Fall arrived a couple of days ago, I think it will depart as fast. Bright reds and yellows dress the neighborhood trees, at least those that did not drop their leaves early. Those that did left a leafy mess over much of our front yard, a visible reminder that I need to get out with a rake. Crisp air has transformed my morning runs. My pace is a little faster, breathing less labored and 5-6 miles no longer feels like an effort. In what has been a very complicated year, the simple things in life are good right now.
In the garden, fall is also visible. Butterfly Weed pods have opened and the seeds are waiting to be carried off by the wind.
We have planted intensely colored pansies in the front porch pots and each day we discover more and more blooms.
Thursday night John, Lee and I went to see the sold out showing of Race Across the Sky, a documentary of sorts about the Leadville 100 mountain bike race. The theater was filled with bicycle jockeys of all ages and the pre-show atmosphere seemed to snap with testosterone as discussions about local races and results ensued. The flick served up a crowd pleasing dose of average guys “digging deep against adversity” stories but the star was the ultimate bike jockey, Lance Armstrong, without who the story of this 15 year old race may never have been told.
The story line pitted Dave, a mountain biker and 6 time winner of the Leadville 100, against Lance, the world’s greatest bicycle road racer. Only three weeks off the 2009 Tour de France, audience idol Lance Armstrong was racing in the Leadville 100 for the 2nd time in his impressive bicycling career. His first effort in 2008 resulted in a 2nd place finish and he was out for blood (well, at least for 1st). Riding on a flat rear tire for the last 7 miles of this 100 mile race, Lance finished 1st in an all time course record of 6 hrs, 28 mins, finishing some 28 minutes in front of Dave Wiens, the past 6 time winner of the Leadville 100. The crowd loved it…’nuff said!
Finally, I am turning off the comment feature of this blog. Though I mostly received no comments, it seemed to hamper my desire to write and I have recently missed capturing some of the simple day to day moments. Smithposts started out as a journal of things I see and do. I really don’t want to miss documenting those memories!
