Davis MTB Ride #2 Steamboat

For our Steamboat race, we felt more prepared and experienced. We decided to pack up the car and drive up on Friday since it's such a long drive. We found a cheap hotel with a kitchen and a loft that was close to the ride and Suzy and Garrett were ready to feed and care for our dogs while we were gone. We were a bit nervous about Davis's safety since our last race was such a spectacular fail, but he was excited and were too.
The beginning of our trip was not good, however. I loaded up the car and was ready-ish to roll out when Davis got off the bus from school, but when he got home, we realized his bike had a flat tire. We decided to change it before we left (terrible idea). This changing procedure was difficult and Michael was super frustrated and Davis was super frustrated and we waited and waited. It was pouring down rain. We finally got on the road around 5:30 and we had waited too long. A hail storm further west had caused a rock slide which closed both main arteries into the mountains. We were stuck. We drove around a long detour and finally got on the right road, but the storm had caught up with us again and it was pitch black by this time and the mountain passes were extremely dangerous. We hydroplaned and gripped the steering wheel and it was so late. We finally stopped and took a break and got gas and let the kids get their first gas station dinner in their lives while we decided if we should get a hotel or push through. Eventually we pushed through and after another hour and a half of white knuckled terror, we made it to Steamboat safely.
We carried all four bikes up four floors to our room plus all our luggage and fell gratefully into our beds.
The next morning dawned fresh and crisp and cool with blue skies. We made breakfast and drove across the street to the botanic garden. Michael and I really enjoyed exploring it while the kids played on the playground and we saw a hummingbird so close to us it was unbelievable!
Next we drove to the bike/adventure park and checked it out and then did the Alpine Slide. It was so fun and because of a delay of wet slide and the ensuing frantic start of the staff, they forgot to take our tickets! Sam especially loved this activity but we all had a great time.
Then we drove into town and had lunch at an AMAZING taco restaurant called Salt and Lime. After lunch, we drove to the other side of town and let the kids scooter on the skate park while we walked along the creek and played Harry Potter on our phones. Eventually we made our way back to the bike park for Davis to meet his team and go on his pre-ride. He loved the course and said it was really fun and beautiful. While I waited for him to ride, Michael took Sam back to the Alpine slide where they used our tickets to go twice more. It was a great win for them!
That evening we took Alex and Barrett back to our hotel to play in the game room and then went downtown to our team potluck. It was a pizza place and was lots of fun. We sat with Alex's dad, Joel and had wine and pizza and had good chats with other parents and the coach. Michael found out that he and Coach Stanley went to the same prom in high school! The kids on the team all disappeared and came back with cowboy hats! They were so cute in their cheap hats. Then it was straight home and to bed since Davis had the first time slot in the morning.
We woke up to a beautiful, cool day. We drove early to the course and the kids did their morning ride and then lined up. Sam headed straight to the skate park on property. We watched the kids take off (Davis was in wave C due to his hard race before) and then went to the finish line area to drink coffee and wait. It was a splendid morning. The grass was green, the weather perfect.Soon Davis came tearing down the hill from his first lap with a huge grin on his face. Oh how I cheered! I was so relieved that he had a good first lap! Then we waited again and cheered on all the kids who rushed by us. Eventually Davis showed up again, healthy happy and pedalling his heart out. He made it through the course safe and sound and happy! We were so happy. He had a good time and all was well.
After the race we let him visit for an hour or so and then we packed up and headed home. We really wanted to beat the Sunday afternoon mountain traffic. As we drove home we saw a storm gather behind us over Steamboat. We really lucked out as a terrible storm hit and cancelled all the rest of the days races and the kids on the course had to evacuate. We missed it all and despite a few rainstorms, made it safely home in good time.
We had a great race and were really happy. It made us look forward to the next one!