B737NG flight crew reported severe turbulence encounter while on climbout from denver.

Attributes
ACN	1430705
Time
Date	201703
Local Time Of Day	0601-1200
Place
Locale Reference	ZDV.ARTCC
State Reference	CO
Environment
Light	Daylight
Aircraft 1
Make Model Name	B737 Next Generation Undifferentiated
Operating Under FAR Part	Part 121
Flight Phase	Climb
Flight Plan	IFR
Person 1
Function	Captain Pilot Flying
Qualification	Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP)
Experience	Flight Crew Last 90 Days 110
Person 2
Function	Pilot Not Flying First Officer
Qualification	Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP)
Experience	Flight Crew Last 90 Days 210
Events
Anomaly	Inflight Event / Encounter Weather / Turbulence

Narrative:

On climbout of den; we experienced light to moderate turbulence with a sudden onset of severe turbulence. This occurred [at] FL260 and lasted only a few seconds followed by moderate turbulence for a few minutes longer. The turbulence was such that the autopilot disengaged and control of the aircraft was very difficult to maintain. The flight attendants (fas) were already seated as per the preflight briefing. We eventually climbed out of the turbulence and reported it to ATC. We sent an ACARS to dispatch. We talked to the fas who were canvassing the passengers regarding any injuries. No injuries were reported at the time. The systems and the aircraft handling characteristics were normal.combined with the fact we had no injuries and did not want to have to descend through the severe turbulence again the decision to continue to [destination] was made. We landed without incident. Upon deplaning no reports of injuries were made known to me. The aircraft logbook was completed indicating severe turbulence. I turned the aircraft over to company maintenance.

Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: B737NG flight crew reported severe turbulence encounter while on climbout from Denver.

Narrative: On climbout of DEN; we experienced light to moderate turbulence with a sudden onset of severe turbulence. This occurred [at] FL260 and lasted only a few seconds followed by moderate turbulence for a few minutes longer. The turbulence was such that the autopilot disengaged and control of the aircraft was very difficult to maintain. The Flight Attendants (FAs) were already seated as per the preflight briefing. We eventually climbed out of the turbulence and reported it to ATC. We sent an ACARS to Dispatch. We talked to the FAs who were canvassing the Passengers regarding any injuries. No injuries were reported at the time. The systems and the aircraft handling characteristics were normal.Combined with the fact we had no injuries and did not want to have to descend through the severe turbulence again the decision to continue to [destination] was made. We landed without incident. Upon deplaning no reports of injuries were made known to me. The aircraft logbook was completed indicating severe turbulence. I turned the aircraft over to Company Maintenance.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site and automatically converted to unabbreviated mixed upper/lowercase text. This report is for informational purposes with no guarantee of accuracy. See NASA's ASRS site for official report.