Loveland & Thompson Valley Rotary Clubs Announce

Discount Pre-Sale of Governor’s Invitational Art Show & Sale

Opening Night Gala Tickets

Discount available through the end of March; Ticket price increases April 1

Loveland, Colorado – The 21^st Annual Governor’s Invitational Art Show & Sale to benefit the Loveland Rotary Foundation is offering discounted tickets to the event’s Opening Night Gala through the end of March. Tickets are available now for $55/person. On April 1, the ticket price increases to $65.

The Gala takes place Saturday, April 28 from 5:00 to 9:30 p.m. at the Loveland Museum & Gallery, 5^th Street & Lincoln Avenue, Loveland, Colorado. Art selected for this year’s Show & Sale be on sale for the first time during the Gala via a lottery system. Gala attendees will be among the first to have the opportunity to purchase a painting or other work of art. Ticket price includes hors d'oeuvres, drinks and a color catalogue of selected artworks displayed and offered for sale this year. To purchase tickets, visit www.GovernorsArtShow.org, email 2012GalaGovernorsShow@gmail.com, or call 970-663-0919.

The Show & Sale continues at the Loveland Museum & Gallery from Sunday, April 19 through Sunday, June 10, 2012. It includes art from 57 Colorado artists, including Loveland sculptors George Lundeen and Jane DeDecker. For a complete list of artists, their bios and the works to be displayed and offered for sale, see http://www.governorsartshow.org/index.php/the-artists.

Other free events that are open to the public during the Show & Sale include artist demonstrations by Daniel B. Glanz and Michael Ome Untiedt, and a book signing by Sushe Felix, Buffalo Kaplinski, Leon Loughridge, James Biggers and Jane DeDecker. Details are available at www.GovernorsArtShow.org.

About the Governor’s Invitational Art Show & Sale

The Governor’s Art Show & Sale is the largest fundraiser and capstone project of both the Loveland Rotary Club and the Thompson Valley Rotary Club. It stands out as one of the most prestigious exhibits of original art in the Western United States. The show is made possible by Gold-level sponsors Poudre Valley Health System and Loveland Ready-Mix Concrete; Silver-level sponsors King Contracting, Inc., Wells Fargo Advisors, Décor, Inc., Colorado Financial Management, Inc., The Nanci Garnand Group at RE/MAX Alliance, and Mueller Associates, CPA LLC; dozens of Bronze-level sponsors, and others. A complete list of sponsors can be found at http://www.governorsartshow.org/index.php/sponsors. For more information about the Governor’s Invitational Art Show & Sale, visit www.governorsartshow.org, call 970-663-0919 (voice mail), or email 2012GalaGovernorsShow@gmail.com (preferred).

For training and working out, goals are extremely important. You need to set short and long term goals and make them challenging but possible. If they are not possible, you will not reach them and eventually become disappointed or frustrated. On the other hand, if they are too easy, you may not push yourself enough and not make enough progress, if any at all.

Another aspect of training, one that I feel has played a huge role for myself is having the right mindset. I'm not necessarily talking about what your motivation is for your workouts because there are thousands of reasons why you can, should or want to do it. What I'm thinking about is the attitude, the mindset, the personality you step into the gym with. When you have that mindset, nothing can stop you. You can just keep going and whatever is in front of you, you do not stop. When I go into a workout like that, I feel stronger, faster and better than any other moment. People call me nuts when they see me training (and I probably am) but it gives me great satisfaction and motivation. This is when I get my best workouts and earn some of the nicknames I have been given over the years (Beast, the Hammer,... All for different reasons).

Getting that mindset is not easy and I feel cannot always be planned ahead. It's a feeling of the moment. It may be influenced by your goals, motivation, your previous success and progress or simply how well you slept the night before. It depends on the individual and circumstances but also on the people around you. A good group of training buddies or trainer can get you in that moment, in which you feel invincible and full of energy (sometimes I have to step in to prevent injuries as a trainer when a client gets 'in the moment').

There is nothing like this feeling and sometimes you just start working out and you know you'll be killing it that day. Other times, you need more guidance from a trainer to get in the right mindset. Either way, it should be your goal to find that motivation. It is the perfect intrinsic motivation (because you want to for yourself, not for others or a reward) and when you work out like this, you will feel great after and again be looking forward more to the next workout. It's a vicious circle. If you feel bad for yourself when working out, it will probably not be any better next time. So give it your all. I guarantee that, if you work out hard but responsibly, you will experience that mindset more and more while enjoying every minute of it.

For the beginners out there: no matter what sport you practice, go for it, get over that beginner's hump and you'll find more enjoyment and great progress lying right ahead of you! Leave it all out there and you will experience more results than what you were hoping for!

For cross training and TRX classes or private personal training, check out www.DefineDefense.com

By Sander Vanacker, owner, head instructor and personal trainer of Define Defense Martial Arts & Personal Training.

Martial arts is a statistically very safe sport to practice, for both youngsters and adults.  One of the dangers however, (which you have to be aware of when selecting a martial arts studio for yourself or children) is hygiene.  Martial arts mats are vigorously used and are in contact with feet, sweat and the occasional blood (from little cuts on fingers, toes, elbows etc., just like any other sport).  That in combination with skin contact can be a hazard.

That is why it is extremely important to clean the mats thoroughly and disinfect them.  At Define Defense, we clean the mats every day with a biodegradable disinfectant.  This does not only kill 99.99% off all possible bacteria (staph, MRSA, impetigo etc.), viruses (warts) and fungi (ringworm) but it is also safe since it is a ‘green’ product, not a chemically engineered product which is unhealthy as well.  Every few weeks, we also steam clean the mats with a machine.  This is a procedure which guarantees a very thorough cleaning.

Martial arts is not any more hazardous than any other sport, think about the equipment you sweat in doing football or soccer; or the materials you are in contact with when doing weight lifting or gymnastics. Simply think about how many people use a regular gym or rec center every day.  If you are careful and train at a responsible facility, the risk is minimal!  

A few other things we do:

• We offer 2 private showers for our clients to use after their workout
• We sell long sleeve Define Defense rash guards for more protection
• The weight lifting and cardio equipment is disinfected frequently
• We encourage everyone to wear clean and freshly washed gear

In our facility, we have had no issues whatsoever and strive to keep it that way by keeping the studio spotless and disinfected (while using responsible products instead of chemicals)!

By Sander Vanacker, owner, head instructor and personal trainer ofDefine Defense Martial Arts & Personal Training.

Since my latest blog I’ve made quite a few changes in my 30 day Paleo experiment. I have also made a lot of progress!

In my second week of doing the Paleo diet, I found myself to be lacking energy to work out hard and also my performance went down. Especially with weight lifting, the difference was remarkable. Perhaps I didn’t eat enough of certain things or too many of others but whatever caused this, it was a problem. The fact that I teach martial arts and do personal training for a living has surely something to do with it. My body definitely needs more fuel than others since I am on my feet all day and I try to participate when teaching as much as possible. This easily adds up to 18 hours of training every week.

One more problem I had with the diet (which is a personal fault) is that I got bored of most foods. As mentioned before, if you are a picky eater it will become frustrating since you can’t eat certain things and you have to eat tons of others. This is of course a personal problem and most people are not as picky as myself (if in doubt, talk to my mom or wife about my eating pickiness!)

With these issues in mind, I decided to keep the general ideas of the Paleo diet but modifying it so I could again eat more carbs. Therefore, I switched to the Paleo for Athletes diet. This is a customized Paleo diet with the needs of athletes in mind. Our bodies need more energy and need quicker recovery. When training in and outside of classes as much as I do, I believe it is necessary. The first week I seemed to have no issues but after, I felt this was the right thing to do for me personally. 

After the first week I dropped 7 lbs. As mentioned before, most of that was water weight, which I didn’t like. Once I started eating carbs again, I retained that water weight back (thankfully because I seemed very deflated!) Once retaining the water put to normal levels, I weighed 210.5 lbs. Since I switched to the Paleo for Athletes method, I dropped to 207 lbs. I feel great and energetic and feel like this is the best way for me to go Paleo. I can sustain my blood sugar levels, am not losing lean mass and am dropping the right weight. I’m looking forward to keep going on the Paleo for Athletes diet and continue to get leaner in my preparation for my triathlon races and Tough Mudder!

Again, this is my personal experience and does not reflect on anyone else and should not be considered nutritional advice.

By Sander Vanacker, owner, head instructor and personal trainer of Define Defense Martial Arts & Personal Training.

Let’s start with the numbers: 7 lbs. in 7 days! I know, I was shocked too. However, keep in mind that a big part of this amount is water weight. Since I eat much less carbs, my body also retains less water. Fortunately, I still feel energetic and have no dips in my energy levels throughout the day. Also, after weight lifting my muscles seem to be recovering at the same pace as they did before the Paleo diet. This seems to demonstrate that my post training recovery is similar and this should prevent muscle atrophy (I hope)! I am keeping a close eye on feeling weak or lacking energy since that may be a concern (although there are no signs at all yet).

As I mentioned before, Saturdays are a pretty intense workout day for me. This is what I did last Saturday:

• Youth martial arts class (teaching and joining in the interactive games)
• 60 minutes of weight lifting (chest and shoulders)
• 30 minutes of a Modern Martial Arts class (Drew taught the rest of the class)
• 30 minutes of a Strength & Conditioning class (instructed the rest without joining)
• 1.5 hour Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, of which about 40 minutes rolling (grappling with your opponents)

As you can imagine, I was eating all day (to a point that my clients said: ‘Are you eating again??’) Nonetheless, I dropped a good amount of weight that day, mostly because I couldn’t keep up with my water intake vs loss.

Sunday and Monday I was mostly out of town, which did not make this diet any easier. Luckily, we were able to bring a lot of previously prepared foods and we had access to an empty fridge where we stayed. This made it more manageable but it was still not easy at all.

So far I have been able to keep up with the diet but it is definitely a challenge. This is not how I normally eat at all. I can imagine the Paleo diet is a slight change for many people but for me it’s pretty much a complete turnaround. The temptation is not a major issue right now, however the biggest problem is variety. This is why we’re exploring more options to cook the same foods, the problem is that I am a picky eater so I am forced to resort to the same foods pretty often. I have to say I am eating many different things but considering the amount of food I have to eat, it gets quite boring.

So far this week these have been my workouts:

Monday:

• 45 minutes weight lifting (chest and shoulders)
• Brazilian Jiu Jitsu class (60 minutes)
• 30 minutes Strength & Conditioning
• Modern Martial Arts (60 minutes)

Tuesday:

• 30 minute run
• 45 minutes weight lifting (back)
• Modern Martial Arts (of which I joined 30 minutes)

Wednesday:

• 60 minutes weight lifting (upper back and shoulders)

Planning on doing later today:

• 60 minutes Strength & Conditioning
• 60 minutes Modern Martial Arts

I have not yet measure my body fat % but will most likely do tonight. I will keep you posted!

By Sander Vanacker, owner, head instructor and personal trainer of Define Defense Martial Arts & Personal Training.

This is day 2 of my Paleo diet challenge. Please don’t consider me a Paleo specialist, all this is intended for is to share my experience :) Please consult a nutritionist or dietitian for nutritional advice.

Wednesday, I took advantage of my last non-Paleo day to eat a nice bowl of pasta and drink some red wine along with it. I have to say, I have been eating so much pasta and breads the last few months that I was ready for a break! I was starting to feel sluggish after eating these so the Paleo challenge seems to be here at a good time. At the beginning of the Paleo diet, I’m weighing 213 lbs. with 13% body fat (the average man has 18-24% in the US, according to most sources). This is over my normal fat percentage of 7-10% but I have been intentionally gaining to build more muscle mass. I would like to get to 6% body fat. This is a personal goal and does not reflect on anyones else but me. Doing martial arts, strength & conditioning and other sports in combination with this diet should make this possible over time. I have been there before and am comfortable at that level and know where my limits are. To determine your goals, consult with your trainer (we can measure you body fat and help you with your training), dietitian or doctor!

Yesterday, March 1st, we went shopping to get everything we need for the Paleo diet. As you can see, once we passed the produce section, our cart was pretty much full already! Of course, we got other stuff as well such as meat, fish, nuts, eggs etc. Since it was our first shopping and we needed to stock up on certain things, it was expensive! I’m sure the next shopping sprees will be better though since we got many items that will last a while. We also need to figure out the routine, which probably will take about a week.

After shopping, we spend a solid 3-4 hours cooking to prepare as many foods as we could for the next few days. Throughout the day, I ate about 6 or 7 meals, consisting of soup, meatballs, chicken cutlets, eggs, fruit and nuts. I also juiced some fresh oranges (tastes so good!)

Unfortunately, during the first day I couldn’t satisfy my hunger. I don’t think it was as much physical as it was mental. I do believe we are addicted to some foods and after eating those, you need more and more in order to satisfy yourself. Not being able to eat these items, makes it hard to satisfy my hungry feeling! However, since it is such a change in diet, I think it just needs time. The first 2 weeks I expect to be pretty rough. However, today (2nd day) I am doing better already and feel less hungry (believe me, I’m eating a large amount of food).

Training wise I was pleasantly surprised I didn’t feel a dip in energy! I am sure it has a lot to do with all the meals I had, which kept my blood levels more steady. Although, I was still surprised since I did not have any pasta, bread, rice, potatoes etc. and I didn’t feel weak at all. My training yesterday was:

• A light Modern Martial Arts class (60 minutes)
• A Strength & Conditioning class (50 minutes + 10 minutes stretching)
• Teaching a Self Defense class (some parts can be pretty intense when instructors are the subjects to takedowns, self defense techniques etc.)

Today, my wife and I went for an hour hike and I worked out for about 45 minutes (weight lifting) and still did not feel a drop in energy! This was a major concern for me but I’m happy to admit there is no such drop!

Tomorrow I’ll be training a good amount (at least 3 hours) so I’ll let you know what happens!




By Sander Vanacker, owner, head instructor and personal trainer of Define Defense Martial Arts & Personal Training.

Veteran middle distance runner Bobby Fischer had already committed to race at this year’s “Carlsbad 5000” – the nation’s premiere 5K -  before making a “gut-feel” decision to enter the 400-meter dash at this year’s National Masters Indoor Championships in Bloomington, Indiana. Racing 800’s, 1500’s and 5K’s is routine for Fischer, who has also competed 27 marathons, but sprinting an “open” 400 at a national championship was a “first” for the talented 72-year-old.

Bobby Fischer

Fischer’s coach, Ric Rojas, blessed the 400-meter project in January, added high quality sprint training to his endurance program and helped Fischer plan his race strategy. Fischer trained diligently, raced a pair of tune-up 400s at high altitude, and descended to Bloomington to take a well-deserved 5^th place amongst a host of veteran 400-meter specialists.

“It was a great experience,” exclaimed the dazed Fischer after the race. “All the guys (in the race) were sprinters! I ran my best and can’t think of any point in the race where I could have run better. My legs feel good now and I just want to get back on the track again for the ‘800’”.

Fischer ran a season best 82.45.

Meanwhile, 800-meter specialist, Dave Albo, nursing a foot injury, finished 6^th in the Men’s 55-59 age group 400m final, narrowly missing the All-American standard.

“My foot was sore for the last week,” explained Albo. “It was hurting just before the race and I was especially nervous so I went out a little too fast.  I missed the (All-American) standard by less than two tenths of a second!”

Albo’s time was 62.17

Both Albo and Fischer will take their chances in the 800-meters run on Sunday.

The Wisdom Exchange  Presents Boulder Film Maker Patty Greer's and her Newest UFO Movie
"4 Stories – One Event – Other Worlds"

Friday, March 23, 7 PM

Four different groups of people saw Orange Balls of Light over an English Crop Circle on July 29th and experienced a telepathic communication with the "Beings."

The men from Belgium were still in shock throughout the interview. They watched Balls of Light turn into "Illuminated Light Bodies" with arms, legs and a head, just hours before.

A man from Holland and a child from Belgium were both told, "The Crop Circle is not done yet."  Two additional phases of the Crop Circle appeared within days. A group of French people were equally stunned by their sighting. How did all of these people meet the film maker within 24 hours in different places around Southern England and tell her their stories? Similar stories!

We offer you the information. Your perception is up to you.
Includes an Australian woman's photographic account of numerous ultra-dimensional (ET) beings that use her property as a doorway to other worlds. Many of her photographs show "Energies" that have not been seen before. She has taken more than 800,000 photos with 11 different cameras!
_____________________________________________________________________________

Patty Greer will join us in person for a live Q & A and, believe me, nothing can compare to a conversation with Patty about her experiences. If you’re a believer, be prepared to be captivated. If you’re a skeptic, be prepared to be converted!

_____________________________________________________________________________

Meeting at Living Water Unity
7401 W. 59th Ave., Arvada, CO 80003 (59th & Vance)
 (Map at www.thewisdomexchange.com/LWU-Map)
Popcorn and candy will be available for a free will offering.
Discussion will follow the film.
Some films may have language or subject matter unsuitable for children.

For additional information, contact
Kay Ford Johnsen
720-933-4964
kayfordjohnsEn@aol.com
www.thewisdomexchange.com

http://www.PattyGreer.com

Three of us managed to fit, despite our bulky, winter gear. The top of our arms firmly touched. I felt the rhythm of another’s breathing and smelled the scent of coffee with each exhale. No seats remained. I stood up and offered my cramped spot to a woman who boarded bus number 225. I figured out how to position my feet just right and to hang on to the overhead straps in hopes that I wouldn’t slip on the wet floor. The commuter bus was always packed on snowy days, with new faces who unanimously decided that the roads were too treacherous to attempt on their own.

A core group of folks unfailingly rode the bus. We were members of the unofficial “225 Club”. We coined our daily excursion as a “party on the bus”. We didn’t even miss party food. Each day we mingled and shared life.

I knew I’d have a glorious day when I sat next to Maureen, a beautiful lady who smelled good, and was gutsy enough to wear brightly colored lipstick and fabulously, large hoop earrings. I found out that Donna never received nor sent an email in her entire life and I met her after work at the public library to help her create her first email account. Then there was Kitty, a champion square dancer who regaled us with stories of her trips abroad. Merle, a retired engineer, rode the bus to town to study history at the university and those that could attended his graduation commencement. Leslie dressed mostly in shades of purple and invited us all to her house for our annual holiday gala. I found out that Bonnie and I personally knew the same person who traveled with his family in the 1980’s across America in a covered wagon. Wayne, likely the longest standing member of the club, retired from his career as a graphic artist and we dressed up in our best and joined him at his retirement breakfast. Terry, an athletic lady, always rode her bicycle to the bus stop and securely attached her bike to the front of the bus in record time.

Eventually, I announced I was pregnant. My bus friends immediately began to plan a baby shower. Eventually, I no longer offered up my seat to others.

A few months later, my husband and I moved with our baby to a nearby town and I had no choice but to ride another bus to work. The back seats on the bus were so elevated that I couldn’t see who sat in front or behind me. My companions became books and I could easily plow through several novels a month. I could hardly wait to board the bus, just to get a chance to read.

In time, I met a woman, whose name escapes me, and I sacrificed my love of books on the bus, to begin a friendship. She invited me to attend her calligraphy club, just one week before I moved three states away.

  Twins Emma and Rich Sanchez, sophomores on the Fairview High School track team, didn’t compare notes before running the 400-meter dash at last weekend’s Boulder Invitational track meet, but both ran in the same lane, both finished 2^nd place, and both ran Personal Bests. No one accused them of copying each other’s work, they just happened to have “break-thru” performances at the same distance on the same day. Emma’s time was 60:04 while Rich’s was 50.98.

Emma has historically excelled at the 400-meters but has recently experienced success at the 800, having anchored the Gold-Medal winning Ric Rojas Running 4 x 800-meter Relay Team at the Simplot Games in Pocatello, Idaho, while Rich has excelled at longer distances, having run a personal best of 4:36 at the Simplot Games and anchoring the Ric Rojas Running 4 x 800-meter Relay Team to a Bronze medal at the Simplot Games.

“We didn’t discuss anything before the meet,” recalled Emma. “I was running as fast as I could and was just happy to get a ‘PR’ so early in the season!”

Earlier in the day, Rich had anchored the Fairview Boys 4 x 800-meter Relay team to a resounding first-place by a 15 second margin over Ft. Collins High with a 1:57 final leg, but his 400 ‘PR’ was the highlight of his day. “I really wanted to run a good open ‘400’ at this meet,” he said. “And I am happy for Emma but we didn’t really plan anything like this.”

The Sanchez twins will next compete at the Windsor invitational this weekend.

http://www.bocopreps.com/spring-sports/track/ci_20149654/track-field-felkley-starts-hot-quest-school-pv

Earth Week 2012 will culminate in the annual celebration at Evergreen Lake

This year's Earth Week will kick off a series of exciting events ranging from a children’s evening to a featured speaker evening.  The events are scheduled from Monday, April 16 to Friday, April 20, all at the Bergen Fire House, 1802 Bergen Parkway, Evergreen, unless noted otherwise.  All doors opening at 6:30 pm with presentations starting at 7pm:  

Monday, April 16: EAS+Y will host the “Evergreen Community Gardens Town Hall Meeting” at the Buchanan Recreation Center, 32003 Ellingwood Trail, Evergreen

Tuesday, April 17: EAS+Y will kick off their ‘Bring Your Own Bag’ campaign with the screening of the ‘Bag It!’ movie.

Wednesday, April 18: Evergreen Audubon President Dr. Brad A. Andres will present  “An Arctic Treasure – The Teshekpuk Lake Region of Northern Alaska”

Thursday, April 19: Evergreen 350.org will host A Feature Speaker Night: Time Magazine’s “Hero Of The Planet”, author and President of Natural Capitalism Solutions L. Hunter Lovins on “The Way Out: Kickstarting Capitalism…” and sustainable development expert William S. Becker on “The Missing Ingredient in Making Every Day Earth Day”

Friday, April 20: Earth Day & Beyond will host “EarthKids - A Children’s Night” with authors Lynne Cherry and Marc Bekoff, kids’ activities, music by Dakota Blonde and the Young Voices For The Planet Short Films.

This event series will culminate in one of Evergreen’s classic family festivals with the familiar exhibition hall in & outside the Lake House:

Join us at the 23rd Annual Mountain Area Earth Day Fair from 10 am to 4 pm on Saturday, April 21 at the Evergreen Lake House, 29614 Upper Bear Creek Road.  Shuttle Parking will be available at the Wulf Recreation Center, 5300 S. Olive Road.  Admission will be free to all ages. Donations will be encouraged.

Growing since 1990 and now one of the largest and most popular Earth Day celebrations in Colorado, the fair regularly features over 50 federal, state, and local agencies, nonprofit organizations and businesses.  Up-to-date information on critical issues will be available for open discussions and to take home.  A warming tent will provide space for additional exhibitions and live presentations. HawkQuest will again present its live raptors, by now a well anticipated tradition for this festival.  

While you are at Evergreen Lake be sure to visit the historic Warming Hut, home to the Evergreen Nature Center which is operated by Evergreen Audubon.  The Nature Center will hold its grand opening the same day with numerous children’s activities “Fluffed up for Spring! Raffles, Games, Crafts and Nature Playroom” focused on the Bear Creek Watershed.  If you cannot make Friday’s event, Lynne Cherry will be back at the Nature Centre to read and sign her fabulous books and to share her Young Voices For The Planet Short Films! 

More information on the Earth Day Fair and the detailed line-up for the entire week’s events will become available on the event website at www.evergreenaudubon.org/?p=757. Contact Earth Day & Beyond at 720-219-7165 or visit Earth Day & Beyond on Facebook.

Earth Day & Beyond is a small group of Mountain Area residents. Local high school students have taken on various planning and hosting tasks.   Our major sponsors are the Evergreen Park & Recreation District, the Evergreen Newspapers, the Evergreen Audubon Society, the Rotary Club of Evergreen, the Evergreen Chamber of Commerce, Evergreen Sun Power, the Evergreen Wild Bird Store, Natural Capitalism Solutions, the University of the Wilderness and Dakota Blonde.

Centennial, CO – The Gun Store at Centennial is now offering “Prepare U“ campus safety classes in rapid-fire response to the highly controversial Colorado Supreme Court ruling concerning the carrying of concealed weapons on college and university campuses in Colorado.

Located at 6649 Paris Street just north of Arapahoe Road, the new shooting facility will feature a host of classes to prepare college and university staff and students, ages 21 and older, for the responsibility of carrying a concealed weapon.  Taught by expert instructors in The Gun Store’s training center, “Prepare U” courses will include study of the importance of the Second Amendment, maintaining a firearm, and teaching staff and students tactics necessary for protecting themselves and loved ones. 

“We are living in times where the Second Amendment of the United States Constitution must be upheld” said store owner Richard Abramson.  “Law-abiding American citizens with a concealed handgun permit should be able to protect themselves from dangerous criminals, regardless of where they are and by any means necessary.”

Adds Abramson, “The Supreme Court ruling recognizes that the Second Amendment and Colorado State law allow individuals to have the tools necessary to protect themselves even when they are on a college campus.  If only a professor or student were armed and trained during the tragedy at Virginia Tech, the situation could have ended much more favorably.”

The Gun Store at Centennial also offers concealed carry and tactical classes, plus a wide variety of self-defense courses, including less lethal force-on-force, Taser and pepper spray; a six-lane shooting range; and a pro shop with a wide selection of concealable firearms, tactical shotguns, high-powered military grade rifles, shooting apparel and accessories.

For more information, call: 303-662-9900 or visit gunstorecentennial.com.

Rocky Mountain Brassworks’ first concert of 2012 is a crowd pleaser!  Join Denver’s only authentic brass band for The Celtic Experience on March 24th at 7:30pm in the Broomfield Auditorium and enjoy audience favorites including “A Celtic Suite” and the rousing and powerful “Gaelforce” and “Strathcarron.” Rocky Mountain Brassworks will be joined on stage by Denver’s own Centennial State Pipes and Drums, a well-known and popular bagpipe band.  Buy your tickets now, as this popular performance sells out each year!

The Broomfield Auditorium is located at 3 Community Park Road in Broomfield, just north of 120^th Avenue between Main and Lamar streets.  The box office opens at 6:30pm and the doors open at 7:00pm.  All seats are general admission. Tickets can be purchased at the door or in advance through www.rockymountainbrassworks.org or (303) 476-0560.  Ticket prices are; $15 Adults, $10 Seniors & Students, $5 Children.  

As a special incentive for large groups, receive a 25% discount for any pre-paid order of ten individual tickets or more – and we will also reserve your seats for you.  Please contact us at (303) 476-0560 or RMBrassworks@live.com for large group sales.

Rocky Mountain Brassworks is a 501(C)3 non-profit organization that has performed in the Denver area for more than 30 years.  The band has developed a strong working relationship with several local schools and supports their music programs through free performances.

Health Education Solutions, a leading provider of online certification options for healthcare professionals and first responders, today announced that it has added American Heart Association HeartCode® Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS) Part 1 to its catalog of online courses.

HeartCode® ACLS by the American Heart Association (AHA) is the official, self-directed, comprehensive e-learning program from the AHA. Health Education Solutions offers Part 1, the cognitive portion of the course. Parts 2 and 3 – skills practice and check – must be completed with an AHA ACLS Instructor or a voice-assisted manikin (VAM) system. Students must complete all three parts in order to receive an AHA ACLS provider course completion card.

“Many healthcare and emergency response employers require their teams to not simply gain ACLS certification, but to specifically earn an AHA ACLS provider card,” said Melissa Marks, president of Health Education Solutions. “HeartCode® ACLS by the American Heart Association enables these busy professionals to conveniently complete the cognitive portion of the course in their own time and at their own pace.”

In the online, cognitive portion of the American Heart Association ACLS certification course, students will learn ACLS principles by reviewing 10 realistic patient scenarios that cover the ACLS algorithms, participating in a team dynamics lesson and taking a written exam. Students may incur an additional fee for parts 2 and 3 to complete the HeartCode® ACLS course.

For healthcare professionals and first responders whose employer does not require an AHA card for ACLS, Health Education Solutions offers an ACLS recertification course that can be completed in its entirety online. Click here for ACLS recertification information. Health Education Solutions additionally offers an alternate ACLS certification course, which reflects the 2010 AHA guidelines for cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and emergency cardiovascular care (ECC). For pediatric emergency care professionals, Health Education Solutions offers pediatric advanced life support (PALS) certification and recertification courses. These courses were developed in partnership with medical faculty at Union College in Lincoln, Neb.

Health Education Solutions offers ACLS practice tests and PALS practice tests to help professionals preparing for ACLS and PALS certification courses. The practice tests offer questions similar to those found on the actual certification exam. Free certification and recertification practice quizzes each offer three five-question sample tests. Full certification and recertification practice tests mirroring the actual certification exam, both complete with 50 timed multiple-choice questions, are available for $35. A portion of this fee can be applied to the purchase price of the full certification course.

Practice test-takers are immediately provided with answers to the questions that were incorrectly answered following the test to help them identify the areas that may need more study time and attention prior to the full certification exam.

Trygve with Grandpa Bredo Morstol

With Sunday afternoon all to myself, I decided to attend an unusual festival commemorating a man in Boulder County.  He is not celebrated for how he lived or even for how he died. He is extraordinary because of his last wishes. You see, Bredo Morstol has been kept on ice in a Tuff Shed in Nederland, Colorado while being cryogenically preserved since 1989. He would like to be revived someday in the future. In 2001, the town began celebrating Frozen Dead GuyDays in his honor.

The infamous Tuff Shed

When Morstol died on November 6^th,  1989 while residing in Norway, his body was flown to Los Angeles where it was suspended onliquid nitrogen.  His grandson, Trygve Bauge had him shipped on ice to the tiny hippie mountain town in 1993. Trygve and his mother rigged up a frozen storage unit in a broken down shed behind their house. Liquid nitrogen is used in cryogenics to keep the body at around -320 degrees. Trygve’s homemade unit only uses ice and refrigerates at a mild -109. In the meantime, Tyrgve took in another willing participant, Al Campbell from Chicago, and froze him too.

When Trygve was deported to Norway 1994 followed by his mother, they panicked. Who would look after Grandpa Bredo? What if the power went out and they began to melt? All hell broke loose when the town of Nederland found out about the frozen dead guys. Officials wanted to pull the plug on the chest freezer. Not having any previous legislation on the books, they relented and “grandfathered” Morstol in. The other body was shipped to his family. Trygve hired a man to watch over the frozen grave where Grandpa Bredo rests in peace today. The town of Nederland replaced the shack with a donated Tuff Shed. After all the excitement died down, the town could see the humor in the situation and a festival was born.

This year the frozen frolics kick off was Friday night. It began with an opening ceremony that included the Skeleton Dancers followed by Grandpa’s Blue Ball. They held a contest for the Ice Queen and Grandpa look-alike. On Saturday, the wind that Boulder is quite famous for blew down tents and the organizers postponed many of the outdoor events. At noon on Sunday, I drove up Canyon Drive to Nederland.

Come on guys! It looks so easy!

When I arrived at Frozen Dead Guy Days, I had missed the Parade of Hearses, but had plenty of time to jump into the action. When I ran up to the crowds, the men were just finishing up the Frozen Wet T-shirt contest. While the winner pulled it over his head, others struggled to pry the solid sheet of iced fabric apart. One had bled all over his. Another still thrashed the now dirty and holey t-shirt on the ground.  These were grown men, but I thought, “How hard could it be?” so I signed up for the women’s round. I think my frozen t-shirt had been stored behind a couple of steaks. It was as stiff as Grandpa Bredo! I tried whacking it on the ground and peeling it apart with my own frozen fingers. Breathing on it or putting it under my arm still wouldn’t melt the iced-T. One of the ladies must have had one stored with the milk because after about 2 minutes she slipped it on. There was a flesh wound in our group too! Talk about frozen to the bone. My fingertips got so cold they were numb to pain!

While others attended the viewing of the award-winning film, “Grandpa’s Still in the Tuff Shed,” I enjoyed the spectacle of several participants who tried their hand at Icy Turkey Bowling. Lofting a 25 pound frozen bird into the air and knocking down 10 pins was no easy feat, but it sure was fun to watch.

You can see the turkey way up on that green roof and the pins in the distance. He bowled a strike!

I missed the NewlyDead Game, the Frozen Salmon Toss and Snowy Beach Volleyball to watch the Coffin Race which was the weekend’s main attraction. The cordoned off course included several slippery slopes, a dead man’s curve and a required Chinese Fire Drill. The 6 man/woman teams carried one of their teammates in a coffin while racing through the snowy course. The curve proved to be too much for some and several coffins blew out and lost their corpse. I would love to put together a team next year, but only if I get to be the corpse!

The race attracted huge crowds

The Nederland Boy Scouts with one in the casket giving the thumbs up!

The Frozen Assets team.

Did you know that residents of Boulder have more advanced college degrees than anywhere else in the U.S.? Hard to believe...

The Frozen Lederhosen

Route 66 takes the lead!

Oopsy daisy...

Dead guy rising

We are super heroes and are super proud of our super underpants!

The returning champs. These guys want it!

The Chinese Fire Drill

From there I moved on to the Brain Freeze Tent. A jazz band played while I signed up for the Brain Freeze competition. It sounded like fun and I had skipped lunch. The first one to eat 5 Mr. Freezes would win. I think there must have been a technique that I wasn’t aware of. While eating my third icy treat, my frontal lobe throbbed in pain and two of the young women finished their fifth!

If I was that ugly, I would hide too!

The perfect souvenir!

Grandpa Bredo looks pretty cool!

OUCH!

Thank you sir. May I have another?

My teeth chattered as I hustled back to my car. A bitter and blustery wind seemed to roll down Eldora Ski Resort which now seemed to loom above the quaint town. It felt as if Grandpa Bredo’s cold fingers ran up my spine. I shook as I drove back down Canyon Drive to Boulder while the outdoor temperature on my car’s gauge jumped up to 60 degrees. Chilled to the bone, I kept the thermostat on Max Hot all the way home. I had officially become a Frozen Dead Guy!

One last look...

First photo from Google images, second from Wikipedia, the rest by Susie Lindau

How do you like to spend your free time?

Do you have an unusual festival in your area?

Love Grown Foods®, a leading natural food company, announced today it has appointed three new advisors as it continues to make a splash in the natural products industry. Love Grown Foods, which two young entrepreneurs founded in 2008, is now available in more than 2,100 stores throughout the United States and Canada and will reach 3,000 outlets by this summer.

Just in time to spread the LOVE at Booth #2296 at Natural Products Expo West, Love Grown Foods is thrilled to announce that esteemed executives Mo Siegel and Tom Spier have joined their recently assembled Board of Advisors along with industry veteran Joan Boykin, who has been named a strategic advisor.

Mo Siegel founded, chaired and presided over Celestial Seasonings, Inc., the largest manufacturer and marketer of specialty teas in North America, from 1970 – 1986. After Celestial Seasonings, Mr. Siegel planned and developed Earth Wise, marketer of cleaning products, which was later sold to Block Drug Company. In 1991, Mr. Siegel returned to serve as chairman and CEO of Celestial Seasonings until May 2000, when Celestial Seasonings merged with The Hain Food Group. Mr. Siegel served as vice chairman until retiring in 2002.

Tom Spier is chief executive officer of EVOL Foods and founder of Spier Consumer Capital. Mr. Spier started his career working in finance, but after four years on Wall Street, he joined Bear Naked as COO. During that time, Bear Naked grew to become the largest natural granola company in the country. Mr. Spier successfully grew the company and positioned the organization for its sale to Kellogg’s. In his role as CEO of EVOL Foods, Mr. Spier has overseen the company’s maturation from a small regional brand with products in one category to a multi-category platform brand with broad national distribution. Today, EVOL Foods produces over 800,000 units per month and employs 65 people.

Joan Boykin, Love Grown Foods’ strategic advisor, is the executive director of The Organic Center. She has spent her career in the natural and organic products industry with Celestial Seasonings, where she spent more than 13 years as design/creative manager and director of marketing, new products, PR and retail; director of marketing and PR at Alfalfa’s Markets and Wild Oats Markets; and creative director and VP of new business at New Hope Natural Media. Boykin is a board member and advisor of Naturally Boulder, the Organic Voices/Just Label It Campaign, and the Deming Center for Entrepreneurship’s Organic Business Initiative.

“The teamwork and spirit at Love Grown Foods reminds me of the early days at Celestial Seasonings,” said Siegel. “Their youthful enthusiasm for producing and distributing healthy food is the kind of energy that builds great brands.”

“It is an honor to work with such influential people in our industry.  They each offer varied expertise and a deep well of knowledge to our company,” added Maddy D’Amato, co-founder and chief love officer. “Their counsel in properly approaching opportunities and challenges will result in continued strategic growth and sustained success for Love Grown Foods.”

During Natural Foods Expo West, which runs March 9-11, 2012, Love Grown Foods and its team of LOVE Ambassadors will be spreading the LOVE in Anaheim. Attendees and press are invited to stop by their booth to learn more about the company and taste their delicious, all-natural, Certified Gluten-Free products that are flying off retailers’ shelves.

Love Grown Foods is known for its delectable line of Oat Clusters & LOVE

healthy granola, which is chock-full of wholesome and pronounceable ingredients. Oat Clusters & LOVE are available in the following flavors: Simply Oats, Apple Walnut Delight, Raisin Almond Crunch, Sweet Cranberry Pecan and Cocoa Goodness. For ingredients, recipes and more, visit http://www.lovegrownfoods.com/oatclusters.

Special Transit is no longer. Executive Director, Lenna Kottke, officially announced the 33-year-old organization’s new brand name is Vía. “We provide our customers with mobility options that enable them to live a more self-sufficient and independent life, and our new name, Vía, captures that breadth of services we offer,” she said.

Building on a multi-year planning effort that resulted in the organization’s completion of a successful $11.7 million capital campaign and construction project which culminated in the opening of a new, sustainable 36,000-square-foot headquarters in January of 2011, the organization soon realized the physical space was not the only thing it had outgrown.

“That process helped us focus on our need to look at our growth in many areas, including the fact that we had also outgrown our name,” Kottke noted. “As a nonprofit, we did not take this process lightly. We know our stakeholders are highly invested in our organization and that played a large role in our decision. Our due diligence was extensive and thorough.”

The organization partnered with Boulder branding agency Vermilion to sift through the research, and to help weigh the risks of a name change versus the benefits of a new brand. "Changing the name of an organization is always a serious decision," said Bob Morehouse, Vermilion's CEO. "On balance, while the name Special Transit was well known, it didn't capture the full extent of the organization's strengths. The name ' Vía ' offers a fresh start, an opportunity to revitalize public awareness of this important community organization."

“This is an exciting time for Vía,” said Gretchen Fapore, Via’s Board President and Senior Vice President at Wells Fargo Bank. “The opportunity exists to introduce Vía and its range of services to more people in Colorado. As our population continues to age, more people will need to be aware of the services Vía provides.”

"As Vía looks to its future, the goals are clear.”  Kottke said. “As an organization, we hope to continue to grow while gaining more financial stability in order to provide services well into the future. We look to improvements in technology to help guide efficiency while remaining focused on maximizing the human touch for those we serve.”

In addition to the new name and logo, the rollout includes new graphics for the organization’s vehicles, new uniforms for drivers, and a completely redesigned website, www.viacolorado.org. Vía has also added five new MV-1 vehicles to its fleet. The MV-1 is the first-ever mobility vehicle engineered from the ground up for wheelchair accessibility. It is the only vehicle in its class with an available OEM engineered and assembled compressed natural gas (CNG) fueling system. This allows the same durability, reliability and quality that is in gasoline-powered vehicles.

Why Vía?

Vía is the Latin word for road or path. It is short, yet both fresh and memorable. The new name Vía, represents the wider breadth of mobility services offered to the community. The organization’s goal is to be the one-call resource for people living with mobility limitations and for the greater community committed to increasing access and inclusion for this population.

About Vía

Vía, formerly Special Transit, is a nonprofit that exists to provide its customers with mobility options that enable them to live a more self-sufficient and independent life.  Vía provides service in 19 communities in five counties in Colorado.

Vía is a full-spectrum “mobility manager” providing accessible on-demand transportation, individual and group travel training, and mobility options information and referral for older adults, people with disabilities, low-income individuals and others living with mobility limitations.  Vía also serves the community through volunteer driver training programs, disability awareness education and advocacy, human service collaborations and partnerships, community transit offerings and contracting capabilities.