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As REI’s arrival nears in a southwestern Colorado mountain town, some local outdoor rec stores worry

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:01:46 GMT

DURANGO — A little more than a year before the retail sporting goods behemoth comes to town, REI Co-op’s impending arrival has raised concerns, especially among those who wonder what impact its 20,000-square-foot store will have on Durango’s eclectic array of local outdoor recreation businesses.While some business owners aren’t sweating it, John Agnew has a less sanguine view of the effect REI’s presence may have on his snowboard and outdoor gear shop on Main Street once it opens in early 2025. The Seattle-based chain has 181 locations and reported nearly $4 billion in revenue last year.“They’ll eat up a lot of goggle, helmet and snowboard sales,” said Agnew, who founded The Boarding Haus in downtown Durango in 1995. “I had to fight for many years to get the brands I want.”REI, which has several locations in Front Range cities, has expanded its mountain market footprint in recent years, opening outposts in Dillon and then G...

What to do this weekend: Whiskey snow cones, Santa’s drag queens

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:01:46 GMT

Bring on the whiskey snow conesFriday-Saturday. It’s not the North Pole, but the Stranahan’s Colorado Whiskey facility in Denver has definitely got the goods when it comes to gifts this time of year. The distillery, owned by beverage giant Proximo Spirits, will release its limited-edition Snowflake Batch #26 and celebrate with the Snowflake Village Festival on Friday, Dec. 1, and Saturday, Dec. 2, at 200 S. Kalamath St.Things kick off Friday afternoon around 2 p.m. with live music, food trucks, cocktails, whiskey snow cones and s’mores. They continue on Saturday with more of the same. Over the course of the two days, there will also be sensory analysis classes, distillery tours, a cigar pairing and ice sculptures.The whiskey itself will be released on Saturday and will sell out (in years past, fans have begun lining up the day before and staying overnight). Get more info at stranahans.com. — Jonathan ShikesSleigh Days holiday events at McGregor Square include the upcoming Slei...

A Colorado city cracks Fodor’s Go List for 2024’s best travel destinations

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:01:46 GMT

Fodor’s influential “No List” discouraged travelers from visiting the American West in 2023, citing the increasingly dry Colorado River and the millions of residents who depend on its water.But for 2024, the company’s travel experts have recommended one place in Colorado that should be on every vacationer’s bucket list.Boulder is one of 24 places to land on Fodor’s “Go List” for 2024 and one of just two destinations in the United States. The other is Cannon Beach, Ore.Fodor’s praised Boulder’s accessibility to recreation and nature, enticing outdoor enthusiasts with 30,000 acres of city-owned open space for hiking, mountain biking, climbing, and tubing. The story also noted the allure of Pearl Street’s al fresco dining options, the majesty of the Flatirons and the innumerable craft breweries worth their pint.All that and a nod to Coach Prime, who led the University of Colorado football team on a nationally spotlighted journey this season. (We’ll give Fodor’s ...

Colorado’s best ski-area snow stakes have become webcam celebrities

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:01:46 GMT

Ski area snow stakes used to have one simple purpose: Usually tucked away in secret locations, they were the measuring tools that ski patrollers checked first thing every morning so that the resort could report whether there was any new snow, and if so, how much.The internet has changed that, of course. Now, snow takes often serve as marketing tools, even celebrities, for some resorts. Most have webcams focused on them around the clock so powder hounds can see for themselves how much snow has fallen. Several have time-lapse capability.At the other extreme is Arapahoe Basin’s ultra-humble snow stake, which actually has no stake at all, and is decidedly old school in keeping with the vibe of a 77-year-old ski area nicknamed The Legend. It doesn’t have a measuring device, just a wooden A-Basin logo attached to a platform. It’s so anti-fancy, in fact, that it didn’t look, to The Denver Post, like it had been set up yet for the season — even though A-Basin w...

Avs Mailbag: How does the current squad stack up against the Stanley Cup champs?

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:01:46 GMT

Denver Post sports writer Corey Masisak opens up the Avs Mailbag periodically throughout the season. Pose an Avalanche- or NHL-related question for the Avs Mailbag.Assuming we can stay healthy and people expected to eventually slot in do, how does this year’s team stack up against the Cup team?@ZickenedThe Avs have played a quarter of their season, and … so far this team stacks up quite well against the championship group from two years ago. Colorado is currently on pace for 117 points. The Avs finished with 119 two years ago.They are currently third in the league in goals per game and 10th in goals allowed per contest. The Cup champs finished second in goals and seventh in goals against. The power play was better two years ago, but the penalty kill has been significantly better this season.If we break the two sides down player by player, the 2022 team was deeper up front. Nazem Kadri had a huge year as the No. 2 center, and Ryan Johansen probably won’t match it. T...

Caryn Jarocki headlines Colorado High School Coaches Association Hall of Fame Class of 2024

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:01:46 GMT

The Colorado High School Coaches Association announced it will induct five coaches into its 2024 Hall of Fame class, headlined by record-breaking Highlands Ranch girls basketball coach Caryn Jarocki.Joining Jarocki in the class will be Mountain Vista dance coach Keri Atchison, longtime basketball coach Bruce Dick, former Brush football coach Randy Dreitz and ex-Rangeview boys basketball coach Terry Taylor.The group will be inducted at a banquet on Monday, April 15, at Legacy Campus Great Hall in Lone Tree.Jarocki has guided Highlands Ranch to seven state championships since taking over the program in 1996 following an 11-year stint at Colorado Academy. With more than 700 wins and counting, she is the winningest coach in Colorado high school girls basketball, with her teams reaching the Final Four 18 times.Atchison, currently the spirit director for Mountain Vista, has led the Golden Eagles dance team to state titles in all three divisions: three times in Poms, four times in Jazz, an...

Kickin’ It with Kiz Podcast: How Deion Sanders’ CU Buffs can win 10 games in 2024?

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:01:46 GMT

In the latest edition of the Kickin’ it with Kiz Podcast, Mark Kiszla gives tips on winning in FBS, winning big gambling your paycheck and the titanic showdown between the Broncos and the Texans.How can the Deion Sanders-led Buffs win 10 games in 2024? Our humble host offers up a 10-point plan.The Broncos are riding a five-game winning streak as they head to Houston to face rookie sensation CJ Stroud and the Texans. As 3.5-point favorites, are the Broncos a good bet?The Dusty Old Cowtown knucklehead of note signs off as he lets the audience weigh in on his standing as king of the knuckleheads.The Kickin’ it with Kiz podcast is brought to you by Argonaut Wine & Liquor, featuring Buffalo Trace.Subscribe to the podcastSoundCloud | iTunes | Google Music | RSSProducer: AAron OntiverozMusic: “Bumble Bees” by Schama NoelWant more sports news? Sign up for the Sports Omelette to get all our analysis on Denver’s teams.

Belt & Road, and President Xi Jinping's "The Governance of China"

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:01:46 GMT

Despite some initial “suspicions” China’s much-publicised Belt and Road Initiative has become a big success, a debate in Brussels was told. The flagship policy, a global infrastructure development, has been a job spinner and will also promote “green growth”, the event at the city’s Press Club heard.The strategy initiated by the People’s Republic of China seeks to connect Asia with Africa and Europe via land and maritime networks with the aim of improving regional integration, increasing trade and stimulating economic growth.The idea was to create a vast network of railways, energy pipelines, highways, and streamlined border crossings, both westward—through the mountainous former Soviet republics—and southward, to Pakistan, India, and the rest of Southeast Asia.Bernard Dewit, Chairman of the Belgian-Chinese Chamber of Commerce (BCECC),The project has led to the creation of 420,000 new jobs and now comprises 150 countries, it was said at the “10th anniversary symposium” in Brusse...

Detached house in Saratoga sells for $2.4 million

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:01:46 GMT

12536 Paseo Flores – Google Street ViewA house located in the 12500 block of Paseo Flores in Saratoga has new owners. The 1,800-square-foot property, built in 1950, was sold on Nov. 9, 2023. The $2,405,000 purchase price works out to $1,336 per square foot. This single-story home offers a roomy layout with five bedrooms and two bathrooms. Inside, a fireplace adds character to the home. In addition, the house features a one-car garage. The property’s backyard additionally features both a spa and a pool.Additional houses that have recently changed hands close by include:A 1,500-square-foot home on the 12400 block of Paseo Cerro in Saratoga sold in April 2023, for $1,850,000, a price per square foot of $1,233. The home has 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms.In August 2023, a 1,500-square-foot home on Paseo Cerro in Saratoga sold for $2,600,000, a price per square foot of $1,733. The home has 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms.On Saratoga Avenue, Saratoga, in May 2023, a 1,260-square-foot home was sold...

Calls for peace in Gaza disrupt Vallejo council meeting

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:01:46 GMT

A crowd of protesters demanding a permanent ceasefire in Gaza caused the Vallejo City Council to retreat into a recess on Tuesday night in a regular scheduled meeting.Bowing to the chanted demands of dozens of activists, council members agreed to consider adopting a resolution calling for an end to Israel’s bombardment of the war-torn Gaza Strip in retaliation for Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack. A draft resolution will go to the council Dec. 12 and, depending on council votes, could be adopted Dec. 19.Protesters Tuesday decried Israel’s offensive against the political group that killed roughly 1,400 people, most of them civilians, in a surprise attack last month. Israeli bombings and other military actions have killed more than 13,300 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry – flattening vast swaths of the region and displacing some 1.7 million people in an effort to obliterate Hamas.“Every day I wake up, I am met with the crushing reality that it’s another day in hell for the people...