I traveled to Denver to meet the Zephyr Tour with Derek Schop, another skater from Tucson, Arizona. At the airport in Denver, Derek and I met fellow skaters Joe Sabatini, Brian Renaud, Carol Patch, and Larry Quimby and were driven to our destination, Frisco, by Barrie Hartman and Allan Wright, two of our friendly Zephyr Tour guides.

Frisco is a cute little town 9,100 feet high in Summit County, near many well-known ski resorts like Keystone, Breckenridge, Copper Mountain and Vail. There are miles and miles of paved, car-free skate/bike trails in Summit County.

As sunset was not until after 8:00 p.m., we had time to change, meet the other tour participants, get a Zephyr pep talk from Allan, and go for a skate. We met our third friendly Zephyr Tour guide, Andrea Franklin, and fellow skaters Barry Larking, Rich and Andrea Leonard, Jamie and Doreen Levitz, Nick Kornick, Bill Lewis and Dirk Rettberg. Laura and Michael Sunday were there to ride bikes on the paths with us. Laura also wanted to improve her inline skating skills and to practice her roller dancing.

After a route talk and an introduction session (during which Allan asked each of us in turn to name a personal quirk; most declined), we started our first skating session. The route went from Frisco through Dillon and on to Keystone. It was a generally flat, 22 mile course. We enjoyed the dramatic views of Lake Dillon Reservoir set among the mountains. When we started out we worried about the threatening skies: It looked like it might rain heavily. Summer afternoon rains are common in the Rockies, but my group, Rich, Andrea, Barrie, Brian, Joe and Derek, never got any significant rain. It seemed to rain everywhere but on us. We were disappointed to skate through very wet pavement (but no rain) on the return trip to Frisco from Keystone.

Back at the hotel, both Derek and I thought that the route must have been longer that the 22 miles we were told. But Allan said no, it was no more than the advertised 22 miles. I guess that the 9,100 feet elevation took its toll on us. Plus I developed a nickel-to-quarter-sized blister on my left ankle. NASTY!

Our day finished off with a yummy dinner at the Galena Street Mountain Inn, our hotel.

Day Two

Our skating route for our second day took us from Frisco to Breckenridge and then back to Frisco. We were to have lunch in Frisco and then an optional skate to Copper Mountain and back. All in all, this was to be a 36-mile day!

First thing after breakfast, Andrea and Barrie presented a skating clinic. While most of our group were eager participants, Brian, Derek and I took off for Breckenridge. The route started out winding through little hills in the woods. We felt as if we were almost skating out of range of civilization at times. The trees were so thick we couldn’t see the highway or the town. It was beautiful!!

After coming through this short bit of hills, we skated up Highway 9 to Breckenridge. The path followed a river, going generally upstream. Brian, Derek and I stopped for photographs with fly-fishermen on the river. The trip to Breckenridge was a lovely, slow incline.

We paused in Breckenridge for coffee and tea at the Stage Door Cafe, a local coffee shop. Taking our drinks alfresco, we were met by many of the other skaters in our group, including Bill, Joe, Jamie, Doreen, Rich and Andrea and others. As we were making ready for the return trip to Frisco, we stopped by the Zephyr support van. The van always carried snacks like power bars, and GORP ("good old raisins and peanuts" with M&Ms thrown in!) along with fresh fruit and veggies. The van also carried a first aid kit. I was again having trouble with that nasty blister, so Barrie gave me a blister block and some advice for the blister: tighten up the skates. Actually, the blister was so bad that I was considering walking up the hills ahead. But after following Barrie’s advice I never had any other trouble with my feet for the rest of the tour!

Many of us (including Derek, Carol, Jamie, Doreen, Nick and me) then stopped off for lunch in Frisco. We ate outside, right on Frisco’s main street. After our lunch, Derek and I took off for the the eight-mile trip up to Copper Mountain. "Up" is the operative word for this path. Allan estimated there is an 800-foot climb from Frisco to Copper Mountain. That hill got your attention! But of course one feels quite the accomplishment when taking on and meeting such a challenge; plus, you get the reward of the downhill skate back to Frisco. I would guess that the 8 miles to the top took around an hour. The downhill return took fifteen minutes! And not one single push was necessary. Derek and Allan got into their tuck positions for the trip down and bombed it. I did my air braking and enjoyed the spectacular scenery.

We then all met back at the hotel to pile into the vans for a (sweaty) drive to Leadville. We checked into Leadville’s Hotel Delaware, a historic structure over 110-years old. Leadville, an old silver-mining town once boasted a population in excess of 50,000.   Now, it is a small town of approximately 3,500. Leadville’s claim to fame now is that it has the highest elevation of any incorporated city in the U.S. It is over 10,100 feet.

Day Three

We skated Leadville’s Mineral Belt Trail that morning. It’s a 12.5-mile loop around the town. Construction of the MBT was completed summer of 2000, so the pavement was still like black ice for most of the way. The path was very wide and again, very scenic. The MBT also goes through Leadville’s historic mining district, where we were treated to sights of abandoned mines like the Accident Shaft of the Colonel Sellers Mine and the Great O’Sullivan Mine. The MBT carried a high degree of difficulty due the high elevation and the steep hills that we climbed. About half of our group was satisfied with one lap. But, after stopping at the van for fruit, blister blocks, GORP and power bars, Derek, Bill, Allan, Barrie, Rich, Andrea and Brian were among the hardiest of skaters and went around twice. Joe and I (separately) skated part of the path, mainly to enjoy the long downhill back to town.

After taking time to relax, shower and eat lunch, the group split into three groups: One group comprised of Dirk, Joe and Michael, opted to take a train ride on a local railroad.   The train backs up through the hills for several miles and then goes forward back into town. The second group, comprised of Derek, Allan, Barrie, Nick, Doreen, Bill, Laura and I went on a hike near Twin Lakes, to an abandoned resort called Interlaken. The third group, lead by Andrea, visited the local mining museum. Well, groups one and two found adventure: the train derailed part way up the hill and the van got a flat tire!!   To top it all off, during dinner Michael treated us all to a series of tall tales regarding the heroism displayed by Dirk, Michael and Joe during the derailment, purportedly under the worst sort of adversity. Some of the stories may have even been true.

By comparison, the flat tire in the van was rather a mundane event, but Allan, Derek and I heroically stayed behind the other hikers to successfully remove the defective tire and replace it with a trusty spare.   On their way back to the van the hikers got treated to a lovely afternoon thunderstorm. The rain was heavy enough to wet and chill us all but not heavy enough to spoil the afternoon. Then, back in Leadville that afternoon, Mother Nature treated us all with a horizon-to-horizon rainbow!

Day Four

This day’s destination was Glenwood Springs, by way of Independence Pass. The drive took us up an extremely narrow road to the pass. The road had steep drops right next to us. Barrie, driving one of the vans, stayed in the middle of the road when there was no oncoming traffic. We stopped at Independence Pass, which, at over 12,000 feet of elevation, was above the timberline. Independence Pass is also on the continental divide.

By the time we got to the path near Glenwood Springs, we were all stiff and tired from the three-hour drive. But the Zephyr folks provided us with a tasty picnic lunch that revived us. I was fearful that the long drive combined with eating lunch immediately before skating would ruin the skating session. But this fear was unfounded. I felt great and the path was easily the best of the tour. The path was built when I-70 was constructed through the dramatic Glenwood Canyon. It follows I-70, the Colorado River, and the Amtrak railroad. It was beautifully scenic with spectacular canyon walls surrounding the river, with kayakers, canoers and rafters floating down stream. The path itself was excellent: fifteen miles of concrete in one direction! Amazing!!

The day was hot due to the clear, sunny skies and our lower elevation, only 6,000 feet. The river was invited many of us to take a dip. Bill was the first to swim, followed by Michael, Derek, Andrea and Barrie.

Day Five

This day we didn’t skate from or to our hotel, but were shuttled in the vans to a path that runs generally along the Roaring Fork River between Basalt and Glenwood Springs. We drove around twenty to thirty minutes from Glenwood Springs to the starting point. This was also a very beautiful and scenic location with red rock hills framing the path. This day, Laura and Andrea treated us to a roller dancing demonstration. But this was on our last day and we needed to get back to the hotel for the drive to the Denver airport:    time was our enemy. After skating about fifteen miles, we were met by Andrea and the van, who suggested we get in. The trip, the skating, and the fun were abruptly over.

We made it back to the hotel in Glenwood Springs in a big rush, and all had to take speed showers to get down to the vans in less than an hour. Barrie and Andrea then did a marvelous job of packing up the vans with all the gear and people, including Michael’s and Laura’s rental bikes. Then, after driving right through Glenwood Canyon where we had skated the day before, Barrie suddenly realized that the cookies were in the other van. She quickly fashioned a sign that read, "NEED COOKIES," and displayed it to the van driven by Allan. Ever resourceful and willing, Allan reached out and handed Barrie that much needed cookie.

Day After

The post-tour depression is real. The life of the tour is almost a fantasy life: you wake up, eat, get ready to skate, skate for hours, clean up from skating, eat, sleep.   The next day you do it all again. It was a joy.