GLENWOOD CANYON, Colo (KDVR) — An impromptu concert cheered up drivers stuck in traffic along Interstate 70 over the weekend.
Three out of the four members of the newgrass band Elk Range made the best out of a traffic jam that left drivers along I-70 in Glenwood Canyon stranded for hours.
“We were jammin’ in traffic,” Betty Hooping, one of the band members, said. “I think it was after the first half hour that I decided, ‘Well we got a little bit of whiskey, we got our instruments, let’s go out and make some fun, make some memories.'”
The group played for about 20 minutes, took a quick break and headed back out at the request of others.
“They saw us and they knocked on the window and said, ‘Hey would you come back out and play some more for us? We didn’t get to hear you the first time,'” Ken Gentry, one of the band members, said.
The impromptu concert brought together drivers from all over.
“Everyone has somewhere to be, but when you’re forced to be present and you look around you and make friends out of strangers, it’s something that sticks with people,” Hooping said.
The video has already reached thousands of people. Gentry said now strangers are reaching out to thank them.
“We got one this morning on Facebook and it said, ‘A few years ago I was stuck in the same canyon. I got out, partied a little and spread some of my husband’s ashes there. Thanks for taking the music to him. He was a helluva dance partner.’”
It’s moments like these Gentry said they’ll remember forever.
“I think that’s one of the things that makes music so special to us is we get to touch people like that,” Gentry said.
The group also customized limited-editions hats with the slogan, “Elk Range — Glenwood Canyon, CO — Traffic Jam ’23.” For more information on Elk Range, visit their website here.
“We wanted to just expand our community of people who weren’t just on the road, but also inspired and kind of wanted to join in,” Hooping said.