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Author: Susan Viebrock

Telluride continues to increase incredible inbounds terrain access

GH stairway-sm Reflecting a European skiing experience found in Chamonix, France, the Telluride Ski Resort airlifted a new bridge and staircase to the left shoulder of Palmyra Peak. Heliqwest, a helicopter company based out of Canada, did the heavy lifting, bringing steel staircases and bridge over the ski resort to its final resting place, the span between Gold Hill Chutes 8 and 9.

“The addition is a continuation of our efforts to provide ski experience which is ‘Unmatched in North America,’” said Dave Riley, CEO of the resort. “This project was extremely technical, and our in-house staff did a phenomenal job in both planning and execution. The Telluride Ski Resort is thrilled to once again expand easy access into epic inbounds terrain.”

27 February, 2010 /
[click "Play" to hear Scott Grossman speak about his direction of the TAB Fashion Show]

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Scott Grossman

It's the pitch perfect tribute, Robert Presley to a "T": "Out of Your Comfort Zone/Step Out of the Box," director Scott Grossman's theme for the 2010 Telluride AIDS Benefit no-holds-barred fashion show. The annual event takes place at the Telluride Conference Center in the Mountain Village, Thursday, February 25 for the Sneak Peak and Saturday, February 27, for the super nova explosion. Doors, 7 p.m. Show time, 8 p.m.

Outrageous. In your face. Fearless. Talented, Funny. Smart. Generous. Those are just a few of the words Presley's friends used to describe the man who inspired the AIDS awareness event and major bash that manages to raise hundreds of thousands of dollars for HIV/AIDS interventions and prevention education around the globe.

27 February, 2010 /
[click "Play" to hear Jake Spaulding's conversation with Susan]

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Jake Spaulding

Dateline: Shanghai. It's there and all over China, where it began. About 120 million of them on the road and counting.

Dateline: Telluride. It's coming.

We are talking about a great alternative to a car. We are talking electric bikes, increasingly the vehicle of choice from bike messengers in New York to postal workers in Germany and commuters all over the world. While sales were relatively modest in the American market last year (only 200,000 were sold) interest is picking up.

26 February, 2010 /
[click "Play" to hear Terryl Dahl on what to wear to the TAB Fashion Show]

DSC00177 DSC00186 It all boils down to cause and effect. The cause: a persistent virus that morphed into a pandemic after being announced worldwide in 1983. The effect: locally, the Telluride AIDS Benefit, a full frontal assault aimed at helping those living with HIV/AIDS and preventing the spread of the disease through outreach and education. The week of activities culminates with a fanTABulous fashion show Saturday night, February 27, at the Telluride Conference Center, a fundraiser for TAB's six beneficiaries.  


26 February, 2010 /



The girl can't help. For 16 years, Baerbel Hacke, director of the Telluride Gallery of Fine Art, has put together a silent art auction for the Telluride AIDS Benefit. This year's event takes place Friday, February 26, noon – 9 p.m. at the historic Sheridan Opera House.

Ever notice that the word "pain" is embedded in "painting?" The Telluride AIDS Benefit's auction, however, is a wonderful way to transform pain into gain for the nonprofit's six beneficiaries.
25 February, 2010 /
Unknown The Telluride AIDS Benefit has grown every year since its grassrootsy beginning in 1994. And since that first year, the Western Colorado AIDS Project has been the event's primary recipient, because the Benefit's muse, Robert Presley, determined to keep WestCAP, his medical provider in time of need, healthy. TAB's generosity, however, extends way beyond WestCAP all the way to Africa, with stops along the way on the Front Range, home to the Denver Children's Hospital Immunodeficiency Program or CHIP.

CHIP began providing specialized care for HIV+ children in the Rocky Mountain region in 1991. CHIP remains the only entity in the region providing comprehensive, coordinated, family-centered services to infants, children, youth (13-24), pregnant women, and parents of HIV-infected children.
25 February, 2010 /
["click "Play" to hear Brother Jeff speak about his partnership with TAB]

IMG_0098 The relationship between the Telluride AIDS Benefit and Brother Jeff is a prime example of the whole being greater than the sums of its parts.


The Telluride AIDS Benefit casts a long, wide shadow that extends all the way from the Western Slope to Africa. One of TAB's success stories on the Front Range is Brother Jeff's Health Initiative, a nonprofit dedicated to enhancing the quality of life of African Americans living with HIV/AIDS regardless of age, faith, background or sexual orientation. With the help of TAB, the Initiative now reaches thousands of people each year through HIV conferences, summits, workshops, presentations at high schools, universities, and at various health-related institutions.
24 February, 2010 /

[click "Play" to listen to Yvette Henson on the composting course] Telluride's The New Community Coalition is all about turning trash into treasure of the soil variety. On March 1, the Coalition in a joint venture with the Telluride Ecology Commission,...

24 February, 2010 /

March into March with a firm conviction to tap into your inner artist. Telluride's Ah Haa School for the Arts kicks off the month with two great options.Finish Your Unfinished Jewelry Projects with master jeweler Jennifer Dewey, Tuesdays, March 2 – March 23, 5...

24 February, 2010 /
[click "Play", Amy Kimberly speaks about the history and impact of the Telluride AIDS Benefit]

The Telluride Historical Museum is hosting another of its popular Fireside Chats, this one at Capella Telluride in the Mountain Village: The True Telluride Story – Telluride AIDS Benefit. Kandee Degraw and Daiva Chesonis reveal the backstory of the Telluride AIDS Benefit. The event takes place at 5 p.m., February 24.

The Telluride AIDS Benefit began life as a Free Box-style grassroots initiative.

Robert Presley was a fabric artist and enfant terrible, beloved throughout the Telluride community. His costly battle with HIV/AIDS – made worse by the fact he was living in rural Colorado and had to commute to get medical help –  mobilized a group of his buddies.
23 February, 2010 /