Crested Butte Devo brings new energy into fold for 2025

“One of my main goals is to reconvey the mission of fun”

By Than Acuff

Crested Butte Devo (CB Devo) continues their efforts to get kids on bikes for the 2025 season and with a new executive director and a new program in place, Intro to Devo, they look to continue building on their solid foundation created over the past 10 years.

Outgoing executive director Amy Nolan got CB Devo going in 2015 and carried the torch to where it is now for the past 10 years.

“My children were 4, 6 and 8 when this party started and now, at 14, 16 and 18, they are all involved as coaches who provide leadership to our younger riders,” says Nolan. “It is super rewarding to see this all come full circle.”

Will Frischkorn was hired as the new executive director for CB Devo on January 1. He and his family moved to Crested Butte two years ago after visiting the area for several years prior and he brings quite a legacy of biking to the CB Devo effort. Frischkorn raced professionally at the highest level of road racing for 10 years, including a second-place finish in a stage of the Tour de France.

“It was a fun chapter in American cycling and I got to race in all of the classics,” says Frischkorn. “I hit a benchmark at 29 and was ready for the next thing and retired while I still loved riding.”

He now looks to share the love of riding with CB Devo and the kids in the community and finds the position as the new executive director as a great opportunity to do that.  

“It’s been really cool stepping in and seeing the level of detail Amy has in place,” says Frischkorn. “Really big shoes to fill. I wanted to dive into the community and find a role in the community that makes a difference.”

“We are excited for Will’s fresh energy, enthusiasm and passion for youth cycling to elevate the impact of CB Devo in our community,” adds Nolan. “His genuine appreciation for our mission will be what leads CB Devo into this next decade, and beyond.”

While Frischkorn does have quite the competitive racing legacy, that is far from the focus of CB Devo. He brings his enthusiasm for biking and wants to develop that among younger kids through the new Intro to Devo program.

“Amy and Randy (Engel) really saw the need and it’s my role to define it and champion it,” says Frischkorn. “One of the main goals is to reconvey the mission of fun.”

Registration for all CB Devo programs opens March 31 and will be open for two weeks. While CB Devo saw exponential growth over the first several years, they plateaued at 200 kids give or take, the past couple of years. Frischkorn and CB Devo are keenly aware that jumping into the CB Devo can be a little intimidating for kids and their parents. They hope to mitigate that with the Intro to Devo program.

“If there’s a kid that wants to ride their bike, we can accommodate them,” says Frischkorn. “We want to get kids started on mountain biking. To do that, we’re lowering the barrier to entry. We’re going to teach you skills, trail etiquette, group etiquette and create good humans and capable bike riders.”

The good news for Frischkorn and CB Devo is that, while they have a new executive director, the remainder of the staff looks to remain in place helping to keep the transition smooth, like a freshly tuned mountain bike.

“We couldn’t do it without our coaches and we’re super lucky to have Adam Olmstead and Brett Alvarez staying on as director of operations and assistant director of operations,” says Frischkorn.

The programs start on June 15 and will continue until August 15 and there are a variety of commitment options with one or two-days a week for the younger riders and two days of riding for the older kids. Each group will have two coaches riding with them and their goal is, and has always been, to start and finish rides right from town. 

“We’re unique from other youth bike programs in that we’re able to take kids out to magic places, riding from town,” says Frischkorn. “We try not to put kids in vans too much.”

Nolan will remain in place to run Junior Bike Week June 25-29, and the high school bike race team will be in place again in the fall as CB Devo continues building to the future.

 “I believe with all of my heart that riding bikes makes the world a better place,” says Nolan. “This organization was founded on the fundamental cornerstone to develop better people first, better riders second. I look forward to being involved in CB Devo in the future, just at a slower cadence.”  

“Riding a bike or skiing can be whole life sports,” adds Frischkorn. “And if you get the passion for it as a kid, you’ve got the skills for life.”

Information and registration can be found at crestedbuttedevo.com.