Comedy, dry ice climbing, green movies, ski bikes, a belated canine mardi gras and more around the state

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 our February performing arts preview here, and read on for festivals, sporting contests and other happenings. For more, check out our events calendar.

Beer festival in Denver Thursday

Grownups get to take over the Children’s Museum of Denver tomorrow night for the Joy on Tap beer festival.

For $55, you get unlimited sips from 20 Colorado breweries, local restaurant bites and a chance to play in all the exhibits without those pesky kids in the way.

Fashion show in Colorado Springs Friday

The House of GOCA fashion show returns to the Ent Center for the Arts in Colorado Springs on Friday, Feb. 20. The annual event celebrates avant-garde fashion and wearable art. This year’s theme is Stardust, inspired by the cosmic and contemplative work of artist Nina Elder. “Stardust celebrates the elemental and the ephemeral, engendering hope and reminding us that we are all made of the same stuff,” organizers say.

Environmental films in Golden Friday to Sunday

The 2026 Colorado Environmental Film Festival will run at the Colorado School of Mines Green Center. The festival includes 50 films about a variety of environmental topics, as well as discussions and a Saturday evening party.

Comedy in Golden Monday through March 8

Golden also hosts the new Comfort and Comedy Festival, opening Monday at Miners Alley Performing Arts Center and three other venues. The festival brings two weeks of national and local stand-up comedy acts and improv, workshops and other events to downtown Golden.

Headliners include Denver legend Josh Blue, comedic hypnotist Peter Juris and comedic band the Chalks.

Ice climbing in Longmont Saturday and Sunday

The Ice Climbing World Cup returns to Longmont’s Climbing Collective on Friday and Saturday, Feb. 21 and 22. With little ice in sight along the Front Range, the climbing will mostly be dry-tooling, which is performed on bare, ice-free and snow-free routes with ice axes and crampons. There also will be local food and beer, a vendor village and kids’ zone. GA and VIP tickets are available, starting at $10.

Mardi Gras goes to the dogs in Frisco Saturday

Frisco hosts a Mardi Gras pooch parade and street party to benefit Hope For Animals on Saturday, Feb. 21. The event is inspired by the Krewe of Barkus Parade in New Orleans, and also includes live music and a canine costume contest.

Ski bike festival in Purgatory Saturday and Sunday

The 23rd annual Ski Bike Festival is in Purgatory on Saturday and Sunday, Feb. 21 and 22, with races and other events. It is the longest running ski bike event in the nation.

Snow League returns to Aspen Feb. 27 and 28

After the Olympics, the world’s top snowboarders will return to Aspen Snowmass for the Snow League competition. It is the professional snowboarding league created by legendary snowboarder Shaun White, which launched last winter in Aspen.

WinterWonderGrass in Steamboat Feb. 27 to March 1

The 13th WinterWonderGrass music festival comes to Steamboat Springs from Feb. 27 to March 1. At least 30 artists will play on four stages, including a mountaintop stage at Thunderhead Lodge.

The top-billed artists this year include The Devil Makes Three, Leftover Salmon and The Infamous Stringdusters. Click here for more details.

Fort Collins Winter Brewfest on Feb. 28

The Fort Collins Brewery Alliance brings together 17 Fort Collins breweries for a beer festival from 2 to 6 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 28, at the Drake Centre.

There also will be food from Matador Mexican Grill & Scratch Quisine Asian Fusion, and music from KRFC. General Admission tickets are $45. Limited VIP tickets cost $75 and include an extra hour of tastings.

Vail Legacy Weekend Feb. 28 to March 1

Vail Mountain celebrates the history of the town and the 10th Mountain Division with a weekend of events, including a parade, fireworks show, a memorial veteran ski run down Riva Ridge, a Blackhawk helicopter landing and a meet and greet with 10th Mountain Division soldiers.

Stouts are still flowing

In 1994, Mountain Sun Pub in Boulder started celebrating the darkest and most winter-worthy beers each February. It has since become a national event, and breweries (and even distilleries) around Colorado toast stout month. Here is a taster tray of upcoming events:

The OG celebration: All month, each Mountain Sun location (in Boulder, Longmont and Denver) will devote at least 10 taps to a rotation of 29 house-made stouts.
Branch & Barrel Distilling in Centennial will release three stout-finished bourbon expressions this month. They are crafted in collaboration with Two22 Brew, Denver Beer Company, Los Dos Potrillos and the Elizabeth Brewing Company. The distillers will host a “meet the maker” whiskey release from 4 to 8 p.m. Friday, Feb. 20.
Renegade Brewing in Denver has a long list of guest stouts on tap, and will release its own black brews each week, starting with the Fluffernutter imperial pastry stout on Saturday.
Today, Cerebral Brewing in Denver and Aurora released its 2026 Here Be Monsters, a barrel-aged imperial stout. There also are two variants: vanilla and fuego (conditioned on cacao nibs, chiles and vanilla).
The Post is pairing warming stouts with warm soup all month at all its locations.
Other Colorado breweries with weekly stout releases include: Two22 Brew, Downhill Brewing, Storybook Brewing, Lone Tree Brewing, Dostal Alley and Red Leg Brewing.

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.