On Saturday, Colorado natives the held a flood benefit concert in Boulder at the to raise money for The Fund to Restore Colorado Trails, Waterway and Parks; the event was called Rock the Trails! The first grants from the fund after the concert were given to support Wildlands Restoration Volunteers and Cal-Wood Education Center in Jamestown, Colo.
The event was supported by many major companies, including REI, Vision Ridge, Bryan Cave, GoLite, New Belgium, Patagonia, the North Face, Dynafit, and Osprey. The event co-chairs were Kim Coupounas of GoLite, Chris Hazlitt of Bryan Cave, Chelsea Lawson of Big Fish Media and Nicole DeBoom of Skirt Sports.
Before the event started, more than $100,000 had been raised to support rebuilding Colorado trail systems.
“There is no more fitting industry community than ours to step up to help rebuild our beloved trails,” said GoLite’s co-founder and event co-chair Coupounas. “We see this as just the beginning of the good work our companies can do together to help the outdoor recreation areas recover from this disaster. These trails help our businesses thrive. ActiveBoulder is very grateful to The String Cheese Incident, eTown, REI, and all of the contributors to this effort for making the event possible and for a strong start to the Fund to Restore Colorado Trails, Waterways, and Parks and the positive impact it can have in the years ahead.”
Among the guests at the event were Senator Mark Udall, Outdoor Industry Association President Frank Hugelmeyer and Boulder Mayor Matthew Applebaum.
“We see ourselves with an opportunity on the heels of ; I am really excited to work with you all and to work with the community here at Rock the Trails!,” Udall said. “We are going to use what happened as a way to rebuild better, stronger, and for the long term. We know how to come together, and this is an evening that represents that.”
A preshow reception included food and organizations looking to signup volunteers for trail work. For those who donated at the $500 level, they got to attend a smaller reception at which Senator Udall, Frank Hugelmeyer and Mayor Applebaum spoke. They also got a chance to meet members of String Cheese and have them sign memorabilia and posters.
The show itself kicked off at about 7:30 p.m. Seeing String Cheese’s equipment packed onto such a small stage brought back memories of the band’s salad days, when they frequently played small venues throughout Colorado.
Instead of playing two sets as they normally do, String Cheese played one long set, kicking off the evening with appropriate “100 Year Flood,” and its lyrics “The water’s rising, and the rain’s still coming down.”
The band itself seemed at ease, reveling in the more intimate atmosphere. There were frequent exploratory jams and an overall relaxed atmosphere emanating from the stage. Out of the always-welcome “Born on the Wrong Planet,” guitarist Bill Nershi and mandolin player Michael Kang spun toward a slower, darker groove. Nershi started singing the folk tune “Pretty Polly,” and as the jam progressed, it resolved briefly into Pink Floyd’s “Another Brick in the Wall,” to the delight of the crowd.
eTown’s Nick Forster, who along with wife Helen acted as one of the evening’s emcees and hosts, stepped in to play a couple of songs at the midway point of the set, playing guitar on the old blues song “Trouble in Mind” and mandolin on the bluegrass classic Big Sciota.” Forster also gave a plug for a benefit show for flood relief that he and his Hot Rize cohorts will be headlining on Nov. 7 at the Macky Auditorium in Boulder. Also on the bill for the “Pickin’ Up the Pieces” benefit is Nershi and Yonder Mountain String Band’s Jeff Austin. All proceeds from that show will go to the Community Foundation serving Boulder County. Learn more at www.hotrize.com.
Perhaps it was a theme of the evening, but having opened with a song about flooding, the band closed the set with its tribute to Colorado’s normally beautiful weather, “Colorado Bluebird Sky,” with Kang and keyboardist Kyle Hollingsworth driving the song to a frenetic finish in a long, extended jam.
The show is available for download from www.livecheese.com, where String Cheese archives all its concerts. The recording is being sold for a donation of $9.99, and all sales will go toward flood relief. Donations to The Fund to Restore Colorado Trails, Waterway, and Parks can be made through Volunteers for Outdoor Colorado at voc.org.
Setlist
100 Year Flood > Can’t Wait Another Day, Born on The Wrong Planet > Pretty Polly > Born On The Wrong Planet, Mouna Bowa, Trouble In Mind1, Big Sciota1, MLT, ‘Round The Wheel > Colorado Bluebird Sky, E: Shine
1with Nick Forster
Follow our news and updates on , our relationship status on and our search history on . Or send us a telegram.
is a Denver freelance writer/photographer and regular contributor to Reverb. When not writing and shooting, she plays guitar and violin in Denver band .
