GREEN MOUNTAIN FALLS • Bronc Day may have changed since it launched 83 years ago, but the tradition of the grand marshal of the event’s signature parade is much the same as it was long ago.

Clay Gafford, who has been named the 2021 parade’s grand marshal, represents a storied family in the town’s history. The Bronc Day Parade begins at 10 a.m. July 31 on Ute Pass Avenue.

The Gafford family moved to town in 1961 from their home in Cortez and bought the Elkhorn Stables, one of two stables in town back at the time.

“There were probably 50 head of horses for rent and people were riding them, up and down the streets,” he said. “The Bronc Day parade was a big deal. There would be 50 to 60 horses in the parade.”

Gafford attended the first three grades of el- ementary school in the former school building in Cascade, where the library is now. From fourth grade through high school graduation, he attended schools in

Manitou Springs.

The family suffered tragedy when Gafford’s father, Jerry Gafford, was killed in 1969 after being struck by a teenage driver in Colorado Springs.

As a result, Gafford and his mother, the late Barbara Gafford, ran the stables

“We made it work until I got into an apprenticeship program at Berwick Electric in Colorado Springs,” he said. (He retired as part-owner of Berwick after 37 years with the company.)

In 1975, the family sold the stables, which went on to have a series of owners and eventually failed. “But the town was changing; people didn’t like horses in town anymore,” he said.

With the sale, Gafford’s mom, Barbara, bought a house in the middle of town behind the post office where he still lives, part-time, today. “She bought it from the Houchin estate and paid $22,000 for it,” he said.

To the old-timers, Gafford is remembered for owning The Market on Ute Pass Avenue, which he bought in 1991. A community gathering spot, an informal coffee shop, The Market kept ice skates on hand for the children to use on Gazebo Lake.

He eventually sold the little grocery store and, after a series of owners, it ultimately failed. Gafford still owns the little building, now called the Red Cloud, which hosts support-group meetings.

These days Gafford takes an active role in the town’s goings-on. A couple of years ago, he threatened to sue the town after the trails committee built a section of trail that that crosses his 62-acre property near the summit of Mt. Dewey. Mayor Jane Newberry directed the committee to temporarily close the trail.

After complaining about maintenance in the parks, Gafford successfully volunteered to be on the town’s parks, trails and recreation committee.

On the divisive issue of the new parking kiosks in the town, Gafford said he is all for continuing the pilot program, citing the influx of hikers last year. “With the kiosks, at least we’re getting revenue,” he said. “And that’s a good thing.”