A Weekend In September

Though every sign of fall is here, summer's just not over till LOTOJA weekend comes.  The race is always the second Saturday in September.  It is greatly anticipated for several reasons.  For Keith, it's the grand finale of his summer bike training.  It's the camaraderie, the thrill of competing, riding, drafting, pushing his body to the limit, trying to beat last years times.  Here are this years Farm to Market Pork team members at the starting line.

Uncle John and my cousin Barry started the team off around 7:40am. 

And their off!  This looks like a pretty small group, but it is only one of many groups that start every 10 minutes between 5:30 and 8:00 in the morning.  All told there are around 1400 riders on the road at any given time during the day.  The race is 206 miles long, so one must start by 8am if they expect to finish the course before nightfall.  Our team is actually split into two relay teams.  They each take one or two legs of the course, so each one rides anywhere from 35 to 92 miles total.

And here I am with the boys.  Mom is taking the photo.  No, we are not with the LOTOJA crew this year.  In years past we enjoyed riding in the sag wagon, cheering the team on.  I even road a 35 mile leg of the course for a couple years.  However, this year we chose to stay local and participate in the Old Bill's Fun Run for Charities.

Tyler and Boyd at the staring line.

Monte - all smiles because he get's a balloon.  I love how easily amused they are at this age.

And now you can see why I was looking forward to this weekend.  Although I enjoyed the LOTOJA in years past, I enjoyed Old Bill's even more.  Mom time.  Gramma time.  Excercise.  Sunshine.  And all at a kid's pace.  I like kid's pace.

The flag marks this finish.

Real troopers.  Thanks for making this happen, Mom!

Monte enjoying a snack of yogurt, granola, and berries at the finish.

And here they are, back in Montpelier.  Dad and Keith about to start their first leg of the relay.  They are waiting for Duane and Kenny.  Waiting sounds boring, but it's actually part of the excitement of the ride.  You know approximately how long it should take the riders on any given leg, but it could be up to 30 minutes more or less depending on what is happening out there.  So you wait, but you're poised to go at any moment.  As soon as those riders come in, two team members grab their bike, two transfer their timing chips, and the fresh riders are off in a flash!  

Dad and Keith had two mountain passes to climb and then a very speedy decent into Afton, WY.  I'm pretty sure they set a record for that leg this year.  Then the chips were passed to Duane and Janette, who pounded out a fast 35 mile stretch and passed the chips back to Keith and Johnny.  They powered out the last 47 miles from Alpine to Teton Village.

The boys and I spent a relaxing afternoon at home while Mom did my grocery shopping and helped us prepare the evening meal.  When everything was ready, we drove out to the village to watch the riders cross the finish line.

Keith and Johnny sprinting in around 7:39pm, just under 12 hours.  The best time in 4 years.  Go Farm to Market Pork!

Hugs at the finish.  Our good friend Chris Betzinger leaning on his bike in this photo.  He had just completed all 206 miles by himself!

Big smiles - great job guys!  I love this photo because Monte is really giving Johnny a good look over!  And then it was back to the house for the evening meal and a little visiting before bed.  Every year there are high points and low points to be hashed and rehashed, but this year everyone was just thankful to have finished safely.  This year marked the first fatal accident in the 30 year history of the race.

Love you Mom and Dad.  Thanks for sharing the weekend with us and for all your help.  Thanks also to everyone else.  As always, you made it a VERY enjoyable weekend!!!