Several dozen cars were driving on a large frozen lake. Since I had nothing on my agenda for the afternoon, I took the next exit and found my way to this icy playground. Once I parked my little Civic, I began talking to an older woman who was sitting in a lawn chair in front of her RV watching all the action. She informed me about the ice racing club that hosts these events through January and February. Fridays are "fun days" for the club while Saturdays and Sundays are competition days. On the "fun days" anyone who has a 4-wheel drive car can come out on the lake for $5 and drive on the tracks. The lake has three tracks set up with orange cones so there is plenty of room for horseplay. Many of the cars were fishtailing and sliding all over the course. There were a few SUVs that putted around the cones...I'm assuming tourists stopping by to have a little fun before hitting the slopes.
The older woman was very nice and talkative. She told me how her family races every weekend during the season. Apparently her son, his wife and herself race a couple of Jeeps. At that moment several Jeeps roared on the ice making quite the entrance. She pointed out the white Jeep flying around the corner and said, "That's my son, there. He's practicing for tomorrow's race." We made a little more small talk before I walked down onto the frozen lake to get a closer look at all the action.
Before I knew it, the woman came up behind me and asked, "Do you want to ride?" My ear-to-ear grin probably said it all, but I confirmed with a "Uh, yea!" I didn't even know what I was getting to ride in, but I didn't care. Grandma Sue (as I learned later on) led me to the white Jeep and shoved a helmet in my hands. She yelled at the tall guy behind the steering wheel, "Hey Mike! She's going to ride with you on the next run." I introduced myself and I swear my voice squeaked, "I'm Rebecca. I just moved here." Not sure why I had to let him know that I was knew to Colorado, but I think my enthusiasm got the best of me by yelling random factoids.
I climbed into the Jeep while it waited in line with the others. After securing my helmet, I reached for the seatbelt. Ha! There was only a lap belt. Silly me was reaching for a harness strap or something that would secure me in a rollover. Grandma Sue said rollovers happen sometimes, but they're no big deal. I believe her words were, "They just push 'em back up and go race again if they can." I suppose knowing all of this just added to my adrenaline which was racing through my veins already. Before it was our turn, Mike's wife took my camera to capture my big moment.
The ride itself...AWESOME! I was on cloud nine the entire time. WAY better than any go-cart or roller coaster. Mike didn't go easy on the "new girl" either, which I was very happy about. I wanted him to focus on what he had to do to win the race tomorrow...and give me the ride of my life. Here are a few photos of my ride.
Best. Car. Ride. Ever.
Not sure if you could see my death grip on the roll bar in any of the turns. I suppose I was second-guessing whether or not I heard the seat belt "click". It's difficult to explain how thrilling the ride was, but I definitely recommend checking out Georgetown if you are ever visiting Colorado in January or February...even if you don't get a Jeep ride with a local.
I really needed a day like that since I moved out here. I was SO happy that afternoon.
If you're interested in seeing what the club is all about, here is a link to their Website.
The videos are great (although I will post videos from Saturday's competition soon.)
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