The Fourth of July is a day to salute our country and enjoy spectacular red-white-and blue fun in beautiful Gunnison-Crested. The merriment includes a firehouse pancake breakfast, one-third marathon (run, walk or crawl!), parade, great food, old-fashioned games, live music, the opening of the new adventure center at the ski base, and, of course, fireworks. Check out the full line-up of events after the jump.
Crested Butte Fire & EMS Department Pancake Breakfast, 7 – 10 a.m.
Start out the Fourth of July on a hearty note with flapjacks prepared by Crested Butte’s volunteer fire department and emergency medical services teams. Pull up a chair at the Crested Butte Fire Station’s pump room, 3rd Street and Elk Avenue, and dig in for all-you-can-eat pancakes, sausage, juice and coffee. Rides in a fire truck “cherry picker” are available for a donation, and kids play with sidewalk chalk and enjoy various other activities while waiting for their breakfast. For more information and costs, contact Chris Evans at (970) 596-1132.
41st Annual Gothic to Crested Butte Run, Walk or Crawl 1/3 Marathon, 8 a.m.
This longtime Independence Day favorite, the Run, Walk or Crawl 1/3rd Marathon is a fundraiser that benefits the nonprofit Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory (RMBL). The race begins at 8 a.m. in Gothic, winds through the aspen woods and meadows to Mt. Crested Butte and ends in downtown Crested Butte. Shuttle buses from Crested Butte will transport all participants to the starting line in Gothic.
Online registration and costs are available at www.Active.com. If you are not able to register online, pre-registration will be held on July 3 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Crested Butte Visitor Center, located at Elk Avenue & Sixth Street. On the day of event, registrations will be accepted from 6 to 7 a.m. at the Visitor Center only if the cap of 500 runners has not been met. For more information, contact RMBL at (970) 349-7420 or visit www.rmbl.org.
Parade & Afternoon Fun, 11 a.m.
Expect funky, fun and good-natured laughter as people line Crested Butte’s Elk Avenue about four deep to take in the spectacle of the parade, which begins at 11 a.m.
Crested Butte Mayor Alan Bernholtz and friends are known for creating floats that wow the crowd with action such as costumed characters skiing down a water slide through a ring of fire, zooming down a zipline or flying over a dirt hill on mountain bikes. Scientists, staff and friends of Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory have built a reputation for wearing outfits created from skunk cabbage leaves. New to the parade last year was a “green” section, open only to non-motorized entries and coordinated in conjunction with the Office of Resource of Efficiency (ORE).
If getting wet isn’t your idea of fun, stay away from the first block of Elk Avenue because after the parade it turns into the Wet Zone for a big water fight. Also stick around for the food court featuring local specialties, live music and old-fashioned games like the log saw competition, pie eating contest, three-legged race, Mulay’s Sausage eating competition and more. Anyone is invited to participate, and there will be prizes for the winner of each activity. For information, contact the Crested Butte-Mt. Crested Butte Chamber of Commerce at (970) 349-6438.
Patriotic Concert in the Park, 4 p.m.
The Crested Butte Music Festival (CBMF) will kick off its season, July 4 – 26, with a free Independence Day concert sponsored by Community Banks of Colorado that begins at 4 p.m. on the Crested Butte Center for the Arts’ outdoor stage. Alpen Brass will perform patriotic tunes, celebrating American musical traditions such as jazz and marches. This symphonic brass ensemble includes 12 professional brass musicians and percussionists. Bring lawn chairs, blankets and picnics. Find out more at (970) 349-0619 or www.crestedbuttemusicfestival.com.
