tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19169622132281549072023-07-02T02:32:39.467-06:00The Cure for InsomniaCan't sleep? Read my blog and be instantly lulled into a nap.Ryanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05843536317955511354noreply@blogger.comBlogger677125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1916962213228154907.post-71607152146926659872016-08-18T09:56:00.000-06:002016-08-18T09:56:00.160-06:00Copper Lake<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/28961594552/in/album-72157671706629461/" title="Copper Lake"><img src="https://c1.staticflickr.com/9/8271/28961594552_10674dd38a_z.jpg" width="640" height="480" alt="Copper Lake"></a><script async src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js" charset="utf-8"></script><br>
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One last backpacking trip for 2016. This time we went back to one of our favorite places: Copper Lake.<br>
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Copper Lake is located near Crested Butte in the Maroon Bells-Snowmass Wilderness, so it's a bit of a haul to get there. We left Fort Collins in the morning, made a couple quick stops along the way, and started hiking around 3. It's about a 5.2 mile hike, and only the last 1-1.5 miles gets steep. It also has a lot of good shade and some river crossings, so it's quite a nice hike. An added bonus was the wildflowers this time. I don't remember there being so many other times we've been up here, but they were really in bloom.<br>
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/29034129956/in/album-72157671706629461/" title="Wildflowers"><img src="https://c5.staticflickr.com/9/8844/29034129956_807ef66c9d_z.jpg" width="640" height="480" alt="Wildflowers"></a><script async src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js" charset="utf-8"></script><br>
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Through the years, I have a bunch of pictures of this lake and White Rock Mountain behind it (one even ended up in <a href="http://a.co/a0444AO">this book</a>). It just looks so amazing in the morning and evening light. From our favorite campsite there, we get to step out of the tent to an amazing view.<br>
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On our second day, we decided to hike up to the nearby Triangle Pass. It was a little longer than we thought (3 miles each way), but with spectacular views. Unfortunately, it's also really rocky and Banksy ended up cutting a pad on his paw. I had a dog boot back at camp but not with us, so Christine fashioned a makeshift bootie out of some duct tape, gauze, and athletic tape. She's amazing. <br>
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/29067606415/in/album-72157671706629461/" title="Banksy's hurt paw"><img src="https://c8.staticflickr.com/9/8026/29067606415_aa6ef31e03_z.jpg" width="640" height="480" alt="Banksy's hurt paw"></a><script async src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js" charset="utf-8"></script><br>
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We made it back to camp and Banksy was super tired. He was happy to spend the rest of the afternoon laying around camp. A bit of a bummer because I'm sure he would have loved swimming in the lake, but we'll save that for next time.<br>
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With an actual dog boot available, our hike out the next day was totally fine. Christine and I ended up carrying Banksy's pack and other stuff so he didn't have to deal with that. Instead, he enjoyed trotting down the trail. Even with a hurt paw, he was quite happy. We took him the the vet at home, and his paw is great thanks to Christine cleaning out the cut and keeping some Neosporin on it. She should probably have a WooFR certification. (That joke is probably funny to about 3 people.)<br>
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It's time to clean up and put away our gear for the season, and we're already looking forward to next year's trips.
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/29067600835/in/album-72157671706629461/" title="Family photo"><img src="https://c4.staticflickr.com/9/8375/29067600835_6785173fa7_n.jpg" width="320" height="240" alt="Family photo"></a><script async src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/28446556454/in/album-72157671706629461/" title="Christine and Banksy"><img src="https://c7.staticflickr.com/9/8058/28446556454_a68481777f_n.jpg" width="320" height="238" alt="Christine and Banksy"></a><script async src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
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Flickr album:<br>
<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/albums/72157671706629461" title="2016-08 Copper Lake"><img src="https://c8.staticflickr.com/9/8852/28449162943_bd3e6a154c_n.jpg" width="240" height="320" alt="2016-08 Copper Lake"></a><script async src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js" charset="utf-8"></script>Ryanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05843536317955511354noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1916962213228154907.post-83723592954184098222016-07-22T11:17:00.003-06:002016-07-22T11:17:49.182-06:00Kelly Lake<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/27837378314/in/dateposted-public/" title="Medicine Bow Mountains"><img alt="Medicine Bow Mountains" height="480" src="https://c3.staticflickr.com/9/8680/27837378314_c837ddefd9_z.jpg" width="640" /></a><script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js"></script></div>
Well...they can't all be winners. :)
For our second backpacking trip of the year, we decided to try something new - Kelly Lake in the Colorado State Forest State Park. This hike starts in the same spot as another lake hike we like (Clear Lake), so we were already ready for kind of a sucky start to a hike. It starts out on a dirt road that just bakes in the sun. What we weren't expecting, though, was horse traffic.
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When we got to the trailhead there was a large group of several people and several horses. We asked if they were just starting or just finishing, and they had just finished a multi-day trip. That group didn't account for all of the horse trailers in the parking lot and when we looked at the trail registry we saw that there were a couple more large horsepacking groups of 8-10 in the area. (I can rant on why that's a bummer, but basically it boils down to: horse poop, flies, trash, and trail damage.)<br />
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This area looks a lot different than the last time we hiked here. Where there used to be tall pine trees providing shade, there is now a wasteland of downed trees. It looks like this area was a victim of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beetle_kill_in_Colorado">beetle kill</a>, and they have proactively chopped down all of those trees. Not only is it not great to look at, but it also meant no break from the hot sun for the first half of the hike.<br />
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/27837861933/in/album-72157670628547061/" title="Banksy hiking"><img alt="Banksy hiking" height="480" src="https://c6.staticflickr.com/9/8850/27837861933_9fbcc2c425_z.jpg" width="640" /></a><script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js"></script>
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The last couple miles of the trail are steep and rocky. We were going pretty slow, and Christine was feeling super tired. I took as much stuff from her pack as I could to make the climb easier. It wasn't until the next day that we figured out she was sick, not just tired. She slept almost all of Saturday and didn't feel like eating much. Seven miles into the wilderness isn't the most convenient place to find out that you're sick. Thankfully, she started feeling a little better on Saturday evening and I didn't have to carry her down to the car on Sunday. :)<br />
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I did a little fishing and some hiking Saturday with Banksy to a saddle above the lake while Christine rested. We got an early start Sunday to make the nearly 7 mile hike out ahead of the afternoon sun. It's a nice lake, but I don't think we'll be back any time soon. The combination of a long exposed hike, lots of bugs, and more people than I'd expect in the backcountry (at least a dozen) will move this pretty low on my list of hikes to repeat. Iy might be a better one to hit in the fall.<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/28421621436/in/album-72157670628547061/" title="Christine hiking"><img src="https://c5.staticflickr.com/9/8631/28421621436_3301723598_n.jpg" width="240" height="320" alt="Christine hiking"></a><script async src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js" charset="utf-8"></script> <a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/28375558071/in/album-72157670628547061/" title="Break time"><img src="https://c8.staticflickr.com/9/8806/28375558071_8bee48c08e_n.jpg" width="240" height="320" alt="Break time"></a><script async src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
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Banksy had a great time playing in the snow.
<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/28454269585/in/album-72157670628547061/" title="2016-07-16_12_banksy_playing_in_the snow (no sound)"><img src="https://c2.staticflickr.com/9/8851/28454269585_be99b21ba1.jpg" width="500" height="281" alt="2016-07-16_12_banksy_playing_in_the snow (no sound)"></a><script async src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js" charset="utf-8"></script><br />
<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/27837877894/in/album-72157670628547061/" title="2016-07-16_13_banksy_playing_in_the snow (no sound)"><img src="https://c7.staticflickr.com/9/8809/27837877894_11632271bf.jpg" width="500" height="281" alt="2016-07-16_13_banksy_playing_in_the snow (no sound)"></a><script async src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js" charset="utf-8"></script><br />
<br />Ryanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05843536317955511354noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1916962213228154907.post-76688137997602228912016-07-12T11:02:00.001-06:002016-07-12T11:02:58.541-06:00American LakesBetween our various injuries, an aging dog, and increasingly busy schedules, backpacking trips have been very light the last few years. We made a plan back in the spring to change that and blocked out some weekends on the calendar for camping.<br>
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For our first trip, we returned to an old favorite: The American Lakes. This is a special place for us. It's the first place we ever went camping together, and we've been up there almost every year since. For this edition, our friends Julie and Nathan joined us for the afternoon. Compared to previous years, there seemed to be a lot more water along the trail. This was great news for Banksy, who enjoyed having plenty of water to drink, and streams to stomp through.<br>
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Of all the times I've been up there I've never seen fish in the lower lakes, but this time we saw many. I'm wondering if they stocked it at some point. As it turns out, I actually forgot to pack my fly reel. (I guess I'm rusty at this whole backpacking thing.) I ended up tying a leader directly to the end of my fly rods and fishing <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tenkara_fishing">tenkara</a>-style, and surprisingly I caught a couple.<br>
<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/28253411585/in/album-72157668089813414/" title="American Lakes pano"><img src="https://c2.staticflickr.com/9/8608/28253411585_7c1334c7a3_z.jpg" width="640" height="271" alt="American Lakes pano"></a><script async src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js" charset="utf-8"></script><br>
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I don't remember the last time we hiked to the upper lake, Snow Lake, but we went up this time. It must have been a good snow year, because it was still partly covered in snow. Banksy saw a stick out in the water and couldn't stop himself from rescuing it from the icy cold water.<br>
<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/28253429055/in/album-72157668089813414/" title="Banksy fetches a stick"><img src="https://c8.staticflickr.com/8/7389/28253429055_2b8a508149_z.jpg" width="640" height="480" alt="Banksy fetches a stick"></a><script async src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js" charset="utf-8"></script><br>
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/28253437085/in/album-72157668089813414/" title="Christine and Banksy lounging"><img src="https://c6.staticflickr.com/9/8774/28253437085_01cc09188b_z.jpg" width="640" height="167" alt="Christine and Banksy lounging"></a><script async src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js" charset="utf-8"></script><br>
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The evening colors are amazing here.<br>
<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/28253453365/in/album-72157668089813414/" title="Sunset"><img src="https://c6.staticflickr.com/9/8865/28253453365_d336c480f3_z.jpg" width="640" height="480" alt="Sunset"></a><script async src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js" charset="utf-8"></script><br>
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In the morning we walked up to a nearby snow field and had some fun sliding down. Banksy mostly had fun getting in our way and trying to tackle us.<br>
<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/28219332996/in/album-72157668089813414/" title="2016-07-10_17_christine_sledding"><img src="https://c5.staticflickr.com/8/7619/28219332996_72be2a3206_z.jpg" width="640" height="360" alt="2016-07-10_17_christine_sledding"></a><script async src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js" charset="utf-8"></script><br>
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/27637887993/in/album-72157668089813414/" title="Ryan sledding"><img src="https://c2.staticflickr.com/9/8599/27637887993_09d20ce3e3_z.jpg" width="640" height="480" alt="Ryan sledding"></a><script async src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js" charset="utf-8"></script><br>
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For our first backpacking trip of the year, and first in a while, we all survived pretty well. Looking forward to another next weekend.<br>
<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/27637859733/in/album-72157668089813414/" title="Family shot"><img src="https://c6.staticflickr.com/9/8607/27637859733_0545195049_z.jpg" width="640" height="480" alt="Family shot"></a><script async src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js" charset="utf-8"></script> <a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/28253463005/in/album-72157668089813414/" title="Morning in the tent"><img src="https://c6.staticflickr.com/9/8668/28253463005_436f7fd3a2_z.jpg" width="480" height="640" alt="Morning in the tent"></a><script async src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js" charset="utf-8"></script><br>
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More photos here:<br>
<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/albums/72157668089813414" title="2016-07 American Lakes"><img src="https://c1.staticflickr.com/8/7671/28219320496_147e0dd177_m.jpg" width="240" height="135" alt="2016-07 American Lakes"></a><script async src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
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This was our first time up to these lakes without Kuzca, and our first backpacking trip without her in a very long time (since 2007 I think). :( We miss her, but enjoy remembering all of the great trips we shared. Here she is on a previous trip to this area.<br>
<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/1353513626/in/album-72157601941470567/" title="2007-09-08_34_kuzca_poses_at_the_border_of_rocky_mountain_national_park"><img src="https://c3.staticflickr.com/2/1249/1353513626_c98f28fc6a_n.jpg" width="320" height="240" alt="2007-09-08_34_kuzca_poses_at_the_border_of_rocky_mountain_national_park"></a><script async src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js" charset="utf-8"></script> <a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/4409068770/in/album-72157623435134547/" title="2005-10-01_21_christine_and_kuzca"><img src="https://c3.staticflickr.com/5/4058/4409068770_b2c7d2cc23_m.jpg" width="240" height="180" alt="2005-10-01_21_christine_and_kuzca"></a><script async src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js" charset="utf-8"></script>Ryanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05843536317955511354noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1916962213228154907.post-16889047041171615372014-09-06T16:23:00.000-06:002014-09-06T16:23:48.475-06:00Beer CensusWhen we moved last year I emptied our jar of beer bottle caps. After a little over a year, it's filled up again. Time to examine our drinking habits.<br />
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/15157634811" title="Beer census by Ryan Lewandowski, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5595/15157634811_48fe00e4cf_z.jpg" width="640" height="480" alt="Beer census"></a>
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On the left are a few New Belgium. Then a bunch of Left Hand. We're drinking locally. :) The bunch of silver and gold caps are homebrew. Yay homebrew.<br />
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This is a highly unscientific census. And Christine admits that she's been tampering with the count by throwing some caps out. <br />
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Compare to last year:<br /><br />
<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/15160636895" title="Beer cap collection by Ryan Lewandowski, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3901/15160636895_cf314a54e0_z.jpg" width="640" height="480" alt="Beer cap collection"></a>
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We had a ton of St. Bernardus and Straffe. Our new collection of caps is much more frugal. :)Ryanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05843536317955511354noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1916962213228154907.post-46865997820628185002014-08-26T14:15:00.000-06:002014-08-26T14:15:52.158-06:00One more backping trip?<center>
<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/14859675210" title="Diamond Lake by Ryan Lewandowski, on Flickr"><img alt="Diamond Lake" height="480" src="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3853/14859675210_b108c13f92_z.jpg" width="640" /></a></center>
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My dog, Kuzca, is getting old (in December she'll be 13). That's pretty old for a dog her size and I feel fortunate that she's still happy and healthy. (I owe a lot of that to Christine, who got us in the habit of going on two walks a day.) With the summer winding down, and my own mobility about to be surgically hampered soon, I started to worry that I may be running out of opportunities to take Kuzca camping (one of her favorite things). Will she still be able to hike a few miles next year? I hope so, but I don't know. I try not to think about it too much, but it's reality.
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Last weekend Kuzca and I went on a solo overnight backpacking trip into the Indian Peaks Wilderness. With Christine sidelined due to a to-be-determined injury she couldn't backpack in with us, but would day-hike up the next day with Banksy. The weather forecast wasn't ideal (lots of rain and wind), and the rangers at the forest service office definitely questioned my sanity when I picked up a permit, but it was now or never.
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The hike up to Diamond Lake is only about 3 miles so it seemed like a good choice. Normally it'd be crowded, but I avoided that by going up on Friday morning. Our hike started in a light rain, but within 5 minutes the ran stopped and the sun came out for a beautiful hike. Lot's of wild flowers.
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We ran into a few people at the lake, but before long the rain came back and everybody left. I'm not a big fan of camping in the rain, but it did give us the rare opportunity of having this high mountain, close to Boulder lake all to ourselves for the whole night. I can deal with a little rain for that.
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The next morning the rain had stopped and the wind blew in some low clouds, but it was shaping up to be a pretty nice day. Kuzca and I mulled around camp for a while before eventually packing up and hanging out by the lake. We were sitting in a spot that allowed me to see the incoming trail so I could see when Christine and Banksy showed up. Banksy was hilarious. Even from all the way across the lake I could recognize his craziness when he got to the lake. He was so excited and was running around and around in circles with another dog.
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As they got closer to where I was sitting, Kuzca started to pay attention and I could tell she was a little curious about the little person and the big black dog in the distance. She soon realized who it was and got super excited. Mayhem ensued when they got closer and Banksy realized we were there. Total crazy dog running around chasing sticks in the water and just generally running around at full speed.
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Christine had managed to get there for the best weather of the day. Lot's of sunshine while we sat by the lake and at lunch. It didn't last long, though, and as we were walking down the trail to the car it started to rain quite a bit. We got nice and wet, but at least it kept things cool and we had a leisurely hike back to the car. Success on my first (and probably only) backpacking trip this year.<br />
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Flickr photo set <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/sets/72157646888151422/">here</a>.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/14859602409" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3870/14859602409_0758e81da7_n.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Waiting out a rain storm in the tent</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nap after a day of hiking</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5557/14859757328" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5557/14859757328_e56d65b4d4_n.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Crazy wet dog</td></tr>
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<br />Ryanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05843536317955511354noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1916962213228154907.post-88150369358961908282014-08-24T21:20:00.003-06:002014-08-24T21:20:39.883-06:00French PolynesiaRemember that time Christine and I went to French
Polynesia? Yeah, I hardly do either. It was back in April and I’m just getting around to this blog post….
<br /><br />
Tahiti was never really on our list of places to visit. Not
because it didn’t sound awesome, but it’s just never been on the radar. Around
Christmas 2012 our vagabond sailing friends Livia and Carol came to visit while
they were taking a break from their stay in French Polynesia applying for a
long stay visa. Armed with a library of postcard hero shots of their paradise, they somehow managed to convince us to visit. When your friends tell you to come stay with them on their boat in the south Pacific, you don’t say no.
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The plan was hatched and many moons later we were on our way
to French Polynesia. Our journey would take us from Denver, through LAX (an
awful place), to Tahiti. Then we would catch a small plane to the Fakarava
Atoll in the Tuamotu Islands. Hey, a lot of people have been to Tahiti, but who
gets to go to Fakarava??
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<td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/14732491128/" title="Last minute dog snuggles by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img alt="Last minute dog snuggles" height="375" src="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3867/14732491128_bdba869266.jpg" width="500" /></a></td>
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<td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Last minute puppy snuggles are important before going to the airport.</td>
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</table>
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Where the heck is Fakarava anyway? Near Tahiti:<br />
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After a lengthy travel day(s), we were greeted at the Fakarava <strike>hut</strike> airport by Livia and Carol, who had also arranged a ride for us to get to their boat. We spent the afternoon getting reacquainted with the stately S.V. Estrellita 5.10b and doing any necessary provisioning while we were at the most inhabited place on the atoll. The plan for the rest of our stay was to spend a few days parked at various places around the atoll. On a sailboat, you're always a slave to the weather. You want to be parked in places where you'll be protected from whatever weather is coming in, and it's great to have experienced sailors and virtual locals like our captains. Even with some unusual wind, they had it all figured out.
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Our first parking spot was at the motu of Harifa. (A motu is an island that's formed where the coral atoll sticks above the water.) There is a family that lives on this motu and they were preparing to open a restaurant for guests of nearby pensions. That's great news for us, because they were holding a Polynesian feast as a celebration, complete with a pig roasted in the sand. More on that later.
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/14278549445/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5557/14278549445_fab440d7b9.jpg" width="150" /></a>
When you're walking around the motu you're essentially walking around someones yard, so it's nice to talk with the people who live there and make sure it's okay. Of course it was okay, and they were super nice. They even let us collect some green coconuts before we went to walk along the reef on the ocean side of the motu. Livia and Carol had a checklist of "experiences" that we needed to complete and collecting coconts was one of them. Green coconuts are good for the sweet water inside. After you manage to rip one out of a tree (in this case we had a nice long hook to use), you use your giant rusty machete to carve a nice opening in the top. Thankfully Carol was experienced in this area because Christine and I were making a mess of it. Later in the trip, learned how to open brown coconuts, and also also the joys of dumping some rum into a juicy green coconut.
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<td><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-g7UL-534aWM/U-0tcv0CvsI/AAAAAAABfZQ/6llqPCe1lPw/s1600/2014-04-30_35_fresh%2Bcut%2Bgreen%2Bcoconuts.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-g7UL-534aWM/U-0tcv0CvsI/AAAAAAABfZQ/6llqPCe1lPw/s1600/2014-04-30_35_fresh%2Bcut%2Bgreen%2Bcoconuts.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td>
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<td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Coconut Queen</td>
<td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bumps on a log</td>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/14278555195/" style="clear: both; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5311/14278555195_1523cb3b5f.jpg" width="320" /></a>
With a little time the next day to kill before the feast and acceptable winds, Carol was itching to try out his new kiteboarding gear. After he showed us what it looks like when you do it right, Christine and I got harnessed up and just flew the kite (no board). It's hard enough to keep the kite in the air, I imagine it takes quite a bit of practice to do it with a board under your feet. Seems like a fun time.
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On to the feast. The family started early in the morning with preparing the food and the pit. They built a fire in the pit and when it burned down they stacked various meats wrapped in leaves (okay, and some foil too). After the food was layered in the pit they carefully put sand shoveled sand back into the pit. For the very top layer of sand, they used lighter colored sand so they could easily see any smoke that was escaping and plug the hole. Their outdoor dining room was set up with a few tables for people and a long table for all of the food they had prepared. It was impressive. They had to keep squeezing dishes together to make more room for more food that was coming out of the kitchen. There were various types of smoked meats, some banana dishes, fish, and more. So delicious.<br />
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Well fed and rested, we left Harifa in the morning for the
South Pass. The coral atoll ring is broken at the South Pass, which
allows ocean water to sweep in and out of the atoll with the tide. The sea
water brings nutrients and food into the atoll and the rich water is home to colorful coral and beautiful fish. The area is a UNESCO world heritage sight.
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There aren’t a lot of safe places to park in the pass, but
thanks to some friends of Livia and Carol’s we were able to park on a mooring in
a sweet spot in the pass that would give us a great home base for playing in
the area. Upon arrival Carol needed to get in the water to check the mooring
gear (and make sure we weren’t going to float away in the middle of the night). I grabbed my snorkeling gear and hopped in the clear blue water too. While he
was off doing real work, I was awestruck just looking around in the water. You
could see thirty feet down to the ocean floor. And I had a good clear look at
the sharks in the water. Yes, sharks. Mostly black tip sharks. They’re not very
menacing, but it’s still a little strange at first to be swimming in the open
water with them.
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<td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/14091945318/" title="Ryan and Christine explore South Pass by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img alt="Ryan and Christine explore South Pass" height="375" src="https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2940/14091945318_f76c31ddd6.jpg" width="500" /></a></td>
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<td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Look out you're being followed by sharks!</td>
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One of the great things to do at the pass is snorkel over the coral. The best way to do is to time it with the tides so that you’re snorkeling as the water is flowing into the pass. You hardly have to swim because the current carries you over the coral. It feels like flying. It’s amazing. Over the course of the few days we were there, we did this snorkel run probably twice a day. Despite the massive beauty of the pass, its remoteness prevents any crowds of people. Some people scuba dive there, but other than that we didn’t see any other people in the water. Can you imagine having a place like this all to yourself? Believe it.
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<td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-c0JuTDtX7Kw/U_pdAoam07I/AAAAAAABfaM/hkqSesQgC3A/s1600/2014-05-04_43_snorkeling_south_pass.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-c0JuTDtX7Kw/U_pdAoam07I/AAAAAAABfaM/hkqSesQgC3A/s1600/2014-05-04_43_snorkeling_south_pass.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td>
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<td class="tr-caption" colspan="2" style="text-align: center;">Pictures don't do it justice.</td>
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One of the things I was most looking forward to doing on our trip was spearfishing. Snorkeling around in clear blue water with sharks and a spear gun? Yes please. While there are tons of fish in the water, not all of them are edible. Some of them are contaminated with a toxin called ciguatera. The “safe” fish vary from anchorage to anchorage too, so it’s typically best to check with any locals in the area.
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Since there are sharks in the water, one person would fish while the another swam nearby with the dingy. When a fish was speared, you get it out of the water and into the dingy as soon as possible so the sharks wouldn’t come over and steal your fresh kill. On my first trip out, Carol and I went to various coral heads near the boat and looked for fish. Thanks to my excellent coach, I speared a fish on that first trip. We went fishing several times with varying levels of success. Even when we didn’t spear any fish, you’re snorkeling in some amazing water so it’s still a great time.<br />
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<td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/14092000077/" title="Ryan's first catch by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img alt="Ryan's first catch" src="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3773/14092000077_1cef418bd1.jpg" width="320" /></a></td>
<td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/14276545992/" title="Spearfishing by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img alt="Spearfishing" src="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3758/14276545992_dc2ae96db3.jpg" width="320" /></a></td>
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<td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Catch of the day</td>
<td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ready. Aim. Fire.</td>
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<td><a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/14278589865/" title="Fish on the beach fire by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3770/14278589865_0138958591.jpg" width="320" alt="Fish on the beach fire"></a></td>
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<td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fresh catch on our beach coconut fire. (Marble grouper on left, parrot fish on right)</td>
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<!-- FORMATTING DONE UP TO HERE -->
From the south pass, we sailed up to the north pass of the atoll. Surprise - it was also beautiful. We anchored near another beautiful reef and did some more spearfishing, snorkeling, stand up paddling, beach walking, lounging. Life was feeling really difficult at this point.
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<td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/14255470546/" title="Ryan on the SUP by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2931/14255470546_5557617a68_n.jpg" width="320" height="240" alt="Ryan on the SUP"></a></td>
<td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/14278141434/" title="Christine and Ryan at North Pass beach by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5507/14278141434_364c96aeed_n.jpg" width="320" height="240" alt="Christine and Ryan at North Pass beach"></a></td>
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Unfortunately, we our trip was coming to an end. The day before our flight we went back to the main village to get prepped to leave. We did some shopping, and walking around, but mostly we just tried to soak in as much sun and water as we could before we left.
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What a great and memorable trip. As we stood in check-in line at the Tahiti airport, I couldn't help but think about how nobody had quite the vacation we just did. I'm sure they had a great time at their resorts, but I think we got to see something completely different. We're lucky to have such good and adventurous friends that are willing to share their adventure with us.
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More photos on <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/sets/72157644864903364/">Flickr</a>.
<center><a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/14278585195/" title="Group shot by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2938/14278585195_d721a1d85e.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Group shot"></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/14276495412/" title="Captains Carol and LIvia by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2895/14276495412_e71e5cab4d.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Captains Carol and LIvia"></a>
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Ryanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05843536317955511354noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1916962213228154907.post-12234361292428053042014-07-21T10:21:00.002-06:002014-07-21T10:21:48.793-06:00A blog on life supportWow, is this thing still alive? I should probably write here more. Maybe someday I'll write about our recent trip to French Polynesia....but don't hold your breath.
So what's happened in the year and a half since I last wrote on this blog? I decided to go through my photos since December 2012 and remind myself (although, I've also done a crappy job of documenting my life via photos too):<br />
<ul>
<li>Went to The Cyclocross World Champhionships in Louisville, KY</li>
<li>Rode the Ronde van Vlaanderen citizen's ride in Belgium generally had a good time with friends in Belgium. (Wow, I can't believe I didn't write about that. I suck.)</li>
<li>New York for Christine's birthday to see Book of Mormon and do a lot of eating.</li>
<li>I have a lot of photos of our dog Banksy laying on Christine's feet</li>
<li>Hudson family reunion in Asheville, NC</li>
<li>Moved to Longmont.</li>
<li>Some fishing (and occasionally catching a fish)</li>
<li>Some family came out to celebrate "Thanksgiving" together in Breckenridge.</li>
<li>Broke my hand mountain biking in Crested Butte on the first day of the cyclocross race season.(still managed to have a great time)</li>
<li>Kuzca had some surgery to remove some lumps and became way more energetic for than expected for a 12 year old dog.</li>
<li>Drank some beer. </li>
<li>Brewed some beer. </li>
<li>Tore a tendon in my ankle skiing (goodbye cyclocross season....again)</li>
<li>Went to French Polynesia to visit Livia and Carol</li>
</ul>
That about sums it up.Ryanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05843536317955511354noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1916962213228154907.post-87307707293743884372012-12-09T21:12:00.001-07:002012-12-09T21:12:52.066-07:002012 Boulder Cyclocross Series FinaleIt’s time for another rare, collector’s edition, blog post about cyclocross.
Today was the final race in the Boulder Cyclocross series. With my good showings at Interlocken (2nd) and Valmont (1st), I had a tenuous hold on the overall series lead. As the race approached, I crunched the numbers and knew who I needed to watch out for on race day to maintain my lead.<br />
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It seemed as if the cycling gods were not smiling on me as this race approached. First, the race got moved to the Boulder Reservoir. I’ve successfully avoided racing there for several years because I hadn't liked it previously. A lot of sand and sometimes goatheads. Second, some cold weather and snow were supposed to move in. I’m not really fond of racing in snow. But hey, at least the sand would be frozen, right?<br>
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Race day came, but the snow didn’t. It was cold, but dry. My legs didn’t feel great during my warmup, but I at least felt like I was riding the sand reasonably well. I got off to a pretty good start – 3rd wheel going into the first section of sand. I nearly lost my rear wheel coming off the pavement, but I saved it. I think it kind of shook me though, and it showed in my tentative riding.<br>
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I battled near the front for the first lap, but my legs felt heavy and I was starting to get overtaken. On the second lap, someone came up on the inside of a corner, overcooked it, and stopped dead in the tape. I was riding pretty close, and ran into him. The crash managed to mess up my front brake enough that I couldn’t ride, so I ran to the pit to grab my spare. Someone I knew happened to be working the pits for another friend and he grabbed my bike. I told him what was wrong, and he had it fixed up by the next time I went by the pit. We performed a flawless bike exchange, and I was on my way. I owe Eric a beer. It was unbelievable how smooth that went.<br>
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By this point I was pretty cooked and I could see that my closest competition in the overall standings was up the road. It was pretty frustrating, but I charged ahead hoping that he would slip back or I could pick up some places. When I crossed the line I thought for sure I had lost the overall by maybe one place. It’s devastating to have that happen due to a mechanical problem (although my poor riding was probably more to blame).<br>
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The promoter of the race uses a chip timing system that, when it works correctly, provides instant unofficial results via a laptop. After I dusted myself off and congratulated my friends, I went over to check the results. Low and behold, I did just enough to keep the overall lead! My competition finished in 8th, which meant I needed to finish 11th or better. I finished 10th. It is super exciting to pull that off. I wish I could have had a better series finale performance, but I’ll take it.<br>
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As usual, the amateur racing scene doesn’t pay too well. I won a free pair of shoes ( that I can’t get in the wide width that I need), a jersey, socks, and a small plaque.<br>
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One more race weekend to go –the state championships. I’m gunning for the podium.
<center><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/8260313430/" title="Boulder CX series podium 2012 35+ Cat 3 by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8212/8260313430_e095957df1.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Boulder CX series podium 2012 35+ Cat 3"></a></center>Ryanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05843536317955511354noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1916962213228154907.post-2425562697337752702012-11-19T07:43:00.000-07:002012-11-19T07:43:04.559-07:00Did I really just win a race?I haven’t done any race reports this year, but now seems like a good place to start. I’ve been having a great cyclocross season with several top 10’s and even a second place at Interlocken. I started out the season hoping that I could just hang with this group that readily kicked my ass last year, and now I’m a contender.<br><br>
Saturday was another race at the Valmont bike park in Boulder. I got off to a slow start and soon found myself around 10th. I burned some matches early and was able to get into a lead group of about 7, but I wasn’t feeling great. I thought I was going to have to go into damage control mode, but soon people started fading and making mistakes. After a few laps, there were just 3 of us up front with a small gap to the chasers.<br><br>
I sat in third for a while, happy to let the others set the pace. When the 2nd place rider was having trouble holding on to the wheel in front of him, I came around him and closed the gap. The guy in first made a couple attacks, but I was comfortable and able to cover them. At the top of the course with 2 laps to go, he really slowed down. I took the cue to pull around and set the pace for the descent. He pulled back around me on the last lap and put in another surge to try and drop me again. As strong as he was, I could always make up some ground and catch him on the technical stuff. (I never thought I’d be talking about out-riding people on technical terrain.) I sat on his wheel for most of the rest of the lap. I knew my legs were good, and I was hoping they were better than his.<br><br>
On my warmup laps, I had paid attention to where I thought the last good place for passing was. When we got to that point on the last lap I gave it everything I had and pulled into first. I never looked back until the last corner, and I could see he was still close. One last explosion to make it across the line, and I won by less than a second.<br><br>
This win means a lot to me. My skills were good, my legs were good, and I really rode smart and executed a game plan to beat some really tough competition. I was really frustrated last year after upgrading and feeling like I’d never see the front end of the race again. I’ve been working super hard this year and it’s amazing to feel the hard work pay off. I have enough upgrade points to upgrade to a Cat 2 now. Wow. That’s still a little hard to believe. I’m hoping I can finish out the season as a Cat 3 and then upgrade to Cat 2 for next year. <br><br>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/8199114333/" title="2012-11-17 Valmont first place by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8485/8199114333_3eb9636d16.jpg" width="500" height="419" alt="2012-11-17 Valmont first place"></a><br>
Not even enough time to throw my hands in the air.
</center>Ryanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05843536317955511354noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1916962213228154907.post-70089511021703813042012-07-08T18:18:00.000-06:002012-07-08T18:18:35.282-06:00American Lakes July 2012 - Camping in the rain<br />
<center><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/7528368778/" title="Panoramic morning in the mountains by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img alt="Panoramic morning in the mountains" height="214" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8147/7528368778_e55458a11f.jpg" width="500" /></a></center>
One of our favorite places to camp is at the American Lakes in the Colorado State Forest State Park. Not only is it a super beautiful spot, but it's also where we went on our first camping trip together and we go there every year.<br />
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This year, our trip was a little wetter than most. Okay, a <b>lot</b> wetter. This is probably the wettest camping trip I've done in Colorado. Usually storms around here are a quick affair, so found some trees to hang out under a couple times when some stronger rains came. Of course, when we got to our camping spot a nice long heavy storm came. We waited under some trees, but the sparse spruce trees at 11,000 feet don't do a great job of blocking rain so we still got soaked.<br />
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I can appreciate a little rain, but it sucks when it doesn't stop long enough to even cook dinner. Not to mention, it's also a bummer to share a tent with some wet, muddy, and cold dogs. As we sat in our tent eating our dinner (a big-time no-no for sure) we decided to make it a 1-night trip instead of 2, and we'd have a "do-over" another weekend.<br />
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It rained off and on all night, but it stopped for the morning and we got a reminder of why we love to come here so much. The rain is a double edged sword. While it's a hassle for camping, it makes this valley beautifully green, keeps the bugs down, and feeds the wildflowers. On top of that, it keeps people away so we had those whole gorgeous scene to ourselves while we enjoyed breakfast.<br />
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<center><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/7528344884/" title="Wet Banksy by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img alt="Wet Banksy" height="375" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7266/7528344884_e77e56a430.jpg" width="500" /></a> </center><center>One Soggy Banksy</center>
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<center><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/7528351414/" title="Kuzca by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img alt="Kuzca" height="375" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8006/7528351414_10c6eb39da.jpg" width="500" /></a> </center><center>Kuzca models her new jacket. We just got these recently and were really glad to have them on this trip. It helped keep them warm on a damp chilly night. We've tried covering Kuzca with a blanket before, but it never stays on all night.
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I have fond memories of our first camping trip to the American Lakes. It was Christine's dog's, Bucket's, last backpacking trip. He spent most of the day swimming in the lakes and was really tired on the way back to the car. We had to stop several times so he could lay down and rest.<br />
It all comes full circle. Kuzca is now 10 years old, and she's not quite the spry pup she used to be. She still loves to go walking, but we were worried about how much she'd be able to hike. She tackled the hike into the lake with no problem, but she was hurting on the way out. We think the combination of two days in a row of hiking plus cold, wet paws were making her hurt. We made it about halfway down with her walking gingerly. After that we had to take more frequent stops so she could rest, just like Bucket several years earlier. Unlike the 100+ lb Bucket, Kuzca was happy to be picked up, so I carried her occasionally as we got closer to the car. Christine swears Kuzca looked happy about it sometimes, although not in this picture.
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<center><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/7528366070/" title="Ryan carrying Kuzca by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img alt="Ryan carrying Kuzca" height="500" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7258/7528366070_a24b57eac9.jpg" width="375" /></a></center>
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And just to show how great this place looks without the rain, this is a picture I took on a previous trip that was in the <a href="http://amzn.com/0979966310">Colorado Lake Hikes)</a> book.<br \>
<center><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/1352622483/" title="2007-09-08_19_the_american_lakes by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img alt="2007-09-08_19_the_american_lakes" height="375" src="http://farm2.staticflickr.com/1038/1352622483_0e474fbe20.jpg" width="500" /></a><br /></center>Ryanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05843536317955511354noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1916962213228154907.post-45030507375122550352012-04-25T21:02:00.001-06:002012-04-25T21:12:42.510-06:00Back on the "road"I haven't done much road racing lately. In fact, I think I only did one (a criterium) last year. This year, I'm back to road racing and last weekend was the Mead Roubaix. It's tough to call it a road race since half of it is on rough dirt, but since I was on a road bike I guess it's a road race. The race was 3 laps on a 12 mile loop, with 6 of those miles on dirt. My road season is pretty unstructured back this year, so I wasn't sure quite what to expect out of my fitness. I just wanted to ride smart and keep all of my skin.<br>
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I pre-rode the course on Friday, so I knew what to expect and I knew where I wanted to be. As we approached the first dirt section, I rode to the front of the group and set a quicker pace to (hopefully) get the group single filed. Regardless of what was happening behind me, I was able to pick my own line through the gravel, which was pretty nice.<br>
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Everyone took the opportunity to recover when we hit the pavement again. While the first dirt section was pretty consistent and flat, the next one was pretty killer. It's covered with washboard for a while, then you have a 2-tierd climb to make it over (after you're gassed from powering over the washboard). I started near the front, but I was getting passed by people who were a little more on the gas. I managed to stay on the tail end of the lead group up the climb and through to the end of the first lap.<br>
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The pace was still high on the second lap, but I was hanging in there okay. I got gapped as we hit the downhill pavement and had to work really hard to get back into the group. My lack of mass helps me on climbs, but hurts me on descents. If I'm not on someone's wheel, I end up working way too hard while people are coasting.<br>
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The next trip through the rough dirt was rougher than the first. I was on the right side of the road when someone came up the gutter and bumped my bars as they bounced around on the dirt. I got pushed left, corrected, and did a little fishtail. Then I felt someone hit my rear wheel and go down. It sucks to be part of a crash like that, but I'm sure that guy understands I wasn't just squirrel-ly (is that a word?) riding around. I lost some ground with that slowdown and never quite regained solid contact. I was just getting to the back of the lead group as we reached the climb. I was nearly in contact after the first tier of the climb, but I was completely gassed and got dropped.<br>
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I chased solo for a while, but I wasn't pulling them in. I saw a couple riders coming up behind me, so a sucked down a gel while I waited for them. I didn't have any chance solo, but I thought we might be able to make the catch with three of us. We all worked well together, taking smooth equals pulls, but it wasn't to be. We rode hard enough to not get caught from behind, and I finished 13th.<br>
<br>Ryanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05843536317955511354noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1916962213228154907.post-50410490264337109572012-04-16T08:00:00.000-06:002012-04-16T08:21:20.585-06:00Belgium and France 2012 - Paris and Paris-RoubaixWhen we started kicking around the idea of this trip and found out that my parents would be in Paris around the same time, we decided that we just had to go to Paris to meet them. We were able to meet up for dinner every night while we were there and it was great fun. We all agreed that we should meet in Paris more often.<br>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/7081361489/" title="Mon and Dad by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7081/7081361489_14d7f9f2d0.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Mon and Dad"></a><br>
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It wouldn't be a trip to Paris without some croissants. Christine's old favorite was under new management so we weren't sure if they were still awesome. Long story short - they're still amazing and we didn't even bother going through the list of award winning croissants that Christine had printed up. If it ain't broke...<br>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/7081359817/" title="Christine in line at Boulangerie 28 by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7205/7081359817_f128b6fdc8.jpg" width="500" height="374" alt="Christine in line at Boulangerie 28"></a><br>
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On Easter Sunday we drove out from Paris to see a little bit of the Pariss-Roubaix bike race. Similar to Flander the week before, this is a race that features a lot of cobblestone sections of road. It's a real hardmans race, and I love it. We drove up to the start to watch the riders sign-in and roll out, then we drove up to the one of the famous cobblestone sections - The Trouée d'Arenberg. What an amazingly hellish stretch of "road". We were about 100m meters from the end of the sector and I couldn't believe the speed that the riders were carrying. Unbelievable.<br>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/6935289006/" title="Paris-Roubaix Arenberg sector by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7189/6935289006_6e0d120b05.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="Paris-Roubaix Arenberg sector"></a><br>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/6935290926/" title="Paris-Roubaix Arenberg sector by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7093/6935290926_114b19c083.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Paris-Roubaix Arenberg sector"></a><br>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/7081366501/" title="Paris-Roubaix Arenberg sector by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7208/7081366501_1572de5b60.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="Paris-Roubaix Arenberg sector"></a><br>
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All good things must come to an end, and eventually we had to head home. With a 12:30PM flight, we had enough time to drive by Christine's favorite croissant shop one more time and get a couple to satisfy us until our next trip.<br>
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And just in case you wondering, we didn't leave Belgium empty handed:<br>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/6935294158/" title="Beer by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5459/6935294158_5bf1f4e9c4.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Beer"></a>Ryanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05843536317955511354noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1916962213228154907.post-20345901600091590862012-04-15T17:00:00.000-06:002012-04-15T17:00:03.580-06:00Belgium and France 2012 - Normandy<center><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/7081313719/" title="Walking around Saint Bernardus by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5342/7081313719_49fdcb7298.jpg" width="333" height="500" alt="Walking around Saint Bernardus"></a></center>
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We checked out of our beer lover's lodging on Thursday morning and drove down to the Normandy region of France. We drove most of the afternoon to get down to Mont Saint-Michel, which is a rocky island that his home to an abbey. Until the late 1800's, you could only get to the island at low tide. Nowadays, the road is accessible all the time. The parking lots, however, are not. As we pulled up to park, there was a sign indicating that the parcking lot would be under water in 2.5 hours. It was less time than we thought we'd need, but we went for it anyway. It turns out that it was just the right amount of time for us to tour the abbey, stop in a couple tourist shops, get a crepe, and leave before the tide buried our car.<br>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/6935311316/" title="Mont Saint-Michel by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5335/6935311316_8d99951d4c.jpg" width="500" height="333" alt="Mont Saint-Michel"></a><br>
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We stayed in the town of Bayeux that night so we could explore the nearby D-Day beaches the next morning. We spent most of our time at the American Cemetary and Memorial at Omaha Beach. It's a breathtaking place containing over 9,000 graves of American military dead. I was really blown away at the number of people who gave the ultimate sacrifice here to literally change the world. Neither Christine nor I are too versed in WWII history but we learned a lot at their awesome visitor center. We were only thinking we'd make a quick stop here, but we ended up staying for a few hours. Well worth the visit.<br>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/7081339481/" title="American Cemetary at Omaha Beach by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7180/7081339481_ff73b66bc3.jpg" width="500" height="333" alt="American Cemetary at Omaha Beach"></a><br>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/6935267328/" title="American Cemetary at Omaha Beach by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5119/6935267328_6f12aff8cb.jpg" width="500" height="333" alt="American Cemetary at Omaha Beach"></a><br>
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On our way into Paris we made one last stop in Giverny to visit Monet's garden. We were going to skip it, but it turned out to be such a beautful day that a walk in the garden sounded great.<br>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/6935272718/" title="Monet Garden by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7069/6935272718_064a4d7d3a.jpg" width="500" height="333" alt="Monet Garden"></a>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/6935284546/" title="Monet Garden by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7238/6935284546_e85346f378.jpg" width="333" height="500" alt="Monet Garden"></a><br>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/6935283516/" title="Monet Garden by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5459/6935283516_b08dc2e94a.jpg" width="333" height="500" alt="Monet Garden"></a>Ryanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05843536317955511354noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1916962213228154907.post-84534880333478790952012-04-15T14:37:00.000-06:002012-04-15T14:38:29.160-06:00Belgium and France 2012 - Wandering around BelgiumWe filled some of our other time in Belgium by visiting some new beer cafes and checking out other sights.<br>
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- We went to the World Cyclocross Championship course in Koksijde. It turns out there's not much to see there, but we did have a good time shopping and having a picnic at the beach. <br>
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- We drove just across the border to Roubaix France to see the famous velodrome where Paris-Roubaix finishes.
<br><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/6935235264/" title="Roubaix Velodrome by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5193/6935235264_34055c416e.jpg" width="500" height="333" alt="Roubaix Velodrome"></a><br>
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- Flanders is a big hop growing area, so we went to the hop museum in Poperinge. We only expected it to be mildly interesting, but in actuality it was really interesting. We learned a lot about how hops have been cultivated and sold throughout the years.<br>
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- The finishing city of the Tour of Flanders, Oudenaarde, also is the home of the Ronde museum. The race has a rich history in Belgium and they've collected a lot of cool stuff.<br>
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Without a doubt one of the trip highlights was having dinner with the Paneels, who run our favorite cafe. (I've babbled ad nauseum about <a href="http://dorst.be">In de Verzekering Tegen de Grote Dorst</a> before <a href="http://wheelsuck.blogspot.com/2011/01/in-de-verzekering-tegen-de-grote-dorst.html">here</a> and <a href="http://wheelsuck.blogspot.com/2009/01/in-de-verzekering-tegen-de-grote-dorst.html">here</a>. We love that place and these people.) On our last trip, they had us over to their house for dinner and we wanted to return the favor by taking them out. We showed up at the house and were greeted like old friends with warm hugs and smiles before they invited us inside to catch up over a nice beer. Their son, Yves, also came over for a little while to chat. He's really involved in the lambic community and we had a good time chatting about some past and upcoming events he's planning. We spent the next couple hours laughing and chatting with a combination of English, French, Dutch, and wild hand gesturing over dinner at a nearby restaurant.<br>
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Before we drove back to Flanders, they invited us back inside for a special treat. In celebration of Lydia's birthday, her sons created a custom geuze blended from the region's well known lambic brewers. [Briefly: lambic is a style of beer that uses wild fermentation, aged hops, and a lengthy oak barrel fermentation. Old and young lambics are then blended together by skilled blenders to create what's known as geuze. It's often considered the "wine" of the beer world.] They made 20 bottles of this beer and then the grand kids painted labels for each bottle. 20 bottles of an expertly crafted geuze, and they chose to share one with us. It is truly a special beer, and I felt pretty honored that we qualified as a special occasion. I don't know when it will happen, but I can't wait to go back!<br>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/7081318509/" title="Paneels by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5235/7081318509_69f0807979.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Paneels"></a><br>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/7081319497/" title="Cuvee Lydia label by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5152/7081319497_da260b6bc5.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Cuvee Lydia label"></a><br>
<br>Ryanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05843536317955511354noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1916962213228154907.post-47095995554576341472012-04-14T19:47:00.001-06:002012-04-15T07:07:32.669-06:00Belgium and France 2012 - Ronde van VlaanderenAbout a year ago I was watching the Ronde van Vlaanderen (Tour of Flanders) and Paris-Roubaix bike races in front of my TV with a nice beer in hand, and I started thinking about how fun it would be to actually be there. So...I made it happen this year and went to Europe to watch my 2 favorite bike races. I'll take any excuse to go back to Belgium, though. I've said it before, and I'll probably say it again: Belgium isn't generally the most scenic of places, but there's something about it that feels comfortable. The people are friendly, they love cycling, and they make great beer. What's not to love (I mean, besides the weather)?<br>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/6932186792/" title="De Lambiek Museum by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5348/6932186792_80113441b7_m.jpg" width="240" height="180" alt="De Lambiek Museum" align=left></a>After a pleasant trip on Air Canada through Montreal, we arrived in Brussels Saturday morning. I like the fact that we've been to this airport enough that it's familiar. Our first stop was the new Lambic Museum in Beersel, which was worth a visit. If nothing else, they give you a sample of their lambic to taste. Best part - it comes out of a box (like wine in a box). I wish I could have bought some lambic in a box to take home.<br>
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On our way out to our B&B in Flanders, we scoped out a good place to watch the Tour of Flanders the next day. The Oude Kwarement had a pretty good setup with beer and food vendors and a large TV so you can watch the rest of the race. That seemed like a good plan for Sunday.<br>
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When I was starting to look for a place to stay in Belgium, I found out that there was a B&B right next to the Saint Bernardus brewery. Saint Bernardus is one of our fevorite breweries, and the B&B came equipped with a fridge stocked with all of their beers. Dreamy. Sadly for us, the nearby Westvleteren Abby was closed for the Easter holiday. Tragic, because I'm nearly out of the Westvleteren 12 we brought back from our last trip.<br>
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On Ronde race day, we tried to get to the Kwaremont but they had a bunch of the roads closed off. Instead of continuing to drive around trying to find a good route, we parked near a different big climb - The Paterberg. It got used 3 times during the race and they had a similar setup that we say the day before at the Kwaremont. Having seen both on TV now, I think they Paterburg actually looked like a better place to watch from.<br>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/7078265821/" title="Ronde van Vlaanderen - Paterberg by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7134/7078265821_0684072b04_z.jpg" width="640" height="480" alt="Ronde van Vlaanderen - Paterberg"></a> <br>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/7078265821/" title="Ronde van Vlaanderen - Paterberg by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7134/7078265821_0684072b04_z.jpg" width="640" height="480" alt="Ronde van Vlaanderen - Paterberg"></a><br>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/6932191980/" title="Paterberg by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5328/6932191980_3d1f12e181_z.jpg" width="640" height="427" alt="Paterberg"></a><br><br>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/6932193722/" title="Ronde van Vlaanderen women by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5330/6932193722_2b88b7881e_n.jpg" width="320" height="240" alt="Ronde van Vlaanderen women" align=left></a>We were there early enough to walk on the course and check out the whole cobblestone climb. It's nothing you'd want to ride on your relaxing Sunday ride. We then settled in field with a bunch of crazy Belgians, many of whom were several beers into their day. Before too long the pro women rode by. It was fun to see Fort Collins cyclist Amanda Miller tackling that climb. And I'd be remiss if I didn't mention how nice it is, to see her suffer on a ride. On any ride that I'm on with her, I'm too far off the back to see that suffer-face.<br>
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Next up, the big boys came zooming by. I like this picture with Tom Boonen: <br><br>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/6932196948/" title="Ronde van Vlaanderen - Boonen by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7101/6932196948_1fe8d920a3.jpg" width="500" height="376" alt="Ronde van Vlaanderen - Boonen"></a><br><br>
You can see the face of pain on Seb Vanmarcke, but Boonen was looking pretty damn comfortable. He eventually went on to win the race, which was no surprise. To be in Belgium watching the Tour of Flanders with a bunch of Belgians when a Belgian wins is awesome. They love their cyclists, and the crowd cheered loudly when Boonen won the sprint. An amazing experience.Ryanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05843536317955511354noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1916962213228154907.post-18282557280636917332011-12-19T08:11:00.000-07:002011-12-21T16:23:07.896-07:00Colorado CX ChampionshipAll good things must come to an end, and last weekend marked the end of my 2011 cyclocross campaign - the Colorado State Championships.
I couldn't ask for much better conditions at the championship course in Castle Rock. The snow we received recently was melting and creating a nice muddy parcours with some good climbing. The course also featured some mildly technical sections and a frightening flyover. It was a 30 degree slope on each side which doesn't sound like much...until you're trying to ride up it and then down the other side without eating shit.<br><br>
I had some bad luck in the form of a flat tire as I took some warmup laps on the course. Since it was a tubular, there wasn't anything I could do to fix it there. I had to take a wheel off of my spare bike and do the race without a bike in the pit. It's a blow to the psyche having to race on a tire that you've hardly used all season and without being able to take some laps to see how the different tread handles in the mud. It's a tire combination I've been wanting to try this year though (Schwalbe Racing Ralph up front, Tufo Flexus Primus on the back).<br><br>
The race starts on a long leg burning climb before getting into muddy twists and turns. Unlike a lot of courses we race on, this course was wide enough in most spots that there was room to get around people. I took every opportunity I could to pass people early and not get stuck behind any crashes or bad riding.<br><br>
I rode as hard as I could - pushing hard on each climb, recovering on descents, and carefully on the technical stuff. With the sun setting as we raced, the course was changing every lap. Extra care was needed as some of the mud firmed up, some off camber corners got more slippery, and sometimes you just couldn't see anything in front of you due to the sun being in your eyes. (Dan Farrell called one of those blind spots "Ray Charles hill". Always good for a laugh.)<br><br>
The officials really wanted us to get our money's worth I guess because we ended up racing for 60 minutes. That's easily 10 minutes longer than any other race I did this year and I was paying for it late in the race. I had pulled back a few people, but I just didn't have the gas to stay with them at the end. They'd pull away from me in the technical stuff as I was in the red and struggling to keep my bike going in a straight line.<br><br>
I crossed the line in 9th place, satisfied with a good end to the season. A fun ride, and a good result. <br><br>
This is the first year where I've skipped the road season and focused solely on cyclocross. It was an up and down season, but I'm happy with the progress I made. From a pair of podiums at the USGP and upgrade in racing category to some frustrating performances as I struggled to keep up with faster guys, it's been a physically and mentally demanding season. I'm ready for a break from the daily training, but at the same time I'm anxious for next season. It's sick, I know. Thanks to everyone who cheered, provided support, and motivated me to ride faster. I'll see you next season.<br><br>
<center><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/6547224383/" title="2011-12-17_01_co_cx_state_champs by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img alt="2011-12-17_01_co_cx_state_champs" height="375" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7163/6547224383_0e10da4202.jpg" width="500" /></a></center>Ryanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05843536317955511354noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1916962213228154907.post-68445632633097753992011-11-30T16:21:00.001-07:002011-12-01T10:01:10.046-07:00Jingle CrossDriving back and forth across the country for Thanksgiving wasn't a super exciting way to spend 4 days around the holiday, but one bonus was that I got to bring my bike with me. Dropping 4500 feet in altitude tends to make you feel like Mark Cavendish. It's great, even though the weather and roads are kind of crap.<br><br>
Having a bike also meant that we could stop in Iowa City on the way back and race one day of Jingle Cross. When most people think of a bike race in Iowa they tend to think it would be boring because a lack of hills, but realistically it doesn't take much of a hill to add some flavor to a cyclocross race and we don't generally race on big hills here in Colorado anyway. The weather on race day was pretty legit cross racing weather: wet, muddy, and cold.<br><br>
I took one warmup lap on the course, and then retreated to the car to put on some warmer clothing. It wasn't particularly cold (mid 40's), but that rain chilled you to the bone. I should have been out riding around to stay loose, but the car was so nice and cozy. Plus I needed plenty of time to pin on three numbers - one on the back, and one on each arm. Overkill?<br><br>
Starting order was determined by the registration order, and since I didn't register until the day before, I was at the end of a nearly 100 person field. Ahh the back of the starting grid, home sweet home. Still, I wanted to see if I could race my way into the top 20. Hell, I had oxygen on my side.<br><br>
The big feature on the course is "Mount Krumpet". What should have been a rideable dirt path up turned into a really long run-up. I could ride almost half of it, but the slick mud and traffic eventually caused me to dismount every time and run the rest. It's way longer than any run-up I've seen in a race and it took every ounce of perseverance to continue to run it instead of walking like I lot of people resorted to. This was a training opportunity for me and I want to squeeze every bit of training out of it. :)<br><br>
If the tiring run-up wasn't enough, you almost immediately have to navigate the muddy zig-zags back down the mountain. During my warmup I was able to ride down slowly, but it was obvious that dismounting would be necessary as it got more muddy from the previous racers on the course. Even with big spikes in my shoes, it was pretty treacherous off camber greasy mud. Sometimes it seemed like the fastest way down was on your ass, and I saw plenty of people doing it.<br><br>
Through all the mud, I just tried to stay on the gas. I had a good time battling back and forth with a few people late in the race. Each of us trading attacks and trying to drop the other. I ended up finishing 26th. A little outside my goal of top 20, but not too bad. It's a fun race and a fun atmosphere. Even with the cold rain, there were plenty of people perched on Mount Crumpet to watch the carnage and provide "encouragement". It's too bad Iowa City is such a long drive away.<br><br>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/6436442929/" title="Ryan After Jingle Cross by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7020/6436442929_8cbed0cb1f.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="Ryan After Jingle Cross"></a>Ryanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05843536317955511354noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1916962213228154907.post-32388999220362296842011-11-13T17:44:00.001-07:002011-11-13T17:53:22.970-07:00Trying to find fitness amongst fast peopleI haven't blogged much about my illustrious racing career as of late, mostly because it had been pretty frustrating. I had some bad luck in big races, like flat tires and rolled tubulars. Not to mention, there's a lot of stiff competition in Cat 3. I felt fast enough to race in the top 20, but with my new upgrade I was always starting at the rear of the group.
But every weekend is a new race, and a new chance to change fortunes. And the past couple weekends, I've had better fortunes. Last weekend's opportunity: Schoolyard Cross. The weather forecase called for a cold and potentially wet morning race. If I hadn't already pre-registered I may have just stayed home, which is what a lot of people apparently did. We only had around 30 people in my race, which meant that even with my back row start I'd have less traffic to race through.
There wasn't an inch of pavement anywhere on the course. It was all dirt, prairie grass, or some combination of both. It's a hard course that demands you stay on the gas and the mid-week snowstorm meant that it would also be muddy. The course was pretty wide everywhere, which created plenty of passing opportunities. A lot of success in this race was about picking a smart line and understanding that the person in front of you may not be taking the best line for you. This was especially true on some of the bumpy prairie grass. People were happy to follow the tire tracks in front of them, but it wasn't any faster than going off that line. Keeping that in mind allowed me to get around a bunch of people early.
With a couple laps to go, I was sitting on someone's wheel. He was better than me in the technical sections, but was quickly tiring. I following him close, hoping he'd make a mistake, but he was pretty smooth. On the last lap, I put everything into an attack. It worked, and I was able to get a gap on him and pull away. I had the next rider in my sights, but I ran out of race course. I finished 4th. My best result since upgrading.
One week later, the next opportunity: Sienna Lake. The name of the game today was wind. Wow, was it windy. Another small crowd of about 30 people, and another back row start. The first "element" after the start is a pretty basic ride up a curb. I was shocked when the person in front of me locked up their wheels (actually laying rubber) going into this. (In his defense, I'm sure the people in front of him unexpectedly slowed way the hell down.) I never felt great today. I didn't feel really bad, but my legs felt tired from some hard workouts.
There were some fun technical elements on this course that kept me on my toes. I didn't feel like I rode particularly well; coasting more into corners, bobbling 180's, etc. Part of it was from too much air in my tires, but the majority of it gave me ideas of what to work on. I had a good time, and thankfully kept upright the whole time. I finished 8th today. It's another decent result. Maybe this season is getting back on track?Ryanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05843536317955511354noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1916962213228154907.post-2992338899285779632011-10-31T20:35:00.000-06:002011-10-31T20:35:36.926-06:00New RideAs I was racing in the mud at the New Belgium Cup, I was thinking about how it'd be nice to have a clean bike in the pit. I quickly came to the conclusion that I, as a Cat 4, I'd feel a little silly to having a spare bike. So after I cat'd up, Christine (always a believer of "turnabout is fair play") showed up with a new Ridley X-Fire frame. (It's okay to be jealous.)<br />
<br />
His and hers 2012 Ridley X-Fires:<br />
<center><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/6292254159/" title="His and her's Ridley X-Fires by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm7.static.flickr.com/6106/6292254159_72a25fc770.jpg" width="500" height="374" alt="His and her's Ridley X-Fires"></a></center><br />
<br />
Mine:<br />
<center><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/6292772740/" title="Ridley X-Fire by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm7.static.flickr.com/6109/6292772740_7e576af028.jpg" width="500" height="374" alt="Ridley X-Fire"></a></center><br />
It's a sweet ride.Ryanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05843536317955511354noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1916962213228154907.post-1399992873426133422011-10-20T19:48:00.000-06:002011-10-20T19:48:49.219-06:00The Ups and Downs of racingOne of my goals for the cyclocross season was to upgrade to Cat 3. I could have upgraded before the season even started based on previous experience, so I guess my real goal was to <i>earn</i> my upgrade with race results. After my two podiums at the New Belgium Cup, I figured it was a good time to pull the trigger.<br />
<br />
Last weekend was my first in the new category. As a friend of mine told me when we were warming up, the biggest difference between the Cat 4's and Cat 3's is that nobody in the 3's is just there to have a good time. Everyone there is giving it their all, even from the back row, to get to the front of the race.<br />
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I lined up Saturday at Xilinx without expectations. I had no idea where I'd fit into the pecking order, I just knew that it was going to be an uphill battle against some strong competition. My start was pretty terrible and I was getting passed left and right. If I wasn't dead last going into the first corner, I was pretty damn close. Not a great way to start the day. Following a long singletrack section, I started picking people off in areas with more passing opportunities. Shortly into the second lap, I'd probably passed 10 people or so. I was going for pass through a grassy corner when I hit a bump in the grass that ripped my tire off the wheel. Game over. I was about as far away from the pit as I could be, so there was no hope of salvaging my race. Nothing gets me quite as frustrated as equipment failure, but I should blame myself for not checking the glue on these tires at the beginning of the season.<br />
<br />
So I lived to fight the next day at Monarch High School CX. I was determined to have a better race, and this was a course that suited me better with long power sucking grass stretches. I took up my now familiar place at the starting grid near the back of the group, but I at least held my position when the whistle blew this time. There are a lot of 180's on this course that gave me a chance to catch my breath, and then I'd hammer it on the wide grass sections and pass people.<br />
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On the second lap, I took a gravely corner too fast and went down pretty hard. I got up quickly and remounted with a brief look at my arm to see the damage. It looked bloody, but all my body parts still worked and I continued to race with my battered bike.<br />
<br />
One thing is for sure, people aren't exploding at the end of the race in the 3's like they typically do in the 4's. I could never let off the gas, or I'd get caught from behind. I gave it all I had (and then some) to hold my position, even as my legs were cramping on the last lap. I finished the day in 21st place. It's going to take me some time to work my way up through the cat 3 ranks, but I'm determined to do it.Ryanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05843536317955511354noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1916962213228154907.post-89741603888084987412011-10-09T21:23:00.000-06:002011-10-09T21:23:18.162-06:00USGP New Belgium Cup day 2Another good day at the New Belgium Cup. I didn't exactly focus on recovery after yesterday's race - lots of walking around the course and drinking beer into the night with our house guests. Consequently, I wasn't feeling too sharp this morning. I took a couple easy warmup laps, and tried pushing it hard on one of the climbs. My legs felt like garbage. Oh well, the course was really fun. The rain had stopped over night, and the mud was firming up. I really like riding in those conditions. Unlike snow where you can blow a line and immediately be on your ass, mud is more slow and forgiving.<br />
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I had another front row callup but my start was considerably slower today. I didn't take the hole shot and risked getting caught up in traffic. It took some good old fashioned elbowing and bumping, but I survived the opening lap mayhem and settled in somewhere in the top 10. I really wasn't paying too much attention to the people around me, I was just trying to ride a clean race. I took some chances on some lines. Some worked out, others didn't. I got passed by the eventual winner because I was trying to take an outside line through some dry grass in a corner. In my head I knew it was slower, but I wanted to try it anyway.<br />
<br />
I was riding pretty close with another rider on the last lap. I had a pretty sloppy lap which allowed him to gap me. I pulled him back some on the climbs, but he was still on the gas. Nearing the final straight I had to slow down to get around a lapped rider and I never quite made up that time. I tried like hell though. I've probably never put so much into a finish, and I almost caught him at the line.
I finished 3rd again, just like yesterday.<br />
<br />
I really surprised myself this time. During the race, I was surprised how much better I felt than in warmup. And it felt like that despite a bad start, my fitness carried me back to the front of the race. It's an amazing feeling to know the time and hard work I put into training is now showing up on the race course.<br />
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<br />
<center><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/6229072114/" title="Podium presentation by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img alt="Podium presentation" height="375" src="https://farm7.static.flickr.com/6227/6229072114_3bc9e4964f.jpg" width="500" /></a></center>Ryanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05843536317955511354noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1916962213228154907.post-66636126372267887192011-10-08T17:19:00.000-06:002011-10-08T17:19:39.483-06:00USGP New Belgium Cup day 1The USGP of Cyclocross made a stop in Fort Collins this weekend. It's an infrequent pleasure to be able to ride my bike to a race, but that was the pleasure I had this morning as I took the 10 minute spin to the course. <br />
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I started the race strong, taking the hole shot from the nice front row start my early registration netted me. I actually didn't want to be at the front setting the pace so early so I slowed down going into the first barriers and let someone come around. I stayed in 2nd position for the rest of that first lap. <br />
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On the second lap, a junior bridged up to us a pretty quickly passed us. He was riding smoother than us through the technical parts, and faster than us everywhere else. My goal from there was to maintain my position and not make any dumb mistakes. <br />
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I went from 3rd to 4th place on the third lap and stayed on the back of a group of 3 (2nd, 3rd, and 4th place) I wasn't riding well enough to pass the rider in front of me without being passed right back in a technical section, but I kept the pressure on. The 2nd place guy was pulling away from us and 3rd place crashed in front of me as he tried to take some more chances and catch up on the last lap. I went around him and made the most of it to try and secure a podium spot. I had noticed he wasn't climbing well, so I buried myself on every climb to distance myself from him and hopefully deal a mental blow. It worked and I got a good gap on him. <br />
<br />
It was too late for me to catch 2nd place, but I held on 3rd! My first podium of the year. It's great to do it in a big race like this too. <br />
Ryanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05843536317955511354noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1916962213228154907.post-82437947034798811752011-10-02T19:32:00.001-06:002011-10-02T19:32:37.058-06:00Frisco CyclocrossThe Frisco cyclocross race has dealt me some bad luck in the past. Last time I raced there, I burped the air out of my tubeless tires. Before that, I dropped my chain (behind a chain keeper) and got passed by the entire race as struggled to get it back on. Friday I felt like the Frisco bad luck was starting early as I went on an easy ride to blow the cobwebs off some wheels I hadn't used yet this year. My "easy" workout got derailed when I shifted my chain into the spokes and got it jammed behind the cassette. I ended up walking to the bike shop, carrying my bike. Not exactly the prerace workout I was looking for. The fun continued at the hotel in Frisco. Someone checked into the room next to us at 3AM. Every one of their many trips back from the car, our puppy got up and barked. It was his first night in a hotel, and every little noise was something new and startling.
You couldn't ask for better weather on race day. During warmups I had on some warmer clothes, but by race time I was comfortable in shorts. This was the first race in the Cross Cup series. All that really means for me is that the points I earned last week meant nothing and I'd still get no callup. I started in about the 5th row this time. The race starts with a long climb and right away my legs felt soft. I don't know if it was fatigue from training or lack of sleep, but I didn't fly up that thing like I had hoped to.
I tried to be aggressive on the first lap and make some passing attempts, but it seemed like most of them got shut down and I ended up having to grab a lot of brake at the last minute. Slowly but surely I picked my way through the crowd, trying to make smart passes and flow through course. Altitude was tiring, and I nearly blew up every time we hit the long climb on the course. Bike handling gets even more difficult when you're that far into the red, but I kept it upright the whole race. For the last half lap I had someone in my sights that I wanted to chase down. He had passed me earlier and I could see he was running out of gas (but so was I). Going into the last corner, he slipped a bit and had to pull his foot out of the pedal. That allowed me to get a bit close and we sprinted for the line. I'm not used to sprinting at the end of a cyclocross race, and it was pretty fun. I managed to take him by maybe a bike length for 10th place. Another step in the right direction.
Next up - The New Belgium Cup.Ryanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05843536317955511354noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1916962213228154907.post-71735752488500084162011-09-24T20:51:00.001-06:002011-09-24T20:51:19.842-06:00Cyclocross at XilinxI haven't pinned on a race number since sometime last spring, but my racing hiatus came to an end in Longmont today.
It was my first race of the cyclocross season and my first race in a new category. Having just come off a long vacation, I wasn't expecting much from the legs. I just wanted to get out there and remind my body what it's like to race. I didn't have any points this season, so I was stuck starting in the 5th or 6th row. It could have been worse, though. We probably had close to 100 racers, so I was starting somewhere the middle of the pack.
The normal 1st lap chaos ensued, but I was a little surprised at what gave people trouble. The group got really bunched up as we had to come off the pavement over a curb. I ended up getting off my bike and running because it was just faster. After that, things settled down quite a bit. I mostly just rode within my limits and tried not to go into the red too much. The course was loose in spots, but overall not too technical. It was good practice for me, and I felt like I rode a lot of stuff faster than I would have in the past.
I started to fade at the end of the race, which is about what I expected after having a bunch of time off the bike. I found myself on the back of a group of 5 going into the last set of barriers. It was a short distance from there to the uphill finish, and I felt confident that I could out sprint some of those guys. Unfortunately the guy in front of me decided he was done racing, sat up, took a bizarre line into the barriers, and gapped me from that group. Damn. Bummer of a way to end that race, but overall it went pretty well. I finished 19th.Ryanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05843536317955511354noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1916962213228154907.post-45916666338362877992011-09-22T21:25:00.000-06:002011-09-22T21:25:47.261-06:00Italy 2011Italy has been on our list of places to visit for a long time, and a 5 year anniversary seemed like an excellent excuse. There's a ton of stuff we wanted to see there, but we had to force ourselves to trim down the list so we didn't spend our time running around from city to city. Hopefully we'll get back sometime and fill in the gaps. Over the 17 days we were gone we stayed in 5 cities, so that seems like a good way to break up this blog post. I can spend a lot of time writing about the places we went, but I'm going to try my hardest to be brief and just give some highlights with some pictures.<br><br>
<b>Naples and the Amalfi Coast</b><br>
We landed in Rome in the morning and made our way to Naples for the afternoon to sample some of the best pizza in the world. I love Neopolitan style pizza, and we stepped out of the train station armed with a few places to try. Our first stop (Da Michelle) was super busy with a line out the door and we were hungry. We went to another nearby pizzeria, Trianon. Bliss. Delicious pies, our first food overindulgence of the trip. The crust was great, the toppings were great, the wood-fired oven chars it up just right.
<center>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/6173613493/" title="Margherita DOC pizza at Trianon by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img alt="Margherita DOC pizza at Trianon" height="375" src="https://farm7.static.flickr.com/6179/6173613493_4e78ccdd7e.jpg" width="500" /></a><br />
Pizza at Trianon</center>
With our bellies full and our jet lag dragging us down, we skipped out planned trip to the museum and other pizzerias and caught the train to our hotel in Sorrento.
The following morning we went to Pompei and Herculaneum. Both are really amazing. It's crazy to see what the ancient Romans were able to build and see how well preserved it was. For me Herculaneum was the better of the two because it sees far less traffic, and you can really get up close an personal to more of the stuff. I wish we could have spent more time there, but it had already been a long day of walking around in the heat and humidity.
<center><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/6173614873/" title="Pompei forum by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm7.static.flickr.com/6176/6173614873_ab574b3c15.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Pompei forum"></a><br>Pompei Forum<br>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/6174145812/" title="Herculaneum by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm7.static.flickr.com/6172/6174145812_0a733132d9.jpg" width="374" height="500" alt="Herculaneum"></a><br>
Statue at Herculaneum
</center>
With our historical sight seeing taken care of, next we wanted to hit the Amalfi Coast. The bus ride from Sorrento to Amalfi had been described to us as "white-knuckle". It's a twisty cliffy road, but the bus driver seems like he was in pretty good control of the situation. Had I driven similar roads in Corsica, I may have been more impressed with the whole thing.
The Amalfi Coast is, of course, beautiful. We spent a couple days there and did a little hiking combined with beach lounging. When I say "hiking" I really mean "stair climbing". Holy crap there are a lot of steps. The beaches aren't the soft sandy beaches that you'll get elsewhere, but the water is great and the surroundings greater.
<center><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/6173625083/" title="Lots of stairs by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm7.static.flickr.com/6157/6173625083_1f1bf4cbd8.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="Lots of stairs"></a></br>
Did someone stay stairs?<br>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/6173628249/" title="Amalfi from above by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm7.static.flickr.com/6166/6173628249_f0356c6c0e.jpg" width="374" height="500" alt="Amalfi from above"></a><br>
Amalfi</br>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/6174148536/" title="Walking to Atrani by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm7.static.flickr.com/6170/6174148536_6c6575ddcf.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="Walking to Atrani"></a><br>
My beautiful traveling companion<br>
</center>
Our next big stop was Venice, but on the way we stopped in Naples again. This time we hit 2 more pizzerias. The first was Gino Sorbillo. Even better than Trianon. Again, the crust was sublime, and the toppings were top notch. We killed some time walking around Naples (and walking off our pizza) while we waited for a couple friends to get into town. We spent some time sitting on the steps of Duomo di Napoli which turned out to be fun people watching. We enjoyed watching a football game break out with several of the neighborhood kids and seeing unsuspecting bystanders and cars get buzzed by the ball. We met our friends later at Da Michelle for more pizza. We ate a bit of it there and took the rest to go with us on the night train to Venice. This place is world famous, but Christine and I both agree that they weren't our favorite pies in Naples. They've got stiff competition though. Our nod goes to Gino Sorbillo.
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/6174157340/" title="Our pizzas at Gino Sorbillo by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm7.static.flickr.com/6157/6174157340_4e21fd4b52.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Our pizzas at Gino Sorbillo"></a><br>
More delicious pizza<br>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/6174158176/" title="Self portrait on the steps of Duomo by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm7.static.flickr.com/6157/6174158176_05f7dca6ef.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Self portrait on the steps of Duomo"></a><br>
</center>
<b>Venice</b><br>
The night train got use there shortly before 6AM. Yeah, that's an early start to the day, but so worth it. The city is dead quiet at that hour and we got to see the place slowly wake up as we made our way to the hotel to drop off our bags. The usually packed Piazza San Marco was sparsely populated and the tourist souvenir booth operators hadn't even arrived yet. What a great way to see this city. I didn't expect much from Venice. It never sounded very appealing to me, but it was one of those places you feel like you should see someday. I ended up liking it, and I don't think I would have liked it as much if we had been shuffled in with the tourist masses. But for as nice as it was, I was glad we only spent a day there and I don't really feel like I need to get back any time soon.
<center><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/6173631973/" title="Venice in the morning from Ponte Degli Scalzi by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm7.static.flickr.com/6151/6173631973_726a7529aa.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Venice in the morning from Ponte Degli Scalzi"></a><br>
Venice in the morning<br>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/6173634265/" title="Venice by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm7.static.flickr.com/6176/6173634265_251f64b75f.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="Venice"></a>
</center>
<b>Bolzano</b><br>
From the waters of Venice to the base of the Dolomites. It was nice to gain a little altitude and enjoy some cooler temperatures. Bolzano is home to Ötzi the Iceman, a 5000 (as in <b>FIVE THOUSAND</b>) year old man that was found frozen in a nearby glacier. It's mind-blowing that stuff that they found with his well preserved body. He was carrying a bow, pocket knife, food, and medicine. It's like he's an ancient hiker. He even had some shoes that were stuffed with straw insulation to keep his feet warm. That's a must-see sight if you're in the area.
We were running out of clean clothes, and Bolzano seemed like a good place to do some laundry. Yay laundry! Right?
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/6173638405/" title="Laundry night in Bolzano by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm7.static.flickr.com/6171/6173638405_7fb48f0589.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Laundry night in Bolzano"></a><br>
Yay laundry
</center>
As luck would have it, there was a wine bar next door to the laundromat. We went in there with the intention of enjoying a glass of wine while our clothes tumbled clean. It turned out to be a great place. We had and awesome platter of cheese, cured meats, a bruschetta. We could get enough of the bruschetta. Damn, I'm salivating just thinking about it. We struck up a conversation with the owners and they gave us some great tips on their favorite wines from the area.
<center>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/6174166398/" title="Excellent platter by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm7.static.flickr.com/6172/6174166398_a35d9699b6.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Excellent platter"></a><br>
Excellent platter at Trasi waine bar</center>
The next day we rented bikes and rode up to the wine making area near by. The bike trails around Bolzano are amazing. We could get all the way out of the valley and up to some vineyards without ever getting on an actual road. We went to a couple wine makers, stopped at the local "working man's" lunch stop along the train, and rode down into another valley for a swim in a mountain lake. I pretty good (if tiring) day.
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/6173642717/" title="Farm along the bike path by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm7.static.flickr.com/6173/6173642717_dea851f625.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Farm along the bike path"></a><br>
A farm along the bike path</center>
The next day we went to Alpe di Siusi, the largest high alpine meadow in Europe. We took a gondola from Siusi up to the village of Compatsch and were a little surprised at how developed and maintained the meadow was. Many of the "trails" were paved paths, and even the singletrack looked really gentle. There are various lifts in the meadow that can take you up (or down), and numerous refuges where you can stay overnight. Many even have a restaurant. It seems like a great place to get away without all the usual overhead of camping. We hiked for around for a few hours, had a picnic, and enjoyed the mountain air.
<center><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/6174191640/" title="Alpe di Siusi pano by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm7.static.flickr.com/6178/6174191640_cd3af9ce20.jpg" width="500" height="229" alt="Alpe di Siusi pano"></a><br>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/6174174200/" title="Alpe di Siusi by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm7.static.flickr.com/6179/6174174200_b472b60f00.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="Alpe di Siusi"></a><br>
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<b>Cinque Terre</b><br>
Back to sea level, heat, and steps. We stayed in a recently renovated room in Manarola with an excellent view of the sea and a big patio. Perfect for lounging at sunset with some wine, cheese, and meat we brought from Bolzano. One of the things on the to-do list for the Cinque Terre is hiking between the towns and our time here was mostly a mix between hiking, eating, and sitting on beaches. The humidity is killer, but that makes the ocean feel all the better. We also totally stuffed ourselves on an awesome seafood and pasta dinner our last night in Manarola. We ordered the seafood appetizer and the chef just kept bringing our plate after plate of small seafood bites. It was awesome. Then, dinner was fresh pasta served in/with a whole crab.
<center><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/6173648295/" title="Manarola by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm7.static.flickr.com/6159/6173648295_6327d4be7c.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Manarola"></a><br>
Manarola by day<br>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/6173655815/" title="Manarola at night by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm7.static.flickr.com/6171/6173655815_87d831d115.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Manarola at night"></a><br>
Manarola by night<br>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/6173651947/" title="Sunset from our patio by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm7.static.flickr.com/6170/6173651947_536e1a3833.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Sunset from our patio"></a><br>
Sunset from our patio<br>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/6173650723/" title="Our hotel from the Via d'Amore by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm7.static.flickr.com/6165/6173650723_48286b128e.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="Our hotel from the Via d'Amore"></a><br>
Our hotel location
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<b>Rome</b><br>
The last stop on our tour was Rome. I don't know if it was good or bad to end with a big city. Either way, we were both exhausted from a couple weeks of walking, and we'd be doing more in Rome. There's so much to see in Rome, but in our short time there we tried to pick an manageable number of things. The people at our B&B were awesome, and gave us a lot of good info before we went to check things out. They even made some museum reservations for us. If you're ever in Rome, I'd highly recommend the Daphne. The ancient sights are pretty cool. Just like Pompei, I'm amazed at the level of skill they had to create these large (even by today's standards) structures. The Colosseum was pretty cool, but I think I was most impressed by the Pantheon. Unlike the domes we see in churches that are heavily adorned, part of the beauty of the Pantheon is in the lack of bells and whistles inside the dome. It's quite a sight to just sit and appreciate.
We're not big museum-goers, but we did decide to go to a couple in Rome. The first was the Borghese Gallery. In a word, amazing. Even after all these years, the sculptures look like they're going to reach out and touch you. To make something as solid and hard as marble look so delicate and soft is an amazing thing. The other museum we visited was the Vatican Museum. Everyone I'd talked to told us how great it was and to be sure we went. So we did. And I couldn't get out of there fast enough. I didn't like how you were essentially in a slow moving crowd wandering your way along the pre-set path through the art. I just couldn't get into it. Then we got to the Sistine Chapel, and I was like "That's it?". I guess I expect it to be grander or something. Artistically, it's a great piece of work both for its size and the techniques used, but hanging out in a stuffy room staring up at the ceiling with a couple hundred other people was not my idea of a great time. On to St. Peters Basilica. Another huge, flashy church. What else can I say that hasn't already been said?
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/6174185078/" title="Colosseum by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm7.static.flickr.com/6174/6174185078_742f557b0d.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Colosseum"></a><br>
Colosseum<br>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/6173658909/" title="Forum by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm7.static.flickr.com/6151/6173658909_967a972341.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Forum"></a><br>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/6174187548/" title="Pantheon by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm7.static.flickr.com/6164/6174187548_ff612dc709.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Pantheon"></a><br>
Pantheon dome<br>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/6173662407/" title="St. Peter's Basilica by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm7.static.flickr.com/6157/6173662407_cc7ea741a3.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="St. Peter's Basilica"></a><br>
St. Peter's basilica dome<br>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/6174192772/" title="Trevi Fountain turned off (pano) by ryan_l, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm7.static.flickr.com/6175/6174192772_263a4b9f07.jpg" width="500" height="291" alt="Trevi Fountain turned off (pano)"></a><br>
Trevi Fountain<br>
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So that's the briefest rundown of the trip I can do. More pictures are on <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ryan_l/sets/72157627731535430//">Flickr</a>. Maybe more details and pictures later.Ryanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05843536317955511354noreply@blogger.com1