Article Contributed on: 4/22/2009 7:24:30 PM
After a successful round of new player recruiting events, the Denver Gaels are gearing up for travel and tournament weekends as well as the beginning of the annual spring hurling Pub League to be played every Sunday at Dick's Sporting Goods Park beginning in May. Shortly after the Pub League begins, the Gaels are sending a who's who of Colorado Irish athletes to the Rio Grande Celtic Festival in Albuquerque, N.M. the weekend of May 16 and 17. Every Denver Gaels team is planning to attend and participate in the festival including men's and women's Gaelic football squads, hurling, and camogie. Last year was the Gaels first opportunity to participate in the festival and they are honored to be coming back in 2009 and competing against fellow Southwestern Conference teams, including Phoenix, San Diego, and possibly Austin. For those interested in traveling south to a high-quality festival at the base of beautiful Sandia Mountain, it is a mere five to six-hour drive from Denver. The competition at the Rio Grande Celtic Festival will be worthy primer in preparation for the North American County Board Finals in Boston over Labor Day weekend. With the Labor Day successes in their sights, the mile high kingpins of Irish sport will be doing nothing but competing and fundraising throughout the entire summer. In addition to the hurling Pub League at Dick's Sporting Goods Park, the Gaels are hosting their annual benefit golf tournament, which is fast-approaching in June, specifically Saturday, June 13. It'll be here before you know it, so book your four-person team slot today. The following month, the Gaels will play host to by far the largest GAA event in the state at the Colorado Irish Festival presented by Colorado United Irish Societies the weekend of July 10-12. The Seattle Gaels hurling and women's Gaelic football squads are confirmed for attendance and competition. Other tentative teams planning to participate include the Chicago Wolfe Tones men's Gaelic footballers, and the Columbia Redbranch hurlers. This list includes some teams the Denver squads have never competed against so you won't want to miss this national exhibition of competitive Irish athletics. For more information on any of these events, especially the Spring Hurling Pub League, please visit www.denvergaels.com. You can also find and/or sign up for regular updates on the Web site, or email the club at denvergaels@yahoo.com. The Denver Gaels GAA club is non-profit 501(c)(3) organization and an official member of Ireland's Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA), the governing body of Irish sport.