To Save the Soul of a Mountain Town

Outside Podcast

Wilderness, Sports

4.3 • 2.2K Ratings

🗓️ 1 March 2023

⏱️ 30 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

In Aspen, Colorado, and other alpine communities, the future depends on making sure the weirdos and oddballs are still welcome. That’s what gets concerned locals the most animated: any suggestion that their neighborhoods are becoming exclusive playgrounds for the rich, forcing out the gonzo characters that help make them so special. What’s needed, according to planning experts and many longtime residents, are smarter growth strategies that include affordable housing, increased transportation options, and forward-thinking management of public lands. For this episode, we take a walk around Aspen and ask what it’ll take to get such things done. The Outside Podcast is made possible by Outside+ subscribers. Learn about the many benefits of a subscription and sign up now at outsideonline.com/podplus.

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	We all know Vans for their classic shoes.
0:03.8	I mean, who hasn't had a pair of their checkerboard slip-ons in their closet?
0:08.3	But Vans also innovates.
0:10.2	Step into the Ultra-Range Neo VR3 and you'll feel the difference.
0:14.1	This versatile Onde shoe has an updated biobased foam in the midsole that delivers maximum
0:19.9	cushioning.
0:20.9	A precision support system for optimal fit and breathable mesh to keep you cool.
0:26.1	All that makes the Neo VR3 the most technically advanced Ultra-Range shoe yet.
0:31.6	Check it out for yourself at vans.com.
0:45.3	From outside magazine, this is the outside podcast.
0:56.3	Probably the most popular outside story I've worked on in the last 20 years was a feature
1:01.6	titled Did Airbnb Kill the Mountain Town.
1:05.5	We published that piece by Tom Vanderbilt in 2017 and it got a lot of people fired up
1:11.4	as you might guess.
1:12.8	The story also marked a turning point for outside, in which I'm reporting about supposedly
1:17.9	idyllic ski destinations increasingly focused on the very big challenges that these places
1:23.4	face.
1:24.4	I'm Michael Roberts, and like pretty much everyone who enjoys playing in the mountains,
1:28.7	I'm worried about the small towns that I stay in when I'm there.
1:32.6	Which is why I was intensely interested in a story we published earlier this year by
1:37.5	writer Roger Morote, asking if Aspen, his hometown, had lost its Gonzo soul.
1:44.1	Readers sure made it clear what they thought, with reactions ranging from nothing can kill
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Outside Podcast, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of Outside Podcast and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.