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On St. Patty’s Day, tradition runs strong with Vail’s Ravinos

John LaConte
The Vail Daily
Ace Accetturo goes inverted during the annual patching-in ceremony for the Vail Ravinos on Friday in Vail. Weather was warm and sunny for the St. Patty's Day annual celebration.
Chris Dillmann | cdillmann@vaildaily.com |

Eagle County’s original extreme sports lifestyle club carried on its annual tradition Friday as the Ravinos inducted two new members. And with Argentina’s Fernando Walker landing his backflip to earn his patch, the club is now international.

Walker brought a crew of a dozen or so Argentines to help motivate him to take on Vail’s famous Wailer cliffs. After a few tries, he stomped a perfect layback. The explosion from the crowd was deafening.

“I’m so excited for him,” said Ravinos vice president Dave Pleshaw. “I really like his crew; they love Vail and come here every year and it’s great to solidify the North America/South America connection.”



Summit County’s Evan Hannibal cleared the feature on his first try for an easy initiation.

President Rob Bak gave the new recruits one rule to follow.



“The original Ravinos had one wish for this crew — to keep it classy,” Bak said.

Dating back to 1960s Wisconsin, the Ravinos moved to the Rocky Mountains in the ‘70s. Longtime local Buzz Schleper helped bring the second generation of Ravinos into being about a decade ago.

“It’s an honor to be a part of this crew,” said Ravinos spokesman Steven Teaver. “The history runs really deep here in Vail. Wearing my colors drives me to get out and ride every day.”


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