Fun run

Ready to hustle!

Today was our school's annual fun run. It delivered as promised. She did great and turned in a solid performance. Her pace was certainly a bit quicker than when I run, which is not very often anymore.

At the starting line.

Enjoying an orange after the run.

She started out on her own, but I caught up to her so we could run together. We held hands across the finish line, sprinting to pass a boy and his dad. I was a little surprised and very impressed that she passed a number of kids along the way and kept her determination. I'll credit her competitive streak to her mother. The school did a great job running the event, and the turnout of parents and siblings was impressive.

One of the other dads was riding around this very nice vintage Redline BMX.

As usual, my ride was considerably larger.

Big day of running and off road riding

We started the day early with the Gallop at the Grove run in Golden to benefit an elementary school. her friend Joel and his family met us there. Joel's mom Jen and I ran the 5k. I wasn't sure how I'd do, as I haven't yet fully recovered from bronchitis and I had run only one other time in 2011. I'm anything but a strong runner, but I finished only a few minutes slower than I might have if I had been running more consistently. Jen, who is much more fit and competitive had a terrific run and placed second in her age group. Good going, Jen!

Post run Gatorade with my personal cheering section.

After the 5k, the kids ran the 1k fun run, and all had a great time. Like his mom, Joel finished quite strongly. I wouldn't be surprised to see a lot more running events in his future. A 1k coupled with a 5k seems to be an ideal combination for getting kids and families interested in running events. It's good to see more 5k/1k runs in our area.

Warming up before the 1k.

The event was a well organized and conducted, and it is likely we'll do it again. It was particularly fun to do the run with friends. She has known Joel since preschool, and we always have a great time hanging with his family.

Big Dummy in aircraft carrier mode with the squadron stowed aboard.

After we went home, we decided to go for an early evening ride to the park. She has recently been favoring her mountain bike, a single speed Schwinn with knobby tires, so that's what she rode. In an area of the park there are a few interwoven dirt trails and some short downhill sections that she has enjoyed riding with me on the Big Dummy for the past couple of years. Today I asked her if she wanted to try out the dirt section on her own. As a bit of a surprise to all of us, she cruised over a roller, bombed down a hill and never looked back. From then on it was nothing but grins from a girl enjoying the dirt.

She went down with determination...

... and climbed back up eager to go for more.

She spent about twenty minutes going down one track and climbing back up another. Making circuit after circuit, she sought out ever more difficult routes. With every success, she became more daring, at one point exalting, "I didn't even use my brakes this time!"

Today she called this a bump. In not so long she'll decide it's a jump.

Perched at the top with an ear to ear smile.

Pilot's view of one of the downhills.

Whooping it up as she approaches terminal velocity.

I think we now have a pretty good idea about how we're going to be spending a lot of time this summer. In recent years I've ridden bikes mostly for transportation, but this experience has helped me to remember the sheer fun of dirt. Watching her today, I couldn't help but think of how the bulk of many summers when I was a kid were spent riding dirt tracks. With any luck, she'll be able to say the same thing.

Admit it. Sometimes you too wish you could rocket down the trail sporting a meshy yellow skirt.

Celebratory cruise on a chalk bike.

It must really be Fall

She reenacted the Linus in the leaf pile scene from It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown

Falling leaves are one indicator of the season, but so is the annual return of Veloswap. This was the first time that my cash and I had been in attendance in a few years, so it was with some relief that I returned home with no more bikes than when I left. That's not to say that I wasn't tempted by a brand new Long Haul Trucker in my size, on offer for a mere $700. I'm sure I'll be thinking about that bike for years, even though I'm comfortable with with the result. Does that mean my disease is in remission?

In the end, my expenditures for the day amounted to $15: $8 for admission, $5 for Albatross-ish bars made by Wald, $1 for a 140mm extension threadless stem (to hold a passenger handlebar on Julie's Xtracycle), and one last well-spent buck which netted me a set of 7-speed downtube Shimano 105 shifters and six 3mm threadless headset spacers. The bike-geek atmosphere was distinctly pungent, paying dividends as several hours of cheap entertainment.

Must...not...dig...through...the...'free'...boxes...

Veloswap has changed markedly over the years. I preferred the vibe of the days before Craigslist and bike hipsters, when the event was one of the few venues to relish in old bike junk and prices for many items were a bit more reality-based than at present. I know a lot of things in bike-dom and the world of economics have changed in the past couple of decades, but for me it's difficult to rationalize $2,500 as an astoundingly great deal for anything, even if for a used downhill rig or sleek triathlon bike with an original retail price upwards of $5k.

I've changed a bit too since my last Veloswap. In the past I arrived armed with a comprehensive list of parts objectives, a metric tape measure and keen bargaining skills honed by a tour of duty in the Peace Corps. Curiously, this time around I enjoyed the social aspect of the swap, spending about as much time hanging out and talking with friends as I did searching through parts.

The lower-key approach continued into today. We rode the Big Dummy and the Xtracycle over to participate in a 5K run/walk to benefit the local school district. I opted to walk instead of run as I had planned, and ended up doing the course with her. We ran some and walked some, and I even served as steed to the diminutive princess on my shoulders from time to time. At the finish line, she and I ran across hand-in-hand in 48:14. It was good fun, and she did great in her first 5k. Sadly, I forgot the camera.

Later, we took a ride with friends Maggie and Doug, and had dinner with several bike pals in North Denver. It was a great day to maximize enjoyment of the current and unusually long stretch of pre-frost weather in the region. Overall, not a bad way to spend the weekend.

Urban foliage tour

Aboard my trusty Cross-check

Capulin volcano run

Me, just after finishing with the girls, each fun run finishers themselves

So my last post wasn't Big Dummy or Daddy related. At least this one is Daddy related but suffers from lack of bike content.

This weekend I traveled to another state to take part in a run. Yes a run, not a ride. It was the Capulin Volcano Run in an incredibly scenic area in Northern New Mexico. We met my brother and his girls, and my mom (otherwise known as Oma) near Folsom, NM.

I ran the 5k, as did my Mom, while Chris and Jen ran the half marathon. Those who know me know that I am a fairly recent running convert, but have fallen dormant in my running activity for over a year. Lacking in raw talent or speed, I make up for in... something, I suppose. I'm good at lacing my shoes, maybe. In any case, the event was hosted by a gracious community, and well supported with great food and amazing views. It was also notable as most likely the only time I will even come close to finishing near the top of a timed event.

That's me in 4th place, just off the podium out of 20 some 5k finishers

I suspect that the real draw is the half marathon and not the 5k. The half marathon course winds up the side of an extinct volcano, to the very peak after gaining about 1,100 feet in 2.1 miles, then back down and on to the village of Folsom. The 5k is not nearly so demanding; climbing a couple hundred feet out of Folsom and then back down again. Needless to say, it was demanding enough for my taste.

Afterward, we all enjoyed the great food, including pork chili, breakfast burritos and home-baked goods. I can't say enough about how great the food was. Really terrific. As I've stated before, I'm not really a racer or a runner, but it was a great time. I look forward to next year.

Oma and Jen

Near the summit of the volcano

The view from the top included parts of several states

Near the bottom of the crater

Hamming it up

Girls in a tipi

Tipi camping is fun