Traffic guru living his best life in the pines
By Chris Michlewicz; photo courtesy of the Luber family
Jayson, Gina, Jolene and Jaylyn Luber in front of Cherokee Ranch & Castle in Sedalia.
As a kid in suburban Detroit, Jayson Luber would listen to the radio and dream of being an on-air personality. He thought about how incredible radio could be, how it transports listeners to a different world, and he’d walk around with a tape recorder, narrating the action happening around him. Fast-forward 30 years or so, and Luber is doing precisely what he always envisioned, albeit in a different medium at a different altitude.
Luber, a Castle Pines resident of seven years, says his job as traffic anchor, reporter and forecaster at Denver7/KMGH is a dream come true. He started out in sports talk radio after moving here from Georgia in 1993, and later worked for KOSI 101, KS 104 and 850 KOA, which partnered with 9News. But it wasn’t a job opportunity that brought him to Colorado; it was the promise of a fulfilling lifestyle.
“What separates cities now are climate and recreation, and you can’t really find a place that has better climate and recreation than Colorado,” Luber said.
Luber has been married for 17 years to his wife, Gina, and they have two daughters, Jaylyn, 12, and Jolene, 9, who were featured last year in The Castle Pines Connection for their baton-twirling prowess. In fact, their performance in a national competition earned them a new family member from the Dumb Friends League in Castle Rock, known for the time being as “Kitty Meowie.”
When he’s not getting up at 2:30 a.m. to help Denver-area commuters get to work on time, Luber can be found on the golf course or exploring places like Cave of the Winds and the Paint Mines east of Colorado Springs with his family. He also enjoys community activities, like movies in the park.
“I like being in this community because people want to be in this city,” said Luber, who lives in the Winter Berry neighborhood in Castle Pines.
Perhaps Luber’s greatest passion, however, is helping others through volunteer work. Prior to the pandemic, he spent considerable time at his daughters’ schools as a tutor, and he’s helped out at the Dumb Friends League, Columbine Never Forgotten Fund and Colorado Christian Services, among others.
The award-winning newsman, who also hosts a regular Denver7 segment and weekly transportation podcast called “Driving You Crazy,” says the state’s population growth has dramatically changed traffic patterns, but he still enjoys the challenge of finding new ways for motorists to get around.
