Some experiences you only get once and have to jump on. For me this was playing soccer (a sport I am admittedly terrible at) with Chef’s Jose Andres, Marcus Samuelsson, Tim Love, and two of Jose’s daughters, Carlota and Ines, in the Jerome courtyard on Sunday of the Aspen Food & Wine Classic. With Cochon 555 winding down, a full belly, and a nap at hand I walked out of the Jerome to find an enthusiastic soccer game in full swing. Moments later Jose Andres was calling for a 6th player and I volunteered.

To put it kindly, I got schooled. Whoever decided to put the to Texans (Tim Love and I) together, both out of breath at altitude, must have known how good Carlota was since she carried the team. The photos above capture some highlights - my team “Switzerland”, as Ines named us, consisted of Carlota, Tim Love, and I, celebrating a goal I’m sure Carlota scored unassisted, and lots of me being outplayed by Jose. It took a few hours to get my heart beat back to normal, but it was worth every second. If you’ll have me back, can I be on the Argentina team next year?

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