First Deployment, Tough Terrain, Zero Incidents: ARESDEC at The HUNDO 2026
By Michael Smith, KF0PAY
June 13, 2026, started the way you hope a mountain race day starts: clear skies over Bailey, CO, highs climbing into the mid-70s, sun on the ridgelines above Buffalo Creek Recreation Area. By evening, a cold front had pushed through, bringing clouds, gusty winds shifting from west-northwest to east, and a real chance of thunderstorms. Between those two bookends, 480 mountain bike riders pushed through some of the most demanding terrain on the Front Range, and a 20-operator amateur radio team kept the communications infrastructure running behind all of it.
For ARESDEC (Amateur Radio Emergency Service of Douglas and Elbert Counties, Colorado ARES Region 1, District 5), this was a first. The HUNDO had never been on our event calendar before. It is now.
Total event attendance exceeded 550, with 480 riders registered for the 100K and 64K distances. Organized by Shift Events, The HUNDO is a serious race on serious terrain. It requires equally serious communications support, and that is exactly what ARES brought.
A New Partnership, Built on a Proven Track Record
The relationship between ARESDEC and Shift Events did not start with The HUNDO. Brody Salinger, Dave Muscianisi, and Jen Barbour at Shift Events already knew how ARESDEC operates, from our ongoing work supporting the Mad Gravel and Spring and Fall Poker Runs. That history matters. It meant the pre-event planning was direct, the operational expectations were aligned, and race morning did not require anyone to explain what amateur radio emergency communications actually does.
Shift Events specifically wanted ARESDEC involved because reliable communications are not optional for a safe event in terrain like Buffalo Creek. Riders spread across miles of trail, mobile medical assets moving through the field, aid stations positioned at long distances from one another, the Events team needs a communications backbone they can count on. That is what we were there to provide, and both parties knew it going in.
On the medical side, Event Medical Specialists provided on-site EMT coverage throughout the race. Special thanks to Chris Wentz and his team, whose integration with our tracking systems added a layer of operational awareness that directly supported rider safety.
What the Mission Looked Like on the Ground
Our footprint on race day: Start/Finish line coverage, four aid stations along the course, two SAG vehicles, and three Rovers moving through the field. The primary mission, reliable voice communications, anchored everything else.
What set this event apart technically was LoRa-based real-time tracking for SAG vehicles, Course Sweeps, Rovers, and EMTs. In terrain like Buffalo Creek, where ridgelines block signal and creek drainages create coverage gaps, knowing where your mobile assets are at any given moment is operationally critical. Net Control had a live positional picture throughout the day. Brody Salinger’s event staff and Chris Wentz’s medical team knew where to find support.
When the afternoon weather shifted, winds building, clouds moving in, the cold front making its presence felt, the team stayed coordinated across the full course, keeping tabs on the changing weather and ready to communicate operational changes if needed. No incidents escalated. Every rider who needed support got it. That outcome defines a successful activation.
The terrain here is also worth noting for a different reason: Buffalo Creek is a genuine stress test for off-grid communications equipment. The same is true of the Poker Runs. These are not controlled environments. Operators find out what their go-kits actually do under field conditions, not in a parking lot.
Three Districts, One Team
Twenty operators. Three ARES districts. One operational picture.
R1D5 (ARESDEC) led the mission. R1D6 provided a very significant share of the planning and operator roster; they answered the call for a first-time ARESDEC event without hesitation, and their contribution was essential to the event. R2D3 filled out the team and provided much-needed historical context on communication challenges. Cross-district mutual aid is something that ARES organizations discuss in planning documents. On June 13, it was just what happened.
That kind of response is what makes regional ARES networks resilient. No single district has unlimited depth. The ability to call on neighbors and get experienced operators who show up ready to work is the difference between a staffing plan and a staffing gap.
Community Impact
Events like The HUNDO sit at an intersection that matters for public safety: large-scale outdoor recreation, remote terrain, and the need for communications infrastructure that conventional systems cannot reliably provide. Amateur radio fills that gap.
The partnership ARES has built with Shift Events and Event Medical Specialists is not a one-time arrangement. It is a working relationship with organizations that understand why reliable communications are a requirement, not a nice-to-have. As The HUNDO grows, so does the scope of what ARES brings to it.
Beyond the race itself, every activation like this one builds operational experience across the ARES network, cross-district coordination, LoRa integration, mobile asset tracking, and real-time weather response. Those are skills that transfer directly to emergency activations when the stakes are higher and the margin for error is smaller.
For the 550+ attendees and 480 riders at The HUNDO 2026, the communications team was background infrastructure. For the community of Douglas and Elbert Counties, and for the broader Colorado ARES network, it was a demonstration of exactly what trained volunteer operators can do.
Bonus: Camping Was Available — And Worth It
Buffalo Creek Recreation Area offers on-site camping, and several operators took advantage of it. Coming out the night before, setting up camp, and running a full race-day activation is a different experience than driving in at dawn and driving home at dusk. If The HUNDO returns to the calendar, and we expect it will, plan to make a weekend of it.
Ready to Get on the Air?
If you read this and want to be on that team next time, the path is straightforward. Get your amateur radio license, find your local ARES organization, and start showing up. The work is real. The training transfers. And when a race is running safely through difficult terrain with 480 riders in the field, the operators know exactly why they are there.
Colorado ARES is actively recruiting licensed operators across the state. Find your district and get started at coloradoares.org.
ARESDEC is the Amateur Radio Emergency Service of Douglas and Elbert Counties, operating as Colorado ARES Region 1, District 5. ARESDEC serves Douglas County OEM, Elbert County EOC, regional hospitals, and community events across the Colorado Front Range.