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Best Place for Summer Tubing

Yampa River
Steamboat Springs

Okay, maybe it's not technically seaweed, but the chilly algae attached to the rocks in the Yampa can prove an irresistible plaything during a hot summer's float through Steamboat. Several operators line the banks of the Yampa renting tubes for floaters, and during lulls, some have been known to scoop handfuls of the stuff and bomb tubers with the Steamboat slime. Sit back, relax, and enjoy the ride.

Best Winter Tubing

Fraser Tubing Hill

Just as Winter Park strives to offer skiing as it used to be (and maybe ought to be), the neigh-

boring tubing hill in Fraser has an authentic feel. Looking out over the railroad tracks from the top of the hill is inspiring; so is the headlong rush down the hill. During spring break, operators have been known to keep the hill humming for twelve-hour intervals. While there are other winter tubing places, it's hard to match the thrill of this hill.

Best Auto Art

ZaBeast
Forney Transportation Museum

An estimated 5,000 stickers shellac the entire body of a 1975 Pontiac Grandview, the baby of Broomfield Middle School P.E. teacher Al Pallone. After starting with stickers from his son Vinny's sports teams a decade ago, Pallone gradually enveloped his everyday ride in stickers trumpeting everything from Megadeth to the National Hot Rod Association. The road life of Colorado's first art car came to an abrupt end five years ago when the engine blew, but Pallone donated it to the Forney Transportation Museum so visitors could eternally pay their respects to the automotive sensation that is ZaBeast.

Best Auto Art Exhibit

Customized and Converted: The Art of the Automobile

This summer collection of related shows was so worth the drive -- no, cruise -- south to Pueblo. In fact, the very act of driving was the ultimate way to prepare for the riches awaiting your bone-weary bottom and road-fried mind at the end of that ninety-mile trek. There, high-end automotive art by the likes of Robert Williams, Von Dutch and Ed "Big Daddy" Roth canoodled with sleek hotrod forms and candy-colored lowrider art, and vintage gas pumps and gauges sidled up alongside hubcap collections and car-part assemblages in a good-natured free-for-all. It was like a crash-course trip through a late-night showing of American Graffiti, augmented by a demented stopover in the realm of Zap Comix. The classy Sangre de Cristo Center was definitely on a roll.

Best Public Golf Course With Shifting Holes

Fox Hollow

A public course manicured to country-club standards, the intriguing 27-hole layout at Fox Hollow Golf Course in Lakewood offers a variety of challenges, according to when you play. Depending on maintenance and tournament schedules, eighteen-hole players tackle shifting combinations of two of the facility's three courses: the hilly, demanding Canyon 9; the lovely Meadows 9, which puts water hazards into play on every hole; and the European-styled Links 9, perhaps the most ego-friendly of the three. Regulars praise Fox Hollow's amiable atmosphere and easy-on-the-wallet greens fees, which are under $40.

Best Place to Tune Up Your Golf 24/7

D'Lance Golf

It's 'round midnight, and you just can't believe that hook of yours won't go away. You're tired of the club scene but not your clubs. If you're a member at D'Lance Golf, you can work on ways to fix your game at all hours. With five hitting bays, four simulators and other high-tech gear available 24 hours a day, D'Lance is determined to help you get a grip on your game. (Non-members are welcome until 7 p.m.) And if you need human help, employees are usually on duty until 8 p.m. for instruction and advice.

Best Way to Test Your Tuned-Up Car

Lariat Loop Heritage Alliance Road Rally

Back when life was a bit rustic along the Front Range, savvy tourists tested their roadsters on the challenging-but-not-impossible byways. One favorite was the forty-mile Lariat Loop, linking Golden, Morrison, Bear Creek Canyon and Red Rocks. Last year, a group revived this tradition, giving it a twist: Participants must compete on a mystery course and defeat obstacles. The event returns in a cloud of dust on June 22.

Best Bike-Ride Maps

Latitude 40 Degrees

If you see mountain bikers around Colorado clutching colorful, waterproof plastic-coated contour maps, chances are they're counting on Boulder's Latitude 40 to steer them. The Boulder County Mountain Bike Map is now in its seventh edition, and the Front Range map -- with 101 rides on one side -- stretches from Fort Collins to Chatfield.

Best Mountain-Bike Ride for a Secret Squirrel

Hall Ranch

The 3,206 acres of backcountry purchased by Boulder County Parks and Open Space in 1993 are required to balance wildlife and recreation. That means there's plenty to see along Hall Ranch's dozen miles of multi-use trails, about half of which are open to bikers, hikers and horseback riders. But you'll need to study the open-space rules at www.co.boulder.co.us/openspace before you learn the secret code word to download a map.

Best Bicycle-Built-for-Two Club

Tandem Club of Colorado

For sixteen years, the Tandem Club of Colorado has been promoting togetherness on bicycles built for two with rallies, rides and fun events. Last month's annual meeting, held at REI's flagship store in Denver, has attracted about fifty people of all ages. This season's events include the Tour de Denver on June 9 -- a 55-mile ride from Aurora to Confluence Park and back -- and a seven-day round trip from Leadville and back, which winds through Glenwood Springs and Salida, covering distances of thirty to seventy miles a day. Rides can be any time, anywhere, but helmets are mandatory. Buddy up and take a ride.

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