An 8th-grade Colorado Jewish student was called a ‘stupid k***’ while being strangled by a laptop charging cord, in one of many antisemitic assaults by other students described in a Title VI complaint to Boulder Valley Public School District.
Colorado
What’s new in Colorado this summer? Hotels, festivals, a wave park and more
Some people return each year to a favorite spot for summer vacation. But if you are among those wanting to try something new in the Rocky Mountain region, here are some suggestions that will give you reason to brag.
Ride the rails
The Rocky Mountaineer launched its Denver-to-Moab train trip in 2021, with the journey going roundtrip from Union Station downtown. What’s new is that this summer, it’s partnered with the Moab Music Festival, which is in its 31st year. The eight-night musical travel experience is Sept. 3-11, with two nights in Denver, two nights in Glenwood Springs, and four nights in Moab. Guests will get to attend four concerts at the music festival, set in stunning outdoor spaces with perfect natural acoustics. (Note that the entire festival is Aug. 28-Sept. 14, and the acts change each year. For details on the trip, go to rockymountaineer.com, and check out the music lineup at moabmusicfest.org.
Plus, when the train stops in Glenwood Springs, travelers can check out the historic Denver Hotel, which was refurbished and rebranded as Hotel Maxwell Anderson. Stop in to see its new lobby and have a cocktail.
Riding high
You’d be excused if you found yourself in Grand Junction and mistook it for Denver’s RiNo neighborhood because this Western Slope city has gone from a way station for outdoor adventure to a hip destination. The new Hotel Melrose opened in fall 2023, so this is the first summer to stay at this “historically inspired boutique hotel” with chic dark walls and sumptuous furniture. Or, just drop in to get a cocktail at the Melrose Spirit Co. while you amble around downtown.
Grab a bite to eat at Jojo’s Dinette, from the same people who brought you the always popular Tacoparty and Bin 707 Foodbar. Opened in spring 2024, this restaurant is aiming for affordable small bites with a combination desert and Parisian twist.
Ride the waves
For the past 10 or more years, the town of Salida has attracted adventurers with its Scout Wave river surfing at Salida Park. New this summer: Scout River 3.0, a new, improved version of the popular spot.
“The 1.0 didn’t really perform the way it was supposed to, and you couldn’t really surf it,” said Mike “Diesel” Post, Salida’s director of parks and recreation. In 2022, the city invested in version 2.0, which was ideal for 1,200 cfs (cubic feet per second of water flow), but when high water came in 2023, there were problems. “It turned into a hole and flipped some fishing rafts,” Post explained.
For this newest version, “We did a whole bunch of improvements, beefed it up to make sure the wave did not collapse during high water and created a safe fish passage.”
Post estimates that this little river wave draws at least 10,000 people to Salida each year.
More art
Aspen was founded with the idea of blending culture and community, so there has long been a wide variety of choices for music and art. New for summer 2024: The Aspen Art Fair, taking place at the Hotel Jerome with more than 35 galleries filling the historic hotel’s iconic ballroom and beyond. Taking place July 29-Aug. 2 during the established Aspen Art Week, this new fair has a big advantage: It’s free and open to the public. The fair, which was co-founded by Becca Hoffman, founder of 74tharts, will highlight international modern and contemporary art and design.
Not roughing it
In Estes Park, you’ll find two refurbished lodgings that are now Trailborn boutique hotels: Trailborn Rocky Mountains and Trailborn Rocky Mountains Outpost. These properties opened in late 2023, so this is the first summer guests can stay there while exploring Rocky Mountain National Park. Forget about roughing it, and instead experience stylish interiors with complimentary coffee and a soft cooler, among other amenities.
Not just camping
Ramble, a Golden-based company, has found that sweet spot between camping and glamping, and this is its first summer in Mancos, outside of Mesa Verde National Park in southwestern Colorado. Here, campers get to experience nature, not being alongside RVs in a parking lot, and it provides a low-smoke fire pit, seating, cooking accommodations and more.
Outdoor recreation
Outside Magazine is debuting its Outside Festival June 1-2 in downtown Denver’s Civic Center, a collaboration between the Colorado Outdoor Recreation Industry Office and Visit Denver. For a few years, Denver was the host to Outdoor Retailer, a massive trade show for outdoor gear and more, before it moved back to Utah in 2023. This event is an attempt to fill that void with a variation that includes brands sponsoring concerts and giveaways. Attendees can take a walk with athlete Diana Nyad, drop off gently used gear for cash; learn about the future of gear; and much more.
Look up
Head north to Wyoming for the opening of the Snow King Observatory and Planetarium in Jackson on June 1. This is the first observatory located in a North America ski resort. There are daytime and nighttime experiences available; tickets need to be purchased for admittance. Check the calendar for concerts so you can combine this celestial outing with some local music fun.
“We get more summer visitors who come to Grand Teton National Park and Yellowstone National Park, and that demographic is looking to broaden their experience of the outdoors,” said Sidney Roubin, sales manager at Snow King Mountain Resort. “Usually the technology we have in this planetarium and observatory is only found in research centers so it’s exciting that the community and visitors will get this chance.”
Jackson is currently working to become a designated Dark Sky Place, Roubin added, which could further enhance the sky viewing on this mountaintop.
Play cowboy
En route to Jackson, consider a stop in Cheyenne and take advantage of its new Saddle Up Pass, which for $125 lets you play cowboy: learn roping skills and horsemanship at Terry Bison Ranch; get discounts on authentic Western wear at participating local retailers; take a tour of the Cheyenne Street Railway Trolley; and get that souvenir Western photo. The pass is available year-round, and will certainly come in handy during the annual Cheyenne Frontier Days, July 19-28.
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Colorado Buffaloes coach Deion Sanders has an overall record of 16-21 since taking over in Boulder prior to the 2023 season.
Where does Coach Prime rank among Big 12 coaches entering the 2026 college football season?
Deion Sanders No.15 in Big 12 Coach Rankings
On3 ranked all 16 Big 12 head football coaches heading into 2026. Deion Sanders is ranked No.15, only ahead of Kansas State Wildcats coach Collin Klein. This will be Klein’s first year as Wildcats head coach. He is a former Kansas State quarterback was most recently the offensive coordinator for the Texas A&M Aggies.
A top this ranking at No. 1 is BYU Cougars coach Kalani Sitake. Sitake has been at the helm for the Cougars since 2016. He has accumulated an overall record of 84-45. In four of Sitake’s 10 seasons with BYU, he has led them to double digit wins.
Here is the entire ranking:
1. Kalani Sitake, BYU Cougars
2. Kenny Dillingham, Arizona State Wildcats
3. Joey McGuire, Texas Tech Red Raiders
4. Sonny Dykes, TCU Horned Frogs
5. Willie Fritz, Houston Cougars
6. Lance Leipold, Kansas Jayhawks
7. Rich Rodriguez, West Virginia Mountaineers
8. Eric Morris, Oklahoma State Cowboys
9. Brent Brennan, Arizona Wildcats
10. Dave Aranda, Baylor Bears
11. Scott Satterfield, Cincinatti Bearcats
12. Morgan Scalley, Utah Utes
13. Scott Frost, UCF Knights
14. Jimmy Rogers, Iowa State Cyclones
15. Deion Sanders, Colorado Buffaloes
16. Collin Klein, Kansas State Wildcats
Is 15th a fair ranking for Coach Prime?
What stands out right away from this is a first time collegiate head coach is ahead of Sanders, Morgan Scalley. While Sanders’ team struggled in 2025, it would be hard to rank him behind Scalley.
When Sanders was hired, the Buffaloes were coming off a one-win 2022 season. It was a controversial hire, as Sanders’ collegiate coaching experience came at the FCS level with Jackson State. The Coach Prime era in Boulder got off to a great start.
In 2023, Colorado began the season 3-0. It got going with a stunning season opening upset on the road against the defending national runner-up TCU Horned Frogs. The Buffs won their next two games against the Nebraska Cornhuskers and Colorado State Rams to get to 3-0.
They hosted ESPN’s College GameDay for their in-state rivalry game against Colorado State. The country had their eyes on what Sanders had cooking. This undefeated came to a screeching halt with a road loss to Oregon. Colorado ended up losing eight of their final nine games to end with a record of 4-8. While the end was dissapoitning, it was still three more wins than the previous season.
2024 a major turnaround. The Buffs went 9-3 and made the Alamo Bowl. Buffs’ wide receiver/cornerback Travis Hunter won the 2024 Heisman Trophy and quarterback Shedeur Sanders was named 2024 Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year.
2025 was more of what 2023 was. The Buffs went 3-9, missing a bowl game for the second time in three seasons. Will they get back to a bowl in 2026?
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The ADL (the Anti-Defamation League) has filed a federal civil rights complaint with the US Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights, alleging that Jewish Student A was subjected to repeated antisemitic bullying, slurs, and physical assault by multiple fellow students at Southern Hills Middle School (SHMS) throughout 7th and 8th grade.
In one incident, students in Student A’s PE class attempted to play a game called “Jew touch tag” and said Jews were “dirty” and “contaminated.”
In another, in December 2025, a classmate reportedly fashioned a Chromebook charging cord into a lasso, threw it around the student’s neck and dragged him backward from a chair while calling him a “stupid k***.” This was deemed severe enough that the Boulder Police Department was called in to investigate.
Following this particular incident, the Boulder Police Department opened a Juvenile Court Referral for third-degree assault.
ADL says no meaningful action taken by school district over assault
As a result of these incidents, Student A no longer wears a Star of David necklace and does not share his religious identity with anyone.
ADL and the family allege that the school took no meaningful action despite being informed of the situation on multiple occasions. For example, the complaint says the school failed to enforce the no-contact order between Student A and the classmate involved in the Chromebook assault.
The complaint also says that the burden was consistently placed on the victim, such as reassigning his study hall class rather than restricting the aggressor, forcing him to miss a school trip, and asking him to leave class early to avoid crowded hallways.
“The record here is overwhelming: written pleas from the student’s parents, formal school reports, and a police investigation all point to the conclusion that antisemitic harassment at Southern Hills Middle School was pervasive, escalating, and severe,” said James Pasch, ADL Vice President of Litigation.
“Despite the family’s pleas for help to stop the harassment, the school district failed to effectively address it, a clear violation of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act. No family should have to fight this hard to ensure a Jewish child’s safety at school, and certainly no Jewish student should face the threat of assault or harassment because of their Jewish identity.”
Susan Rona, ADL Mountain States Regional Director, noted that 167 antisemitic incidents were recorded in Colorado in 2025, a “stark reminder that antisemitism is not something abstract – it is showing up in our communities, in our neighborhoods and even in our schools.”
ADL is requesting that the US Department of Education require the district to take steps to comply with Title VI and ensure that this student and all Jewish students feel safe and protected.
Boulder Valley School District said that while it does not comment on ongoing legal matters, “we take all allegations of discrimination and harassment seriously.”
“We continue to focus on improvements to our policies, reporting systems, practices, and education efforts – all with the goal of ensuring every BVSD student feels safe, welcomed, and a strong sense of belonging.”
When you walk inside the Conoco station at the corner of University Boulevard and Bonnie Brae Boulevard in Denver, you can’t help but notice the history on the walls.
“Here’s the 40s. The 50s and my dad and uncle in the 70s,” says owner Ken Wilson pointing to the pictures on the wall.
Ken is the third generation of the Wilson family to own the gas station and service center.
“Grandpa Ken started to lease this out in 1942. My dad bought the business from my grandpa and my uncle worked his whole career here for my dad and for me,” Ken recalls.
In all, the Wilson family has owned the Conoco station for more than 80 years.
“I started working here in 1978 when I was 12, just part time in the summers. I worked through high school and through college and then did my own thing, and I’ve been back here about 15 years,” said Ken.
“It means so much to our family. It’s been a great business.”
But Ken is the end of the road for the Wilson family ownership. In February, a for sale sign went up at the Bonnie Brae Conoco.
“We’re just looking now. We’re not in a rush. It’s not like we’re going to sell and be done this year. We’re going to get a price we want to get, and if it takes us years to do that’s okay,” he said.
Wilson has seen a lot of change during his time working at the station and service center.
“There aren’t a lot of garages anymore. They used to be everywhere. There were four of them on this block when I was a kid, he said.
When asked what he’ll miss most, Ken points to his relationship with his customers.
“I’ve had customers now where I actually waited on their grandparents. And then their parents. And now them.”
As for what his grandpa would say if he could see the place now, Ken says, “I think he’d say he was really proud of what we’ve done. Both my father, my uncle and myself. Hopefully he’s still hanging around here once in a while.”
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