Almost finished.....

Caitlin, Krissey and Peggy drove to Bridger Bowl to complete Task #16--Having a Snowball Fight (point value:  9).  Bridger Bowl is Bozeman's fantastic in-town ski area, and is located about 20 miles from the Bozeman Airport.  After a short, beautiful drive we were deep in snow.

This final photo is for our new friend, JoAnn (see yesterday's post).  JoAnn was determined to find some snow to complete this task, but declined our invitation to accompany us home to Bozeman.  I don't know if she found her snow, but JoAnn....this is for YOU!

Encountering the competition!

Caitlin and Krissey hopped on a flight to Denver to complete their next task.  When they arrived in Denver, they researched public transportation options to get them to their task.  Feeling outraged at the quoted price by the bus company ($18 per person!  Highway robbery!), Krissey said she would try to call a cousin of hers who lives nearby to see if she was available to assist us.  While Krissey was on the phone, she noticed a woman walking by wearing A NON-REV CHALLENGE TEE SHIRT!  She got Caitlin's attention, pointed at the woman, and Caitlin was off after the woman.  As Caitlin walked toward her, an important decision popped into her head:  "Do I push her down the stairs and thus temporarily thwart our competition?  Or do I graciously introduce myself?"  Opting for the latter, Caitlin approached the woman.

"Excuse me", she said, tapping on the woman's shoulder

When she turned around, Caitlin unzipped her jacket to reveal her matching Non-Rev Challenge tee shirt.  A HUGE smile appeared on the face of the woman, who then gave Caitlin a big hug.  She introduced herself as JoAnn Johnson from Atlanta.

Her team name is "The Cleared List", and she was about as nice as can be.  She was in Denver to complete the same task the Bozoners were, but had already rented a car.  Krissey and Caitlin offered her $10 if she would take them and bring them back to the airport.  She readily agreed.  Boy, were Caitlin and Krissey glad they didn't push her down the stairs!

The three Challengers loaded up into JoAnn's rental car, and headed to downtown Denver to the Buckhorn Exchange (Task #46, point value: 14) for lunch.  The Buckhorn Exchange is on the national registry of historic locations (opened in 1893), and has liquor license Number One in the State of Colorado.   Its menu is chock full of unique fare such as rattlesnake, elk, bison, fried alligator tail, duck, and quail.  The entire building is decorated floor to ceiling with animal heads and antique guns.  After ordering, a stroll around the restaurant to look at everything was in order.

At last, lunch was served.  Caitlin opted for a bison pot roast sandwich and Krissey opted for a big ol' burger.  Delicious!

It was back to the airport for Caitlin and Krissey to catch a flight to Salt Lake City.  JoAnn was toying with heading home to Atlanta or trying to find some snow near the Denver airport to complete another task (stay tuned for us Bozoners in the snow, coming your way soon.....).  Caitlin and Krissey invited JoAnn to come home to Bozeman with them because Bozeman has plenty of snow to share, but she seemed determined to find something nearby or head back home to Atlanta.  Farewell, JoAnn!

It was off to Salt Lake City for Caitlin and Krissey where they completed Task #51--dipping your toes in the Great Salt Lake (point value:  14)

A HUGE Thank-You to our friend, Jerry, who is a mechanic for Delta in Salt Lake City.  Jerry, his wife Becky, and their new baby Payton, picked Caitlin and Krissey up at the airport, whisked them off to the Great Salt Lake, and whisked them back to the airport in time to make their flight home that evening.  Thank you, Thank you, Thank you!

All this, all in a day's work!  Tomorrow:  snow ball fight!

Tasks not worth anything, but SHOULD be--Part 2

As the Bozoners scatter for their last weekend of travel and point collection, here are some additional tasks we completed that earned us absolutely NOTHING but were super fun to do all the same.  We'll be back in a few days to describe our recent adventures.  In the meantime, enjoy!

1.  With a Hollywood celebrity (thanks for being such a good sport, Michael Keaton!)

2.  With your whole team plus your photographer for the day (Thanks, Gus!)

3.  Getting screened by TSA

4.  With the Hollywood sign in the background

5.  Target shooting on your own property (perfectly legal, by the way....)

6.  Pondering nature in a botanical garden

7.  Nose-to-Nose with a llama

8.  At a National Park WITH a park ranger

9.  Sawing wood for the winter

10.  Working the land on a tractor

11.  "Victory Arms" at the Rocky statue

Megan's Great Adventure!

Our teammate, Megan, decided to really bust out this past weekend and went to....Dubai!  She departed Bozeman at 11:45am on Wednesday morning, and arrived in Dubai Thursday evening at 9pm (a 14 hour flight).  She went with her friend, Danielle, who is a Delta agent in Norfolk, Virginia (Caitlin met Danielle while in Norfolk--see previous post).  They had a room booked at the Holiday Inn Express, and Megan was expecting it to be "just your basic Holiday Inn Express" but in Dubai, nothing is "just your basic" anything!  Megan said the hotel was very beautiful and luxurious, and their room was very comfortable.  All this for $93 dollars per night!  This included a breakfast of fresh fruit and olives.  Delicious!
 

Megan and Danielle ventured out into Dubai early Friday morning.  Megan was able to complete Task #66--With the tallest building in the world in the background (point value:  25)

Here is a little information about this building.  It's called the Burj Khalifa.  It is 160 stories tall and measures 2,700 feet.  As a comparison, the Empire State Building is 102 stories and is LESS THAN HALF the height (1,250 feet tall).

With her main task complete, Megan and Danielle spent the day sightseeing.  They went to see the Burj Al Arab.  This is a hotel that measures over 1,000 feet tall (again, think Empire State Building) but only has a little over 200 hotel suites.  The smallest hotel suite is 1800 square feet and the largest one is 8400 square feet.

The Burj Al Arab is built on its own artificial island that is 1,000 feet off the coast.  It is connected to the mainland by a bridge and a guard booth.  Unless you are a guest of the hotel, you are not allowed to cross.  There are large cement blockades that rise up out of the ground to block any vehicles from crossing.  Once it has been determined that you are allowed to be there, the blockades sink into the ground and you can pass.

Megan and Danielle also spent some time at the Mall of the Emirates.  This is a GIANT mall that definitely has something for everyone!  It has a multiplex cinema, an indoor ski park, a 500-seat community theater for live performances, 2 hotels (with a combined 900 rooms available), an amusement park, 520 stores (The Gap, Brooks Brothers, Borders Books, Versace, Tiffany, and Gucci as well as "traditional" clothing stores), and over 80 cafes/restaurants.  Here are a few photos of the Mall, the indoor ski hill (which Megan described as "a bunny slope but with actual ski lifts"), and the toboggan park.

After a day of sightseeing, it was time to head to the airport to fly home.  Yes, you read that correctly--Megan and Danielle spend 24 hours on the ground in Dubai!  Their flight departed Friday evening at 10:30pm and Megan arrived home to Bozeman at 12:45pm on Saturday.  Just in time to go to work Sunday morning!

Megan's general comments about Dubai:  SHE LOVED IT!  She said she would return "in a heartbeat" but would definitely stay longer.  She said she felt very safe, the city is very clean, all signs are in both Arabic and English, and the people she interacted with all spoke English and were very helpful.  Prices are very reasonable and it is an easy city to navigate (excellent train system).

Here are some of Megan's additional photos.  Since many of our Blog readers may opt never to travel to Dubai, we thought we'd bring a little bit of Dubai to you--Enjoy!

East Coast City Hopping

From Philadelphia, Caitlin traveled to Norfolk, Virginia to tackle task #36--With One of the Mermaids on Parade.  Norfolk has mermaid sculptures all over the city that have been "sponsored" by residents and businesses.  Part of the Norfolk challenge for its residents is to actually FIND the mermaids.  It's a big deal in the city when a new Mermaid is unveiled and everyone tries to go find her.  This photo was taken in the  Norfolk airport by Delta agent Danielle--who is a good friend of our teammate, Megan (Megan used to work in the Norfolk airport).  Danielle will reappear in a later story, so don't forget her name...Oh, and we earned 10 points for this.

The Norfolk Botanical Gardens are right across the street from the airport, and apparently there is a Mermaid nestled in the trees and shrubs somewhere.  Caitlin wandered around the gardens in hopes of finding the sculpture but...alas..she never found her.  So, we'll just have to settle for this photo.  Hey, 10 points is 10 points, right?

From Norfolk, it was off to Washington DC.  Remember waaaaaayyyy back in Blog Post "The Home of the Braves" and the quest for the train station photo?  And our friend TJ took one look at the clue and said what we were looking for was in DC?  Well, he was right!  Caitlin completed Task #15 for a whopping 15 points!  Thanks, TJ!  Photo credit goes to train passenger Amy and her friend "Other Amy".  They were absolutely intrigued by the Non-Rev Challenge and wished our team the best of luck!

But now Caitlin's weekend was winding down, and it was time to return to work in Bozeman.  Meanwhile, our teammate Megan was on a HUGE quest!  Can you say.....Dubai!!?  Stay tuned....

The Philadelphia Story

With only 6 days left in the Non-Rev Challenge, it was time for the Bozoners to kick things into high gear and complete as many of the remaining tasks as possible.  Caitlin headed to the City of Brotherly Love for her adventure.  She approached the information booth at the Philadelphia airport to inquire about transportation options to her assigned task.  The information booth lady did her one better--she GAVE her a free day pass!  Apparently, someone earlier that morning had purchased a day pass, used it, and then gave it to the information lady to "pay it forward".   Caitlin boarded the train with her FREE day pass and city map.

She struck up a conversation with her seat mate (who took the above photo), who is an AirTran Airlines employee named Charles.  On their ride into the city center, Charles gave Caitlin the "run down" on downtown Philadelphia and pointed out locations on the city map.  He was extremely helpful and very funny.  When the train arrived into downtown Philadelphia, Charles gave Caitlin these words of advice before he went on his way:  "Watch out for the downtown traffic.  They WILL hit you!"  Thanks Charles!

It was an absolutely beautiful fall day in Philadelphia.  Caitlin made her way through the downtown streets to complete Task #53--With the Liberty Bell (point value:  10, photo credit to German tourist Stephan)

Before heading back to the airport for the next Challenge task, Caitlin spent some time in Philadelphia.  She went to the Philadelphia Museum of Art because of its famous steps.  These are the steps that Sylvester Stallone ran up in "Rocky" when he was training to become the Heavyweight Champion of the World!  Caitlin decided running up steps would be very cool (more specifically, just the top 3-4 steps).  Notice all the other "runners" around her!  Thanks to Philadelphia resident, Tim, for taking the photo.

As you recall in the "Rocky" movies, Rocky's training diet consisted of a lot of raw eggs.  Caitlin considered this, but then opted for a different training diet--an authentic Philly CheeseSteak from Sonny's.

 The employees of Sonny's were very funny and very gracious.  When I told them I had never had an "authentic" Philly CheeseSteak, there was a lot of dramatic throwing their hands up in the air and "Oh my Gawd"-ing.  It was DELICIOUS and a million times better than raw eggs.

But enough dilly-dallying.  It was time to head back to the airport for more adventure.  Stay tuned...

Aloha!

While Krissey shivered in the Alaskan cold, Candy basked in the calm breezes of the Hawaiian islands--Honolulu to be exact. Upon arrival at the Honolulu airport, she must have looked a bit in distress because "a handsome gentleman in uniform" asked if he could be of any assistance.  His name was Officer Ron Miller, and he works for the Federal Department of Agriculture.  They started chatting and, as Candy puts it-- "in my best southern drawl"--she explained the Non-Rev Challenge to him and her quest to complete her task.  He was just getting off work so he offered Candy a ride to the challenge task location since he knew right where it was.  Off they went, and completed Task #87--On Don Ho Street (point value: 15).  Just as a side note: this may seem like an easy task, but Don Ho Street is a very obscure, very short, very easy-to-miss little street so us Bozoners were very thrilled she found it.  When they arrived at the street, Officer Miller double parked, got out of his car, and took her picture.

Candy said Officer Miller was "simply wonderful", and gave her a great narrative tour of Oahu as they drove around. He loves his job with the Department of Agriculture and his challenge of keeping pesky insects and critters from entering the US.

Officer Miller, thank you for helping a Bozoner in distress!

Northern Exposure

Krissey and her husband, Tom (aka Tom Terrific) journeyed up to the great state of Alaska for a little Non-Rev Challenge adventure.  Because we are doing this Non-Rev Challenge on a budget, Krissey and Tom scoured the internet for cheap hotels when Tom  had the great idea to check rates on the Army base right on the outskirts of Anchorage.  They agreed they couldn’t beat the low price of 39.00 for a room and grabbed it up! 


They got up bright and early to start their adventure in the cold mountain air (25 degrees), and as they drove to breakfast, they could see "Moose Crossing" signs every half mile.  Krissey said to Tom, “maybe we will see a moose!” at the exact time they rounded the bend and ....LOW AND BEHOLD!...there stood two moose friends by the side of the road!  She started jumping up and down in her seat screaming, “oh my gosh, oh my gosh, I just can’t believe this!”, and hurriedly grabbed her Non-Rev Challenge Tee-shirt from the backseat.  She quickly shoved the camera into Tom's hands, hopped out of the car, and captured this photo.

She was a bit frightened because, as us Bozoners know, moose are just about the most dangerous of wild animals.  This action by Krissey is akin to the Yellowstone tourists we hear about all summer long who get out of their vehicles to pet the bison with disastrous results! But Tom calmly and quickly snapped and photo, and Krissey dashed back into the car.   So while Megan and Caitlin "faked" their way through a moose photo (see blog post "A Big Points Trip"), Krissey actually GOT the photo and the points for our team.  No more wondering if this task is legit or not!


Riding the high of their success, Krissey and Tom proceeded into downtown Anchorage to complete Task #88--At the Bear & Raven Adventure Theatre (points earned:  15).  This is a small 35-seat theatre that show locally produced movies all about the great state of Alaska.

While Tom and Krissey enjoyed their trip to this non-contiguous US state, our teammate Candy headed to the other one.  Stay tuned...

Candy and Peggy = BIG POINTS!

Bozoners Candy and Peggy headed off for an East Coast adventure, and came home with stories to tell.  I'll do my best to capture their spirit in my words.

First stop:  Chicago.  They hit the town, and headed straight for the Skydeck of the Willis Tower, where they captured their photo standing on the glass ledge (Task #48, points earned:  14).  Peggy was quite smitten with the view and enjoyed looking DOWN and seeing the ground many stories below.  Candy was terrified, and wanted off as quickly as possible.

The next morning, they boarded a Delta Shuttle flight (Task #44, point value:  14) and flew to New York City.  Candy said that Delta agent Sally R. was quite the sport in assisting everyone.

When Peggy and Candy arrived in New York City, they were able to complete task #52 in no time flat--eating marshmallows in front of the GhostBusters Firehouse (better known as NYFD Hook and Ladder #8).  Candy said that New York Fire Fighters Bryan and Andrew were most helpful and most accommodating in their Non-Rev Challenge quest.  Points earned:  14.

Once their task was complete, Candy and Peggy headed to the airport to catch a flight to Boston. They easily completed Task #27 with the added bonus of it being a SUNRISE photo--With both the Trinity Church and John Hancock building in the photo (Point value:  14).

Candy told a great story of the photographer of this photo--a man named John Luray.  She said he was quite a character and wanted both Candy's and Peggy's advice regarding his new girlfriend.  As Candy said, "I think we have him straightened out."  Here's to you, John Luray!

Tomorrow's update:  Krissey's big adventure to ALASKA!