The Odessa Record -

The 47th Odessa Deutschesfest appears to have drawn a good crowd. No final figures have as yet been submitted to The Record, but our view from being at various venues was that lots of people came and all appeared to be having a good time.

The book sale that benefits the Odessa Public Library made its largest profit ever. Nate Lathrop of Rolling Thunder Pizza and sponsor of Saturday's all-ages dance and Sunday's motorcycle show called it "the best Fest ever!"

A description of some of the events follows below. We will cover other events next week as more information comes into our office.

On what has been dubbed "Pre-Fest Thursday," the chalk-drawing contest sponsored by Wheatland Bank and organized by the staff of the Odessa branch drew the talents of 56 kids from Odessa and elsewhere. They competed in four different age groups, with the bank staffers doing the judging and awarding the prizes. Each child who participated received free items donated by the bank, and the winners in each age group received a $25 gift certificate for Grannie BarBar's baked goods.

In the age group for 2- to 4-year-olds, young Adam Squire was the top artist as judged by the bank staff. Among 5- and 6-year-olds, Aubrey Iverson took the top prize. Claire Squire, sister of Adam, took the top prize for 7- and 8-year-olds (quite the artistic family). In the oldest age group of 9- to 12-year-olds, Dakota Steward took the top prize.

Following the chalk-drawing contest, most of the youngsters made their way to the starting line for the trike races on First Avenue, sponsored by the Hair Haus and Odessa Trading Company. Like the chalk-drawing contest participants, the trike racers were divided into groups by age. In the youngest group, Teryn Carroll, daughter of Eddy and Mahki (Voise) Carroll, was the winner. In the second-oldest group, Kaleb Walter, son of Stephen and Barbara Walter, took the top spot, ending the race with his signature spin-around stop. Aiden Schmierer, son of Deric and Marra Schmierer, was the winner in the older age group, his first win, he told The Record, with a very big smile on his face.

The bed races on Thursday night followed the trike races. Six participating businesses entered beds and vied for the championship. The final heat was especially hard fought, as the second-place team is responsible for organizing the next year's races. The team from Carpenter, McGuire & DeWulf claimed the championship, sprinting down Odessa's main drag for all they were worth and edging out the accounting firm of Leffel, Otis & Warwick, which even had mostly younger bodies involved in the race. In this case, however, experience won out over youth.

The annual 5K/10K run/walk started at 8:30 on Saturday morning under clear, blue skies and a cool, but reasonable, temperature. About 25 people participated, about half running the course and the other half walking.

Running the 10K distance in the men's division, the top two finishers (with their times) were:

1. Andrew Griffin – 43:17

2. Jason Weeks – 58:54

The 10K for women awarded medals to the top three finishers:

1. Makayle Leffler – 53:03

2. Anna Heninger – 55:16

3. Shannon Hodge – 56:45

In the 5K men's division, the top three were:

1. Travis Schuh – 20:24

2. Jayd Jennings – 20:40

3. Steve Kramer – 24:03

In the 5K women's race, three racers earned medals:

1. Kaci King – 25:33

2. Grace Nelson – 40:39

3. Sydney McDonald – 40:40

The Deutschesfest Bike Show, sponsored by Rolling Thunder Pizza in downtown Odessa, was held between noon and 2 p.m. on Sunday, with trophies made by Odessa Designs awarded at 3 p.m.

Winning first place was Bob McKee on his pink and yellow Harley chopper. Second place went to Bob Cole of Odessa, with his 2007 Harley Heritage Classic in black and cherry, and third place went to John Hardt, also of Odessa, with his 2005 Heritage Classic blue Harley Davidson.

Coming from Moses Lake, the Sons of Redemption Motorcycle Ministry rode in at the end of the show and offered special bike blessings for those at the bike show. "Several participated in this special moment," said show organizer Nate Lathrop.

This was the first year of the Sunday bike show, and seven bikes participated. "[Just] as our car and bike show at Spring Fling doubles in size every year, we expect the Deutschesfest to do the same. See you next year!!" says Lathrop.