Aspen loses another local legend after Larry Mayer passes away

Aspen native Larry Mayer, who was known for his love of skiing moguls and jumps among other adventures, passed away last week. He was 65.

He is now survived by his brother Mark Mayer, sister Nannette Fenn, and two nephews, Jamie Fenn and David Hennings. 

Mayer was born in the old Aspen Hospital on May 22, 1960, according to an obituary released on Nov. 28. His parents were longtime Aspen Ski Patrolmen, Howie Mayer and Pauline Mayer, who both lived in Aspen since the late 1950s. Mayer was around 4-years-old when he and Mark started skiing themselves, side-stepping up the bottom of Little Nell and developing a love for the sport. 

“He was a character, that’s for sure,” Mark said of his younger brother. “He was a little bit of a wild man. Skiing was our life. When we weren’t getting in trouble, we were skiing.”

Mark said they used to build runs through the woods, and every day after school they’d put on their skis to practice jumps and tricks. According to Mark, one of the most notable things about his brother was “his heart, he had an incredible love for skiing.” 

Lorenzo Semple, Aspen native and The Aspen Times’ columnist, remembers skiing with Mayer as a kid. According to Semple, Mayer first came on his radar when Semple was finally old enough to ski Aspen Mountain, where Mayer would be on a mission to ski moguls and hit jumps.

“I credit a good chunk of my love of the sport of skiing to Larry Mayer and growing up skiing with him as a kid,” Semple said. “He was kind enough to ski with me and my buddies when we were youngsters. His style of skiing and his form with his legs close together, arms out, long hair flowing, sunglasses — he really had a unique and freewheeling, carefree style of skiing that I still emulate to this day.”

According to Semple, Mayer was a master of the “helicopter,” or a 360 turn, off a jump. 

“It was such an honor to get to ski with him,” Semple said. “It was genuine friendship. Larry Mayer was the most fun ski partner I’ve ever had in my life.”

But it wasn’t just skiing. Mark noted his brother also loved to ride motorcycles and dirt bikes. When Aspen police wouldn’t allow dirt bikes on the streets, Mayer took a dirt bike engine and put wheels on it so he could ride it around town. He also ultimately tried to ride it up Smuggler, but with the weight of the engine, he ended up pushing the “bike” up and riding it down.

“As far as I know, Larry was the first to make a suspension mountain bike prototype,” Mark said.

Mayer also participated in motocross racing. Mark remembers a time when he and his mom took Mayer to a race near Alamosa, the first time Mayer ever won.

“He couldn’t believe he was out in first,” Mark said. “He kept looking around like, ‘Where is everyone else?’ We’re all standing on the sidelines screaming, ‘Keep going, keep going, you’re in first!'”

Guitars and rock ‘n roll was another passion of Mayer’s.

“His love for rock ‘n roll music and guitar rock and heavy metal was unparalleled in Aspen,” Semple said. “He was one of the primary guys who you could talk to about music and guitars.”

Mark said that when he started playing drums and playing in bands, his brother thought it looked fun and bought an electric guitar. According to Mark, Mayer never took a lesson.

“I said, ‘Larry, I’ll pay to get you some music lessons,'” Mark said. Mayer replied, “Jimmy Hendrix never took lessons.”

A memorial will be held for Mayer from 4 to 6 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 6, at the Aspen Fraternity of Eagles, 700 E. Bleeker St. Those who were friends of Mayer’s are invited to attend.

“He was loved very much by his family and many members of the community,” Mark said. “Spending a whole life with him, there’s just a lot of stories.”