5280 Magazine

Founded in 1993, 5280 is the largest local magazine in Colorado. The magazine's stories often make national headlines, and since 2005 5280 has been nominated for four National Magazine Awards. Get 5280 Magazine digital subscription today.

5280 Magazine

The Friends We Keep

MICHELLE JOHNSON

A Shot At Glory

Our Bad • This magazine prides itself on covering the most interesting happenings in Colorado. With that said, nobody’s perfect. Below, you’ll find seven cultural phenomena we failed to mention in our pages this year. The good news? You can still see, listen to, or read each one.

Book Smart

Death Defying • While most of Himali’s garments are made for the high country, the Boulder-based mountaineering brand’s 8000 Meter Down Suit is built to operate on an entirely different level. Literally. The company’s American and Nepalese Sherpa co-owners used their decades of climbing and guiding experience to design their ideal outfit for navigating the world’s tallest mountains. Here’s what makes their suit’s latest iteration ($2,000) perfect for the Death Zone—the region above 26,000 feet where there’s little available oxygen and the weather wants to kill you.

FAMLI Matters • In January, roughly 2.69 million Colorado workers will finally have access to three months of time off for childbirth, sick leave, and other difficult life events—with compensation. Voters passed the Paid Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI) Act in November 2020, and for the past year, companies and employees have been paying into the program. Now that FAMLI’s coffers are full, folks can start applying for benefits next month. But before you do, here are five key points to keep in mind.

Room For Squares

Beyond The Bistro • A little more than a year into his tenure, Le Bilboquet’s executive chef, Sosthène Kaboré, is mixing up French fare with global influences.

Adventures In Dining • Tu’s Kitchen, a Broomfield eatery from the former owner of Boulder’s iconic Chez Thuy, brings bold flavors to the ’burbs.

SHELL YEAH! • You don’t have to travel to Ho Chi Minh City to devour Vietnamese-inspired preparations of fresh- and saltwater dwellers. Try them at these local spots instead.

The Business Of Joy • Finding renewed purpose on the cross-country ski trails of western Colorado’s Grand Mesa.

BEST OF THE MOUNTAIN WEST • FROM A DESERT-DWELLING SAKE BREWER IN ARIZONA TO AN INDEPENDENCE-LOVING MICRONATION IN NEVADA TO A PURPOSE-DRIVEN PIZZA PLACE IN NEW MEXICO, HERE ARE THE PEOPLE, PLACES, AND THINGS THAT MAKE LIVING IN OUR REGION SO SWEET.

SOME Friendly Advice • Whether it’s your BFF or a fellow passenger on your RTD bus whose conversation makes the commute go by a little faster, friends make life better. (That’s not just Hallmark talking; Harvard agrees.) Despite the benefits, however, Coloradans are among the loneliest people in the country. It’s time we changed that.

The Platonic Ideal • We all want great friends. We just don’t know how to find them.

Desperate Measures • After attending college in Knoxville, Tennessee, where I grew up, I was eager to explore the world following graduation. Some might say overeager: I moved to six places over the subsequent 12 years. Forced to start anew half a dozen times, I’ve developed a few infallible techniques for meeting friends should you—like more than half of Coloradans—find yourself living in a strange place, desperate to meet new people. Here’s what I learned in each city.

Pals In A Pod • Both Olympic distance runners, Kara Goucher and Des Linden traveled in the same circles for years but were only acquaintances until this past January, when they launched Nobody Asked Us with Des & Kara, a semimonthly podcast on running. “I’m in my 40s, and she was 39,” says Goucher, who lives in Boulder....