Congrats to Newlyweds Chris Copley & Greg Shinbur!

It’s Sunday night post-Bronco game and as I’m stuck on Federal Boulevard desperately trying to get to my Jefferson Park apartment, newlyweds Greg Shinbur and Chris Copley are laughing via the Bluetooth of my car phone. All three of us have spent the day watching NFL games and despite living mere yards from the Bronco stadium, it slipped my mind that my neighborhood would be completely blocked off and I’d be swept away in a sea of orange and blue. As I finally find a place to pull over (aka the Safeway parking lot off of 26th Avenue and Federal) and begin our conversation about their wedding, Greg entertains me with a traffic account that he and Chris recently endured. I pulled out my laptop and climbed into the backseat of my car as Greg and Chris walked me through their storybook — albeit funny, at times — wedding.

On September 13, 2014, Greg Shinbur and Chris Copley decided to do it in the woods — get married, that is. With the help of more than 70 friends and family members, some barbecue, and giant magnets, Greg and Chris exchanged vows in Nederland, Colorado.

The story of their engagement began in February of last year, after Greg popped the question while on a trip to Boston. Though the couple currently resides in Maryland, Greg’s dream has always been to have a wedding in his home state of Colorado.

“My entire upbringing took place in Colorado,” Greg says. “Since marriage wasn’t legal by September 13 in Colorado, we decided to do the legal part in Maryland and the ‘true’ celebration in Colorado.”

From the moment they got engaged, Greg and Chris knew they wanted to be married on September 13, as it was the day Chris’ parents were married. Chris’ father honorably served in the United States Army and passed away while working overseas in Iraq. Chris and Greg’s wedding was a tribute to Chris’ father and a celebration of their love for one another.

When September 13 rolled around, Chris and Greg were prepared to make the wedding an entire weekend affair, calling it a “Colorado adventure wedding.” The entertainment began when the couple first stepped off the plane.

“We rented all of these vans with giant magnets on the back that said, ‘Do it in the woods with Chris and Greg’ because it was an outdoor wedding,” Greg says. “Chris is from a family of all brothers and when one of his brothers showed up at the airport, Chris made him ride in the front seat of this van that said to do it in the woods and it was just absolutely hysterical.”

Since the majority of Chris and Greg’s friends came from out of state, they wanted to give their guests the full Colorado effect. While referring to their wedding as a two-day event, the couple had everyone’s schedule completely booked.

“We started with a trip to Black Hawk on Friday night so everyone could do a little bit of gambling,” Greg says. “Saturday, everyone did nothing but sightseeing before the wedding, and Sunday was our Denver Day, so we ventured through the whole downtown area.”

The weekend was made all the more special as their guests began to arrive in Nederland and were greeted by Colorado weather.

“On Saturday morning, everyone woke up to two inches of snow,” Greg says. “It melted throughout the day, but everyone got to see one of those picture perfect Colorado moments.”

The wedding itself proved to be picture perfect, as well. Friends and family gathered with the backdrop of the mountains, wild turkeys joined the wedding party, and the couple decided to forgo the traditional champagne toast in place of bourbon. The whole scene could have been picked from a Pinterest board; chalk boards reading “Give love a shot on us” stood next to miniature bottles of bourbon and a roasted pig from KT’s BBQ was shared among the guests.

“Our wedding was the first time our families got to meet each other, and now our mothers are practically best friends,” Chris says. “This was more than just a wedding, this was an experience everyone got to share together.