Comet II – Santa Rosa, New Mexico
Shake the hand that shook the hand of…The Vitamin Kid. At 87-years young, the Vitamin Kid–once the fastest runner in Guadalupe County–has slowed down just a bit, but he’s still as sharp as a tack, retaining an encyclopedic memory of details that would make a great novel. Fittingly, a novel–specifically Rudolfo Anaya’s immortal Bless Me Ultima—is where many of us became acquainted with the fleet-footed Vitamin Kid, one of Antonio Márez’s best friends. While Márez, Ultima’s precocious protagonist, is based loosely on author Rudolfo Anaya, the Vitamin Kid was based on Johnny Martinez who’s also become a legend in the Land of Enchantment. Johnny Martinez and Rudolfo Anaya were friends and neighbors in Santa Rosa during more innocent times. Back then…