Date: 9/8/26 3:17 pm From: Peter Burke <peterburke...> Subject: [cobirds] Re: Results of the 2026 Colorado Birding Challenge are in!
Hi everyone,
This is the part where I have to eat crow.
I entered the incorrect par value for Grand County in my spreadsheet, which
means I incorrectly reported the winner of the Under-25 category. The
actual winning team is the *Stud Puffins* (Lachlan and Finn Dougherty), who
birded Grand County (par 63) and identified 98 species, reaching 155% of
par.
Congratulations to Lachlan and Finn, and my sincere apologies to The
Sapsuckers! The Sapsuckers found 118 species in El Paso County, which is
113% of par—still quite an achievement!
Best,
Peter Burke
CFO Board of Directors
On Tue, Sep 8, 2026 at 3:18 PM Peter Burke <peterburke...> wrote:
> Hi everyone,
> This has been a tremendous COBC with 27 teams battling it out in 21
> counties! I want to thank everyone who participated in the COBC this year,
> and especially all of you who supported them with your donations! We raised
> over $27,000, a 35% increase over last year!
>
> As I'm sure you're aware, a CFO member donated $10,000 this year in the
> form of a challenge grant that matched all donations we received up to the
> $10K limit, which we did in fact reach. This was a first for the COBC and
> brought added excitement to the event.
>
>
> *TEAM RESULTS*
>
> The winner in the Big Sit category, new for 2026, is *Davis' Deckhands*,
> captained by Davis who lives in Larimer County just west of Lyons. He found
> 25 birds in his yard this year, with the best being Pinyon Jay!
>
> The winner in the Green category is *The Superb Liarbirds*, captained by
> Riley Morris. They birded in Adams County, par 91, and, if they're to be
> believed, managed to find 52 species without the use of motorized vehicles!
> You can pick up your $75 gift cards at either *Front Range Birding*
> location in Boulder or Littleton. (If you can't make it to a store, call
> them to arrange mailing.)
>
> The Under-25 category was won by *The Sapsuckers*, captained by Andrew
> Leidenberger, who birded El Paso County, par 104, and found 118 species!
> Great result! You can pick up your $75 gift cards at either *Front Range
> Birding* location in Boulder or Littleton. (If you can't make it to a
> store, call them to arrange mailing.)
>
> And the official winner of The Challenge Category for 2026 is....cue the
> drumroll...*The Dolores Dippers*! Captained by trash talkin' Nathan
> Pieplow along with Luke Pheneger, Brian Genge and Pablo Quezada identified
> a whopping 121 species in Dolores County. An amazing total, and can you
> believe that they dipped on American Dipper?! You will each receive a prize
> package from *Swarovski Optik*!
>
> Congratulations to ALL the participants. I've really enjoyed reading the
> many accounts of your Big Days on COBirds!
>
> I'd also like to extend gratitude to our sponsors: *Swarovski Optik* and *Front
> Range Birding*!
>
> Finally, a huge thank you to the CFO members who made the $10,000
> challenge grant this year!
>
>
> *Next year's COBC will take place on Saturday, Sept. 4. Mark your
> calendars now and start thinking about which counties you might bird. Good
> news, you'll be able to reactivate your teams in Pledgeit with one click,
> making registration even easier. Once you have your team, it's simple to
> make changes depending on which county you are *birding* in and who is on
> your team.*
>
>
> Best,
>
> Peter Burke
> CFO Board of Directors
>
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