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Best Place to People-Watch — Outdoors

Washington Park

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.

Best Place to Snowshoe

Lost Lake, Eldora

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.

Best Place to Train for the Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics

Woodward at Copper

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).

Best Political Statement by a Pro Athlete

Kenneth Faried supports gay rights

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.

Best Radio Sports Show

CJ & Kreckman

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.

Best Rain-or-Shine Ride

Loops

The Loops bike ride is always on. Hosted by musician, graphic designer and cycling enthusiast Broox Pulford, the weekly cruise for fixies is open to anyone interested in a fun, all-levels group ride. Loops meets up at Crema Coffee House every Tuesday night around 7 p.m. before taking off on a pre-determined route of streets and paths picked by Pulford. And rain, sleet or snow won't stop this party, as the focus is on getting to know the city in any kind of climate. Costumes are not required, and road safety rules definitely apply for any Loops participant — but breaks are encouraged for riders to get acquainted with each other and for comfort on longer rides.

Best Rapid

Deshorn Brown

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.

Best Rockie

Carlos Gonzalez

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.

Best Roller Derby Name

Fiona Grapple

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.

Best Roller Derby Skater

Sandrine "Francey Pants" Rangeon

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.

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