EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
director@durangonordic.org

Amy has lived in Durango for nearly 25 years, and has served in community roles as the Public Service Staff Officer at the San Juan National Forest, Natural Resource Manager for the City of Durango, and Executive Director of La Plata Open Space Conservancy. Her degree is in International Agriculture and Natural Resources from the University of Wisconsin at Madison and her early career combined summer seasons as a National Park Service backcountry biologist with winter seasons in mountain town outdoor retail. Her passions for outdoor recreation and land stewardship extend beyond work into personal life where she skis, bikes, hikes, backpacks, and paddles. Relaxing at home really means fun home improvement or other handmade projects.

NORDIC CENTER MANAGER
helen@durangonordic.org

Helen has worked at the Durango Nordic Center for more than three decades. She started as a volunteer, transitioned to an instructor, and then took over as manager of the Center over a decade ago. She has a Masters in Outdoor Education and worked for Outward Bound for 11 years. Helen is originally from the Isle of Wight which is off the South coast of England, but she has now made Durango her home. In the summertime Helen is a river guide on the beautiful Middle Fork of the Salmon River in Idaho.

HEAD COACH
headcoach@durangonordic.org

Abe grew up in Durango and started training and racing with DNSC at an early age. After many successful seasons and more than a few lessons learned, he graduated from DHS and spent a few years traveling, working as a guide and as a ranch hand. He then went back to school and earned a degree in Economics with a minor in Business Administration and Education. After managing a ranch in Fort Collins for 3 years and meeting his wife, he moved back to Durango and started managing the cattle at the James Ranch. Abe has been coaching for Durango Nordic off and on since 2014. Abe finds coaching is fulfilling and feels it is a privilege to teach kids.

ASSISTANT COACH
assistantcoach@durangonordic.org

Sarah Olson grew up just north of Minneapolis, MN and skied for both the loppet foundation and Blaine high school until she left to ski for the University of Alaska, Fairbanks! After graduating in 2023, she began working seasonally as a wildland firefighter through the summer months, and would head to Antarctica during our winter months.

LEAD TRAIL GROOMER

Hired in 2015 Jesse has put in thousands of miles grooming snow at Durango Nordic Center by snowmobiles, UTV, and three different snowcats. He loves the fall trail work too; it’s a large task weed whacking all 10+ miles of ski trail and removing down trees, including on our snowshoe trails. When it starts to snow, he is at the center getting trails open and signed, keeping it going as long as possible.

 Jesse is happy to call Durango home as he loves all the public open spaces and trails here. Raising his two sons has been his main focus for many years. In the warmer months of the year, Jesse paints houses and has been a master painter for over 20 years. When he is not working, you might find him out on a daily walk in the foothills of Durango or high on a mountain peak in the San Juans.