Fanny pack comeback

Because it looks like no one else is asking, I suppose we will: What the heck is Fanny Pack Friday?

For the past two years, every now and then during the winter, while we’re putting together the Telegraph’s calendar, one particular “Stuff to Do” item has caught our eye – Fanny Pack Friday at the Nugget Mountain Bar, just south of Purgatory.

With another Fanny Pack Friday scheduled for this Friday from 3-5 p.m., we felt it was time to ask the hard questions.

“I don’t think people realize what Fanny Pack Friday is,” Steve Valverde, owner of the Nugget, said. “They think we just give away fanny packs.”

First, I think we could all benefit from a short history lesson about the fanny pack itself. Oh wait, crap. The fanny pack dates back 5,000 years and is considered the oldest fashion trend in the world. One was even found on a caveman discovered in a glacier, who lived around 3,000 BC in the Alps.

Let’s fast-forward a bit and start with who invented the modern day pack we all know and love. That should be easy enough, no? Oh goddamnit; it appears an Australian woman claims to have invented the pack in the 1960s, inspired by kangaroo pouches. But the bag had been on the market for at least several years, and was in Sports Illustrated’s 1954 Christmas issue. Who knew?

What we do know is fanny packs became popular in the mid-20th century with skiers. Eventually, they became fashion must-haves, reaching their peak in the 1980s/’90s, even marketed by Gucci and Chanel.

And then, in the 2000s, they crashed and burned, becoming a relic for moms and dads to keep snacks in during trips to Disney World and eventually an ironic joke for hipsters. But guess what?

“Fanny packs are back,” Kris Oyler, co-founder/CEO of Peak Food & Beverage, which owns Steamworks Brewing (which partners with Nugget to put on FPF).

Everyone who comes into the bar is given a raffle ticket, then, every 15 minutes or so, winners are called out to win prizes, swag and gift cards. The big-ticket item, however, is a drawing for one Osprey fanny pack.

“It’s just something we came up with and a fun way to do an après ski at the Nugget,” Oyler said.

But that’s not all. Most events (but not the one tomorrow) feature live music or a DJ. And, of course, there’s drink specials and Steamworks beer on tap.

“It’s a good party,” Valverde said.