Alpine skiing - The Durango Herald

Durango Nordic Ski Club competes in Solider Hollow

Athletes had personal bests with more junior national qualifiers coming up

DATE: Jan 30, 2026 | CATEGORY: Sports

No snow, no problem: The plastic slope surrounded by sheep that produced Britain’s top skier

PENDLE, England – Nestled in the rolling countryside of Ribble Valley in northwest England is a modest ski slope about 140 yards long, 10 yards wide and surrounded by roaming sheep. It’s a g...

DATE: Jan 17, 2026 | CATEGORY: Travel

Mayor of Mountain Village resigns amid political row over Telluride Ski Resort

The mayor of a small town surrounded by the Telluride Ski Resort resigned Wednesday over an unfolding controversy with the resort. Town council wanted to investigate her after she tried to m...

DATE: Jan 16, 2026 | CATEGORY: Local News

An ice park without ice: How is outdoor industry dealing with a warm winter?

The Ouray Ice Park should be a frozen playground by this time in January – with ice chandeliers and frozen waterfalls more than 100 feet high beckoning ice climbers from around the world. In...

DATE: Jan 9, 2026 | CATEGORY: Travel

Telluride ski patrol union approves new contract, ending strike

Workers settle for less than what they wanted as pressure mounted

DATE: Jan 9, 2026 | CATEGORY: Local News

City-owned ski hills like Chapman are a cheap antidote to pricey resorts

A lightning strike earlier this year temporarily fried a lift and lights in Durango

DATE: Dec 31, 2025 | CATEGORY: Local News

Telluride Ski Resort remains closed as ski patrollers continue wage strike

Patrollers want a 20% increase due to housing costs and affordability

DATE: Dec 30, 2025 | CATEGORY: Regional News

Ski Patrol leader talks challenges, changing demographics for first responders

National organization provides training for more than 30,000 members

DATE: Dec 26, 2025 | CATEGORY: Regional News

Rising costs, fewer stable jobs make ‘ski bum’ lifestyle tougher in Durango

Workers say ski industry jobs help, but low pay and weak benefits challenge lifestyle

DATE: Dec 26, 2025 | CATEGORY: Local News

Telluride ski patrollers vote to go on strike starting Saturday

Company and union unable to reach agreement on pay; resort will be closed Dec. 27

DATE: Dec 24, 2025 | CATEGORY: Local News

Chapman Hill Ski Area opens with holiday hours Saturday

Lessons start in January, private instruction will also be available

DATE: Dec 20, 2025 | CATEGORY: Local News

Durango lawyer dies while backcountry skiing on Red Mountain Pass

Cause of death under investigation, according to San Juan County coroner

DATE: Dec 15, 2025 | CATEGORY: Local News

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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

Durango Nordic Ski Club competes in Solider Hollow

No snow, no problem: The plastic slope surrounded by sheep that produced Britain’s top skier

Mayor of Mountain Village resigns amid political row over Telluride Ski Resort

An ice park without ice: How is outdoor industry dealing with a warm winter?

Telluride ski patrol union approves new contract, ending strike

City-owned ski hills like Chapman are a cheap antidote to pricey resorts

Telluride Ski Resort remains closed as ski patrollers continue wage strike

Ski Patrol leader talks challenges, changing demographics for first responders

Rising costs, fewer stable jobs make ‘ski bum’ lifestyle tougher in Durango

Telluride ski patrollers vote to go on strike starting Saturday

Chapman Hill Ski Area opens with holiday hours Saturday

Durango lawyer dies while backcountry skiing on Red Mountain Pass

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