Outdoors – The Durango Herald

Experienced climber falls 800 feet to his death on ridge near Telluride

21-year-old man from Arizona is second person to die while hiking in Colorado this week

DATE: Jul 26, 2024 | CATEGORY: Outdoors

Dust-up between cyclists, ambulance highlights headaches bike races can cause first responders

Recent incident following a serious bike crash is forcing conversation about setting rules

DATE: Jul 18, 2024 | CATEGORY: Outdoors

Dolores High School student hikes Colorado Trail in 21 days

Bridger Beyhan nearly 23 miles per day

DATE: Jul 12, 2024 | CATEGORY: Local News

Photos: Getting in the flow

There were heavy rains Friday in the mountains up the water in the Animas River

DATE: Jun 29, 2024 | CATEGORY: Local News

Federal ‘land grab’ or conservation? U.S. senator visits Dolores River to weigh in

Opponents fear a national monument will curtail access and draw crowds; supporters say it will help manage impacts

DATE: Jun 17, 2024 | CATEGORY: Outdoors

Visits to Colorado ski areas in 2023-24 slightly down from prior year’s record

Since 2021, resorts have been pumping record sums into new lifts, terrain and infrastructure

DATE: Jun 17, 2024 | CATEGORY: Outdoors

CPW emphasizes importance of life jackets amid high rate of drowning deaths

‘When drownings do happen, you see the loved ones left behind,’ Colorado Parks and Wildlife spokesman says

DATE: Jun 17, 2024 | CATEGORY: Outdoors

Colorado rivers are peaking – and so are drownings

At least 18 people have died in state reservoirs and waterways so far this year

DATE: Jun 13, 2024 | CATEGORY: Outdoors

PHOTOS: Vallecito Lake Heavy Half

Mark Schenberger of Durango won Saturday’s half-marathon at Vallecito Reservoir

DATE: May 11, 2024 | CATEGORY: Gallery

Sen. Bennet urges more federal spending for outdoor recreation

Senators want to see the outdoors become eligible for essential infrastructure funding

DATE: Apr 26, 2024 | CATEGORY: Outdoors

Winter Park’s Indigenous roots are now on the mountain in signs and art installations

The history of Winter Park – Colorado’s longest continuously-operated ski area – is often told starting in the 1920s. That's when people are said to have “unofficially” started hitting the s...

DATE: Apr 21, 2024 | CATEGORY: Regional News

Video: Purgatory Resort ‘Pond Skim’ event wows skiers, snowboarders

Some touched down onto the water cleanly, while others crashed hard into the pond. But that was part of the fun

DATE: Apr 14, 2024 | CATEGORY: Local News

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Photos: Parade launches 2024 Connie Mack World Series in FarmingtonFans line street as players march on Main Damp, overcast weather cooled off the crowd lining Main Street on Friday morning for the 2024 Connie Mack World Series Parade. The hourlong parade began shortly after 10 a.m. in front of an enthusiastic crowd.

Fans line street as players march on Main

Photos: ‘Mini Takes the States’ tour stops in DurangoHundreds of Mini Cooper vehicles occupy Fort Lewis College on Sunday; Participants began the journey in Albuquerque and will finish in Seattle

Hundreds of Mini Cooper vehicles occupy Fort Lewis College on Sunday; Participants began the journey in Albuquerque and will finish in Seattle

Photos: Boxing returns to DurangoAnimus on the Animas: 1st Annual Durango Boxing Classic at the Durango Main Mall on Saturday

Animus on the Animas: 1st Annual Durango Boxing Classic at the Durango Main Mall on Saturday

Photos and video: Going for the gold by devouring piesContestants try their best to win the Oscar’s Pie Eating Contest on Friday in Durango

Contestants try their best to win the Oscar’s Pie Eating Contest on Friday in Durango

Photo: Fireworks light the sky in DurangoDurango celebrates Independence Day on Thursday night

Durango celebrates Independence Day on Thursday night

Photos: Working with woodLocal craftsman uses wood joinery, rather than nails or screws to construct homes and other structures

Local craftsman uses wood joinery, rather than nails or screws to construct homes and other structures

2024 Fourth of July Parade draws crowd Thursday in downtown Durango

Photos: Downtown Durango hosts Fourth of July ParadeDowntown sidewalks were full for Thursday’s celebration

Downtown sidewalks were full for Thursday’s celebration

Durango Rotary Club, Parks and Recreation department host Independence Day events

Law enforcement conducts active threat training at Park Elementary SchoolResidents may see and hear police activity Thursday and Friday

Law enforcement agencies across Southwest Colorado sent officers to participate in active threat training this week at Park Elementary School in Durango. Those in the neighborhood can expect police vehicles parked on the premises, officers in tactical gear conducting exercises inside and outside the school, and signs advising that training is in progress. The sounds of shouting, airsoft weapons and the popping of a starter pistol will also be audible near the school, said Karla Sluis, spokeswoman for Durango School District 9-R.Sluis said that members of the school district’s safety department have gone door-to-door with flyers notifying residents around Park Elementary School about the training.

Hosted by the Durango Police Department and the La Plata County Sheriff’s Office, this week’s voluntary training invited officers from law enforcement agencies across a five-county region of Southwest Colorado encompassing La Plata, Archuleta, San Juan, Montezuma and Dolores counties.

La Plata County Sheriff’s Office deputy Durango Police Department Deputy Mike Latham, lead instructor for this week's training, said Wednesday and the first half of Thursday were mostly preparatory, teaching officers the school’s layout and devising scenarios, whereas the latter half of Thursday and Friday residents should anticipate some noise as active threat scenarios play out.

Latham said active threat training teaches officers proper protocol during active threat scenarios, especially in densely populated areas where they have become increasingly common.Park Elementary School is not the only Durango School District facility law enforcement has conducted active threat training. Latham said schools lend themselves well to this sort of training because, “It gives us all kinds of doors to work on, different rooms, different scenarios we can run. We can pretend it’s a mall with nice big corridors, we can even pretend it’s an outdoor area in the gymnasium.”Latham has participated in active threat training multiple times in the past and described the drills as exhilarating and nerve-wracking. He said one of the training’s main goals is teaching officers how to manage stress and remain calm with lives on the line.

“I take a pulse oximeter in the morning and get a baseline on their heart rates,” Latham said. “And sometimes, just before they’re about to engage a threat, I say ‘Timeout.’ Put it (the oximeter) on there, and their heart rate’s skyrocketed to 140, 150, 160 just in training.”

Latham said throughout his career active threat training has evolved to become safer for officers and fall in line with increasingly professional police standards.“When I first started we were just running into halls and rooms hoping for the best,” Latham said. “Now the tactic is still to get there, still stop the taking of lives, but tactics are much better than they were 20 years ago.”

Residents may see and hear police activity Thursday and Friday

Experienced climber falls 800 feet to his death on ridge near Telluride

Dust-up between cyclists, ambulance highlights headaches bike races can cause first responders

Dolores High School student hikes Colorado Trail in 21 days

Photos: Getting in the flow

Federal ‘land grab’ or conservation? U.S. senator visits Dolores River to weigh in

Visits to Colorado ski areas in 2023-24 slightly down from prior year’s record

CPW emphasizes importance of life jackets amid high rate of drowning deaths

Colorado rivers are peaking – and so are drownings

PHOTOS: Vallecito Lake Heavy Half

Sen. Bennet urges more federal spending for outdoor recreation

Winter Park’s Indigenous roots are now on the mountain in signs and art installations

Video: Purgatory Resort ‘Pond Skim’ event wows skiers, snowboarders

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