Last Saturday was a beautiful day here in Northwest Arkansas. While David was deep in the Ouachita Mountains in southern Oklahoma shooting a mountain bike race, I was in Rogers, a town just north of Fayetteville (and where my grandpa used to live, as well as my aunt and uncle) covering the first of the OZ Kids Criterium races put on by the Ozark Outdoor Foundation. A criterium is a bike race where the riders ride laps on a closed course. With this series, the number of laps is determined by the age of the rider. For instance, for the youngest group, they only had to do one lap around the block; the oldest group, the 11-12 year olds, they rode for 8 minutes, which was roughly five laps.
The air was buzzing with excitement as everybody got ready for the first race. I found my place directly in front of the starting line, sat down and prepared to shoot the tiny riders as they came flying at me. Thank goodness for the very tall husband of a friend of mine who stood directly behind me, guiding traffic around my crouched (and slightly terrified) body. We would share a big laugh each time the last rider rode past us, me a little wide eyed and slightly breathless as I recovered from seeing my life flash before my eyes.
Before I knew it, it was time for the podium awards and the end of the event. I couldn't believe how fast four hours flew by. I guess time really does fly by when you're having fun!
