TRAVEL Tourism and Taking Five.

• Author: BRONIKOWSKI, LYNN
• Position: Brief Article

A guide to resorts, conference centers, executive travel and really great relaxation

Colorado's travel, tourism and hospitality industries are flying high, right in formation with the state's booming economy. Not that Colorado has ever dropped off the tourism radar screen, even during tough times.

But with new business growth and an, astounding influx of new residents from other states, combined with Colorado's world-class reputation for natural beauty and top-notch urban attractions, it's no wonder the local travel and tourism industries are cruising at a higher altitude.

The memory is forever engraved in Keli McGregor's mind: Oct. 1, 1995, Coors Field -- the Colorado Rockies beat the Giants, 10-9, to clinch the National League Wild Card berth. Coors Field exploded; Denver's beloved 2-year-old expansion team was in the playoffs.

"1 got emotional and didn't expect to be that way," recalled McGregor, executive vice president of business operations for the Colorado Rockies. "I looked over at Mike McMorris, who wasn't doing very well by then, and I can't tell you how glad I was that he got to see that because by the following year he wasn't with us."

Michael D. McMorris, McGregor's friend since college and the son of Rockies owner Jerry McMorris, lost his battle with cystic fibrosis before the start of the 1996 season.

"Mike and I were roommates at CSU," said McGregor, a two-time All-American tight end who went on to play for the Broncos, Indianapolis and Seattle. "I didn't know much about cystic fibrosis at the time when I was growing closer and closer to him. I knew he wasn't going to be around forever and that our friendship was going to be around forever."

McMorris was courageous to the end, McGregor emphasized. He never complained and would tackle physical activities, such as skiing, climbing and rafting, just to say he tried.

"Mike's dream was to find a cure for cystic fibrosis -- not for selfish reasons but because of the effect the disease has on people, and he didn't want others to suffer," said McGregor, looking out over Coors Field on a hot July afternoon.

"Mike may not have been here that next season, but I felt like he was here."

McGregor carries on Mike's dream by sitting on the board of the Colorado chapter of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation and cofounding in Mike's memory the Reaching Out to Youth (ROY) Foundation to battle the disease.

"I felt like I owed it to him and those people touched by his incredible spirit," said...