I’m a big time introvert in real life and had a ton of fun working track meets back in my college days for beer money. The other meet workers tended to be a fun group and it was a great way to get out of my shell.
‘See if I can work track meets’ is actually on my volunteer options list post-FLexit.
We ended up in Durango kind of last minute in 2022 because most of the interesting parts of New Mexico were on fire, messing up our vacation plans. The San Juans are incredible and awesome and all kinds of good adjectives. However, it’s an isolated area- if you can’t get it locally or online, the next big city is a three hour drive through rural desert highway to Albuquerque. I also would definitely not want to drive the Million Dollar Highway north out of Durango in icy conditions- it was white knuckle enough in dry late spring conditions.
There are some very nice parts of New Mexico. The culture is unique, the people you talk to are great. I’ve got a cousin who moved out there and loves it. However the crime rate, household incomes , and other social problems kind of make it the Mississippi of the West. The question is whether your lifestyle patterns could keep you clear of the negatives.