AVSC gears up for winter with annual swap

With snow now falling across much of Colorado’s High Country, activity is picking up at the Aspen Valley Ski and Snowboard Club. Here are a few pieces of news and notes from the nonprofit as winter fast approaches.

Sports Swap returns Saturday

AVSC’s annual Sports Swap will make its return this Saturday, Oct. 17, to the midvalley. In its 71st year, the event will be held from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at The Arts Campus at Willits. The 2026 Backcountry Symposium , also held at TACAW, will begin immediately after.

Vendors from across the Roaring Fork Valley will be selling gear from major retailers related to anything from skiing and snowboarding, to hiking, running and biking. A percentage of the proceeds go back into AVSC’s scholarship fund, which helps offset program fees for athletes.

“It’s an opportunity to get in early and grab some fantastic past-year inventory and used gear at a longstanding community event that benefits local athletes,” Jared Ettlinger, AVSC’s stewardship director, said in a news release. “You never know what sort of deals you are going to stumble upon: new touring boots, barely used jackets and pants, alpine race gear for your young athletes, and powder skis and snorkels for the banner winter ahead.”

For more, visit www.teamavsc.org/AVSC-Annual-Sports-Swap .

The poster for the 2027 Owl Creek Chase cross-country ski race, scheduled for Jan. 10. AVSC/Courtesy art

Owl Creek Chase registration open

Registration is now open for the popular Owl Creek Chase cross-country ski race, a 25-kilometer, point-to-point affair from Snowmass to the AVSC Clubhouse. Scheduled for Jan. 10, 2027, there is a $5,000 cash purse, with $1,000 going to both the men’s and women’s winners of the main 25k race. There is also a 15k option and a 1k “Owlet” race for the kids.

“We’re doing our snow dances and hoping winter returns so we can once again host this beautiful, one-of-a-kind, point-to-point race,” said Sophie Hamilton, AVSC’s Nordic program director, in a news release. “It’s an event steeped in tradition and it truly takes a community effort to pull it off.”

The race is a joint venture between AVSC and the city of Aspen, alongside the Ute Mountaineer. For more and to register, visit www.teamavsc.org/Owl-Creek-Chase . Prices will increase in December.

Heart of Gold

AVSC hosted its second annual Heart of Gold evening on Sept. 29, meant to honor its “Club 1937” donors and latest scholarship recipients.

From left, Olympic ski racer Wiley Maple, Parker Kendrick, Alaska Speedy and Luka Smalls pose during the Aspen Valley Ski and Snowboard Club’s Heart of Gold awards night at Aspen Highlands. AVSC/Courtesy photo

“Club 1937 represents generations of people who have believed in AVSC and invested in young athletes in this valley,” AVSC Executive Director August Teague told attendees. “Their generosity creates access and opportunity, but more importantly, it gives kids a place to grow in confidence, develop as people, and discover what they are capable of.”

Among the notable awards was the Sam Coffey Memorial Scholarship, which went to Alaska Speedy, a rising star in alpine skiing. Coffey was an all-American skier and AVSC alumnus who passed away in 2019 at age 29. The award is handed out by Aspen’s Wiley Maple, a 2018 Olympic skier and one of Coffey’s childhood best friends.

Founded in 1937, AVSC will soon celebrate its 90th anniversary.