The 2012 SIA Snow Show, held today through Jan. 29 at the Colorado Convention Center, brings together around 20,000 attendees from the ski and snowboard industry to the Mile High City. During a talk today at the SIA Snow Show, backcountry expert Dean Cummings offered tips on how to avoid avalanches while enjoying the untamed wilderness. Cummings, the star of the film "The Steep Life," recommends maintaining visual and verbal contact with skiing partners and planning a route from the top of the mountain down.

• Backcountry Expert Offers Tips on Avoiding Avalanches

Today marks the start of the Chinese New Year, which is the Year of the Dragon. According to the Chinese Zodiac, children born in the Year of the Dragon are honest, intelligent and gregarious. Famous people born in the Year of the Dragon include Sigmund Freud, Dr. Seuss and John Lennon. The Far East Center at the intersection off Alameda Ave. and Federal Blvd. will hold a free Chinese New Year celebration on Sat. Jan. 28, 2012. Students from the Shaolin Hung Mei Kug Fu will perform a lion dance at noon at Truong An located at 333 S. Federal Blvd. The Colorado Asian Cultural Heritage Center will also perform at 2:30 p.m. and 3 p.m. on Saturday.

While Denver is not known for being a high-fashion mecca, unless you count per-capita consumption of fleece jackets, the Mile High City will get a dose of haute couture with an exhibit of clothing by Yves Saint Laurent at the Denver Art Museum. "This exhibition demonstrates the impact of Saint Laurent's work on the history of fashion and the present-day relevance of his style," said Florence Müller, exhibition curator, in a statement. Tickets for the exhibit, which runs March 25, 2012 through July 8, 2012, will go on sale to the general public on Friday, Jan. 20, 2012. Tickets are $22 for adults, $18 for seniors and students and $14 for youth.

• Yves Saint Laurent: The Retrospective

Photo credit: Yves Saint Laurent, Short cocktail dress, tribute to Piet Mondrian, haute couture collection, Fall-Winter 1965. Ecru wool jersey, encrusted with black, red, yellow and blue. © Fondation Pierre Bergé-Yves Saint Laurent, Paris / Photo A. Guirkinger.

The Denver Zoo will offer free admission to Colorado residents on Wednesday. The zoo, located at 2300 Steele St. in City Park, is open from 10 a.m. - 5 p.m., with the last admission at 4 p.m. The zoo covers 80 acres, and is home to thousands of animals from across the world.

• Denver Zoo Profile
• Denver Zoo Photos