Jackson Hole Concerts

Jackson Hole Summer Concerts

Jackson Hole Summer Concerts

 

If you’re a local, Jackson Hole Summer Concerts (aka Jackson Hole Live) become a habit, and a place to meet your friends on a regular basis. If you’re a visitor – it’s just one more thing to add to the plethora of ‘gotta-do’ activities during your stay. Visitors and locals alike mingle at Jackson Hole Summer Concerts, and it’s a great vibe. The concerts are held at the Snow King Resort Ball Park, 100 E. Snow King Avenue, every Thursday evening from  (with some exceptions) throughout July and August.

 

And, boy, do we have some high-caliber acts – on Sunday, August 31st. no other than Lynrd Skynyrd is showing up to strut their stuff at the next of the Jackson Hole Concerts. I imagine people from all over Wyoming and neighboring states will travel to Jackson Hole for that one. They are coming to help us celebrate Jackson Hole’s Centennial year – 2014. (More about the Jackson Hole Centennial in my next post.) Some other bands to grace Jackson Hole with their presence this season have been: Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue; Craig Campbell and the Black Lillies, Johnny Swim and Playing for Change.

 

Meanwhile, there are more Jackson Hole Concerts held at Teton Village Commons – Concerts on the Commons.  This summer Jackson Hole Mountain Resort has hosted Calle Mambo, Jazz Foundation of Jackson Hole, Mandatory Air, Reckless Kelly, The Congress and others.

Not quite a Jackson Hole Concert, but just over Teton Pass in Victor, Idaho, there’s Music on Main – yes – more free concerts every Thursday night – 7 in total during July and August –  it can be hard to choose which of these free concerts to attend. Music on Main (made possible by the Teton Valley Foundation) this summer has hosted:

Young Dubliners, Maddy & the Groove Spots, The Motet, and Hayes Carll.

 

The quality of the music is high. The bands are tight, professional, superb entertainers and at the top of their games. The musicians play hard and are obviously well-rehearsed and perfectionists at their instruments. Sometimes it looks as if such repeated motions must hurt as a result of overuse injuries.  We, at Massage Professionals of Jackson Hole, offer musicians’ massage to visiting performers.

We thank all sponsors of Jackson Hole Summer Concerts for putting on these great shows.

Be well,

Hamish and Rochelle

 

 

in Blog / Jackson Hole Parties / Uncategorized  by 27 Aug 2014 0 comments

Ski Resort Cycles

Ski Resort Cycles

If you’re looking for some deep wisdom about massages, giving massage, receiving massage, the benefits of massage, the business of massage – you might not wish to read on. Occasionally I digress into discussion about life in Jackson Hole – as lived by massage therapists here. Overall – we lead not such a bad life – especially when it’s end-of-ski-season PARTY TIME.

As I write this post, Rochelle – otherwise an almost completely sane massage therapist in Jackson Hole, has gone skiing with a tutu round her waist and a small stuffed bird attached to her shoulder. Yes folks, it’s ‘Gaper’ Day on the slopes of Jackson Hole Mountain Resort. As if concerts by Karl Denson, Blues Traveler and Michael Franti weren’t enough – it is PARTY WEEK here in Jackson Hole. Over the weekend we had the ski-season-end multi-faceted race – the PPP (Pole Pedal Paddle) – but we’ll get back to that soon. Meanwhile – back to Gapers…What’s a Gaper? You might ask… Well – it’s a rather derogatory term for people who are well behind on the ski fashion curve – to put it mildly. It’s a throw-back and a poking of fun at how absurd ski fashions looked – oh just so recently – and how we thought we were so cool in wearing them.

 

 

Here’s the Wiki definition:

The day (usually April Fool’s Day or thereabouts) when all the mountain employees and locals who don’t have to work dress up in absurd tourist outfits and imitate all the dumb gapers we have to deal with the rest of the year. Usually involves lots of neon clothing, ridiculous stunts, and massive amounts of alcohol.
“It’s gaper day! I’m going to wear my dad’s 80’s onesy.”
Now, this isn’t to say that Jackson Hole has dibs on Gaper Day – no way – it’s a phenomenon that has spread throughout ‘cool’ ski resorts all over the country (and maybe Europe for all I know.) But frankly – it’s hilarious wherever it takes place.
The other thing I mentioned above is the Pole Pedal Paddle, or PPP (which this year has added two additional legs for the first time and so it becomes the PPPPP). As the name suggests, it a multi-legged, multi-skilled race from the top of Jackson Hole’s aerial (the first leg is on Alpine skis) tram to a place on the Snake river many miles away and several thousand feet lower on the banks of the Snake River (the last leg is in kayaks or other river craft). In between those two legs, there’s Nordic (cross-country) skiing, and road-biking.
There are ‘serious’ race classes, where athleticism counts and winning is a serious goal. There are more casual classes, where simply competing and completing the course is the goal; there are relay teams if all of the various skills are better shared among a group of friends or business colleagues; and then (again), there’s the ‘party’ class – where costumes count and nobody really cares who completes what – just get the prize for the best costume. Again, this race is not just a Jackson Hole thing – many ski resorts, with a river nearby, will have their own PPP races.
It’s a great and fun event for all. Entry fees and other fund-raising activities to to help finance our very own Jackson Hole Ski and Snowboard Club.
Teams are formed by local companies – whether serious, relay or costume based – and the whole thing helps, among this entire week of festivities, to round-out yet another ski season at Jackson Hole Mountain Resort.
Yet the end of one season is the beginning of another. Whilst many may lament the end of ski season – well, we’ve had it since November and it’s time to move on…spring and summer in the Tetons are just around the corner – and I’ll have lots to write about that in my next post.
Be well,
Hamish and Rochelle
in Blog / Jackson Hole / Jackson Hole Parties  by 04 Apr 2014 0 comments

Jackson Hole is Awesome

Jackson Hole is Awesome

Why is Jackson Hole Awesome? I’ll tell you why Jackson Hole is awesome…we get an end-of-ski-season concert – Michael Franti and Spearhead – FOR FREE!!!  Howdya like that??

 

And just to warm us up, the party started on Friday evening with Blues Traveler – and if you need warmed up for that – there’s even a previous FREE concert on Thursday evening with Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe (Who??? – Think Lenny Kravitz’s band and Slightly Stoopid.)

I tell you what – being a massage professional in Jackson Hole is just the best. Not only do we get free rock concerts night after night at the end of season, we get to ski in the mornings (skiers don’t generally want massages before 2pm – so that’s fine because all the powder is gone by then anyway). Let’s see – oh yes – before I’m off the concert thing – three years ago we had Grace Potter and the Nocturnals…boy – can she belt it out!

 

So what else is great about being a massage professional in Jackson Hole – well – it’s just gob-smacking gorgeous around here for one thing, and the opportunities to get out there and play in it are never-ending. Grand Teton National Park is right on our doorstep with the magnificent and mighty Teton Mountains to go hiking in.

 

You don’t have to be into big scary mountaineering to enjoy them – there’s no end to possibilities for those who are into just nice day-hiking – or you could get more abitious and get up into the really high-country, take a tent with you, and spend a night or more out there in the wilderness. A couple of years ago Rochelle and I hiked the Teton Crest Trail – three nights on the watershed ridge that separates the two Teton Counties of Wyoming and Idaho. (I wrote and photographed for an article about this, which will be published in Teton Valley Magazine this summer.)

Image showing Hamish and Rochelle hiking the Teton Crest Trail

Oh no – I’m already running out of space and I haven’t begun to tell you about the bicycling we do here – be it road biking or mountain biking – easy or gnarly trails – there’s just tons of it. You can’t go mountain biking in Grand Teton National Park, however because of the no mechanized vehicles on park trails. (A good thing in my view.)

 

And then there’s rafting on the Snake River! We’re very lucky to have our own boat – and have had for many years.

 

The Snake River has a large variety of river sections from mellow and peaceful flowating through the park, viewing the Tetons, to a fun white-water run through the Snake River Canyon – about 11 miles south of Jackson. Commercial rafting is a big industry around here in the summers. Jackson Hole supports maybe a dozen river outfitters. If you want to float or have a whitewater experience on the Snake River, I recommend Barker-Ewing (for who I rowed many years ago), or Dave Hansen Whitewater (for whom my son rowed last summer).

 

Maybe I’ll write another post on this topic when I can get into the parasailing, nordic skiing, horse-back trail-riding, mountaineering, kayaking and all the other ‘ings’ you can think of.

But the best thing about being a self-employed massage therapist in Jackson Hole is that we don’t have to go anywhere to immediately immerse ourselves in a ‘wonderful world’ – it’s  literally right out of our front door. In fact, I think I’ll go for a walk right now…

 

Be well,

 

Hamish and Rochelle

in Blog / General / Jackson Hole  by 30 Mar 2014 0 comments