More Racing!

Thankfully I wasn't racing, I was just spectaing. Last Saturday Court and I went to the Highlands Ranch Oktoberfest. Why is it in September? I think it's because by October the weather can be very unpredictable. Anyways, we hit Oktoberfest at 2:30 and quickly grabbed an authentic white sausage, sauerkraut and German potato salad. It was from a place called Helga's, and man was it good. We saw their restaurant menu and they had Radler and ColaWeissen! We grabbed an Erdinger and sat down to eat.
At 3, it was the main event. The ever popular sport of Daschund racing! That's right, they had 16 little weiner dogs race about 10 yards. I guess last year they tried to race about 30 yards, but the dogs couldn't finish or got distracted. There were 4 heats of 4 dogs. One person would hold the dog at the start, while their husband or wife was at the finish line with a tennis ball, hot dog or dog toy. The racing was tight and the winner of each heat went into the finals. The last race went to the wire, and the Daschund that won last year was again triumphant. A true dynasty in weiner dog racing. I can't wait for this event next year.
From there we went to the Parker Oktoberfest! Again, another Erdinger, but no authentic German food. Instead it was Boston Market, not bad, but not great. The great thing about the Parker Oktoberfest was that it was in conjunction with the Parker Crit. So we got to drink, eat and watch some really fast racing. The first race we saw was the kids race. The girl with the 10 speed bike destroyed all the others on their BMX bikes, some with training wheels still. What struck me was the little kid that came in 3rd. When he stopped in front of his parents he was in tears. I thought maybe he fell, but he was upset that he didn't win! He was yelling that he lost, despite the 10-15 kids that came in behind him, he was inconsolable. The parents were trying to show him the kids that he beat, and told him that the 2 kids in front of him were older, but to no avail. I struck me that this kid may just have the attitude it takes to be a champion some day! Thankfully 20 minutes later I saw him running around with his friends with a big smile on his face.
The men's Pro Cat 1/2 race was super fast and was practically in the dark! They started at around 7 and rolled around for an hour before it finished in vicious sprint. Taylor Phinney, the 17 year old prodigy and recent World Junior TT champ showed why he's a talent to look for in the future. He didn't win, but he was certainly up front and pushing the pace.
Sunday was an early day as we both went to the Harvest Moon 1/2 IM. I had 2 athletes racing in preparation for IM Florida and I wanted to support them. Plus, Court was shooting, so why not make a day of it? Both of my clients had strong showings, which was a great sigh of relief. I really get nervous when I watch a client or Court race.
This week I have started to bike a bit and swim. I feel good and will be ready to go for the Soma 1/2 IM in Tempe, Az. on Oct. 28. In between I will be racing some cyclocross events. I started racing cyclocross last year and had a blast. I grew up racing BMX bikes on a local and national level, so getting back to some techincal riding brings me back to the good old days.
Now it's all about having a good time and training when I feel like it. After a full week off I was really looking forward to getting back into some training. The crisp fall air really energizes me and gets me moving. I hope that everyone gets a chance to enjoy this time of year!

Train Safe!

AJ