Colorado-based Backcountry Lifeline has trained over 500 riders and event staff in trailside first aid and incident management, and they recently passed the torch to Colorado Outside to continue their important work. Co-founder Bonnie McDonald says, “It will now have much larger reach – in the hands of a Wilderness Medicine Associates-affiliated organization called Colorado Outside, and a real pro named Darren Stokes, who does this stuff all day, every day. While it will have international reach, it will have a permanent home base in Buena Vista, CO – where there are yurts for classrooms and facilities and singletrack right out the door to take the learning to the trails.”
Backcountry Lifeline was founded following the death of McDonald’s fiancé Will Olson who suffered a tragic crash during the Big Mountain Enduro race in Crested Butte, CO in 2015. Co-founders Flynn George and Heidi Dohse were also racing the event on that grievous day.
Due in part to an influx of requests for trainings, Backcountry Lifeline owners recently sold the company to the wilderness emergency experts at Colorado Outside. Darren Stokes founded Colorado Outside in 2009 to “provide wilderness medicine and backcountry rescue training for outdoor enthusiasts, guides, recreational professionals, and search and rescue volunteers.” Stokes can now add mountain bike specific training to the fold, expanding the number of riders who are ready to save lives.
“Stokes is in the process of responding to all open requests for private and group trainings and has scheduled four Wilderness First Aid for Mountain BikersTM courses at his Buena Vista headquarters thus far. These trainings, slated for June 13-14, July 18-19, August 22-23, and September 12-13 are open to the public but will have limited enrollment.”
For more information, check out the Colorado Outside webpage.
