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In the Secret Basement...

Tour Translations

French: maillot à pois rouges

English: a white jersey with red dots

The Polka Dot Jersey is worn by the leader of the King of the Mountains classification in the Tour de France. It is a secondary classification in the Tour de France, in which cyclists receive points for reaching a mountain top first. The leader of the classification is named the "King of the Mountains", and since 1975 wears the Polka Dot Jersey. At the top of each climb in the Tour, there are points for the riders who are first over the top. The climbs are divided into categories from most difficult (Hors catégorie) to least difficult (Category 4) - measured as a function of their steepness and length - with more points and places awarded with increasing difficulty.

Saxifraga 'Teckles'

Fleur à pois rouges

Photos and Plants courtesy of Lisa Bourey

Tour Dictionary

Domestique, n.

[doh-mes-teek]

A road bicycle racer who works for the benefit of his team and leader often at the expense of his/her own individual performance. The workhorses of the teams, these cyclists have the job of doing anything possible to help their team leader perform well. This can even mean sacrificing your own bike or wheels if your team leader has a crash or puncture.

The French "domestique" translates as "servant". The word was coined in 1911, although such riders had existed before then.

Florida Road Grand Opening

Rollin’ rollin’ rollin’

Florida Road grand opening marks end of travel travails

By Jordyn Dahl - Durango Herald Staff Writer

Dylan Bettin, 6, along with Durango Mayor Christina Rinderle leads cyclists down Florida Road during the road’s grand reopening ceremony. The $17 million rebuild was the city’s the largest and most expensive publicly funded project.

Photo by JERRY McBRIDE/Durango Herald

In true Durango fashion, Mayor Christina Rinderle led community members on a bicycle ride Monday morning along a reconstructed Florida Road for its grand reopening. About 30 people showed up for the ride that started at 10:45 a.m. in Mason Park and ended at Chapman Hill, where a red ribbon and free barbecue from JBo’s awaited attendees.

More community members showed up to witness the ribbon cutting, which – to Rinderle’s dismay – caused a short detour on the road for the ceremony. Rinderle quickly invited city councilors, former Durango Mayor Michael Rendon and all the children in attendance to cut the ribbon with her so the road could be reopened to traffic. “I’m so proud of this road and so thankful that it’s done,” she said.

Florida Road features 5-foot bike lanes and a sidewalk on either side of the road for pedestrians.

Read more...

City Manager, Ron LeBlanc (left), looks on while a local dignitary waxes on.

Cereus-ly!

Echinocereus is a genus of ribbed, usually small to medium-sized cylindrical cacti, comprising about 70 species from the southern United States and Mexico in very sunny rocky places. Usually the flowers are large and the fruit edible. Extremely hardy, these cacti all thrive in our Durango garden. Some more than thrive, they show-off!

Fendler's Hedgehog Cactus

Echinocereus fendleri

Bailey's Lace Cactus

Echinocereus reichenbachii v. baileyi

White Lace Cactus

Echinocereus reichenbachii v. albispinus

Green Hedgehog Cactus

Echinocereus viridiflorus

Photos and Plants courtesy of Lisa Bourey

La Plata es Oro

Hats off to Jim Davis (County Engineer and Director of La Plata County Public Works), Doyle Villers (Road Maintenance Superintendent), Shawn Nau (County Manager) and everyone at the La Plata County Public Works Department for making La Plata County roads safer for cyclists. So next time you spot a dangerous road condition, go to the La Plata County website to let them know - and make the road safer for the next person.

La Plata County Rated #1 On New Reporting Website “See Click Fix”

Release Date: Jun 8 2011

Durango, CO - In April of 2011, La Plata County launched the web based “SeeClickFix” reporting website, designed to efficiently connect citizens with their local governmental agencies to report non-emergency road related issues. Out of the 366 governmental agencies utilizing the site, La Plata County is rated as the highest performer in percentage of items fixed and the number of days it has taken to resolve the reported issues. "SeeClickFix" is another communication tool that the public can use to alert the County Public Works Department of public safety or maintenance issues impacting our county roads. Most comments have been relevant and about issues that we can address," said Jim Davis, Director of La Plata County Public Works.

The online site, “SeeClickFix”, allows citizens to report county road maintenance, damage or other minor issues quickly and easily with the help of Google maps. The La Plata County Public Works Department is responsible for the maintenance of 686 miles of county roads, which includes 196 miles of paved and 490 miles of gravel roads. Some of the typical services provided include winter and summer road maintenance, maintenance of drainage facilities and structures, roadside mowing, sign installation and maintenance, and annual striping of roads.

Please note La Plata County is not responsible for roads that are private, within the city limits of Durango, Bayfield or Ignacio or State Highways.

To use the new online reporting tool, residents are encouraged to please visit the La Plata County website. Citizens can also download an app for their Blackberry, iPhone, or Android phone to participate in the program.

Typical comments focus on the following items:
• Signs
• Vegetation Blocking View
• Road Damage
• Drainage
• Pot Holes
• Traffic Flow
• Roadside Hazard
• Debris on Road
• Speed Limits

For more information, please contact the Public Works Department at (970) 382-6363

Happy Days Are Here Again!

Fremont's Clematis or Fremont's Leather Flower

Clematis fremontii

After a record-setting frigid winter, followed by a cold, dry and windy Spring, warm weather has come to Durango at long last and our plant world has sprung to life. The general unpleasantness of Durango's Spring 2011, is best described by our local Agriculture Extension Agent Darrin Parmenter:

"I would have to say that this last April (and so far the first week of a snowy May) was one of the most unappealing and forgettable “springs” on recent record. After a lovely – but dry – March got us all excited about the garden and landscape, April literally blew in some crummy weather. The winds were relentless (multiple days with gusts over 40 mph), the precipitation was sporadic, the skies – especially on the weekends – were gray, and to top it all off, the last week of April was quite cold."

One method used by Weather Underground to compare temperatures from year to year is called “growing degree days,” the amount of accumulated heat required for plants to flourish. Growing degree days are calculated by adding the highest and lowest temperatures each day, dividing by two and subtracting 50, a base temperature. The higher the number, the warmer it was. The average growing degree days for Durango in April & May 2009, 2010 and 2011 were 229, 107 and 79, respectively. So, let's hear it for the bonus "growing degree days" we've just recently enjoyed!

Beehive Cactus

Escobaria vivipara

Blue Penstemon

Penstemon cyaneus

&

Banana Yucca

Yucca baccata

Claret Cup

Echinocereus triglochidiatus

&

Sonoran Live Oak

Quercus turbinella

Photos and Plants courtesy of Lisa Bourey

Slow-Burning Camels

Grotts Gets His Gold

Howard Grotts beats Troy Wells and Travis Brown to Claim IHBC Pro MTB Title

Mountain bikers race through Steamworks Brewery in downtown Durango

By Bentley O’Quinn - Special to the Durango Herald

Howard Grotts at the Devo Sweet Elite Team Presentation

DURANGO - Not many mountain bike races go through crowded restaurants and down a ramp into the back alley, but this wasn’t just any mountain bike race.

For the 40th Iron Horse Bicycle Classic in Durango, race organizers decided to bring back the mountain bike race, and they decided to go all out.

On Sunday, both the men’s and women’s pro fields battled through a windswept course around the Fort Lewis College campus before riding back into town and through Steamworks Brewing Co. before crossing the finish line.

Durango native and Durango High School alum Howard Grotts added to his fourth-place finish in the Iron Horse Road Race with a decisive win Sunday.

“I was hurting in (Saturday’s) race, but (Sunday) I felt good the entire time,” Grotts said after only the third professional race of his career.

Troy Wells of Durango started out the day strong, leading the race for two of the three laps. Grotts turned on the burners on the first climb of the final lap.

“Howard (Grotts) is so light, he just road away on the first steep part,” Wells said. “I tried to ease up my second lap, but it wasn’t enough. I didn’t have enough in the tank to catch him.”

Wells and Travis Brown, a Mountain Biking Hall of Famer from Durango, finished second and third, respectively.

“Once I passed Troy (Wells), I didn’t know if they would catch me,” Grotts said. “But I had it in my legs.” Read more ...

Brad Johnson of Flagstaff, AZ

pedals past the crowd in Steamworks Brewery

Ned Wins Again!

Back in the high life again

Overend, 55, wins fifth Iron Horse Classic road race

By Ryan Owens - Durango Herald Staff Writer

Bouré Bicycling Clothing’s ageless cycling wonder and owner, 55-year-old Ned Overend, acknowledges cheers from the crowd as he wins his record fifth Iron Horse Bicycle Classic Durango-to-Silverton road race.

SILVERTON – Not that anyone around these parts is surprised by anything Ned Overend does on a bicycle anymore, but it had been 19 long years since the man known as “Deadly Nedly” took home a road race title at the Iron Horse Bicycle Classic.

But at 55 years old and in the 40th installment of the race, the Durango cycling legend proved one thing to the pro men’s field and any potential doubters.

He’s still got it. And then some.

Overend made his move on Coal Bank Pass, building a sizeable lead and holding off Greg Krause, Drew Miller and Howard Grotts on Molas Pass in 2 hours, 18 minutes, 54 seconds to win his record fifth Iron Horse Classic Road Race title Saturday, maintaining his lead over four-time women’s champion Mara Abbott in the process.

As other riders began to struggle in both major climbs, Overend said he just “felt better and better.”

“(It’s been) too long. ... Howard made the move, and I went with him and hung on as long as I could. ... I felt stronger and stronger on Molas,” Overend said.

It was Overend’s first Iron Horse win since 1992, setting the record for the longest gap between road race victories and breaking a mark held by Michael Carter, who had 17 years between victories.

He’s only the second rider older than 40 to win the race, Carter being the other, and is the only one older than 50 to take the crown. Overend also won in 1983, 1986 and 1987.

The big move of the race came on Coal Bank Pass. Overend and Grotts left the lead peloton as the climb began, with Grotts looking like he might drop Overend halfway up, building a 10-second lead.

But Overend, the ultimate crafty veteran, chased down the former Durango DEVO standout near the summit and put some distance between the 19-year-old Cat 2/3 rider on the descent. He maintained the lead during the climb up Molas Pass, and the rest is history.

Ned descending Coal Bank Hill

“I used some experience to catch him on the descent and go by him,” said Overend, the defending singlespeed national champion. “Those 30 years came in handy for that. ... I was going downhill faster and through those corners faster. I’ve probably done it a couple hundred more times than him.”

Grotts, who easily won his category in 2:20:12, said riding at the front with Overend in his first IHBC race after jumping from the junior category was almost surreal.

“He’s always going to be fast and strong. It’s fun to ride with him. ... I really didn’t know what to think ... It was good coming over the top of (Coal Bank) and hearing that we had a 30-second gap,” the-soon-to-be Fort Lewis College cyclist said. Grotts just finished his collegiate season at Colorado School of Mines.

Overend said he enjoyed seeing the young Durango native make a serious run at the title, adding that Grotts’ time will come.

“Youngest kid and the oldest kid in the pack out there together. Could’ve been a story either way, huh?” he said. Read more...