‘Remember the Alamo’: Petition asks Trestle Bike Park to honor local BMX icon
Brett Payne/Courtesy photo
What is the measure of someone’s impact on a sport, a community, the world?
An online petition is now asking Trestle Bike Park in Winter Park to name a bike trail in honor of the late Joel Alamo.
Joel was a former professional BMX rider and longtime employee of Winter Park Resort. He died on June 1 from colon cancer following a 10-year battle.
As an influential figure in the biking community, Joel was well-loved by friends and served as an inspiration to others who knew him. He is survived by his wife, Melissa Alamo, and two daughters, Drew Oliver, 26, and Parker Alamo, 18.
Who was Joel Alamo?
Born and raised in Texas, Joel grew up on a bike. By the late 80s, he was considered to be one of the best in the BMX scene.
Joel became a pro for Mongoose bicycles, touring around the country doing BMX shows at malls and bike shops. He competed alongside BMX riders like Oklahoma legend Mat “The Condor” Hoffman, a worldwide icon in action sports.
In 2022, Joel was inducted into the Texas BMX Hall of Fame for his numerous BMX riding accomplishments.
Music, love and mountains
Joel met his wife, Melissa, in 90s Texas when she was hired as a DJ for a party of Joel’s. They were both rave DJs at the time and Melissa was working at a radio station while Joel was “riding on his own,” according to Melissa. Joel specialized in drum and bass music, while Melissa preferred techno.
The two moved from Texas to the Colorado mountains in 2004. Joel began working for Winter Park Resort in 2006. Utilizing a background in graphic design, Joel soon got a job with the resort’s sign shop, where he would work creating signage and way finding for the ski resort and Trestle Bike Park. Prior to working in the sign shop, he did trail work at the resort and bike park.
Parker, the couple’s youngest daughter, practically grew up on the mountain, Melissa said.
A 10-year cancer fight
Joel was diagnosed with stage four colon cancer in 2016. He was initially told he had two years to live by his doctor.
Joel’s first round of chemotherapy was “horrific,” said Melissa. He dealt with side effects like terrible vertigo, nausea and neuropathy which causes tingling and cold sensitivity. Neuropathy usually effects the hands and feet, which impacted Joel’s skiing, Melissa said.
For some chemotherapy patients, they can receive treatment while sitting in a chair for a few hours. Melissa described Joel’s chemotherapy as the “nuclear kind.” He would be attached to a “pack” for 48 hours that continuously pumped medicine into him.
At one point, Joel’s chemotherapy made it so that, if he were injured, it would cause nonstop internal bleeding. During this time, Joel wore a full-face helmet because a head injury would’ve likely killed him.
He did chemo many times over the years, according to Melissa. She remembers “quiet periods” with Joel’s cancer, but he was never truly in remission. It was something that always hung in the background, Melissa said. It loomed like a shadow or dark cloud.
Joel passed on June 1 after a nearly 10-year-long battle with cancer.
A portion of his ashes were spread over Berthoud Pass by friends, per his wishes.
‘Remember the Alamo’
Chris Olivier started a petition on Change.org that has garnered 292 signatures as of Friday, June 27 that asks Trestle Bike Park to name a trail in Joel’s memory.
“For those of us fortunate enough to call him a friend, Joel was incomparable in his humor, talent, and dedication—qualities that have left a lasting legacy in the biking community,” the petition writes.
Olivier said that it seems natural to honor Joel with a trail for his contributions over the past 17 years working at the resort’s sign shop. The idea not only honors his countless contributions to the resort and bike park, but, as Olivier said, one of Joel’s favorite places to be was Winter Park Resort.
He started the petition in order to introduce the idea to as many people as possible, while also gathering support for the idea. Through this petition, Olivier said that he’s seen firsthand how many people were impacted by Joel. Petitioners include a mix of Grand County residents, friends from across the country and many in the biking community.
“You know, when I first shared it, a lot of my friends around the country and even in Canada that used to compete here and knew Joel were sharing and promoting it,” Olivier said.
Much like Joel, Olivier, also grew up in the world of BMX. The two skied, rode and recreated around Grand County’s numerous trails. The two were friends for over 20 years.
Olivier said he used to do downhill racing himself and considers himself to be an involved member of the BMX and mountain biking community in Colorado. The two bonded over their shared passions and the fact that they were both the “older guys” in a scene of mostly younger people. It also helped that they both had similar senses of humor.
“We’re always almost always 10-plus years older than anyone we were riding with. It’s just how it always went,” Olivier said.
Olivier admired Joel’s dedication to riding even as the two got older. At previous Colorado Freeride Festivals, Olivier remembers Joel being, “hands down,” the oldest competitor each time. He also competed in other competitions like the mountain bike festival Crankworx.
Even so, Olivier said that younger “top of their game” athletes at competitions always treated Joel with nothing but respect and admiration.
“You could tell they’re like, ‘That’s my life goal, yeah, is to be like, this dude.’ To still be out here hitting these huge jumps and sending stuff in your 40s and beyond,” he said.
Olivier witnessed firsthand Joel’s long battle with cancer.
“It was a hard fought battle for 10 years, but he skied as recently as last winter. He skied a couple of days, got in a couple of laps. He always fought really hard for his family,” Olivier said.
Brett Payne was a close friend and co-worker of Joel. The two worked together for 17 years at the Winter Park Resort’s sign shop where they created approximately 95% of all the signage seen at both the resort.
Joel always called working at the sign shop his “dream job,” Melissa said.
“They do all the signage for the resort. His fingerprints are literally all over the mountain, both winter and summer. It’s interesting to just walk around and be like, ‘He did that,'” Melissa said. “So literally, his hand, his fingerprints are everywhere.”
According to Payne, Joel was always willing to share his knowledge with anyone. Joel readily shared his knowledge from being a longtime professional rider to young riders and even gave feedback as the resort worked to develop Trestle Bike Park. The first bike trail in Trestle Bike Park received the green light for lift-serviced mountain biking at Winter Park Resort from the U.S. Forest Service in 2009.
Joel also extended his biking knowledge to Payne’s two sons and Payne himself.
“He was always willing to share his expertise on that. My two sons and I went just this last summer, and he gave him a whole clinic on how to corner and jump or whatever,” Payne said. “He freely shared his expertise and time, especially in biking area.”
Joel was still doing 720s and 360s on his bike just a few years ago, Payne said.
Something that will be missed is Joel’s creativity, said Payne. Whether it was in the sign shop or riding a bike, Joel was always doing a new trick, working on a trick or designing and creating new things.
Olivier said that he hasn’t reached out directly to Winter Park Resort or Trestle Bike Park yet about the petition. He wants to wait a little longer before reconvening about pushing the petition further. He wants to give it time for as many people as possible to hear and back the petition.
To read or sign the Change.org petition, visit Change.org/JoelAlamo.
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