Reunions are a great thing, wouldn’t you agree? The Locavaux Crew had reunions left and right during our time in Colorado this past weekend. Not a bad place to be reunited with friends, eh? It all began when we arrived to fellow Colgate graduate and beloved friend, Haley Mirr’s, house outside of Denver: “Guys, I’m gonna cry! This is awesome!” she exclaimed while fiddling with the locked door that separated us. Once reunited with Haley, it was only about thirty minutes until the next wave of long-awaited get-togethers with the arrival of Tim Connor, another fellow Colgate graduate and Boulder, Colorado native, and Pat Connolly, the Locavaux Crew’s newest and most anticipated member. Welcome to the Crew, Pat! Pat will be hanging out on the bus and helping us out as we continue to travel the country with Locavaux Project. After much-needed catch-up time, showers, and a delicious dinner at View House (thank you, Mirr family, for treating us!) the Locavaux Crew plus entourage ventured over to Cervantes Other Side to catch West Water Outlaws perform. West Water Outlaws, a local Boulder group of high-energy rock musicians, drew a huge, enthusiastic crowd. Their classic rock and blues hybrid style had the whole audience moving and grooving—these seriously talented musicians knew how to make people have a seriously good time. More reunions ensued as Katie’s cousin Mason, who works at Red Rocks Ampitheatre in Denver, came to give West Water Outlaws a listen and as Chase’s best friend from high school and Colorado University student, Ben (also coincidentally the guitarist in West Water Outlaw’s cousin) joined in on the fun. We closed the evening with an alleyway interview with the four members of West Water Outlaws and headed home to Haley’s house to crash for the night. The next morning we took our time venturing up to Boulder to spend the day with Tim’s family at his house in Gunbarrel. The Locavaux Crew enjoyed a delicious dinner and great conversation with the Connor family while taking in the incredible (and much anticipated) views of the mountains. On Sunday, the boys took advantage of the sun to play a few holes of golf (Chase got a hole in one!) while Hallie and I updated the blog, edited photos, and planned the coming weeks of the roadtrip. Tim was kind enough to lend us his car to venture into Boulder and explore Pearl Street Mall. Unfortunately (and I swear it wasn’t my fault!) we got into a tad-bit of a fender bender in a Boulder parking garage. As if my chances of driving the bus weren’t slim enough, I’m pretty sure there’s absolutely no chance now that Chase will let me touch the wheel of the bus. Womp womp. After some retail therapy to ease the pain of a half-hour wasted exchanging insurance information, Hallie and I met back up with the Locavaux Crew and made our way back in the bus to Boulder. Time for more reunions! Meegan Smith, fellow Colgate graduate and guide for the Locavaux Crew while in Ocean City, Maryland, joined up with the bus. Meegan will be helping out with the Locavaux Project for the next week and a half, so get ready to see a lot more of our favorite sort-of ginger!
After a quick drive up Chautauqua Park to take in some scenic views of Boulder, we made our way back to Pearl Street Mall to interview a local Boulder DJ, Ehren Wright, a.k.a. So Down, and got to know a little bit more about the electronic scene in Boulder. Ehren gave us insight on his experience as a DJ and producer in the area while also enlightening us on his own aspirations to fund a mobile-DJ stand through Kickstarter! It was a crowd for dinner that night as the Locavaux Crew was joined by Haley, Ehren and friends, and also my longtime camp pal, Breda Anderson, at Rio Grande for Mexican food! Quite the lively bunch. We moved the party to the bus and had a relaxing evening chilling in the bus and on the rooftop porch. There was even a massive sleepover on the bus! The next morning, it was then time for the not-so-great part of reunions—the eventual goodbye. And so, with a few more hugs and signatures in the Locavaux guest book, the Crew (now up to family-band size with five members!) set off towards Park City, Utah. Despite leaving a few friends behind, the sight of the mountains ahead of us was all we needed to get excited to get back on the road and see what the West had in store for the Locavaux Project.