I was fortunate to be asked by event directors Mike Kishimoto and Abbey Ehlers to be the announcer for the Strawberry Shortcut races, which were held on Sunday, June 19. Though I wouldn’t profess to be a natural with a microphone in my hand, I was happy to help out the two people who do such a great job of organizing the races each year.

I did take a break from my duties for a little over a half an hour so I could toe the line and run the Willey Coyote 5K, which is named in honor of my longtime running buddy Bob Willey.

Kishimoto asked me to tell some Willey stories to the gathered crowd at the starting line leading up to the race, but there are so many, I didn’t really know where to begin. I had many running and racing adventures with Willey, with each one taking on a life of its own. They were all great memories.

I’m not quite sure I’ll be asked back as announcer for next year’s Shortcut, though. With so many people that I knew walking by my little announcing nook under the bridge, I sometimes would get so deep into conversation with friends I hadn’t seen in ages, I missed runners and walkers coming to the finish line. Every time I tried to refocus my attention back to the street where a constant flow of finishers could be seen for as far as two city blocks, someone would happen by that I had to greet and see what the heck they had been up to.

Two of the more interesting characters who happened by my station were retired doctors Greg Feinsinger and Paul Salmen. Both of these fine men were my doctor at one point in time, and I always like to run some of my current ailments and medical concerns by them every chance I get.

Following some general doctor and former patient talk, I asked them what they thought of the phrase “The Golden Years” being used to describe us folks who are getting along in years. They both smiled and chuckled a bit, but neither really ventured an opinion on that particular subject, so I jumped right in and told them that I thought the person who coined the phrase must have been a bit misguided. Having experienced quite a bit of medical turbulence this spring, I didn’t feel there was much “golden” about the entire affair.

With the subject still weighing heavy on my mind and needing an answer to my philosophical question, I spotted the managing editor of this paper, John Stroud, heading in my direction. Stroud had run the 10K, which was the first race of the morning, and he was strolling around taking photos and putting together a story on all the day’s undertakings.

When I asked him the question of the day, he kind of rubbed his chin a little and said he thought the “adjustment years” would be a better term for the aging mind and body than anything that even resembled gold. I told him I thought “constant adjustment” might work well, also. Stroud seemed to agree.

This wouldn’t work, though, if the name of the old sitcom “The Golden Girls” had to be changed to “The Adjustment Girls.” People may think it was all about a group of crusty old lady chiropractors who lived in the same house together. Who would want to watch that?

Now that I have the answer to my old age question, the only solution is to keep going. Keep doing what you love, even if it hurts a bit more during and especially with that first step out of bed the next morning. I got very sore a few weeks back after playing a bit too much golf on a Saturday afternoon, and I am always creaky the next day after my Tuesday night softball game.

Keep racing the sunset, everyone. It’s not really golden anyway. The trick is to keep adjusting to whatever obstacle gets in your way. As this brave girl I know named Kara Brouhard likes to say, “What is within you is much stronger than what is in your way.”

I believe it.

Glenwood Springs native Mike Vidakovich is a freelance sports writer, teacher and youth sports coach. His column appears on occasion in the Post Independent and at PostIndependent.com.

I have read every book that Mitch Albom has written, most of them more than once.

Albom is a sports columnist who writes for the Detroit Free Press. He is also one of the panel members on an ESPN talk show called The Sports Reporters. His book “Tuesdays with Morrie,” which chronicles the post-college relationship between Albom and his favorite professor, Morrie Schwartz, is the bestselling memoir of all time.

Albom’s first book, titled “The Fab Five,” had nothing to do with a band from Liverpool, England, but everything to do with the University of Michigan’s 1991 basketball recruiting class, still considered to be one of the best in college basketball history.

Living and working in the state of Michigan, Albom had a vested interest in Jalen Rose, Chris Webber, Juwan Howard, Jimmy King and Ray Jackson, the five young freshmen who were destined to take the basketball world by storm and win several national titles for the Wolverines. They were immediately anointed “The Fab Five.”

This heralded group did make it to the national championship game in 1992 and 1993, but a lopsided loss to Duke and a narrow defeat at the hands of the North Carolina Tar Heels kept the championship trophy from ever landing in Ann Arbor. The ’92 game was noteworthy in that it was the first and last time a starting lineup consisting of five freshmen played in a national championship game.

Not only did this talented group fail to win a national title in their two years together at Michigan, they never claimed a Big Ten conference championship, either.

Unfortunately, during their years at Michigan, the Fab Five were as well known for trash talking and brash behavior toward opponents as they were for accomplishments on the court. Albom goes into depth in his book, bringing to light the family backgrounds in the tough neighborhoods of their youth that grew into the diverse personalities that were on nightly display in the basketball arena.

Thank goodness Albom didn’t hang up the pen and pencil following his first foray into the literary field. Several more books have followed, and many have been distinctly tilted toward the meaning-of-life mode.

Being a deeply religious man, several of Albom’s books have focused on the possibility of heaven and the mystery of faith. In his latest book, “The Stranger in the Lifeboat,” he points out that worry is something that we all bring upon ourselves to fill a void, with the void being a lack of faith. Not just faith in the afterlife but in one’s ability to perform well the everyday tasks related to jobs, family, relationships and aspirations.

In the book, a perfect read during this holiday season, a small group of shipwreck survivors are drifting aimlessly on a life raft in the ocean when they encounter a mysterious man floating in the water, all alone, barely able to keep his head above the crushing waves. When the stranger has been safely pulled into the already crowded raft, one of those who had been adrift at sea for several days now says, “Thank the Lord we found you.”

The man, in a quiet voice, looks at them all and states, “I am the Lord. You have been calling for me to help.”

As you may expect, this bold statement is met with a combination of amusement and skepticism by the group, which has been clinging to life with little in the way of remaining food or fresh water. When the stranger is asked to save them all if he is who he claims to be, he replies that nothing can be done until they all believe in him without reservation.

As is the case in Albom’s book “The First Phone Call from Heaven,” his latest writing focuses on what can be accomplished when we, first and foremost, believe in ourselves rather than spending our days casting doubt on others.

Maybe that’s all the Fab Five needed to get them over the top to a title was a little more faith, but I remember watching that group and rooting against them at every turn. If their basketball game would have been as big as their talk, the trophy case at Michigan would be filled with championship trophies.

Have a good Christmas, and have some faith. I will try to also.

Glenwood Springs native Mike Vidakovich is a freelance sports writer, teacher and youth sports coach. His column appears on occasion in the Post Independent and at PostIndependent.com.

Colder temps are around the bend, but don’t let brisk mornings deter you from getting out on the river. There are a few tips to keeping warm and staying out longer on the water. Most anglers despise fishing with gloves, but some days they are a requirement. We suggest always bringing two pairs; you never know when you might slip and put your hand into the numbing water.

Along with gloves, a small towel is also very beneficial. After landing a fish always take your gloves off- for the safety of the fish, but this also steers you away from getting your gloves wet. The towel comes into play after releasing the fish for drying off your hands before putting your gloves back on. A wet glove can be a frozen glove in the matter of minutes.

If you’re one to fish all year long, do yourself a favor and buy a box of hand and toe warmers — you can never can have too many. Nothing beats getting those fingers and toes back to life than a steamy hand warmer. Putting a few in your boots, waders, and jacket can make a world of difference on the coldest of days. Also try not to stand still for too long, keep wiggling your toes and moving around often to keep the blood flow going, and even getting out of the river every once in a while will do you some good.

When that dreadful day comes when your line guides on your rod begin to freeze, take your time “popping” out the ice, when you rush it can end up in a broken rod. Late fall and early winter fishing can be some of the best days you’ll always remember, big fish seem to show up in runs you have fished all summer when the temps begin to drop. Get out, stay warm, and create some memories!

This report is provided every week by Taylor Creek Fly Shops in Aspen and Basalt. Taylor Creek can be reached at 970-927-4374 or TaylorCreek.com.

In a fraction of a second I went from a full sprint to skidding across the ground — pea-sized gravel gashing my knees and elbows, turning them into strawberry crisp.

It was just a few seconds into the high school cross-country race in Sterling, and I’d sprinted near the front of the pack of over 100 runners before being tripped from behind.

Lying on the ground, my immediate worry was not about the race, my team or my skinned knees and elbows; I worried about the hundred or so runners behind me with half-inch spikes trying to avoid stepping on me.

Luckily, they all avoided me, but when I finally stood up, I was in last place with the pack sprinting away from me. I chased after them, because it was all I could do, and ended up finishing well in the race, albeit with blood running down my shins and forearms.

I’ve been tripped, fallen down and left skin and blood on the ground many times since that day, both literally and figuratively, but I’ve always stood up and gotten back in the race. It was one of many life lessons I learned from running cross-country.

Most nonrunners think distance runners train exclusively by running long distances, but as every competitive runner knows, the best way to improve is with a series of sprints called intervals.

In high school we had a drill that we did on the track where the coach would divide our team into two groups. The first group sprinted around the track one time, and when they approached the finish, the second group started. When that group approached the finish, the first group went again, and so on, until coach thought we’d had enough.

Life is like that, too — a series of intense efforts broken up by recovery breaks.

From kindergarten through college, we strengthen our minds with a series of short, sustained efforts divided by summer recovery breaks.

Every working day feels like a sustained effort followed by down time with family, or some kind of recreation with friends.

Many large life events, like moving, getting married and even having a child, require bursts of intense effort to achieve, and the relief of completing the task always feels like a well-deserved break.

Cross-country courses, at least in my time, were generally pieced together on school grounds, in parks or on golf courses. We ran on grass, dirt, gravel, down sidewalks and even across parking lots. Courses were hilly or flat, and autumn weather in Colorado, as everyone knows, can be unpredictable.

Every course, every race, was different, so they required different approaches, different mindsets, different expectations.

What worked on a windy, Fort Morgan golf course wasn’t the same as what worked on a rainy day in a Fort Collins park.

Life is a series of chapters — school, marriage, new jobs, new homes — and like cross-country courses, each one has its own set of challenges that require different approaches.

Another problem with cross-country courses is they sometimes have rough transitions from one part of the course to another, including rough ground, long weeds and even the aforementioned parking lot.

The trick is to keep momentum through the rough transitions.

Life if full of transitions: from child to adult, single to married, becoming a parent, youth to old age. Transitions are hard, and some people get stuck in the weeds, but maintaining momentum through transitions requires less effort than slowing down or stopping.

Like any endurance sport — cycling, swimming, skinning — you’re going to suffer if you want to compete as a distance runner. Everyone’s tolerance for pain is different, but the ability to push through it is one factor in separating the good runners from the great ones.

Everyone experiences times of suffering in life, whether with a health issue, a loss of employment or grieving the loss of a loved one. Pushing through those times makes us stronger, wiser and better able to deal with the next challenge.

Not all runners on a cross-country team are fast, but even slower runners perform better when paced by faster runners. On my high school team, we always made a point of pairing slower runners with faster ones in our training. Because of the way cross-country meets are scored, it helps to have everyone perform their best.

Not everyone is equally gifted at everything in life, but using the gifts we have to help, encourage and lift up those who are struggling makes the entire team better.

Make no mistake, we are all on the same team, and running in the same race, no matter how we look, act or sound to each other.

My high school’s motto was “All for one, and one for all.” I learned a lot of life lessons running high school cross-country, but that may have been the most important one of all.

Jeff Bear is a copy editor and newspaper page designer for Colorado Mountain News Media, and a longtime journalist in Colorado.

I bumped into Jim Nadon a few weeks back, and even though we hadn’t seen each other in several years, he skipped completely the usual pleasantries that almost always go along with spotting a familiar face, and jokingly let me know that he continued to be in a state of disbelief that I had not written a column yet about the epic 1971 Glenwood Demon basketball season, and the four unforgettable games that year with the Steamboat Sailors.

Jim, who has been a successful businessman in Glenwood Springs for many years, was a senior on the ’71 installment of that Demon team that defeated the Sailors three out of the four times that they met. But with both teams advancing to the state tournament in Denver in the spring, the Demons were relegated to the consolation bracket after an opening night loss to Highland Ault, while Steamboat would string together three consecutive wins to capture the class AA state championship.

Glenwood left the big city that weekend with a championship also, but it was a fifth place finish as winners of the consolation bracket after wins over Center and Denver Christian following that first-round defeat. Even some 50 years later, Jim still shakes his head at the thought of Steamboat taking away the gold basketball trophy that he thought rightfully belonged to the Demons.

Jim pointed out to me that the Sailors’ only losses that entire season came at the hands of Glenwood.

Glenwood had a talented group in 1971 with the likes of Kjell Mitchell, Kirk Lyons, Steve Hageman, John Courier, Jon Swartzendruber, Paul Samuelson, David Deane and Nadon leading the way. But Steamboat was no slouch, either. The Sailors had a solid backcourt trio, and a couple of giants up front in 6-foot-7 Chris Kearns and 6-foot-5 David Combs.

I was only in fourth grade that year, but with my brother Dick Vidakovich being a key reserve for the Demons, my parents towed me along to most every game and I was at each of the four Demon/Sailor collisions.

Three of those games were played in Glenwood, including a Monday night playoff to determine the Northwestern League champion, after both teams had beaten each other on their home court. The Demons won, and went on to win the district tournament the following weekend.

One telling point of those great games that I failed to point out to Jim was the fact that the three games played on the Demons’ home court were all down-to-the-wire affairs, while the Sailors, by a convincing count of 71-57, throttled Glenwood in Steamboat Springs. If they had played all four games on a neutral court that year, who knows what may have happened.

The Sailors got the final laugh, but one thing is for sure, those two teams in ’71 were two of the best I have ever seen around these parts, and the four games between the two rest in Demon lore as memorable to those who have been in Glenwood long enough to remember. They were both state championship caliber teams.

Thursday nights at the Glenwood Bowl

Jim Roy and his wife Dorlene will be leaving Glenwood in the coming months to retire in Florida. Jim’s parents, Walt and Bonnie Roy, were the owners of the old Glenwood Bowl located just south of town for many years.

I spent much of my childhood at the bowling alley watching my mom and dad on various leagues, especially my father’s Thursday night team of Don Miller, Corky Lyons, Marvin Meyers and Bob Jones.

Jim helped his parents run the bowling alley until its closure in the 1990s. An avid golfer, Jim has also been an integral part of the pro shop team at the Glenwood Golf Course for as long as I can remember. He will be missed by many.

Best of luck to you and Dorlene in your retirement, Jim. Thanks for the memories.

There will be a going away party for Jim and Dorlene this coming Saturday, Oct. 23, at the Glenwood Golf Course from 2-6 p.m.

Glenwood Springs native Mike Vidakovich is a freelance sports writer, teacher and youth sports coach. His column appears on occasion in the Post Independent and at PostIndependent.com.

Fishing guides up and down the valley are getting ready. Just recently the Roaring Fork and Colorado Rivers are getting into floatable shape, and the summer fishing season is now underway. Although it is still high in volume, it is significantly clearing and dropping. We may have a few twitchy days in the next week when it gets hot, but everyone is back in business. With the low water year we are having, everything is a bit ahead of schedule these days.

Before you know it, it will also be time to break out the head lamp, dry shake and big H and L Variants to get after twilight green drakes and caddis on the freestones.So much is changing and improving on our rivers, it is hard to sleep at night. As most of you know, the Roaring Fork drake hatch gets going just as the sun is setting as it rolls its way up the Roaring Fork through the month of June and July. This can be “Zen” fishing at its finest, because the trout just keep on rising, even in the dark.

The Crystal River is still running high, but we will see it drop and clear over the coming weeks as well. If you head up this river in elevation, there should be better fishing conditions above Avalanche Creek. Caddis are the name of the game currently on the Fork and Colorado, but green drakes, pale morning duns, stoneflies and yellow sallies (smaller stoneflies) are on the horizon.

The crown jewel of the Roaring Fork Valley, the Fryingpan, has a comfortable summer flow of 140 cubic feet per second. Blue winged olives, caddis and midges are the hatch right now, and pale morning duns will be on the scene in no time. Green drake nymphs are prolific in this tailwater, and the San Juan Worm seems to be the favorite morsel of these (usually finicky) trout this week. The time for screwing around is over, folks. Get those leaky waders fixed and give your favorite guide a call. It’s on.

This report is provided every week by Taylor Creek Fly Shops in Aspen and Basalt. Taylor Creek can be reached at 970-927-4374 or TaylorCreek.com.