A weekend in Breckenridge CO

The return of the skater, missing in action for almost 20 years.

Here is a great shot of me getting into the action and carving a turn.

A view down the side street looking onto the ski slopes, but no Snow!

We popped into Keystone on the way home and took a look at the slopes out there, I get nervous just looking at the ski lift and the height that it climbs.

Every now and again Lesleigh and I will pull over on the road side and admire the beauty of the Aspens changing color in the Autumn. The country side does look special in fall.

This past week marks our 2nd anniversary and in true style we set off into the Rockies to enjoy a weekend in the small ski town of Breckenridge. The drive into the mountains was a treat and as you will see in the photo's the Aspen trees had all turned to a gold amongst the green pine trees.

We had great accommodation in Breckenridge which was at the base of the ski slope. But alas no snow had fallen of late so the slopes had snow caps but were still very green down into the valley. So..... we went ice skating instead, something I have not done since the age of 12 or so. I forgot just how difficult it is to stand on that compact surface. Anyway they had these walking units, much like the ones you would find in hospitals, and Lesleigh and I decided to to use them just to get back into the flow of skating. It was great fun and good exercise to and once I let the walker go the memory kicked in and I managed to stay upright on the ice. We ate meals in busy little cafes along the main street and had a bottle of wine or two to celebrate. It is a good thing everything is so close and nobody requires to drive anywhere. The evenings temps are below freezing but with central heating and fireplaces you are always as warm as toast. This is a destination for all of you to put in the books for a visit. Wishing you all a splendid week ahead.

Fall has Arrived

Patches of trees turning color are scattered across the country side

The colors are magnificent together and make quite a spectacle

This is great pic of the Aspen tree in the process of changing from a bright green to a golden yellow and then eventually to a gold.

Fresh mountain water on the roadside from Mt Evans to Idaho springs

A view of the road we drove this weekend and the the changing trees, the start of fall.

Above is a pic of me getting into the swing of Halloween masks, not a bad looking guy?John McCain!Vote republican!

This past weekend we set out into the mountains to get a peek at the changing season and the beauty of the aspens changing color on the mountain slopes. It is a fantastic site and hard to understand why certain patches in the forests turn so much quicker than others. We took a few photos just to give you a taste of the start of fall (autumn as we used to know it).

Golf at Raccoon Creek and the markets wobble!

This a par four tenth hole, slight dog leg to the left, that I was fortunate to drive twice in just two games out here.


Looks cold but apparently at some of the slopes they have braai's in the car park area which are a lot of fun or so I am told.

This is a pic taken at Arapahoe Basin which is the slope closest to Denver for us.

These are trail maps of the mountains and as you can see they have a variety of slopes which are graded according to ability, we will be on the baby slopes until further notice.

A view from the peaks from last year, lets hope that in 45 days when the slopes open it looks like this.

Yes I got lucky and it seems to get better each round. I got to play at Raccoon Creek this last week and I shot a 78 medal round. (and no it was not the mashie course) That's what I call smoking! Maybe its the altitude but playing out here makes the par 5 holes look very reachable in two strokes. Anyway enough bragging, you can look at a great pic of the course.

Economic slowdown or meltdown? I am tracking the foreign markets and this past week and a half are not an investors dream unless you are just about to buy at everyone Else's expense. The rand drops to more than R8.25 to the dollar in just 4 days? Hopefully the markets will bounce back just a little to soften the blow to investors like me.

Ski season draws closer and I thought I would just post a few pics of the slopes that Lesleigh and I have bought passes to for the upcoming season. We can take six guests each up to the slopes with us over the season, so any volunteers are most welcome!

Summer festival, rain and the Bronco's sqeeze a home win!

Festivals are always fun but sleeping like this can give you a bad neck.

Now I understand why the beer tents are so well supported

Here is a photo of three kids after what appears to be a hard night out.

A new meaning to taking five, a dog gets his afternoon nap.

Some of the classics on show this weekend and if you recognize the make you are older than I

Chevy

This is just pure muscle under the hood and you would not be able to add a dip stick on any side of this custom motor inside Mustang body.

Not that quick but it has style

The drive back home from Evergreen is magnificent this time of year.

Cant even keep it under the hood, want to dice?

Chrome is the word put it on everything!


If you had one of these you had passengers whenever you wanted.

This week was full of interviews, one job offer and putting my name in a hat for jobs. Lesleigh was traveling for part of this part week and during that time I had meetings with prospective employers. The process appears a lot longer than I first imagined and four interviews seems to be acceptable for most companies.

This Friday night we had dinner with Steve and Tracie at Ruby Tuesday and a good evening was had by all. It rained all day Friday so everything remains green and lush around Denver.We got home at a reasonable hour and got to watch a magnificent fireworks display to mark the close of the summer and the start of fall in the park across the road from our apartment.

On saturday we headed through to the park to see hundreds of stalls sellling a diverse section of food, home crafts and collector cars, from sports cars to antiques. I have never seen a show with cars that had engines chromed everywhere you looked. Super chargers on all engines and light car bodies holding 5l V8 or V10 motors. Some even had metal cross bars to keep the engines under the hood. Never seen anything quite like it. Well enough said get a good look at the pictures I took.

Then on Sunday we went over to visit Fred and Lorraine in Evergreen, what a good lunch we had and it was a picture perfect day.The Bronco's squeezed home take victory in this weeks football match 39 - 38 against San Diego. The game went into the last 6 seconds to score a touch down for the home team!

Now its time to get organized for the week ahead so here is to wishing you all a great week ahead, may the successes exceed any expectations!

carnivals, state parks and gym

This is Littleton Station where we catch the light rail train into Denver city center. Parking is about $20 per day downtown plus fuel and the train is $12 return for Lesleigh and I

Always holding two drinks. This is down Town Denver with the capital building behind me.

Lesleigh in the Denver Art Museum.

Down Town Denver buildings are fantastic, Note the building with the curved top, this is Wells Fargo in the town center.

Manning the ropes whilst the girls prepare for the climb. This is as close as I get to hanging off rock faces.

Lesleigh tries her hand at Rock climbing and she did really well.

This is the second attempt to summit and she did not give in until she reached the top. Determination and persistence.

With this full stretch you can see why she felt bruised and sore on all the muscles the day after.


This is a photo of the television warning when a tornado started out just south of Denver last week. Nothing was damaged and no one was hurt.

This is me in my new ski outfit just trying it all on to make sure it all fits snug.

Lesleigh in the lounge trying out her new ski bindings.

The Castle Rock state park which has a broken dam wall apparently that gave way in the 1950's

I hiked five miles around this park as a great way to build fitness ahead of the ski season, it is really pretty out this part of town.

Well first off a huge congratulations to Storm and Felicity on the birth of their second boy! We had a drink to celebrate for you on this end. So for a quick update on the news we have been to see the Taste of Colorado in downtown Denver, a trip to the state park in Castle Rock and spent some time at the gym getting myself into shape before ski season starts.The photos will say it all but I will say that you can feel fall setting in. The temps are dropping by the day and it is great to see that we still get the blue skies. I am still practicing my golf but doubt there will too many games ahead before the winter starts. Glad to hear all our family are well back in SA and happy birthday to Joanne this week. I had a couple of interviews last week and had to have drug tests and physical exams ahead of submitting for one of the jobs. This coming week I have two really important interviews so please keep me in your prayers as it would be great to at least land a post out here. Wishing you all a great week ahead.