Colorado’s best bets this week and beyond include winter festivals, cowboy ski races and a short film showcase

By the Thirst Team

Get Out of Town is our roundup of the best events across Colorado for the next couple of weeks. Check out last week’s roundup for a January performing arts preview, and read on for festivals, sporting contests and other happenings. For more, check out our events calendar.

Winterfest in Pagosa Springs Friday to Sunday

Pagosa Springs’ WinterFest starts Friday with a bonfire, soup contest and live music by Wonder Bread. On Saturday, there will be a bb gun biathlon, sledding, pet parade and penguin plunge. On Sunday, the Pagosa Nordic Club hosts a cross-country ski clinic. There also will be mass balloon launches and skijor runs Saturday and Sunday.

First Peoples Festival in Estes Saturday and Sunday

An indigenous culture festival comes to Estes Park, including an art market featuring exclusively vendors from federally recognized tribes. The festival also includes cultural demonstrations, live music, a powwow, fashion show and film symposium.

Martin Luther King Day event in Fort Collins Monday

Among many events across Colorado for Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Colorado State University in Fort Collins hosts one of the biggest and most eclectic. There is no march/parade from downtown, but activities at the Lory Student Center include service projects, a community mural, storytelling and a demonstration of capoeira, the Afro-Brazilian martial art form.

Cowboy Downhill in Steamboat Monday

Pro rodeo stars and other cowboys will return to Steamboat Springs on Monday for the 51st annual Busch Light Cowboy Downhill rodeo.

More than 100 cowboys and cowgirls will ski down a dual slalom course, go over a jump, lasso a person and saddle a horse. This is followed by the stampede, a mass start race to the bottom of the hill. There also will be live music, 4-H animals and a roping clinic.

Sundance shorts in Ridgway Tuesday

The Sherbino in Ridgway hosts the 2025 Sundance Film Festival Short Film Tour, a showcase of seven short films from the acclaimed festival. The movies are from several countries, and include both documentaries and narratives. This is the last Colorado stop on this year’s tour.

Denver Jewish Film Festival Jan 22 to Feb 1

The 30th annual Denver Jewish Film Festival opens Thursday, Jan. 22, at the Mizel Arts and Culture Center in southeast Denver. This year’s edition includes 40 films written or directed by Jewish people or with a connection to Jewish culture, identity and history. There also are filmmaker Q&As, special events and community conversations.

Individual tickets and festival passes are on sale now.

Rio Frio Ice Fest in Alamosa Jan 23-25

Alamosa’s biggest winter festival includes a 5K race on a frozen Rio Grande, live ice sculpting, the fire and ice bonfire, polar plunge and ice carousel. This year’s theme is Legends of the Ice, inspired by the upcoming Winter Olympics, celebrating champions and heroes of winter sports.

Ice fishing contest in Granby Jan. 23 to 25

The 38th annual 3 Lakes Ice Fishing Contest, the longest-running ice fishing tournament West of the Mississippi, returns to Granby. Competitive ice fishing takes place on Lake Granby, Shadow Mountain Reservoir and Grand Lake. Winners get cash prizes, and there are daily giveaways for entrants, including a Can-Am ATV.

Fat Bike Worlds in Leadville Jan. 23 to 25

The 11th Fat Bike World Championship races are in Leadville for three days of wide-tire cycling. The Enduro Race and kickoff party open the event on Friday. On Saturday, the competition moves to the Timberline Trail System at Colorado Mountain College. Some race for the world title. Others dress up in costumes, wolf down bacon and bourbon and soak in the live music.

X Games in Aspen Jan 23 to 25

Buttermilk Mountain hosts the 25th winter X Games, with three days of slopestyle, big air and superpipe snowboarding and skiing, as well as freestyle snowmobile racing. Music performers include Disco Lines, Alesso, Kendoll and Girlfriends.

Ouray Ice(less) Festival Jan. 23 to 26

The Ouray Ice Park will once again host elite ice climbing competitions for its annual festival, which also includes live music, parties and vendor village. There will be a modified schedule of climbing clinics, but not on the ice wall, due to a warm winter and lack of ice.

Snowdown in Durango Jan. 23 to Feb. 1

The 47th annual Snowdown Durango will be less of a festival than a citywide party. The official website lists 47 pages of events. Highlights include a daytime ski parade, a nighttime light parade, the Snowdown Follies variety show and a miners’ luau. Attendees can also compete in joint rolling, drunken dictionary and blindfolded dancing, among many competitions.

Inclusive skiing mountain takeover Jan. 24

Breckenridge Ski Resort and the Breckenridge Outdoor Education Center (BOEC) will celebrate five decades of inclusive outdoor adventures with a mountain takeover, including a community first tracks experience, on-mountain giveaways and a party at the Maggie. The BOEC offers adaptive skiing, snowboarding and other sports for more than 2,000 annual participants.

Snow Sculpture competition Jan. 24 to Feb. 3

Breckenridge hosts the 35th annual International Snow Sculpture Championships starting Jan. 24.

This year, 10 of the 12 teams are traveling from outside the United States to compete, including teams from Ukraine, the Republic of Korea, Italy, Lithuania, Argentina, Germany, India, Finland, Malta and Mongolia. They will all compete with the Breckenridge home team and a Vermont crew.

Each team carves a 12-foot-tall, 25-ton block of snow into a larger-than-life work of art entirely by hand. Sculpting runs from Jan. 24 to 28. Finished works remain on free, public display for one week, with attendees voting for the People’s Choice Award.

As always, please send us your events and announcements. We’re happy to share them. If they don’t fit in the Get Out of Town column, we will add them to our events calendar.