It was great fun talking about the politics of Gov., John Hickenlooper with two of the best, Krista Kafer and Steve Kelley, during drive-time radio Tuesday.

What else have you got to do in a traffic jam until the legislature gets it in gear on House Bill 1242? (You can listen to me, or watch the guy in the next car pick his nose.)

The topic was Hickenlooper’s popularity and what that might mean to his future.

We discussed my Monday insights column, in which I wrote about how Hick’s popularity at home stacks up against other governors, and how I’d have a hard time not liking a governor named Butch Otter (though some folks in Idaho feel differently).

But Hickenlooper’s strong numbers in a state as purple as a bruise gives him swagger among national possibilities to resurrect the Democrats from their heap on the left. I maintained my drumbeat that when Hickenlooper leaves the governor’s office next year he’ll run against Republican incumbent Cory Gardner for U.S. Senate.

Colorado’s quirky voters — much like those in purple-to-blue states that like their Republican governors — seem to gravitate to a likable guy in the middle. Someone like, say, Butch Otter.

As Krista, Steve and I discussed, that tendency of Colorado voters could have legs beyond a mythical Gardner-Hickenlooper matchup in 2020, such as what kind of candidates have the best shot at replacing Hick as governor next year. (HInt: quirky commercials, friendly demeanor, middle-of-the road policies.)

But oh what a matchup between the popular governor and the Senate star on the rise. In Colorado politics, that would be Sugar Ray Leonard vs. Robert Duran. (Sugar J. Hickenlooper?)

Check out our chat:

Agree? Disagree? Concerned about Krista’s sneezing?

Hit us up on Twitter: @joeybunch, @kristakafer and @kelleyandco.

Steve and Krista are on 710 KNUS weekdays from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.