A Room with a View

Not much to report, so I thought I'd share the view from our shower. Yes, our shower. We have a nice little window overlooking the Flatirons. And how high is the sill, you might ask? Well you'll just have to visit to find out.

First race in VeloNews colors

Well, this weekend was the second race in the Boulder series, and the first one with my new VeloNews kit. It was as good of a day as any to jump in with the big boys in the elite race. With about six hours a week of training it probably wasn't the smartest idea. Go hard or go home, right? It wasn't exactly a breakthrough race, but I didn't come in last!


The course was one of the best I've ever ridden. There was an awesome mix of pavement, mucky grass, creek-crossing run ups, dry run ups, sand... you name it, they had it. The best part was that I had my own personal cheerleader running around the course shouting things like: "You're the hottest thing on two wheels!" Can't ask for much more than that.


My days of being a bike racer may be over, but it's still fun to get out there and suffer. The Boulder race scene is a perfect place to enjoy the sport. There were over 500 racers out there taking a beating and getting dirty on a Saturday. There were lots of cowbells and heckling fans cheering me around the last lap. I coasted across the line into the arms of my number one fan and just smiled. It was a good day.

Sunrise at the Office - View East, Naturally

Not a bad sight to behold at the start of the work day. Of course what you don't see here are the seven layers of clothing I'm wearing to keep warm. Yes, it's a bit chilly at the farm these days, but by mid-morning the temps will work their way up to the high 70s, low 80s, and the layers will have been gradually retired, aside, of course, from the socially acceptable layers.

Once the sun is up, the view from the west is also lovely. The mountains look quite impressive now that they're dusted with a bit of snow. This view reminds me of the view of Mt. Washington and the Presidential Range I had from my bedroom while growing up in the western foothills of Maine, though I wasn't quite this close to the mountains and the open space was a lake, not a field.


Slightly off subject. I like lakes, and somehow this reminds me of a ditch just down the road from the house I grew up in, that my brother and I found fascinating for reasons I'm sure any six or eight year old could easily explain. We loved the idea of wading barefoot in the water that would collect there, but didn't like the fact that the bottom of the ditch was lined with leaves and such and might contain creatures unknown.

So one day, we scrounged up two plastic bread bags, removed our shoes and took turns wading in the water wearing the bread bags on our feet. The feeling of the water slowly pressing the plastic against my legs as I walked into the water, is a feeling that I can still remember. The nice thing is that I think we'd both be inclined to such behavior to this day.

Fall Hikes, Yummy Food and Happy People

The cool fall weather is finally hitting us in Colorado changing the east side of the Rockies from a dull brown and green to a dull brown and green with spots of brilliant yellow :) The forest around here is mostly comprised of pine and fir, but there are a few pockets of aspens, so we set out last weekend to see if we could find some. It's a far cry from the diverse rainbow of leaves back in Maine, but beautiful nonetheless.

We set out last Sunday over the Flatirons to Walker Ranch, about ten miles from town. Walker Ranch is a public park, bordering BLM land that used to be a very large ranch neighboring a gold mine. Though mostly exposed, the trail offered occasional protection from the sun.


And dipped down to a creek where took a break and enjoy the cool shade along with some more peak fall colors.


We had to pause and just savor the moment.


The trail undulated up and down until we got to the western edge of the park, treating us to a great view of the new snow on the continental divide.


Besides hiking, we've been spending a lot of time in the kitchen eating Melissa's delicious food. Delicata squash, homemade pumpkin pie from organic pumpkins, zucchini vichyssoise... you get spoiled having someone like her around :)


All in all, things are going really well out here. Lot's of projects to keep us busy. Stay tuned for pix of our new craft-closet-hutch-thing, racing, cold press coffee and lots more. With the winter weather approaching, we'll have plenty of time for fun projects. In the meantime enjoy life... we certainly do!