Wordsworth Michael Elliott

Mike Elliott did everything well. He made his parting from this world no exception. On September 23, 2024, Mike passed away peacefully at home in Durango while surrounded by his family. He was in the place he loved best with the people he loved most. As Mike maintained throughout his 82 years of life, “How you do anything is how you do everything.” 

Mike was born in Durango, Colorado on April 3, 1942 to parents Nancy Monaghan and Wordsworth “Tad” Elliott. He graduated from Durango High School and Fort Lewis College. A fourth-generation Coloradan, Mike took every opportunity to explore the surrounding landscape and give back to the community that raised him.

Mike began cross-country skiing as a young boy and compiled a vast competitive resume over the course of his life. A three-time Olympian, Mike achieved excellence in ski racing at the regional, collegiate, national, and international levels.

In 1968, Mike put his competitive career on hold to serve a tour of duty as an Infantry Officer in the United States Army, which included a year in Vietnam. Mike served his country with honor and was awarded the Combat Infantryman Badge, Vietnamese Gallantry Cross, and the Bronze Star Medal. 

Despite the interruption in his training, Mike returned to a successful athletic career, highlights of which include a third Olympic Games and winning the inaugural Iron Horse Bicycle Classic in 1972. 

Mike was instrumental in building the sport of skiing in the United States and Colorado. He served on President Gerald Ford’s Presidential Commision on Olympic Sports, was the head coach of the Durango Nordic Ski Club for ten years, the executive director of Rocky Mountain Nordic for 13 years, and helped found a financial support organization for junior athletes in Colorado. 

Mike worked at Purgatory Ski Resort in a variety of managerial positions for a combined 25 years. A ski run at Purgatory called Elliott’s is named after him in recognition of the role he played in the development of the ski area. 

Mike’s career is an impressive one, and the contributions he made to his country and community are immense. His proudest achievement in life, however, was his family. Mike met his love, Nancy, in 1985. The two were together for 39 years and married for 36. Every one of them, according to Nancy, was an adventure. Mike introduced her to everything he loved about Durango, from kayaking the Animas River to two-step dancing at the Sundance Saloon. Mike and Nancy married in 1988 and welcomed twin boys Evan and Tad and daughter Paige to their lives. Mike’s fondest memories were of backpacking with his family in the San Juans, the same mountains in which he grew up. 

Mike was a devoted father, husband, mentor, and friend. He loved Colorado history, old westerns, a firm handshake, telling tall tales, and telling them again. He never met a dog he didn’t like and freely shared maxims such as, “If you’re not five minutes early, you’re five minutes late” and “Work to resolve the issue rather than prove you’re right” (unless you are in fact right, which he always was).

Mike’s passing is deeply felt by his family and community; Durango just doesn’t feel the same without him. Mike, however, always insisted that “life is for the living.” In honor of his memory, we encourage those who knew him to live large and love like you mean it. 

Mike is survived and lovingly remembered by his wife, Nancy Elliott; children Evan (Irelyn), Tad, and Paige Elliott; grandson Callym Elliott; sister Lucy Olson; and numerous family and friends across the country. A celebration of life will take place on October 19 from 4 to 7 p.m. at The Powerhouse Science Center.

Finally, the Elliott family would like to extend our deepest gratitude to the hospice nurses who made Mike’s transition to his next big adventure as comfortable as possible. His primary nurse was kind enough to share that, as far as patients go, Mike was the best, to which his family replied: typical. He really did do everything so well.