First Sniagrab camper gives up, leaves, is replaced by empty tents

By Noah Hubbell Tue., Aug. 28 2012 at 3:59 PM

Camper No. 1.

Yesterday afternoon, across the street from the Westword offices, the first Sniagrab tent popped up on the sidewalk outside Sports Authority in anticipation of huge discounts on sporting gear. With a new law banning urban camping on the books, Sports Authority acquired a permit from the city to allow prospective buyers to camp on the city streets. The first in line -- and the first to leave the line -- was 22-year-old Derek Rivoli, a soft-spoken snowboarding enthusiast and aspiring nature guide.

The first to arrive for the sale... or so it seemed.

Being the first of anything is a lonely endeavor, and camping for a sale is no exception. Last night, Derek's lone tent stuck out like a sore thumb on the sunny Broadway sidewalk. "I'm just hanging out and meeting new people at the same time," Rivoli said, though he admitted that the only new person he had met was a guy who randomly walked by to laugh at him. "I was backpack guiding all summer, so I figured camping out for five days wouldn't be that big of a deal for me." He was reading King Solomon's Ring by Konrad Lorenz, which he called "pretty funny," while waiting for his girlfriend and buddies to join him for a few nights of lighthearted urban fun. Rivoli didn't appeared too concerned about the week, but what happened next was so alarming that it shook our reporter to his very core -- or at least surprised him.

Derek Rivoli as he was last seen.

When we went back to check up on Rivoli a while later, his tent was gone -- vanished, seemingly into thin air. Even more mysterious: By the next morning, four more tents had taken his place, and all of them were empty, leaving even more unanswered questions than the night before.

Continue reading to learn more about the mystery of the empty Sniagrab tents.

Location Info

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Sports Authority Sports Castle

1000 Broadway, Denver, CO

Category: General

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Derek Rivoli, Sniagrab, Sports Authority, unsolved mysteries, urban camping ban

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Jt Colfax

"http://occupydenver.org/occupy-sniagrab/"

Jt Colfax

By 10pm on the 29th there were Plenty of tents, and some of them are filled with Occupy Denver members. There were 20 occupiers between 9 and 10:30 last nite, and it's really only just begun. There will be way more occupiers in the next few days. Everything was pretty peaceful though, since there is only one cop. 20 occupiers against one cop and Nothing happens.....hmmm, a lesson about who starts the violence?

guest

1 Like

slow news day, eh? nothing like westword cutting edge reporting on the day's hottest issues

Andy Peters

Has anyone, you know, asked Sports Authority about it?

Justin Luke Coleman

I worked it last year. Trust me they don't need to do that. People from all over travel here for this shit. It's pretty wild.

Travis Volz

Of course. It's a smart marketing tactic.

coloradommjpatient

1 Like

The camping ban was aimed directly at Occupy PERIOD. How many homeless have been arrested over it???

RobertChase topcommenter

@coloradommjpatient They don't want to arrest homeless people; just harass them, force them to move on, out of the public's view, and into more dangerous circumstances. I cannot speak for all of Occupy, but as a participant and an advocate for the homeless, I consider that the ban was motivated by both the Downtown Denver Partnership's desire to drive the homeless from sight as well as Hancock & Co's desire to suppress Occupy -- as far as these people were concerned, the ordinance is a two-for-one. There is no shortage of the disaffected, the homeless, or of youth in the Parks during the days, and to the extent that they become politicized or participate in protest, more of the fantastically overbearing repression in which both the State and Denver engaged last Fall and Winter is probable.

RobertChase topcommenter

I want to know more about the "special permit" that allows Sniagrab customers to violate D.R.M.C. Article III, 38-86.2; there is no mention of a permit to get around the camping ban in the text of the bill, and we have heard nothing about any emendation. No doubt David Broadwell could explain how it is perfectly legal for the City to pass an ordinance targeting the homeless and political protesters while not enforcing it in the case of Sniagrab campers. David Lane should leave Boulder to its own devices and concentrate on suing Denver!