Lada Vrany

Lada Vrany was born July 2, 1919 in Prague, Czechoslovakia, where he resided until 1948. He was an avid skier, making the Czech Olympic team twice and the Czech canoeing team once.

After the Communists pulled his visa, he hiked out of Czechoslovakia alone to spend a year in DP camp.

He arrived in Aspen in 1958 from Banff, after spending time in Norway where he became good friends with Stein Erickson, who convinced him to teach skiing in Aspen. Lada became a good friend of Elizabeth Paepcke and resided on her Airport Ranch until 2008.

Lada lived in Carbondale at Heritage Park until his passing on Aug. 12, 2010.

Lada had a construction company and built many of the buildings you see; one he was really proud of was the Floradora Building. Though he loved to build, his very favorite thing was to teach skiing. He also loved horses and owned many fine ones.

Lada lived in Aspen when Aspen was young and vibrant and is part of her history. He had many great stories to tell about the people that participated in her claim to being a great town and ski resort.

Lada has no family, but is survived by his former wife, Lynn, and several dear friends.

For those who wish to honor Lada’s memory, please donate to a favorite animal charity and/or toast him with Metaxa 5 Star Greek brandy.