At 8,750 feet above sea level, Telluride is high. (3,470 feet higher than Denver, for all of our Mile-High City visitors.) We joke that Swing Camp Telluride should actually be called “Hard-Core Training Camp Telluride,” but in all seriousness altitude “sickness” is a very real affliction and has the potential to ruin a visitor’s entire weekend. Symptoms of altitude sickness include nausea, severe headaches, sleeplessness, and extreme difficulty breathing.

The good news is that there are plenty of ways to ease your transition into thin air.

Give yourself time to get acclimated. Try to arrive a day early & just take it easy. Take a stroll around town. Get a coffee. Read a book.

Stay hydrated! It’s recommended that 3 to 4 quarts of water be drunk each day here. And don’t forget – hydrate yourself before you exercise, not after you’re already sweaty & thirsty.

Lay off the hooch. The effects of alcohol are much more noticeable in this thin atmosphere, and although there are approximately twenty bars in 1 square mile, you’d be wise to drink very moderately your first one or two nights in town.

Protect yourself with sunscreen, chapstick, a hat, and sunglasses. You’ll be amazed how much stronger the sun is when you’re 9,000 feet closer to it.

Pace yourself. You know how you feel when you’re at one of those all-night dances, it’s about 4am, and the dj puts on a 5-minute song? You’re probably going to feel like that the entire time. We know that no one wants a single dance or lesson to be wasted, but the reality is we’re going to have to let a few slip by. Musicians who play in Telluride have oxygen tanks standing by in the wings. You won’t have that luxury.

Don’t forget to eat! – There is some evidence that a high calorie/carb diet may help relieve altitude sickness. Might as well test out the theory. (You’re going to need those carbs for the dances anyway.)