Stuck

Two nights ago I went to bed listening to the sound of rain lightly tapping on the roof and woke up to a majestic winter wonderland. Somewhere through the night the God of Snow decided to bless this little town with that powdery white stuff that makes everyone smile a little brighter and opening day seem that much closer. If you know what I'm describing you know exactly how I felt waking up yesterday morning. Unfortunately that ecstatic feeling quickly wore off as I began to wish I had listened to my gut telling me to get snow tires put on my car. Instead I procrastinated because my schedule was just too busy and I didn't really want to spend the money.

When I went outside to see if my car would made it I rejoiced once again because the snow was wet and heavy which meant I should make it just fine. As I drove to work I couldn't help but smile at the beauty of the town. Somehow all of the stresses from the day before had disappeared and everything seemed to be okay. Work was a little busier than normal and most people were cheery even before they got their coffee.

After work I went to pick up Cali for the weekend. The snowflakes were huge and falling fast but I prayed my little car with summer tires would make it out of my friend's development. As I slid around the corner I was thankful that I lived in Buffalo and had a lot of experience driving in such terrible conditions, but as I began my descent up the hill to the main road my car got stuck. There was nothing I could have done. The snow was simply too deep and the tires had no tread to dig through it. Some very friendly neighbors came out and tried to help me but there was no hope. I'd simply have to wait for the snow to calm down and for the plows to come. We attempted to park my car but even that was difficult. The snow that had fallen in the half hour or so made navigating around their small development nearly impossible.

Since my friend who lived there was in Copper ski training I called up everyone I knew with a car to see if they could come pick me up but they were all working or out of town. Finally my friend Mike agreed because he had to go to work and I was only slightly out of his way. Once I got home I began brainstorming. Should I leave my car there for the night or should I figure out a way to get it to a shop and have tires put on? Since I had the dog and couldn't take the bus, getting my car to the shop seemed like the only reasonable solution. I decided to call my friend Ian who grew up in Steamboat, loved cars, and lived only a few seconds down the road. Luckily he had a few hours to spare before he had to work. I'm sure I looked like a complete amateur standing there as he drove my car as far up the hill as it would go and then latched it to a tow rope. At that point it was pretty easy to get it onto a main road, and from there Ian lead to me the only car center in town that was able to put my tires on. I got lucky, most places said it would be a few days but Doc's auto took care of me in just a couple of hours and they were really friendly and affordable.

I've definitely learned my lesson. The scary part about having a car out here is not having my dad to come bail me out when I get myself into trouble. I am fortunate to have great friends who are willing to help and friendly neighbors that will lend a hand. If you haven't put you snow tires on yet be sure to do it soon because it doesn't look like this snow is going to stop. If your car is good to go I hope you are enjoying the beautiful winter weather we've all been waiting for!

Caliboo

Nope it's not a mix drink or some type of foreign food. Caliboo is the nickname I have for the cutest German Short Hair Pointer in existence. Her real name is Cali and for the past few weekends I have been puppy sitting this adorable pooch. I watch her for my friend on ski team because they train in Copper on weekends until Steamboat Mountain opens. Growing up my sisters and I went through our share of pets. We started out small with a fish tank, then progressed to newts and hermit crabs. From there we moved on to hamsters and then somehow convinced our parents to let us keep a kitten a friend was getting rid of. We never even thought about having a dog because my sister had been attacked by one at a young age and is still terrified of them. Perhaps growing up without a dog is the reason I never understand how people could love them so much but I've definitely fallen for this four legged cutie. She's spoiled to the core. She'll chew anything she can to pieces, drinks toilet water at will and has no qualms with pushing you out of her way if she thinks your spot on the couch looks more comfortable. But seriously, how can you get mad at her cute little face?

Captain Planet

This Halloween I decided to honor one of my all time favorite childhood heroes. Forget finding clues and interactive dance along shows, when I was a kid I was all about Captain Planet. I mean I think it's pretty cool that this guy was showing us how to take care of our planet before it became a huge political issue and a way for corporate companies to promote themselves. And rather than making us feel guilty about being wasteful he educated us on ways to live more sustainable lives. Forget learning conventions and sustainability classes, Captain Planet did it all in a half an hour kids series!

Unfortunately I couldn't find enough people to be planeteers, but here's a photo of my friends dressed as Mario, Zombies and a Pumpkin!



It was a pretty mellow Halloween this year. I went to CMC's bowling night on the 30th followed by broom ball. On the 31st my friends and I handed out hot cider to trick-or-treaters at the Bean. The little kids were absolutely adoreable in their little costumes. We saw everything from tigers to unicorns! That was about the extent of my fun as I had to work at 6am on Sunday but it was all worth it.

Keep a look out for some videos in the near future as the CMC marketing department has recently supplied me with a camera!

Ultimate Chilli Cook-Off

Chili is a pretty simple concept right? You throw some beans, meat and chili sauce into crock pot, let it sit for a few hours and voila. At least I thought it was that simple, until I was entered into the first ever Colorado Mountain College Chili Cook-off. Having never made chili before I had no idea what my friend Justin and I were in for. Turns out it takes a couple hours of preparation including onion chopping, pepper slicing and lots of cooking. With about twelve entrants and plenty of hungry taste testers the event was an overall success. We had everything from Vegetable Chili to Homemade Elk Chili. Joe's Green Chili came out on top which wasn't too surprising considering he was the winner of Steamboat's summer chili-cook off. Congrats Joe!

Nut Up or Shut Up

It seems that Travis Pastrana had a lasting impact on some of the students at Colorado Mountain College. After the extreme sports enthusiast left town he inspired one student, Vince to make the ultimate jump. Amazed by his feat I asked him for an interview and he agreed. Here’s what he had to say:
Name: Vince
Major: Associates of Arts
Hometown: Sonora, CA
Age: 21

How long have you been mountain biking?
I started around seventh grade with a really crappy Wal-Mart bike. I kept breaking bikes and returning them and realized it wasn’t what I needed. Eventually I made a trip to the bike shop and got one that stood up to what I needed. From there I began doing stair gaps and jumps with my friends. I also rode with the local bike shop crew taking really long night rides and weekend trips.

What is your favorite part about the sport?
I think one of the coolest things about any action sport is riding with people better than yourself because you can learn so much from them.

How did you come up with the idea of gapping 25 feet of stairs?
When you do an action sport for a certain period of time you start to see the world differently. You look at something and think wow that looks like something I can do on my bike, where ordinary people would think nothing of it. We were training for ski racing on the soccer field when I first saw the gap. It got into my head and I began contemplating it every day.

Did you have any reservations?
I told a few people about it and they thought it was a really cool idea but there was a huge fear factor involved. I got really scared because I knew I could seriously hurt myself.

What inspired you to finally make the jump?
When Rally America came to town I got a chance to interview Travis Pastrana. One of the coolest things he said was, “Everybody has pain, everybody has fear. But it’s how we deal with fear that sets us apart”. As soon as I heard him say that I knew I needed to do the jump.

What kind of planning was involved?
It’s about being a calculated person. Day after day I would sit at the jump and think about how fast and how big I’d have to go. I checked out the landing to make sure it was safe-- which it really wasn’t-- and built a ramp for the take off.

There were a lot of kids watching you. Did you feel any pressure?
There was a skate comp at the school and I was practicing the run up to see how much speed I’d need. People started gathering around and I didn’t really have a choice. I either needed to do it or stop talking like I was going to. As the movie Zombie Land put it, “nut up or shut up.”

What were the very last thoughts running through your head before you did it?
“God, I hope this works…”

Do you have any regrets?
I guess if I had one regret it would be that I didn’t pursue mountain biking harder when I was younger.

What’s next?
Ski racing is something I love and have a really big passion for. I’d like to pursue it for a few years assuming I can stay injury free. I’d also like to continue to pursue mountain biking. The fact that I successfully made the jump made me realize some things are not as hard as they seem. If I see something bigger I’d like to do it. The future is very unpredictable. Hell, I’m in Colorado now!

Endless Opportunities

I am going to college in one of the most beautiful towns I've ever seen while living within walking distance of a major ski resort, and the best part is I'm not being sold short on my education. The classes offered at this school are mind opening and, obviously, educational. In fact I fear going to a larger university because I'm not sure I'll have the same opportunities as I have here. I just wanted to take this time to share a very exciting class that is being offered next semester. It's a six credit class that is split into 3 Poli Sci credits and 3 Art credits. There are a few lecture classes that lead up to a nine day trip through Guatemala. Throughout the trip the class will be visiting art museums, meeting with political figures and visiting Mayan ruins. I'm planning on taking the class because it will be a great follow up to my Intro to Political Science. Rather than sitting in the classroom learning about political issues we are going to explore and see the effects of US policies first hand. Not to mention this would be my first time traveling outside of the United States (Canada not included, I used to live by the border). I also think getting to see the Mayan ruins will be awesome after spending time learning about the Mayans in my Philosophy and Lit classes.





The class has limited availability so if you're interested be sure to pre-register! For more info check out the CMC website: http://www.coloradomtn.edu/cms/one.aspx?pageId=3447601

"New" Car

After living in Steamboat for over a year I've decided to purchase a car. It's not that you actually need one in this town but it does make things more convenient, I was really starting to dread the half hour bike ride to work at 5:30am. Thankfully, my friends Jordan and Mike accompanied me to check out vehicles listed in the classifieds for under $2000. Without them I would have been lost due to my limited knowledge of anything automobile. Jordan and I wound up finding a 91 Honda Accord Station Wagon. It's old and defiantly screams "college student" but I love it. The seats fold down which will be great for taking skis and boards to the mountain and the previous owner gave me snow tires. It might not be the ideal "new" car, but it if it gets my from point A to point B that's all that really matters!