Rampart Rager

This was a fun, local race up and down Rampart Range Road. I had thought about doing this race for the first time last year, but the weather didn't cooperate. This year I did the short course, and although there weren't many other racers, I still set a new course record!

2024 School Pictures

First Day of Old School

Oslo Walking Tour

On our last day in Norway we headed into Oslo. Lots of walking. I ended up doing ten miles of walking, mainly because I wanted to head over and see Frogner Park, which was a little bit outside of downtown. It was great to see all of the various sights, including the changing of the guard at the royal palace.

For the scrapbook, here are the labels of each of the pictures in order:

Nobel Peace Center, Akershus Fortress, Oslo Opera House, a nice hotel with flags, the Royal Palace, Frogner Park, the famous Oslo Clock down by the piers, The National Theater, a downtown picture including Freia Chocolate and Eidsvolls Plass

Uvdal Stavkirke

A main reason we visited the Oslo area was to take a day trip to Uvdal to see the Uvdal Stave Church. While it was about a two and half hour drive one way, it was worth every minute.

"Norwegian stave churches are a unique type of medieval wooden church characterized by their distinctive post and lintel construction. They are considered a significant part of Norway's architectural heritage and a unique contribution to world architecture. These churches were primarily built between 1050 and 1350 and are the oldest preserved wooden churches in Christianity." Additionally, the Uvdal Stave church was of special interest to our family, since on one of the church pews a family name (and likely a geographical indicator), "Huseby", was painted.

The office where we checked in and storehouse were two of the original buildings found on the property. Although there were other farm buildings added later, we spent most of our time in these two buildings besides the actual Stave Church. After our tour was over, the office was also our small gift shop and afternoon coffee stop. It was a very quaint way to end our trip sipping on some coffee and treats.

The storehouse was actually just as interesting to me as the church, but in different ways. I appreciated the construction of the foundation very much. "The construction of the Pillared Storehouse got its present appearance when it was completed in 1746. It has never been moved and as a result still stands on its original plot. The structure is a typical example of a Numedal "Stbbur" (Pillared Storehouse). It has two stories, with the second being a workshop full of tools. Between the stairs lead up to the threshold entrance there is a large gap, traditionally intended to prevent mice from getting to the first floor where all the food was stored."

"The Numedal Valley contains the best-preserved collection of medieval buildings in Norway. It has four Stave Churches alone. Compared to the other stave churches (Flesberg, Rollag, and Nore), Uvdal is high on the hillside. Moreover, it is still surrounded by ancient farm buildings. This church was in use until the late 19th century when the town built a new church further down the valley."

"The original stave churches were very small, and over the centuries they became impractical. Because of this, they have been constantly expanded, renovated, and redesigned. For Uvdal, it’s almost as if each century has added something to the church." Typically the expansions were just simple add-ons to the original structure. Building the church to be longer, or wider, with new rectangles added to make the church larger. The exterior is paneled, and covered in tar, as are all Stave Churches.

Uvdal's best feature is its painted interior. "Benches with ornately decorated sidewalls were added to the nave in 1624. The oldest part of the interior was probably richly ornately decorated by painting during 1656, the expansions during 1684 and 1723. The painting style is Rococo. Rich decorations of flowers and vines cover the interior. The artist (or artists) is unknown, but it’s clear inspiration came from European art. Until 1620, the only light came from portholes high up, but that year two windows were put in."

After the building tours we walked around the rest of the property and farm. At the top of the hill, looking back at the church and the valley, we found a great spot for family pictures. It was a nice way to end the tour. Wish we had more time. Looking back at these pictures now at the time of writing, it still amazes me that we were able to pull this entire trip off and that we were able to spend a few weeks over in Norway this summer.

Oslo Morning Ride

This morning I went on a quick ride around a lake west of Oslo, just north of Asker. It was a beautiful morning and reminded me of Washington State. In fact, I think Washington is the closest state to Norway in terms of the landscape and weather.

The gravel ride took me around a lake that included a nice little boardwalk to get over the waterfall and river that was feeding the lake. On the way back up the hill to our Air BnB I passed two inline skaters wearing CU Buffs kit. What are the chances of that?