Derek Kessinger

Colorado Rockies’ Starting Pitching Is a Purple Haze

A dark cloud engulfed Colorado Rockies fans last summer as the Mile High City met another lost season with resignation. Since 2009’s playoff berth, this sense of defeat is a summer ritual in Denver. Usually, spring training and the Arizona temperatures burn off some of the haze and inject optimism into the club. This year, the trucks carrying the team’s gear have not yet returned from spring training, and already I’m seeing little hope for the 2015 Rockies.

Continue Reading: http://www.5280.com/news/sports/digital/2015/04/colorado-rockies-starting-pitching-purple-haze

Class Is In Session for the Denver Nuggets

Denver Nuggets interim head coach Melvin Hunt is focused on building a lasting foundation for the team—even if he doesn’t end up getting the job. Hunt speaks openly about constructing a singular mindset, creating partnerships with the players and coaches. In his mind, he’s not leading troops into battle—the way some coaches think—but taking on the role of teacher.

Continue Reading: http://www.5280.com/news/sports/digital/2015/04/class-session-denver-nuggets

Paddle Happy

The first rule of pingpong club: There is no pingpong club—because no one calls it that (not serious players, anyway). But there is the Colorado Table Tennis Inter-Club League, a Front Range–based organization that serves its first matches this month. Headed by Denver Table Tennis Alliance founder and instructor Angelo Gandullia, the league (which also encompasses clubs from Fort Collins, Longmont, and Glendale) features one division made up of three-player teams. Get a behind-the-scenes look at the sport in action at 5280.com/tabletennis.

The Evolution of the Colorado Buffs Logo

The University of Colorado Buffaloes are set to kick off another football season with the annual Rocky Mountain Showdown against the Colorado State Rams this Friday, August 29 (7 p.m.). CU players’ helmets will feature an image of a buffalo and gold lettering, a design that replaced its way-too-yellow predecessor in 2005. That’s not the only change the Buffs logo has undergone, though: Click through the slideshow above to see how it’s evolved since the 1940s.

Continue Reading: http://www.5280.com/news/sports/digital/2014/08/evolution-colorado-buffs-logo

15 Minutes With…Colorado Super-Athlete Ben Clark

In 2002, at the age of 23, when most of us are still trying to find our first real job, Ben Clark hit a career high, both literally and figuratively, by becoming the youngest American to summit Mount Everest. He spent the next 10 years pioneering routes in Himalaya. Today Clark lives in Telluride, with his two-year-old son, Charlie, and looks for new challenges, like his next one: Nolan’s 14.

Continue Reading: http://www.5280.com/travelandoutdoors/digital/2014/08/15-minutes-withcolorado-super-athlete-ben-clark

What To Know Before Pedaling Through Denver

It seems there’s no stopping Denver’s evolution into a strong bicycle community and bike-friendly city. With benefits like less-congested roads, cleaner air, and more exercise, we’re not complaining. This summer is the perfect time to commit to pedaling, but here are some things to know first.

Continue Reading: http://www.5280.com/healthandwellness/digital/2014/06/11/what-know-pedaling-through-denver

Colorado Avalanche Playoffs: Widespread Panic

Does playoff hockey come with a warning label for those with heart conditions? After a Game Three overtime loss (the Minnesota Wild’s Mikael Granlund slipped one past the Avs’ goalie), we’re wondering if fans should consult their doctor to see if they’re healthy enough for a Stanley Cup run.

Continue Reading: http://www.5280.com/sports/digital/2014/04/24/colorado-avalanche-playoffs-widespread-panic

Colorado Avalanche Playoffs, “Save By Roy”

If we’d asked you what you would be doing on April 21 before the Colorado Avalanche season started, we doubt that many of you would have responded, “watching the Avs in the NHL playoffs.” Even fewer of you would have predicted that the Avs would be up by two games.

Yet here we are, prepping to cheer during tonight’s Game Three. What made the difference? Colorado Avalanche Broadcaster Mike Haynes may have said it best when he quipped that this was a “Save By Roy.”

Continue Reading: http://www.5280.com/sports/digital/2014/04/21/colorado-avalanche-playoffs-%E2%80%9Csave-roy%E2%80%9D

Athlete to Watch: Madelynn Gorman-Shore

Normally, people don’t get pedicures to destroy them right away, but that’s exactly what 15-year-old Madelynn Gorman-Shore plans to do. The taekwondo athlete asked her pedicurist to paint a stylized white “TRT” on her big toe over a black base color, to honor the Littleton studio where she trains. Gorman-Shore hopes to compete hard enough to scratch the logo off, even if it leaves her toes bloodied and bruised in the process. Just an inch short of six feet, this towering teen is about to compete on the biggest stage of her young career: the Junior World Taekwondo Championships in Chinese Taipei (March 23–26) as a member of Team USA.

Continue Reading: http://www.5280.com/blogs/2014/03/21/athlete-watch-madelynn-gorman-shore

Super Bowl: What to Know If You Haven’t Watched a Broncos Game All Year

Just because you live in Colorado doesn’t mean you know squat about football (or care). But the collective Super Bowl spirit is contagious. If all the excitement has you wanting to jump on the Broncos’ bandwagon, you should probably brush up on the basics before tomorrow’s game. Here, a crash course to expedite you to a Super Bowl XLVIII conversationalist.

Read Full Article: http://www.5280.com/blogs/2014/02/01/super-bowl-what-know-if-you-havent-watched-broncos-game-all-year