Colorado Breweries Team Up to Ride Bikes, Drink Pints

The Seventh Annual BoulDurango Bike Ride is on today, featuring many of the top craft brewers in Colorado. Check out the full press release below for all the details:

Boulder, Colo. (July 14, 2016) — Craft brewery owners and employees from Avery Brewing Company​, Ska Brewing, Boulder Beer, Epic Brewing, Great Divide Brewing, and Left Hand Brewing are banding together for the annual BoulDurango bike tour. Joining them will also be Steve Kurowski, Marketing Director of the Colorado Brewers Guild. The riders will be cycling 436 miles from Durango to Boulder, stopping for beers (and occasionally food and rest!) at breweries and pubs along the way. 

The ride began in 2009 when Adam Avery called up Dave Thibodeau with the crazy idea of riding bikes from his brewery in Boulder to Ska's brewery in Durango, Colorado. Why? To encourage the spirit of collaboration, camaraderie, and giving back that the craft beer world embodies.

"As busy as we all are, I think it’s good to get out in the Colorado hills with some of the state’s brewing pioneers and share a few ideas and more than a few beers,” said Avery Brewing Founder Adam Avery. “Collectively, we have hundreds of years of brewing experience among us, so good ideas are bound to take root at some point before delirium takes over toward the end of the week." 

The ride takes place over a period of six days and goes through some of Colorado’s steepest and most grueling road terrain, with a total elevation gain of 9,473 meters. Folks can dive into the route via bit.ly/BoulDurango16 to view the elevation gain and average grade of each segment.

"It definitely doesn't suck that my work week will consist of riding bikes with my craft beer cronies, drinking beer and getting to know other Colorado communities, all in the name of charity. This ride continues to be the most ingenious idea that Avery has ever had!" said Ska Brewing Co-Founder Dave Thibodeau. 

This will be the first BoulDurango Ride for two of Avery’s brewers. “I started training just so I wouldn’t be last, but now I think I can crush this thing! I’ve been drinking El Gose for electrolytes, Modus Mandarina for vitamins, and Joe’s Pils to stay hydrated,” said Avery Special Projects Brewer Leigh Audin. “I expect this week to be very different from my normal work week: shorter days, but more sweaty and less covered in beer…maybe.”

“I’m doing it because of the camaraderie. When a piece of our equipment goes down, we call our friends at other craft breweries,” said Avery Process Analyst Dan Strevey. “That’s why I work in craft beer. There just aren’t a lot of industries like that.”

The community is invited to keep tabs on the riders via #BoulDurango, and to meet up with the riders for a beer or three at their end-of-day watering holes:

7/18 morning: Ska Brewing, Durango
7/18 evening: Montanya Distillers Tasting Room, Silverton
7/19: Colorado Boy Pizzeria & Brewery, Montrose
7/20: Brick Oven Pizzeria & Pub, Crested Butte
7/21: Eddyline Brewery, Buena Vista
7/22: Breckenridge Brewery, Breckenridge
7/23: Avery Brewing, Boulder

"From day one, this ride has been about craft brewery unity, bike culture, and an overwhelming belief that suffering together will make us all stronger," said Dustin LeMoine, Avery Brewing National Sales & Marketing Director. Now in its seventh year, it is clear that the Tour de BoulDurango does just that.

Historically, the Tour de BoulDurango began in Boulder and ended with a party at Ska Brewing in Durango. This year, for the first time ever, the peloton is reversing the flow and ending with a party at Avery where riders, cycling enthusiasts, and craft beer supporters will celebrate with revelry and beers from all the participating breweries!

What: BoulDurango Finish Line Fest
​​
When: July 23, 2016, 2-6pm
Where: Avery Brewing Company, 4910 Nautilus Ct.
 N​, Boulder, CO 80301
Cost: Free entry​, ​
$5 for a custom glass and a beer
Benefiting: Cyclists 4 Community, a non-profit organization dedicated to gathering resources to help local communities in need.

For updates on the ride, follow #BoulDurango on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.