Overheard in a local eatery: “I’d rather have two feet of snow than all this wind. This is driving me mad.”

Everything you have wanted to know about high winds in Boulder, and then some.

In a nut shell:  In 42 years worth of data, 175 days recorded winds of 70 m.p.h. or greater. Eighty six of these occurred in December and January. The highest wind gust recorded was 137 m.p.h. on Jan. 16-17, 1982, with 20 gusts of greater than 120 m. p. h. Forty percent of all Boulder buildings sustained damage. Most of the highest winds were in south Boulder.

The highest wind recorded in the Boulder area was 137 mph

The highest wind recorded in the Boulder area was 137 mph

Boulder has some of the highest peak winds of any city in the US. 

For data and tables, go to:

http://www.esrl.noaa.gov/psd/boulder/wind.html