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Someone a lot smarter than me once said, "where there is a will, there is a way." In Steamboat Springs, people continue to prove it every day, and every year. The examples are everywhere.

This year, ski jumpers will open a new chapter in our town's long Nordic tradition when they soar off the new K-68 jump on the face of Howelsen. A few years ago that jump was just a dream, but thanks to the hard work of a dedicated group of volunteers and several grants, that jump is a reality.

This winter, tennis players in Steamboat Springs kept their serves sharp thanks to the protective covering of a new, state-of-the-art tennis center. The center, which replaced the old bubble, will allow that sport to continue to grow in the Yampa Valley for years to come.

Let's not forget the new clubhouse at the Haymaker Golf Course, which is expected to open in the next few weeks, or the Howelsen Ice Arena downtown, which has proven to be a great addition.

The price tag for all those extras runs into the tens of millions of dollars, yet in Steamboat Springs our appetite for sports continues to grow, and we always seem to find ways to bring new and useful projects to town.

Now, a new wave of seemingly impossible, but much needed projects has blossomed.

One group has proposed an artificial turf field for the high school, another wants a new recreation center and still others want to cover the pool at the Steamboat Springs Health and Recreation Center.

It's overwhelming, but in a community like Steamboat, it's not out of the question that all three will be realized. This community is built around the pursuit of sports. Our winters are full of skiing, ice hockey and high school sports. In the summer baseball, soccer, biking, running and swimming fill our schedules.

Since I started working at the newspaper, the high school has added more sports than I can count and many of the newest sports are played in the spring season when our weather is wildly unpredictable.

When I moved here in 1990 the only sport offered at the high school in the spring was track. Today, that sport shares the season with girls and boys lacrosse, girls tennis, girls soccer and boys baseball.

It's no wonder that parents and students are lobbying for artificial turf at the high school. Our community created the demand for it.

The same can be said for a covered swimming pool. This town's successful summer programs have created a demand for a pool that is deep enough to host meets and sheltered from the weather.

Only time will tell if Steamboat can find a way to add all these new amenities. But one thing is clear -- our will to pursue sports is not going away.