Colorado Review

While the Colorado Rockies play their hearts out at Denver’s Coors Field this weekend, downtown Elitch Gardens theme park celebrates Halloween with some fun–and frightening–attractions.

First, children can safely trick or treat from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the inaugural ARC Thrift Stores’ BOO Gardens, sponsored in part by the radio station MIX 100. Pick up a ticket voucher for just $8 at various retail locations in Denver, ARC Thrift Stores, Chrysler Dealers, After Hours Urgent Care Centers and Renewal by Anderson Replacement Windows. Or check out this page on the MIX 100 website to find out how to get vouchers online or via text message.

Also this weekend at Elitch Gardens, some areas of the park have been transformed into haunted houses. They really break out the horror in the evening. An area called “Brutal Realm” has been overrun by zombies and creatures “from your worst nightmares,” according to the Elitch’s website. Since this scary spot features lots of blood and gore, it’s not recommended for children under eight years old.

“Screams” is a haunted house filled with mummies, ghosts, spiders and other favorite Halloween creatures. With minimal blood and gore, this attraction is for all ages. During the daylight hours, it won’t have any monsters inside, so even young children can get in on the fun.

In a “Fear Factor” type of activity, guests will test their mettle against snakes and bugs, and take on other physical and mental challenges, to win season passes to the park. Be sure to drop by “Test Your Fear, Live” to check out all the action. The “Test Your Fear” for kids is “Hip Hop-sicles,” where they’ll learn to play harmless Halloween pranks.

At dusk on Saturday and Sunday, a procession of zombies, mummies, ghosts, ghouls and more will make their way through the park.

Boo!

Colorado, Elitch Gardens, Halloween

Planning to be in Denver this weekend when the Colorado Rockies face the Boston Red Sox in Games 3 & 4 of the World Series? Chances are, even if you wanted to go to this exciting match-up, you won’t be able to get tickets. That is, unless you pay the big bucks from ticket brokers like TicketsNow.com. On this site, they range from about $750 to $1500!

Yesterday, Rockies management began selling tickets online for a much more reasonable $65 to $250. However, a whopping 8.5 million users jammed the server within 90 minutes of tickets going on sale. The server crashed and the site closed soon after.

Needless to say, Rockies baseball fans were a bit disappointed. Colorado newspapers today published many stories of folks who took off from work, or went to public libraries to use Internet-connected computers and came up empty.

Originally, the Rockies were going to sell tickets in person at Coors Field on Monday. But then came up with the online-only plan to make ticket buying more fair.

Ha!

Seems like ticket brokers with several servers and/or speedy Internet connections may have bought many tickets (or at least they were among the throngs of people logging on to buy them). Only a few hundred tickets were sold before the ticket-selling website had to be shut down.

Now, the Rockies will re-launch the ticket-selling website today, Tuesday, at noon. The company that runs the computers for the Rockies’ ticket sales promises that is has a back-up system in place, according to the Associated Press. The company also claims that the servers went down yesterday because of a “malicious attack” (but no further details are available).

Only about 19,000 tickets of more than 50,000 seats are for sale. The rest of the seats/tickets go to season ticket holders and members of the team and Major League Baseball.

Colorado Rockies, Major League Baseball

The second-annual Denver Marathon was held in the Mile-High City Sunday in the pouring rain. But that didn’t seem to dampen the enthusiasm of participants and supporters who lined downtown Denver streets. More than 7,500 runners battled freezing temperatures (it barely reached 40 degrees) and constant drizzle and downpour over the course of the race.

While you’d think mid-October would mark the end of road-race season here in the Rockies, there are actually dozens more community running events happening in the coming few weeks. If you’re interested in participating in a local race, many of which often benefit charities, here’s a list to help you with your travel plans:

October 20
Golden
Compass Montessori Harvest Festival 10k run or 1k walk

Grand Junction
Holy Family Hallelujah 5k

October 21
Arvada
5k/1k Run with Rocky

October 26
Denver
Scream Scram
5k plus 100-meter Spooky Sneak (with treats at the finish line) for kids. Washington Park, 6 p.m.
Wear your costume! Benefits the National Multiple Sclerosis Society.

October 27
Alamosa
Monster Mash Dash 5k, inaugural event
Wear your costume!

Denver
Gorilla Run, 5.6k
Everyone who participates wears a head-to-toe gorilla costume! Benefits the Mountain Gorilla Conservation Fund.

Erie
Eerie Erie 5k

Manitou Springs
Mayor’s Cup 5k

October 31
Denver
Halloween Hustle 5k

November 3
Loveland
Heart Center of the Rockies Half Marathon, 10k, 5k

Grand Junction
Harbert Lumber Fall Festival 5k

November 4
Littleton
Littleton Stride 10k or 5k

November 10
Longmont
Turkey Trot
33rd annual 10k or 2 mile race

November 11
Boulder
Panicking Poultry 5k

November 17
Brighton
23rd Annual Turkey Trot
5k

Colorado, road races

It’s not often you’ll find recipes here at Colorado Review (I leave that to my friends at the Food, Cooking & Wine Channel, like Earthly Eating.) But this one sounded too good to refrain from sharing–a hearty Chicken Gumbo for cool fall evenings. It’s from the sous chef at the Garden Terrace at The Inverness, a recently renovated hotel with brand-new spa in suburban Denver.

New Orleans favorites are served at the Cajun Creole buffet Friday nights through November 30. Buffet pricing is $26.95 for adults and $13.95 for kids. The menu includes everything from poached catfish, peel & eat shrimp and blackened pork and cabbage salad to po’ boy sandwiches, red beans and rife and shrimp etoufee.

Cajun Creole Chicken Gumbo
Executive Sous Chef Anthony Sinese

INGREDIENTS:
2 tbsp vegetable shortening
2 tbsp flour, all-purpose
2 onions, finely chopped
1 green bell pepper, finely chopped
5 cups warm chicken broth
8 tomatoes, peeled/chopped
1/2 lb okra, cut into 1/4″ pieces
1 1/2 tbsp filé gumbo (powdered sassafras leaves used as seasoning and thickener)
1/2 cup uncooked rice
2 ribs celery, chopped
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp thyme
1 bay leaf
1 broiler-fryer chicken, cooked

PREPARATION:
In large Dutch oven, melt shortening over low heat; add flour and cook, stirring, until brown, about 10 minutes (do not hurry; if flour burns, roux is ruined).

Add onions and bell pepper; cook until onion is translucent, about 5 minutes.

Slowly add warm broth; stir until broth reaches a boil.

Add tomatoes, okra, rice, celery, salt, filé gumbo, pepper, thyme and bay leaf; bring to a boil.

Add chicken; when mixture boils again, reduce heat to low, cover and cook about 20 minutes.

Stir and cook, covered, 20 minutes longer. Serves 6.

Denver, The Inverness

Burlap sack–wearing dancers. Kids wrapped up in aluminum foil Dogs costumed as tater tots.

Who knows what sort of irreverent get-ups you might see at the 98th annual Potato Day festivities in Carbondale, Saturday, September 29.

Spud-themed floats share the street with American Legion vets, scout troops, school bands and teenage homecoming queens during the five-block-long, downtown parade—a main event during Potato Day, whose roots date back to 1909.

Back then, Carbondale was one of the country’s biggest potato-growing regions. Residents would gather to celebrate a successful autumn harvest. Today, Potato Day is just a reason for the community to come together to “hang out,� says longtime organizer Lisa Quint.

“We’ve thought about advertising outside of the valley, but with [July’s three-day] Mountain Fair getting so big, we decided we just wanted it to stay the way it is,� says Quint. “Everyone likes the local, small-town feeling.�

The theme of this year’s festival, which coincides with the local high school’s homecoming weekend, is “007.� The event poster shows a James Bond–like silhouette packing a potato peeler instead of a pocket pistol.

Quint hopes parade participants embrace the theme. “You know, ‘Spud. James Spud.’ and ‘License to Bake.’ You’d think the high school kids would get into it. But some years are better than others.�

The parade is scheduled for 10:30 a.m. Other events include an early morning 5k and 1-mile road race. In downtown Sopris Park, free live music starts at 11:30 a.m., followed by a noon picnic lunch for $8. The menu includes barbecued beef roasted in an underground pit and, you guessed it, plenty of baked potatoes.

The 3 p.m. “Bareback Bonanza� at the local rodeo arena features barrel racing, kids’ mutton bustin’ and the annual favorite team race, “catch the 220-lb pig and get it in a wheelbarrow to cross the finish line.� Visitors can enter any event.

If you haven’t gotten your fill of taters, head over to Russets restaurant (225 Main Street; 970-963-3036). Order a side of fresh-cut Belgian fries to accompany entrees such as Sesame Crusted Pan Seared Ahi Tuna or New York Cut Sirloin. Families are welcome here: children are given a Mr. Potato Head to play with before dinner arrives.

Carbondale, Colorado

I was remiss in my earlier list of state-wide Oktoberfest celebrations. I neglected to mention one that’s in my backyard:

Glenwood Springs
Saturday, September 29, 2007
11:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. in Centennial Park, 9th and Grand Avenue.
Beginning at noon, Soul Feel, with its “funky roots rock and a twist of Delta blues” takes center stage. Entertainment turns to more traditional Oktoberfest music with Alpine Echo at 3 p.m. Alpine Echo will entertain the crowd with traditional German polka tunes with John Pataky of Rosi’s Bavarian Restaurant as the accordion player. During Alpine Echo’s breaks, D’Miesbacher Oimtaler, a Bavarian club dedicated to the preservation of the Bavarian culture will perform traditional Schuhplattler dances and folk dances. Audience participation is encouraged. Erdinger Oktoberfest-Weizen, and Veltins Pilsener will be available on tap along with Woody Creek wine.

Tiny Cedaredge, Colorado, at the foot of the Grand Mesa, celebrates the 30th anniversary of Applefest October 6 and 7.

From 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday, the small downtown area and Town Park burst with activity–kids’ games, a classic car and antique tractor show, community bake sale, arts & crafts vendors, beer & wine garden and all the apples you can eat. (Despite a spring freeze which is affecting the harvest, count on apples aplenty, but not a plethora of pick-your-own opportunities).

Pioneer Town, adjacent to the Grand Mesa National Scenic Byway Visitor’s Center, is a reminder of how early settlers lived. All the structures–from the old school house to the historic silos, are restorations of original buildings or authentic replicas. The staff at the visitor’s center is a wealth of knowledge of things to do in the area, and you can pick their brains about area history, too.

I highly recommend a drive along the Grand Mesa National Scenic Byway (highway 65 from Cedaredge). The views from 10,000 to 11,000 feet above sea level are absolutely stunning. (Color week–when fall foliage peaks–is September 17-23; if you can get up there then, go!) Dubbed the “playground in the sky” the scenic highway is indeed an outdoor wonderland with 300 lakes for fishing and dozens of trails for hiking and mountain biking. Plenty of campsites allow you to sleep under the stars; just make sure you’ve got your cold-weather sleeping bag. It’ll get chilly at night in at the high altitude!

Cedaredge, Grand Mesa National Scenic Byway, Applefest, Colorado

I love Whole Foods natural foods markets, and I’d shop often at the Cherry Creek location when I lived in Denver. The big news in my neck of the woods is that a store is scheduled to open in 2010 the hip, new Willits development in Basalt–just 5 minutes from my house. I’m looking forward to it — even though it’s 2 1/2 years away…

In the meantime, the news in the Lakewood area (metro Denver) is that a cooking studio is opening at the market September 15. During the annual Belmar Festival Italiano, the Cooking Studio will be open for free day-long Italian cooking demonstrations and tastings, including a mozzarella pulling class, led by Danielle Edmonds, Cooking Studio Facilitator.

The Belmar Cooking Studio will offer 20 to 30 educational and interactive classes per month. Designed for everyone from the experienced gourmand to the beginner chef, there’s a class for all interests and skill levels.

I love the sound of “Kids in the Kitchen,” “College Cooking 101,” “Baker’s Secrets: Pies and More Pies” and “French Wines & Cheeses.” Click here to read the September/October schedule.

Denver, Whole Foods

The four-day passes are sold out, but daily tickets are still on sale (starting at $40 plus fees) for the Jazz Aspen Snowmass Labor Day Festival, Friday, August 31 to Monday, September 1.

Here’s the line-up of bands/singers scheduled to perform under the huge white tents in Snowmass Town Park:

Friday
6 p.m.: Nickel Creek
8 p.m.: Ben Harper & the Innocents

Saturday
2:30 p.m.: Galactic
5 p.m.: Joss Stone
7 p.m.: John Legend

Sunday
3 p.m.: Leftover Salmon
5 p.m.: Michael Franti & Spearhead
7 p.m.: The Allman Brothers Band

Monday
1 p.m.: Jackie Greene
2:30 p.m.: Derek Trucks and Susan Tedeschi, Soul Stew Revival
4:30 p.m. Gov’t Mule

Plus, there are bands scheduled to play at smaller venues throughout Snowmass.

As always, the outdoor event promises loads of good music and good times. More info, click here.

Aspen, Colorado

Yesterday my family and I were invited to our friends’ new home on the main drag in Redstone, south of Carbondale, along Highway 133. It had been a while since I’d spent some time in this tiny town along the Crystal River, and it was a treat to walk along the .75-mile-long Redstone Boulevard in the early evening. Here, tourists browse in the antique shops, families buy ice cream at the General Store, and kids frolic on the play structure in Redstone Park.

Weekends in the summertime bring community events at the park. The Summer Concert Series fuses “music, art and nature.” My seven-year-old daughter and her same-aged friend were delighted to see a “real Indian” sharing her tribe’s sign language and storytelling with the audience gathered on the grassy lawn next to the river. Artisans showed and sold their wood carvings and jewelry. The final community event held at the park this summer is a concert this Sunday, September 2, 5:30 to 7:30 p.m., with country and bluegrass music. Daily throughout Labor Day Weekend also find the annual art show at the Redstone Inn.

When the aspens start turning colors (soon in the high country!) a particularly pretty drive is south of Redstone up to McClure Pass. We drove this route in the third week of September last year, just as the autumn foliage peaked. Gorgeous golden orange hues!

(Thanks to Steve at ColoradoGuy.com for the images of Redstone above: the historic town’s welcome sign and the red cliffs above the boulevard.)

Redstone, Colorado