Letters to the Editor

Summer ‘break’ is filled with legislative business

My summer was filled with lots of travel for legislative interim committee tours, attending a senior executive program at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government in July and participating in ...

DATE: Aug 25, 2016 | CATEGORY: Letters to the Editor

Connect4 project is still moving forward

By Mayor Karen Sheek The past few months have been an exciting time in Montezuma County as representatives from the county, Cortez, Mancos, Dolores, and the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe...

DATE: Aug 25, 2016 | CATEGORY: Letters to the Editor

Despite lack of funds for maintenance, national parks remain a reason to celebrate

Despite lack of funds for maintenance, parks remain a reason to celebrate

DATE: Aug 25, 2016 | CATEGORY: Letters to the Editor

Commission in the dark on broadband

I attended the July 18 county commissioner’s meeting, which is the first open meeting that they have had with the general public in the 20-plus years I have resided in Montezuma County. It m...

DATE: Aug 23, 2016 | CATEGORY: Letters to the Editor

Airline safety: Focus on sense not dollars

I appreciate adding my comments to Garth Greenlee’s letter to the editor (Journal, July 29.) The subject was the recent choice of a new airline, one using single engine airplanes to serve th...

DATE: Aug 23, 2016 | CATEGORY: Letters to the Editor

Monument does not mean devastation

Jeremy Lyman (Journal, Aug. 4) did a great job of patting himself on the back, but he came up quite short in his description of devastation to the local community. I haven’t been...

DATE: Aug 23, 2016 | CATEGORY: Letters to the Editor

Find a fairer way to pay for broadband

The plan to provide an “extensive broadband infrastructure” is, I am sure, laudable and would provide a nice service to those who would use it. There is, however, a serious flaw in the way t...

DATE: Aug 23, 2016 | CATEGORY: Letters to the Editor

With Bears Ears, too much is at stake

San Juan County, Utah, is 92 percent owned by the federal government and it wants to take more. If the feds take more land and turn this county into a national monument then many people in t...

DATE: Aug 23, 2016 | CATEGORY: Letters to the Editor

What is behind the Wark name?

The night the Old Wark Flour mill burned down in Cortez, I watched almost all night. The story mentioning bluebird flower indicates the Tanner family owned the mill. ...

DATE: Aug 23, 2016 | CATEGORY: Letters to the Editor

Update on the county’s no spray policy

This letter is a follow-up on the no spray policy in Montezuma County. On Monday, June 20 I met with Bonnie Loving, the weed office manager, and the county commissioners regardin...

DATE: Aug 23, 2016 | CATEGORY: Letters to the Editor

Do not use our tax dollars to fund ALC

Several weeks ago, I attempted to reach out to one of our Montezuma County commissioners by inquiring via email as to whether he was considering continuing to utilize county tax dollars to h...

DATE: Aug 23, 2016 | CATEGORY: Letters to the Editor

Are aging and the economic slowdown linked?

WASHINGTON – An aging America reduces the economy’s growth – big time. That’s the startling conclusion of a new academic study, and if it withstands scholarly scrutiny, it could transform ou...

DATE: Aug 22, 2016 | CATEGORY: Letters to the Editor

Durango named as host city for 2030 UCI Mountain Bike World Championships800 athletes from 55 nations expected to compete at Purgatory Resort

After more than a year of work behind the scenes, it’s official: The mountain bike world championships are coming back to Durango. The Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI), the cycling world’s governing body, announced on Thursday in Rwanda at the UCI Congress that Durango will host the 2030 UCI Mountain Bike World Championships. The 2030 world championships will mark the 40th anniversary of Durango hosting the first UCI Mountain Bike World Championships in 1990.

“It’s fantastic,” said bid architect and local organizing committee member Gaige Sippy. “… Now, you roll up your sleeves and you start the real work. It’s been a little bit of a dress rehearsal, to some extent.” “It did go by kind of fast that year and a half in some ways. “Now we’re into the meat of the of the program, if you will, and we need to start executing,” he said. “It's almost a relief because there’s a lot of what ifs all along the way. Now … let’s start designing this, working on fundraising and all of the steps it takes to be successful.”Eight hundred mountain bikers from 55 countries will come to Durango to compete at Purgatory Resort in cross-country Olympic team relays, cross-country Olympic junior races, cross-country Olympic U23 races, cross-country Olympic elite races, downhill junior and elite races, and E mountain bike races.Durango is expected to host a 2029 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup event as part of the responsibility of hosting the world championships. Sippy said there’s a good chance Durango will also host a 2028 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup event.The city of Durango has earmarked $200,000 in tourism money for the world championships; the UCI requires an applicant to host the world championships to put up a security amount of $188,000 to be held by the UCI until the world championships.While $200,000 is a lot of money, it’ll pay off with the economic impact the event will have on Durango. City Prosperity Officer Mike French said in a previous Durango Herald article that the 2022 UCI Cyclocross World Champs in Fayetteville, Arkansas, had a direct economic impact of just under $10 million and generated $1 million in tax revenues. More recently, the 2024 UCI BMX World Championships event in Rock Hill, South Carolina, had a $30 million direct economic impact and generated $2.6 million in tax revenues, he said.“This is a momentous occasion for our community,” Durango Mayor Gilda Yazzie said in a news release. “The city is honored to be chosen by the UCI to host this historic anniversary year, and we are thrilled to partner with Durango Cycling Championships and Purgatory Resort.”To celebrate the announcement, the city of Durango is hosting the Ride with the Champions bike parade on Friday. Durango’s champions Sepp Kuss, Todd Wells, Riley Amos, Bailey Cioppa, Leah Morozowhich, Zoey Waage, Cooper Wells and others will be leading the parade that starts at 5:30 p.m. next to Buckley Park.While it’s a relief for the anticipation and finger-crossing to be over, Sippy’s confidence level in Durango’s chances of hosting has been high for a while. The main reason is the UCI first expressed interest in Durango hosting the 2030 world championships. The UCI reached out to USA Cycling President Brendan Quirk about Durango hosting. Quirk reached out to Christopher Blevins and Blevins reached out to Sippy.Quirk then came to Durango to discuss the requirements and start the work on the bid in June 2024. Sippy then met with the mayor and city staff members to flesh out what it would look like to host the world championships.Sippy led the way as Durango proceeded with the bid process and the bid was sent off in January.The UCI then reviewed the bid for 60 days, and if it liked what it saw, it would send a contract. The UCI sent a contract in May. Sippy and the UCI went back and forth for about two months editing the contract of what the world championships would look like if Durango was selected. Sippy signed the sixth and final version of the contract before it was confirmed on Tuesday that Durango would be the host city.Since Sippy signed the final version of the contract, he went to Switzerland at the end of August and early in September to witness the 2025 UCI Mountain Bike World Championships. It was an opportunity for him to meet all the people with the UCI in Switzerland he has been e-mailing for the past year. . He got to chat with them about the next steps after the announcement was made public. Sippy also talked with different members of the UCI business model that are in charge of executing the world championships on the ground. While Sippy was on the ground in Switzerland, he got to look at how the 2025 UCI Mountain Bike World Championships were laid out. Although he has been involved with running cycling races for a lot of his life (he was the director of the Iron Horse Bicycle Classic for over a decade), Sippy got a lot of ideas for how Durango should set up the world championships. “The venue at Purgatory will be easier to manage than what they had in Switzerland,” he said. Events were too spread out in Switzerland, he said.“We have the opportunity to tighten it up on our end and have a little more of a smaller footprint that'll be better for spectators,” Sippy said.“They had things so spread out over there that even in the small town that they did the cross country in, they had it spread out so there was pits here and there was pits there and there was tech zone here. Nothing was together. So we have the opportunity to tighten it up on our end and have a little more of smaller footprint that'll be better for spectators.”He saw firsthand how big cycling is in Europe. He enjoyed seeing the amount of spectators there was at the world championships and how the fans were managed in Switzerland with all the television screens and the fan zones.In the last few weeks, Sippy and the local organizing committee have been talking to television production crews and vetting them to see what company will be the best fit. He also knows the technology with broadcasting events is changing so fast that the capabilities of these companies will be drastically different even in 2028 when the first international event comes to Durango.There’s also a large fundraising component to hosting the event, with Sippy and the local organizing committee working on raising money from grants, donations and long-term partnerships. The courses for the world championships at Purgatory will also need to be built or repurposed. The plan is to repurpose the 2001 World Cup downhill course at Purgatory and build new cross-country Olympic and cross-country short track courses.

From 2028 to 2030, Durango should have a lot of mountain bikers competing at a world-class level. Christopher Blevins will be in his early 30s and should still be competing at a high level in cross-country mountain bike. Asa Vermette will be in his early 20s and should be one of the top men’s elite downhill riders. Riley Amos and Savilia Blunk should be in the prime of their careers in the elite cross-country categories. Riders like Bailey Cioppa, Ivan Sippy, Lauren Aggeler and others should also have the chance to represent Durango on the world stage.

Sippy said having the 2030 world championships in Durango gives the next generation of professional bikers something to work toward – not just his son, Ivan, but all the young racers. “It has been a lot of the reason I have been so motivated to get this year (2030) and not just because of my son (Ivan),” Sippy said. “But because I was an original Durango Devo board member, way back when this whole Devo thing came together. “I’m such a firm believer in how good sport can be for kids,” Sippy said. “... We have a town that’s into cycling. Todd (Wells) and I ... hope this inspires these up-and-comers and the kids that are right behind that.”bkelly@durangoherald.com

800 athletes from 55 nations expected to compete at Purgatory Resort

Photos: Four Corners Motorcycle RallyLots of motorcycles and tattoos were on display on Saturday

Lots of motorcycles and tattoos were on display on Saturday

Crews reinforce lines as hot, dry weather threatens to feed Stoner Mesa Fire‘Rolling debris may cause uphill runs, torching, and spotting’Firefighters battling the Stoner Mesa Fire northeast of Dolores on Sunday reported steady progress on building containment lines, even as hot, dry weather promises to drive fire activity this week.The lightning-caused wildfire, which ignited July 28, has burned 8,369 acres and remains 0% contained as of Sunday morning, according to Rocky Mountain Complex Incident Management Team 1.The change in weather, following a cooldown with rain Friday and Saturday, is expected to intensify fire behavior, as grass and brush becomes increasingly flammable and likely to spread in the rough and sometimes steep terrain between Stoner and Taylor mesas.Structure protection teams continued to assess homes and energy infrastructure along the Colorado Highway 145 corridor, the team update said. More than 570 personnel have been assigned to the fire, and officials said efforts are focused on securing the perimeter and preventing the fire from advancing into inaccessible areas.In his morning briefing, Operations Section Chief Matt Weakland again asked drivers in the Colorado Highway 145 and Road 38 corridor to be cautious.“We have a lot of work going on in the Highway 145 and the County Road 38 areas. ... Please slow down and take some extra precaution just because we do have so many folks out in those areas working to prep and catalog all of those structures that we have out along those roads.”

Crews extend fire linesIn Division A, on the northwestern side of the fire, crews have established fire lines from the edge of Division X to West Twin Springs Trail, with only a small segment of indirect line remaining, the news release said.Firefighters are mopping up burned areas, strengthening fire lines and, where conditions allow, conducting small burns to reduce unburned fuels near the fire’s perimeter. Other crews were trying to contain two spot fires east of West Twin Springs Trail.Elsewhere, southern containment lines are largely complete in Division T, and crews were reopening historic roads to access and mop up hot spots near the canyon rim. In Division X, dozer lines and trail improvements are being extended toward Aspen Reservoir. Additional resources were reportedly on the way.Heavy equipment was also active in Division W, where mechanized tree fellers and masticators were clearing and shredding timber and vegetation to improve fire lines along the Road 201.In the far northeast corner, crews continue to scout the remote Division E for a plan of attack“We'll be gathering some more information to put together a good solid plan for Division Echo,” Weakland said. “One thing to note,” he said, “at the the far (eastern) end of the fire, we were able to get some additional old roadways opened up with a dozer so that we can put engines and crews out on this end of the fire to try to hold that right where it is on from any southward movement.”

‘Rolling debris may cause uphill runs, torching, and spotting’

Crews battle to contain Stoner Mesa Fire, work to protect high value areas‘Fully staffed division’ puts in fire line along mesa to protect County Road 38Firefighters are pushing to build containment lines in the Stoner Mesa Fire northeast of Dolores, taking advantage of a cool night with rainfall to improve fire lines and further implement the containment strategy.The fire, which has scorched more than 7,390 acres since it was ignited July 28, remained 0% contained Saturday morning, according to a news release from the Rocky Mountain Complex Incident Management Team 1. The team noted that because of poor flight conditions, no new infrared data was available to update the fire’s size. More than 530 personnel are working the fire, which is burning in rugged terrain and threatening homes, grazing lands, timber sales and key transportation routes including Colorado Highway 145 and County Road 38.“Firefighters continue to work toward full suppression of the fire, keeping firefighter safety and the public’s safety as a top priority,” the incident team said Saturday in a news release.According to operations section chief Matt Weakland, however, said in his morning update that the rainfall has brought new challenges for crews.

“Last night we received some moisture on the fire and more rain is expected today,” he said. “While that is a really good for moderating fire behavior, it does present some unique challenges to firefighters out on the ground. It can cause roads and dozer lines that we've been driving to become slick and impassible and it also can cause problems for firefighters … in those steep areas – makes it inaccessible due to slick conditions.”Infrared flights used to map the fire’s perimeter were grounded for two nights because of poor weather. Officials plan to use unmanned aerial systems and state Mission Aircraft to gather data this weekend.Impact on local communitiesResidents along Highway 145 and County Road 38 are being urged to drive cautiously due to heavy fire traffic. The fire team, led by Cmdr. Justin Conrad, has reported several close calls with drivers passing on double yellow lines and exceeding speed limits, the news release said.Officials also reminded the public that wildfires are a no-fly zone for unauthorized aircraft, including drones. “If you fly, we can’t,” the team warned. Flight crews were airborne Saturday morning. Structure protection teams are assessing homes and preparing for a possible defense. Structure Group 145 is identifying water tender fill sites and evaluating equipment needs. Structure Group 38 has completed assessments on the fire side of the footprint from Dunton to Colorado 145 and is working north to assess properties on the opposite side.The San Juan National Forest has announced emergency closures in areas affected by the fire. Stage 2 fire restrictions remain in place across the region.

Bayless returned to the mound in the top of the fifth inning and surrendered only one hit. The Piedra Vista High product has been one of the most efficient pitchers in the tournament, with a three-inning shutout performance out of the bullpen earlier this week in a Renegades win over the Midland Redskins.The Dodgers broke the game open in the top of the sixth, scoring three times. Clark and Ashten Ballew both scored, followed by Austen Allen. Those three runs gave the Dodgers a commanding 4-0 edge.The Renegades closed the gap in the bottom of the sixth inning. Ben Finnegan led off the frame getting hit by a pitch, then scored on a double down the right field line by Curry. Green then doubled in Curry to cut the Dodgers lead in half, but then proceeded to leave a runner on base to end the threat.The Dodgers added a run in the top of the seventh when Baker led off the frame with a single and later scored from second on a base hit from Clark to add some leverage for Collins, who shut the Renegades down with a flawless final inning to complete the win.“Everything was working for me tonight, I got myself into a lot of 2-strike counts and had myself in the drivers seat,” Collins said. “I had a lot of faith in my defense and they executed so well in getting us out of jams.”

The Dodgers made their CMWS debut in 2022 and have been a return visitor each of the last three years. In 2022 and 2023, they earned automatic bids to the tournament having won the Don Mattingly World Series the prior year. This year, the Dodgers won the Ozarks qualifying tournament in Joplin, Missouri to earn their spot in the event. The Dodgers finish the CMWS with a record of 4 wins and one loss, dropping their only game in bracket competition to the Midland Southwest Bulls.The Renegades, who were hoping to become back-to-back CMWS champions, never appeared to overcome Collins’ performance on the mound.“The kid threw strikes and we just couldn’t capitalize on them at all,” said Renegades head coach Si Pettrow. “Even when we made that run in the fourth, we still couldn’t keep that momentum going.”This was the second meeting between these two teams during the Connie Mack World Series. On Thursday, the Dodgers outscored the Renegades by a score of 9-6. “The more you see a team, the more you get to scout their tendencies and so we focused on that a little bit coming into this game tonight. The Renegades finish the tournament with a record of 4-2, with both of their losses coming at the hands of the newly crowned champions.

Landon Collins hurls complete game and picks up tournament MVP award

A sampling of images from the Montezuma County Fair

Vermette wins Red Bull Hardline WalesDurango downhill mountain bike star made history becoming youngest winner

Asa Vermette didn’t think it was enough. The 18-year-old downhill mountain bike sensation was the final rider to hit the Red Bull Hardline course in Dyfi, Wales, on Sunday. He knew England’s Charlie Hatton had put down a great run before him.He knew the top of his run wasn’t the fastest and he made a small mistake. That mistake didn’t matter. As soon as Vermette crossed the finish line, the timing screen turned green and he became the youngest Red Bull Hardline winner in the event’s history, beating Hatton’s run by 1.681 seconds. It was a bounce back effort for Vermette after he finished second at Red Bull Hardline Tasmania in February. “I felt really good after Tasmania; I just wanted to get the win, pretty bad, for sure,” Vermette said. “So to do it there was insane. Also, I wasn't really even thinking about being the youngest person until it happened. So, I'm stoked on that; it’s cool.”The Durangoan completed his final run in two minutes and 24.477 seconds; Vermette’s final run was over four seconds faster than his qualifying run. Hatton finished in second in 2:26.158 and Ronan Dinne was third in 2:29.396. Like in many of his World Cup runs, Vermette built up his run by starting slower in the first split and then built his speed and a gap to his competitors. He was fourth after the first split and then had the fastest splits in Split 2, 3 and 4.

Rain was in the air in Dyfi the night before the qualifying and race day. Vermette didn’t grow up racing in the rain and mud in Durango but he’s gotten used to it doing the World Cups.“My riding style for all the technical rock gardens was actually pretty good because at Purgatory we’ve got a bunch of those; it's just doesn't usually rain,” Vermette said. “So the track was something I was pretty familiar with the steep chutes, corners and big jumps … having a slippery top section was something … to adjust to was some slippery rocks. But other than that, the track was pretty suited to me.”A big difference between World Cup tracks and Red Bull Hardline are the jumps. The jumps at Hardline, with drops up to 90 feet, according to Vermette, are a lot bigger than anything he’d see at a World Cup. The difference suits Vermette as he enjoys hitting jumps.Vermette had one final jump to nail before crossing the finish line at the bottom. He felt like his run wasn’t enough because of a couple mistakes. Reflecting on the moment, Vermette realizes that on the bike, every mistake feels like it’s bigger than it is.After hitting the final jump, crossing the finish line and realizing he won, Vermette was mobbed by camera people and his competitors congratulating him in front of a huge crowd.

It was an insane feeling for Vermette, one he struggled to put into words as all the fans were stoked to watch a run on such an entertaining track. The 2025 World Cup season has been tough for Vermette so far. He crashed in the first two rounds, is without a win and is fourth in the men’s junior downhill World Cup standings. His Red Bull Hardline win could turn the tide on his year. “It'll help for sure, just for the confidence,” Vermette said. “It's a totally different field and different track, but just the confidence of knowing you did it the weekend before or whatever will be nice to have. Hopefully we can just keep building and going on for me.”

Vermette has a quick turnaround to defend his men’s elite downhill USA Cycling Gravity Mountain Bike National Championship in Big Bear Lake, California, from Thursday-Sunday. bkelly@durangoherald.com

Durango downhill mountain bike star made history becoming youngest winner

Summer ‘break’ is filled with legislative business

Connect4 project is still moving forward

Despite lack of funds for maintenance, national parks remain a reason to celebrate

Commission in the dark on broadband

Airline safety: Focus on sense not dollars

Monument does not mean devastation

Find a fairer way to pay for broadband

With Bears Ears, too much is at stake

What is behind the Wark name?

Update on the county’s no spray policy

Do not use our tax dollars to fund ALC

Are aging and the economic slowdown linked?

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