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Cheap Maya margs, Mike Johnston on tap at Westin Riverfront on Thursday

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September 18, 2017, 12:06 pm
Mike Johnston christiana guv event 011917

Former state senator and now Colorado gubernatorial candidate Mike Johnston speaking to supporters at his family’s Christiana Lodge in Vail on Jan. 19.

This statement will get me in trouble with other restaurants I frequent, but Maya serves some of the best margaritas in the Vail Valley. And this statement will get me in trouble with some of the hordes of other Dems running for governor, but Vail’s own Mike Johnston is one of the best.

Notice how I hedged there? “One of the best” means I can still head to Sweet Basil in Vail for one of their legendary margs, and I can still give kudos to Donna Lynne, Jared Polis and Cary Kennedy as they all jockey for the Democratic nomination in the 2018 gubernatorial campaign.

The O Zone by David O. Williams

The O. Zone
by David O. Williams

But let me be clear, Johnston – a former state senator and soccer star at Vail Mountain School whom I covered as the Vail Daily sports editor waaaay back in the day – is currently my frontrunner as a relatively youthful, progressive voice the Dems so desperately need these days.

Come meet him and enjoy one of those aforementioned Maya margs for just $5 at 4:30 p.m., Thursday in the Westin Riverfront Resort and Spa in Avon. You know you’re looking for an excuse to cut out early from work (event runs till 6:30) and celebrate the last day of summer.

What better way than to enjoy some $2 beers, $3 tacos and, oh yeah, some of the Vail Valley’s best guac, as well? Check out the details on Johnston’s Facebook page by clicking here, and come hear what the Obama administration education advisor has planned for Colorado. His TABOR explanation alone is worth making the time.

And if I know Johnston, which I think I do fairly well by now, the conversation will not be limited to politics. Expect things to verge into sports after the Denver Broncos so soundly defeated America’s (Former) Team, the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday.

That was a segue, if you didn’t notice.

Interesting how well the Broncos handled the rain/lightning delay on Sunday while the playoff-chasing Colorado Rockies absolutely collapsed after the more than hour-long delay. The Broncos scored another 35 points after the break, while the Rocks were shut out and coughed up four runs and the game.

All the Rocktober remembrances from 2007 were nice over the weekend, but that team, which finished the season winning 21 of 22, would have found a way to win Sunday’s game. Meanwhile, the Broncos look to be for real, running the ball and playing D like it’s 2015.

Despite the Rockies disappointing failure to sweep the woeful Padres on Sunday, Colorado did take two of three and continues to lead in the wildcard chase – good experience for a bevy of young pitchers who should give us great hope for the future. And the Broncos won and won decisively, going 2-0 on the season, so it was a great weekend in Colorado all around.

And Saturday saw the debut of an event that hopefully becomes an annual tradition at Beaver Creek – the Hike to the Mic event featuring one of my bucket list performers, Elvis Costello, and Nederland’s own Elephant Revival. My first time for both bands, and I was not disappointed.

Fantastic venue on the flat open space in front of the mid-mountain Spruce Saddle restaurant and glorious fall weather. The bartenders were slinging some fine margaritas of their own, and both bands truly delivered in an afternoon show that electrified a good-sized crowd.

Deer were spotted on the ski run above the stage, and we saw a fairly large black bear saunter across the slopes on our way down. Really good energy, a great event overall, and hopefully a fall fixture for years to come. Kudos to the Beaver Creek Resort Company.

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David O. Williams

Managing Editor at RealVail
David O. Williams is the editor and co-founder of RealVail.com and has had his awarding-winning work (see About Us) published in more than 75 newspapers and magazines around the world, including 5280 Magazine, American Way Magazine (American Airlines), the Anchorage Daily News (Alaska), the Anchorage Daily Press (Alaska), Aspen Daily News, Aspen Journalism, the Aspen Times, Beaver Creek Magazine, the Boulder Daily Camera, the Casper Star Tribune (Wyoming), the Chicago Tribune, Colorado Central Magazine, the Colorado Independent (formerly Colorado Confidential), Colorado Newsline, Colorado Politics (formerly the Colorado Statesman), Colorado Public News, the Colorado Springs Gazette, the Colorado Springs Independent, the Colorado Statesman (now Colorado Politics), the Colorado Times Recorder, the Cortez Journal, the Craig Daily Press, the Curry Coastal Pilot (Oregon), the Daily Trail (Vail), the Del Norte Triplicate (California), the Denver Daily News, the Denver Gazette, the Denver Post, the Durango Herald, the Eagle Valley Enterprise, the Eastside Journal (Bellevue, Washington), ESPN.com, Explore Big Sky (Mont.), the Fort Morgan Times (Colorado), the Glenwood Springs Post-Independent, the Grand Junction Daily Sentinel, the Greeley Tribune, the Huffington Post, the King County Journal (Seattle, Washington), the Kingman Daily Miner (Arizona), KUNC.org (northern Colorado), LA Weekly, the Las Vegas Sun, the Leadville Herald-Democrat, the London Daily Mirror, the Moab Times Independent (Utah), the Montgomery Journal (Maryland), the Montrose Daily Press, The New York Times, the Parent’s Handbook, Peaks Magazine (now Epic Life), People Magazine, Powder Magazine, the Pueblo Chieftain, PT Magazine, the Rio Blanco Herald Times (Colorado), Rocky Mountain Golf Magazine, the Rocky Mountain News, RouteFifty.com (formerly Government Executive State and Local), the Salt Lake Tribune, SKI Magazine, Ski Area Management, SKIING Magazine, the Sky-Hi News, the Steamboat Pilot & Today, the Sterling Journal Advocate (Colorado), the Summit Daily News, United Hemispheres (United Airlines), Vail/Beaver Creek Magazine, Vail en Español, Vail Health Magazine, Vail Valley Magazine, the Vail Daily, the Vail Trail, Westword (Denver), Writers on the Range and the Wyoming Tribune Eagle. Williams is also the founder, publisher and editor of RealVail.com and RockyMountainPost.com.