Reunion (2)

Our group was led by Lisa and Gretta. Lisa was with the Chamber, Gretta the Community Recreation. We were joined by a German couple. The first part of our ride was dirt trail on the eastern foothills. I was chatty with Tim, then my sister, then I dropped back and started chatting with Gretta on sweep. Turns out she’s an avid mountain biker, and will be riding a mountain race soon. She volunteered much info about the community and riding in the area.

Shortly, we reached some construction blocking our way, and ended up diverting to the Frazier River Trail! Tim and I both wanted more than tame trail riding, so at the turnaround point, Gretta took Tim and I on the Serenity trail while the others went back to check in their bikes. Tim had never ridden anything like this before, but did very good. As for my part, I only ran out of breath once. Pretty good considering the altitude.

Our extended ride crowded our schedule; we had to hurry back for lunch. I originally planned to go on a 1pm ride up the mountain, but I was rushed to eat and decided to pass. Cousin Todd went as planned.

For most of the afternoon, we langored in the room and spent more time in the hottubs, as it started to rain (hard) on and off for much of the afternoon. At one point, I was slow in following Tim & Darse into the sauna, and a little girl in the swimming pool looked up a me and shouted “PLAY WITH ME!!!”. I had no idea who she was, only that possibly she was one of my family. But it is painful to me to turn down a child’s earnest request. I bounced into the pool, and we tossed a splash ball back and forth for a few minutes. “Thats enough; you can go now” she said, as if she knew she had interrupted me earlier. I thanked her and went to join the others in the sauna, but I now had a new crush on me for the rest of the weekend.

When the clouds parted, we headed to Winter Park resort and my family (including the folks) rode the Olympia lift up and looked around, and also rode the Alpine Slide (not the folks).

That evening, at the “family gathering”, we young people ate and stayed as long as we could, then – much like Friday night – Sydney and I went out for drinks. This evening we took Darci and Tim, too. Instead of sitting at the resort bar, we went into Winter Park and found a nice place.

I got hammered. Two drinks. Very embarrasing. (“How rare!”)

Sydney drove me (in my truck) back to the resort. I wasn’t actually hammered. I was just too “under the influence” to drive. I slept poorly, but got enough to function. My sister came to me in the middle of the night with a hug, as she was taking the rental car back to Denver for a very early flight. Then she was gone.

Sunday morning, we had our group breakfast and prayer service. Then there were the pictures! Families, boys only, girls only, grandkids only, everyone else only… After that, most folks busied themselves with packing and leaving. The folks were taking Darci and Tim to the airport for an afternoon flight, so they were anxious to get on the road by 11. Todd and his family were staying on for a few extra days, and they asked me to help them shuttle their vehicle to Frazier. Then I rode bicycles with them down to their vehicle.

They gave me a lift back to the lodge. Having the room to myself, I took my time packing and cleaning up, readying myself and my bike for a ride down the mountain. This was the same 1pm trip I missed on Saturday. Todd told me the ride was harsh and miserable because of the rain – mud coating everyone, sliding out of control, accidents galore. He loved it. I was looking forward to warmer and clearer skys, and hoped the trail absorbed the moisture quickly in the drought conditions.

We left from our lobby to ride the short distance to the resort. It took several minutes for all of us and our bikes to be loaded on the lift. I learned that several of today’s riders were also on the previous day’s ride, as they shared their horror stories.

It is quite a thing to stand on top of a mountain with your bike for the first time. I know Winter Park – it is my favorite ski resort, and it is also intimately associated with my father. The Olympia lift empties onto a small peak with a view in all directions (including a view UP more mountain). The air was cool but not crisp, dulled by the ablasion of summer. I felt my minds eye spin around me as I spun to take in the moment.