Pete was born in Berea, Ohio, on December 27, 1954, to Peter and Terri Van De Carr. The eldest of nine siblings—Pete, Heidi, Gretchen, Katje, Hans, Kristen, Greta, Terri, and Richard—he was a beloved son, brother, husband, father, and friend. He is predeceased by brother Hans and his father.

Pete grew up in Orchard Park, NY, where he played football and raced dirt bikes. He attended Miami of Ohio University, where he found a pack of rugby pals who remained lifelong friends.  After graduating in 1978 with a degree in Mathematics, Pete followed his adventurous spirit westward to Colorado, drawn by the mountains he first encountered while playing rugby.

He worked as a lumberjack on Buffalo Pass, then landed a one-semester interim math teaching position in Ohio. But the Colorado mountains were calling, so he headed back to Steamboat Springs in 1979, where he had many odd jobs – bartending, masonry, driving – until he began tutoring high school math students training to be Olympians with Steamboat Springs Winter Sports Club. Pete happily accepted a one-year temporary math teaching position.

Encouraged by his ski-racing math students, Pete took up gelande jumping at Howelsen Hill, where he tore his Achilles tendon in 1986. Having more time on his hands, he and pal Ken Stone launched the infamous Backdoor Sports in the basement of a building where they sold all of the fun gear that Pete loved – skiing, hiking, climbing, river running. When Ken left town, Pete continued to grow the business, eventually relocating to its iconic Yampa Street location next to the mighty Yampa River. In the early 1990s, Pete and pal Roscoe Johnson decided to start a river tube rental business as a side venture to Backdoor Sports. Today, it is the largest tube-river-running business in Routt County.

Pete was the Lorax of the Yampa River for over 40 years. From raising money and organizing the first river clean-ups to boulder placements and habitat restoration projects, he played a pivotal role in supporting the river's transformation from a chute through town to the winding, healthy stream with eddies and fish habitat it is today. Pete was the founding president of the Friends of the Yampa, a nonprofit organization that, after nearly 35 years, continues to maintain the health of the river for all to enjoy.

In 1998, Pete married the love of his life, Gretchen Schell.  Together, they created a loving, adventurous, happy life, living in a recycled log cabin on the side of Deer Mountain. They completed their family with Otis (2003) and Ollie (2005), which Pete claims was in pursuit of having "built-in pals" to join his joyful and adventurous life. The Van De Carr family has traveled and explored the world – Ecuador, Costa Rica, Nepal, Australia, New Zealand, Mexico, Hawaii, and throughout the US. Pete coached his boys in baseball, hockey,and life as he led them through exciting river trips, backcountry skiing, dirt biking, and so many other adventures that will live on in Otis, Ollie, and Gretchen forever.

Pete was more than a son, brother, husband, father and friend; he was the heart and soul of the Yampa Valley,and his positive spirit lives on in all who knew him. His pal Matt Tredway once asked him if today was his best day ever, and Pete replied, "I know it's a little sappy and optimistic, but look where we live! It should be a self-fulfilling prophecy."

Pete truly lived his best life every single day, and his spirit will forever echo through the mountains, rivers, trails, and people he so deeply loved.