Hickenlooper takes leap into unknown as Democratic convention host.

• Author: Cote, Mike
• Position: COTE'S [colorado]

You've seen him sky dive. Now watch John Hick-enlooper take another big plunge this month as the Democratic National Convention comes to Denver.

With the international media spotlight locked on the Mile-High City from Aug. 25-28, he'll be trying to make sure it shines in all the right places.

The mayor jumped out of an airplane in 2005 for a TV commercial promoting Referendums C & D, the bipartisan effort to loosen the stranglehold on state services by the Taxpayer's Bill of Rights.

This year, Hickenlooper took another adventurous leap of faith when he signed on to help raise $40 million to pay for the four-day event. But we're talking about a much different brand of adrenaline.

"Jumping out of the airplane was the most terrifying thing that I have ever done or ever will do," Hickenlooper says.

The convention will be Barack Obama's international coming-out party, especially now that he'll be accepting his presidential nomination before up to 75,000 people at Invesco Field at Mile High.

Such a history-in-the-making event, however, will drape a mighty large set of coattails across Denver. Riding them hard on behalf of the city and state will be the guy who has crisscrossed the country over the last several months trying to secure enough donations to pay for the giant political party and economic bonanza organizers estimate will generate more than $200 million for the region.

He's the one who will get a big slice of the credit if this all goes off without much more discord than haggling over the fenced-in stomping grounds for protesters near the Pepsi Center or the cofor of food delegates will be eating.

Problems Hickenlooper considers "teeny."

"We didn't have a big issue, a big problem," he says. 'Where are the protestors? Are the protesters too close to the media?' We looked at the geometry of the site, and it was the only place it could work. If that's the worst problem that we have, I think we're doing pretty well."

Will Denver be ready for a supercharged throng of protesters hellbent on stealing some of the attention from the political establishment?

If Hickenlooper is worried about it, he's not letting on. Rather than the 50,000 estimate that's been bandied about...