SEPT 26, 2024 | FEATURES | By Anya Jones
This Block Break, I had the privilege of visiting the faraway land of Durango, Colo. Not much is known about this place. It’s about a five-and-a-half hour drive southwest and supposedly has excellent mountain biking. Upon further research, I learned that there are 19,531 people residing in Durango. Their largest professional industry is private healthcare. Common pastimes include, but are not limited to: mountain biking, hiking, skiing and snowmobiling. On the website Niche, which reviews niche topics and products, they called Durango residents “super nice and active.” I found these things to all be resoundingly true. Though I had several notable encounters, I want to share with you my favorite observation.
They have a corner with food trucks and a bar that gets a lot of foot traffic on Fridays and Saturdays. It’s a place for all ages to congregate, share a meal and sport their favorite active or outdoorswear. It’s called 11th Street Station but isn’t located on 11th St., so I felt the name could use some workshopping. Name aside, the selection of food was decent, and the atmosphere was exactly what someone “super nice and active” would call their “spot.” There were several couples on dates, families, a middle school girl’s volleyball team and numerous groups of friends. My favorite? My favorite was the double date of four elderly people.
They were upwards of eighty-years-old but they did not look a day over 73. They were dressed head to toe as though they were in the middle of hiking the Pacific Crest Trail: Salomon hiking boots, North Face zip-off hiking pants and Arc’teryx windbreakers and hats. All of them were wearing hats. So, not only were they in the middle of a several-month-long backpacking trek, they were doing so in style. Given their residence in Durango, I am inclined to say that at least two of them were healthcare professionals. They were likely only recently retired because they seem the type to do as much as possible for as long as possible. They are too kind to be lawyers and too docile to be the founders of a successful company.
They ordered one large salad and two pizzas to share. One of each couple had a tasteful IPA, and the other two rocked large glasses of water. They drove here, which makes this a special night but it’s also evident that it is a regular activity for them. They are at endless ease with one another, reaching over the others in choreographed motions. They have the perfect ratio of food to conversation. Silences are not uncomfortable, but purposeful. Eye contact was strong but not glaring. I wondered what their stories were.
I have reason to believe they are not from Durango. Their lifestyles are likened to that of someone from Durango, but they are all originally from a more bustling place. I imagine the men becoming friends in some sort of serendipitous way. If they really were healthcare professionals, the likelihood of developing a strong friendship in the strenuous climate and difficult work hours of a hospital is low. Maybe, while on a weekend hike to get out of the city, the men started the trail at the same time and realized they were wearing the same shoes. Friendship commenced. Or perhaps they became friends before that, back in med school where they would stay up for hours studying and discussing their true feelings about things like what moms do together.
But I like to imagine that they met in some sort of run club back in the ‘80s when they were en vogue and a clever way of meeting people. It was in this run club that they discussed how much they missed their midwestern upbringing with sprawling fields and buildings no taller than three stories. They went to coffee after their runs and eventually graduated to dinners with their spouses. Years of these dinners led them to a discussion of retirement. It was a no-brainer that they were going to retire somewhere together. Their dinners are their lifeblood. They discussed Boulder, Boise and Portland. They wanted to be on the Western side of the country’s split. It was when one of the men was treating a patient that he discovered Durango.
The patient was a long-term one. He was in his late 50s, involved in something like wealth management, super outdoorsy. He has family down near Durango, so he visits sometimes for a biking fix and obligations. After one visit, he returned to the city and came into the doctor’s office with strange symptoms of pain in his left leg. They discussed what he had been up to in the past month and the man told the doctor about his trip to Durango. The doctor knew instantly that that was where he needed to be for the rest of his life. He couldn’t wait to tell his best friend.
It was the best decision all four of them had ever made. They sit at 11th Street Station with two pizzas, a salad, water and beer, dressed in the garb of their true calling — discussing politics, neuroscience theory, the health of the dogs and their plans for the week. I won’t lie to you, I never want to get old. But if old looks like this, I’m excited to give it a try.