Feeling that CB center of gravity….

In a small town, the center of gravity can and often does change. It can be different for different people at different times. But in a small town, there are many things that can at times define a community’s center of gravity. 

There are instances that the sweet spot of CB’s community spirit rises. It might be the community school. Other times it might be the Center for the Arts. Kochevar’s happy hour sometimes works as do the benches at Third and Elk. A spring party at the end of a day of skiing hits the sweet spot. The skatepark seems to be a center for young and old after school, and during softball season, look to the Tommy V or Gothic Fields at 5:15.

For me this past weekend it was the Depot. I attended two very different events at the Depot: a community high school graduation party on Saturday; and a memorial gathering for a long-time ski patroller on Sunday. Both brought together deep community. There were stories and smiles, tears and remembering along with hopeful optimism and communal breaking of bread and sharing of drinks. 

The weather was Crested Butte perfect, the people the same — a swirling mix of sunshine and clouds, some moments super chill while others provided flashy heat. But all was comfortable at 9,000 feet in the Rockies beneath the Mother Rock.

To see the next generation of Crested Butte kids ready to leave their small village was inspiring. So many are heading out to places away from the confines of what I am sure is a sometimes suffocating place to grow up. Crested Butte can be a place where everyone knows and raises an eyebrow when you cross a low community line, but applauds when you exceed the high community standards. 

I see most kids chomping at the bit to leave and see what’s out there — out there in the “real world.” They should. Honestly, many find their happy place away from this valley, but I also see so many return after realizing that this place where they grew up is unique and unlike the rest of the world. It is a place they can be a bit wilder, a bit more open than the world’s norm. While it is growing and changing and becoming more the norm than it was a few years ago, there is still enough room to be who you are, and you can always escape to the woods if you need to think about who it is that you actually are.

It is a place of accepted characters, and traditions full of character. Green men, black men, men biking in dresses, women hucking cliffs, women guiding the community spirit, maidens, queens, kings, harvest mothers, has-beens and a royal for pretty much every excuse. Yeah, it’s a different place to grow up. They may not understand it yet, but the new graduates have experienced a sweet life in a hard place. CB is a place of spirit, not always easy spirit, but spirit.

To see the last generation of Crested Butte mid-old-timers gather to honor one of their own who crossed to the other side was equally inspiring. The Sunday crowd moved a bit slower than the one on Saturday and there were a few more gray hairs and replaced body parts, but they came from a place of knowledge and wisdom. The dozens and dozens of patrollers and experienced Buttians from the 70s, 80s and beyond at the Depot on Sunday have, I’m sure, skied every square inch of the resort. The patrollers had and have an important job in keeping us safe on the hill — and they had no qualms having a good time doing it. These men and women raised a glass to a former leader in Tim Rolph and reminisced about the looser days with fewer rules (and more fun) when success was simply having a great day on the hill. What’s wrong with that? 

Not all of them still live in the valley. In fact, I’d guess that the Kebler washboard got a little more washboardy as they paraded from the other side of the pass. But they and their spirit are embedded in this changing community. They deferred the 9-to-5 cubicle choice to make a sweet life in a hard place. They chose a place of spirit in a good period of time. 

Then, that icon of empathy, senator Joni Ernst of Iowa last week reminded her constituents that we are all going to die. She is not wrong! For this small community, we lost two spirited souls last week in Victor and Cheyenne. Of two different generations, both gushed Crested Butte spirit. Life, fun, helpfulness, family, love…spirit. Both are a deep loss to the community, and they will not be the last. We all of course, are going to die. And that is part of the point. It’s not the dying part — it’s the living part. Life should be full. It should bring smiles, tears, laughter and empathy. Victor and Cheyenne lived that life. A life well lived is sort of the goal in a place with good spirit. Cheers to them.

Look, this valley has always been a hard place to make a sweet life. Whether it was lack of housing, lack of jobs or lack of rules, CB has rarely been an easy place to live. The same is true today. It makes one make choices. 

While there is certainly more money flowing in this valley, that doesn’t always lead to a better life. Workers are priced out. More people are working harder to just survive here. Food insecurity is real. Commutes are real. Real world expectations are creeping in. It is starting to look more small-city in the mountains than tight village in the valley. Newbies, as always, have to earn their place. Those that think they are “locals” just because they own a house here or got lucky at the Talk, don’t last long. These days, everyone just needs to do a little more to appreciate and hold on to the uniqueness that is Crested Butte. That uniqueness includes a lot of weird — and also a lot of love.

The struggle is finding the balance and sweet spot — and there are people trying to do the things to keep this such a treasure. A couple days at the Depot reinforced again how spirit is still here even if it might be a bit harder to see these days. But both events were full of life and the intention to live a sweet life, one not just focused on market returns. So, will those trying to retain the unique spirit be able to do it? We’ll see. 

In the meantime, breathe deep and keep looking for your community’s center of gravity. Seek out the sweet spots. Share your love. Embrace the CB weird and unique. Most importantly, do what you can to enjoy the ride and help your community— after all, when you think about it — perhaps that is the real secret of any good spirit…

—Mark Reaman