Yesterday I had a great time taking full advantage of my Sunday. It seems the entire running community has headed up to Bouler for the Boulder Boulder 10k, so I was able to meet up with a lot of friends.
I started the day with a long run in Denver, accompanied by my good friend Dan DeMartini and two of his former teammates from Occidental, Robbie and Gaylan. We ran on the Highline Canal Trail, starting off from a parking lot off Colorado St. about a mile south of where it intersects with Hampden St. We started out going south on the trail, following the canal and enjoying the the beautiful houses and green rolling countryside. It was wonderful out and back 12 miler. The trail was wide and tree shaded, and tt snaked along the canal route with slight undulations and
an excellently maintained surface.
After the run, we went to brunch (of course). Gaylan, who goes to graduate school at the University of Denver, directed us to Pete's University Park Cafe on the corner of University and Evans. The menu had more choices than I could handle, so I stuck with the egg page, ordered something with vegetables, and smilesd widely when my food came.
After that I headed off to Boulder to visit the family of my friend Jim Moriarty, who I met 3 years back when we sat next to each other on a flight from Indianapolis to Denver. Jim assured me that after visiting Boulder would never want to leave. He was right. I spent the day with his son Jimmy, daughter Melissa, and friends (Carlos & James)...all of whom were some of the nicest people I have ever met. Since Melissa and Carlos were racing Boulder Bouler, we relaxed for the afternoon watching planet earth and playing with Jim's new puppy Sophie.
I got to end my day with all my friends enjoying a delicious dinner at Upstairs on Pearl St. (an extension of The Kitchen). There were 8 of us total, and we had a great time. We started with some appetizers, all of which were delicious. For our main course, Melissa and I shared the Lamb burger (which was perfectly seasoned) and the Semolina Gnocci with mushroons (unique and delicious). I would highly recommend the restaurant.
All in all, a wonderful day!