Best Pool Hall 2003 | Shakespeare's | Best of Denver® | Best Restaurants, Bars, Clubs, Music and Stores in Denver | Westword
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Best Pool Hall

Shakespeare's

You got your brewpubs and mega-arcades with a few tables on the side, your harshly lit hustlers' dens full of smoke and reverse English, your suburban bar tables reeking of cheap beer and patchouli. For our money, though, the best and least pretentious pool-hall ambience in town still resides at this friendly, busy institution, where serious billiards stickmen brush up against casual 8-ball enthusiasts, and nobody refers to 9-Ball as a "bangers' game." Added bonus: two snooker tables, for those who believe size -- of table, at least -- matters.

Best Place to Play Pool Outdoors

Emerald Isle

When Irish guys are smiling, it's probably because the weather is good enough for a pool party. No, not the kind where you get wet -- although true competitors can work up quite a sweat covering all the angles in a tough game of pool. Come spring, Emerald Isle sets up pool tables on its covered deck, where a real sport can take on a fresh opponent and fresh air at the same time. Nine ball in the side pocket!

Best Place to Play Pool Outdoors

Emerald Isle

When Irish guys are smiling, it's probably because the weather is good enough for a pool party. No, not the kind where you get wet -- although true competitors can work up quite a sweat covering all the angles in a tough game of pool. Come spring, Emerald Isle sets up pool tables on its covered deck, where a real sport can take on a fresh opponent and fresh air at the same time. Nine ball in the side pocket!

Best Budget Water Park

Splash Family Water Park

It's a sweltering summer day, and you and the kids want to get cool but don't necessarily want to take out a loan to do it. Drive west to the year-old Splash water park, thoughtfully provided by the citizens of Golden. It may not have the latest 1.5 million-gallon tsunami scrambler, but with an eight-lane lap pool, a 300-gallon bucket dump, two giant slides (one for inner tubes), and a geyser-shooting splash pad and sandpit for the kids, there's plenty to occupy your time. Kids pay as little as $2.50 per visit; adults may accompany them for $6.50 to $8.50, depending on residency.

Best Budget Water Park

Splash Family Water Park

It's a sweltering summer day, and you and the kids want to get cool but don't necessarily want to take out a loan to do it. Drive west to the year-old Splash water park, thoughtfully provided by the citizens of Golden. It may not have the latest 1.5 million-gallon tsunami scrambler, but with an eight-lane lap pool, a 300-gallon bucket dump, two giant slides (one for inner tubes), and a geyser-shooting splash pad and sandpit for the kids, there's plenty to occupy your time. Kids pay as little as $2.50 per visit; adults may accompany them for $6.50 to $8.50, depending on residency.

Best Children's Character-Building Program

Middle School Dodgeball League
South Suburban Parks and Recreation District

Parents, do you feel your child is getting soft and lacks the killer instinct necessary to survive today's competitive world? Well, forget Montessori and the Ivy League. South Suburban has been hosting this middle-school dodgeball league for more than a year. Games are typically held on Friday evenings (when most kids that age are gearing up for an evening of senseless vandalism). The league uses softer "gatorskin" balls -- not the painful red rubber balls of your youth -- but the effect is the same. For what it's worth, good sportsmanship is stressed.

Best Children's Character-Building Program

Middle School Dodgeball League
South Suburban Parks and Recreation District

Parents, do you feel your child is getting soft and lacks the killer instinct necessary to survive today's competitive world? Well, forget Montessori and the Ivy League. South Suburban has been hosting this middle-school dodgeball league for more than a year. Games are typically held on Friday evenings (when most kids that age are gearing up for an evening of senseless vandalism). The league uses softer "gatorskin" balls -- not the painful red rubber balls of your youth -- but the effect is the same. For what it's worth, good sportsmanship is stressed.

Best Triathlon Series

Rattlesnake Triathlons
June 14, July 13, August 16
Aurora Reservoir

USA Triathlon coordinator Jim Flint says he's seen "the good, the bad and the ugly." This year, he decided to produce his own series of tris, and it's all good. From the time-trial start -- swimmers enter the reservoir every few seconds instead of in one teeming mass -- to the rolling bike course devoid of car traffic, to the "pancake flat" running route, the series promises to be a winner. Flint's seen to all the details: a luscious catered lunch, fresh flowers at the hand-washing stations -- even a cardiac doc on hand. "I figure if I'm gonna do this, it should be fun," he says, "even for a beginner." And then there's that cool name: Wouldn't it be nice to be able to say you just finished the Rattlesnake?

Best Triathlon Series

Rattlesnake Triathlons
June 14, July 13, August 16
Aurora Reservoir

USA Triathlon coordinator Jim Flint says he's seen "the good, the bad and the ugly." This year, he decided to produce his own series of tris, and it's all good. From the time-trial start -- swimmers enter the reservoir every few seconds instead of in one teeming mass -- to the rolling bike course devoid of car traffic, to the "pancake flat" running route, the series promises to be a winner. Flint's seen to all the details: a luscious catered lunch, fresh flowers at the hand-washing stations -- even a cardiac doc on hand. "I figure if I'm gonna do this, it should be fun," he says, "even for a beginner." And then there's that cool name: Wouldn't it be nice to be able to say you just finished the Rattlesnake?

Best Mountain Bike Trail

Bear Creek Trail

Constructed and opened last year, this little-known gem runs from Pence Park, between Indian Hills and Evergreen, to Lair o' the Bear Park, outside of Idledale. Along the way, it cuts through two other Denver mountain parks, Corwina and O'Fallon. Unlike many of the trails along the Denver-area Front Range, Bear Creek is not just a jumble of rocks. It more resembles the Buffalo Creek Trail that runs along the Colorado Trail to the city's southwest: a smooth, wide, hard-packed-dirt single track, with lots of roller-coastery dips and climbs. If you want to get the hard part out of the way first, take C-470 to Morrison and climb up the canyon to Lair o' the Bear. Start grinding at the west end of the parking lot.

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