Half pound brats.  Deer and turkeys on the front lawn.  A 14,000 foot peak.  An incredible chapel and another nail biter of a football game.

Just some of the highlights of Road Trip:  Air Force Academy 2010.

Six couples who have known each other since the 70's and are still talking joined the hundreds of Ute fans who made the cross-Rockies hop to Colorado Springs for a fantastic weekend of fun, food, football and lots more.   We all agree we will miss the association with Air Force when Utah leaves the Mountain West.  Because two of us are retired military, we were able to get suites at the Rampart Inn tucked amongst the  ponderosa pine and scrub oak  about a mile from Falcon Stadium on this sprawling campus.  And what a campus the Academy is--our tax dollars well spent.  It is 18,000 acres of forest land with a few buildings hidden here and there geared to train our future Air Force officers.   The Cadet Chapel is the star of this place.  Built nearly 50 years ago, it remains a futuristic structure with it's 17 steel and glass spires pointed appropriately to the heavens.   John Cameron, a retired Utah National Guard Colonel and owner of a Salt Lake construction company was dazzled by the architecture and composition of the building.  Take the short walk from the visitor center--the Chapel jumps out at you as you round a bend on the trail.  And don't miss the Jewish, Buddhist and Catholic chapels below the main sanctuary.  

Jim Wilking of Salt Lake enjoyed seeing the academy grounds again.  He applied to be among one of the first classes in the 1950's but failed the physical (they never told him why).  How does a guy who is a world class senior handball player who climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro at age 70ish fail a physical?

Since the football game was a late afternoon kick-off, we had time to explore not only the campus, but the Colorado Springs area.  And we discovered the city has swiped a piece of southern Utah and plopped it down on the edge of town as a city park.   The red-rock Garden of the Gods is a slice of Arches, Zion and Capitol Reef with great trails through sandstone fins, hoodoos and arches.   Add blue skies and 60 degree temperatures, and you have a perfect pre-game adventure.  Bob Boehmer spent 25 years in the Denver area before moving to Salt Lake.  He and wife Lynn were thrilled to return to Garden of the Gods after a long absence.

The evening before the game, we enjoyed dinner at the Falcon Club and met Kathleen, in charge of catering.  She invited us on a personalized tour of the stadium press box and suites prior to kick-off and introduced us to  Academy Superintendent  Lt. Gen. Michael C. Gould, who was extremely gracious despite our all-crimson attire.   Everything about the academy is first class.  Pre game, the Corps of Cadets march onto the field in an impressive display of patriotism; parachutists drop in with the American flag;  Jet fighters driven by Academy alums streak overhead, and the mascot falcon swoops very low over our heads as a finale to its half time performance.  Better snarf up that half-pound, seven dollar spiced sausage sandwich quickly.  They sell out by the end of half time. 

The game was another typical Utah-Air Force nail bitter, although it need not have been.  By now you know the Utes capitalized on five Air Force turnovers for a 28-10 lead after three quarters, then as the Air Force fans headed home, the Ute defense went to sleep .  The Falcons scored back to back touchdowns and had a couple of shots at taking the lead, but the Ute defense regrouped to salvage a 28-23 win to remain unbeaten on the year and jump to 5th in the BCS standings heading into the BIG game against TCU.

As we trudged across the grass expanse which serves as stadium parking, Sally Wilking echoed our lament that this is likely the last time we will have the excuse of a Utah-Air Force football game to get together as good friends and hang out at one of the great college campuses in the world.  Fred Cvar, an Air Force veteran, but long-time Utah Man, says it's a great place to watch deer, elk, and wild turkeys in front of your lodge, but best yet, it's a great place to win a football game.  

Driving home, we took the 19-mile side-trip to the top of Pikes Peak, a must-do on any visit to the Springs.  A trip to UCLA or Tucson will be neat, but there is nothing like a road trip to the Air Force Academy.