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The song, “Por los Niños y Niñas,” is used here with permission from Moisés Gadea, Nicaraguan singer-songwriter who wrote and recorded it. Thanks to the non-profit organization, Empowerment International (please check them out here and consider donating: https://www.empowermentinternational.org), Nicaraguan musicians Moisés Gadea and Darwin Escoto came to Colorado in October, 2018, to a play a fundraiser concert at the Broomfield Crescent Grange. While they were here, they also visited and played for students at Shining Mountain Waldorf School (where I am a Spanish teacher), played live on KGNU’s “ Corriente” Latin music show, drummed for fun on Pearl St., and had a good time in the mountains.

It turned our car into a classroom as soon as the Spanish Peaks appeared, two snow-capped mountains around which Highway 12 travels (finishing back on I-25 in Trinidad). The hotel and its 17 rooms have warm, historic touches, like arched hallways, murals by local artists, and stories from the hotel’s creaking-wood past. In La Veta, look for Art in the Park on July 6-7, Spanish Peaks Music Festival on July 5-6, and monthly Art Walks to the town’s various galleries every fourth Friday in June, July, and August. La Veta Inn (https://lavetainn.co, 103 W. Ryus Ave., 719-742-5566, from $109/night), Warehouse Suites (http://thewarehousesuite.com, 102 W Ryus Ave, La Veta, 719-742-5278), or the Inn at the Spanish Peaks B&B (http://www.innatthespanishpeaks.com, 310 E Francisco St, La Veta, 719-742-5313).

My 90-minute “Essential Denver” tour from City on the Side was just one of six city tours I was taking over the weekend. Tour times are flexible; there is a 90-minute “Essential Denver City Sidecar Motorcycle Tour”, two 4-hour Mountain Exploration Tours (North and South Routes), and, coming in May 2019, a 2.5-hour “Denver City Street Art Tour. If you go: Deliciousdenverfoodtours.com, 720-575-3224, Downtown Denver Food Tour (Saturday from 12:30-3:30 p.m. or Sunday 1-4 p.m.), Food and Beer Tour of RiNo (Saturday from 2-5 p.m.), or Cocktails and Tastes Tour (Saturday from 4:15-6:30 p.m.), $59-$89/person. ” (my article about a culinary and cocktail tour with Local Table Tours, which operates regular food tours in Boulder, Fort Collins, and Denver).

I filled my tires, signed up for a repair stand, worked on my bike for a bit (with a great deal of help from Paul, the mechanic on duty, thank you! ), then asked Burgos what else I should do to be ready for summer riding. “Not unlike spring cleaning around the house, getting your bicycle dialed for spring and summer adventures is a must. Then, when you pull the bike out of the garage in the spring, all you gotta do is add a bit of air to the tires and you’re ready to roll! In Denver: Bikes Together has two locations in Denver: Park Hill Bikes Together (2825 Fairfax St., 303-393-1963) and Mariposa Bikes Together (1060 Osage St., 720-403-8757).