Sports & Recreation

An indoor retail oasis in the middle of the city, the Cherry Creek Shopping Center has banked on its elite status since opening in 1990. But if you're not shopping, buy a latte and grab a seat — there are several living rooms' worth of cushy furniture and a giant flat-screen TV in front of Abercrombie & Fitch — because you could sit for hours watching people. Who's there? Everyone from early-morning Silver Sneakers Club mall walkers and the lady with her dog in a stroller to international shoppers, teenagers, well-heeled fashionistas, and solo moms with a cell phone in one hand and a pocketbook in the other.

It may seem counterintuitive to give this honor to a player who's just recently returned to the ice after a long contract holdout and accompanying drama. But Ryan O'Reilly is that good, and getting better. Last year he scored more goals (eighteen), registered more assists (37) and notched more points (55) than he did during any previous season, and if there were statistics for a will to win, he would have led the Avalanche in that category, too. Given these achievements, we don't blame him for waiting to skate until he was offered a salary commensurate with his talent — something that didn't happen until he forced the issue by signing an offer sheet with the Calgary Flames in February. Kudos to Avs management for matching that deal — because we wouldn't want to see O'Reilly wearing any other squad's sweater.

In early 2012, Folsom Custom Skis shifted from its full-custom focus to add some shelf-ready stock skis, and moved its operation from Denver to Boulder to help handle increased manufacturing demands. The gamble has been paying off nicely: Folsom's new Rapture skis, with camber underfoot and rockered tips and tails to power through powder, earned a 2013 Editor's Picks nod from Freeskier magazine and topped the publication's list of the best "microbrew" and independent-brand skis of 2012-2013.

There's a long tradition of local surfboard shapers carving boards that are custom-cut for their local breaks, and Silverton's Venture Snowboards has taken the cue, inviting guest shapers into the shop and encouraging them to go nuts. Some of the wilder resulting prototypes, like Silverton Mountain owner Aaron Brill's Swallowtail Bomber and big-mountain backcountry legend Johan Olofsson's Powder Pig, have been getting extremely limited-edition releases through Venture's experimental Shape Shack division. The best of them, like Olofsson's big-mountain Odin — Backbacker magazine's 2012 Editor's Choice pick — have been making their way into the permanent Venture lineup. Our vote for the next graduate is the true-twin Skylar Special, a freestyle/big-mountain hybrid shaped by Silverton Mountain guide Skylar Holgate, with graphics by artist Shanna Duncan.

With all due respect to Peyton Manning, with whom we're absolutely thrilled to share a state, Von Miller is the member of the Broncos who most exemplifies the future of the franchise. His incredible speed, which has quickly turned him into one of the NFL's most feared pass-rushers, deflects attention from the sort of strength and power that allows him to be an every-down player instead of a specialist. And his enthusiasm for the game, marked by sack dances that range from the silly to the incredibly silly, is downright infectious. We look forward to watching him wreak havoc for many, many years to come.

Larry Eustachy is a master at maximizing talent. His collegiate coaching history is littered with teams he's taken from perennial cellar-dwellers to NCAA Tournament appearances. He didn't begin in as big of a hole when he took over the Colorado State University job, but once again, he's taken a team of quality upperclassmen with middling athletic ability to the top of the Mountain West conference. And in late March, Eustachy took the next step, leading the Rams to their first NCAA Tournament victory since 1989.

George Karl has been around for a minute: This season, he passed Larry Brown to become the sixth-winningest coach in NBA history. But despite his veteran status and numerous well-documented health issues, he's not phoning in his efforts. His current Nuggets squad is filled with talented players but no superstars — yet somehow, he's managed to mold them into a cohesive unit that's turned the Pepsi Center into a house of horrors for visiting outfits. Of course, fans won't be satisfied if the Nugs flame out in the first round of the playoffs, as they've done so many times in the past — nor should they be. But if anyone can help this fast-break crew adapt to the half-court post-season style, it's Karl.

How many major cities can offer a stroll in the tundra, 12,840 feet above sea level? Only one. High on Mount Evans, Summit Lake is the jewel of Denver's century-old mountain-park system, offering spectacular views to photographers and a highly manageable trail for youngsters and elders. Summer this high in the Rockies is all too brief, but that's all the more reason to enjoy the drive (the U.S. Forest Service charges a fee for access) and the brilliant wildflowers.

There's a noble reason behind the Denver Zoo's breeding program, which produces some of the most effing adorable baby animals we've ever seen. For instance: The Amur leopard, a species of spotted, blue-eyed leopard native to Russia, is nearly extinct due to poaching and trophy hunting, but by pairing a male and female Amur leopard, lighting a few candles and playing some Marvin Gaye, the zoo is hoping to help bring the species back. Last April, they succeeded in the cutest of ways when mom Dazma and dad Hari-Kari became the proud parents of a male baby leopard that the zoo named Makar.

The Denver Zoo is much like a meddling mother when it comes to love. It's constantly bringing in potential mates for its most eligible bachelors and bachelorettes under the auspices of a "species survival plan" — the animal equivalent of your parents inviting the neighbors' unmarried son over for supper and then commenting about how a grandchild or two would be nice. The best of the zoo's matches this year involved Chewbacca, a red panda with an adorable face and the bushiest tail you've ever seen. Originally from Detroit, Chewbacca has one mission in Denver: to make babies with Daisy, the zoo's female red panda, because the world needs more adorable faces and bushy tails.

Tucked away in Boulder's north end, this modest two-acre retreat has much to recommend it, pooch-wise — including separate fenced areas for large and small dogs, great surrounding scenery, and a less chaotic vibe than larger parks or the sprawling off-leash areas at the reservoirs. Recent upgrades at Foothills Community Dog Park, including shelters and water lines, make this an even more ideal retreat for you and your Boulder-ready, bandanna-wearing canine.

Vail celebrated its fiftieth anniversary this season — as well as the 25th anniversary of the day snowboarding pioneer Jake Burton persuaded the ski area to allow snowboarders on the hill — by hiring Snow Park Technologies to build the longest and steepest 22-foot superpipe on the international competition circuit. Olympic gold-medalists Shaun White and Kelly Clark took top honors at the U.S. Open — surprise, surprise — but the real winners were the locals who got to ride it all season.

Talk about a no-brainer. John Grant Jr. isn't just the most valuable player on the Mammoth. He's been the most valuable player for the entire National Lacrosse League for two consecutive seasons. And that's appropriate, since he set a new single-season points record (116!) despite missing a couple of games due to a fractured sternum — an injury that no doubt caused him a great deal of pain even after he was cleared to play again. Now that he's back to full health, can we expect even greater things from him? That'd be tough in light of his achievements over the past couple of seasons. But it'll be fun watching him try.

Rocky has ruled the Denver mascots roost since the era when he was pretty much the only reason to pay attention during the second half of Nuggets games, and he's become such an institution that players from other teams are eager to bask in his limelight. Witness Oklahoma City's Russell Westbrook, who had the gall to block a couple of Rocky's trademark over-the-head backwards shots during time-outs — an act of villainy that made Nugs fans despise him even more than they already did.

Winter Park's Trestle Bike Park puts the resort so far ahead of other ski areas wrangling to offer off-season adventure that it might just as well be dubbed Summer Park. The bike park is open daily from mid-June through late September, with up to three chairlifts spinning during peak hours to service a vast network of singletrack trails, downhill bombers and terrain-park features all but guaranteed to push your bike, body armor and helmet to the limits. No, seriously: Pad up. Bob Holme, a former Winter Olympic Nordic ski jumper who is also responsible for the resort's winter ski and snowboard terrain parks, is the man behind the madness, and Trestle Bike Park events like the Colorado Freeride Festival have helped move the sport so far that Mountain Bike Slopestyle will make its debut as an X Games medal event this summer at in Munich.

Last September's inaugural Pedal the Plains couldn't have gone better. The three-day ride through the close-knit communities of Colorado's eastern plains inspired plenty of people to trade in the painful slow climbs and downhill rocketing of mountain marathons for the flat roads of the prairie and its anachronistic small-town atmosphere. A focus on history and heritage made it fun for all ages, as did the folksy off-road activities dreamed up for the evenings by event maven Dana Cain. Go east: The second annual Pedal the Plains rolls on September 20 through 22; this year's route will be announced in late April.

Why ex-Morehead State standout Kenneth Faried fell to the 22nd pick in the 2011 NBA draft despite an astonishingly electric performance at that year's NCAA men's basketball tournament is beyond us. But we couldn't be happier. Faried is energy personified, consistently outworking and out-hustling everyone on the floor at any given time — and while he's still prone to defensive lapses and focus drifts, rim-rattling dunks and impossible rebounds against much bigger players make up for a multitude of sins. As a bonus, Manimal is a positive presence off the court, too.

Named for astronaut Scott Carpenter, this park features a pool, a skate park and a rocket-ship playground, but that's only a place where kids can blast off. When it snows, locals converge on the long, wide hill with their saucers and sleds to get in on the free fun that comes with living in Colorado.

If you think elections don't matter, then consider the past. In May 1912, Denver citizens went to the polls and voted in favor of a mill levy, backed by Mayor Robert Speer, that provided funding for the acquisition of a park system in the foothills and mountains where people could go to get away from city life. Today that system includes 14,000 acres spread out among 46 properties in four counties, including Genesee Mountain Park, home to a small bison herd, Red Rocks Park, home to Red Rocks Amphitheatre, the Winter Park Ski Resort and Summit Lake, high up on Mount Evans. In 2012, the city celebrated the hundredth anniversary of Denver Mountain Parks. Here's to one hundred more.

Brendan Mundorf is nothing if not consistent. He's either led or tied for the lead in scoring on the Outlaws each season since 2007. And his efforts show no sign of trailing off. His offensive totals from last year (32 goals, 27 assists and 59 points) were considerably higher than those he registered in 2011 (thirty goals, 15 assists and 45 points). This upward trajectory has gotten him noticed throughout the Major League Lacrosse circuit: He was named the 2012 Most Valuable Player, and deservedly so. No one's scored more often in Denver Outlaws history, and with each game, he makes it that much harder for the next guy to exceed his mark.

Confluence Park, on the banks of the South Platte River, may be better known for sunbathing, people watching and kayaking, but this urban park rises above the rest for one important reason when it comes to picnics: the distinct absence of goose poop. While many of Denver's other green spaces are blanketed in the stuff, Confluence doesn't suffer from the same fowl problem.

With its gorgeously neon-lit grounds, Lakeside Amusement Park looks like an idyllic movie set, which makes it the perfect place for a summer date night. Whether you're canoodling on the Ferris wheel, jointly steering the Skoota Boats or peering out over Lake Rhoda from the cockpit of the shaky, hydraulically powered Satellite rocket ship together, the park encapsulates old-fashioned romance. End the night with some soft-serve ice cream and take your honey on a train ride around the lake to catch a panoramic view of the 105-year-old amusement park's blinking lights and stately trees. Without the modern distractions of a high-tech theme park, it's the ideal place to nurture a new love, surrounded by an old one.

Yes, construction and goose poop pose constant challenges, but its 7.5 miles of bike paths make City Park a clear favorite for cyclists of all bents — especially the ones who don't want to brave the hordes of "serious" cyclists at Washington Park. Great views of the skyline, water features, creature features, and quick access to Uptown restaurants, a vibrant slice of East Colfax and the quiet streets of Park Hill (not to mention the zoo and the museum) add to the allure of this heart-of-the-city ride.

Good fishing close to home can be hard to come by in landlocked Colorado. But Bear Creek Lake Park is an exception. For $7 per vehicle, anglers both new and experienced can try their hand at catching rainbow trout, perch, smallmouth bass and saugeye during the summer or winter. And if your family and friends aren't into sitting around and waiting for the fish to bite, Bear Creek Lake Park also has a swim beach, boat rentals, a water-ski school and horseback-riding stables.

Washington Park is like the Studio 54 of running: Anyone who's anyone jogs there. But there's a good reason for its popularity: miles of wide and well-kept trails. The bounty of fellow runners also means it's easy to eavesdrop on personal conversations, which is always entertaining. Plus, running sucks, and it's comforting to be among other people who are suffering as much as you are.

One of Denver's newest neighborhoods, Stapleton was specifically designed and laid out with modern families in mind. And at the heart of that foresight is the eighty-acre Central Park, Denver's third-largest, which includes a stage, a playground, lakes, paths, and a giant hill that turns into a winter wonderland for kids after a storm. The slope rises about thirty feet, but the grade isn't that steep in most places, so parents don't have to panic about their little ones picking up too much speed. Now if only it would snow more often.

Parks usually make for good people-watching, but Washington Park, which pops off with free entertainment year-round, is the cream of the crop. You'll find moms pushing strollers the size of ATVs and dads on rollerblades with ski poles; bar-based running clubs in the afternoons and lane-weaving cruiser-bike fanatics; overzealous triathlon types on racing bikes; tanned-and-toned sorority gals; school groups; and, of course, people who look like their dogs. It's a melting pot of eye-catching splendor.

Situated at a lower elevation than many of Colorado's other favorite snowshoeing trails, Lost Lake, in the Indian Peaks Wilderness, is also fairly simple to get to and includes a variety of trails for a variety of skill sets. The path starts either at the Hessie Trailhead or about a mile before it, depending on conditions, and gets more and more beautiful as you walk. The last part of the trail is steeper as it approaches the lake, but the view will leave you breathless before the exertion does.

The International Olympic Committee has decreed that the Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia, next year will host the ski halfpipe and ski and snowboard slopestyle events for the first time. And the road to Sochi for every aspiring Team USA shredder will run through Copper Mountain, host of the United States Ski & Snowboard Association (USSA) U.S. Grand Prix, an Olympic qualifier. Most will also be ducking into Woodward at Copper, a world-class indoor/outdoor training facility now run by former Olympic gymnast Phoebe Mills, to work on the technical rail tricks and aerial awareness it's going to take to win medals. Woodward's programs are also kid-friendly and beginner-friendly; to start building up to some double and triple corks of your own, spring for the $59.99 "One Hit Wonder" intro session on the trampolines, foam pits and Snowflex training slopes in the Barn before progressing to day sessions and week-long camps (including summer-camp options for both kids and adults).

Kenneth Faried grew up with two loving mothers who married in their home state of New Jersey in 2007. And in January, Faried spoke out in favor of Colorado couples being able to do the same. "Nobody can tell me I can't have two mothers, because I really do," the six-foot-eight-inch basketball player says on a video in which he is sandwiched on a couch between both women. Faried says that while he supports civil unions, he'd rather see full marriage rights for gay and lesbian couples. Well played, Manimal.

Nate Kreckman hasn't always received the attention he's deserved for being one of the most entertaining sports-radio personalities in Denver. Likewise, partner Charles Johnson has occasionally been dismissed as a walking, talking advertisement for University of Colorado athletics. But their partnership is finally earning notice, and not just locally, but beyond: Their interview with ex-CU tight end Nick Kasa, in which he revealed inappropriate questions about sexuality put to him during the NFL combine, generated headlines nationwide. Still, perhaps the main reason to tune in is because of their easy camaraderie. They seem to genuinely enjoy spending time ribbing each other while they gab about sports — and fortunately, the rest of us are invited to take part.

Deshorn Brown is a rookie and the season is young, so only time will tell if he lives up to his potential. But he's certainly off to a quick start, showing himself to be fast, smart and exciting, with a nose for the net: Early on, he's led the team in most offensive categories, including shots and shots on goal. He wasn't supposed to get this much playing time so soon, but why would anyone want him to remain on the sidelines? Plus, the chemistry he appears to be developing with fellow rookie Dillon Powers bodes well for a fruitful future.

We know, we know: CarGo's stats fell off in a significant way between 2011 and 2012, when his batting average went from an extraordinary .333 to a pedestrian .259. But whether or not his production reduction had to do with pressure he put on himself after signing a huge contract, he's still the most complete player on the Rockies' roster, with the sort of upside boasted by few current players. That's why we expect him to bounce back in a big way this season — and if he brings a few of his teammates with him, maybe the Rox won't continue to be a National League bottom-feeder in 2013.

Beth "Fiona Grapple" Bandimere is a blocker for the Rocky Mountain Rollergirls' Sugar Kill Gang and team captain of the 5280 Fight Club all-star squad, and already has a national roller derby championship title to show for herself. Her nom de derby channels mid-'90s malcontent Fiona Apple, rather obviously, but also captures the full spirit of fighting for every inch on the track, which Ms. Grapple, a bludgeon of a blocker, embodies as well as anybody. This year, however, thanks to the reductive reality-TV shorthand of CBS's The Amazing Race, Bandimere and her 5280 Fight Club teammate Mona "Triple Shot Misto" Egender came to be known as the "Roller Derby Moms," a pair of clean-cut competitors, each with three kids, who held their own on the show.

The Denver Roller Dolls imported jammer Sandrine "Francey Pants" Rangeon — a former ice hockey player for the French national team — from the Montreal Roller Derby league in 2012, and just in time. She helped lead the Dolls' Mile High Club to the Women's Flat Track Derby Association's West Region Playoffs in September, where she set a record for the highest scoring jam in post-season competition. Then she outdid herself at Nationals with an astounding 44-0 jam against the Texas Rollergirls' Texecutioners, and helped the Mile High Club finish the tournament in third place. Rangeon won Tournament Jammer MVP honors at Nationals, and the bout — Denver 210 vs. Texas 199 — was later voted Bout of the Year in the Derby News Network's Best of 2012 poll.

There are now eight Colorado-based roller derby leagues sanctioned by the Women's Flat Track Derby Association, and the Denver Roller Dolls was the best of them in 2012, by far: DRD's Mile High Club all-star team took second at the 2012 "Bay of Reckoning" West Region Playoffs in Richmond, California, in September, and third at the 2012 WFTDA National Championships in Atlanta. The team is currently ranked second in the world, according to the new WFTDA rankings calculator. The league, which expanded this year with the addition of a fourth home team, the orange-and-blue-clad Orange Crushers, will also host the new Colorado Cup tournament April 27-28.

Pro skater Rob Dyrdek, founder of the Street League Skateboarding series, stopped by in March to inaugurate the new $1.2 million, 16,800-square-foot Erie Community Skate Park, the first Street League-branded public facility. The skate park, which officially opened in January of this year, has already become a mecca for street skaters. A minimalist masterpiece, it was built by California Skateparks in partnership with SITE Design Group, with an emphasis on street-inspired ledges and rails (rather than bigger and badder bowls). The mirrored design allows equal access for goofy-footed and regular-footed approaches, and the park's features suit beginners and pros alike. A second phase of construction scheduled for this summer is expected to add more beginner-friendly terrain and bring the total square footage to 25,000.

Denver-based Level 1 Productions stepped it up in every sense of the word this year, moving its headquarters out of director Josh Berman's house to more official digs (a new studio and retail space on upper Larimer Street), then releasing Sunny, the best ski film of the season. Berman's thirteenth film in as many years earned him "Best Movie" honors at the 2013 Powder Awards and Best North American Film at the 2012 IF3 International Freeski Film Festival. The film featured twenty top athletes skiing in locales around the world, but we're partial to the sections filmed in Breckenridge and Denver.

The seventh annual So-Gnar Snowboard Camp Tour from Golden-based pro snowboarder Pat Milbery and his fun-loving So-Gnar posse featured local stops at Loveland and Winter Park this season for kids of all ages — with some moms, dads and grandparents in the mix — focused on having fun in the terrain parks and on custom features (like a bright-orange couch) installed just for the occasion. The camps (this year's tour made a dozen stops across the U.S. and one in Japan) are beginner-friendly, but they also cater to intermediate, advanced and expert riders, with a focus on fun and creating a positive vibe to encourage safe progression. At $125 for a two-day camp session with a small army of pro riders, the So-Gnar camps are far and away the best bargain around for anyone looking to learn new tricks.

Given the draw that Colorado has for extreme-sports enthusiasts, a magazine showcasing the talents of local and national celebrities (many of whom reside in our resort towns) was inevitable. Since Snowboard Colorado's first printing in fall of 2010, the magazine has continued to highlight the technological advancements in the industry, the strides that Colorado companies have made to push the sport, and, most important, the progressive talent coming out of the snow-covered hills of Colorado.

Mike Haynes honed his style on the radio, a medium in which his high-octane pronouncements were necessary. After all, he had to help listeners picture what was happening, and he managed to do so better than anyone in the market. But he's proved to be just as adept at calling the action on TV. He knows the game inside and out, and he manages to convey his loyalty to the Avs without conjuring up excuses for them when things are heading south. He makes each goal seem bigger, every check more crushing, and those glove-dropping fights the equivalent of championship bouts on blades.

Highland Tap & Burger isn't just a sports bar — but you wouldn't know that on game day, when this LoHi spot is packed with hat boys and bros cheering and jeering whatever's playing on the many TVs, drinking beers, taking occasional smoke breaks on the patio, and stuffing their faces with the great food that comes out of the kitchen. When they opened the place three years ago, the owners applied a fine-dining sensibility to a pub-like menu, and they've held to those standards. The result is Denver's best burger, offered in a variety of styles with toppings both plain (white cheddar) and fancy (truffle aioli), as well as impressive root-beer pulled-pork sandwiches, meatball sliders and incredible homemade chips.

Three years ago, the Blake Street Tavern moved from the modest warehouse spot it had occupied for almost seven years to a massive space a block south, with a great back patio, a big bar, an ambitious kitchen, an arcade area and plenty of room to watch games — or just the people around you. And now bigger is becoming even better. Blake Street is moving its arcade area to the basement — which is almost as huge as the first floor — where it will offer bocce, cornhole, shuffleboard, Skee-Ball, basketball, leagues and other fun activities, as well as a bar that can accommodate two dozen beers on draft. That will cement Blake Street's reputation as not only one of the town's best sports bars for watching games, but definitely the best sports bar for playing games.

If you're serious about watching the game, any game, head directly to Chopper's Sports Grill, which takes its sports very seriously. Chopper's, which has stood its ground in Cherry Creek for decades, is named for Bob "Chopper" Travaglini, the late, beloved Denver Nuggets trainer, and it's a real sports bar, with memorabilia and TVs hanging in every nook and cranny of the big space — bathrooms included. The menu includes not just bar chow, but big, manly steaks for those who are as serious about their meals as they are about their sports. This is not the place to go if your only mission is to get toasted — but if you want to toast the Nuggets' incredible winning streak, there's no better spot. Let the games begin!

The race for college basketball dominance in Colorado is on, and we're hoping it continues for years. This season, the CSU Rams lost their only head-to-head match-up with the University of Colorado, but on the whole, Colorado State had an excellent season, finishing second in the Mountain West conference and getting into the NCAA Tournament alongside their rivals from Boulder. And while some might point to the competition disparity between the Mountain West and the Pac-12, look again: Both conferences have five teams in the tournament, and the Mountain West had an average seed of eight, while the Pac-12 has an average seed of about nine. You decide which is more impressive.

Oh, what a sweet feeling it is to look forward to a Broncos season. It hasn't been that way for a while, either because of overt mediocrity or cosmic flukery of the Tim Tebow variety. Peyton Manning has changed all with his work ethic and his incredible skill set, not to mention durability (so far) that's surprised even some of those who were confident his neck wouldn't shatter after that first sack. And while the off-season has had its ups (acquiring Wes Welker) and downs (the Elvis Dumervil fax-gate debacle), the signs as a whole are more than positive. To put it another way, fans won't have to be wildly drunk to believe a long-delayed return to the Super Bowl is possible.

The Breckenridge Park & Pipe crew dug in early to roll out the white carpet for the Dew Tour's Ion Mountain Championships in December, then rocked it all season long with five different terrain parks and an Olympic-sized 22-foot superpipe. Some of the park's features are first-timer-friendly, offering a safe progression toward the bigger and burlier elements. The biggest and burliest of them were designed with the Breck Pro Team, a group of 26 top-tier sponsored athletes, in mind.

Earlier this year, History Colorado's sprawling diorama of circa-1860 Denver was brought up from the basement, where it underwent a thorough cleaning and restoration, and placed in the lobby under special glass that will hopefully protect its Lilliputian landscape for years to come. The best part of that landscape? Tiny cats the size of ants who are perched on the Early Denver diorama's tiny fences, keeping an eye on the even tinier chickens.

Denverites are still mourning the loss of the Ski Train to Winter Park, but the Rio Grande Scenic Railroad is a hell of a consolation prize. Although the owners of this company weren't able to pick up where the Ski Train left off, they offer incredible trips across southern Colorado, where the vistas are scenic, indeed — through tunnels, around horseshoe curves and over mountain passes. Theme excursions range from Wine Tasting Trains to Rails and Ales to concert trips that stop at an outdoor amphitheatre. But any trek on this train, which runs between Alamosa and La Veta, is memorable, whether you're standing in front of the open observation car, right behind the hundred-year-old steam engine, or sipping wine in the comfort of the City of New Orleans club car in back. All aboard!

Sports is sometimes described as the toy department of TV news — but it matters mightily to a lot of us, and to Vic Lombardi, too. Far from seeming bored by decades of watching guys and girls run around, he comes across as passionately engaged with the glories and goofiness of athletic competition — awestruck when something unusual or remarkable happens, but able to laugh along with us when things get silly. On top of that, he still offers the sort of commentary that used to be a staple of newscasts but has been left by the wayside at too many stations: He has opinions, and he isn't afraid to use them.

The Rocky Mountain Rollergirls league has a minimum age requirement of eighteen for its adult teams, but has been building its recruit pool (and fan base) with a year-long junior program that has become a statewide and national model after being prominently featured in Robin Bond's 2012 documentary Derby Baby. The Rocky Mountain Rollerpunks welcomes "Littles" Division girls and boys ages six to eleven (aka 5280 Might Club) and Juniors Division girls ages twelve to seventeen, some of whom have been graduating directly into the adult league. The Rollerpunks have been dominating the fledgling junior derby scene in Colorado and have started making a stamp on the national scene as regional junior tournaments begin popping up. Catch the Rollerpunks in action as the pre-bout or halftime show at upcoming Rollergirls bouts at the Fillmore and at the Rocky Mountain Rollergirls' War*house practice facility to see what all the fuss is about.

If you habitually (cough, cough) check the snow reports from your favorite resort before deciding whether or not to go to work in the morning, then join the club at Opensnow.com. Already a winner last year, the site got even better this season, upgrading its reporting tools and adding several new forecasters for national perspective (the site now offers detailed reports from Colorado, Utah, Tahoe, New England and the Mid-Atlantic). Boulder-based meteorologist/ski bum Joel Gratz, the site's co-founder, has become the go-to guy for local powder predictions and storm forecasts, thanks to his Colorado Daily Snow dispatches, which you can also get delivered straight to your inbox. Our favorite feature is the Powder Finder, an at-a-glance view of where to find the most snow in Colorado and across the country.

The University of Colorado women's basketball team finished its regular season ranked nineteenth nationally and fourth in a stacked Pac-12 conference. They had two winning streaks of ten and eleven games, respectively, and they snagged a five seed in this year's NCAA Tournament. The next step for the Buffs? Make it past the first round.

Careening Spiderman-style across Alkali Canyon on ziplines as long as 1,000 feet and as high as 600 feet above the canyon floor with Zip Adventures (near Wolcott and not far from the Vail and Beaver Creek resorts) provides the best buzz of the many zipline tours that have popped up in mountain towns in recent years. At $150, it's also one of the priciest, but it's worth every penny: You'll zip six different lines on the two-hour tour, and just when you're starting to think that one zipline is pretty much like the next, the guides will encourage you to try one hanging upside down. Bring earplugs if you're sensitive to the sound of your own screams.