Why there's smoke over Pikes Peak; update on fatal Monument shooting; Big race on the way

All the news you can use in a bite-sized format Hi {NAME}, Welcome to your Tuesday. You probably saw the smoke over Pikes Peak last night. Don't be alarmed - it's not from a new fire. It's coming from the Decker fire near Salida...[Read more.]( The Colorado Cold Case podcast returned for its third season, examining the unsolved killing of Palmer Lake mountain biker Tim Watkins and the questions that continue to haunt his family and friends. The podcast comes on the heels of the two-year anniversary of Watkins’ disappearance and death on Mount Herman...[Read more](. In superfluous news, today is National Eat Fruit At Work Day, National Hair Day and National Homemade Cookies Day. Today also is the birthday of President Jimmy Carter (95), actress-singer Julie Andrews (84) and actress Brie Larson (30). Without further ado, here are 5 things worth sharing today. 1. A Monument man was fatally shot Sunday by an El Paso County sheriff’s deputy after he reportedly fired a pellet gun at passersby and barricaded himself inside his home, Colorado Springs police said Monday. David Jaxon Page, also known as Jax Phalen, was killed near his Second Street apartment in Monument after a standoff, relatives confirmed. “David often didn’t understand — or comply with — society’s expectations and pushed boundaries to challenge himself and others," his mother, Crystina Page, said Monday in a Facebook post. “He struggled for years with his mental health and finally gave up on the system that failed him."...[Read more.]( 2. An unprecedented mountain bike race for Colorado Springs is being planned for September 2020. A media advisory sent Monday by Visit Colorado Springs said the four-day event will be held on the slopes of Pikes Peak, “utilizing dirt roads, four-wheel paths and mountain bike singletrack in the Rocky Mountain backcountry.”...[Read more.]( 3. Jerry Brown (photo, above) left an indelible jazz mark on the Colorado Springs music scene. The drummer and guitarist who performed at The Broadmoor, Pikes Peak Center, Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center at Colorado College and as a guest performer with the Air Force Academy Falconaires has died. He would have turned 75 on Monday...[Read more.]( 4. Whatever hit 3-year-old Bella Ritch in the gut — whether foot, fist or broom handle — came at her with the force of two cars colliding. A coroner’s finding that the Colorado Springs toddler died of a violent strike with a blunt object — connecting with the force of a “high-speed vehicle collision” — was among the evidence laid out at the trial of David Lake, who is charged with first-degree murder and child abuse...[Read more.]( 5. A grant of nearly $5 million to a Colorado Springs-based textbook organization will produce training for teachers in high-poverty rural areas of Tennessee and Kentucky to not only understand science content better, but also to help students more accurately interpret and grasp scientific principles. BSCS Science Learning is the only Colorado recipient among those getting 41 new grants from the U.S. Department of Education...[Read more.]( Bonus content - [5 fall color drives through aspen groves in Colorado]( - [With new legal threat, trout and popular recreation area back in spotlight]( - [New book features reduced calorie recipes for favorite restaurant dishes]( - [Utah has claim to largest aspen clone. But maybe it's in Colorado.]( Photo of the day - Discovery Canyon junior Kaden Ford won the Class 4A Region 1 golf tournament and is this week's Gazette Preps Athlete of the Week. Photo by Jerilee Bennett/The Gazette. See video and story on Ford [right here](. Thank you for reading! If you like this newsletter and want to support it, forward this email to a friend. If you’re seeing this newsletter for the first time, [you can subscribe here]( free. No spam. Unsubscribe whenever you want.  Jerry Herman Jerry Herman has been with The Gazette since 1997 and is its digital director. He's a graduate of Minnesota State-Moorhead and is a lifelong Minnesota Twins fan. Twitter - [@coloherman]( Email - jerry.herman@gazette.com [Subscribe to this Newsletter!]( [Subscribe to free Gazette podcasts!]( The Colorado Springs Gazette, L.L.C. | 100 E. Pikes Peak Ave., Suite 100, Colorado Springs, CO 80903 [Unsubscribe {EMAIL}]( [Update Profile]( | [Our Privacy Policy]( | [About Constant Contact]( Sent by noreply@gazette.com