It’s been a pretty stressful week, this business of ours can be rolling along without any hitches most days, and then in one day, BAM! BAM! Crap just comes out of nowhere.  We’ve run through all the emotions, from being depressed, to being angry, to being resigned, to being accepting.  Nobody dies if things don’t come together as planned, we just fix it and come up with a new plan.  Change is inevitable.  The biggest part about such an emotional week though is that it makes me tired and off my game.  I don’t want to do the things I’m supposed to do, I want to take my mind off everything and have some fun.  So that’s what we did today.

First stop, the United States Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, wow, or should I say, WOW!  It sits just east of the old North End on a campus that was once an Air Force base.  242 Acres of top notch facilities training our American athletes.  Over 15,000 dorm rooms, a gym, or more accurately several, the shooting facilities, the wrestling, the gymnastics, the swimming, it all goes on here.  I have always been a fan of the Olympics, in 1996 we went to Atlanta for the summer games; in 2002 we went to Salt Lake City to take part in the winter games atmosphere.  It is incredible what happens when you get that many people together in the spirit of competition.  Our guide was great, he answered all of our questions, and asked us trivia.  I volunteered a lot of answers, but was wrong in every single one.  When in C Springs next, make the stop, they offer tours daily and it’s free.  The Olympics are not government funded in the US, it takes supporters like us who believe in the power of amateur sports to provide for our athletes.

Next stop, the Pro Rodeo Hall of Fame, just off from Exit 148, pretty far north of town.  I’m not sure what I was expecting, we had been to the National Cowboy Museum in Oklahoma City earlier in the year, it was done so well, I didn’t think this one could beat it.  And while it isn’t better, it is pretty profound.

The Pro Rodeo Hall of Fame honors every part of the Rodeo circuit.  It’s not just about the cowboys, although they feature a prominent role.  It’s also about the clowns, the announcers, the queens, the livestock, the rodeos themselves.  First thing in the door I saw a display for the Dodge National Circuit Finals held in my own Pocatello, Idaho.  We saw displays and memorabilia about hundreds of famous cowboys, including Chris LeDoux.  The place is done well, with lots of room and interesting displays.  It was a great way to take my mind off our troubles, tomorrow promises to be a brighter day!