| July Fourth got another invite to the farm where Frank and Terry took a trail ride while Tom, Trooper and Bob stayed back and enjoyed the flowers. Bob has beautiful flower gardens from spring to late fall. |
| Late July found us in Denver Colorado for yet another rodeo. They seem to gather more horse people than we do in the east. Frank's new lens helps take some great rodeo shots. In one shot we see a group of guys who met online and frequently go to rodeos across the country. Rodeos are exciting events but can also be very dangerous. |
| We stayed in the Denver area for a week and spent days touring the area. One day we travelled into the mountains west of Denver, following the Gold Road, a dirt road which used to be the narrow gauge railroad that hauled gold and silver out of the mountains to the cities to be smelted and refined. Occasionally we could go through a short tunnel which was easier to dig out than build a road around the problem. |
| Another day and a visit to the Denver botanical gardens. Need we say more? |
| One day we drove back into the mountains to the top of Mount Evans some 14,000 feet high. Traveling on the highest paved auto road in the United States. And lastly, parting views of downtown Denver as seen from our hotel room. |
| In August we attended the Chicago rodeo, the day after remnants of a hurricane brought 5-8 inches of rain to the area. The word "muddy" doesn't even come close to describing what we saw. The stands were packed, and the fans were standing layers deep to see the events. Valiantly the crew put on a great rodeo, and everyone had a great time playing in the mud. Just look at the smiles on some of those guys after getting trashed in the arena. One loan cowboy found a nearby field and some dry solitude away from the mud and noise of the rodeo. |
