These were the most viewed articles about Grand County on SkyHiNews.com each month in 2024, according to Google Analytics.

January

Provocative car content creators WhistlinDiesel inspired to rebuild ‘Killdozer’ for 20th anniversary

On Jan. 11, the WhistlinDiesel content-creation crew paid a visit to Granby, a town the Tennessee-based group knew from their childhood because of Marvin Heemeyer.

The WhistlinDiesel YouTube channel, which had over 6.8 million subscribers as of January 2024, features the team taking vehicles to their limits in order to test durability, typically destroying them in the process.

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For years, the WhistlinDiesel team had been searching for the same bulldozer Heemeyer had used to attack the town in 2004: a Komatsu D355A.

The team found a Komatsu D355 in Montana for $100,000. The old bulldozer was loaded onto a trailer to be transported back to Tennessee, but not before the team took a detour to drive it through Granby and ask locals about the 20-year-old attack.

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— Emily Gutierrez

February

Parks and Wildlife confirms animal prints in Granby do not belong to collared wolves

A Sky-Hi News reader was running his dogs in Granby at about 5 a.m. Jan. 26, when he said he came across two dark figures in the distance. The two figures ran away quickly but left behind paw prints that he photographed, suspecting they belonged to wolves.

A Colorado Parks and Wildlife spokesperson said no collared wolves were in the Granby area at the time of the incident, adding that identifying an animal from photographed tracks isn’t possible. The spokesperson suggested the tracks could have been from coyotes or mountain lions.

Residents often reported suspected wolf or track sightings following the reintroduction of the species in Grand County in December 2023.

— Emily Gutierrez

March

Plow operator stops car being pursued by law enforcement on Berthoud Pass

A traffic pursuit ended on Berthoud Pass on March 14 after a Colorado Department of Transportation plow operator maneuvered in front of the fleeing vehicle to shield other traffic from a potential collision.

Authorities say the driver of a Jeep Cherokee initially fled when a sergeant with Grand County Sheriff’s Office attempted to stop him after he drove past a safety closure on U.S Highway 40 near the Mary Jane entrance to Winter Park Resort.

The snowplow and Jeep collided about 5 miles east of the summit of Berthoud Pass. The plow sustained some damage while the Jeep was totaled. No injuries were reported.

— Emily Gutierrez

April

21-year-old skier dies on Berthoud Pass after failed ski jump

A 21-year-old male skier was involved in a skiing accident that resulted in his death April 9 on Berthoud Pass, according to a news release from the Grand County Sheriff’s Office.

A bystander initiated CPR, but when emergency responders arrived, they determined the man was dead.

According to an investigation, the man was attempting to perform a high-risk ski jump that involved him clearing the width of U.S. Highway 40, but he lacked the necessary speed and landed on the road. He was wearing a helmet and other protective gear.

The man was later identified as Dallas LeBeau.

— Emily Gutierrez

May

Skiers can continue to learn from Winter Park Resort coach who died jumping Berthoud Pass

Dallas LeBeau, who died after attempting to jump across U.S. Highway 40 on Berthoud Pass in April, had been working toward completing the jump for over a month before the incident, according to his mom Valerie LeBeau. He had plans to submit a video of him completing the jump to GoPro’s Line of the Year contest.

Dallas grew up in Gilpin County but had many connections to Grand County. He even became a part-time big mountain coach at the Winter Park Competition Center. The big mountain program trains athletes in technical skiing on groomers, back bowls, bumps and eventually air awareness and tricks, according to head coach Kayla Riker.

“He was a godsend for the program as we needed someone with his ability and passion for big mountain skiing,” Riker said.

A memorial fund, in collaboration with Friends of Berthoud Pass, aims to teach backcountry safety to youths.

— Emily Gutierrez

June

Colorado Parks and Wildlife Commission adopts policy for big game season structure, including changes to over-the-counter licenses

The Colorado Parks and Wildlife Commission held a public meeting in Winter Park on June 12 regarding the 2025 to 2029 big game season structure and passed policies for resident and nonresident hunters. These policies are for annual hunting licenses for deer, elk, pronghorn, moose and black bear.

The most notable policy commissioners voted on was to limit current over-the-counter archery licenses for nonresidents while keeping them available for residents.

— Meg Soyars Van Hauen

July

Hikers record plane nearly crashing into Continental Divide in Colorado on Fourth of July

On July 4, while hiking to Devil’s Thumb, father and son Jason and Tyler Dunn saw a plane that appeared to almost crash into the ground.

The video shows the plane diving incredibly close to the ground in a valley between sloping mountains.

“We could easily see that he wasn’t high enough to clear the top, and that he was beginning to stall,” Tyler Dunn said about the plane. “Right before he hit the shelf, he stalled and nose dived. We all thought he was going to hit the ground.”

The Federal Aviation Administration later launched an investigation into the incident.

— Emily Gutierrez

August

Child breaks both legs after falling off Granby’s new climbing wall; mother asks for more safety precautions

During the public comment period at the Granby Board of Trustees meeting Aug. 13, Julie Broady spoke with her daughter, Hayden, by her side in a wheelchair. According to Broady, Hayden was climbing the bouldering wall in Polhamus Park when she grabbed a handhold that wasn’t secure and fell, causing her to break both fibulae and an ankle July 19.

Broady expressed frustration about trying to find out who would be responsible for the situation and claimed that there are not enough safety precautions on the climbing wall.

— Emily Gutierrez

September

Parks and Wildlife shares additional photos of dog attacked by mountain lion

A dog in Parshall was attacked by a mountain lion Aug. 19 after its owners let it outside for a morning bathroom break. After hearing a yelp, the owners ran outside and saw the aftermath of the encounter, including a mountain lion running off, leaving behind paw prints in the dirt.

The dog sustained injuries to its head and body, and was immediately taken to the vet by its owners.

Colorado Parks and Wildlife recommends the following to help minimize pet-wildlife conflicts:

• Always supervise pets when outside, especially at dawn or dusk
• Never leave pets or pet food outside
• Never leave dogs or cats unattended outside after dark

— Emily Gutierrez

October

Applications open for Habitat for Humanity homes

Real estate prices remain daunting for those with dreams of owning their own home, but Habitat for Humanity Grand County offers some relief. The organization is constructing single-family homes in a neighborhood along Nevava Street with budget-friendly mortgages.

Homes are sold at market value, but monthly mortgage payments are capped at no more than 30% of the household’s gross monthly income. In 2024, foundations for two new homes have been put in the ground, awaiting future owners.

— Meg Soyars Van Hauen

November

Local outfitter speaks out against Proposition 127

Paul “Ozzie” Martin has owned an outfitting business in Grand County for almost 30 years. Martin guides hunters on the search for mountain lions. But if Proposition 127 — the ban against mountain lion, bobcat and lynx hunting — passes, Martin’s livelihood will become illegal.

According to Martin, some proponents of Proposition 127 portray hunters in a damaging light.

“All this stuff that they show on TV is — I don’t even know how to describe it,” he told Sky-Hi News. “When I see it on TV, it just makes me sick the way they portray a hunter as this murdering beast out there.”

Proposition 127 later failed at the ballot box.

— Meg Soyars Van Hauen

December

Winter Park Resort gondola malfunction prompts evacuation

On Dec. 21, Winter Park Resort’s gondola malfunctioned, leading to riders being evacuated by ski patrol.

Visitors at the resort were quick to share photos of a crack on a tower component near the resort base, and Winter Park Resort spokesperson Jen Miller confirmed that the crack is the source of the gondola malfunction.

Winter Park ski patrollers evacuated people stuck on the lift via a rope system that was attached to each gondola cabin.

The gondola was repaired and reopened two days later.

— Emily Gutierrez