After sleeping off our long hike from the previous day, we took it easy throughout the morning. Clara got to groom the mini horses here and enjoyed spending some time in the barn.
The kids and dads cooled off at the swimming pool in town. It’s an outdoor pool that is free over the summer and has Sandlot vibes, but we were lucky enough that it wasn’t very crowded while we were there.
We then ventured out to Owego Donut & Beer Co. to enjoy their beer wall, donuts, and bravarian pretzels.
Today’s primary destination was visiting Tioga Downs to watch harness horse racing and enjoy the buffet. Watching Harness racing was wild, as I saw all the horses and carts bunch together in a large group. I was excited to have brought my camera and take the opportunity to capture some shots of the action. The solo shots of the horses running right-to-left were during warmups and between races.
Mariana and Ella took part in a Wiffleball Toss competition, but sadly, Mari dropped the ball on the first toss and felt incredibly embarrassed. It didn’t help when we walked back into inside and she realized that the race activities were televised all over the casino.
We ended our evening at the buffet, where we enjoyed prime rib, “steakhouse” meatballs (that tasted like Salisbury steak), and an endless supply of shrimp. We stuffed ourselves and rolled back home.
Hello from Binghamton, New York! Clara, Mariana, and I ventured out here to visit my sister and get some much-needed cousin time. We flew in late Wednesday night (essentially Thursday morning), on a plane that seemed like a roller coaster for the first thirty minutes of our flight. We were grateful to Tony for picking us up from our delayed flight and for letting us sleep in the next morning.
The Balderrama-Durbin family adopted some miniature horses that arrived this week, and we got to meet Dandilion and Lollipop, and make sure my new camera bag took care of our gear while traveling.
We spent Thursday recovering from the flight and enjoying much-needed family time. The girls went swimming with their cousins, and we grilled burgers and hot dogs, eating dinner outside.
On Friday, we ventured out to Watkins Glen State Park, which is nestled in the middle of town and tucked away within a 2-mile hike that leads to these astonishing waterfalls. We fueled up with a slice of pizza from a Woodfire Pizza shack next to the Colonial Inn.
We started our hike by climbing hundreds of stairs (832 steps, according to ChatGPT). I began to feel the weight of my camera bag towards the end of the climb. Things finally leveled out, rewarding us with breathtaking views.
The trail broke out into an upper and lower sections, where a bridge allows you to look downward to the hikers below:
We doubled back and went downward, staying closer to the waterfalls and streams below. The entire trail is composed of these beautiful stone paths and stairways, lined with both rocks and lush greenery.
Despite the heat, humidity, and challenging climbs, everyone stayed in relatively good spirits. The streams and waterfalls near the trail kept things cool and held our attention.
We reached Rainbow Falls, which had a picturesque view where you could walk under and behind the falls. That seemed a good a spot as any to turn around.
I tried experimenting with a longer exposure, but without a tripod or monopod, I was too shaky to capture streaming portraits. I still managed to get some captivating shots.
After turning around, I took up the rear, capturing Tony and Adrian as they made their way back.
We ended our Watkins Glen adventure by enjoying ice cream from the Colonial Inn.
We were pretty tired, sweaty, and ready to be home after our daytime excursion. I was really glad I made it here, and highly recommend that if you get the opportunity to check out Watkins Glen, you take it!
I’ve had the privilege of running in the same drumming circles as Peter for over twenty-five years. Peter was a longtime staff member and instructor over at the legendary Colorado Drum shop, where I purchased the vast majority of my gear over my thirty years of playing. Peter has been a fixture in our Northern Colorado drumming community, whether it was at numerous clinics, drumming events like The Big Beat, or at other educational opportunities he created for his fellow drummers.
He’s moving to New York to begin a new chapter and will be greatly missed. I was glad to hear that he planned a final show at Avogadro’s Number, featuring his quartet and a reunion of The Atoll, an incredible band that featured Peter on percussion.
It was my privilege to bring my camera and capture a few shots of this fantastic evening, reconnecting with some of my fellow drummers, and being able to give Peter a send-off with gratitude and love.
Peter started the evening playing the drum set with his quartet (which had five members that evening). This group featured instrumentals and tunes with Peter on vocals. It was fun trying to figure out some of the song meters and appreciating all the incredible musicianship on stage.
The Atoll then took the stage, showcasing these incredible musicians.
Lastly, Peter took the stage to give a “goodbye” drum solo to his Fort Collins community. I was glad we stuck around to witness such a sentimental musical gesture.
Thank you, again, Peter, for all of the musical memories and for being such a tremendous influence on my drumming. I wish you all the best in your New York chapter!
After a busy winter, I was able to dust off my camera for the first time in months and photograph FoCoMX in April. Aside from being one of the best music festivals around, it’s also a great chance to shoot several bands in a short time span.
However, being that it is an April weekend in Colorado, the weather isn’t always going to cooperate for an indoor and outdoor music festival. Snow ended up falling on Friday, combined with the bitter cold, made it difficult to shoot bands outside. However, I was still able to get some great shots.
Swashbuckling Doctors
I love watching the Swash Docs play, but the previous year, they were playing at the same time as Heart Medicine. Watching them brave the cold weather on the New Belgium Main Stage inspired me to put my raincoat over my camera and capture a few shots. They turned up the heat during freezing weather.
Atom Son of Man
It was such a pleasure catching my friend Felix’s band, Atom Son of Man, rocking the unique space that is the Art Lab. With their energy, they made that small room feel like an arena.
Old Man Saxon
I couldn’t resist the unique lighting of The Magic Rat and took the opportunity to go see the provocative and prolific rapping of Old Man Saxon. He gave an amazing performance in front of a packed room, making it challenging to stake out a photo spot.
Cactus Cat
We stuck around the Magic Rat to watch the Cactus Cat, an eclectic band that features saxophones. Like many FoCoMX venues, Magic Rat remained crowded, confining me to sneak towards the front of the stage to get a few shots.
I had an early morning at work on Saturday, so we called it a night. After working for most of the day, Heart Medicine played our FoCoMX slot at 830 North.
Drifting West
Our good friends at Drifting West played immediately after us at 830 North, and I had my camera on hand to take advantage of their unique lighting. We go far back with this band, and it’s been a pleasure watching their band mature into their fantastic lineup.
The Pamlico Sound
We left 830 North and went to Odell Brewing Co. to see The Pamlico Sound. They always energize the stage, and in addition to their funkadelic music, they had dancers waving colorful fabric. It was one of the most entertaining sets we saw at FoCoMX!
Kind Dub
The weather got cold again, bringing a few of the previously outdoor bands indoors, including Kind Dub. They still rocked out Illegal Pete’s upper room.
Tim Hanauer
I went behind Illegal Pete’s, into Salt Road Brewing, and caught part of Tim Hanauer‘s set. Salt Road Brewing is quickly becoming one of my favorite places in Fort Collins to watch live music, it’s such a cool vibe!
Eclectic Pickup
I ended the night by catching Eclectic Pickup at Scrumpy’s Hard Cider. I was thrilled to see my friend Rob’s band get to play FoCoMX. It was a great way to end a fantastic musical weekend!
I always have a blast shooting bands and wish that time and opportunity would allow me to do it more often. FoCoMX fills my cup every spring.
This is an open letter to my family and friends who buy Broncos tickets from me.
TLDR: Ticket prices went up substantially from last year.
Last year, I wrote My Broncos Ticket Dilemma, detailing the latest price hike the Broncos imposed on season ticket holders and the effect it would have on people who attend Broncos games. One year later, the pricing has worsened.
Perhaps this is the price we pay for a successful season, as relevance is costly; maybe it’s ownership trying to squeeze fans by slicing the stadium into dozens of price points, drastically increasing prices for their new slices. It’s likely a little of both; this context will hopefully help people deal with the sticker shock I experienced last month.
I’ve updated my “transparency chart” detailing what I’ve paid for these tickets since 2021.
Year
Single Game Face Value*
Total Season Invoice Cost
Adjusted Sale Price**
Y/Y % Increase
Since 2021 % Increase
2021
$104
$4160
$110
–
–
2022
$116
$4640
$130
11.54%
11.54%
2023
$136
$5440
$144
17.24%
30.77%
2024
$151
$6040
$169
11.03%
45.19%
2025
$178
$7120
$188
17.88%
71.15%
* Years ago, the Broncos introduced dynamic pricing to mask the full-price costs they charged for preseason tickets. Now, they arbitrarily set ticket prices depending on the opponent and whether the game is in prime time. However, I’ve always maintained the same formula of dividing the invoice price by 4 (the number of seats) and 10 (the total number of games).
** My adjusted sales price has always been selling the preseason games by half, then spreading the other half between the other 8-9 games. For the 2025 season, the Broncos should have one preseason game and nine regular-season games (as I publish this, the 2025 schedule has yet to be released). I have never made a profit on any of my tickets, and in fact, I end up eating some or all costs on the preseason tickets.
Why the drastic year-over-year increase? When we moved down in 2021, the South Stands price was the same. Despite shifting one section lower, this was a horizontal move, price-wise. The Broncos then started slicing up the sections into more colors, first separating the 100 and 200 sections into two different price levels, ending with this year, where they introduced a “lower first level” section, shifting our 18th-row seats into that price. The 2025 map has every spectrum of the rainbow.
Once again, I’m forced to ask my family and friends whether you will accept a substantial increase to sit in section 133 for 2025. In full disclosure, I’ve already renewed the tickets, and after looking at the seat upgrades, I don’t foresee moving to a cheaper section this year, leaving two options on the table:
Maintain the same ticket-pricing formula. ($1,780 / 10 games ($178) + 1/2 of the preseason game ($89) over nine tickets ($9.88) ). This is the same formula I have used for nearly 20 years of having season tickets.
Sell each game at the Broncos-designated face value, with variable pricing per game. I’ve always been reluctant to pursue this approach, as it feels like the team artificially and arbitrarily sets the price based on early-season predictions. A terrible example of this was last year’s Chiefs game, where, despite being the most expensive game, it provided the least value, as the Chiefs rested virtually all of their starters.
One last thing: if you’ve been paying attention to the news reports, it’s apparent that Broncos ownership is serious about building a new stadium. A likely source of financing for the new stadium will be the requirement of a Personal Seat License (PSL), which requires season ticket holders to pay upwards of thousands of dollars for the privilege of owning season tickets. I’m adamantly opposed to this model, and given my finances, I will not be able to justify spending a “new car” amount of money for a piece of paper. As I see it, we probably have 4-5 years left of ticket ownership.
Thank you for taking the time to read my thoughts. I’d be anxious to hear your thoughts on whether you’ll be interested in continuing to attend games with me or going in my place. As the years go by, I’m reminded how blessed I am to be able to experience these games with you and cherish each opportunity to do so. Please feel free to comment below, or email me at jeromey [at] balderrama dot org, especially if you’re interested in being included in my “Broncos friends” list.
![Revisiting the Broncos ticket dilemma 1 year later [Spoiler: it’s worse]](https://www.balderromey.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/IMG_0183-1-768x350.jpg "Revisiting the Broncos ticket dilemma 1 year later [Spoiler: it’s worse]")
