James Robert Ruggles

James Robert Ruggles left his earthly body Thursday August 29th, 2024, due to complications from type 1 diabetes and a heart condition.

Jim or “Jimmy” was born October 11th, 1958, in Elkhart, Indiana.

He spent his early years in Elkhart where he enjoyed catching reptiles, swimming in the lake by his family home and playing music. He graduated from Elkhart Central high school in 1977.

Jimmy moved to Salida, Colorado in 1978, driving his scout Westward loaded with his tipi, poles on top, which he lived in for his first several years in various places around Salida.

He got a job at Monarch where he was a liftie and then drove cats. He was one of the first badass Tele skiers at Monarch.

Around 1982 he owned and operated the Park Place restaurant, which is where The Fritz is today. (When you look up you can still see the beautiful tin ceiling he installed.)

Sometime around 1983, Jimmy started working at River Runners as a guide. He became a trip leader and trained many of the guides on the river all through the 1980s.

He also had a short stint as an Outfitter in the San Luis valley.

His love of music and playing the keyboards was almost as big as his love of nature. He was in a local band called Pressure Drop from 1983-1985 with Tim Brown, Stew Pappenfort, and Lance Willits. It started with Park Place hang outs with Lance on guitar and Jimmy on the old upright piano. Pretty soon others joined, and they were a band.

He was a lifetime Deadhead seeing the Grateful Dead starting in the 1970s, so naturally he spent most of the 90s playing keyboards in a well-loved Colorado Grateful Dead cover band Shakedown Street.

He worked on a construction crew for Danny Knight in the early 2000’s. Working on and building a lot of structures around the valley.

In the Bongo Billy days, you would see him at open mic night ripping Neil Young tunes or his originals on his accordion with his scratchy bluesy voice.

What the people who loved him all have to say is that he loved all animals, wild and domestic. (He was a friend to every dog, horse or cat he met.) He enjoyed observing all the wildlife coming onto his off-grid property and texting all of his close friends’ photos of bobcats, elk, birds of prey, lion tracks and the first signs of autumn, winter or spring. He had a great passion and reverence for the earth.

He loved his dog Tele who went everywhere with him.

He was preceded in death by his father Robert Ruggles, his sister in-law Douglass Rankin and his beloved companion Tele.

He’s survived by his mother Janet (Nicely) Ruggles, siblings Will, John (Jackie) Andy (Gail) and Kathy (John). Nieces and nephews, with whom he was so proud of, Michael and Noah Ruggles, Diana and Cari Witcher, Al and Sarah Broadfoot.

And he is survived by all of the people in Salida who loved him dearly from 1978 all the way to 2024. He was a genuine and kindhearted friend. Jimmy was an absolute Salida legend and will live on by the all the Jimmy stories told by the living.

Please join us for a celebration of this lovely human’s life on October 3rd 5:30-7:30 at The Vic with Roundhouse Assembly playing from 8-10. Come with your favorite Jimmy story to tell!

If you’d like to do something in his honor, consider a donation to Ark valley animal shelter or the Rex foundation.

To plant a beautiful memorial tree in memory of James Robert Ruggles, please visit our Tree Store.