Get pedaling: It’s a political ad, but it has a lot of truth in it!
Posted: November 4, 2011 Filed under: Cycling Leave a comment
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James,
My favorite memory from the summer was — hands down — Colorado hosting the USA Pro Challenge.
It was a wonderful event that attracted the best cyclists in the world to altitudes many had never been before. For seven days, the pro riders crisscrossed Colorado’s beautiful landscapes as hundreds of thousands of tourists and fans watched from the roadside.
The race was a marvel of human endurance and sheer athleticism. None of the stages were easy — something I learned firsthand when the race organizers let me ride the time trial course in Vail.
 Truth be told, my pace was somewhere between the speed of eventual stage winner Levi Leipheimer (ahem) and….well… a giraffe on roller-skates. But for a guy who is more at home on a scooter, it was pretty cool.
All that aside, attracting world-class events like the USA Pro Challenge brings national exposure to our cities and towns, boosts our economy, and shows the rest of the country what a wonderful place Colorado is to live, work, and play.
In fact, the race pumped over $83 million into Colorado’s economy and was a huge boon for our small towns along the race route.
We need more of that.
As more people see what a great place Colorado is, they are going to visit more and bring new business here. In fact, we’ve already had success doing just that. In the last month, Colorado has become the home to both GE Solar and Arrow Electronics, two companies that will put thousands of Coloradans to work.
And it’s no accident either.
Making Colorado competitive has been a goal of ours since the very early days of our small but mighty campaign. It’s why we developed the Colorado Blueprint for economic development. The Blueprint represents the insights and participation of nearly 10,000 Coloradans in all 64 counties. It’s a “bottom-up” plan that focuses on local and regional collaboration.
It reminds me of what a “peloton” does during a bike race.
A “peloton” is the formal name for a large group of cyclists who band together and ride very close to one another to reduce drag and save energy for later in the race. Individual riders even take turns battling the wind at the front of the pack so the others can rest.
That’s not just a strategy for winning professional bike races. In many ways “collaboration” is the new “competition.” While small business owners may not wear spandex, they know that smart collaboration — just like the peloton — is a winning strategy for economic development.
Our “Bottom-up” plan also establishes measurable guideposts — just like a bike race — so we can track our progress, identify obstacles to job creation (like red tape and inefficient regulation), and identify opportunities to attract new companies and investment in the businesses already here.
While we are on the subject of bike races, we’ve been thinking about taking this experience to the Eastern Plains. How cool would it be to bring the bike enthusiam we saw during the USA Pro Challenge to this part of Colorado? There are great vistas, fewer hills to get over for novice bikers like me, and some of the most hospitable people in America.
We’re still working through all the details, but stay tuned to hear about our idea for a “Pedal on the Plains” ride next year.
Talk to you soon.
Sincerely,
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Paid for by Hickenlooper for Colorado
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Recreation Law 