 David Moffat became the Rio Grande's president in 1885 and persuaded the company's other executives to go ahead with the Aspen connection.To overcome the Midland's lead, they built a narrow-gauge line on the north side of the Roaring Fork, today the route of the Rio Grande Trail.Both the gauge and the elimination of the Maroon Creek crossing, which was causing complications for the Midland, saved considerable time, and the Rio Grande managed to bring the first train to Aspen in October 1887.