By Jacque Aragon
Special to The PREVIEW
The 13th annual Mountain Chile Cha Cha will be held Saturday, Sept. 22, in Town Park. The Pagosa Springs Area Chamber of Commerce is hosting the event this year.
This no-admission, all-day fall celebration features a free concert, a green chile cook-off and tasting, morning trail race, margarita contest and a beer garden.
Hatch green chiles will be roasting and for sale by the bag or the bushel. The aroma will be sure to tantalize your senses.
The challenging and beautiful fall trail run boasts a 5k, 10k and a half marathon. The race will wind up, down and around Reservoir Hill, beginning and ending in Town Park. The trail is mountainous and scenic with awesome views. This year’s race is hosted by the Pagosa Peaks Volleyball Club. Go to joingecko.org to register.
The 11th annual Patty Aragon Green Chile Classic cook-off and tasting start at 12:30 p.m. and will give spectators an opportunity to sample dozens of varieties of green chile from some of the area’s finest amateur and professional cooks. A total of $600 in prize money and awards and medals will be given. Register at: lovegreenchile.com.
There will be a commercial margarita contest, food and cold Mexican beer in the cantina. To register for the margarita contest, email events@pagosachamber.com.
Sangre Joven, a Latin-influenced band, will start the music at 1:30 p.m. and will go until approximately 5:30 p.m., with a short break in between sets to announce the cook-off and margarita contest winners.
The Mountain Chile Cha Cha is a rain-or-shine event. For more information or to sign up for the cook-off, visit ilovegreenchile.com. For race information, head over to joingecko.org.
