A view like no other The view from Sheila Ranegar’s porch just outside her house near Nederland. PHOTO BY JAMIE LAMMERS[/caption]

The view from Nederland’s Equestrian School on 1508 Lazy Z Road is expansive. It’s a rare view that allows for a breathtaking, uninterrupted look at the mountains for miles.

It’s also supposed to be a view best experienced in silence with only the sounds of the natural world surrounding you. The view should let someone look out into the horizon and take a deep breath to let go of their worries. It’s a location where the peaceful scenery surrounds students as they learn how to ride horses.

Unfortunately, over the last couple of months, that beautiful, quiet view has become tainted with a new kind of background noise. On March 26, 2021, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) implemented the Denver Metroplex plan. The implementation of this plan increased the number of commercial planes and jets flying over lesser populated areas, including over Gross Reservoir, the southern edge of Boulder County, and Coal Creek Canyon.

The plan’s impact was not initially evident, as flights decreased at the start of COVID. Since the beginning of summer, however, the impact has become more clear as residents have had to deal with dozens of planes flying over their homes every single day. They are also flying lower than they used to, as the planes do not start gaining altitude until they reach the mountains.

This increase in airplane noise has caused an increase in stress and a decrease in proper sleep and relaxation as a result of constant noise from the planes. This is something that Equestrian School teacher and owner Mrs. Sheila Ranegar can testify thanks to personal experience.

Initially, Ranegar tried to ignore the almost constant plane engines roaring around the ranch she calls home, the acoustics of the surrounding valley only making the noise worse. However, after a while, she realized that simply ignoring it wasn’t going to be possible. Planes would wake her up early in the morning and late at night, and the close span between flights gave her, her husband Mr. Ed Ranegar, and her 30 riding clients no room to breathe.

Twice near the end of July, Ranegar logged most of the planes she heard throughout the day, only leaving out those that flew over while she was teaching or talking with others. Between approximately 5 a.m. and 11:13 p.m. on July 28, 2021, she logged over 100 flights essentially coming over her house nonstop.

Ranegar knew that she needed to take action. She did not want to live the rest of her life wearing earplugs or listening to music through earbuds, and she hated thinking about the idea of a world where no one knew what a truly quiet environment sounded like.

Advocating for the mountain residents that choose to live in these areas for the quiet, she emailed the federal government. She wrote a letter explaining how disturbing the noise was for mountain residents and emailed it to contacts who represent Colorado officials

In addition, she sent a copy of the letter to the Boulder County Commissioner’s office through an online form. Further, Senator Hickenlooper’s aide, Chris Rork, accepted an invitation to a meeting to discuss the issue.

This meeting, which is open to the public, was requested by the Gilpin Residents group GRRift, or Gilpin Residents Refuse increased flight traffic, a resident group created in late 2019 to combat the flight traffic problem in Gilpin County. The Gilpin Board of County Commissioners organized the meeting, a work session which will hopefully involve more state representatives, with the intention of discussing information about increased flight traffic and hopefully encourage state officials to advocate for Gilpin County. Ranegar hopes that even if no long term change comes from this work session, more officials can be made aware of the severity of the situation and understand that one of the biggest reasons people choose to live in the mountains is because they love the quiet.

To share your concerns with your representatives, email Congressman Joe Neguse via Erika Blum at Erika.blum@ mail.house.gov, Senator Michael Bennet via Amy Friedman at Amy_ Friedman@ bennet.senate.gov or Senator John Hickenlooper via Chris Rork at Chris_ Rork@hickenlooper.senate.gov.

The work session is scheduled for Tuesday, August 17, 2021, at 5 p.m. in the Gilpin Community Center. You can find out more about GRRift’s past efforts via their Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/Grrift/.