Steamboat Magazine Outdoors Edition 2022, Vol. 44, No. 3

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STEAMBOAT MAGAZINE | OUTDOORS 2022 | cov_1


CONSIDERING A MOVE TO STEAMBOAT? DOUG WILL SEARCH LOW & HIGH TO FIND THE RIGHT PROPERTY FOR YOU.

Clients appreciate his extensive market insight, hard work and per sonal care to educate them on the market, while locating and negotiating their Steamboat home and protecting their interests throughout the entire process .

We worked with Doug over a period of several years in the Steamboat area and can gladly say that he is the best real estate professional we have had the pleasure to work with. He combines a depth of knowledge of the market with great negotiating skills and an extensive network of resources. He went the extra mile to help us find the right property and went even further to close the deal! — MARK & REBECCA

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Featuring an exclusive collection of Native American photography, captured by Roland W. Reed (1864-1934)

“Lazy Boy”, Roland W. Reed, circa 1914

“Big Pen”, Jace Romick

837 Lincoln Avenue | www.jaceromickgallery.com | 970.819.9384 | info@jaceromickgallery.com STEAMBOAT MAGAZINE | OUTDOORS 2022 | 1


OUR PROFESSION IS REAL ESTATE. OUR FOCUS IS YOU.

SUE & BO STEMPEL

Owners/Brokers, Colorado Group Realty (970) 819.0981 | (970) 819.1123 sue@mybrokers.com | bo@mybrokers.com

SteamboatHomesteads.com Helping folks find a “place to hang their hat” for almost 2 decades.

2 | ONLINE AT WWW.STEAMBOATMAGAZINE.COM


Connect with Nature Experience the wonder of nature through the lens of Thomas D. Mangelsen

730 Lincoln Avenue, Steamboat Springs (970) 871-1822 | Mangelsen.com LIMITED EDITION FINE ART PHOTOGRAPHY STEAMBOAT MAGAZINE | OUTDOORS 2022 | 3


Contents Visitors’ Guide VG 2

VG 12 WESTERN Where Western Legacy Abounds A Whirlwind Tour of South Routt County VG 22 PLAY Steamboat Springs’ Summer Playground Find Your Ideal Biking Trail VG 32 ART Art Thrives Amidst Nature Oil Painters of America at Steamboat Art Museum

s

s

Welcome Letter

The 50th Anniversary of Steamboat Creates A look at the Steamboat Springs arts community’s past, present and future. – by Dan Greeson

52 | Reimagining José Limón

The renewal of a legendary dancer’s vision at Perry-Mansfield Performing Arts Camp. – by Jennie Lay

DEPARTMENTS 12 Publisher’s Note Emerging Star of the Art World – by Deborah Olsen 14 Letters 16 Contributors Victor Fleming, Paul Knowles, Lisa Ruff 20 Genuine Steamboat Visions of Strawberry Park Artist Susan Corser paints the beauty of the neighborhood just north of Steamboat Springs.

58 | The Best of the Best

The Oil Painters of America Annual Exhibit returns to Steamboat Art Museum. – by Deborah Olsen

64 | Rites of Healing

Buddhist monks bring an artistic ritual of healing to Bud Werner Memorial Library. – by Dan Greeson

The “You Out Loud” project enables kids and teens to express themselves through creativity.

72 Why Stop at the Last Page? The last page is only the beginning: continue the journey with Ski Town Media’s online offerings.

4 | ONLINE AT WWW.STEAMBOATMAGAZINE.COM

VG 48 VG 50 VG 52 VG 53 VG 54 VG 57 VG 58 VG 60 VG 61 VG 63 VG 64

DIRECTORY Historic Walking Tour City Map Summer Highlights 2022 Activities Dining Lodging Outdoors Real Estate Services Where to Worship Shopping

38 In the News Get the scoop on current local happenings.

69 Media Dance, yoga and Literary Sojourn content for your viewing and reading pleasure. – by Jennie Lay

VG 34

VG 45 VG 46

37 Crossword Puzzle Complete a puzzle based on this edition’s contents. – by Victor Fleming

32 Making it Happen The Meeker Mustang Makeover pairs trainers with wild horses. – by Lisa Ruff

VG 32

VG 44 SHOP & DINE Shop and Dine ‘til You’re Feelin’ Fine Sunset Kicks Things Off

36 Community Steamboat Springs’ community garden finds a home. – by Cathy Wiedemer

40 Travel Duffy Canyon offers prime rafting near Steamboat Springs. – by Eugene Buchanan

VG 22 VG 24

VG 39 VG 41

34 People Gusti Buerger makes waves in the cow horse competition circuit on a national level.

30 History The Yampa Valley was once part of Texas. Wait, what? – by Paul Knowles

VG 16

VG 38 REVIVE Relax Your Mind, Body and Soul Just Add Water

“Ready to Ride” | 24 x 20 | ADAM ZABEL See story, “The Best of The Best,” on page 58.

42 | Golden Anniversary of Art:

VG 13

“Walking Up 38A,” Susan Corser, oil. Photography by Tim Murphy


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Outdoors 2022 – Volume 44, Number 3 PUBLISHER Deborah Olsen EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Dan Greeson SALES AND MARKETING DIRECTOR John Sherwood ART DIRECTOR Melissa VanArsdale DIGITAL DIRECTOR Trey Mullen MEDIA EDITOR Jennie Lay OFFICE MANAGER Kristen Stout PROOFREADER Christina Freeman CONTRIBUTORS Eugene Buchanan Victor Fleming Paul Knowles Lisa Ruff Cathy Wiedemer PHOTOGRAPHERS George Fargo Tim Murphy Kelly Puleio

Steamboat Magazine is published by Ski Town Media, Inc. The Ski 2022-23 edition will be published in October 2022. For advertising rates and subscription information contact info@SkiTownMedia.com. Steamboat Magazine, P.O. Box 880616, Steamboat Springs, CO 80488. Phone: 970-871-9413. Subscribe: www.SteamboatMagazine.com Single copy mailed first-class $7.50. No portion of the contents of this publication may be reproduced in any manner without the written permission of the publisher. © 2022 Ski Town Media, Inc. All rights reserved – ISSN 2164-4055. 10 | ONLINE AT WWW.STEAMBOATMAGAZINE.COM


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STEAMBOAT MAGAZINE | OUTDOORS 2022 | 11


Editorial Advisory Board Amy Charity SBT GRVL

Scott Engelman Carl’s Tavern and Truffle Pig

Sarah Floyd Steamboat Springs Winter Sports Club

Betse Grassby Steamboat Art Museum

Larry Mashaw The Resort Group

Marta Miskolczy Gal Friday Ed

Lisa Popovich MainStreet Steamboat

Lindsey Reznicek Yampa Valley Medical Center

Ulrich Salzgeber Steamboat Springs Board of Realtors

Ray Selbe Selbe Farms

Cathy Wiedemer First Pitch Communications

12 | ONLINE AT WWW.STEAMBOATMAGAZINE.COM

COURTESY OF STEAMBOAT ART MUSEUM

Publisher’s Note

The watercolor painting “SAM Museum,” by Richie Vios, won the 2020 Plein Air Main Street Steamboat Award of Excellence and Historic Routt County Award of Excellence.

Emerging Star of the Art World

L

ike so many “overnight sensations,” Steamboat Springs’ emergence as one of the West’s most significant art communities is anything but sudden. Instead, it is built on a foundation as old as the city itself. Margaret Crawford, who co-founded Steamboat in 1900, recognized the value of art from the beginning. She taught her children to play the piano, encouraged their painting, kept a diary and even brought yellow roses along on the journey across the frontier from Missouri to Colorado. Those roses still thrive today at Tread of Pioneers Museum and the Yampa River Botanic Park – both shining examples of Steamboat’s dedication to arts and culture. Since the Crawfords first put down roots here, locals have continued to nourish the arts. Charlotte Perry and Portia Mansfield started a dance camp in Strawberry Park more than 100 years ago. Eleanor Bliss and Carol Finnoff, grand ladies who donned “Save the Depot” t-shirts and staged a political movement, established the former train station as the community’s arts center. Linda Laughlin and Sandra Sherrod founded the enormously popular First Friday Artwalk in 2007. John Sant’Ambrogio, Betse Grassby and Kay Claggett envisioned a home for classical music in Steamboat and founded Strings in the Mountains, today recognized as one of the nation’s premier summer music festivals. Scott Parker was for more than two decades the face of performing arts in the valley, and helped to form Friends of Yampa Valley Arts, which is on the verge of an exciting collaboration with Perry-Mansfield Performing Arts Camp. Almost 20 years ago, an enthusiastic group of aficionados envisioned an art museum. In 2004, the city was bequeathed the historic First National Bank building, and Steamboat Art Museum staged its first exhibit two years later. This summer, for the second time in recent years, Steamboat Art Museum hosts the prestigious Oil Painters of America annual exhibit and convention. (see page 58) Nourishing all of these ambitious endeavors is Kim Keith, the executive director of Steamboat Creates. Under her leadership, the city was designated an official Colorado Creative District in 2017. It’s almost like Kim is channeling Eleanor Bliss as she captains the ‘Boat further into the art world, and she is by no means done. Steamboat Creates is not quite ready to announce its next big step, but it’s mind-blowing. The day will be here soon when Ski Town USA® will be at least as well known as one of the nation’s foremost art communities. We hope you enjoy this special edition commemorating the arts in Steamboat Springs.

12 | ONLINE AT WWW.STEAMBOATMAGAZINE.COM


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Letters

In response to Steamboat Magazine’s 2022 Home Edition: Steamboat Magazine hit the nail on the head with this issue. What a melting pot of second homes, locals and the kids living in a bus. A true picture of the reality in today’s mountain town. – Dan Rollins, Denver

Facebook comments on the story “Blue the Bus,” which follows the journey of Nathan DePuy and Molly Phannenstiel in their refitted school bus home. Follow them on Instagram: @blue_the_bus “OMG this is so cool!” – Cristin Frey “I want that life! So happy for them! Very cool home.” – Cindy Vanatta “I love this, they’ve tricked it out so nicely. They can go anywhere now!” – Hilary Robinson “Good for them. I follow a lot of nomads so I’m going to add them to my list. I love my house too much to do this full-time, but hopefully part-time in the near future.” – Sharon Taylor “So creative, so cool! Enjoy!” – Robin Boger “What a lifetime of fun and memories.” – James Doughty

To Send Letters to the Editor:

Email: Dan@SkiTownMedia.com; U.S. mail: P.O. Box 880616, Steamboat Springs, CO 80488

Steamboat Springs, Colorado | 970.879.5667 Please visit us in person at Central Park Plaza or online W W W. D A V I D C H A S E F U R N I T U R E . C O M 14 | ONLINE AT WWW.STEAMBOATMAGAZINE.COM


Kel elwood PhotograPhy

CARING COMPREHENSIVE PROGRESSIVE

OUR PASSION

Your Smile

EST. 1998

What makes you smile? TM

James WW McCreight DDS, Wendy M McCreight DDS | 970.879.4703 | www.steamboatdentistry.com STEAMBOAT MAGAZINE | OUTDOORS 2022 | 15


Abby Jensen Photography

Contributors Victor Fleming In this issue, we debut a new feature, the Steamboat Crossword by Victor Fleming. A judge for 25 years in Little Rock, Arkansas, Fleming is married to Steamboat Springs artist Marion Kahn. In his side hustle as a cruciverbalist, he is the author of over 1,000 published crossword puzzles, including 47 in the New York Times. For his newest gig as Steamboat Magazine’s cruciverbalist, he has created a “Puzzling Table of Contents,” (page 37) in which six clues have the parenthetical “(p. _).” Are you wondering what that means? Then sharpen your pencils and have at it.

Paul Knowles In the story “Far from the Heart of Texas,” (page 30) Paul Knowles explores the strange period in history when the Yampa Valley was part of the Texas territory. “I have always been fascinated with the story, mainly because it always elicits some kind of reaction one way or the other,” Knowles says. “When I moved to Steamboat 20 years ago I had no idea I was living on old Texas claims.” That all changed when Knowles began seriously collecting antique maps from the era of Westward Expansion. Now as the assistant director of the Museum of Northwest Colorado in downtown Craig, Knowles uncovers and shares the stories that make Northwest Colorado one of the most fascinating regions in the American West.

Lisa Ruff

Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better. –Albert Einstein Images available for purchase

Gallery: Pine Moon Fine Art 117 9th St., Steamboat Springs, Colorado 970-879-2787 • www.jensen-photography.com

16 | ONLINE AT WWW.STEAMBOATMAGAZINE.COM

Since her first trip through Sand Wash Basin to Brown’s Park to fish the Green River over three decades ago, Lisa Ruff has been fascinated by the fabled wild horses of Sand Wash Basin. A glimpse of a band of mustangs trailing their yearlings made her appreciate the tenacity of these noble beasts. When given the opportunity to study the relationship between a mustang yearling and its teen trainer for the Meeker Mustang Makeover, she approached the story from what the horses can teach us about who we are as humans as we forge bonds with wild animals. Read the story, “Mustang Makeover,” on page 32. SM


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Penthouse 801 4 BD | 4.5 BA | 4,163 SQ FT | $8,000,000 Penthouse 801 boasts 4,163 square feet of mountain chic interior and endless views. Step out onto the private patio where you will enjoy sweeping panoramic views to the west of the Sleeping Giant and Emerald Mountain and to the north and east of the ski area and the bustling ski area below. The large outdoor television and oversized Viking gas grill are perfect for hosting in the summertime, and the heaters above keep the entertainment going into the colder seasons. A private hot tub sits on the corner of the patio where you can relax and gaze at the stunning views. Todd Allsberry | 970.846.4897 | tallsberry@onesteamboatplace.com | Timbers Real Estate Company

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18 | ONLINE AT WWW.STEAMBOATMAGAZINE.COM


THE

AT F I S H C R E E K

Perfectly situated on a hillside with an elevated vantage offering incredible 270° views, this exceptional home is truly one of Steamboat’s finest residences. The 14,500 sf home boasts thoughtful luxury mountain design and exquisite finishes with 7 en-suite bedrooms, a grand great room, gourmet kitchen, theater, private master suite with Ski Area views, elevator and nearly 5,000 sf of outdoor living space. T H E M A J E ST I C OV E R L O O K .C O M $ 1 5 ,6 5 0,0 0 0

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Genuine Steamboat

Visions of

Strawberry The delicate balance between

change and preservation is in the

very fabric of Strawberry Park, just north of Steamboat Springs. Named after the plentiful strawberry plants that covered the land following the creation of the Soda Creek Ditch system in 1887, Strawberry Park has held onto this agricultural heritage while adapting to a changing world. Local painter Susan Corser captured this dynamic in her series, “Strawberry Park: Scenes of History and Change.” These paintings capture the balance between change and stagnancy, darkness and light, abstraction and realism, movement and stillness. Corser’s paintings focus on the scenery that defines this dynamic of change and preservation. Buildings are razed and rebuilt, land is repurposed, families leave and return, weather patterns shift, but the timeless spirit of Strawberry Park remains the same. Susan Corser’s work can be viewed at Pine Moon Fine Art in Steamboat Springs.

20 | ONLINE AT WWW.STEAMBOATMAGAZINE.COM


Park

“Kakela Hay Shed,” Susan Corser, Oil PHOTOGRAPH BY TIM MURPHY

The glaciers that used to cover much of Strawberry Park pushed granite boulders down Soda Creek. Many of the boulders were removed over the years to make way for agricultural operations, but the Kakela family chose to leave this rock in place to reflect the history and original character of the park. STEAMBOAT MAGAZINE | OUTDOORS 2022 | 21


Genuine Steamboat

“Elkstone Stripes II,” Susan Corser, Oil PHOTOGRAPH BY TIM MURPHY

22 | ONLINE AT WWW.STEAMBOATMAGAZINE.COM


The creation of Elkstone Farm in 2005 represented a major boost to the county’s local food production. With recent expansions, the farm now offers farm-to-table dinners, cooking classes and a Community Supported Agriculture program through which members invest in the farm in exchange for a weekly box of seasonal produce. The farm also hosts workshops in traditional arts, including beekeeping and stone masonry. STEAMBOAT MAGAZINE | OUTDOORS 2022 | 23


Genuine Steamboat

“Daisy’s Pink Pumphouse,” Susan Corser, Oil PHOTOGRAPH BY TIM MURPHY Daisy Anderson was part of an African American family that settled along County Rd 38A in the 1940s. They came to work in the strawberry fields, after which Strawberry Park is named. After the death of her husband, Robert Anderson, a former slave and Civil War vet, Daisy and her sister Mae’s family built the Rushing Water Inn across the road from Daisy’s cabin. Daisy and Mae cooked, cleaned, washed linens and offered guiding services. Taking visitors into the mountains to fish and hunt elk, deer and bighorn sheep, they claimed to be the first licensed female guides in the state.

24 | ONLINE AT WWW.STEAMBOATMAGAZINE.COM


“Fran’s Garden,” Susan Corser, Oil PHOTOGRAPH BY TIM MURPHY When Fran and Jim Carollo built this barn in 2008, their intent was to build a structure that felt like it had been there for decades, using recycled beams from an old ice house in Denver and other Colorado buildings. They built the barn in the old timber framing style, using dowels or wooden pegs to fasten the beams. This barn and a second one, also made from recycled lumber, reflect the evolving fabric of Strawberry Park, creating a beautiful mix of new and old.

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STEAMBOAT MAGAZINE | OUTDOORS 2022 | 25


Genuine Steamboat

“Sharon’s Cabin,” Susan Corser, Oil PHOTOGRAPH BY TIM MURPHY This log cabin, originally used to house local coal miners, was ferried around to various Routt County mines on skids. Sharon Fuller bought the cabin for $775 in 1981 from Lane Palmer in Oak Creek, and had it moved to her property in Strawberry Park. Since then she’s worked hard to restore the cabin, preserving a piece of local history while providing a charming tea house for her grandchildren.

SM 26 | ONLINE AT WWW.STEAMBOATMAGAZINE.COM


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New construction in newly developed Urban Street. Ideal location near ski area with South Valley views. 4 bedrooms, 3 baths, 1,986 sq ft.

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Desirable home with multiple decks, spacious fenced yard, and open/bright main level. Just minutes to town in a picturesque setting.

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Luxury custom 4 BD, 4.5 BA home w/gourmet kitchen & amazing outdoor amenities on 60.59 ac, at the base of the iconic Flat Tops Area.

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Incredible 4BD/3.5BA coming this December. Huge windows, big views, vaulted ceilings and private patio. Lots of upgrades included.

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STEAMBOAT MAGAZINE | OUTDOORS 2022 | 29


COURTESY OF THE MUSEUM OF NORTHWEST COLORADO

History

Mitchell’s “A New Map of Texas, Oregon and California,” from 1846, show’s the boundaries of the newly acquired state of Texas on the eve of the MexicanAmerican War.

Far From the Heart of Texas | BY PAUL KNOWLES

N

ot that long ago in downtown Steamboat Springs, I overheard somebody exclaim that Texans walked around like they owned the place. As someone originally from Texas, this struck me as sweeping generalization. But as a local historian, I couldn’t help being amused by how close to the truth they actually were. It’s hard to believe, but if you’re reading this anywhere near the city of Steamboat Springs, you are standing on land once owned by Texas – both as a sovereign nation and as a U.S. state. That included all of today’s Routt County and a portion of Moffat. ‘But exactly how?’ you might ask. In 1821, after roughly 300 years of Spanish rule, Colorado’s Western Slope was relinquished to Mexico as the victors of the Mexican War of Independence. However, just 15 years later in 1836, Mexico’s province of Texas revolted and won its own independence (remember the Alamo?). The result saw a large portion of the central Rocky Mountains suddenly claimed by a brand new nation: The Republic of Texas. The Rocky Mountain portion of Texas included land that stretched due north from the headwaters of the Rio Grande River (near Silverton) and the Arkansas River (near Leadville). This long “stovepipe” reached all the way north of what is today Rawlins, Wyoming. Either by sheer coincidence or amazing prescience, Texas’ claim included what would eventually become many of Colorado’s major ski resorts: Aspen, Vail, Crested Butte and, yes, Steamboat. 30 | ONLINE AT WWW.STEAMBOATMAGAZINE.COM

Very soon after winning its independence, Texas found itself in significant debt and seeking annexation to the United States. In 1845, after just nine years of sovereign reign, the U.S. admitted Texas as the 28th state. Texas’ annexation was contentious on several fronts. Perhaps the biggest point of contention was the fact that Mexico never recognized the massive amount of land that Texas claimed – including the stovepipe that encompassed the Yampa Valley. This was ultimately settled with Mexico’s defeat in the MexicanAmerican War of 1846-1848. Just two years after the U.S. victory over Mexico, Texas signed the Compromise of 1850, which ceded all lands north of 36°30’ (Texas’ northern-most border still today). With this large cession of land, Texas’ 14-year claim on the Yampa Valley officially ended and it became part of the newly-organized Utah Territory – but not for long. In 1859 gold was discovered near today’s Idaho Springs, and national interest exploded in the areas surrounding the new mine fields. In 1861, with the threat of a civil war looming, the Territory of Colorado was formed to help solidify Union ownership of the mineral-rich land. Then, on Aug. 1, 1876, Colorado was finally admitted as the 38th state. While I surely don’t condone sweeping generalizations about Texans, or walking around with a sense of entitlement, in this case perhaps both parties should get a pass. SM


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STEAMBOAT MAGAZINE | OUTDOORS 2022 | 31


COURTESY OF LISA RUFF

Making It Happen

Nina Bradley gentles her Meeker mustang, Cheeto, to human touch.

Mustang Makeover | BY LISA RUFF

I

n the horse world, a frequently repeated adage is, “There is something about the outside of a horse that is good for the inside of a man.” If that adage is indeed true, then the Meeker Mustang Makeover Youth and Yearling Division provides an opportunity for creating a life-long bond between a wild horse and a human, beginning with a teen trainer. On Saturday, Aug. 27, at the Rio Blanco County Fairgrounds in Meeker, four Routt County teens are competing for $10,000 in prize money and scholarships at the fourth annual Meeker Mustang Makeover. Each participant has 120 days to train his or her mustang to take to auction, where it will navigate an obstacle course and demonstrate the skills of the trainer and the qualities of the horse. Routt County participants in this year’s Youth and Yearling Division are Nina Bradley, Jason Heid, Kristina Mitchell and Morgan Yeiser. Each received a randomly selected mustang yearling filly. According to the rules of the event, the mustang and trainer must exhibit a solid relationship based on respect, understanding and mutual trust. President and co-founder of the Meeker Mustang Makeover, Deirdre Macnab, says the event is invested in getting regional trainers as partners with these animals. “The horses are very fearful,” she says. “They have to gain the trust of the trainer.” According to Macnab, the young trainers must possess the ability to “listen, pay attention, and observe.” Trainers must “use the horse’s natural cues,” she says. “Whether that’s a horse or a person, it’s an important skill in life.” Macnab is a beef and hay rancher in Rio Blanco County. Her ranch abuts BLM land where, at times, over a thousand wild horses can roam. According to Macnab, these horses’ population doubles every four to five years. The Mustang Makeover ensures a “long future of healthy living,” not only for the adopted mustangs, but also for the wild herds, Macnab says. 32 | ONLINE AT WWW.STEAMBOATMAGAZINE.COM

Mitchell, a junior at Steamboat Springs High School, has named her filly Nova. She says her training is focused on “patience – taking your time. Nova has taught me to be patient and persistent.” She says that after she teaches something to Nova, “You just sit down and let the horse absorb it.” Too much pressure and the pair takes a step back. “It’s better to end on a good note rather than to push something,” she says. Yeiser, whose filly is named Raylee, has the opposite problem. She says she has had to learn to “hold your ground, not let them in your space, especially with yearlings.” This is Yeiser’s second time training a yearling. “This year I wanted to use what I had learned last year to train another one, with more knowledge and experience going into it,” she says. Heid, like Yeiser, is training his second mustang, named Mouse. He says that the most important attribute in a good trainer is “patience and knowing when to stop.” Heid, a sophomore, grew up around horses and is the sixth generation to live and work on Del’s Triangle 3 Ranch, a family owned and operated ranch in north Routt. “I have been riding longer than I can remember,” he says. According to Macnab, in addition to the mustangs gaining confidence, “The kids grow as well. They learn to slow down.” The trainers spend between one to two hours a day with their yearlings. “It’s a lot of time – they need consistency. It’s an everyday commitment.” Bradley, a sophomore, says that her filly, named Cheeto, has taught her “how to problem solve. If something doesn’t work at first, I have to try something different and not give up.” Bradley says the bond she and Cheeto have established is rewarding. “She trusts me more than anyone else, and that is super special to me.” SM

more @

Visit SteamboatMagazine.com to hear the outcome of the competition.


COURTESY OF SUZI MITCHELL

You Out Loud

more important than ever.

A

cluster of decorated plaster-cast octopus arms rose from the floor of Beard & Braid Coffee Shop during First Friday Artwalk last spring. It wasn’t a typical exhibit for downtown Steamboat Springs, but the teenage artists behind The Octopus Project offered an abstract depiction of their connections to the natural world. The 10 teens were the first participants of a new project-based organization called You Out Loud, designed to give Routt County youth an opportunity to use art to foster self-esteem and promote mental wellbeing. Suzi Mitchell, a local writer and artist who has experienced depression and finds solace in her chosen crafts, started the program. In the aftermath of the COVID-19 outbreak, Mitchell became aware of widespread struggles with anxiety and depression, especially among youth. As a mother of three and an advocate for mental health, she was determined to help. “I’m a substitute teacher and saw firsthand how many of our kids were suffering, but were missing an outlet,” she says. “The demand on counseling services, especially through the schools, is high and not everyone wants to talk about their feelings.” Mitchell asked local teens what would be helpful, and they expressed a need for more creative opportunities, outside-of-school community and nonjudgmental environments. “The biggest obstacle was funding,” Mitchell says. “We wanted to remove any barriers for participation and cost can be one of them, so there is no fee to participate.” The group needed a fiscal umbrella and found it with the Boys and Girls Club of Steamboat. “You Out Loud aligns perfectly with our mission to enable all kids, especially those who need us most, to reach their

“Arms,” from The Octopus Project by teens in You Out Loud, offers an abstract depiction of human interactions with the natural world.

full potential as productive, caring, responsible citizens,” says Kelly Landers, the club’s development director. “Reimagined, the Future of Fashion” began in mid-May, with 14 participants working toward a fashion show and art exhibit this fall to showcase repurposed clothing donated by Déjà Vu. “Growing up here, this program is something that would have ignited my soul,” says Brie Kole, the lead artist on “Reimagined,” and the marketing and branding representative for Steamboat Pride. “Being able to share my love of fashion and sustainability with the youth feels like a special way of honoring my younger self that craved community and creativity.” You Out Loud has a list of upcoming opportunities, including partnership with The World Hope Project to create a video written by local teens. “Creativity is medicine,” says Tina Harlow, MSW, LCSW, co-producer of the World Hope Project. “Being a teen during, and now after, the pandemic is not easy,” Landers says. “This program gives youth an outlet and helps them find ways to be resilient.” For more information, visit www.YouOutLoudRoutt.com SM STEAMBOAT MAGAZINE | OUTDOORS 2022 | 33

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STEAMBOAT MAGAZINE | OUTDOORS 2022 | 33


People

COURTESY OF THE HOME RANCH

Gusti Buerger practices a controlled stop on her horse, Magicality.

Riding High hen I’m picking out horses, I look at their eyes a lot. You can tell a lot about a horse from their eye. I look for one that’s soft. Intelligent,” says Gusti Buerger, head of the new performance horse training program at the Home Ranch in Clark. Buerger would know – she has spent her whole life working with horses, and is now one of the top cow horse competitors in the world. Buerger was born and raised on a ranch in Western Colorado, showing a variety of livestock in 4H and moving cattle on horseback. “I always loved horses,” she says. At an early age, horse trainer Sherri Gilkerson introduced Buerger to the reined cow horse world, mentoring her in the sport and inspiring her to pursue it at a professional level. Reined cow horse work is scored on three disciplines: herd work, reining and cow work. In herd work, the horse and rider are expected to prevent single cows from

34 | ONLINE AT WWW.STEAMBOATMAGAZINE.COM

COURTESY OF THE HOME RANCH

“W

Gusti Buerger selected her horse, Magicality, based on a combination of athleticism and demeanor.


rejoining a herd, cutting three cows in under 2 1/2 minutes. “You’re aiming for it to be very fluid and pretty,” Buerger says. Reining, also known as “dry work,” consists of riding the horse precisely in a set pattern, without the involvement of cattle. Cow work involves herding a cow into one end of the arena, then turning it around and boxing it into a final location. “That’s the most difficult one,” Buerger says. Buerger used the ranching skills from her upbringing to become one of the top cow horse riders in the world today. In 2020 alone, she won championships in limited open and intermediate open, and was an open finalist in the Reno Snaffle Bit Futurity, as well as being an intermediate and open finalist and limited open champion at the National Reined Cow Horse Association Futurity. “It was incredible,” Buerger says. “There’s a lot that goes into it, and it just sort of fell into place.” The key to success in the cow horse world lies in selecting a high-quality, trainable horse with the proper attitude and athletic ability. “It’s important to hang out with them a lot,” Buerger explains. While athleticism is extremely important, she says, “I go off their personalities. If I’m picking between two equally athletic horses, I go for the better demeanor.” Home Ranch manager Michael Moon, at the behest of father-daughter ranch owners Scott and Courtney MacFarlane, reached out to Buerger to offer her the job of head trainer and manager of performance horse training at the Home Ranch, where she now puts her horse-reading abilities on display. “I could tell they were really amazing people,” Buerger says. Buerger selects reined cow horse prospects for the ranch as yearlings or 2-year-olds and shows them at NRCHA competitions at the age of 3. “It’s an incredible opportunity,” she says. “A dream come true.” The sky’s the limit with Buerger at the Home Ranch, which has hopes of one day training as many as 15 horses at a time. While her work in both training and competing has risen to an elite level, for Buerger everything is grounded in the relationship between trainer and horse. “Horses have so much personality; they’re such forgiving animals, and they forgive us of our mistakes,” she says. “They’re our friends.” SM

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STEAMBOAT MAGAZINE | OUTDOORS 2022 | 35


COURTESY OF KELLY BASTONE

Community

Deep Roots

John Birkett and his son, Holt, work to assemble the garden beds for the new Roots Community Garden.

| BY CATHY WIEDEMER

G

ardening enthusiasts, unite! Whether you’re a seasoned gardener or still working on turning that thumb green, you can play an integral part in establishing and maintaining the new Steamboat Springs Community Garden. The Steamboat Springs Roots Community Garden came to life more than a decade ago. The garden was the class project of the 2009/10 Steamboat Springs Chamber’s annual Leadership Steamboat program, with the first gardens producing greens and veggies in summer 2010. Season after season, residents have shared the camaraderie of fellow gardeners while tending to their crops at the garden’s previous downtown location between Sixth and Seventh streets on Oak Street. To make way for Routt County’s new Health and Human Services building, the last shovel of soil was turned over at the Roots Community Garden in early fall 2021. Searching for a new permanent home for the garden, Colorado State University county director and agriculture extension agent Todd Hagenbuch reached out to Eli Nykamp, director of operations at UCHealth Yampa Valley Medical Center, about the possibility of utilizing the hospital campus’s open space for the new Roots Community Garden. Before the snowflakes began to fly late last October, an alliance with UCHealth Yampa Valley Medical Center and the CSU Extension Office was formed. YVMC agreed to donate use of the land, take on the cost to re-install water meters, and provide water once the garden was up and running. Hagenbuch then started the necessary legwork and permitting process for the ¼-acre site at 1920 Pine Grove Road to ensure the new Roots Community Garden would be plantable for the summer 2022 season. “We are so pleased that Todd approached us as a potential site for the community garden. It’s a natural fit,” Nykamp says. 36 | ONLINE AT WWW.STEAMBOATMAGAZINE.COM

Also working diligently to see the new garden project come to fruition is impassioned gardener and long-time Roots Community Garden volunteer Kelly Bastone. “Community gardens will become more essential as housing density continues to increase,” Bastone says. Once word was out that the community garden needed a new home, Steamboat’s generosity shined like it has so many times prerviously. A $10,000 donation from the Moniker Foundation was the initial gift that jump-started the project. “We like supporting community health-related projects that help prevent food insecurities and reinforce the importance of healthy eating and healthy lifestyles,” says Rachel Long, high country leader for the Moniker Foundation. When the garden is completed, there will be a total of 20 raised garden beds. Five will be taller than the others to accommodate gardeners in wheelchairs, and three will be dedicated for local nonprofit groups. Gardeners who had a plot at the original Roots Community Garden will be offered the first opportunity to have a plot at the new location. Remaining plots will be allocated on a first-come, first-served basis. Gardening is more than just growing food. It encourages and enhances relationships, provides a sense of accomplishment, establishes good practices, is an educational tool, and helps develop an appreciation for living things all while encouraging the value of healthy eating. The Steamboat Springs Community Roots Garden will make gardening accessible to everyone and bring more green to the local gardening scene. For additional information, contact the Routt County CSU Extension Office at 970-879-0825, or email: rcextension@co.routt.co.us. SM


Crossword 1

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A Puzzling Table of Contents | BY VICTOR FLEMING ith this special arts edition, Steamboat Magazine is proud to introduce a new crossword puzzle section, which will be recurring in upcoming editions of the magazine. Tips for solving some of the clues in this Steamboat-themed puzzle are found within the contents of the magazine. Solvers: insert magazine page numbers in six clues. For more about Victor Fleming, whose puzzles have appeared in notable publications such as the New York Times, please see Contributors, page 16.

W

Across 1 Hold firmly 5 ___ B’rith 9 Insect’s feeler 13 Word of agreement 14 Feels poorly 15 With “slipper,” certain orchid 16 “Bud Werner” structure where “Mandala on the Yampa” returns (p. __) 19 Hamilton’s bill 20 Big party 21 Late musician Ocasek 22 José with a dance company (p. __) 25 Where Gusti Buerger trains horses (p. __) 27 “Altar”-cation reply 28 Ajar, say 30 9-digit ID 31 Came across 32 Slicker, as roads in winter 34 24-hr. $ dispensers 38 With 40-Across, what this puzzle is in 40 See 38-Across 43 Alphabetize, e.g. 44 Banjo sound 46 Hamm or Farrow 47 1-1 score, e.g.

50 Danish shoe maker since 1963 51 A real piece of work 52 With “Creates,” 50th anniversary honoree (p. __) 56 State that Routt County was once part of (p. __) 58 Barn bird 59 Reagan Supreme Court nominee 60 “One day ___ time” 61 Local growing place with a new location (p. __) 67 Battery part 68 Not far 69 1970 Kinks hit 70 Defeat 71 Famous Mideast strip 72 Kennel cry Down 1 Body shop? 2 Mr. ___ (board game similar to Clue) 3 ___ Not Spock and ___ Spock (memoirs by Leonard Nimoy) 4 Album unit 5 Barbara or Conrad of acting

6 7 8 9 10 11 12 15 17 18 22 23 24 25 26 29 33 35 36 37 39

Boiler Room costar Long “None left,” to a tot Mosque religion What Haymaker players try to break Gives ___ (cares) Song part Intimidate, with “out” Angle irons A Girl with a Watering Can painter Dots in la mer “Things to do” and others Source of many a spud Lawn tool Bank robber’s job Gray area (abbr.) Agt.’s take Show shock, perhaps Big name in watchmaking Kelly who played Hetty Kelly and Oona O’Neill in Chaplin Bumps in the road Boy or girl leader?

more @

41 Biden’s grp. 42 “___ Get Outta Here” (last track on Alice Cooper’s Welcome 2 My Nightmare album) 45 Unconvincing argument, metaphorically 48 Suffuse, as with color 49 Dark color of poems 52 L.A.’s locale 53 Casual bridge bid 54 St. ___ Fire (1985 Brat Pack flick) 55 Shuttle gasket 57 Ahead of time 60 City on the Ganges 62 Night Shift V.I.P.s 63 Red Sox Hall-of-Famer Carl, familiarly 64 Distaff rabbit 65 Right-angle bend 66 Siesta, north of the border

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For the answers to this edition’s puzzle, visit www.SteamboatMagazine.com. STEAMBOAT MAGAZINE | OUTDOORS 2022 | 37


MELISSA VANARSDALE

In the News

Honey Stinger CEO Richard Thompson (center) with his team: Sarah Mallicote, Kim Kourkoules, Mike Willig and Wendy Mayo

The Summer Scoop Stay in the loop with these new and noteworthy happenings HEAD OF THE HIVE Steamboat-based company Honey Stinger has welcomed a new leader to its ranks: Richard Thompson stepped in as CEO this year. Thompson, who joined the company at the beginning of 2022 as interim CEO, replaced Mike Keown, who had been in the position since October 2018. Thompson is the founder of Pennsylvania-based company Factory LLC, which includes under its umbrella the brands Stuffed Puffs, Pipcorn, ROAR, Partake, Mikey’s, Sampler and now Honey Stinger. Factory LLC provides financial support for companies, in addition to brand-strategy guidance. Originally 38 | ONLINE AT WWW.STEAMBOATMAGAZINE.COM

from Kansas, Thompson’s past work includes similar companybuilding roles at the American Italian Pasta Company, Meow Mix and Freshpet. Thompson is also instating changes, including adding hydration mixes, mini waffles, and nut-and-seed bars to Honey Stinger’s product repertoire. Novel flavors, including mango melon and cookies & cream, will also be added to the popular waffle lineup. At the company headquarters – located at the Steamboat Springs Airport – the company will implement a new basketball court, Pelotons, a weight room and a yoga area. SM


COURTESY OF BROWN RANCH/BENJAMIN SAHEB

Brown Ranch affords views of Sleeping Giant and close proximity to the Yampa River.

AN INTRIGUING DEVELOPMENT For more than a century, the Brown Ranch just west of Steamboat Springs was a fertile harvesting ground for oats and wheat. Now, after more than a decade of lying empty, the ranch will become fertile again – this time, as a place to grow community. An anonymous donor gave this 556-acre property, which includes 376 buildable acres, to the Yampa Valley Housing Authority. The YVHA plans to use the land to create a large development of affordable housing, complete with views of Sleeping Giant, Emerald Mountain and the Steamboat Ski Area. The development will comprise neighborhoods where Routt County workers can live long-term and build a sense

of community – housing costs will not surpass 30% of each resident’s income. Housing openings will only be available to local workers, defined as those who work at least 30 hours per week at an employer physically located within Routt County. The Steamboat Springs community has been in dire need of affordable housing in recent years, leading to a drastic drop off in the area’s workforce numbers. The Brown Ranch affordable housing development could counteract this trend. Projections predict that Steamboat will need as many as 2,300 new homes by the year 2040, and Brown Ranch will meet a significant portion of this need with 1200 units built by 2030. SM

STEAMBOAT SPRINGS, CO | RUMORDESIGNS.COM | @rumordesigns STEAMBOAT MAGAZINE | OUTDOORS 2022 | 39


COURTESY OF KENT VERTREES

Travel

Do the Duffy

| BY EUGENE BUCHANAN

G

Duffy Canyon offers a Class I-II float through a sagebrush-covered desert canyon.

et off your duffs and head to Duffy Canyon. Yep, everyone’s heard of world-class Yampa Canyon through Dinosaur National Monument. But with only a 5 percent chance of landing a private permit, the opportunities to run it are slim, or expensive if you go with a commercial outfitter. So, head somewhere closer and free that doesn’t require a permit: the Yampa’s unsung and unheralded Duffy, or Little Yampa, Canyon. Little Yampa/Duffy Canyon is located just downstream of Craig and is home to one of the most family-friendly and wilderness flatwater stretches of the Yampa – a section that has been deemed suitable, even, for Wild & Scenic designation. Unlike Yampa Canyon, which requires a permit from Dinosaur National Monument, Duffy is managed by the Bureau of Land Management as a Special Recreation Management Area and doesn’t require one. Just show up and go. “It’s a hidden gem offering solitude and scenery, and it gives floaters a perspective of working agriculture alongside the nature that relies on the Yampa,” says Jackie Brown, who chairs the 40 | ONLINE AT WWW.STEAMBOATMAGAZINE.COM

Yampa-White-Green Basin Roundtable. “It is a testament that the Yampa Valley Curse is running strong up and down valley.” While its 32-mile length discourages day trippers (that’s a bit long, unless you’re up for an all-day paddle in a sea kayak or canoe), the section is gaining popularity, thanks to Friends of the Yampa — in partnership with the BLM’s Little Snake Field Office, the Colorado Parks and Wildlife Yampa River State Park, Mission Continues and Craig’s Parrotheads — building five riverside campsites on the stretch in 2018, complete with signs, fire rings, grilling grates, picnic tables and tent sites. The five campsites include Antlers (Mile 7.6), Friends (Mile 14.5), Railroad (Mile 14.8), Bubba’s Beach (Mile 25.5), and Charlie Mike (Mile 30.4). If those are full, look for other areas on the stretch’s cobblestone bars and banks. Run it at the right time and you’re in for a wilderness treat, floating Class I-II flatwater past large stands of old growth cottonwoods, sage-brush-covered hills and a sweeping desert canyon you never even knew was there.


COURTESY OF KENT VERTREES

Solitude, scenery and convenient proximity to Steamboat Springs make Duffy Canyon an appealing rafting option.

“It is a testament that the Yampa Valley Curse is running strong up and down valley.” – Jackie Brown, chair, Yampa-WhiteGreen Basin Roundtable

“Little Yampa Canyon is a magical place,” says Kent Vertrees of Friends of the Yampa. “It’s remote, super scenic, and carries the allure of being in a truly wild place. And it’s great for boaters who are looking for a mellow, non-permitted, multiday river trip – especially if you have kids, love to bring your dog, or enjoy paddleboarding.” SM

Helpful Hints

Put-in: The South Beach put-in is located 3 miles south of Craig, off Colorado 13 (just after the bridge over the Yampa); no camping allowed. Takeout: The takeout is located at mile 32. To get there, take U.S. Highway 40 west of Craig for 19 miles to Moffat County Road 17. Drive 10.2 miles to BLM Road 1593 and turn left. The river access site is 1 mile farther on the right. From the river, it’s on river left. Toilet and camping available. Shuttles: Contact Good Vibes River Gear in Craig for shuttle services: (970) 367-3627; www.goodvibesrivergear.com Flows: Visit www.waterdata.usgs.gov/co/nwis/uv?site_no=09247600 to check on current flow levels (look for station “below Craig”). Weather: Check the weather forecast before your float and bring appropriate shelter and gear. Camping: With no official sign-up for campsites, talk with other floaters at the put-in or once on the river to figure out where others are camping. If you go: Bring a firepan in case the official campsites are taken (bring your own wood, or use only driftwood); a groover (portable toilet); practice Leave No Trace principles (pack out all trash); and respect the private property. Also, beware of mosquitoes after peak runoff (usually best before the end of June). Info: www.friendsoftheyampa.com/little-yampa-canyon

Photo Credit: Tim Murphy

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s

Art

Golden Anniversary of

The Rehder Building in 1929 was home to Ford Garage offices, Northwestern Auto Parts, a dentist’s office, an insurance office and a uranium company office.

50

| BY DAN GREESON Years. Five decades. Eighteen thousand, two hundred and fifty

days. That’s how long Steamboat Creates, formerly the Steamboat Springs Arts Council, has served as a gateway for arts, culture and heritage in Steamboat Springs. Led by executive director Kim Keith, Steamboat Creates achieved Colorado Creative District designation in 2017. However, it’s impossible to have a comprehensive conversation about Steamboat’s arts community without looking at the big picture: honoring its past, appreciating its present, and looking excitedly to the future.

42 | ONLINE AT WWW.STEAMBOATMAGAZINE.COM

COURTESY OF STEAMBOAT ART MUSEUM

COURTESY OF TREAD OF PIONEERS MUSEUM

Steamboat Springs’ Past, Present and Future in light of Steamboat Creates’ 50th Anniversary


Artist Stephen Henry won the Historic Routt County Award of Excellence in 2017 for “Steamboat at Night,” his depiction of the Steamboat Art Museum, which currently occupies the Rehder Building. Today it is included on the National Registry of Historic Places, the Downtown Historic District, and is a cornerstone of the Arts and Culture Creative District designated by the State of Colorado.

STEAMBOAT MAGAZINE | OUTDOORS 2022 | 43


“A group of riled-up women

PAST

44 | ONLINE AT WWW.STEAMBOATMAGAZINE.COM

banded together in 1972 and said, ‘We’re going to save this building and make it an arts center,’ and it has been one ever since.” Kim Keith, executive director of Steamboat Creates

COURTESY OF TREAD OF PIONEERS MUSEUM

Traces of Steamboat’s arts history can be found throughout town. In the very fabric of its visual arts, music, dance and theater communities, we find threads leading back to legends like the Crawfords – Steamboat’s founding family – Charlotte Perry, Portia Mansfield and Eleanor Bliss. In 1913, Perry and Mansfield traveled into the Yampa Valley wilderness to found a dance/equestrian camp amidst the mountains. The humble camp these women founded saw prodigious success, attracting a star-studded repertoire of actors and dancers, from Agnes DeMille and José Limón to Dustin Hoffman and Julie Harris. Today the camp continues to bring internationally renowned performers to Northwest Colorado. The historic Depot Art Center, home of Steamboat Creates, exemplifies the bond between the local arts community and its heritage. The building once housed the train depot that transported cattle, strawberries and people to and from town. With improvements to Rabbit Ears Pass, train service was discontinued in 1968, and the Depot was narrowly saved from destruction in 1972 with an enthusiastic “Save the Depot” campaign. Two of those lobbyists, Eleanor Bliss and Carol Finnoff, founded the Steamboat Arts Council that same year. Bliss had originally come to Steamboat in 1924 to study dance at PerryMansfield Performing Arts School & Camp and stayed after falling in love with the Yampa Valley. Today, the Depot is home to rotating arts exhibits, artist-in-residency programs, youth art camps and other events. Also in 1972, another long-standing Steamboat arts group started with a dozen dancers who wanted to hold an annual performance. Fifty years later, Steamboat Dance Theatre has seen continuous growth, hosting several sold-out performances of its annual show with over 150 dancers. The Tread of Pioneers Museum has documented the rich history of the Yampa Valley since 1959. With a meticulously curated collection, historic walking tours, guided hikes and informative events and exhibits, the museum is a prime resource to explore Steamboat’s history, including the arts. The museum is housed in a 1901 Queen-Anne style Victorian home. Historic Routt County also plays an integral role in preserving Routt County’s heritage. For over 20 years, this dedicated group has protected local buildings and land. One of its most high-profile projects was saving the Arnold Barn, aka “The Butterfly Barn,” which had been targeted for demolition at its former location adjacent to the Meadows Parking Lot. It was preserved and moved to the entrance of the ski area in 2018. “The Arnold Barn matters to me, to all of us here in Steamboat. It matters to people throughout the country, and we hope it matters to you,” says Arianthe Stettner, cofounder of Historic Routt County.


“When it comes right down to it, Steamboat is still a hick town, and we want our arts to be handled in a certain way.”

COURTESY OF STEAMBOAT CREATES

1990, Eleanor Bliss, cofounder of Steamboat Creates

Eleanor Bliss stands beside the railroad tracks outside of the Depot Art Center.

Dancers in what is now the dining room of Perry-Mansfield Performing Arts Camp’s Main Lodge, constructed in 1918. The screens and lack of patio indicate the picture was taken relatively soon after construction. The Main Lodge was used as a dance studio until the Main Studio was built in 1922. STEAMBOAT MAGAZINE | OUTDOORS 2022 | 45


PRESENT When it comes to the Yampa Valley arts community, there’s no more exciting time than the present. Simply stroll down the sidewalks of Old Town to delight in commemorative banners created by mixed-media artist Katie Earixson. As part of its 50th anniversary celebration, Steamboat Creates and MainStreet Steamboat collaborated to present these banners, which depict Steamboat scenes. Then stop in at Steamboat Art Museum, which exemplifies the fusion of Steamboat’s past and present. When the museum opened in 2006, the historic First National Bank Building was a well-known local landmark buzzing with potential. That possibility has been realized with nationally-recognized art exhibits – including this summer’s Oil Painters of America National Exhibition and fall’s Plein Air workshop and exhibit. Strings Music Festival is the epicenter of the performing arts in Steamboat. What was founded in 1988 as a summer series of eight classical music concerts has grown to more than 60 musical performances of diverse genres throughout the year, plus an extensive education program. Since its inception 34 years ago, Strings has hosted more than 60 Grammy winners – and counting – plus musicians from all 25 of the nation’s top orchestras. Upcoming concerts include the world premiere of “Arabian Nights and the Dance of Life and Death,” with the Strings Festival Orchestra, the Drepung Loseling Monks, Bruce Hornsby & the Noisemakers, Béla Fleck and James McMurtry. Steamboat flautist Mary Beth Norris dreamed of the day she could perform locally with an orchestra. Her vision led to the creation of the Steamboat Symphony Orchestra in 1991. When Ernest Richardson joined the orchestra as music director in 2005, SSO began inviting professional players from outside the community to perform with the local group. Today, SSO is made up of local, regional and sometimes nationally renowned musicians, and additionally, SSO has taken a lead role in music education in the county. Musical stars from throughout the world converge each summer to perform with Opera Steamboat. 2022 saw the enthusiastic expansion of the company’s performance schedule, as well as the Opera Artists Institute, which comprises intensive workshops, master classes and performances for emerging artists. Summer highlights include a modern-day version of Puccini’s “La Bohème,” Stephen Sondheim’s “Company” and “Three Feathers,” by Lorid Laitman. Among the many artistic endeavors that originated in Steamboat is Literary Sojourn, slated for Saturday, Sept. 10. This year’s event features Omar El Akkad, National Book Award winner Jason Mott, Gary Shteyngart, Claire Vaye Watkins and Man Booker finalist Karen Joy Fowler. “The pandemic obviously stoked the creative juices and boosted some imaginative and quirky new storytelling that is going to make this year’s Literary Sojourn extra current and extra special,” says Literary Sojourn Festival Director Jennie Lay. The Yampa River Botanic Park is a meeting ground for the arts and botany. Springing up from a horse pasture in 1995, the park includes six acres of lush gardens and hosts more than 35,000 visitors each year. Public sculptures and a reflecting pond complement the gardens, which provide an idyllic outdoor venue for theatrical and musical performances. Celebrating its 50th anniversary this summer, Steamboat Writers Group attracts authors from an eclectic variety of genres and experience levels. Meeting weekly, the group offers a place where local writers can bounce their ideas off of one another. Each July, the group hosts a writers’ conference, including workshops, readings and guest authors. 46 | ONLINE AT WWW.STEAMBOATMAGAZINE.COM

“A lot of cool things happen in this town, but Sojourn is still my favorite day of the year. I’m ridiculously excited to be back live again with stupendous authors and a pavilion packed with book geeks.” Jennie Lay, festival director of Literary Sojourn

“SAM is a little gem of the art world, hidden away in Northwest Colorado.” Betse Grassby, executive director of Steamboat Art Museum


COURTESY OF TREAD OF PIONEERS MUSEUM

The Tread of Pioneers Museum, located on the corner of Oak and Eighth streets, is home to many art pieces from throughout Steamboat Springs’ history.

COURTESY OF STRINGS MUSIC FESTIVAL

Wynton Marsalis performs in the Strings Music Pavilion.

STEAMBOAT MAGAZINE MAGAZINE || OUTDOORS OUTDOORS 2022 2022 || 47 47 STEAMBOAT


FUTURE What will the future hold? If upcoming plans are any indication, the Northwest Colorado arts scene is poised to make a meaningful statement in the world of arts and culture, not only locally but throughout the West. To foster opportunities for young artists, Steamboat Creates is offering residencies to two local artists, Julia Ben Asher and Garrett Bock, in the Nazcaboose studio at the Depot Arts Center. Asher, a mixed media artist, painter and writer, is working in the space this summer, while Bock, a printmaker, will utilize the space in the fall. Steamboat’s performing arts community is moving in a progressive direction, with Opera Steamboat performing the chamber opera, “As One,” in September. The piece focuses on a transgender main character, a new topic for Steamboat theater and one that may bring awareness to the topic of trans rights in the Yampa Valley. Perry Mansfield Performing Arts School & Camp is merging with Friends of Yampa Valley Arts, likely by year’s end. The merger involves the renovation of the historic Julie Harris Theater at Perry-Mansfield’s campus and may allow the camp to expand year-round programming. In 2023, Piknik Theatre plans to build the Yampa Valley’s first outdoor amphitheater next to Strawberry Park Elementary School and Steamboat Springs Middle School, in collaboration with the Steamboat Springs School District. The outdoor theater will create a venue for local arts organizations and for students to spread their theatrical wings. The Colorado New Play Festival, an annual event in which playwrights from around the country debut new works, has an intriguing collaboration with the Boys and Girls Club on the horizon. The festival will expand its programming to include a new “playwright slam” next summer.

COURTESY OF STEAMBOAT SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA

Steamboat Symphony Orchestra music director Ernest Richardson conducts a performance by students in the 2021 Immersion Weekend, when musicians of all ages and abilities gather for intensive study, culminating in a celebration concert.

48 | ONLINE AT WWW.STEAMBOATMAGAZINE.COM

“The Colorado New Play Festival is coming up on its 25th anniversary next year. It’s been doing a lot of really neat things lately, like adding a youth playwright slam in conjunction with the Boys and Girls Club. There’s just some incredible energy there.” Scott Parker, Colorado New Play Festival board member

Scott Parker with renowned magician John Armstrong


“You can go anywhere to see performances in a box,

COURTESY OF COLORADO NEW PLAY FESTIVAL/BRUCE THAYER

but when you’re in the outdoors, you really know you’re in Steamboat.” Stuart Handloff, executive director of Piknik Theatre

Glenn Davis and Donté Bonner perform a reading of the Brandon Jacobs-Jenkins play “Purpose” during the 2019 Colorado New Play Festival.

COURTESY OF PIKNIK THEATRE/URBAN RURAL DESIGN

An artist mockup of Piknik Theatre’s planned outdoor amphitheater near Strawberry Park Elementary and Steamboat Springs Middle schools.

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COURTESY OF STEAMBOAT DANCE THEATRE/BENJAMIN SAHEB

Yampa Valley locals in the African Drum and Dance group perform Lucky Moyo’s gumboot piece on the Steamboat Springs High School stage at the 50th Steamboat Dance Theatre Concert, February 2022.

50 | ONLINE AT WWW.STEAMBOATMAGAZINE.COM


COURTESY OF PIKNIK THEATRE

This fall, Off the Beaten Path Bookstore is working with Steamboat Creates to install a mural, “Portal to Imagination,” at the local store. This is part of Steamboat Creates’ overarching plan to bolster public art within the creative district – the organization also plans to reinstall the newly refurbished, iconic bronze cougar statue along Yampa River Core Trail. Steamboat may not be synonymous with the film industry, but that could soon change. The Steamboat Springs Film Committee is working to promote Steamboat’s media professionals, attracting more productions to the area with the hopes of, one day, creating a local film festival. The Performing Arts Alliance meets regularly to formulate a vision for the future of Steamboat’s performing arts nonprofits. To create a secure future for these organizations, the council tackles problems like finding seasonal housing and lining up venues for new events. The Young Bloods Collective, a nonprofit that works to help up-andcoming artists in the Steamboat community, is another integral piece in helping build the Yampa Valley’s artistic future. The Young Bloods hold art markets regularly in downtown Steamboat, providing a space for promising creatives to exhibit their work. The Steamboat Springs arts community has transformed dramatically over the years, in ways even local arts forebears like Eleanor Bliss and the Crawford family could never have predicted. With that in mind, what wonderments do the next 50 years hold? SM

“Fare thee well, nymph,” says Oberon, King of the Fairies, during Piknik Theatre’s outdoor performance of “Midsummer Night’s Dream.”

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Dancers from the Limón Dance Company strike poses in an aspen grove at PerryMansfield Performing Arts School & Camp.

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Reimagining José Limón A breathtaking renewal at Perry-Mansfield | STORY BY JENNIE LAY PHOTOGRAPHY BY KELLY PULEIO

I

nfinite yards of marigold fabric draped the five lithe dancers hovering at the door. They stepped slowly into the glasswalled pavilion at Perry-Mansfield Performing Arts Camp as late-day light glowed through the aspen forest. An audience of dance aficionados sat awed by a delicate weaving and unfurling as the women performed “Air for the G String,” a 1928 piece choreographed by Doris Humphrey to music by Johann Sebastian Bach. The effect was stunning. The Limón Dance Company, America’s first modern dance repertory company, was resurrecting this legacy work on hallowed ground, reuniting last summer for a residency at Perry-Mansfield after the pandemic lockdown. Their presence marked an artistic convergence at the 109-year-old arts camp. Back in the 1930s, modern dance revolutionaries like Humphrey, Charles Wideman, Agnes de Mille and José Limón relied upon Perry-Mansfield’s discreet location in Strawberry Park to escape the prying eyes of New York, imagine cutting-edge movement, and create the foundations of modern dance. Limón, who died in 1972, is credited with creating one of the world’s most enduring dance legacies. His company has been at the vanguard of American modern dance since its inception and is considered one of the world’s greatest dance companies. Nearly a century after Humphrey’s piece was first performed at Perry-Mansfield, the camp witnessed the revival of the classic piece performed by Limón’s legendary company. The moment was sweetened by the fact that the Limón dancers were making their camp debut in Steamboat – a long-due appearance that coincided with the company’s 75th anniversary season. “In 75 years, the company’s never been here before,” says Dante Puleio, the company’s artistic director. A few days after the impromptu performance, he relaxed for a chat. Warm and STEAMBOAT MAGAZINE | OUTDOORS 2022 | 53


casual, he spoke with legs dangling off the porch of the historic, open-air Louis Horst studio while a Limón technique class proceeded behind him. The percussion of a live drum shifted to the adagio of stringed music as 24 college students sweated alongside 12 members of the Limón company. “It feels like just the right moment. You know, José was part of the original era when modern dance was at its pinnacle, and it was happening here. To start off new, with a new generation, it feels wildly appropriate to be here. I’m excited to see this company actually start to find that performance groove,” Puleio confesses. “The other night was the first time a lot of them have performed in person since a year and a half ago, and I was glad it worked out that way. It was like open rehearsals – low stakes. It was more about sharing an experience.” The Limón residency included two weeks with pre-professional students and a two-week solo intensive for the company. The camp allowed for something deeper than a two-hour audition – a chance to get to know one another on a deeper, more creative level.

Growing dance in isolation In March 2020, Puleio discovered that coronavirus lockdowns might offer an opportunity for expansion. No longer able to gather in their shared rehearsal space with Dance Theatre of Harlem, the Limón company went virtual. Instagram classes opened a portal for students throughout the world. Enrollment spiked enough to create two tracks, including one for more experienced dancers that grew into Limón 2, a second company that serves as a stepping stone to the main company. “It opened up a lot of possibilities because you kind of had to go back to zero,” says Puleio, who was tapped as Limón’s artistic director one week after the world went into lockdown. “Having said that, what is important for me is looking at who José was as a person and building from there. How can we identify with what he did, why he did it? And how can we talk about that for the 21st century artist and audience? How can we make that interesting?”

Limón’s return The Limón legacy began finding its way back to Perry-Mansfield via Chris Compton and Tammy Dyke-Compton when they became the camp’s dance co-directors in 2015. Compton entered University of the Arts in Philadelphia a year behind Puleio, and “Dante was just this force for good. He took me under his wing,” Compton says. Jump to 2021, “and next thing you know, we have Limón Dance Company at Perry-Mansfield. So that was kind of incredible,” marvels Dyke-Compton. She was a Perry-Mansfield camper long before she became dance director. “My first experience of modern dance was when I was 16 and I was a student at Perry-Mansfield. That’s where the seed was planted. I ended up going to Julliard, and I studied Limón for four years.” Dyke-Compton constantly reminds her students about the modern dance pioneers who taught at Perry-Mansfield. This is where it blossomed, where it was born, where it was nurtured. “And we would not be here today without that lineage, and without that discovery that happened at camp,” she says.

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Turning 75 José Limón’s technique is specific. “It really sits in the idea of our body’s relationship to gravity,” Puleio says. “We look at suspension and opposition … what are we doing at this moment, right before we fall, and examining that with the body.” It’s a vocabulary that originated with modern dance pioneers Humphrey and Weidman, who first brought Limón with them to Perry-Mansfield in 1935. An aspiring painter, Limón discovered dance in his 20s through Humphrey and Weidman. As their dancer, and later as a choreographer for his own company, Limón 54 | ONLINE AT WWW.STEAMBOATMAGAZINE.COM


shaped the Humphrey-Weidman vocabulary into his own language. Puleio describes a feeling the opposite of ballet: instead of floating, the dancer is embracing what it is to give in to gravity and be connected to the earth. In the 21st century, schools teach Limón and ballet as points of complementary focus. “That’s how they train their dancers because it offers them not only technique, but texture and how they use their technique, understanding your body and how it moves in space,” Puleio says. Limón Dance Company opened its 75th season last April at the iconic Joyce Theater in New York City – another glorious return, as the Limón company was part of Joyce’s inaugural season. The anniversary celebration is a nod to both Limón’s historic choreography and who

Physically, Limón was known as a dramatic and athletic dancer with spectacular leaps. He was a tall man with a commanding presence, and his lofty jumps were captured in iconic photographs made at PerryMansfield. Company members re-staged the flying poses for a modern retake on Limón’s plein air photo shoot.

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he was as a human. The company looked toward the future with two world premieres by guest choreographers in 2022 – new works that reflect a kind of conversation with Limón’s personal inspirations as the son of a musician who grew up in Mexico during a revolution.

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After marveling at “Air for G String,” last summer’s intimate audience migrated across the Perry-Mansfield campus. Inside the rustic main theater, the company performed parts of Limón’s 1966 piece. “The Winged,” ingeniously dancing on a stage that famously lacks wings. They were unveiling the bones of a work in process – just the kind of engagement that once gave founders Charlotte Perry and Portia Mansfield great glee – because the residency had given the company time to reimagine “The Winged” as a dance on film. “It’s always interested me to take that work out of the proscenium and put it in nature, because we’re looking at the wing and we’re looking at birds. We’re looking at that human need for flight and freedom and power over our own destiny, and how we can bring that into nature. Why not put the piece where it can kind of live a little bit?” Puleio explains. The company filmed later that week in the aspens, meadows and ponds of Perry-Mansfield, and “The Winged” transformed classic Limón stage choreography into a contemporary work for the screen. One imagines Mansfield, Perry and Limón applauding their audacity from on high. “The Winged” dance on film is now touring global film festivals. SM


A Perry-Mansfield wood pile transforms into a stage for José Limón dancers.

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The Best of the

Best

| BY DEBORAH OLSEN

I

t’s a shame there’s no red carpet for artists to walk at the Oil Painters of America annual exhibit, on display this summer at Steamboat Art Museum, because the show is filled with celebrities. The best representational oil painters in Canada, the U.S. and Mexico vie for a place in this juried exhibition, which returns to Steamboat Springs for the second time in four years. Almost 2,000 artists submitted works for consideration in 2022; approximately 230 pieces made the final cut. The jury selected three Yampa Valley artists for inclusion: Adam Zabel, Chula Beauregard and Bonnie McGee, whose work sold prior to the exhibition and will not be on display. “These artists represent the top of the top,” says Dancy St. John, who curated the show for SAM. The jury’s goal in 2022 was to select paintings that demonstrate the highest quality in draftsmanship, color and composition while emphasizing a diversity in style and subject matter. The resulting exhibit is all of that, as well as being emotive, captivating and even occasionally shocking. The national show has been a hit since it first came to town in 2018. “People come in multiple times,” says Dottie Jones-Zabel, director of operations at SAM. “You just can’t digest it all the first time.”

STEAMBOAT MAGAZINE | OUTDOORS 2022 | 59


“Cathedral of Shared Human Knowledge” | 30 x 40 GAIL WEGODSKY Even selecting a few favorite pieces is difficult. The process begins with one or two that immediately stand out, but others quickly catch your eye. Before you know it, you have spent hours savoring the artwork, and hours more could easily be devoted to the task. “There’s something for everyone,” St. John says. It’s not surprising that Jones-Zabel’s favorite piece is “Ready to Ride,” a portrait of a white horse in golden light that was created by her husband, Adam. The horse comes alive, seemingly in motion even on the still canvas. In an agricultural community like Routt County, the horse is more than an excellent piece of art: it is emblematic of a lifestyle. St. John, who curated the exhibit based largely on the OPA’s criteria, said she was immediately drawn to Gail E. Wegodsky’s “Cathedral of Shared Human Knowledge,” a depiction of the interior of Bibliothèque Nationale de France – Richelieu Louvois. The elaborate domes overhead, the murals, the extensive 60 | ONLINE AT WWW.STEAMBOATMAGAZINE.COM

collection of invaluable manuscripts – all of the details of this architectural masterpiece are present in Wegodsky’s painting. In the center of it all stands a man, back arched as he looks overhead to study the magnificent domed ceilings, not unlike the pose we would likely strike if we could be there. “Salish Sea,” a photorealistic study of water by Friday Harbor, Washington, artist Debbie Daniels, draws the eye back to it time and again with its strong lines, photo-like quality and strong-yetsubtle use of color. “King of the Wild Things” by Anna Rose Bain also employs photorealism, in combination with other techniques, to create a whimsical portrait study of a child surrounded by wild animals against a wooded, fall landscape. Some artists use their medium to make a social statement. Las Cruces, New Mexico, artist Vincent Figliola tells the story of the separation of an immigrant parent from his child in “Connected,” a study in contemporary realism that is certain


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to evoke emotion. Kristen Savage’s “My Body, My Rules” makes a strong social commentary, as it depicts a naked female figure, pulling a trench coat over her body, with her face turned away from the viewer. The works of Master OPA artists, who enjoy the organization’s most prestigious status, are on display in the front gallery of the museum. “Night Shift Miner,” by Christopher Zhang, is among them. This new piece manifest’s Zhang’s expertise in portraiture. Look into this miner’s eyes and you will see exhaustion, pride and power. Each of the 230-plus works in the OPA exhibit could easily inspire an imaginative backstory. To afford writers the opportunity to bring these stories to life, Steamboat Art Museum, Ski Town Media and Off the Beaten Path host Ekphrasis, an annual competition in which poets and authors enter short works based on any piece of art in the exhibit. Renowned locals read the winning entries at an Ekphrasis event, Thursday, July 21, and the winners will be posted online at SteamboatArtMuseum.org. The Oil Painters of America’s 31st National Juried Exhibition of Traditional Oils is on display through Saturday, Aug. 27. The museum is open Tuesday-Friday, 11 a.m.-6 p.m., and Saturdays, 11 a.m.-5 p.m. SM 62 | ONLINE AT WWW.STEAMBOATMAGAZINE.COM


“Night Shift Miner” | 26 x 20 CHRISTOPHER ZHANG

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Healing | PHOTOGRAPHY BY GEORGE FARGO

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etting go: a concept rarely captured in a work of art.

And yet, this enigmatic idea is fully embodied

in the Mandala on the Yampa event, which at long last returns to Bud Werner Memorial Library this summer. During a residency at the library, Tibetan Buddhist Drepung Loseling Monks create a mandala sand painting meant to heal the surrounding area. The monks have performed this ancient ritual in Steamboat Springs twice previously, but it has been seven years since the last iteration. This year, the monks create an Akshobhya Mandala, meant to manifest harmony and healing. The ceremony begins with a blessing, followed by creation of a chalk outline, after which the monks meticulously fill in their tracings with colorful grains of sand using a traditional chakpur funnel. At the ceremony’s end, the monks sweep up the mandala and cast it into the Yampa River. This is an act meant to signify both life’s impermanence and a blessing for the rest of the world. These photographs detail the sacred process

Tibetan Buddhist Drepung Loseling Monks complete the mandala ritual by casting their completed piece into the Yampa River.

that the Drepung Loseling Monks use to create – and destroy – their mandalas.

STEAMBOAT MAGAZINE | OUTDOORS 2022 | 65


The monks use tools called chakpurs, which are gently tapped with a metal rod or another chakpur to precisely add sand to the mandala.

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Mandala on the Yampa takes place Tuesday-Sunday, Aug. 9-14, in Library Hall. For the story of Jill Bergman, the local artist who created the pattern for the community’s mandala, visit YampaValleyArts.com.

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Children take turns using chakpurs to add sand to the community mandala. SM

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Summer Reading Goals ‘TIS THE SEASON FOR GOOD BOOKS | BY JENNIE LAY

A LITERARY SOJOURN READING LIST

R

ead to prepare yourself for the return of Literary Sojourn this fall. Or just stockpile this list for the year’s best books to pile by your bedside. Steamboat’s beloved literary festival is going live again, and it’s a lineup of heavy-hitting authors whose collective works create a diverse and delicious summer reading list. Here’s a look at five of the featured writers.

“Hell of a Book” | By Jason Mott This is the tale of an unnamed Black author on a cross-country book tour. It is concurrently the story of Soot, a young Black boy in a rural town, and The Kid, the author’s imaginary friend. Designed to be disorienting, it is a story about identity, love, loss, the Black experience, and so much more. Jason Mott won the National Book Award for “Hell of a Book” this year … and well, it’s a hell of a must-read novel. It is not insignificant to the narrative that Mott dedicated the award in his acceptance speech “to all the other mad kids, to all the outsiders, the weirdos, the bullied. The ones so strange they had no choice but to be misunderstood by the world and by those around them. The ones who, in spite of this, refuse to outgrow their imagination, refuse to abandon their dreams and refuse to deny, diminish their identity, or their truth, or their loves, unlike so many others.” Want more Mott? Follow up “Hell of a Book” with “The Returned,” his bestseller that morphed into a television series called “Resurrection,” about a town where dead people come back to life.

“What Strange Paradise” | By Omar El Akkad In the wake of his award-winning geopolitical bestseller that reflected many of his witnessed experiences as a journalist covering Afghanistan, Guantánamo and the Arab Spring, Omar El Akkad returns with a more intimate vantage on a global predicament: the migrant crisis. The wreck, both literal and societal, is relayed in the voices of two small children at sea. It is a gripping dystopia locked in our global reality. The novel turns “otherness” on its head, and makes clear that hope lies in finding a deep resurgence of humanity. Want more Akkad? After “What Strange Paradise” read “American War,” a brilliant, devastating and nuanced imagining of a post-apocalyptic future America mired in a long-running civil war.

“Our Country Friends” | By Gary Shteyngart This is Gary Shteyngart’s pandemic novel, and it’s exactly what we need right now. Brimming with elegant prose and insightful bite, it’s the story of eight individuals hunkered at a Hudson Valley estate for what was supposed to be a quick inconvenience. We all know better. The absurd human experience unfolds as urban people reside uncomfortably in the rural. In Steamboat, it’s a phenomenon we’ve witnessed IRL. Shteyngart’s pandemic web flexes with love and sex and narcissism and privilege. There STEAMBOAT MAGAZINE | OUTDOORS 2022 | 69

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is friendship and villainy. There is an awkward tween. Literary folks have called attention to literary structures in “Our Country Friends” that parallel classic Russian novels, but don’t let that scare you away from this story that brims with humor and keen interpersonal observation; let that compliment elevate the literature, then just enjoy an escape into a hilarious quagmire of isolation that Shteyngart has built for readers. Want more Shteyngart? Following “Our Country Friends,” dive into his essential immigrant memoir, “Little Failure.”

“I Love You But I’ve Chosen Darkness” | By Claire Vaye Watkins This is a dark, uncomfortable and highly unconventional book about motherhood. It is fiction, and it is autobiographical. All of it is complicated. Sometimes it’s downright weird. Claire Vaye Watkins delivers a story about transformation, depression, elation, experimentation, and what it’s like to feel both trapped and disoriented in reality and social acceptability. To top it off, much of the book is set in the stark, unforgiving Mojave Desert, an uncomfortable place for many that turns out to be something of a security blanket for Claire, the main character. And there you have her, the thinly veiled protagonist, who readers will likely love and loathe, who shares some unshakable commonalities with the author, not least of which is having a father who was Charles Manson’s right-hand man. The journey is a trip, both psychological and on the road, and the escapades in this adventure are relayed with irresistible wit and candor. Want more Watkins? When you finish “I Love You But I’ve Chosen Darkness,” read her dazzling cli-fi/Hollywood apocalypse set in the desert, “Gold Fame Citrus.”

“Booth” | By Karen Joy Fowler We all know how the story of John Wilkes Booth ends. And yet, Karen Joy Fowler, in an insightful work of deeply researched and imaginative historic fiction, shows readers that most of us actually know nothing about this famous assassin. The drama that shaped and surrounded his home life are impossible to ignore, as are the formative experiences with slavery, politics and revolutionaries. Fowler weaves a portrait of comingled tragedies: a family and a splintering America in the mid-nineteenth century. Fowler lays bare a family filled with Shakespearean actors, strange and spoiled sisters, a melodramatic mother and big secrets – all of which hurtled toward Abraham Lincoln’s real-life demise. Want more Fowler? As a contrast to “Booth,” escape into her quirky and contemporary novel “We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves.” 70 | ONLINE AT WWW.STEAMBOATMAGAZINE.COM


READ & PRACTICE: A NEW BOOK FOR YOGIS “Revolution of the Soul” | By Seane Corn Seane Corn and her long, luxurious curls stand out among the most famous faces in modern yoga, but anyone who has practiced with her knows her teachings are anything but skin deep. Reading her memoir is like a modern-day experiential romp through the “Yoga Sutras,” a raw and uncensored account of growing up, stepping out, and evolving into the yogi we know today. “Revolution of the Soul” is now available in paperback, which makes it perfect for new and long-practicing yogis to roll up, mark up, reference and revisit on your mat. Corn offers wisdom to awaken ourselves on and off the mat, as humans and as a more conscious society, spurring yoga to move off the mat and into the world. Yogis, add this foundational book to your prop collection.

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WATCH: DANCE ON FILM “The Time is Now” | By Limón Dance Company Limón Dance Company made a film together while the dancers were apart in isolation. Everyone was alone in their respective apartments, taking company class on Zoom. Then in June 2021 they turned their isolated experiences into a collective dance film. “The Time is Now” is based on José Limón’s 1956 choreography for “There is a Time,” creating a moment for the dancers to play with some of Limón’s themes and see what would emerge. They learned the elements virtually over several weeks, then went out in their environments and shot themselves dancing it. The edit created an 18-minute film that won awards on the film festival circuit, and it’s now available to watch online: https://vimeo.com/459306495

DEGREES & CERTIFICATES MADE FOR OUR MOUNTAIN COMMUNITIES. 4Business Administration 4Ecosystem Science & Stewardship 4Human Services 4Nursing 4Outdoor Education 4Ski & Snowboard Business/Action Sports 4Sustainability Studies

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Summertime Arts & Culture

To the out-of-towners: wouldn’t it be nice to do more than just vacation in Steamboat Springs? Interested in purchasing real estate in the Yampa Valley? Has your family outgrown that ski condo and are now ready for their first home? Get acquainted with Steamboat’s designers and builders in the online version of the 2022 Steamboat Magazine Home Edition. Visit SteamboatMagazine.com for home and garden design tips, articles and resources for your next real estate venture.

For 2022, the Year of the Arts, the best is yet to come. Head to YampaValleyArts.com for the latest in arts news, celebrations and events. Follow YampaValleyArts on Facebook and Instagram for full coverage of talented local artists, traveling exhibits and internationally renowned guest speakers.

Calendar of Events Summertime in Steamboat Springs means ample outdoor activities. You won’t want to miss weekly gatherings like the downtown Farmer’s Market, Pro Rodeo Series, First Friday ArtWalks, and many other events that can all be found in the calendar at SteamboatMagazine.com. Follow @SteamboatMagazine on Facebook and Instagram for weekly updates. 72 | ONLINE AT WWW.STEAMBOATMAGAZINE.COM

Music to Your Ears Steamboat Springs boasts a summertime music schedule packed with a free outdoor concert series, world-renowned musicians, and authentic venues distinctive to Steamboat Springs. Stay up-to-date on the live music scene in the ‘Boat at SteamboatMagazine.com, and follow us on Facebook and Instagram @SteamboatMagazine for news on our favorite upcoming events.

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