Hopkins 4K for Cancer

July 7, 2002

Day 36 (40 miles) Longmont, CO to Estes
I had spent the night with a friend in Ft. Collins, CO, so I woke up at 6am to get back to Kelly's Uncle's house before roll-out time. We dressed and packed our vans as usual, but instead of heading west into the big mountains that loomed all of yesterday, we hung out at a great local bike shop: High Gear Cyclery. Many of us replaced our chains and tires, among other bike maintenance efforts. We wanted to be prepared for the Rockies, with their promise of grueling climbs and speedy descents. Later in the afternoon, after more group photos, we biked off towards Estes Park. I lingered in town for another 30 minutes with equipment issues, but eventually got to biking. The ride was a long thirty-miles or so, seemingly up-hill the entire time, except for the screaming 4-mile downhill at the end. Buzz, the owner of High Gear Cyclery, seemed to be patrolling the mountain in his van -- offering us water and fixing derailleurs. We ate a buffet dinner at a nearby YMCA resort, and slept in the gym of a really nice church at the bottom of a hill. We celebrated "Sike Box Wednesday" here, and I got a Frisbee.

- Dawn Waters