SNOW Alps 25-26 web - Flipbook - Page 22
FLURRIES
What We're Watching
Butterfly in a Blizzard
Raw, personal, “the biggest story never told” according to one expert
in maternal health: Butterfly in a Blizzard shines a light on the trials
of being a professional athlete and a mother. Regarded through
a different lens, women with children are too often accorded
fewer rights than their male partners. Kimmy Fasani – mother,
professional athlete, wife to pro skier and artist Chris Benchetler
– must manage time for herself, her sport, her sponsors, and most
importantly, her children. “Her time” is often criticized as selfish
but, as she reminds us, you can only give to another when you are
whole yourself. Kimmy navigates this world with grace and kindness
while life-threatening health challenges add to her already full plate.
Yet again, she bravely faces her own mortality and its impact on her
family. When we see her at the top of the mountain, ready to drop
in for her run on the Natural Selection Tour in Alaska, we can only
be humbled. This story is inspirational to anyone – male or female
– who has put everything on the line for their loves. — Barb Sanders
Big Sky, Big Moment
Big Sky Resort has long had a reputation of big thrills, low frills. No longer.
The Montana resort’s ambitious, decade-long Big Sky 2025 vision has been
fully executed, and then some. On-and off-mountain enhancements compete with
the best-of-the-best, including Aspen and Jackson Hole. Big Sky’s lift system is now
North America’s only ski destination with three bubble D-line lifts, and two eight-place lifts,
including the Madison 8 which debuted last season. This season, skiers will ride Explorer, the
world’s fastest 10-person gondola, complete with heated seats, floor-to-ceiling windows, and a midstation accessing some of the resort’s most approachable terrain. Within 15 minutes it also connects
to the new Kircliff alpine summit observatory. Perched at 11,166 feet on Lone Peak, it’s a stunning
glass enclosure with sweeping 360-degree panoramas across three states and two national parks.
The atmosphere has been building. In 2021, Big Sky Resort welcomed its first five-star stay,
Montage Big Sky, delivering the area’s first destination spa, a 10,000-square-foot sanctuary of
pampering. This November, the opening of One&Only Moonlight Basin ups the ante, with a Japanese
restaurant from superstar chef Akira Back, a speakeasy-style bar, and heated gondola designed by
the visionary behind Porsche that provides direct access to the Madison Base. This season,
the resort’s culinary cred skyrockets when superstar chef Grant Achatz descends with
the Alinea Group’s first-ever mountain residency. The four-month stint is part
of Chicago-based Alinea’s 20th anniversary tour, which has also mounted
pop-ups in Brooklyn, Miami, Beverly Hills, and Tokyo. The group’s
alpine debut introduces a new concept, M by the Alinea
Group, a departure from the restaurant’s signature
avant-garde cuisine in favor of the rusticity of
the mountains. — Jen Murphy
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