I lived in Durango from 1995 until 2004. I worked at a bike shop for eight of those nine years and lived for BMX, downhill racing and moonlight cross-country rides.
I was friends with local legends Chad Cheeney, Todd Wells, Myles Rockwell, Missy Giove, Rob Rupe and many others. My car was rarely seen without a bike attached to a rack on the back, unless it was parked near the trails.
I thought road riders in general, and especially road riders who would pay to ride to Silverton on a spring Saturday morning, had something wrong with them.
Then I moved to Denver after graduating from Fort Lewis College, and I’ve been back to ride the Iron Horse Bicycle Classic every year since.
In 2005, I borrowed longtime friend and The Durango Herald legend Shane Benjamin's Specialized Roubaix. He was still nursing a knee injury from the 2004-05 ski season. I didn't own a road bike, and it was literally the first ride over a quarter mile I had ever taken on one.
In 2006, I was back with my own carbon Raleigh purchased with my honorary employee discount from Pedal the Peaks and the generosity of owner David Howard, my eight-year boss and good buddy.
In 2007, Benjamin and I had bet $25 or $75 on the winner during our trip to visit another former Herald staffer at his new post with the Associated Press in Boston. That year, I was winning up to the descent of Molas Pass when a small group passed me; Shane was latched onto the tail of that group. I used my skills to descend to Silverton quickly and was able to best him on the final uphill sprint up Greene Street through Silverton. I am still owed the $25 or $75.
The 2008 ride was canceled, but it was was back on for 2009, though I'll remember that as maybe one of the more painful rides of my life.
That pain was followed by a special ride in 2010. I had ran into the woman who I would marry the Wednesday before the race, and my plans got in the way of our first date. She offered Monday or Tuesday after the race; I would end up taking both dates and every day since. It was also my fastest Citizen’s Tour, unofficially finishing in 3 hours, 3 minutes from the start line by McDonalds to reach the finish line in Silverton.
In 2011, Carolyn, my future wife, was waiting for me at the finish line for the only time I participated in the road race – every other year has been the Citizen’s Tour for me. I finished a respectable (in my head) 3:02 from Durango High School for top half of my age group.
In 2012, our 6-month old boy Dawson was there with Carolyn waiting in Silverton, and my great friend Jim came down and rode it on a 20-inch folding bike and ran the Narrow Gauge 10-mile race on Sunday.
I got through another in 2013, and then the 2014 ride was sadly shortened to end at Purgatory Resort because of snow. But again, a worse than usual year was followed by one of the best experiences I’ve ever had on a bike at the 2015 ride, as we ascended through snow that didn’t stick to the roads.
In 2016, my second son, Jonah, was also waiting at the finish at just 3 months old. It was windy in Silverton that year, but I paused for a photo with my boys and my medal. My older boy competed in the always fun Sprite Kids Race as we crowded with other parents trying to snap photos.
In 2017, I wore a kit dedicated to a good friend and fellow sports photographer for Getty Images, Doug Pensinger, who we lost tragically to a heart condition in 2016. His family, friends and I now ride as a large group each year in memoriam, the 52, 53, 54 miles and so on for how old his soul is. Doug was an inspiration and mentor in my second stint as a journalist (first as a photographer with The Herald from 2002-04), and a person I am proud to remember as a friend.
Rides in 2018 and 2019 came on beautiful days. I am getting older – 40 this year – but find enjoyment in the ride no matter what. I love chatting with people about how bad the last two miles of Coal Bank Pass are. I love smiling for the excruciating two-mile climb up Silverton's main drag, legs completely gone at that time after nine miles of descending to reach that last stretch of road.
In 2020 with the race and ride canceled because of the pandemic, a group of us considered a rogue ride. But smartly, authorities and this paper advised against it.
I am ready to return for my 15th ride this year and to once again pay for the privilege. We all feel welcomed back to town and enjoy seeing so many of the same faces I loved seeing in the 1990s. It's an incredible event and one I'll keep coming back to as long as possible, and I will work hard to keep the streak going.
