Human Powered Brewery Tour 2018: Metal

The eleventh annual Human Powered Brewery Tour was a "Goes to Eleven" success. It was held February 17, 2018, which is when I originally wrote this post, but I didn't get around to adding the pictures until today.

My pogo stick is always part of my Human Powered Tour costume, regardless of the theme. This year it became my guitar. I made my guitar from cardboard, wire, some metal brackets, and lots of super glue and duct tape. I tried using velcro to attach it to the pogo stick but it didn't work, so I used more duct tape. It held up extremely well- still intact by the end of the day with minimal re-taping. The girls watched me with curiosity.

The event is a fundraiser for ALS. Celeste O'Connor is the founder of the event, along with her husband Scott Slusher.

Celeste has lost two of her family members to ALS, her cousins Bob and Annie, and they are the reason why she started the Tour 11 years ago.

That morning I knew I needed to get a run in because the Tour is not very long and it's hard to run in a costume, carrying a 20+ pound pogo stick, along with drinking beer. I went out and actually ran hill repeats on the Power Trail- just a few short ones, but it was a real workout.

I drank more than I wanted to. I had a taster of Raspberry Lime Tartastic at New Belgium, then drank about half of my pint of Blonde Ale plus a small taster of Chocolate Cherry Stout at Snowbank, then a 12 oz glass of Levity at Odell. And by then we were starving so Cat's husband Dave bought us all fish & chips from the food truck. I am not used to eating stuff like that but I scarfed it. Then I felt really gross the rest of the day.

Dennis brought the girls to Odell and they were very well-behaved, didn't try to steal anyone's food or beer like last year. They got all kinds of attention and compliments and they loved every minute. Chick magnets.

So then this morning I ran 13 miles with Cathy on the Power Trail and I felt like I got a real run in, again. It got up to 66 degrees today and felt like spring. I ran in shorts and a t-shirt this morning! This afternoon Dennis and I went walking along the Poudre River which gave me a few more miles, I ended up with nearly 50 miles this week. It's been a while. I feel like I am finally starting to make progress with building my mileage, except this coming week it's supposed to get cold and snowy again, maybe even single digit temperatures or below. Typical Colorado.

Vicarious Vlogs: Human Powered Brewery Tour 2016

Today was the ninth annual Human Powered Brewery Tour.

A fundraiser for Rocky Mountain ALS, the tour was started by Celeste O'Connor and Scott Slusher in honor of Celeste's two cousins who died from the disease.

The theme was "The Life Aquatic" based on the movie...which I and apparently most other people have not seen...

But we can Google on it. I made my costume easily, I already own a lot of light blue and aqua colored items, like my old Pearl Izumi team jacket, and a pair of girls leggings from Target. I made my hat from an old red t-shirt I never wear, so I cut it up and sewed it together, and printed the traffic light patch from my laptop at home, and covered it with clear tape to keep it water resistant, and stapled it onto the hat. I made an extra traffic light patch for my pogo stick.

I only went to four breweries, that was all the energy I had. This was my day I promised to myself to get away from work, I SO NEEDED IT!

The plan was New Belgium, Odell, Horse & Dragon, and Snowbank. The group would go on to Pateros Creek and a couple of other breweries but I was toast, and toasted enough after those four.

This morning there was a thick fog, it was cool and it didn't look like we would have the kind of sunny day we've been having all this past week.

I got dressed in my costume with extra layers underneath. I took my pogo stick but my plan was to park at Odell and ditch the pogo stick in the car after we finished there, it's a long way to Horse & Dragon carrying that thing. I ran to New Belgium from Odell, where I parked in the empty lot that is usually jammed once they open.

We all met at New Belgium before they opened the doors at 11, took pictures in costume, and it was great to see a lot of my old running friends, I have been so out of the loop for a long time. I didn't drink at New Belgium, mostly talked with people, catching up and shooting video.

After about 45 minutes it was time to move on to Odell...I jumped on my pogo stick and pogoed to the street, then ran with the big heavy thing all the way to Odell. What a workout! The sun was starting to come out and the fog was burning off.

I had a taster tray at Odell, I wanted to try one of the beers in there, a pale ale I'd never heard of, and I knew I liked most of the others. Horse & Dragon and Snowbank were my first time visits. I'll definitely go back to Horse & Dragon. I had a Picnic Rock Pale Ale there and it was good. Then at Snowbank I had a taster of the chocolate cherry stout which was also really good, but I'm not too big a fan of dark heavy beers. And the alcohol content was more like wine...

It was a good call to leave the pogo stick early, the beer was strong, even in small doses.

Everyone stayed at Horse & Dragon a long time and the bike group went on to Funkwerks, but I wanted to check out the ones I haven't been to. Betsy and I took off for Snowbank and we sat there with our chocolate cherry stouts talking, and eventually the bike group showed up. By 3:00 I was done and headed home.

It was a nice day, was fun and a great distraction from the endless piles of paper in which I am currently drowning.

Last I heard they raised over $3000 for Rocky Mountain ALS. I did the best I could with the video. Hope you enjoy it, consider joining us next year for the tenth anniversary.

Seventh Annual Human Powered Brewery Tour

video courtesy of Dan McGlothlin

The 70s themed 7th annual HPBT turned out to be another successful and fun-filled event.

There were hippie chicks, leisure suits and hot pink pants suits, Bobby Riggs tennis attire, Andy Warhol and Mr. Green Jeans, dangling beads and bangles, big hair, afros, flower power, and 70s culture everywhere. The only giveaway was the frequent use of iphones, very un 70s like, but after a few beers, no one notices.

We started out an hour later this year, at New Belgium brewery. The weather was supposed to be a lot nicer than it was, but it turned out to be cool and windy, around 36 degrees, but nothing wet was coming down from the sky and it wasn't terribly cold as long as you were either moving or indoors.

From there we went on to Fort Collins Brewery. I didn't drink at the first two stops. I have tasted most of the New Belgium brews. I like them, but I wanted to save it for the ones I haven't tried. I am not a big fan of Fort Collins brewery's offerings myself. I decided to save myself for Funkwerks and Odell, my favorite ones.

I brought my pogo stick along, figuring it would be a fun addition to my costume. The pogo stick brings out the 70s chick in me, that was my claim to fame in those days, according to my dad. I ran from brewery to brewery with the pogo stick. It wasn't too bad, my arms did get a little tired but the longest stretch to run was about a mile at a time.

The only time I ditched the pogo stick was on the way to Funkwerks from Fort Collins Brewery, I tucked it behind a tree off the shoulder along Lincoln Drive and it was safe there until I came back to get it on the way to Odell.

Groovy, man!

At Funkwerks I decided to try the raspberry provincial. I got a half glass of that. It wasn't that great, it was a bit sour and didn't taste much like fruit.

My arms were pretty tired from carrying that pogo stick while running, by the time we got to Odell. I happen to enjoy their beers the most.

I ordered a pilot tray and the first three beers on the left were all awesome.

But my favorite beer of the day was the "Obvious Pale Ale" which happens to be a beer developed by Odell and New Belgium together. Far out!

At the raffle outside on the patio I dazzled the crowd with 5 minutes of my pogosticking excellence, even after tasting all those beers. I surprised myself! Neato!

This cat who was dressed like Mr. Green Jeans was calling out the numbers for the raffle.

I didn't stick around for Pateros Creek or Equinox this year, as I was just too wiped out by mid-afternoon. I apologize for the partial report. But it was fun, and people seemed to be having a good time, and the last I heard they were up to $1800 raised for ALS and still counting. Can you dig it?

The other cool thing that happened was getting carded, being asked for my ID in two of the breweries was a big deal to me. Of course my gray hair was all covered up by my headscarf.

I got home around 3:30, starving. I ate leftovers and took a shower, and called it a day. Tomorrow, Maniac hills and more at Horsetooth. Gotta put all those carbs to work. Catch you on the flip side!

Spring: Bling it On

It's Valentine's Day and I got a lizard for the woman cave in Arizona, my dad shipped it to me, and it arrived today. So now the woman cave has a touch of color. Bling.

Appropriate for spring, and the giant thaw. Halfway through February now, we can get serious about spring fever.

The back yard is a slush swamp. I won't even say what is floating in some of the puddles, but we have two dogs. There is a science to picking that stuff up. Once it melts through the snow, you have to wait until the snow melts, the ground underneath dries up, and the substance in question is solid enough to pick it up without it falling apart.

Since this morning the slush pond has evaporated somewhat. The middle of the street is dry after being completely covered with ice this morning. Both edges of the street, along the curb, are still at least ankle-deep in icy slushwater.

Today wasn't such a warm day, either, the morning stayed cool. I went to the track to do 10 miles and get used to the curves again, and I froze the whole time I was running. It was cloudy and there was a breeze.

Tomorrow, hippie beer tour. Mr. Bill is too much work, I don't feel like having gunk on my face. I found some big dangling beaded earrings, a bandana I can wear as a headscarf, some beaded necklaces, a miniskirt, and some wild colors. That should be 70s enough. After a couple of beer stops, no one will notice. No one will notice anyway! We all blend in as a bunch of freaks running down the streets of the brewery district of Fort Collins.

Tonight is Valentine's Day and I'm cooking dinner, Dennis won't know what got into me when he gets home. But I have steak, roasted garlic and basil cherry tomatoes, asparagus with Meyer lemon, a special dessert I got at Whole Foods which is a small Black Forest cake, and wine from our favorite winery in Salida, Mountain Zin from Mountain Spirit Winery.

Between the beer tour and my Sunday run, the weather forecast looks good. It was supposed to hit 90 degrees in Phoenix this week. February is too soon for that kind of heat down there. I'll take 50s, sunshine and slush for now. And beer. Don't forget the beer.

Slush Sunrise

I must have brought the Arizona air home with me. Since I got back the temperatures have been rising and the Great Antarctic Ice Sheet has now turned into the Great Slush Pool.

You could almost go snorkeling out there in our neighborhood. It does feel like spring. The snow pile in the back yard has melted from the tops of the boxes almost down to the bottom.

This is almost gone now, and by the end of the day Friday, we will be able to see the grass, hedgehogs, tennis balls, snakes, ducks, and the never ending freezing-melting dog poop cycle that you have to wait for the conditions to dry out...

On Monday when I ran in Arizona I had a 10 miler that felt incredible, I couldn't believe how good I felt at the time. That means I must have had a lot left after the race. Maybe it should have been a 40 miler. Anyway, it caught up with me by Tuesday. My legs were dead, I ran out a mile and turned around. Then on Wednesday, it was all I could do to make it through another 2 mile run with the dogs.

Finally, Thursday I felt okay and cranked out 13 miles at a slower but reasonable pace. Jumping over puddles and dodging cars splashing icy water made it somewhat of an overall body workout. Today I'm hoping 10 miles will feel okay. On Sunday I plan to get 15 miles or so of hills at Horsetooth and I'm hoping I feel recovered by then. I want to start hitting it hard again next week.

Saturday is the Human Powered Brewery Tour. The only change is that it starts at 11 am now instead of 10. The late start is a good thing, because the ice will have a chance to melt. This is what it looks like on our street, from sidewalk to sidewalk. Too early in the day, you risk your life.

I was going to dress up as Mr. Bill, but I've figured out a peace love and granola type outfit that will be a little easier to wear. I might need to wear hip waders though, with all the snow runoff. It's warm enough that a miniskirt might be comfortable.

As much as I like living in Fort Collins, it would be nice if they used some of their budget to plow the small streets once a year. They go around citing people for not shoveling their sidewalks, but it would be nice if the city would take a look at this, the effects of never plowing. Citizens can't easily remove the ice chunks that accumulate on the sidewalks from the cars throwing this stuff while they fishtail down the foot-deep slush on the streets. When you have an extra several million dollars in tax revenue as they did this past year, it might be a thought.

A Post About Running...

This morning thankfully we got that extra hour after turning the clocks back. I decided to do something out of the ordinary...get up and run!

At 8:00 the Fort Collins Running Club Tortoise & Hare series had a 5K at a park near my house. I'd run into Nick Clark a couple of times at the grocery store this past week, and he reminded me of it. No excuses, he said.

I woke up at 6:45 after about 10 hours of sleep, and I knew there really was no excuse. I pulled my running clothes on, drank my coffee, and got my butt out the door. Now I know I can move that early in the morning. I set a precedent.

I went over and found a huge gathering of people, looked like there were close to 100 runners. I saw several long time friends from the club and it felt so good to be outside and around them again. There is life out there!

I had about 3 minutes to warm up before my start, the runs are held as a time-handicap events so I got going pretty fast without too much of a warmup. I started out easy. I was totally surprised when I hit the one mile mark in 8:39. My next two mile splits were 8:04 and 8:07, and I ended up finishing in 25:42, not bad for a flabby old lady who has been doing next to nothing for the past 4 months.

I fully expected to run 9 minute miles at an effort. So this was a pleasant surprise, even though last spring I was a minute per mile faster!

The other day I also got an email from my friend Brian Wieck, he's the RD for the Pemberton Trail 50K in February. I thought that would be a good first comeback ultra.

I won't be running fast, but it will get me back into things. So as soon as I know I'm on the healing track, hopefully later this month, I'll be signing up for that.

I also ran into Celeste and Scott who put on the Brewery Tour in February, and this year it will be February 15th. Can't miss that!

I'm so glad I won't have to work that weekend...my new boss is so great, she doesn't make me do ANY weekends unless I want to. She supervises me from the couch. The only thing I have to do is take her for runs and walks. She's not into micromanaging unless there's food involved.

After the 5K I went home and ate some food, then changed into dry clothes, and went out for a two hour run. I felt a little tired. It's been over a month since my last 14 mile run. I got a total of 14.4 today with the 5K, and 36+ miles for the week, my highest since July.

Not a peep out of the hamstring. I will wait a few days to see if there is any flare up from pushing the pace, but as of now it feels fine.

When I was on my run today I saw two people I know and stopped to talk, Wheaties Boy's mother-in-law Faustine was out for a long walk, so we talked for a few minutes. And then I saw my buddy Dan, who was on my Badwater crew in 2011. He was walking his dog out in the field near the golf course, next to Power Trail. I yelled out to him, and we talked for a good 20 minutes.

It feels like the sky got bigger and the days got brighter. I can see the light, just gotta make it through this final stretch and once I recover from that, life will be all mine again.