Image from SOS Alliance SOS Holiday Party & Silent AuctionFriday, December 7Mercury Hall (615 Cardinal Lane)$10 Suggested Donation, 7pm - Midnight[info]Tonight, the Save Our Springs Alliance will be hosting their annual Holiday Party and Silent Auction at Mercury Hall. In addition to food, drinks and great people, the event will showcase music by two environmentally-conscience local bands, Bill Oliver's Otter Space Band and The Bouldin Creek Bobkats. The Silent Auction features items from over 300......

We knew that local tennis star Andy Roddick kept himself in good shape, but we were still taken aback when we first came across this cover photo on the latest issue of Men's Fitness: the Austin Java fan and budding philanthropist looks like he's fixin' to hulk out of his burnt orange tee. Said bulging biceps turned out to be yet another case of crafty airbrush work, as ABC News points out in their Doctored......

Remember how much fun it was to play in the dirt when you were a kid? Well guess what? It’s still fun! Come out this Sunday to the Xterra Dirty Tri and see for yourself. This ain’t no pansy triathlon: this is an off-road extravaganza guaranteed to leave you exhilarated, fit, and totally filthy. Go for the Olympic distance (1500 meter swim, 14 mile mountain bike, and 10K trail run) or the sprint (750......

Austin has a love/hate relationship with bikes. Love Lance. Hate the Lance-wannabes cruising FM-1826, slowing down the burnt-orange pickups on their way to the Salt Lick. Love biking the Hike-and-Bike trail. Hate slaloming between kids and dogs on a busy Saturday. Love the idea of bike lanes and bike commuting. Hate actual bikers slowing down traffic and swerving into the street because of cars parked in the bike lanes. Love reducing traffic and pollution......

Think that hunky muscle queen two doors down is the embodiment of good health? Austin Fit magazine wants to know. From now through July 1st, you can submit your nominations for their second annual "Fittest Person in Austin" survey. The winner will be featured in the August issue of Austin Fit. Additionally, a handful of voters will score some excellent prizes, like the much-coveted year's worth of Laser Hair Removal services from Depilite. Nominees......

If you have already failed and re-upped your New Year’s resolutions more times than you can count, take heart – tomorrow is another day (to fail). No, but seriously, we're fortunate to live in a town where there's a whole subculture of masochists who organize events around such activities as running, biking, swimming, and various combinations thereof. Looking for a torturous fun way to get outside and get your body moving? Then why not......

City of Austin wants to hear your feedback on the future of Barton Springs, especially what you think should warrant priority status as short- or long-term projects. The Barton Springs Pool Master Plan meeting takes place at 6pm tonight at Austin City Hall, with city officials and professional consultants on hand to listen to members of the public. Everyone who wishes to speak will be given three minutes. The information received will be prioritized,......

You really are lucky to live in Austin, a metropolis with almost 17,000 acres of land dedicated to parks, recreation and preservation. A city that takes pride in its parks and all of the outdoor activites they lend themselves to, Austinites certainly values their greenspace and quality of life. These parks are used regularly for outdoor concerts, exercising, commuting or leash-free dog recreation and you've certainly taken advantage of them at some point. It......

The American Diabetes Association is sponsoring a bike tour to take place in Austin and San Antonio on Saturday, May 19, and Sunday, May 20. The tour has permutations in 80 cities, and is open to experienced cyclists as well as more casual riders (distances can vary, depending on your desires). So this part is really shocking, or it should be: Texas has the highest rate of diabetes IN THE NATION. Let's get some......

The Austin Tennis Club (ATC) will be hosting its Fifth Annual Heart of Texas Classic—or HOT5—this weekend, March 10-12 at UT Intramural Courts and the South Austin Tennis Center. This year, the organization has designated Out Youth as their charity of choice. Out Youth, long a staple in the Austin lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning (LGBTQ) community, is the only organization for LGBTQ youth ages 12-19 in Central Texas. Out Youth services include counseling,......

The Sunday afternoon sky was littered with hundreds of plastic birds, Supermans and Technicolor stingrays (above) as The 79th Annual Zilker Kite Festival took over Zilker Park. If you aren't familiar with the kite festival, it's first and foremost a family affair filled with moon walks and puppet shows, face-painting and rock climbing. Aside from enjoying a day in the park, it's basically the quickest way in Austin to meet absolute strangers--all day long......

The marathon that has been renamed more times than Austin has been called the “Live Music Capital of the World” will kick off with a 7AM start time. Founded in 1992, the Austin Marathon and Half Marathon (this year called the AT&T Marathon) is expected to draw 11,000 runners, 30,000 spectators and is the 15th largest marathon in the U.S. One of the more well-known runners (no, it isn't Lance) will be our own mayor......

We'll update this post as things develop. 11am - Tuesday, January 16th Governor Rick Perry and Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst are sworn in indoors, under the inaugural theme, "Texas: Imagine the Possibilities." The requisite downtown parade has been canceled because, well, there's no one there. Firewood vendors are making a killing CapMetro: UT Shuttles, AISD Magnet Routes, 'Dillo routes are closed The Travis County Commissioners Court meeting has been postponed As of 9:30am, approximately 570......

Things at Barton Springs have been a little weird lately. And not just in the old-man-wearing- dental-floss-thong- playing-frisbee-with- his-bare-breasted life-partner sort of way. Lately, we've noticed hazier water, increased green algae floating around, and now you can stand at the north end of the pool, where before you had almost twenty feet of depth. Well, the City of Austin noticed it, too, and as of yesterday, Barton Springs will be closed for three weeks. According......

...Barton Springs is FREE! Just a friendly reminder that from November 1st until March 1st, you can swim in The Crown Jewel of Austin free of charge. Photo by Matt Wright......

No, not by those scary high-heeled-too-much-makeup girls...those aren't until later. By cyclists. Today, October 6th, watch your toes because the 2006 AMLI Downtown Criterium Bike Race is on! The 0.7 mile flat loop is going to foster some rather quick riders. We'll go just to place a wager have a good time watching the thrill of all the racing, but really we're all about the kid's bike rodeo...you know it! There's still some time......

Last Friday, we thought we'd celebrate Chuck Norris Day by heading out to Lake Travis for some beer and boating. While we were out there, we noticed something a little risky, a little attractive and a lot stupid. Once our hands dried, we searched around the internet and were surprised to discover a new trend that has hit Central Texas lakes: Kite Tubing. Okay, the lake's not really our thing so maybe we're a......

Or, if you prefer, swim, bike and then run like hell. The weather is finally cool down to double-digit temps, so it’s a great time to get out and give it all you've got at one of the many races going on this weekend. Arts Run 5K - Saturday, September 9 at 8:30 a.m. We're partial to this race, mostly because the T-shirts look so cool. And it’s all about the shirt, you know.......

Some things skip a generation. Others round the bend, never to be heard from again. Still others seem to hop in and out of mode with consistent regularity. While some fads and fashions may fall out of style, one that seems to breath new life into the dance scene at regular intervals is the original Lindy Hop. This highly improvisational and interpretive dance style was born in Harlem during the Jazz Age. The same......

Every Labor Day, Austin Yoga centers join hands to offer a Free Day of Yoga. It's a perfect day to try out Yoga if you've never done it before or to explore new styles of Yoga. While you likely won't be expected to wrap your feet around your neck, there are countless benefits to the practice and we highly recommend it for exercise and stress relief. The free class begin at dawn at various......

Trying out a different approach in their efforts to preserve the Edwards Aquifer from urban development, Save Our Springs Alliance today launched a new audio-based walking tour of Barton Springs. The self-guided tour covers thirteen stations of note, including Philosopher's Rock Statue, Old Mill Springs, Eliza Spring, and the Monument on Big Hill. What's more, they're making these available as free mp3 downloads so you can load 'em onto your iPod before you head......

Two days ago, Austinites David Broyles and Rush Vann successfully completed a 12.5-mile swim across the Strait of Gibralter, from the Spanish coast to Morocco. The extraordinary feat took just under five hours. In the days leading up to the final crossing, the two were unsure as to whether water and weather conditions would hinder their attempt -- a July 15th journal entry on the official site tells of formidable wind and waves, the former......

We don't know about you, but when we stand naked in front of the mirror sometimes, our tan lines are so distinct that... well, it kinda looks like we're still wearing our skivvies. In resolution to solve our little dilemma, we decided to go ahead and celebrate the tail-end of Nude Recreation Week by going to Hippie Hollow. Hey, we just want to look good naked. If you were awake at all, you know......

Local area parks are in much need of improvement. We think more poop bag dispensers along local trails, more waste receptacles and less poison ivy would be nice. The AustinParks Foundation takes in to consideration specific requests that local Austinites make to improve neighborhood parks. The Neighborhood Park Grants Program was created as a means to stregthen the community by way of involvement. The Foundation will match up to $2500 in funds and volunteer time......

Pure Austin's Shawn Bostad began his 12-hour treadmill marathon at 9am this morning, covering an astounding 48.6 miles by 3pm. You can find him at the Pure Austin Quarry Lake, off Braker and 183, until 9pm tonight. Shawn's set out to beat Martin Tighe's record distance of 85.83 miles, and at an average of 8.1 miles per hour, he's certainly on track. As you might recall when we first mentioned this last week, he's doing......

As though the personal trainers at Pure Austin weren't awesome enough already -- and by "awesome" we mean "intimidating" -- one of them is attempting to set a new world record next Monday as a fundraiser for some less-than-fortunate local kids. On July 10th, fitness specialist and triathlete Shawn Bostad will embark on a twelve hour run on a treadmill and attempt to beat Martin Tighe's record distance of 85.83 miles. That's roughly 7.15 miles......

The 2006 Tour de France kicks off tomorrow morning at 8:30AM EST. Those of us not lucky enough to be in France to watch the cyclist begin their month-long trek in Strasbourg can catch ongoing coverage on OLN, or head over to the Bicycle Sport Shop on South Lamar, where they'll be showing daily broadcasts and hosting special weekend viewing parties. Various other venues around town will be offering coverage, as well; Austinist will bring......

Most of us have a long weekend coming up. And we all know what that means – beer. And lots of it. But remember that the secret to life is balance. And even more importantly, nobody wants to have to see your big beer gut at Barton Springs. So go ahead and soak up the suds, but do us all a favor and burn it off at one of the many fun races going......

One of the sillier competitions that we watched during last year's Winter Olympics was curling, a sport that involved teams of un-Olympian-like people gliding in tandem pairs down a slab of ice, accompanied by a big rock, while furiously carving a pathway ahead of them. We still don't understand why the Canadians are so keen on this, though we'd imagine it to be intensely cerebral, mostly because there's so very little happening on the ice.......

South Austin beermeisters Rob and Amy Cartwright of Independence Brewing Company are kicking off a campaign this summer to help out the Barton Springs Greenbelt. Through the Freestyle Summer Fund, they'll donate a buck from every case of Freestyle Wheat Beer sold until mid September to the Austin Parks Foundation, to help out with various greenbelt preservation projects. To launch this effort, they're inviting you out to their Independence Day Celebration on Saturday, where you'll......