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Wired for joy

Twinkling inklings of childhood spark dazzling displays

Jay Dedrick, Rocky Mountain News

Published December 14, 2006 at midnight

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The best things about the holidays are constants.

Homeowners celebrating the season by stringing yards of twinkling lights around their roofs, porches, trees and fences — that isn't changing.

Families piling into cars to enjoy a slow ride around the neighborhood and take in all those bright sights — that isn't changing.

But locating the biggest displays around town and plotting your driving directions? That's changing. For the better, we hope you'll agree.

With this year's Holiday Lights Guide, the 17th annual edition from the Rocky Mountain News and CBS 4, we're moving our maps from these pages to our Web site, RockyMountainNews.com.

How far you drive and how many homes you see are up to you — just decide where you want to start, and Yahoo! Local Maps will provide step-by-step driving instructions. The database draws on more than 300 addresses submitted by readers.

Also new this year, we've partnered with YourHub.com to invite more homeowners to show off their displays in their own photos and words. If you didn't submit your photos in time to be included in the maps, you can still show off your hard work: Post your address and photos at denver.yourhub.com/holidaylights.

To get you into the mood, we offer a roundup of 10 favorites around the metro area, based in part on polling at RockyMountain News.com and YourHub.com, where visitors have been ranking photos of displays submitted by readers.

• Kevin Hart and Kim Weibert

1188 Clubhouse Drive, Broomfield

See the house and vote

The Candy Cane Express chugs along tracks around the yard, where a 10-foot-tall Ferris wheel has been added this year. Kevin figures he has about 70,000 lights strung up on the house and throughout the yard. An animated Santa Claus in the window springs to life when children take a look. "The kids go crazy," he says. "That's what it's really all about. It's the coolest thing."

• Mickey and Nancy Michel

10680 W. 78th Ave., Arvada

See the house and vote

The dark-brick ranch-style home has been transformed into a gingerbread house this year. For Mickey, decorating the house is a tradition that dates to his childhood home, a farm in North Dakota.

"The neighborhood enjoys it," Nancy says, "and we enjoy doing it."

• Jon Johnson

9107 S. Buck Hill Drive, Highlands Ranch

See the house and vote

It was a bit embarrassing: neighbors of Jon's offering to pitch in a few bucks for the electric bill generated by the impressive lighting display at his house. He always refuses, but decided this year to take folks up on their expressions of generosity. So when motorists roll by to see his and other outstanding homes on the block, he hopes they'll stop long enough to drop off a toy in a collection box for Toys for Tots. He'll then ensure they're delivered to the nearby fire station. "It gives me a good feeling, contributing to the spirit of Christmas," he says.

• Karen Vaught

13941 Tincup Circle, Broomfield

5 questions for Karen Vaught

Karen Vaught, who is a general contractor, built her Broomfield home in 1989 with Christmas light displays in mind, and each year it attracts throngs of visitors. She says that she spends well over $1,000 during the holiday season for her light display.

• Richard Finley

61 W. Cedar Ave., Denver

See the house and vote

The Baker neighborhood sponsors its own lighting contest, and Richard won the past two years. "It's a small house, just one-half of a duplex, but it's the bright spot on the block," he says of his home. "Neighbors stop by to talk to me about it and thank me. That cheers me up and makes the neighborhood more fun." This year's display is the biggest he's done yet, thanks to the addition of 120 electric candy canes and Santa on the roof amid a flurry of snowflakes.

• Victor Chappell

3584 S. Pitkin Circle, Aurora

See the house and vote

"When I was a kid, my dad never decorated the house," Victor says. "If we got a tree up the week before Christmas, it was a miracle." Chappell's wife made it clear that wouldn't be the case at their home. What started small has become grand over the years, to the point where he decorates the backyard, too, inviting visitors to stroll by a 20-foot-long toy ski lift. He has nearly 2,000 candy canes at the ready, too, which Santa gives away at night. "In this world we live in," Victor says, "we've got to have some fun once in a while."

• Chuck and Theresa Fedor

5564 S. Uravan Court, Centennial

See the house and vote

Simplicity and precision are the keys here, where clean lines of lights outline the home's eaves and windows, as well as the perimeter of the front yard. Trees and shrubs out front are aglow, too, making for an especially stunning scene when there's snow on the ground.

• Barry and Diana Ogden

2294 S. Ellis St., Lakewood

See the house and vote

The couple bring to life a whimsical toyland. Groups of carolers, angels, elves and dolls — all made by Diana — bask in colors from 20,000 lights. "My dad used to take me to look at the lights, and I loved riding past other people's displays," Barry says. "We do this to make other people happy, especially the kids."

• John and Pam Zalesky

1771 S. Ames St., Lakewood

See the house and vote

A train, a Ferris wheel, a ski lift — and eight speakers piping Christmas tunes from a 100-disc CD player. All part of the holiday carnival that glows with 45,000 lights and sees visits from the Grinch and Cindy Lou Who on Saturday nights. Says John, "When you see the first little kid outside, and his eyeballs are the size of 50-cent pieces, his mom and dad can't keep up with him as he's running to look at the train — it makes all the effort we put into it worthwhile."

• Alek Komarnitsky

2510 Blue Heron Circle, Lafayette

See the house and vote

A pop-culture explosion dominates the landscape here, where Elmo, Homer Simpson and the Incredible Hulk cavort with Santa and Frosty. Some 20,000 lights provide the holiday glow, which is captured on a trio of Web cams. Alek either irked you or amused you two years ago with his hoax: He falsely claimed that his lights were being controlled by visitors to his Web site. Like last year, he insists it's for real now, and he continues to use the site — — to promote donations to the University of Maryland Center for Celiac Research.

Road rules

When you head out to view the lights, keep in mind these tips and rules of the road:

• Tour a neighborhood you're familiar with or at least where you're confident you can find your way around.

• Carpool. It's more fun and better for the environment. And don't try to do this alone: Let one person drive and another navigate.

• On high-pollution days, don't drive. For current pollution conditions, call 303-758-4848 or go to

• Take a flashlight, rather than try to read maps or driving instructions by the car's interior light.

• If you become lost, try to accept it as part of the evening's adventure and look at the lights along the way until you come to a familiar street. It's easy to get turned around, especially in some of the suburban neighborhoods, with all those twists and turns.

• Have fun. Enjoy the glow.

More leading lights

The staff at YourHub.com chose five extra addresses for honorable mentions in this year's Holiday Lights Guide. These five homeowners, along with the 10 featured in this story, have won annual subscriptions to either the Rocky Mountain News or The Denver Post.

• Mike Lucketta, 5026 W. 61st Place, Arvada

• Stanton Miller, 10600 E. Sixth Place, Aurora

• Mary Giarratano, 13683 W. Bates Ave., Lakewood

• Janice Snidow, 12551 Ash St., Thornton

• Jim Ruscetta, 9821 Upham Court, Westminster

There's still time to show off your own display this year. To post your address and a photo online, go to