Opinion Columns - The Journal

Let’s Make America Gracious Again

I don’t know what a great America looks like, but I do know what a gracious America does. It’s neighbors, family and friends working together to create a better world for ourselves, each oth...

Left will blame liberty for Kirk killing

When it's eventually revealed that Charlie Kirk's assassin was a trans activist, as I suspect it will, the left will use the event to attack the Constitution. Of course, the Second Amendment...

DATE: Oct 1, 2025 | CATEGORY: Letters to the Editor

Our view: Healthy school meals for all

Fully fund student breakfasts and lunches

DATE: Oct 1, 2025 | CATEGORY: Editorials

Editorial cartoon

DATE: Sep 30, 2025 | CATEGORY: Editorial Cartoons

Our obligation to seek the truth

The writer of a recent letter (Journal, Aug. 20) opined: “It is important for Trump followers to understand that he is lying to you.” She listed various subjects about which Trump has allege...

DATE: Sep 26, 2025 | CATEGORY: Letters to the Editor

Why voters should pay attention and vote in school board elections

In November, voters living in the Cortez RE-1 and Mancos RE-6 school districts will vote to fill seats on their local school boards. Though congressional and presidential candidates get a lo...

DATE: Sep 26, 2025 | CATEGORY: Opinion

Our view: Free speech

Let’s follow Hurd’s and Kirk’s lead: The proper response to reprehensible speech is more speech

DATE: Sep 24, 2025 | CATEGORY: Editorials

Public servants owe constituents their attention

Rep. Jeff Hurd should take a lesson from Montezuma County Commissioner Jim Candeleria. Mr. Hurd canceled a meeting with the county commissioners Aug. 27 when an aide had a medical emergency....

DATE: Sep 24, 2025 | CATEGORY: Letters to the Editor

The U.S. Peace Corps at 64

Sept. 22 marks a major milestone in the history of the United States Peace Corps. On this day in 1961, President John F. Kennedy signed into law the original Peace Corps Act, which formally ...

DATE: Sep 21, 2025 | CATEGORY: Letters to the Editor

A budgetary crisis: What happened during the Special Session

Last week was a difficult week for Colorado – and for our country. The ache of gun violence is persistent nationally, and another school has been impacted by this inexplicable harm. Amid the...

DATE: Sep 21, 2025 | CATEGORY: Opinion

Why your Montezuma County property taxes are higher in 2025

The Montezuma County Assessor’s Office has seen an increase in property owners asking about higher property valuations. If your property’s assessed value went up since 2023, you’re not alone...

DATE: Sep 19, 2025 | CATEGORY: Opinion

Our view: This land is our land

Just months after Americans from all walks of life resoundingly rejected the notion of selling off our public lands, some in Congress are at it again. This time, however, the threat is more ...

DATE: Sep 17, 2025 | CATEGORY: Opinion

Update: Street racing crash injures two in Farmington; police release videoCar flees scene of arrest, hits vehicle at grocery storeFARMINGTON – An alleged late-night street race ended in a fiery crash Friday night that injured two men and led to criminal charges, underscoring long-standing concerns by Farmington police about illegal racing and reckless driving.According to a news release Saturday from police spokesperson Shanice Gonzales, a police officer spotted two cars racing on 20th Street near Knudsen Avenue about 11:40 p.m. When the officer tried to stop the vehicles, the driver of a white passenger car sped away. It then collided with a vehicle in front of a Smith’s grocery store, veered off the road, hit a parked car and caught fire.

The car’s driver, a 27-year-old man, and his 20-year-old passenger, were injured and taken to San Juan Regional Medical Center, Gonzales said. There was no immediate word about the condition of the vehicle hit near Smith’s grocery store.The second car, a red Toyota Supra, stopped at the scene. Its driver, 22-year-old Kalynn Kenworthy, was arrested and charged with racing on highways.Kenworthy has an extensive history of traffic offenses, Gonzales said. Kenworthy was cited with racing in August 2025 and in 2023, and has received more than seven speeding tickets in the past four years – each for driving more than 15 mph over the limit. Additional charges are pending against the driver of the white car, whose name was not released.

The Police Department on Oct. released video of the crash, it was “being provided to highlight the dangers of reckless and illegal driving that put lives at risk in our community.”Street racing has long been a concern in Farmington.Police Chief Steve Hebbe has called the activity “kind of in the fabric of Farmington” and a “20-year problem.” At a community meeting in 2023, Hebbe said he didn’t expect to stop street racing entirely, but planned to “subdue it.”“We’re never going to stop crashes, but we can reduce the seriousness of those crashes by reducing the speeds,” Hebbe said in a February 2025 interview with the Tri-City Record.

Crackdown in 2023 yields 83 citationsFarmington police have stepped up enforcement to combat illegal street racing and other dangerous driving. Over two weekends in September 2023, officers issued 83 citations and made seven arrests as part of a targeted crackdown, according to a department news release.The operation began Sept. 15-16, with officers patrolling known racing hot spots. That weekend, police issued 41 citations. During the second weekend, Sept. 22-23, police issued 42 citations and made four additional arrests, Hebbe said.Those efforts come amid a broader push to improve traffic safety. Farmington police responded to 2,672 crashes in 2024, with 463 people injured and seven killed, according to police in 2025. The department also issued 4,725 speeding citations and made 589 drunken-driving arrests last year.“Street racing is dangerous, illegal, and puts lives at risk,” the department said Saturday in its news release, urging anyone who witnesses reckless or suspicious driving to report it immediately to authorities.Tri-City Record staff Debra Mayeux and Trent Stephens contributed to this article.

Car flees scene of arrest, hits vehicle at grocery store

Catskills Mountains’ Caswyn Moon and Faith Kelly to perform in DoloresThe pair are on the road for their 10th tourCaswyn Moon and Faith Kelly, a high-energy duo blending American rock, old country, spacey folk and Appalachian influences, will perform at the Dolores River Brewery at 6 p.m. on Oct. 28. The show marks their debut in Southwest Colorado.The performance is part of their 10th national tour.They booked the Dolores show after reaching out to venues along their route.“It'll be our first time ever in Southwest Colorado and we're really excited to check it out,” Kelly told The Journal. “We play to anyone, anywhere and we love checking out the nooks and crannies of the country and enjoying the smaller towns. When we were booking this tour we had to connect Minot, North Dakota to Bisbee, Arizona, so I reached out to a bunch of places in between and Dolores got back to us first.”Moon and Kelly met four years ago at an open mic in the Catskill Mountains in New York, where their shared passion for music sparked an immediate connection.

“It’s a pretty wild ride. We're two solo musicians who play original music,” Kelly said. “Caswyn usually starts off the night with his American rock music with old country undertones, then he steps away and I play my spacey folk rock ’n’ roll with Appalachian mountain twists. There are washboard and kazoo occurrences with the sounds of our guitars and my Moog Sub 37. Folks may witness dancing, kicking and moments of loud howls and deep singing.”Both musicians incorporate kazoos into their set, which Kelly said they offer at their merchandise table for free or a $3 donation.When not touring, they host open mics and perform at festivals and community events.“I just hope to encourage folks to go check out their local music scenes wherever they are,” Kelly said. “I believe open mics save lives and if you got a song in your soul, go sing it.”They also document their adventures on their YouTube channel, “Couple of Wanderers,” where they post daily tour vlogs highlighting life on the road, local music scenes and small businesses. Kelly has also recently released new music videos on her Faith Kelly Art YouTube channel.For more information, contact the brewery at (970) 882-4677 or visit www.doloresriverbrewery.com.

The pair are on the road for their 10th tour

Bears, Panthers volleyball primed for homecoming weekThe Dolores High School volleyball team is in the midst of one of the best seasons in program history. The Bears (11-1, 6-1 2A/1A SJBL) will host Mancos (7-7, 4-2 SJBL) on Thursday, Oct. 2, in one of the headlining events of homecoming week.Montezuma-Cortez (9-7, 1-3 3A IML), meanwhile, has earned its highest win total since 2021. Their large senior class hopes to continue a memorable season with a home match against Monument Valley (Utah) on Friday night in The Jungle.

The Dolores High School volleyball team is in the midst of one of the best seasons in program histor...

Durango named as host city for 2030 UCI Mountain Bike World Championships800 athletes from 55 nations expected to compete at Purgatory Resort

After more than a year of work behind the scenes, it’s official: The mountain bike world championships are coming back to Durango. The Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI), the cycling world’s governing body, announced on Thursday in Rwanda at the UCI Congress that Durango will host the 2030 UCI Mountain Bike World Championships. The 2030 world championships will mark the 40th anniversary of Durango hosting the first UCI Mountain Bike World Championships in 1990.

“It’s fantastic,” said bid architect and local organizing committee member Gaige Sippy. “… Now, you roll up your sleeves and you start the real work. It’s been a little bit of a dress rehearsal, to some extent.” “It did go by kind of fast that year and a half in some ways. “Now we’re into the meat of the of the program, if you will, and we need to start executing,” he said. “It's almost a relief because there’s a lot of what ifs all along the way. Now … let’s start designing this, working on fundraising and all of the steps it takes to be successful.”Eight hundred mountain bikers from 55 countries will come to Durango to compete at Purgatory Resort in cross-country Olympic team relays, cross-country Olympic junior races, cross-country Olympic U23 races, cross-country Olympic elite races, downhill junior and elite races, and E mountain bike races.Durango is expected to host a 2029 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup event as part of the responsibility of hosting the world championships. Sippy said there’s a good chance Durango will also host a 2028 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup event.The city of Durango has earmarked $200,000 in tourism money for the world championships; the UCI requires an applicant to host the world championships to put up a security amount of $188,000 to be held by the UCI until the world championships.While $200,000 is a lot of money, it’ll pay off with the economic impact the event will have on Durango. City Prosperity Officer Mike French said in a previous Durango Herald article that the 2022 UCI Cyclocross World Champs in Fayetteville, Arkansas, had a direct economic impact of just under $10 million and generated $1 million in tax revenues. More recently, the 2024 UCI BMX World Championships event in Rock Hill, South Carolina, had a $30 million direct economic impact and generated $2.6 million in tax revenues, he said.“This is a momentous occasion for our community,” Durango Mayor Gilda Yazzie said in a news release. “The city is honored to be chosen by the UCI to host this historic anniversary year, and we are thrilled to partner with Durango Cycling Championships and Purgatory Resort.”To celebrate the announcement, the city of Durango is hosting the Ride with the Champions bike parade on Friday. Durango’s champions Sepp Kuss, Todd Wells, Riley Amos, Bailey Cioppa, Leah Morozowhich, Zoey Waage, Cooper Wells and others will be leading the parade that starts at 5:30 p.m. next to Buckley Park.While it’s a relief for the anticipation and finger-crossing to be over, Sippy’s confidence level in Durango’s chances of hosting has been high for a while. The main reason is the UCI first expressed interest in Durango hosting the 2030 world championships. The UCI reached out to USA Cycling President Brendan Quirk about Durango hosting. Quirk reached out to Christopher Blevins and Blevins reached out to Sippy.Quirk then came to Durango to discuss the requirements and start the work on the bid in June 2024. Sippy then met with the mayor and city staff members to flesh out what it would look like to host the world championships.Sippy led the way as Durango proceeded with the bid process and the bid was sent off in January.The UCI then reviewed the bid for 60 days, and if it liked what it saw, it would send a contract. The UCI sent a contract in May. Sippy and the UCI went back and forth for about two months editing the contract of what the world championships would look like if Durango was selected. Sippy signed the sixth and final version of the contract before it was confirmed on Tuesday that Durango would be the host city.Since Sippy signed the final version of the contract, he went to Switzerland at the end of August and early in September to witness the 2025 UCI Mountain Bike World Championships. It was an opportunity for him to meet all the people with the UCI in Switzerland he has been e-mailing for the past year. . He got to chat with them about the next steps after the announcement was made public. Sippy also talked with different members of the UCI business model that are in charge of executing the world championships on the ground. While Sippy was on the ground in Switzerland, he got to look at how the 2025 UCI Mountain Bike World Championships were laid out. Although he has been involved with running cycling races for a lot of his life (he was the director of the Iron Horse Bicycle Classic for over a decade), Sippy got a lot of ideas for how Durango should set up the world championships. “The venue at Purgatory will be easier to manage than what they had in Switzerland,” he said. Events were too spread out in Switzerland, he said.“We have the opportunity to tighten it up on our end and have a little more of a smaller footprint that'll be better for spectators,” Sippy said.“They had things so spread out over there that even in the small town that they did the cross country in, they had it spread out so there was pits here and there was pits there and there was tech zone here. Nothing was together. So we have the opportunity to tighten it up on our end and have a little more of smaller footprint that'll be better for spectators.”He saw firsthand how big cycling is in Europe. He enjoyed seeing the amount of spectators there was at the world championships and how the fans were managed in Switzerland with all the television screens and the fan zones.In the last few weeks, Sippy and the local organizing committee have been talking to television production crews and vetting them to see what company will be the best fit. He also knows the technology with broadcasting events is changing so fast that the capabilities of these companies will be drastically different even in 2028 when the first international event comes to Durango.There’s also a large fundraising component to hosting the event, with Sippy and the local organizing committee working on raising money from grants, donations and long-term partnerships. The courses for the world championships at Purgatory will also need to be built or repurposed. The plan is to repurpose the 2001 World Cup downhill course at Purgatory and build new cross-country Olympic and cross-country short track courses.

From 2028 to 2030, Durango should have a lot of mountain bikers competing at a world-class level. Christopher Blevins will be in his early 30s and should still be competing at a high level in cross-country mountain bike. Asa Vermette will be in his early 20s and should be one of the top men’s elite downhill riders. Riley Amos and Savilia Blunk should be in the prime of their careers in the elite cross-country categories. Riders like Bailey Cioppa, Ivan Sippy, Lauren Aggeler and others should also have the chance to represent Durango on the world stage.

Sippy said having the 2030 world championships in Durango gives the next generation of professional bikers something to work toward – not just his son, Ivan, but all the young racers. “It has been a lot of the reason I have been so motivated to get this year (2030) and not just because of my son (Ivan),” Sippy said. “But because I was an original Durango Devo board member, way back when this whole Devo thing came together. “I’m such a firm believer in how good sport can be for kids,” Sippy said. “... We have a town that’s into cycling. Todd (Wells) and I ... hope this inspires these up-and-comers and the kids that are right behind that.”bkelly@durangoherald.com

800 athletes from 55 nations expected to compete at Purgatory Resort

Photos: Four Corners Motorcycle RallyLots of motorcycles and tattoos were on display on Saturday

Lots of motorcycles and tattoos were on display on Saturday

Crews reinforce lines as hot, dry weather threatens to feed Stoner Mesa Fire‘Rolling debris may cause uphill runs, torching, and spotting’Firefighters battling the Stoner Mesa Fire northeast of Dolores on Sunday reported steady progress on building containment lines, even as hot, dry weather promises to drive fire activity this week.The lightning-caused wildfire, which ignited July 28, has burned 8,369 acres and remains 0% contained as of Sunday morning, according to Rocky Mountain Complex Incident Management Team 1.The change in weather, following a cooldown with rain Friday and Saturday, is expected to intensify fire behavior, as grass and brush becomes increasingly flammable and likely to spread in the rough and sometimes steep terrain between Stoner and Taylor mesas.Structure protection teams continued to assess homes and energy infrastructure along the Colorado Highway 145 corridor, the team update said. More than 570 personnel have been assigned to the fire, and officials said efforts are focused on securing the perimeter and preventing the fire from advancing into inaccessible areas.In his morning briefing, Operations Section Chief Matt Weakland again asked drivers in the Colorado Highway 145 and Road 38 corridor to be cautious.“We have a lot of work going on in the Highway 145 and the County Road 38 areas. ... Please slow down and take some extra precaution just because we do have so many folks out in those areas working to prep and catalog all of those structures that we have out along those roads.”

Crews extend fire linesIn Division A, on the northwestern side of the fire, crews have established fire lines from the edge of Division X to West Twin Springs Trail, with only a small segment of indirect line remaining, the news release said.Firefighters are mopping up burned areas, strengthening fire lines and, where conditions allow, conducting small burns to reduce unburned fuels near the fire’s perimeter. Other crews were trying to contain two spot fires east of West Twin Springs Trail.Elsewhere, southern containment lines are largely complete in Division T, and crews were reopening historic roads to access and mop up hot spots near the canyon rim. In Division X, dozer lines and trail improvements are being extended toward Aspen Reservoir. Additional resources were reportedly on the way.Heavy equipment was also active in Division W, where mechanized tree fellers and masticators were clearing and shredding timber and vegetation to improve fire lines along the Road 201.In the far northeast corner, crews continue to scout the remote Division E for a plan of attack“We'll be gathering some more information to put together a good solid plan for Division Echo,” Weakland said. “One thing to note,” he said, “at the the far (eastern) end of the fire, we were able to get some additional old roadways opened up with a dozer so that we can put engines and crews out on this end of the fire to try to hold that right where it is on from any southward movement.”

‘Rolling debris may cause uphill runs, torching, and spotting’

Crews battle to contain Stoner Mesa Fire, work to protect high value areas‘Fully staffed division’ puts in fire line along mesa to protect County Road 38Firefighters are pushing to build containment lines in the Stoner Mesa Fire northeast of Dolores, taking advantage of a cool night with rainfall to improve fire lines and further implement the containment strategy.The fire, which has scorched more than 7,390 acres since it was ignited July 28, remained 0% contained Saturday morning, according to a news release from the Rocky Mountain Complex Incident Management Team 1. The team noted that because of poor flight conditions, no new infrared data was available to update the fire’s size. More than 530 personnel are working the fire, which is burning in rugged terrain and threatening homes, grazing lands, timber sales and key transportation routes including Colorado Highway 145 and County Road 38.“Firefighters continue to work toward full suppression of the fire, keeping firefighter safety and the public’s safety as a top priority,” the incident team said Saturday in a news release.According to operations section chief Matt Weakland, however, said in his morning update that the rainfall has brought new challenges for crews.

“Last night we received some moisture on the fire and more rain is expected today,” he said. “While that is a really good for moderating fire behavior, it does present some unique challenges to firefighters out on the ground. It can cause roads and dozer lines that we've been driving to become slick and impassible and it also can cause problems for firefighters … in those steep areas – makes it inaccessible due to slick conditions.”Infrared flights used to map the fire’s perimeter were grounded for two nights because of poor weather. Officials plan to use unmanned aerial systems and state Mission Aircraft to gather data this weekend.Impact on local communitiesResidents along Highway 145 and County Road 38 are being urged to drive cautiously due to heavy fire traffic. The fire team, led by Cmdr. Justin Conrad, has reported several close calls with drivers passing on double yellow lines and exceeding speed limits, the news release said.Officials also reminded the public that wildfires are a no-fly zone for unauthorized aircraft, including drones. “If you fly, we can’t,” the team warned. Flight crews were airborne Saturday morning. Structure protection teams are assessing homes and preparing for a possible defense. Structure Group 145 is identifying water tender fill sites and evaluating equipment needs. Structure Group 38 has completed assessments on the fire side of the footprint from Dunton to Colorado 145 and is working north to assess properties on the opposite side.The San Juan National Forest has announced emergency closures in areas affected by the fire. Stage 2 fire restrictions remain in place across the region.

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