Altitude

The Rockies suck.

But it's still a grand privilege and a pleasure to spend an evening at the ballpark. When my brother told me he had an extra ticket to a game at Coors Field, I jumped at it. It was gorgeous weather, we parked within a block of the stadium, and the Rockies were still ahead when we decided it was past our bedtime.

My baseball-related question is this: Do the stupid animated jumbotron contests enhance the ballpark experience in any way? Would you miss them if they were gone? Do the advertisers really see a boost in their sales from making people watch "pedicab races" or "which barber chair has the ball"? I kinda doubt it, but I'm not sure. Perhaps the 2 to 5-year old demographic is developing a lifelong bond with the sport through their fascination with these contests. Or not.

I do enjoy the "catch the flyball from the slingshot" and "sprint to plant 2nd base" competitions. They're fun, and you can see yourself giving those challenges a shot. (I have no idea who sponsors them, though.)

Anyway, the point is that my brother is a swell fellow, and I enjoy hanging out with him, despite all the pain and suffering he caused me by being such an annoying obnoxious punk kid when we were growing up. And baseball is an enjoyable sport, even when your team is scraping the bottom of the crusty Soylent Green vat.

As for the weekend, well, it was great! As usual, I could've used two or three more days away from work to get my domestic chores completed, but I can't complain. On Friday, I videotaped an interview with an outstanding gentleman named Hu Bierbaum, a WWII infantry veteran who won a Purple Heart when he was run over by his own half-track. I know I talk about APHA a lot, but they are doing important work, and deserve your generous donations. The heroic folks who have served our country in the military deserve to be remembered, applauded, and thanked far more than they ever receive -- and besides, it's just such an immense pleasure to meet these guys. The WWII vets I have met have all been charming, articulate, and friendly, and have told some amazing stories. I may complain about all the hours I put in while editing these videos, but I feel it's the least I can do for these guys who risked it all in defense of freedom.

Saturday morning, I met my friend Kim at 4:30am. We drove from his house up to Idaho Springs, then got on our bicycles and rode part of the Triple Bypass course up to the base of Loveland Pass.

And I do mean UP.



It was gorgeous! A bit chilly at times (especially on the downhills), but a fabulous day for a ride. The nice thing about the route is that most of the roads and trails are not crowded -- at least not at 6:00 in the morning. Without traffic to worry about, we were free to enjoy the scenery, the smell of the pine trees, and that pleasant burning sensation you get in your legs when you're climbing a steep hill at high altitude.



We rode past the Georgetown Loop Railroad (shown in this photo), and then up the bike path that ends up at the Loveland ski area parking lot. I didn't have to go to my granny ring all the way from Idaho Springs until we got on the bike path, but shortly thereafter was wishing I had a great-granny ring. Not enough air, and no place to coast.

The path through the woods is spectacularly beautiful, but absolutely relentless in its ascent. The good news is that Kim and I handled it easily and are confident that we'll be able to do it again during the Triple Bypass, even though we'll have already scaled Squaw Pass at that point. The bad news is that Loveland Pass awaits right after the end of this trail. The other good news is that there will be a huge lunch buffet in the ski area parking lot so we'll be able to rest and refuel (and possibly rest some more) before starting the next big climb.

That event is only about a month away, and I'll need to put in several more long training rides before then. But I'm feeling good about it, and am already looking forward to being back on that same road. It's just another one of those routes that make you really appreciate the beauty of Colorado.

I'm not sure where I'll ride this next weekend. I'd kinda like to get in a Saturday morning lake swim...but that would mean riding really early. But it is the Solstice, so I guess there's no better time for earlybirding it. I just need to make sure I get good sleep each night this week so I'll be ready for it. We'll see how the summer heat affects my rest schedule. In the meantime, please take a moment to appreciate both the wonderful place where we live, and the people who made it possible for us to freely live here and enjoy it so much. Thanks, and have a great day!