It was late February 2014 when U.S. Sen. Cory Gardner entered the race against former Sen. Mark Udall and three other prominent Republicans quickly exited.

The rest is a bedtime story for the children of GOP hopefuls and a campfire tale for wee Democrats.

But as Republicans seek to triumph in Colorado’s second Senate seat in 2016, no such fairytale is emerging.

On the contrary, last week when state Rep. Jon Keyser from Golden and Colorado Springs businessman Robert Blaha entered the race, the eight other candidates didn’t seem to bat an eye. Another potential candidate, still mulling a bid, didn’t blink either.

Democrats said the crowded field is a sign “2016 promises even more fireworks and infighting.”

Republicans have a different take.

“It is obvious why we have a big field, and that is because Michael Bennet is a very weak U.S. senator who has not represented the people of Colorado well,” Colorado GOP Chairman Steve House said. “When someone says we don’t have a Cory Gardner in the field, I say at this point we didn’t know how strong Cory Gardner was either.”

House said the purpose of the March 1 caucuses is to begin to whittle down the list.

“I think we will have a multicandidate primary, and that primary will allow the people of Colorado to have a number of really good candidates to choose from,” he said.

As to how many candidates appear on the primary ballot in June, it depends on how many petition onto the ballot by collecting signatures from all seven congressional districts – a process political experts say can cost around $30,000 – and how many attend the State Assembly on April 9 at The Broadmoor World Arena.

GOP delegates from all 64 counties will vote on the candidates at the State Assembly, and any that receive at least 30 percent will make the ballot.

If judging front-runners by those who Democrats are targeting, Keyser, Blaha and state Sen. Tim Neville make the list.

“It’s clear that Jon Keyser is the candidate that Sen. Bennet fears the most in this race,” said Matt Connelly, spokesman for Keyser’s campaign who also worked on Gardner’s campaign. “He knows that Jon is strong on national security issues.”

Keyser is resigning from his seat in the Colorado House of Representatives.

Blaha entered the race Thursday and is spending money on TV ads, including one that aired after the Denver Broncos playoff game Sunday.

“Part of what is broken in Washington is that the protected political class gets there and stays there,” Blaha said.

He considers himself an outsider to that class, having never held political office. Much of the bank owner’s campaign is expected to be self-funded. Although he’s run for the 5th Congressional District, he considers himself a “unique candidate” that will run a “very edgy” campaign full of nothing but “straight talk.”

Neither Keyser nor Blaha has decided whether to petition on or go to the assembly.

Neville has decided to go the caucus route.

“We are a grass-roots campaign and I’m a grass-roots guy,” Neville said. “We’ve run in a very competitive race and won a very competitive race in a purple district that pretty much mirrors the makeup of the state of Colorado. And we’ve done that with a very strong conservative message.”

Neville said he is going to retain his seat in the Colorado Senate, where he represents Littleton.

El Paso County Commissioner Peggy Littleton might be the last to enter the field. She said Friday that she will make the decision whether to run by the end of the month.

The first candidate to enter the race, El Paso County Commissioner Darryl Glenn is standing resolute in his bid for the office despite the growing field.

“I’m a Christian, constitutional conservative that can win,” Glenn said. “I respect all the candidates in the race, and I hope that they support me when I get the nomination.”

Robert Blaha.

Darryl Glenn

Jon Keyser.