Cruising the Canyon For a Cause

BBC director Jenny Anderson rallies the Boulder community to elevate lives

By Wendy Swat Snyder

Stunning Front Range views and a high-octane joyride are just part of what draws cyclists to the annual Elevations Credit Union Buffalo Bicycle Classic (BBC). The Boulder community is committed to its mission of changing lives by making a college education accessible to top- performing high-need students. BBC director Jenny Anderson supports the state of Colorado’s largest scholarship fundraiser by ensuring the University of Colorado (CU) event rolls out each year at the highest possible level. With Boulder’s great weather and epic mountain trails at her back, the self-proclaimed event junkie continues to build on the BBC’s 22-year record of success.

The BBC shattered fund-raising projections out of the gate. What’s the draw, and who are the cyclists?

It’s not a race. We have a route for everybody. Our biggest draw is we close Boulder Canyon to westbound traffic so cyclists can ride safely—there’s no shoulder on the road. Our ride is always the Sunday after Labor Day so there are beautiful fall colors in the canyon, and we have nine different routes with a range that goes as low as 35 miles. The Epic offers a 100- and 75-mile course and goes up the canyon and Peak to Peak Highway. We even have a family-friendly 10-mile ride along bike paths, and at the end we have face painting and snow cones.

We also offer really good food—Lucky’s Market is one of our donors. We have 11 aid stations run by volunteers with healthy snacks, water and hydration drinks like Skratch, whose creator is a CU alum. And at the finish line we serve a pasta lunch catered by Spice for Life, and there’s a tent with artisanal beer from Left Hand Brewing. It’s all included in the registration fee.

Your track record running big events includes the PGA Tour, US Pro Ski Tour, World Cup Soccer, and the Democratic National Convention. How did you land at the University of Colorado?

I’m a CU graduate. My entire family went to CU, and my father was a regent at the university. I was the ride director for the Triple Bypass for six years when I learned of the opportunity at the BBC, and I jumped on it. I love that the funds we raise go to the perfect place—scholarships to CU for high-merit high school students. I share my responsibilities with Paul Beale. He is the faculty director and does a lot of the route work. We’re a team. And I rely a lot on the Board of Directors—they’re very involved in the event. It’s awesome. The majority of the board are CU grads; the others have close ties to the university. I really love my job.

There are also university groups like the President’s Leadership Club that pitch in to help with rolling out the event. CU ski team members do the ride and then they help with the break down afterwards.

Your challenges and achievements since becoming BBC director?

Three days after I joined the BBC team, COVID sent us all home. I’m really proud of the fact that we were able to hold the event in spite of the pandemic because our sponsors supported us through it. And this year, we’ll have a new organization on site. I donated a kidney in November to a 40-year-old male—I don’t know who he is—and the experience inspired me to have Donate Life America, a living donation organization, have a tent at the event. 

The event was launched in 2002. What initiated its founding?

Four people founded the BBC when they realized that there were no scholarships for the arts and sciences for in-state students. The past dean of arts and sciences Todd Gleeson collaborated with Frank Banta, Woody Eaton and Gail Mock. All our sponsors are local, and our title sponsor, Elevations Credit Union, has been with us since the founding.

What are some of the qualifying conditions for scholarship applicants? 

All of our scholars are high-achieving high school students who wouldn’t find college attainable without some level of financial assistance. They have to maintain a 3.0 average, and one of the prerequisites of the scholarship is that they volunteer the week of the ride for eight hours. Most of them volunteer for the day of the ride, and what’s really nice is they wear special colored tee shirts so they’re recognizable at the finish. And after the ride, we interview them so they can share their individual stories—how the opportunity to attain a college education through a BBC scholarship has changed their lives.