Christmastime at Red Rocks Park. Only a powered paraglider and a bird break the stillness.
And well, so does the start of a race to the top. "Who's saying go?"
Frank Graziano looks at his friends from near the stage at the amphitheatre. Someone counts down, "3...2...1", and they're off running, jumping, hurdling up the rows of seats to their final destination on row 69.
And at the top, Olivia Tuttle is visiting cousins here from Iowa.
"I've never been here", she says.
They all start cheering as Frank and his shirtless friends make it to the top.
Frank Graziano lives in Denver…but he’s never been here at Christmas
"This is very unusual. Part of me likes the sunshine but I’d like a little snow around Christmastime," he says.
There may not be a concert here, but the record high temperatures means the patio is open, the parking lot full, and Frank and Nick Palgrave have lost their shirts.
Nick says, "The amphatheatre warms everything up, but you get hot in any temperature. I think this is the first year I've been here on Christmas, it's not normally this warm."
The group of friends say whether you go fast or slow, getting to the top is an accomplishment.
It took years for Nick to make it to the top. Now, he is celebrating a personal accomplishment.
"I've been coming here for years. I've seen people running up and it inspires you. I said to myself I think I'll try it and can I do it?" Nick said.
By the way, Nick is 63 years old. This year in January, he wanted to make it to 50-thousand rows before the end of the year. He did it 10 days ago.
"This is the best gym in the world", Nick said.
And today, in 70 degrees, they did it over and over and over.
It inspired Olivia from Iowa.
And cousins Sara and Justin couldn’t resist either.
They all raced for a few rows.
Their family and the running family shared in each others inspiration from different parts of the amphitheater on Christmas.
