Back Home Again, In Colorado

Well, it's good to be home! Far from family and friends, close to the great outdoors. Not necessarily a good compromise, but somehow I make it work in my head. So, I let my plane ticket go and drove home with Stephanie. We left Monday morning around 8 am with the intention to stop in KCMO and stay with some of her old friends (She went to the Kansas City Art Institute before transferring to RMCAD). With an ETA of about 2 hours, we were both feeling energetic and more than wanting to be home, so we decided to go for the gusto. Sure, I had made the non-stop trip from Indiana to Colorado many times before, but I had also planned on it when I left. I had slept poorly the night before, but that didn't keep me down. We did it. Just over 18 hours. Almost 1300 miles. She got a new Passat Wagon and that thing drives like a dream. I got into my 8 year old SUV and it drives like a friggin tank, but one with tires instead of tracks, and the tires feel like they are almost flat. You get the point. A car review? Exterior: Cool, plenty of room for bikes on top. Interior: Spacious. Plenty of room for spare wheels, trainer, equipment bags, a couple dogs, Norwiegan Massuese, etc... Seats: Good. Cold weather and heated seats is a sensation I had yet to enjoy. ::Boy my hands are freezing cause it is 12 degrees outside and I just got done pumping gas. But, man, my butt is toastie:: Lumbar is also good for miles and miles in the captains throne. Tiptronic: I am a five speed fan, but the tiptronic with the manuals is pretty cool. It works better than I remember it working in stuff I had driven before. Anyways, its nice and it made the trip even better. I have babbled enough. Stay tuned for a review of the 2005 Three Rivers Velosport Clubs "Chilly Challenge". I wonder when all the snow is going to melt...