The Kassel Family Project Life 365

It was schedule pick-up night at West Middle School for our seventh grader.  New locker, new classes, and old and new friends!

It is school supply time again.  How did the summer go by so fast?!?

We found this little guy in one of our front plants.  He was not particularly happy to get wet when we watered the plant…

Today is the Copper Triangle Ride – 80 miles over three mountain passes.  The team met at the start line at 7 am for a team picture.

After the picture, everyone finished gearing up.  Because it was only about 35 degrees outside, Andy wore his full-fingered gloves and vest.  He and Lauren had a hard time zipping their vests because of the gloves, so their personal SAG support stepped into assist.

After everyone was geared up, it was off for the ride.

Andy texted me pictures as they completed parts of the ride.  First was Fremont Pass.

Second was Tennessee Pass.

The final – and the most difficult – was Vail Pass.  The reward for conquering Vail Pass is a quick decent and the finish line where I met Andy and the others for a congratulatory beer.  I am so proud of Andy!

We spent the rest of the evening enjoying homemade spaghetti and teammate time in our condo.  It was a great way to end our Colorado vacation.

While Andy went to brunch with the team and took a ride in the cold rain…

…I did my own thing.  I was supposed to be with the team, but had bike fit issues.  Two miles in and my butt was numb.  Seat adjustments apparently were not right.  After I turned around and then figured out to just sit a lot farther back and ride slower, I ended up riding 14 miles and enjoying the beautiful views.

After showers and lunch with some team members, we spent the evening in Breckenridge with some of our baseball family.  It was great that they were vacationing there too!  It’s a small world.

Tomorrow is Copper Triangle.

It was climbing Mt. Evans today.  A team picture was in order before the big ride began.

Today’s focus was climbing 14,271 feet to the summit on paved roads with sharp curves and steep slopes.  Just riding in a car with Andrea, another wife, made me nervous!  We came up behind Andy at one point and all I could think was, “My husband is a beast and please, God, don’t let him fall off the side.”

I am literally in awe of the people on this team.  I cannot believe that some of them have done this twice.  Andy made it to the top right about 12:15.  I was so happy to see him and so proud of him.

Of course, we took a picture together!  He just rode up a mountain!

I also made sure to snap a picture of the big-horned sheep stuffies that we bought for the kids.

Andy took off pretty quickly as it was cold at the summit.  I also headed down because we needed to check out of the hotel.  We had to stop at Summit Lake because a flock of big-horned sheep were in the parking lot.  We took pictures, but did not get out of the car.  These are wild animals, people.  Don’t be stupid.  There were families trying to pet them until a park ranger came running to stop them.

We got back to the hotel, checked out, and then waited in the parking lot until everyone returned.  It was quite the morning/early afternoon.  I am so proud of everyone!  That climb has got to be the hardest thing ever.  To finish is amazing.  To attempt it is amazing.  Congratulations to everyone.  I don’t care if you finished or not.  You tried.  That is way more than I could do.

Once everyone returned, we headed to Copper Mountain Resort.  We checked into our condos, got unpacked, and enjoyed a fabulous team dinner at Incline Bar and Grill.  Teammates and friends!

After dinner, Andy and I explored Copper Mountain.  We had a glass of wine, wandered around, and spent time together.  It doesn’t get much better than today.