DURANGO — In the winter of 2005, Chad Cheeney walked into the Durango Arts Center wearing a Fort Lewis College football jersey and a clip-on tie over his collar. Beside co-founder Sarah Tescher, the 20-year-old held a clipboard and pitched a handful of local families on a new concept for youth mountain biking.
“The parents thought I was a little loose,” Cheeney recalled with a laugh. “And I was.”
Twenty years later, that pitch has grown into one of the most influential youth cycling non-profits in the nation.
Today, Durango Devo trains roughly 1,000 riders annually — representing approximately 4% of the city’s population. While its mission has remained focused on developing lifelong riders rather than podium finishers, the program has produced a staggering array of elite talent.
Devo alumni include Vuelta a España champion Sepp Kuss, Tour de France competitors, and Olympians Christopher Blevins, Howard Grotts and Riley Amos. Beyond professional cycling, its ranks of former riders include aerospace engineers, doctors, teachers and local business owners.
As Durango Devo prepares for its 20th anniversary celebration Oct. 16–18, its leadership reflects on how a grassroots effort reshaped both American cycling culture and the local community.
The idea for Devo simmered in Cheeney’s mind for years. While working at a local thrift store in 2005, he kept a notebook filled with team names, logos and sketches of program structures.
He had watched local junior teams form and dissolve, but a rumor sparked immediate action: a local cyclist Cheeney deemed unsuitable for coaching was allegedly planning his own youth program.
Within a week, Cheeney reached out to Tescher.
A former professional mountain bike racer, Tescher was teaching at Miller Middle School and running an after-school bike program. Bound by school district rules, her program faced logistics hurdles, including an inability to transport students to weekend races.
“Chad had the vision — the name, the tagline, all of it,” Tescher said. “What I knew was that we needed a board, a budget, a website and a registration system. So I got to work.”
The duo launched Durango Devo in spring 2006 with a small group of riders, two weekly practices and an informal financial system. Parents wrote checks directly to Tescher, who cashed them to pay Cheeney.
“I cleared about nine thousand dollars that first year,” Cheeney said. “Paid rent, did all the trips, and I was like, this is beautiful.”
By its second year, Devo established 501(c)(3) non-profit status. By its fourth year, enrollment surged past 400 riders.
From the beginning, Devo rejected the rigid, high-intensity training typical of traditional American cycling programs.
Cheeney had arrived at Fort Lewis College burned out from structured training plans and a culture that equated progress with suffering. Drawing inspiration from European models — such as Swiss youth programs that prioritize bike skills over race results until age 15 — he structured Devo around play, skill development and group rides.
When a group of ambitious teenagers called a formal meeting at the Durango Community Recreation Center to demand structured interval workouts, Cheeney held his ground.
“I told them, ‘What you just did at that short track race was an interval — I just didn’t tell you,'” Cheeney said. “The philosophy was always that if riding becomes a grind before a kid turns 17, you’ve lost them. All the intervals in the world don’t matter if the kid quits.”
Devo’s methodology relies on visual learning and unstructured trail time. Coaches lead by example rather than instruction.
“When kids see you do what you were telling them, that’s when it clicks,” Cheeney said.
Program directors and youth coaches across the country often ask Devo leadership how to replicate the organization’s success. Executive Director Nate Greason attributes it to a unique combination of local assets.
Durango boasts more than 300 miles of singletrack trails accessible directly from town, extensive support from local bike shops, and a steady supply of coaches from the Fort Lewis College cycling team.
“In a lot of places, the people who are really into riding and the people who want to work with kids aren’t the same people,” Cheeney said. “Here they are. And that changes the experience completely.”
That foundation has turned Devo into a community tradition.
“Why do kids do Devo? Because it’s fun, but also because all the other kids do it,” Greason said. “It’s been going long enough that it’s just part of what you do here if you’re a kid who likes to ride.”
As Devo grew, its administrative demands mounted. Former director Amy Haggart stepped in a decade ago to formalize operations, build corporate sponsorships and expand community outreach. Successive directors, including Devo alumnus Levi Kurlander, further professionalized the organization.
Today, Greason oversees a core administrative staff of eight and a seasonal coaching roster of nearly 100.
The program spans all age brackets, beginning with push-bike groups for toddlers and extending through high school race teams. In recent years, Devo has broadened its focus on inclusivity:
Bilingual Programming: A partnership with a local non-profit offers full scholarships and Spanish-speaking coaches for Spanish-speaking youth.
Expanded Women’s Initiatives: Programs now include all-ages, all-girls riding groups and a dedicated all-women’s town race series.
Scholarship Funding: Expanded financial aid ensures local families can participate regardless of income.
While Devo’s high-profile alumni often grab national headlines, leadership measures success by a different metric.
“The goal is lifelong cyclists, not lifelong Olympians,” Greason said. “A lot of people in this town, whatever their jobs are, are lifelong cyclists. That’s what this is about.”
Twenty years after pitching the concept at the Durango Arts Center, Cheeney says the program’s founding motto remains unchanged: Never forget the feeling.
“When I go out and ride my bike, I still get the same feeling I got when I was 10 years old,” Cheeney said. “That’s what we’re trying to protect for every kid that comes through here.”
Durango Devo will host its 20th Anniversary celebration Oct. 16–18. For more information or to support the organization, visit durangodevo.com.