It started innocently enough. Last summer, the cloud of mystery that shrouded the Boulder tech community prior to the arrival of the TechStars intoxicated us. We knew a group of talented tech types was slated to descend on the area at any moment but when we asked for details we were told it was Top Secret. The only way you were getting into that secret society was if you knew a gatekeeper. I desperately wanted to know a gatekeeper.

I met the TechStars one by one as summer progressed. I remember meeting Josh Fraser of Eventvue during an Open Coffee morning at the now-defunct Vics. He had a business card that looked like one of those idiotic “Hello, My Name Is” stickers you are forced to wear at mixers. The card was so cute, so well done. He was running low but I made sure I got my hands on one. I was still writing down my information on a half-sized index card at the time. That way each person got a personalized card. Which worked until I realized how completely impractical it was.

At each tech event around town I’d meet a TechStar or two. At first they seemed to travel in packs but eventually must have learned that not every person on the Dev team needed to go socialize during Happy Hour* (much to the Dev team’s chagrin, to be sure). Startup Weekend rolled around in the middle of the summer and I got to see a few TechStars in action. It was clear they were hard at work on their own projects, but their enthusiasm for the weekend was contagious. Folks from startups all over Boulder and surrounding area turned out to make Startup Weekend the success it was and continues to be.

Unlike many startups in Boulder, Uncov, sadly, died yesterday. It’s over. The finger-wagging and vitriolic hating on all things web 2.0 has announced it’s bowing out. Less of a bang and more of a fizzle. Last year, Uncov “covered” TechStars in a piece entitled “Summer Camp Without the Girls.” Well, I’m here make sure the same thing can’t be said of TechStars in 2008. I want to hear the girl’s voices, see applications that have women on the team and find myself in the company of other witty, tech-savvy, driven ladies. You’re out there. Answer the call!

Working on nearly a daily basis now with TechStars I have a more balanced view of how it all works. Without the hype, TechStars really is a place to get your hands dirty, to have a sandbox that is both well-contained and far-reaching. It’s what you make it.

And I hope you will. Applications are now open. I promise you’ll love it. <3

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Resources:
TechCrunch Coverage of TechStars
TechStars Blog
Brad Feld’s Blog
Boulder Tech Events Calendar

*For the record, I think Boulder has more than its fair share of Happy Hours. Anybody else with me on this?