Boulder, CO

We snuck out of Omaha in the early morning, only functioning once we had located a decent cup of coffee. About three hours into our drive, we realized that Rosa sounded a little...clanky. We were concerned. She was due for an oil change soon so maybe we should just pull over at a local gas station and check her levels. Well, that didn't go as smoothly as planned. The dipstick crumbled in mom's hands. Uh oh. Not good. Fortunately local Gothenburg hero, Corey Cooper, was just leaving the convenience store when they saw us staring down the engine, contemplating whether to feel rage or defeat. He directed us to a mechanic 3 minutes away-- "ask for Kurt or Jerry, tell 'em Corey sent you". Now, Jerry couldn't give us a new part but he could plug up the oil chamber so we weren't leaking all the way to Boulder. That'll do! What a man.

Joe Allen of Springfield, OR We pulled into a VW dealership in Boulder to secure the needed part (shout out to Nate Seely for coordinating this adventure, as we were in the middle of absolutely nowhere with zero cell service). Joe Allen handed over a spanking new part and even recommended a mechanic in town ("we aren't really suppose to do this, but I'll make an exception"). It was closed but we didn't panic. The Rockies were in our views and Boulder microbreweries were calling our name.

Frankenstein! Megan Frankenstein ran to greet us in her driveway. Her house looked right out to the Flatirons. We headed downtown to the Pearl Street Mall where we saw street musicians, fire-twirlers, bike riders and lots of dreadlocks. Our first stop was at the Lazy Dog for a rooftop view, beers and appetizers.

 

Oh...that's a liter? Megan took us to Bohemian Biergarten, a German ale house with an open, communal atmosphere and giant, GIANT beers. Yummers. (At this point, mom graciously bowed out in order to let two Wisconsin Badger beer-drinkers catch up).