Crested Butte

This photo is from our first trip to Crested Butte. The leaves were suppossed to be peaking so we drove down HWY 285, which is a great drive in itself, and pulled into CB around 5. I was immediately impressed with what I saw. A lot of people on townie bikes, a local community, funky architechture, beautiful mountains and some great weather. Figuring that the town wouldn't be too busy on a Wednesday, we left without hotel reservations. I assumed that a hotel wouldn't be hard to find, but I was wrong. Apparently all of the hotels are up by the ski restort, Mt. Crested Butte. Driving around the town for 15 minutes it was decided that we should have dinner first and ask our sever where we should stay. We grabbed an outside table at the Brick Oven Pizza where the locals were having some beers after knocking off of work. It was pretty easy to spot the locals, old Carhartt work jeans, dirty sweatshirt, beard, hat and covered in saw dust, dirt and/or paint. These are the guys that build the condos/townhomes and mansions in the summer, then ski all winter. Most drive an old truck or SUV that has at least 2 pieces of outdoor equipment on the roof. Most of the locals I saw looked happy with where they were in their life. For some reason I really dig that sort of vibe. These people typically don't have much in the way of luxury but they have what they need to be happy. It's a good lesson to learn. After dinner we asked our sever where we should stay. She recommended a little B&B just down the road. Unfortunately they were booked! The innkeeper recommended a lodge down the road. Thankfully they not only had a room, but a hot tub and a free breakfast. We brought our bag in and hit the hot tub. After a nice soak it was time for some reading and sleep.
We woke up around 7 and made our way to breakfast. It was quite the spread! There was a big round table that seated about 12, several smaller tables and some couches to boot. Breakfast was homemade French toast with thick raisin and cinnamon bread, sausage, hard boiled eggs, muffins, rolls, muesli, cereal and of course coffee. I did my best to not make a pig of myself, but I did sample a bit of everything. After breakfast Court and I went for a little walk on the outskirts of town. It was a beautiful, cloudless day and the sun was out. Most of the locals were heading to work in their trucks, and some of the women were cruising to work on their townies. Next on our agenda was a trip up Kebler Pass. All of the books we read suggested this drive if you wanted to see some good leaves. So up we went and we were not disappointed. We pulled off at several points and snapped away. Back at the hotel we changed into our riding clothes and hit the trail. Court found a trail online that was supposed to be easy and was described as perfect for townies and single speeds. As is the norm, the description was way off. Three or four miles donwn the trail it got pretty sketchy. Court was trooper and got way out of her comfort zone to keep going forward. Fortunately it didn't last too long and we were on a nice open road. After the ride we had lunch, walked around the shops a bit, then headed back home. The trip was a great time and I really enjoy Crested Butte. I will be back there in November for sure. They have a program in the first 3 weeks of November where everyone skis for free. How cool is that?
As for my training, it's been on and off. I am just doing what I feel like, when I feel like it. I'm not too worried as I need to listen to my body right now. It looks like I will race the SilverMan 1/2 IM on Nov. 11, but it's not 100% yet. I am going to take it day by day for now.