CHEYENNE, Wyo. — While Colorado may ban the sale and use of most fireworks, that isn’t stopping Coloradans from finding ways to obtain them.

A couple of miles north of the border between Colorado and Wyoming lies a cluster of fireworks shops off Interstate 25. Exactly one week before America’s 250th birthday, the shops were full on Saturday of customers packing shopping carts with fireworks. Most were Coloradans who traveled to stock up on fireworks that are illegal in Colorado.

Colorado customers interviewed by The Denver Gazette said that in addition to looking for fireworks they can’t get back home, the quality and price of fireworks in Wyoming is just plain better.

In Colorado, any kind of firework that leaves the ground or explodes is banned for personal use. That means many kinds of popular firework types, such as firecrackers, cherry bombs, Roman candles, mortars, M-80s and bottle rockets, are illegal, except when used by professionals in coordinated shows.

That leaves Coloradans with the option of using fireworks like sparklers and fountains if they wish to celebrate legally. Under fire restrictions, all firework use is banned, even ones typically allowed in Colorado, though many said they were less worried about fire restrictions after heavy rainfall in the Denver area in recent days.

Steven Truiett, Wyoming regional manager for Phantom Fireworks, said Coloradans make up a large portion of Phantom’s customer base at the Cheyenne location. On Saturday morning, cars with Colorado plates made up about 75% of the cars in the parking lot. 

Driving up along I-25, drivers may spot a series of billboards in both Colorado and Wyoming directing customers to the shop. The location sells a wide range of fireworks, including ones both illegal and legal in Colorado, though store manager Rachel Lejeune said Phantom tries to make legal Colorado fireworks accessible to customers. Walking in, the first aisle customers will come across is one dedicated to sparklers and other products that can legally be brought back to Colorado.

While the weekend before the Fourth is typically pretty busy, Lejeune said business ramps up each day during the countdown, with July 3 being the busiest day. Typically, Lejeune said Phantom will fill the store on July 3 to its fire safety capacity of 400, with customers needing to wait outside to get in.

The store also sells a wide range of safety equipment, including water buckets and eye protection, with safety being a priority of the store. Walking in is like going to a bar; workers check IDs to make sure everyone is old enough to buy fireworks, and customers even get a coupon for doing so.

Lejeune also said Phantom makes donations to local fire and police departments to assist them in firework education and response efforts.

“They’re not gonna stop selling fireworks. People aren’t gonna not buy them,” she said. “We can try to help educate people how to do it responsibly.”

Keeping people from bringing illegal fireworks into Colorado is difficult. While the Colorado State Patrol said it regularly enforces traffic stops near the state line, there is no dedicated team looking to prevent people from bringing illegal fireworks into the state. Troopers can only stop vehicles and search them with probable cause. 

If illegal fireworks are found, they are subject to confiscation and destruction, with those found in possession subject to fines of several hundred dollars, depending on the jurisdiction and possible jail time.

Friends Jacob Fragoso and Gerome Mailo said they made the two and a half hour drive from Colorado Springs in search of fireworks on Saturday morning. At Phantom, they filled two carts with a collection that included the best of both worlds: mortars, as well as sparklers and safety equipment.

The two said they were prepared to spend about $2,500 to $3,000, which included fireworks picked out for themselves as well as ones their friends asked them to buy. They said they usually drive up to Wyoming about once a year to stock up on fireworks.

“I got little things for the kiddos, some nice sparklers,” Mailo said. “Just typically things you can’t get in the Springs, you can’t get in Colorado at all, the things people enjoy, that they like to see.”

Or, as overheard in the aisles of Phantom Fireworks from another customer: “If it doesn’t go boom, then I don’t want it.”

David Trujillo traveled to Phantom from Lakewood, which he said was primarily motivated by better prices.

“They’re a lot cheaper up here, for starters,” he said. “In Denver, the stands charge probably about double or triple what you pay up here. And everybody likes stuff that goes boom in the air.”

Trujillo also said he decided to choose Phantom after he received a coupon in the mail. His haul did include fireworks illegal in Colorado, and while he said he planned to launch them from his backyard, he also said he was prepared with fire extinguishers and water hoses.

Located in the same cluster of firework shops is Artillery World, which displays its Colorado ownership proudly on banners hanging on the outside of the store. The store is owned by Pete Elliott from the Denver area. His adult daughter owns Jurassic Fireworks, situated just down the road.

Aubrey Elliott, another of Pete’s daughters, told The Denver Gazette that Artillery World is open year-round, but typically picks up in business around firework-related holidays like the Fourth and New Year’s, resulting in an increase in staffing.

Elliott said the store tries to appeal to Colorado customers, with its location a few miles from the border being both strategic and competitive, given the other few shops situated in the area.

“We strive to help our people from Colorado, since we’re from Colorado as well,” Elliott said. Just like at Phantom, Colorado plates made up a vast majority of cars in the parking lot, at roughly 80%.

And, similarly to Phantom, Artillery World’s first room that customers will walk into is entirely full of Colorado-legal fireworks. 

Jonathan Gamez and several friends came up to Artillery World from Denver. They walked around the store packing their cart, with Gamez estimating the group’s haul, which included fireworks illegal in Colorado, at more than $1,000 worth of fireworks.

Gamez said he planned to hit all the stores in the cluster to pick out a wide range of aerial fireworks that make a lot of noise and have a lot of color.

“I don’t know if I’m a pyro junkie or not,” Gamez said. “I just like explosives.”

As for where he planned to launch his haul, Gamez said they would be launched around his neighborhood.

“Just disturb the neighbors,” he said.

Myrna Tamblin came to Artillery World with family members from the Denver area. Tamblin said they decided not to go for as many aerial fireworks as they usually do and instead opted for fireworks that were legal in Colorado, primarily because of concerns about starting a fire.

As for why they opted to drive an hour and a half to get sparklers and fountains instead of buying in Denver, Amy, one of Tamblin’s family members who declined to give her last name, said the decision was driven by Artillery World having a better selection and better prices than what’s available in Denver.

“They just last longer,” Amy said. “And they’re not duds.”

Weather on Saturday was nice and sunny with clear blue skies, perfect for a road trip. Many of the customers said they had planned pit stops for their brief trips, with several indicating they planned to stop at Buc-ee’s in Johnstown.