Lesh, who will turn forty in June, moved to Colorado in 2005, and since then has become one of the state's most notorious residents. He's caused outrage with stunts that broke federal laws and angered nature lovers. His outdoor apparel company, Virtika, billed as "the best gear on the planet," brands itself with a renegade image that he promoted by trespassing into some of Colorado's most serene spots and flaunting backcountry rules and mores (rules of which this author is now very aware).
Karin Teague, executive director of the Independence Pass Foundation, a conservationist nonprofit, warns that praising and copying Lesh's style puts access to public lands in jeopardy for everyone.
"He's someone, like many of us, who moved here to enjoy everything that Colorado has to enjoy, especially the mountains and public lands," says Teague. "What's a bummer about people who subscribe to David's pushing the limit or even illegal activity is he puts at risk all the users who do follow the rules."
Lesh shares his controversial exploits online. In 2019, he drove a snowmobile on bare ground in a wilderness area in Independence Pass — in front of Teague, no less. She took a picture of him in the act, which got him a $500 fine and fifty hours of public service, but she says that "he seemed to almost thrive on the public attention" after she shared the incident with the press.
He followed that "with a series of public lands violations," she says. "That was a real bummer."
In 2020, at the height of the pandemic, he posted pictures on Instagram showing himself defecating in Hanging Lake at Maroon Bells and of a snowmobiler jumping a drift at Keystone. Both areas were off limits to the public at the time, and the pictures landed him in hot water with federal prosecutors.
In 2021, Lesh pleaded not guilty to federal charges related to the Hanging Lake incident, claiming the photo was fake. Later that year, federal prosecutors dropped the charges.
In 2022, he was convicted in federal court for the snowmobile photo and slapped with six months' probation, 160 hours of community service and a $10,000 fine. In June, he successfully overturned that conviction in the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals by arguing that he wasn't performing any work activity (despite arguments that the photos promoted Virtika, whether intentionally or not) and that it wasn't clear the land was off limits.
Lesh's newest controversy doesn't involve public lands access. The infamous Denver resident is scheduled for a five-day jury trial in Summit County for a March 2023 incident during which he allegedly attacked a snowmobiler after an argument.
In a statement to Westword, Lesh tells people not to believe details of the incident in news reports. "My only real comment would be to caution people against believing everything they see in the news," he says, then adds, "I understand the humor in this being published in the news. I’m confident the truth in the matter will come out next week in trial."
According to an affidavit from the Summit County Sheriff's Office, a man whose name is redacted from the document was invited to join a friend for a snowmobile ride near State Highway 9 and Spring Creek Road. Lesh was part of the group; the two had known each other since 2018 and didn't get along.
"He and David know each other but do not like each other from past instances," the affidavit reads. The man "was not aware David was going to be here today with this group and did not want to snowmobile with David."
Shortly after the snowmobilers took off, they stopped for a moment, and Lesh told them they would have to choose whether to ride with him or the unnamed man. The man "told David that he wasn't the group leader and David then attacked him," according to the affidavit.
The man had a GoPro camera attached to his helmet, which recorded the incident. A deputy who watched the video wrote in the affidavit that Lesh yelled, “I will knock you the fuck out and take your keys and leave you in the backcountry."
The man responded, “No, you won’t,” and Lesh replied, “You wanna bet?” before jumping off his snowmobile. The video shows Lesh charging toward the man, and he appears to push or hit him in the head or face area, according to the deputy.
Lesh punched him, knocked him to the ground and then put him in a chokehold, the man told a sheriff's deputy. He tried to tap out and give Lesh a signal that he couldn't breathe, but Lesh allegedly "clamped down" harder.
Both men went to the ground, and the GoPro appeared to fall off but continued to capture audio. A deputy wrote that he could hear choking, muffled yelling and the man saying, “You’re seriously choking me!" The man also said something that sounded like he challenged Lesh to a fight, the deputy noted.
According to the affidavit, witnesses told deputies that the two stopped fighting for a while before Lesh attacked the man again. In the second fray, Lesh bit the man's thumb and then pushed a finger into his right eye.
"He could feel his eyeball getting pushed into his head and being worried that David was going to poke out his eye," according to the affidavit. "At this time, [the man] grabbed David's hand with both of his hands to pull David's finger out of his eye."
The fight again stopped for a moment, and their issues seemed "settled by the fight," witnesses said. Lesh told the man to find a new group, moving closer as he talked, and the man punched Lesh. The two rolled around on the ground again, and Lesh tried but failed to get the man into a chokehold once more, according to the affidavit.
After the fight finally ended and sheriff's deputies arrived, the man reported that he had trouble swallowing and that his neck pain was at a level 8 on a 1-10 scale. A forensic nurse inspected the man’s injuries and found that the strangulation and eye wound were serious bodily injuries, according to the affidavit.The man responded, “No, you won’t,” and Lesh replied, “You wanna bet?” before jumping off his snowmobile. The video shows Lesh charging toward the man, and he appears to push or hit him in the head or face area, according to the deputy.
Lesh punched him, knocked him to the ground and then put him in a chokehold, the man told a sheriff's deputy. He tried to tap out and give Lesh a signal that he couldn't breathe, but Lesh allegedly "clamped down" harder.
Both men went to the ground, and the GoPro appeared to fall off but continued to capture audio. A deputy wrote that he could hear choking, muffled yelling and the man saying, “You’re seriously choking me!" The man also said something that sounded like he challenged Lesh to a fight, the deputy noted.
David Lesh's April 2020 stunt at the closed Keystone resort landed him in federal court, where a judge slapped him with big fines and probation, but he was able to overturn his conviction in June. Now another snowmobiling incident will bring him back to court and this time threaten him with imprisonment.
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"He could feel his eyeball getting pushed into his head and being worried that David was going to poke out his eye," according to the affidavit. "At this time, [the man] grabbed David's hand with both of his hands to pull David's finger out of his eye."
The fight again stopped for a moment, and their issues seemed "settled by the fight," witnesses said. Lesh told the man to find a new group, moving closer as he talked, and the man punched Lesh. The two rolled around on the ground again, and Lesh tried but failed to get the man into a chokehold once more, according to the affidavit.
The Summit County Sheriff's Office issued an arrest warrant for Lesh in April 2023 for felony and misdemeanor assault charges. A week later, Lesh turned himself in to the Glendale Police Department, which took him into custody without incident, according to the sheriff. Lesh was released on $7,500 bond, and in December, he pleaded not guilty to the felony and misdemeanor assault charges.
The Class 4 felony for assault by strangulation charge that Lesh faces carries between two and five years in prison, a fine between $2,000 and $500,000, and three years of parole, according to the Colorado Department of Human Services.
No matter what the jury decides, the court of public opinion condemned Lesh a while ago. But some would rather have him see the error of his ways than the inside of a jail cell.
"I don't root for jail time for anyone," Teague says. "He has a past that I think a lot of us have a lot of trouble with. We'd love to see him turn a corner on that."
