The “glue” of Trailblazer Broadband is someone you don’t always see, but she’s everywhere, keeping the wheels of progress – and construction – moving. She is Linda Swoboda, Estes Park Utilities Business Manager. Having worked with the Town of Estes Park since 2015, Linda has spent much of the last 4 years coordinating operations for Trailblazer Broadband as well as other utility projects for the Town. In her role with Trailblazer, she has created and coordinated the entire construction schedule with the fiber team and manages day-to-day operations, subcontractors, supply management, contracts, grant writing, and budgeting.
Swoboda has a dual expertise in Construction Management and Architectural Studies, backed by two bachelor’s degrees from the University of Nebraska, Lincoln, and an MBA. In addition to all her other responsibilities, she used her unique talents to design and renovate Trailblazer’s headquarters at 1180 Woodstock Drive. She has also provided independent estimating consulting services for building contractors and architectural design firms.
Linda grew up in Nebraska where she was a tenured associate professor at the University of Nebraska, Lincoln, teaching estimating courses. She was also a project manager for The Weitz Company in Nebraska and Arizona.
After relocating to Estes Park in 2010, Linda and her husband Gary became active community members. Swoboda is an occasional snowshoer, hiker, quilter and long-time member of the Estes Valley Quilt Guild.
“I am so happy to be here in the beauty of Estes Park and surrounded by such a great community of friends. The Trailblazer project has been a labor of love, and I am really looking forward to bringing it to its planned completion in the next year, ” Linda says. Trailblazer is incredibly fortunate to have Linda as its guiding force!
Trailblazer Broadband is municipally owned and is Estes Park’s only locally supported high-speed broadband service providing fiber directly to homes and businesses. The Town of Estes Park provides information only and does not endorse any listed companies, the views they express, or the products/services they offer. For more information about internet service, contact Trailblazer Broadband at info@trailblazerbroadband.com or (970)577-3770. More Trailblazer news is available at www.trailblazerbroadband.com and https://www.facebook.com/TrailblazerBroadband/.
Appeared in the Estes Park News June 23, 2023
Incredibly, the first four years of Trailblazer Broadband’s fiber buildout are behind us! Following a unanimous vote of the Town Board on March 12, 2019, the Town of Estes Park kicked off its community-owned and operated broadband. This high-speed internet service will ultimately be available to everyone Estes Park Power & Communications serves.
Currently, Trailblazer service is available to approximately 80% of the intended recipients and this year, construction has expanded into the outlying areas of Glen Haven and Allenspark. To date, there are over 3,200 Trailblazer Broadband customers, 250 of which are area businesses.
PROGRESS TO DATE
This new fiber network has been entirely built from scratch since the old cable infrastructure used by other carriers cannot provide the speed and reliability of 100% fiber optic lines. The state-of-the-art fiber infrastructure of Trailblazer Broadband requires an expansive network spread from 4 centralized “huts” to 55 strategically located cabinets and then to thousands of terminals across our valley.
Over 780 miles of fiber optic cable have been run since construction started in Sept 2019. As with electrical lines, main fiber lines may run overhead or be buried underground, depending on the location. When running fiber underground, crews typically follow existing easements which is why we may need to cross asphalt or concrete paved areas; however, we try to minimize cutting through these hard surfaces. “It is always our goal to make any disruption from our construction as minimal and short-term as possible,” comments Joe Lockhart, Estes Park Power & Communications Line Superintendent.
During the past four years, the Trailblazer team has constantly streamlined and adapted the construction plan to reach as many customers as quickly as possible while maintaining the efficiency and cost-effectiveness of the project. Linda Swoboda, Estes Park Utilities Business Manager explains, “Agility is essential to any large-scale project, and this one is no exception. During the buildout process, we encountered challenges from our surroundings including wildfire, record snowfall and freezing temperatures, fiber damage from wildlife and most recently, a lot of rain. The COVID-19 pandemic shut down our operations less than a year after we started building the network. We weathered that well, but the resulting supply chain issues and rising cost of materials continue to impact us today. Although other front-range communities – Longmont, Ft. Collins, and Loveland – have built similar fiber networks, none of them have faced the same terrain challenges that exist in the Estes Valley. Even considering those challenges, we have been ahead of our original schedule for a good portion of the buildout which leaves us well-positioned to complete construction by the original timeframe by the end of 2024.”
When we change our schedule, the timeline for some areas improves which pleases those folks, while other areas are pushed back on the schedule. We realize that delays can disappoint those eagerly awaiting service, and we are committed to getting everyone connected as quickly as possible. All community members are encouraged to register at www.TrailblazerBroadband.com to receive the latest news and updates with no obligation.
2023 KEY MILESTONES
As the project nears completion, two key milestones are taking place in 2023. The first milestone is making payments on the bond issued to fund the broadband buildout. This bond, procured grants, and Trailblazer client revenue have funded 100% of the project without using any tax dollars. “Obviously, bond payments are a priority for the project’s sustainability, and we are well-positioned to make those payments,” says Swoboda. “We also have to make sure that we pace ourselves efficiently to the finish line for the remainder of the project.”
To that end, the second milestone is to have the Estes Park Power & Communications fiber team do all future construction and installation work in-house. Trailblazer has relied on excellent contractors to help with the buildout, which would not have been completed as quickly or efficiently without them.
“This transition to the in-house team has been planned since the beginning, and now is the time,” states Skye Stiner, Trailblazer’s Lead Fiber Technician. “We are optimizing our resource management to complete as many Trailblazer installations as possible each week while continuing the overall network construction. Summer is always the busy season, and combined with longer run times to Glen Haven and Allenspark, we know the schedule will be tight until the end of the project. This may mean a little longer wait times for our customers from sign up to installation, so we encourage anyone interested in service to sign up as soon as service is available in their area and get on the schedule.”
COMMUNITY IMPACT
In addition to faster, more reliable internet, Trailblazer Broadband service is an investment in the community. Investing in its broadband service, the Town of Estes Park keeps dollars in the community while creating jobs and ensuring high-quality local support through Estes Park Power & Communications.
The fiber optic lines that provide state-of-the-art broadband service also serve as the foundational backbone of Estes Park Power & Communications’ Advance Metering Infrastructure (AMI). The AMI is comprised of smart meters and infrastructure devices to transmit the meter reading data. According to Reuben Bergsten, Utilities Director, “Our AMI data is analyzed to reveal potential problems, and we use that information to initiate preventative maintenance that reduces the risk of wildfire from our electric infrastructure.” This technology is essential to a well-maintained working system and will help the community reach its renewable energy goals.
From the outset, the broadband program has achieved success because of the community’s desire for high-speed internet and the support of businesses and residents alike for Trailblazer Broadband. In the words of one new customer, “This is exactly why we switched over to Trailblazer Broadband!! A local company and representative, watching out for us, personally answering the phone when I call, taking care of us.”
Reliable, high-speed internet is no longer a luxury. Ultimately, this is a public utility and a local asset that will provide additional value, opportunities, and sustainability to Estes Valley residents and businesses for years to come.
THANKS TO OUR PARTNERS
Trailblazer Broadband became a reality only through the efforts of a dedicated team. In addition to the Estes Park Utilities Team and Fiber Specialists, Trailblazer’s sales and support team includes Customer Experience Manager Kim Smith and Customer Support Representatives Teresa Jones and Angelo Raso, all of whom have been on board since the project began nearly four years ago. Trailblazer also thanks its valued partners Backbone Fiber Systems, GE Construction, Splash Fiber, OTM, eStrategy3, and FullStack for their various contributions and expertise essential to the buildout effort.
The Trailblazer team looks forward to completing the project in 2024 as originally planned and appreciates the flexibility and understanding of the community as we bring the broadband network buildout to a successful conclusion.
Trailblazer Broadband is municipally owned and is Estes Park’s only locally supported high-speed broadband service providing fiber directly to homes and businesses. The Town of Estes Park provides information only and does not endorse any listed companies, the views they express, or the products/services they offer. For more information about internet service, contact Trailblazer Broadband at info@trailblazerbroadband.com or (970)577-3770. More Trailblazer news is available at www.trailblazerbroadband.com and https://www.facebook.com/TrailblazerBroadband/.
I went to school in Estes Park, kindergarten-12th; graduating in 1973. 1977 Bachelor of Science, Colorado State University; 1978 Master of Science, Colorado State University; 2004 Doctor of Audiology, Central Michigan University.
I have the honor of being a two-time Olympian, 1972 in Munich as a senior in high school and 1976 in Montreal while an athlete at Colorado State University.
My 28 years in track and field exposed me to national and international politics as an athlete, team manager, USA track and field athlete representative and board member, Olympic Committee representative and Olympic Committee Board member. I participated in the meetings in Washington, D.C. when President Carter removed the U.S. team from participation in the 1980 Olympics, participated in summer and winter Olympic venue selection, and managed track and field teams for the World Cup in Barcelona, Spain and World Championships in Tokyo, Japan. I learned to see problems from many different perspectives, listen to many viewpoints, ask questions and make critical decisions.
In 1987 I returned to Estes Park to raise my family and continue working as an audiologist. As an audiologist, I served on legislative committees for business regulation and state conventions.
I have been fortunate to serve in many capacities for our community. 1991-1997 Park Hospital District Board of Directors; 1996-1997 President Park Hospital District Board of Directors; Recreation District Sub-committee member for expansion of recreation in the Estes Valley, Senior Center Board member and Vestry member at St. Bartholomew’s Episcopal Church, 25 year member of the Estes Park Lions Club and a Past President. 2010-2017 Town of Estes Park Trustee/Mayor Pro Tem 2013-2017; Mayor 2020-2023.
Source: https://dms.estes.org/weblink/0/edoc/132943/BIOGRAPHY%20Koenig.pdf
Trucks on the curb. Roadside digging. Traffic detours. Workers invading your quiet neighborhood. Although we do our best to minimize disruptions, we understand that the fiber construction process can be an inconvenience.
There is a lot of improvement going on around Estes Park these days! Improving any infrastructure—from internet networks to public roads—can be a hassle at the time, but the outcome is worth the temporary disruptions. As we work hard to bring future-proof fiber internet to our community, we wanted to take a few minutes to look ahead and consider all the value fiber can bring to our town.
We believe fiber is worth the trouble because we believe the Estes Valley is worth it—and we hope you’ll agree!
Fostering Remote Work Opportunities
For starters, fiber facilitates remote working. This provides more options to the people who live in our town while also enabling more people to move here and contribute to our local economy.
Remote working has expanded exponentially over the past several years, with some estimates indicating that up to a quarter of all professional jobs will be remote for at least a majority of their time. And having a reliable internet connection is simply essential for those remote workers to be productive and stay competitive with their colleagues!
Remote work involves much more than just web browsing and checking emails. Quality, interruption-free online videoconference calling is critical for remote workers to stay connected to their fellow staff members. Fiber internet has both the speed and the bandwidth necessary to make video calling clear and dependable, dramatically reducing the frustration so many individuals have felt in the past.
Of course, the presence of a trusted internet connection also makes employers much more willing to let their employees work remotely from home in the first place! We’re excited to see local residents take advantage of more remote work opportunities in the months and years to come.
Energizing Economic Growth
The economic value of fiber internet extends well beyond remote workers. Indeed, our community’s entire economy is improved by having access to future-proof internet.
Existing businesses are more efficient and can compete with companies in any major metropolitan area in America—or even around the world. That’s because Trailblazer Broadband’s fiber internet is as fast as that of any large city.
Having fiber internet helps attract new business investment to our area, too—and with it, more jobs. Fiber has a “multiplier” effect on our local economy, as each new business and job attracted to our area because of fiber spreads economic growth across our region, helping it grow and flourish.
Improving the Value—and Security—of Your Home
As fiber internet is the most sought-after form of high-speed internet in America today, having internet through Trailblazer Broadband can also increase the value of your home.
Indeed, one study indicates that having fiber internet can increase the value of a home by 3.1%! For the average-priced home in America, that could be a difference worth many thousands of dollars.
High-speed internet also helps protect your investment by keeping your home safer, too. Smart home technology has advanced considerably over the past several years. Smart cameras and doorbells can prevent “porch pirates,” smart lighting adds visibility at night and deters trespassers, and security systems can alert you and emergency services if disaster strikes while you’re away.
Facilitating Home Health Care
The technology enabled by fiber internet doesn’t just protect your home but the people inside it, too. The innovations in telehealth in recent years have made getting health care, including urgent care, faster and easier than ever before
A reliable internet service with fiber lets you speak one-on-one with your physician and other healthcare providers from home, making many health consultations much quicker and more efficient. These at-home telehealth sessions can even save you from unnecessary trips to the doctor’s office in the first place!
Telehealth isn’t just for conveniently treating the common cold, either. With a sufficiently strong internet connection, home health video conferences can provide better ongoing care and monitoring for those with chronic health conditions.
Improving Our Community and Providing Educational Resources
Beyond the walls of your home, the pillars of our community benefit from fiber’s incredible speeds and generous bandwidth, too. Public schools can provide extra learning resources for all our students and teachers. Public libraries can offer increased research capacity, media, and programs. Community centers for seniors and youth can extend their outreach through skills-building and hobby workshops. Emergency services are able to respond more quickly and accurately when needed.
In this way, Trailblazer Broadband’s fiber internet does far more than just help an individual family enjoy their home or a small business get the job done. At its core, fiber is as important a part of our community’s infrastructure and future as our roads and the electrical grid.
Competitive Gaming and Esports
Finally, fiber’s many advantages extend to the vast world of online gaming. Whether enjoyed solo or with friends or other competitors, online gaming has become a hugely popular pastime in America. And Trailblazer Broadband’s sophisticated fiber technology has all the bandwidth and extraordinary speeds to prevent lag, crashes, and other delays that plague online gaming, ensuring the best possible gaming experience.
While this may seem frivolous compared to other examples above, gaming isn’t only about having fun or passing the time. Esports (competitive video gaming in leagues and tournaments) has become a booming enterprise, taking ordinary online gaming and turning it into a serious sport
Esports can open up exciting opportunities for the next generation in our community. To date, more than 30 colleges and universities offer esports scholarships to talented gamers, some of which reach into the tens of thousands of dollars per year! From there, graduates can even find a career in many gaming-related fields. (Selfishly, we hope some of them will come back and join our own team to help us continue improving technology in our town!)
Get Connected
As we continue to build out fiber in our town, we’re excited about the future this technology can make possible here in Estes Park and we hope you agree! To find out when you can get connected, visit Trailblazer Broadband or call 970-577-3770 today.
Springtime in the Rockies is always full of surprises, which recently included a system-wide power outage for the Estes Park Power and Communications service area during the evening of March 30th. Estes Park Power and Communications line workers worked to restore power quickly and safely in less than three hours. During the outage, a number of questions came into Trailblazer Broadband’s 24-hour customer service line about the impact of a power outage on broadband service, and the Trailblazer team thought it was important to share the answers to those questions publicly.
First, in the event of a power outage such as the one on March 30th, Trailblazer Broadband internet service is available and accessible, thanks to backup resources that power the broadband network combined with redundant fiber paths out of Estes Park. If one fiber path is compromised, another one is instantly and automatically used to reroute internet traffic. If an outage is caused by fiber damage rather than a power interruption, the internet connection may be lost until a repair can be made. In that case, Trailblazer clients can go to www.trailblazerbroadband.com and click on “Status” for updates.
The second part of the connectivity answer depends on the internal workings of your home or office. Assuming your home is still connected to the internet, the next link is your Trailblazer Nokia Gateway modem/router which requires power to operate the same way your TV, monitors, and gaming devices do.
Of course, anything with a charged battery will work – a computer, laptop, tablet, smartphone, etc. For that reason, anyone who depends on the internet for work or school may want to consider investing in an Uninterruptible Power Supply, commonly called a UPS. Basically, a “battery in a box,” a UPS is a backup power supply for your Gateway and other essential devices, which can provide power for periods of time ranging from minutes to hours during a power outage.
If your Gateway has power from a UPS and the batteries are charged on your other devices, those devices can connect to the internet via WiFi or a hard-wired connection during a power outage. Many UPS products have multiple outlets and/or USB ports, much like a power strip, so you can power other essential devices as well as your Gateway modem/router as needed. Costs and capabilities of UPS backups range greatly across a variety of potential purchase options.
For home use, a UPS can keep you from losing your work or forcing a hard shutdown due to a sudden power outage. If the power is out longer than the battery life of the UPS, you have time to properly save your work and shut down your device. It is also necessary to have battery backup if you use a computer-based or Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) phone. Some UPS units protect your equipment from power surges, often absorbing any voltage irregularities without you even realizing it.
When considering a UPS purchase, first determine which devices besides your modem that you may want to power during an outage, keeping in mind that some devices such as TVs take a great deal of power and will drain your UPS more quickly. Some devices may already have battery backups of their own. For example, Medical Device Uninterruptible Power Supply Systems (Medical Device UPS Systems) are designed to provide uninterrupted power precisely for your particular medical device. Most home security systems are programmed to switch to backup battery power during a power outage. In both of those examples, it is important to double-check your system’s unique requirements.
Beyond purchasing a UPS, you may consider other long-term back options such as generators, cellular hotspots (assuming that the cell towers are operational), and heavier-use UPS units for businesses. To be prepared, assess your own situation and what is critical to you, your family and your business in the event of a future outage. As with fire and other weather dangers, it is advisable to have an emergency contingency plan for your technology as well!
Trailblazer Broadband is municipally owned and is Estes Park’s only locally supported high-speed broadband service provided over fiber optic lines. The Town of Estes Park provides information only and does not endorse any of the listed companies, the views they express or the products/services they offer. For more information about internet service, contact Trailblazer Broadband at info@trailblazerbroadband.com or (970)577-3770. More Trailblazer news is available at www.trailblazerbroadband.com and https://www.facebook.com/TrailblazerBroadband/
Whether you love your landline, a.k.a. home phone, or want to say goodbye to it, with high-speed fiber internet you have the speed, bandwidth and reliability to choose from a number of options and likely save money too.
Some people are choosing to use their cell phones or a free internet service such as Skype, FaceTime or Google Hangouts which doesn’t require any additional hardware or setup. You simply use an app on your phone or download the software to your computer, laptop or tablet, and use it for voice and/or video calling.
If you prefer to keep your home phone, VoIP (Voice Over Internet Protocol) is a phone technology that allows you to make and receive phone calls using the internet instead of traditional phone lines. It is economical and just as easy to set up as the landline phone service that you have right now. The only difference is it works over the internet instead of a traditional phone line. You probably have already used VoIP before without knowing it, through an app like Skype or Google Voice.
Trailblazer Broadband, Estes Park’s community-owned and operated fiber broadband company, has looked into offering phone service along with internet connectivity. After much research, Trailblazer determined that in light of existing options on the market and our relatively small customer base in Estes Park, it would not be able to offer VoIP phone service at a competitive price to our community.
While Trailblazer doesn’t endorse any specific VoIP phone provider, there are several great options to choose from including Vonage for Home and a provider called Ooma, which is a personal favorite of some associates here at Town Hall and some of our customers because of it’s low cost and ease of use. VoIP phones also provide 911 service, provided they have the internet and electricity to operate. This is easily accomplished in a power outage with battery backup so you don’t lose your phone and 911 service during a power outage. A UPS battery back can be found online or in stores like Best Buy, Walmart, Target, or wherever electronics are sold.
According to a recent AARP article, “At the moment, … Sunnyvale, California-based Ooma appears to be alone in offering something new that addresses reliability in an emergency. For several years, it has delivered very inexpensive VoIP service that competes with the likes of Vonage…In addition to the cost savings, the Ooma Telo 4G automatically gives first responders your home address in a 911 emergency. If you have a power outage, the backup battery will keep the phone running for up to 10 hours.” Read more of what AARP has to say about VoIP service in general and Ooma in particular.
Other advantages of VoIP phone service include:
- Most services work with many existing phones, so you likely won’t need a new phone.
- You will be able to keep your existing phone number or get a new one.
- Set up is pretty simple…You’ll just plug the phone into the back of your Gateway and go.
- Most services come with standard features such as caller ID, call forward, call screening and blocking, etc.
Finally, many people ask about 911 and emergency services since traditionally in an emergency, a good old-fashioned landline phone has been regarded as the most reliable method of communication. However, according to Chief Executive Michael Martin of RapidSOS, which works with thousands of 911 call centers across the U.S., “We are now entering an era where it is actually safer to call 911 from a cellphone because of all of the additional information that you are able to share.” For example, Apple iOS users can choose to share critical health information via the Apple Medical ID feature, a potentially lifesaving function.
As recently as 2004, over 90 percent of households in the U.S. had an operational landline phone, according to data provided by the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention. In 2020, that figure has plummeted drastically to about 40 percent. As landlines become more expensive and less widely supported, it may be time to think about a change. Learn more about how VoIP works in this helpful Beginner’s Guide.
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