MichaelC recounts a unique family adventure at the Georgetown Burro Race in Colorado, where his wife, TracieC, competed with her burro, Buttercup. This post captures the spirit of a quirky local tradition, subtly weaving in Audemars Piguet through accessories and a Royal Oak Offshore, offering a charming glimpse into a collector's lifestyle beyond watches.
On Saturday May 24, 2014, Audemars Piguet accompanied TracieC as she ran with her burro in picturesque Georgetown, CO. This might be a good time to point out this was not an officially sponsored AP event, but rather TracieC wore her Audemars Piguet sunglasses as she raced along the mountains with Buttercup, her assigned burro for the race.
Georgetown is a beautiful mountain town that began in 1859 as a mining camp. It is a great tourist destination, and we typically take our children here at least once a year.
The main street runs North to South, and served as the finish for the 8.5 mile race.
And look at this, a familiar hotel if Nicolas and Friends happen this way...
There was actually some more "official" AP representation on site in the form of the venerable Rubens Barrichello II Royal Oak Offshore chronograph:
Looking towards the finish line after the first pack of contestants arrived:
Many of the 50 runners needed well over 2 hours to make it in. There were some extremely close finishes.
Burro racing is actually a sport, and it is indigenous to Colorado. There are a few theories as to how it started. One claims that if two miners found gold at the same time and in the same location, they would need to race back to town to be the first to file a claim. Apparently, nobody thought to leave their slow burrow behind and just run alone. Hence, we have this sport. The burros are actually required to carry a saddle loaded with 33 pounds of mining equipment. Runners are not allowed to ride aboard their burros, however, the rules do allow for the runner to carry their burro. I did not observe this practice while watching the race
At last TracieC turned the corner and headed for the finish line with Buttercup in a respectable 31st place. Tracie loves to run and decided on a whim to complete this event, which turned out to be super cool.
The fact of the matter is if you have a stubborn animal, you are pretty much dead in the water. This guy turned the corner when his burro decided another 50 yards was too far. He pulled and pulled but until the animal was ready to go it did not matter.
Buttercup and Tracie with her good friend Amber, and her burro Zeb:
It was a bit exhausting awaiting Tracie's arrival, but a local burger joint refueled the kids and I after the race.
Next year I might need to bring a Royal Oak clock to the finish line and at least outfit Tracie with a proper AP shirt. Who knows, we could be looking at a future AP Ambassador here, although I doubt Buttercup will make the cut...
