Archive for June, 2010

Team Loveland 365 Takes First Place - Lake to Lake Triathalon!

June 27th, 2010 by Maryjo Morgan

Loveland 365 Team Ross Livingston, Rick Denning, & Jessica Reed-Baum

With a winning time of 2 hrs 25 mins and 15 sec, Loveland 365's Team placed first overall.

Congratulations to the L365 Lake to Lake Triathalon Team!  Starting at Lake Loveland and taking on the uphill to Horsetooth Reservoir, this is an athlete's challenge the Loveland 365 Team tromped.

They took first place in the relay yesterday, beating the nearest competitor by 12 minutes. Be sure to check Loveland 365's on Facebook to see additional photos; this photo was originally posted there.

See the Loveland 365 Team's button-poppin' score listed on the Lake to Lake Triathalon website.  WOW!

Ross Livingtson enthusiastically notes, "Each of us finished first in our respective relay categories.  This was the best day of my summer by far."  He says it was a great race and he made great new friends, thanks to Loveland 365 idea man, John Giroux.

An "Olympic Distance Triathalon" includes a three part relay with these specified distances, each of which is a race unto itself:

Swim: 1.5 K  (.93 miles)
Bike: 30 miles (48.2 miles)
Run: 10K (6.2 miles)

Kudos to the Loveland 365 Team!  Jessica Reed-Baum set the pace swimming, Ross Livingston kept it up cycling, and Rick Denning ran the relay to the finish.  Hats off to each of you for this significant accomplishment.

Loveland is losing it

June 22nd, 2010 by Bob McDonnell

I love that Loveland has many businesses that have been around for years. Some are owned and run but second and even third generations of the same family. It was with a heavy heart that I recently reported on the closure of one if the mainstays of the downtown Loveland retail community.

Loveland is losing it.  Penner’s Appliance is no more.   Harvey Penner started the business in 1969, and sold it four years ago.  I think it was about 1972 when I first purchased a washer and dryer from Harv.  Over the years, I have gone to him for stoves, refrigerator and a second washer and driver.

Harvey was not the cheapest.  The big boxes could beat him by a few bucks, but he was LOCAL.  He knew who his customers were, and called them by name.

I talked to Harvey in the parking lot of the business today.  He still owns the building, and is trying to get it ready to be rented out. It can be used as one unit or divided into up to five separate businesses.  The nice thing is that it has parking spaces in front that are not on the street.

Thanks Harvey and family for your service to Loveland as a businessperson, civic leader and church member.   We all need to remember to support local businesses.

Call Harvey Penner at 667-9983 if you are interested in retail space downtown Loveland.

See photo and original post on Bob's Heart Beats.

Ridge Valley Alpaca Ranch

June 22nd, 2010 by Ann Bradbury
Carl and Ann Bradbury of Ridge Valley Alpaca Ranch and Friend

Carl and Ann Bradbury of Ridge Valley Alpaca Ranch and Friend

Ann and Carl Bradbury, owners of Ridge Valley Alpaca Ranch in Loveland, welcomed their newest baby alpaca (aka cria), to their farm family on May 13th at 10 a.m.  John Giroux, founder of Loveland 365, asked us to call him when the first baby came.  We did and he was here, camera in hand, within 10 minutes of the birth.  Right away he wondered if he could name the new cria and he did.

He thought about it for a moment and said “13 is my lucky number” and because crias are born coming out like Superman, he named him Lucky Clark.

Newborn cria "Lucky Clark" stands on shaky legs

Newborn cria "Lucky Clark" stands on shaky legs

We are grateful that John has taken an interest in our alpacas and especially in our newest cria.

Our ranch was established in 2006 and the first herd of alpacas were purchased and arrived in June of 2007.  Since there was a large barn on the ranch, we knew we had to fill it up and bought 2 horses right away.  We started the alpacas business with a herd of 10 and currently (including the 14 crias born on the ranch, have 26 total)…..we purchased an amazing herd sire (Jubilant) who is the sire to 9 of the 14 crias.  We have a 2nd herd sire named Midnight who has sired a couple of the crias and several of ours have sires from other alpaca ranches in N. Colorado.  We pride ourselves in having all 8 colors and all with beautiful fiber (what this business is all about).  In addition to affording and healthy and less stressful lifestyle, alpacas offer you a unique way to diversify your financial portfolio.  Alpaca livestock are tax deductable and fully insurable.

Newborn cria "Lucky Clark" has his mother's full attention

Newborn cria "Lucky Clark" has his mother's full attention

We love all our alpacas and their fiber.  We have a small farm store where we sell yarn and products made from our alpacas.  Last year we had many visitors to the ranch who loved the experience of meeting the alpacas and then buying products made from them.

Prior to raising alpacas, we published the Colorado Business and Lifestyle Magazine for almost 9 years.  Retiring from publishing and moving to the ranch west of Loveland, we decided to enhance our life by getting into the alpaca business.  The horses are a huge blessing to us as well.  Ann rides (her dream since she was a teenager).

Carl and Ann both encourage everyone to follow their dreams because dreams can come true!

For more information or to schedule a free ranch visit, call 970-669-0043 or visit Ridge Valley Alpaca Ranch online.

Written by Ann Bradbury
Photos by John Giroux

Avalon Aviary

June 8th, 2010 by MjWebWriter

Written by Ross Livingston, Advantage Research

Susanne Cochran is an entrepreneur and a parrot’s best friend. Susanne has been a resident of Loveland since 1976 and she is also the owner of the Avalon Aviary. An aviary is a special type of building used for keeping many birds. Before Susanne went into business she was saddened by the irresponsible behavior of other parrot breeders who did not put the needs of their birds first. This inspired Susanne to start her own parrot breeding program based on compassionate values, continuous improvement in bird raising practices, education and a commitment to conversation and parrot rescue.

The parrots who reside in the aviary originate from Central & South America, Africa, Indonesia and the Solomon Islands. The species of birds range from large Macaws to petite-sized parrots with outgoing personalities and vivid coloration. Captive parrots lay an average of 2-3 clutches of eggs per year. Baby parrots are eventually transferred to the “nursery” where they receive special care and gentle handling. When the baby parrots are ready to leave the nursery, they are placed in special baskets draped with towels. Baskets are used because they resemble a parrot’s nest and the draped towels offer the young birds a sense of privacy and security. As the birds mature they eventually learn flying and landing skills. During this process the juvenile parrots are exposed to common household items and socialized by aviary staff. This helps the parrots make a smooth transition from the aviary to their permanent homes.

Since the birds come first, anyone who wants to purchase a parrot from the Avalon Aviary must be approved through their home-qualifying process. Many parrots are loud, messy, destructive and demanding therefore prospective bird owners should know what to expect before they say yes. On the other hand, parrots are beautiful, interactive, comical and playful companions that can live 30-100 years. Since most of us are not parrot experts, Susanne offers educational seminars for new bird owners.

Finally, Susanne sends a portion of her profits to the Gabriel Foundation which is one of the leading bird rescue and rehabilitation programs in the United States. The Avalon Aviary also supports international organizations which have a proven track record of preserving and expanding wild parrot populations.