Author: KRDO

Josh Helmuth

Canon City High School has some serious bragging rights as they start school this week.

The Carnegie Foundation recently named CCHS as one of the most innovative schools in the nation. Why? It has a lot to do with their Capstone Program. The school submitted this video, showcasing their innovative ways to learning.

The Carnegie Foundation included this response during its recognition of CCHS:

“Cañon City High School, the single 9-12 choice of the Cañon City School District in Colorado, serves students with a future-focused approach to education. Guided by the district’s vision of “Learning for Life,” the school emphasizes student growth and career-readiness for an ever-changing world. Instruction is grounded in clear learning targets and active engagement through project-based learning. At the same time, through a capstone requirement, students are equipped with essential traits, including innovation, integrity, and agility, as well as critical skills such as collaboration and leadership. Cañon City High School is a state leader in implementing the Big Three: concurrent enrollment, industry-standard certifications, and authentic internship experiences.”

Bill Summers is the principal at CCHS. He said, “Earning this honor stems from our staff’s hard work to transform. That entails a willingness to exemplify learning new skills, no matter what age you are. Our district’s motto is Learning for Life, and CCHS staff live it daily.”

Is there something or someone remarkable at your school? Tell Josh all about it: SchoolBuzz@KRDO.com.

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Scott Harrison

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) — Continued work on the 8th Street bridge over Fountain Creek was why crews planned a daytime closure of the right northbound lane during the middle of the day on Thursday.

A flashing message sign alerted drivers that the closure would start at 9 a.m. and end at 3 p.m., between the rush hour periods.

However, an on-site supervisor said that the closure wasn’t necessary because crews were able to access an area that required heavy equipment close to the right lane.

The closure would have lengthened the time required for drivers to access 8th Street from the Take 5 car wash exit road and to turn north onto 8th from Garner Street.

A city spokesman said the lane closure decision wasn’t made until Wednesday afternoon, but that drivers should be prepared for unexpected closures and lane shifts during the project.

The current traffic configuration in that area has created a fairly tight squeeze for traffic, as drivers navigate narrower lanes across the bridge.

Because construction has closed one of the two lanes on the US 24 Frontage Road from 8th Street, northbound drivers must make an abrupt right turn to enter the remaining open lane — causing many drivers to jump the curb there.

The bridge is the key focus of the first phase of the $12 million improvement project on busy 8th Street that began two months ago.

Crews have removed the previous pedestrian bridge on the northbound side and will replace it with a wider sidewalk, or multi-use path, that will create more space for pedestrians and cyclists and connect to the nearby Midland Trail.

Workers are also taking the opportunity to perform much-needed maintenance on the 75-year-old bridge.

Another step is to build a dedicated northbound right-turn lane onto the frontage road to avoid slowing traffic flow in the two northbound lanes.

Pedestrians and cyclists can expect occasional sidewalk closures and concrete work during the project.

The project’s second phase starts this winter with the replacement of a Colorado Springs Utilities water main between Cimarron Street (US 24) and Motor City Drive.

Crews will repave the affected stretch of pavement next summer.

Other project goals include drainage work to prevent flooding and erosion from hills above 8th Street on Moreno Avenue and Lower Gold Camp Road, and installing sidewalks and curbs in front of businesses between Costilla Street and Bear Creek on the west side of 8th Street.

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Bradley Davis

PUEBLO, Colo. (KRDO) – Pueblo native Frank Sagona broke the one-hour pull-up world record live with Bradley Davis and KRDO13. Sagona’s team will now send the video to Guinness World Records for approval.

“Once {the hands} hurt, you just grab hard, and you pull harder!” Sagona said while showing his bloody calluses.

After months of training since his last appearance on Good Morning Colorado, Sagona attempted his sixth world-record-setting performance, aiming for 1131 pull-ups in one hour. KRDO13 watched Sagona come down to the wire, digging deep late to eclipse the mark with 1142 pull-ups.

“The thrill of victory and the agony of defeat feel different, but they last about the same amount of time,” Sagona said. “I’ve also been denied 8 times, so it’s just another day in the office.”

Sagona did his world-record attempt at the gym used by the Addict2Athlete support group. They help people recover from addiction through fitness, something Sagona said he struggled with years ago.

“If I’m willing to go that low and get worse, then I have to dig that much harder to get higher and better,” Sagona said.

Sagona said he hopes his continued success post-addiction will help inspire others struggling to kick the habit.

“Human beings are more capable beyond measure,” Sagona said.

Before his attempt, Davis also put a little bit of his training to the test. He tried to hit 21 pull-ups in a row to match Sagona’s goal pull-up rate per minute. Unlike Sagona, he failed, tapping out after 18.

Bradley’s pull-up attempt before Sagona’s world record attempt

Sagona has five world record plaques and two standing world records: 1010 chin-ups in one hour and 5049 pull-ups in eight hours.

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Rob Namnoum

MONUMENT, Colo. (KRDO) Palmer Ridge is coming off another strong season. They went 10-2 last season, but after their season ended with a playoff loss to Broomfield, the players are itching to get back out there.

“That’s my main motivator, I’d say. Like we all have the sour taste in our mouth. We come to practice every day like we’ve got a group chat, and that background of that group chat is that final score from last year that does not sit well with us,” says Palmer Ridge wide receiver, Michael Toth.

The Bears have a lot to work with, due to having most of their starters from a season ago back, “We’ve never had a team like this. Like even Coach Carter told us he’s never seen potential like this and he knows like, we’ve got a shot,” says Toth.

The players have been putting in the time to be great yet again, and they also found a new way to build team chemistry and get better.

“We’re big at Pickleball.”

“Pickleball?” asked KRDO13’s sports reporter, Danny Mata.

“Pickleball. That’s our thing. We all go play,” Palmer Ridge linebacker Brody Elliott told our crew at KRDO13.

“I mean, I feel like it’s that competitive aspect. I mean, football’s a little more contact. But, you know…we go pretty hard on the pickleball court. 

Palmer Ridge defensive end, Tyler Himebauch, adds, “Almost every single night. We just go out and play from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m. We’re just going out to play pickleball and go eat dinner as a team. Just like growing the brotherhood through that little competitive aspect of pickleball.”

You’d be surprised how pickleball helps them become better.

“I’m a bit lighter on my feet, like I’m swinging my hands a little bit more, so maybe I can use that for getting around a lineman,” said long snapper Tyler Himebauch.

Wide receiver Toth added that Pickleball helps with the team’s communication, allowing them to click on the field.

You can find the football game schedule for Palmer Ridge here.

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Mackenzie Stafford

EL PASO COUNTY, Colo. (KRDO) – 35-year-old Jacob Martinez was run over by a suspect on July 24, police said.

On the day of the incident, security footage showed Martinez getting out of his car, standing in the road, only for the other car to run him over and drive off. Martinez died at the hospital three days later, police said.

On Wednesday, KRDO13 spoke with a friend of Martinez who said he was the most caring, compassionate individual.

“Jacob was very hyper, and I do well with hyper people. He was my roommate off and on. And, he cared a lot. He was a very caring person. He liked to clean. He would always come and clean the house first thing in the morning. I could clean it at night, but he was going to clean it again in the morning. He always had to make my bed, get me up, and make sure I stayed up for the day because I tend to lie back down after having a heart attack,” explained Carol Hubbard.

Carol Hubbard tells KRDO13 that Jacob Martinez was her best friend.

“I could always depend on Jacob to be there for me,” shared Hubbard, “When I had my heart attack, he came to the hospital, told me he’d take better care of myself because he couldn’t lose me. And now I’ve lost him.”

She says he had spent the night at her home the day before.

“He had borrowed the…car that he had the day he got hit, and he came down. He stayed the night. He got up twice in the middle of the night to check on the car,” explained Hubbard.

Hubbard says he likely got out of the car to ask the other driver to back up since he was so protective of his friend’s car, which he was borrowing. She says that when the accident happened, he was on his way to her home.

“I had just talked to him and texted 30 minutes before this happened. So, I don’t know…I didn’t hear from him for days. And my daughter-in-law was like, ‘Have you heard from Jacob? Usually, he’s here,” shared Hubbard.

She says these past few weeks without him have been incredibly hard.

“I keep looking at the door, waiting for Jacob to come back through the door, and I know he’s never going to come back. It’s been hard,” said Hubbard.

A photo of the victim, 35-year-old Jacob Martinez, provided by family and distributed by CSPD.

A funeral will be held to honor the life of Jacob Martinez on Thursday.

“I know tomorrow’s supposed to be the final goodbye and everything for him. I just don’t. I don’t want to say goodbye,” said Hubbard, “He was only 35.”

Hubbard shared that she had known Martinez for 7 years. She says that at the start of their friendship, they’d stay up late into the wee hours of the morning with Martinez making her laugh the whole time.

“He’d just brighten the day. I close the curtains at night and stuff. He comes in and ties them up, moves them over. Whatever needed to be done. You know, he’d open the windows. It’d be zero out. He’s opening the windows to get fresh air in. We had to have fresh air let in every day…he’d open the windows and let the sunshine in. That was Jacob. He had to. And that was his way of, you know, brightening everybody’s day,” explained Hubbard.

The family of Martinez has asked for privacy during this time of grieving.

RELATED: Victim identified, suspect arrested in suspected Colorado Springs road rage homicide

Daniel Nations, the man accused of hitting and killing Martinez, is being held in the El Paso County jail without bond.

Carol Hubbard hopes Nations gets sentenced to life in prison to find justice for her friend Jacob Martinez. 

Nations will be back in court on October 8, 2025.

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Celeste Springer

EL PASO COUNTY, Colo. (KRDO) –The DEA (Drug Enforcement Agency) confirms they are conducting operations in El Paso County.

KRDO13 crews sent to the scenes witnessed agents at El Ranchito #2, located off Maizeland Road, as well as El Ranchito off Airport Road.

A spokesperson with the DEA made it clear that this is not an ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) operation. They say the operation is in coordination with Homeland Security Investigations.

However, an ICE spokesperson later said that their ERO division is on scene. They say that the FBI and IRS are also there.

KRDO13 is reaching out for further clarification on ICE’s capacity in this operation.

Details are limited at this time, but this article may be updated.

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Celeste Springer

EL PASO COUNTY, Colo. (KRDO) — The Baca County Sheriff’s Office says more than $120,000 worth of stolen items were found in rural El Paso County.

According to the Baca County Sheriff’s Office, they received a string of reports about stolen items. On Aug. 10, 2025, the sheriff’s office says a 24 foot trailer was reported stolen. The next morning, a skid loader was reported stolen from a construction site. The day after that, they received a report of a stolen pickup, which they believe was also stolen on Aug. 10, the sheriff’s office says.

Baca County deputies followed leads, and eventually they traced the items to El Paso County. The Baca County Sheriff’s Office says the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office was able to see some of the stolen items from the roadway. The information allowed them to get a search warrant.

Photo: David Walker

The warrant was executed early on Wednesday, and the sheriff’s office says they were able to recover the items. However, they do not have any suspects behind bars, as the department says the property was abandoned.

If you have any information about these thefts, the sheriff’s office asks that you contact them at 719-523-4511.

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Celeste Springer

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) — A Colorado hot air balloon company says it will be offering wheelchair accessible flights at this year’s Labor Day Lift Off.

The annual hot air balloon festival falls on Aug. 30 and 31 this year in Colorado Springs. Rainbow Ryders says they will also offer additional accessible flights before the event on Aug. 29. They say it’s their third year having the option available.

“As leaders in the ballooning industry, we truly believe these magical flights should be experienced by everyone,” says Lindsay Mayer, director of operations at Rainbow Ryders, in a press release. “This new accessible option is one more way we’re helping more people take flight and make unforgettable memories at Labor Day Lift Off.”

Staff with Rainbow Ryders say they expect to take flight alongside roughly 70 other balloons this year. Down below, there will be vendors, music, and contests.

For more information and tickets, click here.

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Scott Harrison

PUEBLO, Colo. (KRDO) — City officials and the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) have different perspectives on why safety projects at two District 60 schools didn’t happen this summer, as scheduled.

The projects are funded by CDOT “Safe Routes to School” grants.

A CDOT spokesperson recently told KRDO 13’s The Road Warrior: “There is no hold-up on the funding on CDOT’s part. Every one of our projects needs to go through a pre-construction phase that includes environmental, utility, and right-of-way clearance. Until the city goes through this clearance process, we cannot move forward with construction. The design consultant and the City of Pueblo set the schedule for these clearance processes.”  

Chuck Roy, the city’s acting public works director, sees the matter differently.

“I believe everything has been done to get us to the point that CDOT just needs to issue the notice to proceed,” he said. “We expect it to happen soon. But even if we got clearance now, it’s too late to start construction with schools reopening next week. There are some disappointments for sure, but we’ll have to wait until next summer.”

The projects will happen at Haaff Elementary and Park View Elementary schools, and are designed to make walking and biking easier and safer for students.

At Haaff, for example, the grant will provide $370,000 for wider, “high-visibility” sidewalks so that drivers can see pedestrians more easily; another goal is to install new curbs and ramps that meet federal standards for the disabled.

Included in the project at Park View is the installation of flexible barriers to separate bike lanes from traffic.

A third school, the Risley School of Exploration — a middle school slightly south of Park View — will also receive program funding for a project at a later date.

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Rob Namnoum

It’s year two at Vista Ridge for Matt Wibbels, “You know your kids names. Everything’s easier year to you. Just get to know each other and you just go, all right,” says Wibbels.

Vista Ridge slot back Aidan Vanaman adds, “You know, I like how Wibbs, He just understands, you know, every play. He listens to us.”

Coach Wibbs says if you listen closely, his team has more of a bark, “This year. We played a lot of puppies last year on defense, and they’ve all grown up a little bit. They’ve all got in the weight room. Their teeth have gotten a little bit sharper and we’re looking to go hunting this year,” says Wibbels.

Vista Ridge safety, Jacob Bourland adds, “We gain experience and knowledge. Our boys know. We know what we’re going against now. You know, we’re not little puppies no more. We’re big dogs.”

The puppies aren’t wetting in the floor anymore, “Yeah, exactly. When you play Pueblo West and Columbine and PR (Palmer Ridge) man, you’re going to get physical football. Last year, we were pretty young and sometimes 17 versus 15 years old gets you a little bit,” says Wibbels.

Bourland adds, “Our coaches come out here and they they tell us like, yeah, I mean, just because you’re young, you’re puppies, you know, you could still hang with the big dogs.”

The Wolves can’t wait to get their paws on the big dogs of Colorado high school football this year,

“We’re coming out with a different energy. This year we’re coming out this year and we’re gonna do it,” says Vanaman.

“This team’s hungry. We want to go against someone else. We don’t care if it’s five. We don’t care if their previous state champs. They’re going to get it. They’re going to get a different VR,” says Bourland.

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