Gretchen Snyder Pleshaw is on air seven days a week in Colorado. She’s the weekday afternoon Top 40 radio host on Always Mountain Time’s “The LIFT FM,” which covers much of the state, and anchors the “Good Morning, Vail” TV show on weekends. While her professional trajectory is the stuff of fairytales, the 43-year-old has struggled with significant personal obstacles, including domestic violence and social anxiety. She’s flipped the script on her challenges, using her platforms and popularity to educate and entertain with poise, passion, and positivity.
Obsessed with a Dayton DJ
As a child, the Dayton, Ohio native was a devoted fan of radio host Kim Faris on Z 93, when women DJs were rare. (Faris retired from radio in 2021 after 43 years on air in Dayton.)
“I used to tune in religiously every morning on the way to school, and my mom says I’d listen to nothing else.”
A teenage ski trip to Colorado would guide Gretchen’s path.
“My dad said I came back and said things there are artistic, weird, and creative. I loved the mountains, I loved the energy; this is where I’m meant to be.”
After graduating from Oakwood High School, she left Ohio and her folks, Linda and Bruce (who still live there), for the University of Colorado at Boulder. She was determined to be a teacher for deaf children, but she was thrown a curve ball when the school scrapped her major sophomore year. She graduated with a degree in English and then earned a teaching certification from the University of Colorado at Denver.
Hello, Gorgeous – Discovered on the Street
Here’s where the fairy tale stuff starts.
While walking down Pearl Street in Boulder, a man asked to take her picture. She thought it “creepy” at first but relented. That photo was forwarded to a fashion show director who asked Gretchen to model. The 6-foot-tall Gretchen took to modeling immediately but didn’t consider it a career possibility.
She started a teaching position and quickly learned it wasn’t for her. She loved the kids but was frustrated with the inability of administrators to accept young teachers with fresh ideas.
Fortunately, she had modeling mojo.
Reptile Wrangler
After being spotted on a TV commercial, Gretchen snagged a TV hosting job. While she wasn’t in the classroom, she was teaching children. “It was a reptile show for kids. It was really random, but I loved it. I know I look girly, but I loved the reptiles so much. I had nerves about a tarantula, but after thirty seconds, I was okay. “
New York Model
She scored some high-profile modeling jobs, including walking the runway for the Diwali Festival, where she was admired by 100,000 attendees in Times Square and protected by bodyguards. She would also grace a Times Square billboard for a Dove soap ad, has been a “calendar girl,” and even modeled for a fur company in Vail just last week. She has had day parts in several films and TV shows, including a Hallmark Christmas special.
Road to Radio
The professional fairy tale continued. Currently the host of three Top 40 afternoon radio shows, Gretchen never had a “worst radio job.” She didn’t have to pay her dues on an overnight shift, be on a street team, or fetch coffee for bigwigs. She never even needed a demo.
“I’ve only ever worked in radio at “The LIFT FM.” A couple of people there had seen my background in modeling and interviews. Always Mountain Time truly took a chance on me. My friend, Megan Pouch, taught me the board and radio in literally two weeks, and they said, ‘Let’s try it out on KKCH and KIFT, and now I’m on KIDM as well.”
“Flash forward six years. Radio is my happiness. I am so amped to do it. I smile through every show. “
Hosting a Top 40 show is not a hard sell for Gretchen, who has always been excited by music and concerts and surrounds herself with artists and musician friends.
“I love talking about songs and bands on the radio (it truly sparks joy). I really like Top 40. One of the people I’m obsessed with is Pink. I love everything she stands for, and I quote her on the radio almost every day.” Gretchen’s been passionate about Michael Franti and Spearhead for twenty years, and now, it’s Teddy Swims, who she just saw in concert.
“The way he genuinely cared blew my mind. I haven’t seen anything like that since Michael Franti. He started crying at one point, and I started crying with him. So amped that he’s doing what he loves.”
Living alone during the COVID pandemic, her radio gig gave her purpose. She learned just how much she was helping listeners to make it through a terrifying time. “When I walked my dog, people came up to me and thanked me for being so positive.”
Gypsy, her Jack Russell terrier chi mix, has always been her in-studio sidekick. She also adopted Bali, a Jack Russell, and Pa’Ani, a Chi, who have miraculously been trained to stay quiet when the mic is on.
Hot Pink Sensation on the Slopes
Her love for dogs is matched by her adoration of the ski slopes. During her first ski season in Vail, Gretchen skied 134 times. This season, she says she’ll ski almost every day before heading to her noon to seven p.m. air shift. Not too difficult, as she lives just moments away from both her beloved Beaver Creek Mountain and “The LIFT FM” in Evans, Colorado.
Beaver Creek is her favorite ski spot. “It’s such a local vibe, and I know and love the locals, but you can also get lost in the trees by yourself; it’s so peaceful.”
She’s a well-known sensation on the slopes in her signature neon pink ski pants. She wears them in memory of her aunt, Kathy Neal, who died of breast cancer. Her grandmother also succumbed to the disease, so she’s adamant about raising awareness for the cause, as well as about taking care of her own health, both physical and mental.
Power of the Purse
She’s the emcee and a volunteer for “Power of the Purse,” which raises funds to help girls in Peru escape abuse, domestic violence, and sex trafficking.
“It’s a really powerful event. One of my favorite things. The woman who started the foundation, Robyn Burress Hanson, went to Peru and adopted five sisters, and they all live in Vail; next year, I am hoping to visit to see what our money is doing there.”
Gretchen’s fight against domestic violence is also a personal one. She speaks candidly about the abuse in her past in the hopes of assisting others who are suffering.
Honest About Anxiety
She’s also open about her ongoing battle to overcome anxiety. Hosting, especially on radio, she says, erases her anxiety. “It feels like a safe space to me,” she explains. “It’s not work that makes me nervous; it’s more everyday social stuff where I feel overwhelmed or nervous, like having a difficult conversation with someone.”
In April, Gretchen became the weekend host of “Good Morning, Vail” on TV8 Channel 92 community television. It includes “Glitz and Glam with Gretchen,” which highlights what’s new and swanky in Vail, as well as interviews with community newsmakers. “The main theme of the TV show is self-care and self-love from the inside out,” she says.
Gretchen is single, having just broken an engagement to be married.
“I like being alone and want to be single right now. I know exactly what I’m looking for, but I love my career, I love my friends, and I love my dogs.” Plus, she says, being single leaves her free to ski whenever she wants.
Filled with Gratitude
Gretchen is grateful. So much so that she just wrote a letter to the folks who hired her in radio six years ago, Pete and Krista Benedetti of Always Mountain Time radio, thanking them for taking a chance on her. She’s proud that she hasn’t become hardened by the often-cutthroat modeling and media businesses, and says she’s come a long way emotionally.
“Ten years ago, whenever anyone said something that wasn’t positive, I would get very down on myself (and I’ve been told some very tough things in modeling). At the end of the day, you have to be okay with yourself and know that you’re doing the right thing. Whatever anyone says about you is through their own lens, and it’s really just about themselves. It took me a long, long time to figure that out.”
Lessons learned. The 43-year-old outdoorsy yet glamorous radio and TV host has crafted a career and life that makes the most of her passion for fashion, music, nature and advocacy for causes close to her heart.
Amy Snider is a music features reporter for Barrett Media specializing on stories involving radio professionals working in Adult Contemporary/CHR/Top 40 formats. She brings over twenty-five years of media experience to the outlet. Based in St. Petersburg, FL, Amy works for iHeartMedia and the Total Traffic and Weather Network as an on-air reporter, appearing on dozens of radio stations including 98 Rock, Mix 100.7, 95.3 WDAE, and Newsradio WFLA. She has also reported and anchored in the Tampa market at Fox 13, News Channel 8, WMNF Community Radio and WUSF-FM, the NPR affiliate.
Amy is a music fanatic. She hosted a drive-time rock and roll radio show for 20 years on WMNF-FM and is known as a tastemaker in the music and arts community. She booked, hosted, emceed and promoted a wildly popular weekly live music event in Tampa’s Ybor City featuring original music with performers from all over the world. Her free time is often spent at concerts and music festivals. To get in touch, find her on X @AmySnider4.
