Associated Press - The Durango Herald

Former Olympic snowboarder on FBI's most-wanted list is arrested in Mexico, faces drug charges

ONTARIO, Calif. (AP) — Former Canadian Olympic snowboarder Ryan Wedding, a top FBI fugitive accused of moving some 60 tons of cocaine from Latin America into the United States annually and o...

DATE: Jan 23, 2026 | CATEGORY: Associated Press

Drake Maye aims to do what Tom Brady couldn't with the Patriots: win a playoff game in Denver

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (AP) — Drake Maye has a chance to accomplish something not even Tom Brady did with the Patriots. Maye is hoping to beat the Broncos in the AFC championship game in Denver o...

DATE: Jan 23, 2026 | CATEGORY: Associated Press

FACT FOCUS: As cold hits, Trump asks, where's global warming? Scientists say it's still here

As much of the United States faces numbing cold, treacherous ice and heavy snow from an enormous winter storm, President Donald Trump used social media to dispute that the world is warming. ...

DATE: Jan 23, 2026 | CATEGORY: Associated Press

Wall Street drifts as Intel tumbles and gold's price rises to another record

NEW YORK (AP) — The U.S. stock market drifted through mixed trading Friday, as a zigzag week punctuated by loud threats and pullbacks finished with a quiet and tentative close. The S&P 500...

DATE: Jan 23, 2026 | CATEGORY: Associated Press

Canada's Carney fires back at Trump after Davos speech

TORONTO (AP) — Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney responded to U.S. President Donald Trump comment that “Canada lives because of the United States” on Thursday by saying Canada thrives beca...

DATE: Jan 23, 2026 | CATEGORY: Associated Press

Haiti's transitional council deepens political chaos by voting to oust the prime minister

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — Haiti’s long-running political crisis deepened Friday when the country’s transitional presidential council announced it had voted to fire Prime Minister Alix Did...

DATE: Jan 23, 2026 | CATEGORY: Associated Press

Vance touts the Trump administration's record against abortion at a Washington rally

Vice President JD Vance on Friday encouraged anti-abortion activists to “take heart in how far we’ve come” on the quest to limit the practice, listing the Trump administration's accomplishme...

DATE: Jan 23, 2026 | CATEGORY: Associated Press

Illinois surgeon pleads not guilty to the killings of his ex-wife and her dentist husband in Ohio

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — An Illinois doctor indicted on murder charges in the December shooting deaths of his ex-wife and her dentist husband in their Columbus home pleaded not guilty to the ki...

DATE: Jan 23, 2026 | CATEGORY: Associated Press

Ukraine, Russia, US to discuss fraught issue of territorial concessions in Abu Dhabi

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the future of Ukraine’s eastern Donbas region will be a key focus as negotiators from Ukraine, Russia and the United States meet in Abu Dhabi on ...

DATE: Jan 23, 2026 | CATEGORY: Associated Press

Iranian prosecutor denies Trump's claim 800 prisoners were spared execution

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iran’s top prosecutor on Friday called U.S. President Donald Trump’s repeated claims that he halted the hangings of 800 detained protesters there “complete...

DATE: Jan 23, 2026 | CATEGORY: Associated Press

Judge rules Trump administration must keep funding child care subsidies in 5 states for now

A federal judge ruled Friday that President Donald Trump’s administration must keep federal funds flowing to child care subsidies and other social service programs in five Democratic-control...

DATE: Jan 23, 2026 | CATEGORY: Associated Press

Russia, Ukraine and the US are holding peace talks in Abu Dhabi. They're coming at a key moment

Ukrainian, Russian and U.S. envoys met in the United Arab Emirates on Friday, the first known instance that officials from the Trump administration have sat down with both countries as part ...

DATE: Jan 23, 2026 | CATEGORY: Associated Press

Colorado history gets weird, wild, wacky at Fashion Do’s and Don’tsAnnual Snowdown event has become so popular, auditions are now required

Cowboys. Fancy ladies. Gold miners. Even-toed ungulates that some in Durango might consider more like rats.Where can you find a runway show that takes you on a whirlwind tour through the weird, wacky and wildly exaggerated 150 years of Colorado history? Only at Durango’s annual Fashion Do’s and Don’ts, held Wednesday, where models and audience members wore costumes celebrating Colorado’s sesquicentennial – the theme of this year’s two-week Snowdown celebration.Standout acts included the Ghosts of Durango, which featured four of Durango’s most famous ghosts: a Rochester hotel ghost in a Victorian get-up of a more “modern” variation; the Strater Hotel’s head of housekeeping, also head of more discreet services; a young girl haunting El Rancho’s bathroom; and Sheriff Bob Thompson, killed in a 1906 gunfight. according to emcee Suzan Lane. A Another act was the Secret Circus Society, featuring Rubi Starr, Jeni Gross, Tabatha Joy Bettin, Adrienne Young and Ethan Deffenbaugh dressed as a car and the roadside pests better known as deer. Group members said the inspiration for the costume came from lived experiences driving Durango roads. The two-person Cantine Couture act starred Leslie Ponce and Tyler Frakes in an homage to the plentiful variety of Mexican restaurants found in any Colorado town. Ponce, dressed in comically large Mexican pointy cowboy boots, ambled down the runway as if taking a stroll under the hot, dusty, high-altitude sun, while Frakes flitted about the stage in a bright yellow salsa dress. Ponce said this year’s costume had been tough to decide, but the final decision was inspired by TikTok videos of Mexican cowboys in pointy boots. This was the duo’s third year strutting down the runway. Why they keep coming back for more, Frakes said laughing, was, “for the fame, the glory and the attention.”

Fashion Do’s and Don’ts has been one of the most highly anticipated Snowdown events since its inception in the 1990s. It has more than doubled in size over the past several decades. Last year, there were a record number of models, and in order to keep the event at a manageable size, this year’s fashion show was the first one to require the acts to audition. But many of the models were unfazed by the change. “It was actually easy,” said Jodi Zuber, one part of the two-person duo that made up the 1950s Texas Invader Ski Couple. Her partner-in-costume, Danny Jaques, said they had been doing this for several years, and it’s good with everything going on in the world to “get some levity and let your hair down.” The performers were not the only ones in costume. Audience members also dressed in a wide variety of unique takes on what makes Colorado, Colorado. JonBenet Ramsey made a miraculous appearance, being played by an 82-year-old woman, as did Casa Bonita, an ensemble that included a taco, sopaipilla and gorilla in chains – to name some of the characters. By the end of the show, people were in high spirits, as usual. “It was just delightful,” said a first-time audience member. If blessed with the chance to get the much coveted tickets – he said he would jump on it. jbowman@durangoherald.com

Annual Snowdown event has become so popular, auditions are now required

Photos: Snowdown 2026 Fashion Do’s and Don’ts

Photos: Durango High School basketball teams lose to Montrose High School

Photos: Local girls high school wrestling at La Plata TriDurango girls wrestling went 2-0 to win Tri on Thursday night at Bayfield

Durango girls wrestling went 2-0 to win Tri on Thursday night at Bayfield

Photos: Fort Lewis College women’s and men’s basketball take on Westminster UniversityBoth Skyhawks teams were victorious on Saturday afternoon

Both Skyhawks teams were victorious on Saturday afternoon

Photos: An afternoon in 2004 with the late Sen. Ben Nighthorse Campbell as he works on Capitol HillDurango Herald Photo Editor Jerry McBride had the chance to spend an afternoon with the late Sen. Ben Nighthorse Campbell in 2004, photographing him during meetings and around the Capitol.

Durango Herald Photo Editor Jerry McBride had the chance to spend an afternoon with the late Sen. Ben Nighthorse Campbell in 2004, photographing him during meetings and around the Capitol.

Photos and video: ICE protests return to DurangoAbout a dozen protesters tried to block federal agents from leaving with a detainee on Thursday

About a dozen protesters tried to block federal agents from leaving with a detainee on Thursday

The Durango Herald’s year in photos 2025

Photos: Chapman Hill fires up the snow guns

Former Olympic snowboarder on FBI's most-wanted list is arrested in Mexico, faces drug charges

Drake Maye aims to do what Tom Brady couldn't with the Patriots: win a playoff game in Denver

FACT FOCUS: As cold hits, Trump asks, where's global warming? Scientists say it's still here

Wall Street drifts as Intel tumbles and gold's price rises to another record

Canada's Carney fires back at Trump after Davos speech

Haiti's transitional council deepens political chaos by voting to oust the prime minister

Vance touts the Trump administration's record against abortion at a Washington rally

Illinois surgeon pleads not guilty to the killings of his ex-wife and her dentist husband in Ohio

Ukraine, Russia, US to discuss fraught issue of territorial concessions in Abu Dhabi

Iranian prosecutor denies Trump's claim 800 prisoners were spared execution

Judge rules Trump administration must keep funding child care subsidies in 5 states for now

Russia, Ukraine and the US are holding peace talks in Abu Dhabi. They're coming at a key moment

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