“Rocky Mountain Hi, how are you.“ This feeling of exhilaration seemed to fill the rarified air, with every moment of every day both breathtaking with a blend of the past and present, waiting to be taken advantage of.

The striking pink 1891 gambling casino was transformed into a grand resort by Spencer and Julie Penrose, who recognized the significance of Pikes Peak. He built Pikes Peak Road as an alternative to Cog Railway, and later purchased and modernized the railway.

The layout of the Broadmoor Golf Course and lavish adjacent hotel just absolutely reeks of tradition. From past presidents and politicians to celebrities, athletes and some of the greatest names in golf, the Broadmoor has been the perfect host not only as a playground to the rich and famous, but also to the public wishing to follow in famous footsteps.

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The Broadmoor has 11 exquisite eateries and 17 shops. After an afternoon of golf, we dined at Stratta‘s, named after Broadmoor‘s first executive chef, overlooking the East and West Courses. Stratta‘s standard of excellence still is maintained, insuring the present is a prime representation of his past attention to detail, both food-wise and ambience-wise. The adjoining Golf Club Grill features a limited menu of mouth-watering dishes from a Chicago style hot dog to a roasted Colorado sirloin of beef sandwich. The Pro Shop is named as one of the Top 100 Best Resort Golf Shops in the country.

For all you tennis enthusiasts (many of our readers are), there is tennis and instruction from International Tennis Hall of Famer, Dennis Ralston, who I dubbed the original tennis bad boy (in a good way) long before John McEnroe inherited this dubious reputation.

IF THIS ISN’T ENOUGH, be prepared to be pampered by the Spa at the Broadmoor, with hydrotherapy, choices of massage treatments, women‘s hair care, manicures, and facials using signature and name brand products.

So be a voyeur, and prepare to be treated like royalty. Where else can one get attitude and altitude in the same breath?

The Broadmoor features 45 holes of championship golf below the mountain encasing NORAD with chimes sounding from the Will Rogers Shrine. Because of the many women‘s tournaments played on the East Course, we selected it for our round of golf.

Originally, the East Course was designed by architect Donald Ross, who used environmental factors, including the Colorado altitude, to design a devilish layout with a great level of technical difficulty. Later, Robert Trent Jones, Sr. was commissioned to design additional holes, now called the East Course.

Some notes of interest include hosting the 1959 U.S. Amateur Championship won by Jack Nicklaus (remember him), his first U.S. Amateur victory. Judy Bell, the past president of the USGA, who calls The Broadmoor her home course, was the captain for the women in the Curtis Cup Championship in 1962. Juli Inkster won at the Broadmoor in 1982 for her third consecutive U.S.Women‘s Amateur title. In 1995, the East Course hosted the U.S.Women‘s Open, marking Annika Sorenstam‘s very first LPGA victory.

AND THERE’S MORE. The Broadmoor has one of the largest caddy programs in the country. More than 80 highly trained caddies give one the experience of the heritage and tradition of this great sport.

The East Course was challenging and fun, but the highlight of our round was playing with the resident Operations Golf Professional, Cathy Matthews. What a classy gal, with personality, professionalism, and a playability to be envied by all. Cathy is also a great teacher of the game as indicated by her heavily scheduled appointment book with both men and women. As Rosemary and I were warming up on the driving range, Cathy was giving a rather in-depth, personalized hands-on lesson that I was trying to eavesdrop in on.

After introductions, Cathy graciously agreed to play a complete round of golf. So, who was I to argue. Cathy and I played the tips (back tees). Throughout our course of play, I began to realize why she is the professional and I am the amateur.

One of the best parts (among many) came on an especially long and difficult par 3 with a 210 carry to a back right pin position. Weeds, reeds and critters were in the front, with an elephants burial ground for a green, surrounded by water and generous helpings of sand traps adding to the degree of difficulty.

This wasn‘t the hard part. Apparently, word had reached staff members, grounds crew and most all employees connected with the course. As we approached the tee, there had to be at least 30 people standing there, waiting to watch Cathy hit her shot, and for me to do whatever. With a big gulp, and being the classy guy that I am, I whispered to Cathy, “Ladies first.“ (She had the tee anyway.)

What a consummate pro Cathy is. She stepped right up, and proceeded to whack her ball on the green. I didn‘t know how much noise 30 people could generate. You would have thought she had just won the U.S. Open. When Cathy turned to me, grinning like a Cheshire cat, she gave me a high five that still stings today.

As I was preparing to hit I thought, “Where is everyone going“? Oh, well, they have seen the best, here is the rest. Not to give my shot away, let me just say this, “I‘m proud to say I hit that shot `like a girl.‘“ Hooray!!

In parting, I made a suggestion to Cathy and the staff. Remember when doing a pro forma touting this great area, “never mention the rain.“ Just indicate from time to time, “we experience that `good ol Mountain Dew!!‘“