Blogs

Celebrity Winter Fest: Friday

Day two of the 49ers 10th Annual Celebrity Winter Fest began with a workout session led by the 49ers Gold Rush.  After that, many of the guests hit the slopes on another gorgeous day.

At 11:30, I headed down to the ice rink at The Resort at Squaw Creek as Olympic gold medalist Dan Jansen held a skating demonstration.  I hadn’t been ice skating in at least 10 years so I was definitely in need of some instruction.

Jansen showed proper skating form, including how to turn and stop.

“As a skater, I’m a lot like a NASCAR driver,” Jansen said.  “I go fast and turn left.  I’m not so good at right turns.”

Jansen didn’t mind giving some of his time at the event as the money raised goes to support the 49ers Foundation.

“We’re going to have a good time and this is all about raising money for the kids in San Francisco,” Jansen said.

After the skating clinic, 49ers alums Dwight Clarke, Dwaine Board and Guy McIntyre showed off their Super Bowl rings and mingled with guests on the sun deck.

That’s it for now as I just have a few minutes to get downstairs for a wine seminar and food pairing.  I’ll check back throughout the afternoon and evening with more updates.

4:00 UPDATE

I just got back to my room after a very informative Wine Seminar & Food Pairing session featuring a few of the vintners who will be pouring throughout the Celebrity Winter Fest.  Five vintners provided those in attendance with a glass of sparkling wine, savingnon blanc, chardonnay, pinot noir and a glass of cabernet savignon.  An appetizer was served with each wine with an explanation given for the pairing.

Alex Smith, Tony Wragge and Josh Morgan were in attendance and it was the first time Morgan had been wine tasting.

“It was quite an experience,” Morgan said.  “My favorite wine was the savignon blanc.  The only time I’ve been to Napa was when we practiced with the Raiders.”

While Morgan enjoyed the session, some of the food took him a little out of his comfort zone.

“I was trying to be a good sport, but then when we got to the beef mole and they said it was made from cheek, I decided to skip the last few items and take it easy on my stomach,” Morgan joked.

Here’s the schedule for the rest of the evening:

5:00 – wine tasting and silent auction

6:30 – dinner and live auction

Hopefully there will be a lot of money raised tonight to support the 49ers Foundation.

UPDATE: Here are a few photos from the evening…