Alcohol consumption-or shall we say alcohol overconsumption-is frowned upon in MF's Fittest & Fattest survey, and Colorado Springs definitely lost points due to that weakness. But in the end, C.S. was so far ahead in other categories that even that setback couldn't keep the city from winning the title. In fact, while it would be absurd to suggest boozing causes fitness, it seems accurate to say that, in the Springs at least, imbibing correlates with fitness in some twisted yet enviable way.
As if great weather and beautiful scenery weren't enough to fill Colorado Springs with fit folk, the U.S. Olympic Training Center also makes its home in the city, and draws a steady stream of top athletes into town. Many put down roots and set up shop in the Springs, competing with but also drawing sustenance from one another, kind of like how art galleries always open next to art galleries and burger joints next to burger joints-only better. The Porembas, for example, train with Lisa Larsen Rainsberger, who was the last American woman to win the Boston Marathon (back in '85). Rainsberger came to the Springs from Kansas with her husband hoping to make the 2000 Olympics in triathlon but achieved another life goal instead-pregnancy-and retired from competition. Kansas instantly lost its appeal. "We were so dug into the community," says Rainsberger. "Not only did we like to run, but we were able to explore things like snowshoeing and skiing. And in the summer, we can go to a country club with a 50-meter outdoor pool. Those kinds of things are hard to give up. Colorado Springs has the kinds of facilities that make having a healthy lifestyle appealing."
So Rainsberger's husband relocated his financial business. She hung out a coaching shingle, and business has been booming ever since. "I just hired another coach to work with me because I can't handle the workload," she says. "In Colorado Springs, people are willing to invest in themselves, and one of the ways they do it is by hiring somebody to help them with their workout."
Fittingly, this city full of athletes is also a city full of trails. Colorado Springs residents made an important investment in 1997 when 51% of them voted for TOPS-Trails, Open Space, and Parks-a 1/10 of 1% sales tax that generates $6 million a year to acquire undeveloped land of environmental interests. (The plan came up for an extension in 2003; 68% said yes.)
Christian M. Lieber, a landscape architect with aspirations of one day cycling across the country with his family, manages TOPS for the city parks department. Unfurling a big map, Lieber explains how he's turning one of Colorado Springs' least attractive features-sprawl-into an asset. About a third of the city remains undeveloped, so he has his eye on huge parcels that could remain open as the housing market revives, uniting far-flung neighborhoods. Springs officials believe growth, conservation, and fitness can all happen together. "We recognize that growth and development are good for our economy. But we try to find a balance," Lieber says.
One of his best gets was the Bock family estate, a series of canyons over 789 majestic acres that the late owner once wanted to develop into casinos and condos linked by cable cars. It took Lieber five years to negotiate the family down to $12.5 million (they originally wanted $15 million), and the property, now called Red Rock Canyon Open Space, has since become a hit with runners and mountain bikers. Some of the rock was quarried decades ago for buildings as far away as New York, and those gashes now provide-what else?-trail access.
Recreational opportunities in the Springs aren't limited to inside the city line, either. Neighboring jurisdictions like Manitou Springs are working to get their trails to link up with one another and with those controlled by the state. "Colorado Springs has a lot of great things within city limits, but when you combine that with the surrounding Pikes Peak Region, it's really outstanding," says Lieber. Take the proposed Colorado Front Range Trail. This 876-mile hiking trail, launched in 2003, will stretch uninterrupted from New Mexico to Wyoming. And a good number of those miles already exist, and just happen to traverse Colorado Springs. One popular trail even cuts through the Air Force Academy.
Even then, we still haven't even begun to cover the activities Colorado Springs' residents are able to work into their evenings and weekends. Kayaking, boating, and cycling in the summer; snowboarding, skiing, even indoor skating in the fall and winter. Combine that with low television viewership, good schools and a smart citizenship, an abundance of healthy eating options, and more, and it's easy to see why the city inevitably does so well in our rankings.
Still, the city's residents are the first to admit they live in a truly unique place. "You either love it or hate it. We just absolutely fell in love with it," says Rainsberger. "I've lived in Seattle and Boston and Kansas, and this is by far the most fit, activity-driven community I've ever lived in. In Kansas, when you get together socially, it's all around food. In Colorado when you get together socially, it's at a trailhead."
A fitting gathering place indeed for America's Fittest city.
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