The Bolder Boulder

I flew into Denver today. I have a workshop to go to. As I'm driving my rental car to Boulder--okay, okay, it happened while I was in flight over Boulder.  I looked out of the airplane window and watched what had to be Boulder slip by beneath us.  I could see a creek below and just knew there had to be bike paths all along it.  And from our elevated perspective, I thought for sure I was seeing them. Well, that got confirmed during my drive in the rental car to Boulder.  What I didn't know, was exactly where the hotel was AND that the "Bolder Boulder 10K Run" was happening as I was driving into town.  I eventually learned that there were about 60,000 people who entered and ran this Memorial Day event.  The other thing I didn't know was that every year, Boulder holds a Boulder Creek Festival. Yeah, there was some traffic. As some of you might have guessed by know though, is that as I was driving watching cyclists left and right of me, I became hell bent on figuring out a way to ride some of the bike paths and bike lanes I began seeing everywhere in Boulder.  So, I asked at the desk at around 12pm and was assured I could get a cruiser for about $10.  But, when I went to the sport shop, it was closed. Never fear, I was directed to the Boulder Bikesmith Bike Shop (http://boulderbikesmith.com/) just a short walk away in the nearby shopping center, next to--get this--a Performance Bike Shop.  Bikesmith rented bikes and I was itching to sooth my poor bum from the punishment of a 3-hour airline flight and about an hour and a half car ride. So for under twenty bucks, I got a "dorkster" upright ride complete with helmet AND lock.  It was a "comfort bike" but I felt completely unnatural on it.  Nonetheless, it was a set of wheels and within minutes, I was cruising the Boulder Creek Trail.  I rode for over 12 miles and got a tad lost (see below) but everyone on the trail was very nice to let me know how to get where I was going. In fact, and you're not going to believe this, a guy in a car asked me if I was lost.  I said, "sorta" and he asked where I wanted to go.  I had spotted the Boulder Brewery & Pub on the hotel map and he let me know how to get there but thought it might be closed.  He even lead the way and when I got there we concluded it was indeed closed for Memorial Day.  But he suggested I go to Pearl St. and I'd find what I was looking for which happened to be lunch and a cool one. I eventually got back on the trail and finally got headed in the right direction and then ended up heading right into the Boulder Creek Festival.  It - was - packed!  I had to dismount and wade through the crowd.  I finally stopped to ask how to get to Pearl St.  I stopped to watch some street performers and then checked the map for a pub.   I ended up at the Walnut Brewery and had a fantastic chicken sandwich and some finely crafted brews before I headed back to the hotel. And then, I ended up watching the Flyers out hustle and out play the Chicago Blackhawks  only to lose 2-1.  Niemi was a friggin' wall!  Whatta ya gonna do?  It's back to Philly for games 3 and 4.  I don't want another Boston series, dammit!  LET'S GO FLYERS!! Activity Route: Boulder Creek (sorta) Elev. Avg: 5270 ft Location: Boulder, CO, Elev. Gain: +62 ft Date: 05/31/10 Up/Downhill: [+321/-259] Time: 04:15 PM Difficulty: 4.1 / 5.0 Weather: Sunny 82 F temp; 15% humidity 77 F heat index; winds E 4 mph Map Elevation (ft) Speed (mph)

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