Colorado!

Herman Lake

Published August 26, 2017

Master went to Grasshopper.

Too much time on the road Monday in Wyoming. Wanted to hike this weekend, just didn’t want to drive to get there. Ash recommended Herman Lake, an alpine hike above tree-line – chock full of wildflower & only an hour-half from home. Check, done.

Early Saturday start. Full tank of gas, backpack, Ro in the backseat. Beautiful Colorado day.

Handful of exits past Georgetown, one away from Grays. Dirt trailhead parking lot right off exit 218: Herman Gulch Trail. Steep hike on the CDT (Continental Divide Trail), BESTEST way to celebrate National Dog Day 2017!

Forewarned ‘bout 2 Start complaints: highway noise & a HUGE initial climb. Check & check. Butted right against I-70, traffic noisy/distracting/easy-to-hear from Colorado’s east-west thruway. Drops off quarter to half-mile in.

1000 foot grind UP UP UP from the parking lot. Think daughter felt vindicated after I shared my elevation stats. AND no Colorado switchbacks this trek, just a direct push UP. Settled/caught my breath, sucked down a liter of water, elevation bit shy of 11,000ft. Trail emptied into high alpine meadow. AWESOME hike!

Steady gradual UP ‘til our lake destination, never really noticed. Mountain decorated/dressed in colour. Lush summer vegetation. Evergreen: pine, spruce, juniper. Wildflowers EVERYWHERE, every shade. Absolutely beautiful.

Good for the head. Surrounded by sheer MASS, felt small again. Inner peace.

It’s not Herman Lake’s size, but its location – spongy tundra border, framed-in by Pettingell Peak. Cold wind blew, snow a short 3 weeks away. Nature knows. Backed against a boulder, Ro tethered to my belt, lunched in the Colorado Rockies at 12,000ft.

No other place on Earth ❤

UPDATE: Home by 2pm Saturday. Grocery shopped, cleaned house/laundry, Sunday church – AND Patsy Cline. Ok, not THE Patsy Cline (she’s been gone since 1963) but a 2-hour two-Act matinee of the lady’s music at Longmont Community Theatre.

I’m not just ‘marathon man’, I’ve got an artsy side too 🙂

: only an hour-half from home

: National Dog Day 2017

: sunshiny Colorado day

: Wildflowers EVERYWHERE

: spongy tundra border, framed-in by Pettingell Peak

: it’s not Herman Lake’s size, but its LOCATION

: high alpine WOW hike – thanks Ash!

: UP UP UP

: 2-hour two-Act Sunday matinee

‘Today, Tomorrow & Forever‘, a Celebration of Patsy Cline (audio only)

Posted in Continental Divide | Tagged hiking, theatre | Leave a comment

work day, game day 2017

Published August 17, 2017

Summertime, summertime, sum sum summertime…

That time of year we afternoon in Coors Field & cheer our local Rockies. First year watching the Braves. Crushed ‘em the night before 17-2, so expecting only good things. Something new? A winning record. Rockies have been last or next-to-last EVERY year I’ve lived in Colorado. Proudly (despite that dismal stat), boast a 4-2 personal attendance record 🙂

Game Day 2017 – Ash & Tom: Coors Light, Coors Field. Me/family chauffeur: SmartWater & nachos.

Top of the 6^th, Happy Birthday Jim scrolled the Big Board [PS Audio’s ‘El Presidente’]. Not that I’m über competitive but – daytime skies will darken on MY day, Monday. HA! (August 21^st: the Great American Eclipse)

Seventh-inning stretch. Said our goodbyes & stretched back home. Homies got clobbered!

Aw well, there’s always next summer.

: the Boys of Summer

: Coors Field 2017

: not that I’m competitive but – daytime skies will darken on MY birthday 🙂

: GAME face: Team Wilpiszeski

: food, family & FUN

2017 – Braves 10, Rockies 4

2016 – Devil Rays 11, Rockies 3

2015 – Rockies 6, Diamondbacks 4

2014 (Jul) – Rockies 6, Padres 3

2014 (May) – Rockies 10, Mets 3

2013 – Rockies 10, Padres 9 (bottom of 9th homer)

2012 – A’s 8, Rockies 2

Nolan Arenado leaves with injury, Rockies get blown out by Braves 10-4

Other than that, the Rockies had a great afternoon.

by Hayden Kane@hwkane Aug 17, 2017, 5:03pm MDT

The Colorado Rockies ended an up-and-down series with the Atlanta Braves on a decidedly sour note Thursday afternoon. Nolan Arenado left the game early with an apparent re-injury to his left hand, and the pitching fell apart as Atlanta won by a final score of 10-4.

Pitching lapses in two innings cost the Rockies dearly in this one. Starter Jeff Hoffman surrendered back-to-back home runs to Ender Inciarte and Freddie Freeman in the top of the 5th inning. That broke a tie and made the score 4-2. Things were still in reach at that point, but things really fell apart in the 7th inning.

Mike Dunn, who has been a good reliever lately, regressed back to being a bad reliever on this day. The inconsistent lefty allowed three runs and recorded just one out. He handed things to Adam Ottavino, and unfortunately he did not fare any better, allowing three runs of his own.

That made for six runs total in the frame, turning this game lopsided and erasing the good vibes of the blowout in the other direction just one day earlier.

Posted in Denver Metro | Tagged baseball | Leave a comment

Steamboat Stinger Trail Marathon

Published August 13, 2017

Steamboat’s Yampa River

Bib pickup for tomorrow’s trail marathon cutoff at noon. 3 ½ hours door-to-door, Louisville to Steamboat Springs. Early Saturday a.m. trek, breakfast stop in Georgetown (fave diner tradition).

Arrived at BAP, aka ‘the Little Red House’ on Oak Street with an hour to spare. Steamboat-based Honey Stinger sponsors 2 races: Mountain bike Saturday, Trail marathon Sunday. ALL proceeds to charity – the ultimate giving-back event. 10 minute walk to Howelsen Hill ‘Start’.

Last Saturday, ran my first 2017 trail race at Echo Summit (Lake Tahoe’s high Sierras). Tomorrow would trek-up another ski summit. Similarities: high elevation, 4000ft+ vertical gain.

Bridge-walked over Steamboat’s Yampa. Early dinner/early to bed.

RACE DAY: UP UP UP Howelsen Hill, one of Steamboat’s 2 major ski resorts. Unlike last week, first 7 miles were a CLIMB. ALSO caliber of runners today, a HUGE notch up. Pushed hard, lotta energy expended before Angry Grouse (First Aid Station). Refueled, breathed deep, settled in.

UP UP UP thru evergreen & Colorado Aspen. BIG HIKE up Stairway to Heaven, series of switchback climbs thru No Mo’ Blues & Wild Rose, HALF-marathon turnaround/2^nd Aid Station.

Again, stopped/refueled/breathed. So different from road marathoning/super humbling. Mentally ON all race or risk tripping/going down hard. first-HALF GOAL: under 3 hours.

[7-hour time limit today, an hour faster than last weekend’s ultra finish.]

5 miles to Cow Creek (Aid Station to Aid Station). ALL downhill, fastest splits of the day. Flew past tens of runners (June’s REVEL Rockies training). ‘On your left’, jumping over rock. ‘On your left’, bending with tree-limbs as I hugged mountain curves. 11 miles in, 15 minutes under the 2 hour-mark.

Mile-half on dirt road, water stop – then 6 ½ miles of warm trail UP. More hike than jog. Switchback return’d UP to Aid Station 2, ran outta water this leg. Refueled, good 5 minute stop. 7 miles-ish to go. Not a lot left in the tank but well ahead of goal.

2 miles up/over Quarry Mountain then DOWN. Steep rocky drop: ‘Little Moab’, but remainder of the course, easy rolling trail. Let gravity carry my heavy legs forward. Exposed meadows last 3 ½ miles, quarter-mile past the rodeo grounds – marathon SUCCESS!

2^nd trail FINISH in 8 days. Just under 6 hours.