Photos: March 1 proclaimed Ed Zink Day in Durango and Colorado

Ed Zink, center, owner of Mountain Bike Specialists, holds a State of Colorado Proclamation from Gov. John Hickenlooper on Thursday naming March 1 as Ed Zink Day, after Mary Monroe Brown, near left, executive director of Trails 2000, read and presented it to him, following Durango Mayor Dick White, right, who read the city’s proclamation also naming March 1 Ed Zink Day, and John Whitney, left, Western Slope regional director for Sen. Michael Bennet, read a letter from the senator congratulating Zink on all his accomplishments as the business celebrated its 50th Anniversary.

Mountain Bike Specialists celebrated its 50th Anniversary on Thursday with about 50 people gathering at noon for the kickoff of the day-long celebration. Owners Ed and Patti Zink were surprised by how many former employees and customers from the past showed up.

A photo of the old Crawley’s outdoor sporting goods store that Ed Zink and his parents bought and then moved across the street into the pool hall where Mountain Bike Specialists is still located after 50 years is seen next to a celebratory cake on Thursday.

Mountain Bike Specialists owners Ed Zink, near right, and his wife, Patti Zink, right, along with store manager John Glover and his wife, Michele Glover, cut a ribbon on Thursday supplied by the Durango Diplomats to signify another 50 years in business as the downtown Main Avenue retailer celebrated its 50th Anniversary.