was the right and proper thing to do. By a vote of 164 to 79, voters agreed that town budgets should be approved based upon Australian Ballot. By a vote of 162 to 69, voters agreed that all public questions should be decided by Australian Ballot. By the time the 3rd vote took place, the moderator called for a voice vote which approved future elections of town officials to be conducted by Australian Ballot.

The vote was historic for a number of reasons. Clearly, changing how voting is conducted makes history. But also, the tenor of the town as exemplified by those who attended the meeting was one of moderation. A broad coalition of working people, business people, and retired people all came together to do the right thing and make sure that every citizen in Killington has the right to vote on town governance. How that right will be exercised in the next 250 years of Killington is anyones guess. But at least Killington residents are now truly free to participate as full town citizens, no matter where they may be on town meeting day.

Where ever you may be, keep it in the fairway, and don't forget your sun screen!

Killington Peak - major changes underway 

Summer time is always a period at Killington where change takes place. During the winter season the attentiveness to guests required by the level of business in the area, combined with the winter elements, make any substantive changes problematic. But in the summertime, while the mass of humanity is watching "Shark Week" on the Discovery Channel from their beach houses on Cape Cod, the Hamptons, of the Jersey Shore, changes take place in Killington.

In April, the Killington Resort announced their plans to replace the aging building on Killington Peak. The building was originally constructed as a Gondola Station, but more recently used as a base lodge and restaurant (although it is at 4200 feet) serving typical resort hamburger cuisine. Mother Nature and peoples tastes ravaged the building. Rightfully so, the Killington Resort recognized that change was required. And change we shall have.

Over the last 2 weeks, work crews have been taking aim at the peak lodge with various tools suited for high altitude demolition. This last week, after stripping the inside of the building of it's contents, the process began to tear down the building. The face of Killington will be forever changed. (My friend over at "Tales from a Female Ski Bum" has some good pictures of the demolition, if you are interested in the seeing the entrails of the Peak Lodge building being carted away for recycling.)

Killington Peak over the years. Click image to stop rotation. Click again to resume rotation.

Or course, change is important.... and in the case of the Killington Peak Lodge it is down right necessary. But while I was looking through some of the photos I have taken over the years we have lived in Killington, it hit me that a familiar icon that I have lived beside for a significant portion of my adult life, is undergoing a transition that will change it forever. The millions of photos that people have taken of Killington Peak since it became a major east coast destination ski resort over 50 years ago will now be "nostalgic" and "historic" versus "contemporary".

And I am ok with that.

It will be an interesting process over the next couple of years watching the landscape of Killington Peak being reshaped to a new vision which will dominate the local area for the next 50 years. The familiar will become the new. We will adapt as a new normal is being established.

The above photo gallery of Killington Peak is but a fraction of the pictures I have in my library. I hope you enjoy.

Where every you may be...stay cool, don't forget your sunscreen, and keep it in the fairway!

Flowers on the bridge on hole 6 at Green Mountain National Golf Course. 

Every year at this time I feel like I should be wearing a tee shirt with some pithy comment on it about Killington in July. For the last 9 months I had been working on the planning activities for last weekends Killington Wine Festival. No matter how much planning takes place, June and early July are crunch time for me leading up to the event. But it's done (for this year) and I have my "life" back for a few months, so to speak.

Along that note, I actually had the chance to play golf 3 days in a row. Sunday was the closing event for the Wine Festival, "Wine and Nine". Monday I played my first round in Green Mountain Nationals Presidents Cup (I beat my opponent 4 and 2). And Tuesday I had a chance for a casual round with friends.

Green Mountain National is in fantastic shape. The course has dried out nicely from the spring rains. The preparation for last months AJGA tournament kept the greens keepers on their toes to really manicure the course. Now that they have got it that way, it is pretty clear that they are determined to keep it that way. With the height of summer in the mix, flowers are in bloom all around the course. And if you hit an errant shot, you might still be able to find some wild blackberries in the woods, that is of course assuming the wild life in the Green Mountain National Forest around the course have not picked the berry bushes clean.

In addition to golf, Killington this coming weekend hosts the Eastern Cup Mountain Biking Competition with a series of downhill mountain bike races. The "Cooler in the Mountain" Concert series, after a great opening concert by Sean Kelly at the Wine Festival, continues this weekend with Ilo Ferreira, a Jimmy Buffet Protege and Barefoot Truth. The concert starts at 3:30 on Saturday. I have included links to their web sites. Check out some of their music.... It should be a great concert.

Where ever you may find yourself, stay cool, keep it in the fairway, and don't forget your sunscreen.

80 cases of wine waiting to be opened at this weekends Grand Tasting at the Killington Wine Festival 

The tent is pitched, the wine is delivered, guests are in route to Killington.... as I write this we are 2 hours away from the start of the 10 Annual Killington Wine Festival.

The festival kicks off this evening at the Killington Grand Hotel with an Estate Tasting of Fine Wines in Ovations Restaurant. The Estate Tasting runs from 6 to 8PM. It is followed by a "Pop Goes the Cork" party at the Killington Grand, beginning at 7:30 PM tonight.

At the K1 Base Lodge, final preparations have been made to host the Grand Tasting on Saturday afternoon. 80 cases of wine have been delivered for sampling. Tables have been set up under the tent. The Grand Tasting is open to the public at 12 noon with VIP tickets priced at $75 at the gate. General Admission begins at 1 PM with tickets available at the gate for $55. The Grand Tasting ends at 4 PM.

At the Grand Tasting, musical guest Sean Kelly from the Samples will be performing 2 sets. The first will start at 2:00 PM. The second will begin roughly at 4:00 PM.

If you are attending tomorrows Grand Tasting at K1, dress for comfort and , as they say, where sensible shoes. It should be a great afternoon of wine tasting and music at the base of Killington.

And last, but not least, at the Birch Ridge Inn Chef Frizzie is busy putting on the finishing touches on his "mise en place" to prepare for tomorrow nights wine dinner at the inn with Boyden Valley Winery. We have a great menu in place...I'm getting hungry (really a little thirsty) already!

Stay cool and "In Vino Veritas"

10th Annual Killington Wine Festival this weekend. 

All the planning work is done. The tent is up. The wine is being delivered tomorrow....lots of wine....cases and cases of wine....Chef Frizzie is putting the finishing touches on our wine tasting menu for our Wine Dinner with Boyden Valley Winery on Saturday night. (See our menu online for full details.) And Mother Nature looks like she is going to cooperate with warm temperatures, bright sunshine, and brilliant views of the mountains that make up Killington.

For the last few years I have lead the planning efforts at the Killington Chamber of Commerce to produce the Killington Wine Festival. We are now in our 10th year. (It's really hard to believe...10 years!) This year we have 42 different wineries and wine importers visiting Killington over the weekend to sample their wares.

While there are a lot of tasks that make up an event which hundreds of people attend, today was a milestone that had to be completed without a hitch....the raising of a huge tent (actually a series of tents) which will house the event at the base of Killington by the K1 Base Lodge. Here are a few pictures of the tent after it was raised:

The tent at the K1 Base Lodge to house this years Killington Wine Festival Click image to stop rotation. Click again to resume rotation.

The tent itself is actually 5 tents married together to cover 9600 square feet of space. When it is totally outfitted, it will hold 72 tables ranging from the obvious (wine from the various suppliers) to the sublime (water for hundreds of people).

If you are interested in attending the Wine Festival, tickets are still available through the Killington Chamber of Commerce either online or by calling 800-337-1928. At the inn, we still have a couple of rooms left which are available with our Killington Wine Festival Package which includes festival tickets and seats at the wine dinner at Birch Ridge on Saturday night. You can visit our reservation page, or call us at 800-435-8566 to make reservations.

We hope to see you this weekend in Killington. Where every you may be...stay cool, don't forget your sunscreen, and "In Vino Veritas!"