A few minutes before Bobby Bailey and I are scheduled to meet at the Starbucks in Williston one recent afternoon, he sends me a text saying how to recognize him: “Only one that ummmmm, hopefully looks like a cyclist. No spandex, though.”

Indeed, Bailey’s snappy shirt and sport coat say “Burlington businessman” way more than “sweat-stained athlete.” But, hey, it’s winter. And what Bailey is about to unveil to me sounds a lot more like a smart business plan than a simple workout.... Read more

The latest artsy spot in Burlington’s South End has a brick-wall background, exposed overhead pipes and spotlights illuminating swoopy curves of metal. It’s pleasing to the eyes — but it’s meant for the legs, the lungs and the lifestyle. In fact, the half dozen pieces on display are specifically designed to ride right out of the showroom, to make you feel happy and graceful and good, and to last your entire life.... Read more

College students these days wear a lot of hats — but not nearly as many as Middlebury senior Corinne Prevot. Last winter season, she sold some 10,000 hats and accessories for alpine and Nordic skiing, and she expects 50 percent growth this year. Forbes magazine has called her an all-star entrepreneur. Prevot’s company, Skida, has revolutionized a segment of the skiwear business with fun and funky colors and fabrics.... Read more

Pity the poor treadmill, the Rodney Dangerfield of fitness equipment. No matter how many bells, whistles, televisions, lights, heart-rate trackers and automated interval programs companies add, the machine still gets no respect from exercisers who’d rather lick sweat off the gym floors than log a few miles on the rubber road to nowhere.... Read more

This is not what I had in mind for kicking my feet up on a Friday night. Facing a ballet barre in Burlington’s Core Studio, I’m frantically trying to hoist my right leg to 90 degrees so that my ankle rests gracefully flexed on the horizontal wooden pole. In a few minutes, I fear, instructor Liz Sheridan may have to call in the crew that raised the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree to get my leg into position.... Read more

On the first day of 2013, you can contemplate your fitness resolution for the New Year — say, over a mimosa and a croissant — or you can take it to the streets of Burlington, preferably dressed as a Stormtrooper, a gingerbread man, Little Red Riding Hood or whatever disguise suits your mood. Thanks to FirstRun, nearly 1000 revelers will shake off the champagne and mark the changing calendar with a 5K trot. Starting from Memorial Auditorium, this energetic but nonintimidating run is a moving costume party.... Read more

A new beat thumps from 696 Pine Street in Burlington, and it’s not the hip-hop dancers at nearby South End Studio, the frozen-yogurt machines at SoYo or clanging dishes at New World Tortilla. It’s AC/DC’s “Back in Black” pounding from instructor Sarah DeGray’s iPhone as she leads a dozen riders through the very first class at REV Cycling Studio.... Read more

For decades, off-ice training for hockey players always presented the same drudgery: squats, bench presses, throwing on weight to get as big as you could. “Push-me, pull-me exercises,” sums up Matt Higgins, a 49-year-old South Burlington resident who played as a student at St. Michael’s College and continues to play recreational hockey with a local league. “Then it was back to campus for sprinting, running hills and hitting the weight room again,” he adds.... Read more

Machine-gun fire erupted at the top of the hill, where a soldier in camouflage face paint hid behind a rock pile. I could barely see him through the smoke in my eyes, which I mostly kept fixed on the muddy ground so I could concentrate on carrying the two 30-pound metal cans of ammo up the slope. My legs were burning, my lungs were heaving, and I was pretty sure there was blood running down my arm.... Read more

On South Burlington’s tony Deer Field Drive near Overlook Park, the typical evening commute brings a few Priuses and SUVs nosing down the steep slope alongside gracious homes. But things are taking a different turn on a recent Wednesday night.

Jake Palmer, 26, hops on a skateboard and lets go, carving deep turns on the asphalt as he accelerates and eventually becomes a green-shirted speck at the bottom of the hill. One by one others follow: Will Deming, Tom Wilson, Peter DiFonzo, Neil Torpey, Izzy Moreno, all wearing helmets and gloves with pieces of plastic affixed to them.... Read more