More than a race..BolderBoulder is a community event!

Last year the entire family, minus one, ran the race.  Well, somebody had to cover the day in photos.

This year, my son-in-law, Darren and grandsons, Connor and Dylan pinned an official number to their jersey in order to run the race.

To eliminate the pre-race hassel, we decided to get a hotel room in town, the night before the race.  That provided time to stroll down the Pearl Street Mall, have a meal and pick up race packets.

Runners check out their packets.

Race day.  Runner #465 is on his way to the START.

Next morning, the guys had an easy walk to the start line.  It was another near perfect day for a race.  Certainly, boulder has hundreds of near perfect days each year.

Many world class runners train here for the BolderBoulder, other international qualifying races, and the Olympics.






On the way to the finish line in Folsom Field, on the CU campus, family members were being passed by literally thousands of runners with exceptionally low qualifying times.  On race day, the streets of Boulder become a sea of humanity.

The course on Folsom Street, approaching mile 6.

Many runners are wearing a new pair of tights, a white cap, or a new pair of running shoes.  Others are out to jolt onlookers as they jog through the city.  Costumed runners included: Mr. America, teletubbies, three Legos, and Santa.  Farther back in the race, Jesus was seen passing another slower runner.  He looked like he may have actually trained for this race.  But did he finish?

Jesus, running with a friend.

Folsom Field, 9:00 a.m., a steady stream of runners enters the stadium at far right.

Scene from the back of Folsom Field.  Finish line is center.

Inside the almost empty stadium at 8:00 a.m., seats were continually being filled by friends and family of runners.  As they finished, runners too made their way into the stands.  By 10:30, the stadium was filled with charged up people enjoying the event

I wasted no time finding a spot close to the finish line.  My camera is turned on, lens is pre-adjusted, and a firm grip on the housing, I am forced to squint into the bright Boulder sun.  How will I ever spot a glimpse of my son-in-law and grandsons?  Hundreds and hundreds of runners are making the final turn every minute.  Remember, there are over 50,000 runners in this event.

Think blue...Connor is wearing blue.  He will be finishing before his brother and father.  Every boy that looks anything close to twelve and is wearing blue might be him.  My camera is now inches away from my left eye.  It will take less time to raise it to my eye, do a split second fine focus and click...right.

I had no idea how many runners had passed by in the handful of minutes I stood in the shadow of a Dicks Sporting Goods tent, waiting for members of my family to dash by.  Then, there he was,  the gazelle, the deer, my grandson, Connor was sprinting past his peers and adults of all ages.  Would I be able to capture even one image of his accomplishment?

Connor, the boy in blue (right) finished in 50:48, averaging 8:10/mile.  He finished 24th out of 393 in his age group, and 4,866th out of the 50,000+ runners.

Later, in the stands, I scrolled back through the images.  There is was, two frames of him just yards from the finish.

Now, I had to do it again.  This time, find two people, hopefully running together.  If not, how in the world would I ever see them in a continuous sea of humanity?  I kept thinking, I must see them.  Each second seemed like minutes.  Then by some bizarre line of fate, my eyes caught Darren running on the outside of the turn.  Immediately in front of him was Dylan. I did capture two images of them, both of which are shielded by the Dicks Sporting Goods banners lining the perimeter of Folsom Stadium. 

Nine-year-old Dylan (behind the white sponsors banners) finished in 1:0013:35, an average of 9:41/mile.  The kid finished 39th out of 352 in his age group, and 14,228th overall.

Now, the hard part of the day was over.  We left Folsom field to check out vendors row, an area adjacent to the field, where vendors can display and promote their products.  We remembered last year, there was a continuous crown at the ice pop stand.  When we got there, all the free pops were gone.  This time, when we arrived, volunteers were dumping cases of ice pops into a bin.

Back in the stadium, the annual Memorial Day celebration, BolderBoulder style was building.  A number of times, I had goose bumps, listening to stories about men who survived horrific battles of WWII.

Looking to my left, a jammed stadium of onlookers enjoying the event.  There is no place on earth quite like this.  Beyond the stadium, the majestic Flatirons jutting high above the buildings of downtown Boulder.

As many bikes as vehicles, the Flatirons, and clear blue sky...it's Boulder.

Scene from a packed stadium, looking over the top to those magnificent flatirons.

To my right, the entrance to the stadium for all runners.  On the public address system, comes the voice of Frank Shorter.  A member of the U. S. Olympic marathon team that won gold in 1972 and silver in 1976.  This truly is a world class event.  It will be locked in as an annual family tradition to be here.

Main concourse, Folsom Stadium, from the street.

Then, the reason we celebrate Memorial Day comes front and center.  A precision rifle squad makes its way to the middle of the stadium floor.  A 21-gun salute is ordered, followed by taps.  This year taps was played by two WWII veterans.  Once again, goose bumps ran the length of my arms.

Tell me you wouldn't get goose bumps sitting here.

The BolderBoulder is a new tradition for my family.  The atmosphere both outside and inside Folsom Field is electric.  What better way to honor the men and women who have made the ultimate sacrifice for this country.