Instructor Bio

(970) 231-4516

Owen Richard grew up skiing, biking, and rock climbing in Wisconsin before moving to Northern Colorado in 2001. Shortly after that move, he began venturing into the area's winter backcountry. During this period He took his first two avalanche L1 classes, with AIARE in 2002, and DPSP in 2007. As his experience with the terrain grew, he pushed out further into bigger descents requiring more thorough route planning. In 2012, Owen gathered his OEC certification and became a member of Diamond Peaks Ski Patrol. Recognizing his propensity for leadership, he became the director of the patrol in 2015 and stepped down in 2023. Patrol director duties included oversight of interagency agreements with the State of Colorado (CPW, State Forest State Park), Larimer County Sheriff Emergency Services, US Forest Service (ARP Ranger District), Jackson County Sheriff. Specific on-the-snow duties often included making avalanche risk assessments for mission responses and training days with the sheriff department; and routine patrol days with the USFS require constant vigilance in assessing snow conditions for safety, from avalanche and thin snow perspective.
He began teaching avalanche courses with DPSP in 2012 (NSP curriculum), then with Never Summer Outdoor School in 2016 (AIARE), and currently with Bluebird Backcountry since 2020.