Published June 9, 2026 10:05AM
My family and I didn’t go to Keystone this past winter season to chase powder or clock in run after run. First of all, with Colorado’s dismal snowpack, that wasn’t really on the table anyway. Second of all, we were traveling with a one-year-old. ‘Nuff said. Instead, we went searching for something you can’t find on a trail map. Something built by humans, not the weather. We went looking for our people at Keystone Pride. Spoiler: we found them (sparkled, bedazzled, and all).
Of course, we were excited to celebrate our first-ever Pride as a family of three. Pre-baby, Courtney and I ventured west searching for under-the-radar mountain towns with queer community. But this year, our daughter, AJ, was along for the adventure. Part of what drew us to Keystone was word-of-mouth that it was a family-friendly mountain. There was also the timely chance to attend Keystone Pride on one of the last weekends the mountain would be open for the season. I was also super eager to meet Madison “Mads” Partridge, the founding Executive Director of Mountain Pride, the organization behind the queer-focused weekend event.
This small but mighty Colorado-based nonprofit serves the LGBTQ+ community in rural mountain communities west of Denver, including Eagle, Lake, Summit County (home to Keystone and Breckenridge), and the Roaring Fork Valley. Mountain Pride was born out of a scrappy vision and effort to put on the first Pride celebration in Eagle County during COVID. Since their inaugural gathering, Mountain Pride has grown into a 501(c)(3) serving thousands of local and visiting LGBTQ+ folks and allies throughout the Roaring Fork Valley with year-round programming.
The organization unites a sprawling rural region where queer people often feel alone. Mads has seen this firsthand. “So many of our community members experience isolation while they live up here, not feeling like they can show up as themselves,” Mads shared in a Zoom call before our trip. “Some do find community. Some don’t. But our first-ever event was the first space for many people to feel like they finally had community.” Coming from such a diverse and gay city as Chicago, I can’t imagine that kind of isolation.
Unlike many Pride events you’ll find on the mountain — like 21+ bar events and late-night circuit parties — Mountain Pride leans into community-led programming that’s accessible for and catered to more than your 30-something gay boy in neon booty shorts. Instead, think: book clubs, body-positive yoga, queer parent panels, coffee meet-ups, and youth-led events. Their events calendar is packed with, on average, a dozen programs a month. Beyond more local events, Mountain Pride also produces and partners with larger mountain-town Pride gatherings, including Pride in the Park in Avon (June 13) and Breck Pride (June 11-13), both of which are notably family-friendly.
We opted for Keystone Pride Weekend as I was genuinely interested to see Mountain Pride’s community work in action. I was eager to find out whether this was a genuine event rooted in local voices or just another line item on a resort’s marketing calendar. “[Before we partner] What we always look for is how they center the community (or not) and how the community’s voice is involved,” Mads explains. “Like, is this for show, or is this for true community connection?”
I was genuinely impressed on our first day on the mountain with the quick connections I made with senior Keystone leadership, core staff members, and dozens of locals and Mountain Pride volunteers, all of whom shared stories about their inspiring experiences as queer folks in this small mountain community. But, the reality still today, is that not everyone on the mountain embraces Pride.
“We do get pushback every year, like people on social media saying, ‘The mountain is more than your sexuality; that doesn’t matter on the mountain,’” Mads recalls, but firmly disagrees with. “It matters that we have the community, that we see each other, and that we provide representation on the mountain for young people today and for older generations that didn’t get to have these opportunities back then.”
I’ve spent the last several years seeking out Pride events that feel less like a raging party and more like an authentic community celebration. And, let me tell you, they’re extremely hard to find. But they’re out there… including Keystone Pride.
A few standout moments: The mid-day dance party at the top of a mountain. A jam-packed room for drag bingo. An impressive showing of skiers for a Pride parade run down the slope (shout out to the guys wearing Rozanov and Hollander jerseys instead of ski jackets). And don’t even get me started on the Farewell Drag Brunch — AJ was not only allowed but somehow ended up the star of the show (even though she slept through half of the performance).
Which raises the question: who knew babies and drag queens had so much in common? Both unapologetically themselves, capable of capturing a room with a simple twirl, and inexplicably able to make everyone around them fall instantly in love.
It’s in these kinds of moments that showing up together on the mountain becomes its own kind of beautiful protest. And for families like mine flying in, driving up from Denver, or visiting their local slope with young kids, that visibility is the whole point.
5 Takeaways (and Learnings) From Our First Family Pride
1. You don’t have to wait until your kids are older to bring them to Pride.
AJ won’t remember her first drag brunch, dancing to house music on the top of a mountain on my shoulders, or her moms screaming “BINGO!” at a drag queen at the top of their lungs. But we will. As did all of the other attendees who laughed and danced with AJ, and saw that it was possible to incorporate younger kids into Pride event programming.
2. That said, not all Pride events are family-friendly or family-focused (but they can be).
Of course, AJ was, by far, the youngest (maybe ever) Keystone Pride attendee. There were plenty of other events that happened that weekend that she couldn’t go to. And that’s okay! What’s more important is Pride event planners pushing themselves to incorporate family-friendly experiences into festivities. Greater representation is the goal.
3. Pride events can go beyond booze and dance parties.
From bingo night to drag brunch, Pride events can get creative with their programming. It’s as simple as that, really. In doing so, they’ll attract more attendees, especially in terms of age and interests.
4. It’s noticeable when it’s a moment, not a movement.
It’s blaringly obvious when a mountain resort has simply slapped a rainbow on its calendar or social media feed and called it a “Pride event.” Resorts that take an authentic and intentional approach to relationship building with their own employees and LGBTQ+ organizations, like Mountain Pride, stand out.
5. Drag brunch + baby = a vibe.
Truly. No notes.
