May Update on 2026 Fitness Goals

As you know if you follow this blog, I generally give a monthly update on my fitness / Strava goals. I'm sure no one besides myself really cares, but I figure sharing these publicly give me a little extra motivation because of the extra accountability.

Plus, from time to time I'll look at older updates just to see where I was in the past.

In previous years, my goals have been mostly around cycling, but starting this year, I've started running as well.

If you're interested, You can always track these workouts on Strava. 

So far, I'm tracking pretty well to my 2026 Fitness goals.

My 2026 Fitness / Activity Goals are:

D is for Dry Dock Pub

We started Round 7 of our A to Z Breweries series of articles.

If you're not familiar ... back in February of 2015, I was embarrassed by how few Denver Breweries that I had visited.

I decided to make an effort to hit more of them, and worked my way from A to Z, hitting a brewery for every letter.

Now, more than 11 years later, I have made my way through the alphabet 6 TIMES, and the Beer Model and I have decided to start #7.

Just about a week ago, I posted C is for Cerberus Brewing Company. This means we are ready for a "D" Brewery.

D is for Dry Dock Pub

Chicken Wings on the Weber

If you follow this blog, you probably know from Paint Mines: Mini - Bad Lands, C is for Cerberus Brewing Company ... and other breweries, and Garden of the Gods Photos that we spent Memorial Day Weekend away.

After returning from the trip, I grilled some wings.

It's been awhile since I posted anything about cooking Chicken Wings, so I thought I'd do this quick post.

Grilling Chicken Wings is fairly straight-forward on the Weber Kettle.

Apply SheppyBrew Rub. Fill up the Vortex with hot coals targeting 400F or so cooking temperature. Cook for about an hour.

Sometimes I'll substitute lemon pepper or Crack for the rub. Sometimes I'll cook a little longer at a slightly lower temperature. But for the most part the process is pretty much the same every time I grill wings.

Garden of the Gods Photos

If you read Paint Mines: Mini - Bad Lands and/or C is for Cerberus Brewing Company ... and other breweries, you know that the Beer Model and I spent Memorial Day Weekend down in Colorado Springs.

It went really fast.

On Monday, after packing up from the hotel, the Beer Model wanted to visit Garden of the Gods.

We discovered that parking is difficult to come by on Memorial Day mid-morning in the main area of the park.

We ended up closer to the south end of the park and jumped on the hiking trails.

Here are the photos that we took while walking around ...

C is for Cerberus Brewing Company ... and other breweries

So ... remember I mentioned in Paint Mines: Mini - Bad Lands, the SheppyBrew Beer Model (aka my wife) and I spent Memorial Day Weekend away.

After our Paint Mines visit, but before check-in time for our hotel room, we had a few of hours to kill.

First off, we had to find lunch, and as luck would have it, there was a nice little brewery with a food truck between the Paint Mines and Colorado Springs, where we were staying.

We stopped at one of Black Forest Brewing Company and had a couple flights along with some Mexican food from a food truck.

Both the food and the beer was really good. If you find yourself in the Colorado Springs area, this is a good place to visit.

Paint Mines: Mini - Bad Lands

So, this past Memorial Day Weekend, my wife (aka the SheppyBrew Beer Model) and I had a weekend away.

On the way down to where we were staying for the weekend, she wanted to check out the Paint Mines Interpretive Park, which I had actually never heard of.

"The Paint Mines Interpretive Park is one of El Paso County’s most unique open spaces. The Paint Mines are named for their colorful clays that were collected by American Indians to make paint. Brightly colored bands, caused by oxidized iron compounds, are found in varying amounts throughout the many different layers of clay."

This park's rock formation remind me quite a lot of the South Dakota Bad Lands, which we visited with the kids back in 2013 and then again in 2015.

Where’d My ManGo Wheat

Brewery: SheppyBrew 
Style: Mango Wheat (Fruit Beer)
ABV: 4.7%
IBU: 27
SRM: 6.2

Appearance

A hazy, sun‑gold wheat beer with a soft, glowing body. The head is pale and fluffy, leaving light lacing as it settles. It looks like summer in a glass — bright, inviting, and just a touch opaque from the wheat and fruit.

Aroma

A gentle wave of fresh mango rises first — not candy‑sweet, but ripe and natural. Underneath it sits a clean wheat backbone: light grain, soft dough, a hint of citrus. The fruit and wheat blend seamlessly, giving it a tropical‑but‑balanced nose.

Flavor

Soft wheat malt leads with a smooth, slightly creamy base. The mango comes through as a bright accent, adding a touch of sweetness and tropical lift without overwhelming the beer. Low bitterness keeps the profile refreshing. The finish is clean, crisp, and lightly fruity — the kind of sip that makes you immediately want another.

The Cloud Beasts and Chelsea Dagger

I kegged my Chelsea Dagger Pre-Prohibition Lager on Monday and added gelatin fining to the keg on Tuesday.

After dinner on Tuesday, I decided to drink a few on my patio. The gelatin had not really had much of a chance to work, so the beer was still pretty hazy. But, the beer was still delicious enough to enjoy.

For what it is worth, it is a much clearer beer now.

Where’d My ManGo Wheat Checklist

If you read Big Brew Day ... Where'd My ManGo Wheat (Batch 391), you know that the SheppyBrew Beer Model (aka my wife) brewed with me last Saturday. 

She actually brews with me 3 or 4 times a year. I jokingly say that I make her brew with me so that I'll stay out of jail when the authorities find out I brew more than 100 gallons of beer in a year.

You see, according to federal law:

The production of beer per household, without payment of tax, for personal or family use may not exceed:
100 gallons per calendar year if there is only one adult residing in the household or
200 gallons per calendar year if there are two or more adults residing in the household

By the letter of the law, she doesn't actually have to brew to allow our household 200 gallons of beer, but it is fun for me to pretend that I need her to stay out of jail.

Big Brew Day ... Where'd My ManGo Wheat (Batch 391)

It was the American Homebrew Association's annual Big Brew Day this past Saturday.

If you follow along on this blog, you may remember that Big Brew Day is quite often a day that the Beer Model and I brew with one or more our homebrewing friends "Du" and "Doc".

But, this year the date sort of snuck up on us all and we didn't make plans for a get-together.

However ... the Beer Model and I had ordered and even picked up ingredients for a recipe that she was wanting us to brew ...

And ... so we decided to do it on Big Brew Day ... 

Where'd My ManGo Wheat

April Update on 2026 Fitness Goals

As you know if you follow this blog, I generally give a monthly update on fitness / Strava goals. I guess we can say that it is another level of accountability to share these publicly.

Plus, from time to time I'll look at older updates just to see where I was way-back-when.

In previous years, my goals have been mostly around cycling, but starting this year, I've started running as well.

If you're interested, I always track these workouts on Strava. 

So far, I'm tracking pretty well to my 2026 Fitness goals.

My 2026 Fitness / Activity Goals are:

Chelsea Dagger Pre-Prohibition Lager (Batch 390)

I'm not brewing very much this year. As I've discussed, I'm on track to brew the least amount of homebrew for the year ever.

By a bunch.

But, I did brew a batch of beer this past Sunday.

Hopefully, I'll get another batch of beer in on Big Brew Day, which is coming up this Saturday.

So ... maybe I'll catch up some.

Even if I do, I don't anticipate catching up enough to get over that 100 gallon homebrewing limit.

Regardless, I got up early Sunday morning to start up the Anvil Foundry and brewed ....

Chelsea Dagger Pre-Prohibition Lager

B is for Bent Barley Brewing Company

As you know if you read A to Z Denver Breweries Round 6, we finished up our alphabet exploration of Denver-area breweries for the 6th time.

You also know we were not sure how to progress with this series of posts. Or ... should we even continue on at all.

The Colorado Brewery Map & List still has quite a few breweries left for us to visit, but there are enough challenging letters that we probably won't be able to fill them all in.

As it turns out, the first few letters fall in place pretty well, so we decided to go ahead and proceed with the beginning of the alphabet.

We don't know how to handle letters we cannot find a brewery for, but that is a problem to address another day.

In the meantime ... 

B is for Bent Barley Brewing Company

A is for Alley Brews Brewery & Coffee Shop

As you know if you read A to Z Denver Breweries Round 6, we finished up our alphabet exploration of Denver-area breweries for the 6th time.

You also know we were not sure how to progress with this series of posts. Or ... should we even continue on at all.

The Colorado Brewery Map & List still has quite a few breweries left for us to visit, but there are enough challenging letters that we probably won't be able to fill them all in.

As it turns out, the first few letters fall in place pretty well, so we decided to go ahead and proceed with the beginning of the alphabet.

We don't know how to handle letters we cannot find a brewery for, but that is a problem to address another day.

In the meantime ... 

A is for Alley Brews Brewery & Coffee Shop

Tengu vs. Samurai®

One of the beers I have on tap right now is "Whisper of the Tengu" Rice Lager.

"A rice lager brewed with reverence and restraint. Whisper of the Tengu is not a beer that shouts—it listens. It’s subtle, sharp, and quietly powerful, honoring the spirit of the mountain trickster with every clean, deliberate note. Ideal for quiet reflection, shared toasts, or moonlit mischief."

This is the first rice lager I've ever brewed (at least as far as I remember), and I think it turned out fantastic.

Rice lagers seem to have jumped in popularity somewhat recently, and I see them much more at commercial breweries than I did 5 and certainly more than 10 years ago.

I thought it would be fun to pick up a Rice Lager from a local brewery and compare it with Tengu.

So, I bought some of Great Divide's Samurai and this past Sunday I compared them side-by-side.

A to Z Denver Breweries Round 6

The SheppyBrew Beer Model and I are done with Round 6 of our A to Z Denver Breweries series of posts.

Hurray for us! 

In late 2024, we started off this round with A is for Arms, Call To Brewing Company (sadly now closed)

We recently just finished with Z is for MestiZo Brew Cantina.

In this round, we had to take way more "Artistic License" to slot breweries into letters than I like, and (obviously) a Round 7 would be even worse.

For most of the round, I thought the A to Z Series would now be complete. The Beer Model and I would need a new way to pick new breweries. 

However, the Colorado Brewery Map & List does still have lots of Denver-area breweries, and we probably could come up with some brewery for most letters. We'd have to come up with what to do if we cannot find anything that works for a particular letter. Let me know if you have ideas.

🍺 Chelsea Dagger Pre‑Prohibition Lager

Brewery: SheppyBrew 
Style: Pre‑Prohibition Lager
ABV: 5.4%
IBU: 30
SRM: 3.6

Appearance

Brilliant pale gold with a bright, sunlit clarity that shows off its lean grain bill. A tight white head forms quickly and lingers in a thin lace, just enough to remind you this is a lager with backbone. The color sits right in that classic pre‑Prohibition range — light, but not fragile.

Aroma

A clean, crackery malt note leads, softened by a faint sweetness from the flaked corn. Cluster hops add their unmistakable American heritage: a mix of herbal spice, light floral tones, and a subtle rustic edge. The overall impression is crisp and inviting, with just enough hop character to signal that this isn’t a modern macro‑lager.

Z is for MestiZo Brew Cantina

Ok ... here we are at the end of Round 6 of the A to Z series of posts.

Yes, we've gone through the alphabet 6 times, visiting a brewery for each letter.

At the beginning, we were able to find Denver-area breweries (one was actually a meadery) that literally began with all 26 letters of the alphabet.

As we progressed, we had to take more and more "Artistic License", and without actually counting, For round 6, I'd say we were at about half breweries that began with the letter and half that we had to stretch a little.

Round 6 began late November of 2024 with A is for Arms, Call To Brewing Company (sadly closed now).

And ... now ... we are at the letter "Z"....

Z is for MestiZo Brew Cantina

Platte River Half-Marathon

I ran my first official Half Marathon yesterday.

As you know if you read 2026 Fitness Goals, I've been training for a Half Marathon, the "Platte River Half Marathon", and Sunday was the day.

I finished the whole thing. I actually was able to run it faster than I thought I would be able to do it. So, I'm happy with my results.

While working through the training plan, Runna gave me a project goal pace of 9:50 to 10:25 per mile, meaning it expected me to finish in 2:09 to 2:16.

Quite frankly, I thought that pace was ridiculously optimistic based on my longer training runs. I'd never really maintained that pace for more than a few miles at a time. 

2026 Easter Ham

Well ... I let my kids talk me into making ham again for Easter dinner.

While ham is not my favorite holiday food, I aim to please, so I went ahead and decided to do my "typical" Double Smoked Ham.

My wife got the standard spiral cut ham, around 10lbs.

On Easter morning I made a glaze / sauce with a coke base, a little honey, and various spices. 

I also made a special "rub" for the ham.

After church, I placed the ham in a cooking pan and applied the rub and let it sit while I prepared my Weber Kettle.