FORT COLLINS, CO

We were really excited to see Fort Collins after hearing so many nice things about the town and it’s beer. We were fortunate to come across another one of Steven’s BMW buddies who invited us to park at his place, just around the corner from New Belgium Brewing and a short bike ride from downtown. Colby and Sarah were awesome hosts, they and their adorable pets made us really feel at home. Soon after we arrived we got out our bikes and hit the town in search of dinner. Fort Collins is so amazingly bike friendly, it’s ridiculous. There is bike parking everywhere, including several fancy New Belgium Fat Tire parking racks. And the residents of Fort Collins need every single parking space, because they fill up fast.

IMG_1349

Our dinner spot was not open yet, so we headed down the street (and only just beat the rain) to an impressive and hip establishment called The Mayor for a beer. They have 100 rotating beers on tap, which is a little overwhelming but awesome! Lots of local stuff as well as imports to choose from. We continued to have our minds blown when we had an incredible dinner at 415. Figs and goat cheese on my pizza, yes please. I would eat their food all the time if we lived there. Dinner was followed by bar hopping and exploring the nightlife in Old Town. We stopped in at Equinox Brewing and picked up some more of Colby and Sarah’s friends. One place that stood out was Crank n Stein, the most hipster brewery ever that Portland would whole heartedly embrace. Not only do they brew beer, they also serve as a bike shop and coffee roaster. Triple threat.

IMG_1213 IMG_1218 IMG_1221 IMG_1337 IMG_1340 IMG_1344

The next morning, breakfast called loudly. Colby said if we came to Colorado and didn’t eat at Snooze, then our visit didn’t count. So off we went for pancakes and eggs at an adorable brunch spot in Old Town. When we had our fill, we decided it was time for a little auto tour of the area. Colby and Sarah hopped in his M Coupe, and he generously offered Steven his newly acquired E30 to drive behind. It was so fun to ride in an E30 again after so long, and made both of us miss our old cars. Colby’s car is in such perfect shape, and it had no problem keeping up with the little coupe. We drove out to the Horsetooth Reservoir to get a nice view and enjoy the twisty roads up there.

IMG_1227 IMG_1228 IMG_1243 IMG_1251

After our outing, our hosts had their own engagements to tend to, so Steven and I spent the rest of the afternoon by ourselves. We biked over to New Belgium, where we’d heard they have beers that don’t make it out past Fort Collins. They have a nice tasting room, and out in the parking lot we found the coolest airstream they have converted into a seating area! Next stop was O’dells Brewery, which has an amazing outdoor seating area, complete with stage and live music. It was such a nice sunny day to be out. Fun fact: we later learned that some guys who were setting up a produce stand in the patio area (isn’t that so Colorado?) are actually fellow skoolie enthusiasts and friends of ours on Instagram. Small world. We next headed into Old Town, this time to wander the shops and see the artwork of the city. There is a really cool music project happening where someone has taken old upright pianos, turned them into pieces of art, and left them all over town for anyone who feels like playing. Another fun thing is all the electrical boxes in Fort Collins are painted, even the ones farther out that aren’t in downtown. It’s a colorful place, and we are so glad we had the opportunity to stay close in with some nice people and experience it.

IMG_1263 IMG_1268 IMG_1267 IMG_1275 IMG_1278 IMG_1285 IMG_1288 IMG_1295 IMG_1300 IMG_1305 IMG_1320 IMG_1323 IMG_1317 IMG_1355 IMG_1356 IMG_1357 IMG_1360 IMG_1361

GFEST 2014 – LIME ROCK PARK, CT

After our stay in Washington, we made our way up into Pennsylvania to visit an old friend of ours in Wilkes-Barre. We met Stephen a couple years ago while he was living in Portland for work, and have stayed in contact ever since. We had a lot of fun working on our old BMW’s together and enjoying the city, so when we decided to do an east coast trip I wanted to include him in the plans.

Wilkes-Barre is a pretty little town nestled in a valley, surrounded by green hills. We arrived in the late afternoon and Stephen showed us to a great parking place in an alley behind his house, which we managed to squeeze the bus into. The cooler  weather was a welcome relief from the swamps of DC, it dropped into the high 40’s at night so our bus cooled down nicely. We spent the evening catching up and sharing stories about the good old days. The next morning we said goodbye as Stephen headed into work, while Lindsey and I walked through town to find a cafe with wireless.  We really enjoyed the architecture and design of the old homes and buildings, it is a neat old town.

unnamed

Parked in Stephen’s alley

After enjoying ourselves in town for the morning and catching up on blog posts, we saddled up and headed toward Connecticut. Our next destination was Guten Fest, an annual east coast gathering of classic BMW’s and other european cars. This is an event I have been looking forward to for a long time, and the reason our schedule has been so busy, trying to get up here in time for the show. We were part of a small group of local enthusiasts who arrived the night before and camped out at the race track. It was an excellent time and our bus was a big hit, everyone got a tour and had nice things to say. It was so much fun for me especially, I finally got to meet in person a lot of other vintage BMW enthusiasts that I have known and talked with on forums and Facebook for quite a while. Everyone we met was so friendly and open, it really made for an enjoyable time. The next day the big group of cars showed up, it was a busy day of going back and forth between the show area and the autocross track, there is always so much to see at an event like this. Being around nice people all day really renewed my faith in humanity.

 

IMG_7333

Was really digging this VW Westfalia

IMG_7216

Camped out with a bunch of great cars

IMG_7341

Bagged E3 Bavaria

IMG_7244

Clean E30 coupe with a mental S62 V8 engine swap

IMG_7363

Guten E30 Touring

IMG_7225

Cooking breakfast for a group of new friends

IMG_7288 IMG_7183