Reprinted with permission from the Allenspark Wind, December 2023 Vol. 50, No. 11, Pg. 22, by Edward Yagi
One chapter in the 30-year, saga of internet access in Greater Allenspark is about to end. A new, game-changing chapter – the expansion of fiber optic cable broadband to any home on the Estes Park power grid – is about to begin.
As 2023 comes to a close, the big question on everyone’s mind is “Why is the world still at war? Wasn’t globalization and economic integration supposed to put an end to this nonsense?” One thing is for sure: most of us are happy to be in Allenspark rather than Kyiv or Gaza City…despite Allenspark STILL having worse internet than either one.
This raises another big question which, happily, doesn’t involve war (at least, not yet): when, exactly, will Estes Park Power & Communication’s “Trailblazer” high-speed fiber optic cable service reach Allenspark? Are they late? Are they behind schedule? Have they forgotten about us? Are they unaware that Allenspark even exists?
It turns out that the answer to all these questions is “yes” and for more details this reporter contacted its spies, er, contacts in Estes Park for the latest details. Only Kim agreed to speak on the record.
I obtained the following insight from someone we will identify only as Insider #1: “Well we never really expected to get to Allenspark before around 2025 in the first place. This is what we in Estes Park call a “forever project,” meaning that, like the electricity we have provided since the 1930s, it takes us forever to get up there. But once we ARE up there, we’re there forever, and once the basic infrastructure is all set up, it also takes forever to change anything. You only have one chance to do it right the first time. That’s what we’re doing.”
Insider #2 had a slightly different take. “A lot of people don’t know this, but since 1983 we’ve only had one person willing to go up to Allenspark at all. Allensparkionians can be, like, kinda crazy or ornery, you know? Our guy was Ralph, and a couple years ago, right in the middle of the Trailblazer roll out, we found out, sadly, that Ralph was dead. He was just sitting at his desk, all quiet, but there was nothing at all unusual about that. So it’s taken us some time to onboard a few new bright-eyed kids right out of school who didn’t know anything about Allenspark and aren’t afraid to go up there. But they have to be trained, and splicing internet fiber isn’t like pouring milk on cereal, you know what I mean?”
Insider #3, who clearly went to college, had this to say: “Say you build a railroad from Big City A to Small City B. The only way you can do this is to start running trains along the track you first build between A and the first stop, build more track, service the second stop, build more track, service the third stop, and so on. How long it takes to build the final stretch of track, to Small City B, depends in part on how much service you have along the intervening stops. The simple fact is, Allenspark has always been the last stop on the choo-choo line for pretty much any service, public or private, you can think of. Look where it is. It’s just simple geography.”
Insider #4 blamed it all on the weather: “If it was always summer we could have had Allenspark lit up a year ago. But surprise! it’s not always summer in Allenspark. We only have so many snow tires, oxygen tanks, and hazmat suits – hey, we’re a public utility, right? And the timing has just been horrendous – every time Allenspark was next on the list…BAM! winter hits, so hello Glen Haven. Sorry Allenspark…I guess it just sucks to be you.”
Insider #5 claimed that minor administrative error has played a role, if not a decisive one: “We sent two people do to a survey of Meeker Park…and they just vanished. I mean, like into thin air. Turns out that they went to Meeker, Colorado on the other side of the state. They ran out of gas, found a weed dispensary, and have been living there high and happy ever since. The paperwork we had to fill out on that one took months.”
When contacted for verification of the above insider intelligence, Trailblazer Customer Experience Manager Kim Smith replied: “I can neither confirm nor deny any of these reports. I can say that Allenspark’s wait is almost over. Most of Glen Haven, which was a very challenging area for us, now has service, and we will finally bring Trailblazer broadband to Allenspark in 2024. We’re saving the best for last! In the meantime, we are sending an email to all Allenspark folks who have registered in our system to inform them of our latest plans, and we are working to coordinate a Town Hall meeting in Allenspark in early December to answer the community’s questions. All we’re waiting for is Ralph to wake up. I swear that guy sleeps like he’s dead.”
Technological development never sprouts from thin air; it inevitably arises from some kind of existing practice or concept. There is a direct line, for example, from Ramses II in his chariot at the Battle of Kadesh in 1274 BCE (famously shooting his horses in the back of their heads) to the width of 21st century high-speed rail gauge. In its first ten years, home internet access in the U.S. mainly piggy-backed on existing telephone lines: the dial-up modems of the 1990’s. But it quickly shifted to the cable TV paradigm, which reached its peak in the U.S. in 2000…penetration was 65% of all households and close to 100% in metropolitan areas.
Ironically, cable TV first appeared in the 1950’s to reach remote areas that couldn’t receive radio TV signals, but a generation later found its true niche as an alternative to traditional network programming. Key inflection points were HBO going nationwide in 1975 and CNN’s start up in 1980. The concept is simple and was adapted from other services supplied to individual homes such as electricity, gas, and telephone. A supplier builds a physical network to supply its product in high volume from its source outward along major routes. From the largest supply lines, smaller supply lines branch out into neighborhoods and large buildings (sometimes to junction boxes known as “nodes”), and from there into individual homes and units.
The term “last mile” (itself adapted from supply chain management of physical goods) refers to the final leg of the network delivery component to the end user. The “last mile” is typically the speed bottleneck and limits the bandwidth of data that can be delivered to an individual customer. In the 80’s and 90’s, customers learned first-hand how the “last mile” hugely affects price or even service availability. In some neighborhoods, the last mile is a few inches; in others it could be hundreds of miles. Most cable TV is owned and operated by private companies that have all added internet services to their service offerings in recent years, but do not service remote areas because the “last mile” isn’t profitable, or profitable enough.
In 2019, Estes Park’s power company (EPP&L, L for “light”) changed its name to EPP&C (C for “communications”) and boldly jumped into the game. A coin was flipped for who got to hang out in warm, brightly lit offices all day chatting up customers, and who got to freeze to death, drown in mud, attacked by woodpeckers, and maybe shot at while actually installing the cable.
The Fiber Team lost the toss and bravely set out on their 4+ year adventure to build a roughly 1000-mile network from zero. Day-to-day installation and operations are managed today by Crew Supervisor Adam Edwards and Head Fiber Technician Skye “Vanilla Splice” Stiner, so-called for his fiber splicing expertise. Fiber Team members are Devin “Disco Dev” Gelsinger, Thom “Stop petting the deer and get back to work” Ingram, Cory “Corn Dog” Ramacher, AJ “AJ” Schwarz, Greg “Go Rams” Smith, Joel “Shortz” Ziegler, and Mike “Mark Hollinger” Barringer – and most recently Nico Randazzo, Landon Donaldson, and Ian Hodde.
The Mighty EPP&C Groundworker Team consists of Dale Duell, Brett Rassmussen, and Matt Pavlish. The following are actual quotes from Fiber Team members confirmed by Trailblazer: “Are 45 mph winds too dangerous for overhead installs?” “Who slid down the hill in the mud and are they okay?” “What do you mean we can’t do the install today because there’s no fiber to the house yet?” “Why didn’t you tell us?” (It is not clear if the previous two quotes are related, but at some point they probably were.) “Someone actually shot the fiber line?” (Apparently there was a 2022 incident involving firearm discharge, but it’s not clear if the target was the fiber optic cable line, a Northern Flicker woodpecker attacking the line, a member of the Fiber Team working on the line, or something else entirely, like celebratory shooting into the air like you sometimes see in old western movies. My money is on the woodpecker…that’s what I would have done.) “The client wants us to run the fiber where?” — this quote no doubt generated several creative and humorous comments in good fun about where this particular customer was more than welcome to run their own fiber. “Who didn’t put their site review notes in the Customer Support system again?” (People! …some things never change!) “We’ll look back at this someday and laugh.” “No we won’t.” And the infamous quote “Of course we can start the Raven Circle condo installs in July!” is attributed to Trailblazer Line Superintendent Joe “Can Do” Lockhart, who remains superintendent today because hey, he was only one month off.
It is worth noting that although these folks are technicians, they are also de facto support and sales advisors because when out in the field they are naturally bombarded with questions from ordinary people, possibly armed, about all things broadband. They also now and then take a little heat from onlookers, again, possibly armed, because there is [SPOILER ALERT!] actual digging and modest construction involved in infrastructure creation. Along these lines, a few other quotes were provided by Trailblazer but regrettably cannot be reproduced here because the Wind is a family newspaper.
So when you see Adam, Skye, Thom, Devin, Greg, AJ, Joel, Cory, Mike, Dale, Brett, Matt, or any of the others – and you will see them – just wave and give them a big HI. No celebratory shooting required.
At Trailblazer Broadband, we’re proud to be known around Estes Park as the only local fiber-to-the-home broadband provider for residents and businesses. But did you know that we also support a third group with our high-speed fiber internet network? Today, we’re taking a moment to celebrate local community anchor institutions.
Read on to learn more about this important group—and how, as a local small business ourselves, Trailblazer Broadband is committed to keeping them connected.
What Are Community Anchor Institutions?
Anchor institutions are mission-based, publicly oriented organizations that provide services essential to our area’s economy, health, safety, culture, and general well-being.
Anchor institutions include hospitals and other medical facilities, emergency services like fire and police, educational organizations, and public services like libraries. Since Trailblazer is municipally owned by the Town of Estes Park, it is actually part of one of the town’s anchor institutions.
These institutions all play a critical role in our society, and they all depend on reliable access to the internet to function effectively in the 21st-century economy.
Hospitals and Medical Clinics
Universally appreciated by everyone fortunate enough to have one close by, a hospital is an anchor institution that many of us depend on in the starkest moments of our lives. Whether they’re treating chronic illnesses or responding to life-threatening injuries, hospitals and other medical clinics provide critical services every day.
In a recent interview with the Estes Park News (September 8, 2023 edition) about his retirement, Estes Park Health’s CIO, Gary Hall, commented on the internet at EPH during his 18-year tenure, “We had six megabits of internet access when I arrived,” Gary remembered. “Now, with Trailblazer, for which we were strong advocates, and other steps forward, we enjoy internet line redundancy and many gigabits of critical broadband service.”
And in a true health emergency, every second counts. Rapid access to medical records, keen and swift analysis of radiological and similar medical imagery, and urgent consultations among experts—these are often matters of life and death. Thus, perhaps more than anywhere else, having internet as reliable and fast as fiber in our community hospitals and health clinics is most critical.
Beyond the immediate health needs of patients and the broader community, hospitals and medical clinics regularly communicate with both patients and other health professionals. Maintaining a solid internet connection to transmit medical files and even hold telehealth follow-up visits is crucial to the missions of hospitals and medical centers.
Fiber’s bandwidth capacity is substantially larger than other types of internet and can make indispensable communication and data transfers quick and seamless, helping health providers fulfill their calling—and keep our communities healthier and safer at the same time.
Fire, Police, and Other Emergency Services
Local first responders–the good people of our fire stations, paramedics, and police departments–are our community’s heroes, often putting their own lives at risk to help others. And they are regularly on call at every minute of every hour of the day.
Without the brave and resourceful men and women in fire, police and other emergency services, our community would be far less safe. Thus, it goes without saying that our first responders are anchor institutions in our area, and everyone is grateful for their service.
Reliable communications and connectivity are absolutely critical for these essential services. As part of the same Town of Estes Park infrastructure, Trailblazer Broadband keeps emergency service providers connected for real-time communications and information about hazards, traffic information, hazardous weather and natural disasters, and other problems our community faces. And fiber keeps fire, police, and paramedics connected to everyone in our community–including to hospitals and emergency rooms–providing an instant connection when and where help is needed most.
Educational Organizations
The quintessential anchor institutions are our schools. Centers of learning are focused on using the best and most creative methods to educate the youth in our community and to provide them with skills and knowledge for success.
Fiber optic technology provides our students with the best opportunity for success. Lessons that are supplemented by audio, video, and interactive elements are immersive, relatable, and inspiring—they teach our kids to engage in the world around them far better than any textbook. And everyone knows that textbooks are not cheap and become outdated quickly. By substituting standard equipment with tablets and devices, schools can save a great deal of money.\
The better the broadband connection, the better those devices perform. The Estes Park School District supports 1,500 devices, a robust server and wireless infrastructure, a security camera system, as well as a wide array of both educational and operational applications. The District also provides iPads for student learning for each student PK-12.
Strong connectivity also leads to more efficient collaboration through the use of tools like Google Classroom and Google Workspace for Education. Our students can communicate with teachers and peers on and off-campus and school staff can pursue professional development and continuing education opportunities.
Finally, imagine there’s a theater production happening in New York, or a space shuttle launch in Cape Canaveral, Florida. Obviously that’s too far for a field trip. With a fiber fast internet connection, our schools can live-stream programs and new feeds right into the classroom, allowing students to be a part of the world outside their geographic boundaries.
Libraries and Museums
Often overlooked, but nonetheless invaluable, public libraries and museums of all kinds provide educational, artistic, and cultural opportunities offered almost nowhere else. They bring together resourceful, knowledgeable experts and support staff that create experiences that both inform and inspire.
Groups as diverse as toddlers, school children, book clubs, tourists, and seniors are enriched by the facilities and programs libraries and museums provide. Without fiber internet, however, neither of these anchor institutions can fulfill their unique niche in our community, including facilitating beloved programs like story hour, reading clinics, film nights, visiting exhibitions, club meetings, and guest experts.
And the community can often access many of these features—including e-books and other electronic materials—from home through remote and online access. Thus, fiber keeps each of us better connected to our area’s libraries, museums, and related curated institutions and their bevy of information and collections that set them apart.
Fiber Internet Keeps Our Anchor Institutions Well-Connected to Our Community—and to You
As much as our community depends on anchor institutions to improve our daily lives and make our region a better place to live, anchor institutions in turn rely on dependable and fast internet to get their jobs done. And they also look to the local team of experts and technicians that keep Trailblazer Broadband’s fiber network running strong and efficiently—and with the local knowledge and care to respond fast and effectively to any technical issue that may arise.
Indeed, the team at Trailblazer Broadband are more than just internet service professionals. We’re also your neighbors. Like you, we live and work in our community, which means we rely on and appreciate the work of our community’s anchor institutions.
As your municipally owned internet company, we’re highly invested in responding swiftly to emergencies like outages, which in turn lets the good people at our local anchor institutions do their jobs serving our community and keeping it healthy as well.
When you choose Trailblazer Broadband for your residential or business internet, you support our business—enabling us to turn around and support our community. Thank you for shopping locally for your internet. We’re proud to keep the Estes Valley connected!
Despite all the benefits that the internet brings to our lives every day, there is also a nefarious side that people need to be aware of and smart about—scamming. Unfortunately, like with just about every other technology, fraudsters persist, always concocting new ways to acquire personal information or access unsuspecting victims’ bank accounts or credit cards.
Seniors are particularly vulnerable to the latest scams, especially because they have spent far less of their lives engaging with the internet than Millennials or Gen Z! And given the kinds of scams out there, seniors are more likely to click on links that seem innocent but that are anything but.
At Trailblazer Broadband, we take your online safety and security extremely seriously. But our technicians and online security experts can’t do it all. Nor can they watch out for scams that might hit your email account, social media feed, texts or web browser. You need to be vigilant as well.
Below we discuss ten signs that you are about to be scammed. As you will see, some of these signs are more obvious, while others can be cleverly sneaky about persuading you to “just click right now.” With even a little knowledge and some extra caution, you can avoid most scams, while enjoying Trailblazer Broadband’s fast and reliable fiber internet with greater confidence.
What is Phishing?
Before highlighting the most common signs that you’re about to be scammed, let’s briefly discuss the most common schemes plaguing internet users today, especially seniors: phishing. Phishing attempts to “lure” a victim into providing something to a scammer: personal sensitive information like full name, address, or telephone number, or an official identifier like a Social Security Number, or bank account or credit card information, or direct access to a computer or other device.
They come in many forms and some scammers can be quite ingenious about their phishing methods. But there’s almost always something “off” about phishing attempts and scams. Let’s now move on to the top ten signs to be aware of to prevent phishing attacks and other scams.
- Emails Arrive in Your Inbox at Strange Times
Many email scams originate from outside the United States in different time zones, some between six and twelve time zones away. Receiving emails in the middle of the night is a first sign that something is amiss. Further, if a hacker has taken over the email account of someone you know and sends you an email at an unusual hour (for them), that’s another indication to be suspicious—and extra careful.
- Email Address Irregularities
While scammers can easily disguise themselves in the Subject Lines of emails, it’s much more difficult to establish an email address that fits the company, government agency or other entity they are pretending to be. Look for addresses that employ @yahoo.com, @gmail.com, or similar services. No legitimate major company or agency would use such addresses to conduct business.
- Grammar and Spelling Mistakes
Scammers are notoriously bad spellers. And their command of the English language is frequently lacking. Astute and vigilant email users should note that misspelled words or blatant grammatical errors are a common sign of a phishing attack and should be ignored.
- Fishy Attachments and Files
Beware of messages with odd or intentionally vague attachments. Attachments marked “Invoice “or “Shipping Notification” are particularly common—especially if you are not expecting either from a vendor. And the type of file employed in the message is another signal, too, including zip and Microsoft Word document files. Some email programs or services automatically scan such files for viruses, but if you’re at all suspicious, just ignore the message entirely and not let your curiosity get the better of you.
- Urgent Demands
Another common trick many scammers use to get your attention is to demand action from you, often with an overwhelming sense of urgency. “Time is short!” “Respond immediately!” “Your reward expires in one hour!” These are just examples of demands designed to pique your interest and get you clicking. Don’t fall for them!
- Requests for Your Personal and/or Financial Information
Any email from any source whatsoever requesting that you enter your personal or financial information should be ignored immediately. Indeed, most companies state outright that they will never ask you to enter such information through an email correspondence. Such a request is one of the biggest indicators of a phishing scam.
- If It Sounds Too Good to Be True, It Probably Is
Phishing scammers have taken a play out of junk mail schemes dating back decades, promising rewards and riches if you act now. From dangling Amazon gift cards or cash prizes, these fraudsters know how to grab your eyes with such false promises—and hope to snag your bank account information through them.
- Phony Delivery Notifications
Increasingly common in text messages sent to your smartphone, fake delivery notifications are another scam. The first sign that something is “off” is if you weren’t expecting a delivery in the first place. Even if you are, proceed with caution. For example, before clicking on such a message, try to remember how the online vendors you usually use (e.g., Amazon) typically contact you. It probably isn’t through this type of text message!
- Surveys About Major Topics of the Day
Watch out for emails asking you to respond to surveys unless you know the source. Common topical surveys relate to COVID-19 vaccines and other public health matters. Again, scammers are trying to get your attention to get you to click. Don’t fall for it over the hot topic of the times!
- Strange Greetings and/or Tone in Emails
Our last indicator of a scam is less straightforward—especially if some scammers have avoided some of the more common examples above. Watch for overly generic greetings like “Dear Friend.” Or if they use your email address instead of your actual name in the greeting! Also consider if the tone of the email is “off.” If it comes from a familiar email address but doesn’t sound like the person you know, don’t respond. Or perhaps the email is geared toward subjects or purchases that are irrelevant to you. When in doubt, trust your gut.
We hope this guide will help you fish out phishing and other scams, and make you feel more confident when utilizing the internet. And for more valuable tips and advice about staying safe online, follow us on Facebook and visit us online at TrailblazerBroadband.com.
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This Trailblazer Team Spotlight honors one of the greatest assets to our fiber team, Greg “Go Rams” Smith.
A pioneer of fiber construction, Greg Smith has spent the last 4 years on the front lines of our fiber optic buildout. He brings 35+ years of Journeyman Lineworker experience to the team. After one retirement in Ft. Collins, he has been part of the Estes Park Power & Communications team for almost 7 years.
In 2019, he accepted the challenge of a split role of assisting in main fiber installation for the Trailblazer Project and has been an integral part of the Trailblazer Team since Day 1. Greg is a master at the electric line “override” (he can get that small fiber line through existing electrical conduit like running back through a defensive line!). Whether digging in vaults, overriding electric conduit, hanging fiber, splicing, troubleshooting, and leading crews, Greg has been one of the great driving forces behind the construction of Trailblazer’s Fiber Optic Network.
With all of his experience, Greg is the go to guy for safety and accountability. He learned additional skills related to fiber and took the team “in for the win” by pitching in on teaching and coaching. Greg has been an inspiration and great mentor for the newer team members.
Known for his witty sayings and creative nicknames, Greg can turn a boring workday into an opportunity to learn, grow and laugh. He is known to enjoy all of the great things that Colorado has to offer, especially the beer!
As an avid Colorado State University Rams Fan, Greg dedicated many years to the CSU football organization as the field communications coordinator which he retired from last year so that he can now enjoy the games without distraction!
If you call Greg or shoot him a text message, he’ll always close with “GO RAMS!” or his other signature phrase “10-4” You can find him at every CSU football home game, bu when you see Greg around town working in the field, be sure to wave hello and thank him for his dedication to Trailblazer Broadband. |
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