WI Thanksgiving Trip

Headed back to WI for a pre-Thanksgiving trip so decided I'd post a few pics. Reminds me of when we were all kids. And WI still gets snow! ;) I think a fun time was had by all.

Camping, hiking, and biking

Four other trips and outings for this summer included a fun, girl hike on the Sourdough trail in RMNP with my friend Karen - an attempt at the Little Matterhorn, a trip to Buena Vista where I got to enjoy a cool, flower and aspen tree ride on Kenosha Pass, hike beautiful Mt. Missouri, enjoy some rainy tent camping, followed by a foggy, mystical attempt up the climber's route on Mt. Massive. Last weekend - another rainy weekend, had an awesome fall-like bike ride with a new friend Shane up Dadd Gulch complete with topo map exploring and views of snowy peaks! And this week spotting a young bear happily scratching his back against a telephone pole not far from where I live. Another trip to Leadville hiking Mt. Massive, enjoying a moonlight and headlamp lit hike to treeline where the morning sunlight started taking over.

And this week - preparing for school Monday. Working on my downstairs bathroom. Not wanting the summer to be over. Looking forward to our WWR team bbq Saturday. One more race to be had.

I would *still* like to make it up Long's Peak this summer/fall. Would still like to get up on top of the Little Matterhorn. Want to enjoy more camping. Pups and I want to swim. If only there were more days. Once again, how a good summer should be - wanting more :)

Aaron and I got in our year long quest to make a trip to Water World where we had an awesome day sliding down way too crazy slides and I satisfied my screaming quota for the year. Getting that tickling stomach feeling sliding over the edge. And enjoying a nice dinner in Denver at the Paramount Cafe.

Looking forward to a visit from my friend Boris over Labor Day, if he can make it out.

Making new friends and contemplating life directions. A nice summer.

Stuffs

WWR Race - 2008!

It's been quite a while since I've shared anything online. This summer has really been good, but busy and still going. For the most part, this summer has been really enjoyable, getting to enjoy parts of Colorado - just being outdoors. And appreciate the hills just outside my door. And getting connected with people who live nearby.

One event that was really fun for me this year was the Wild West Relay running race from here to Steamboat Springs. I'd done this race last year, but this year, for whatever reason was really great and fun. We had a 12 person team, once again organized by Jason Welch. He's such a great, positive guy and puts in a lot of effort to get enthusiastic runners on the team and organize everything down to 3 ring binders filled with useful race info and spreadsheets so we can track all our times.

This year we rented two large vans for our team. There are 6 people per van. The runners cycle through one van running 6 legs of varying distances, and then you meet up at a van exchange point, and the next van of runners takes over. This happens 3 times throughout the race, so each runner runs 3 legs over the course of 24 hrs. There are 6 person teams as well, which would take much more training and planning as you're running a heck of a lot more and down time is nearly non-existent.

The running this year was good - pace-wise for me, similar to last year. In parts a little faster, on one leg a wee (very wee) bit slower.

The cool part was the team dynamics. Going into the race this year, I have to admit I was a bit reluctant. I knew I had fun last year, but this year between injuries and knowing it's going to eat up an entire weekend (starting Friday), and not feeling super close to any of the team members, I had mixed feelings. But, injuries, last minute seem to stabilize for the better and things were on. And looking back, I'm very happy they did. It was definitely one of the highlights for my summer.

In our van, we had Phil Yastrow (energetic, positive guy from work who has a fondness for anagrams - and high school - and came up with our team name, "Combatant Foot Still Sore," and made us cool team hats to explain the name), Kristin Smith (aka, Syd who's a strong runner - and mom and ran our longest van leg), Mike (Avago customer from L.A. - and super fast marathon runner - who joined our race, thanks to Phil, not yet knowing anyone on the team, combining it with an Avago visit. Gutsy guy), Adam (aka "Sandbagger" who really doesn't know how fast he runs and always smashes his predicted race times), and Troy (Adam's longtime college friend who would prefer to be camping alongside everyone else but active sprinkler systems seem to have differing ideas), and me (aka KD who was thankful when leg 2 was over and even more thankful to have gotten some sleep, happening to miss the sprinklers, making my unhappy stomach feel better).

We ran hard, there were many stories to be had. Late night spaghetti eaten, scary bugs investigated, personal habits known. Phil was quite nearly swallowed alive by mosquitoes, although we didn't let on to the extent of his predicament - thanks to Kristin, we were able to aid with bug repellent wipes - what appeared to be hairy legs, were really mosquitoes - yikes! Adam had to run w/o water - from our team - b/c I misjudged how long it would take to get to him - and he ran *really* fast. Mike ran so fast his warm-up runs could have taken him all the way to Steamboat and back.

Van #2 had an equally fun time and group. We got to hang out amidst wild flowers and pine trees cheering Jason on as his approached Rabbit Ears pass.

Our van arrived in Steamboat first, where we appreciated showers (and a swimming pool) complements of Phil's condo connections, followed by a tasty breakfast. And finally waited to cheer the rest of our team on!

I think our team finished 42nd out of 128 teams, not bad. Best part was the bonding and hanging out during the weekend. The running hurt, as usual. Had a nice, relaxed drive home. Was kinda sad to be leaving the group! How a good time should be :)

Getting up High

Saturday I decided to bike from near my house to the top of Trail Ridge Rd in RMNP - don't know the exact distance. The initial plan was for my friend Karen and I to ride from my place to my friend Bill's up in Winter Park, but we couldn't snatch a ride home, so plan B was to head to the Visitor's Center up on Trail Ridge.


For some reason the font wanted to do interesting things up above - ah well :)

Karen and I picked 6am on Saturday to start this adventure. The early start time had me worried as I hadn't gotten enough sleep all week. But, alarms set, we were ready to go. I really had no idea how my body would take this. I'd never ridden this far, ever (nearly 100 miles), and with a fair bit of climbing.

Alarm went off at 4:30am, I recall hearing it, but not enough to really wake me up. At 6:15am (after we were supposed to meet), I finally wake up to the clock radio playing. Oops. Try calling Karen and getting ready fast, but I'm totally dragging. Get critters fed, shower, lay down on the bed and fall asleep till 9:30am. OK, this didn't happen for me.

I did appreciate the sleep though :)

Got a lazy start and thought, heck, I'll at *least* bike up to Estes Park. So, got on my bike, still grabbed all my gear, which really wasn't a lot but did include food, extra gatorade powder, rain jacket, etc.

Started climbing. I was feeling really good biking up the Glen Haven route to Estes. Feeling strong. The sleep totally helped. Crested peering down over Estes and not feeling bad at all. The temps were great, nice and cool (I started just after 11am). The last time I rode up to Estes I felt noticeably tired/worked once I reached the top. Not this time. Coasted down into Estes. Still my plan was to stop in town, eat my sandwich, hang out for a bit, and ride back.

Well, town was busy. I spotted the Dairy Queen which didn't take long to entice me in. I decided a hot fudge sundae (small one) was in order. Sat outside enjoying my ice cream, watching all the people. Mtns were dark with rain up high. But I'm still feeling good.

Though, huh, I'll just bike *towards* RMNP, at least get in. Heck I've got a pass anyway. And can bike in as far as I want.

Got into the park - Hwy 36 entrance. Start pedaling up. The grade was nice and easy. Hmmm, I could do this for quite a while. The park was beautiful. Nice and green, flowers blooming. Still some snow on the peaks with little waterfalls running down. Nice. Started thinking I might just head all the way up. I was still thinking Karen was up ahead since I saw a green car at the school house down below. Little did I know that wasn't hers. Thought I'd just turn around and head back with her if she came down.

The weather was holding - or really clearing over the mtns. Awesome! I might have a shot at this. The farther I got into the park the more excited I got. Rounding the big bends in the road, taking little breaks to fuel up and take some pics.

Eventually the trees were getting more sparse and I was approaching the high road. There was some distance up high to really reach the top but the grade was never bad. Easy to keep trucking along at a nice pace.

Along my journey up kept leap frogging cars who'd stop at the look-out points. Started getting lots of cheers and thumbs up from passing by cars and people. This just made me more excited to get to the top. And push harder. I was still feeling good.

On top the views were nice. Learned there was some elevation loss to get to the visitor's center, but I really wanted to get there. There was a nice descent, another climb, and then a longer descent to the VC which was pretty crowded with people. Arrived at 5:45pm with 15 min to spare for getting food.

Chatted with a few folks who said they'd followed me all the way up :) I was getting a little worried b/c I could see rain coming in from all around. Did not want to get stuck up high, especially knowing I'd have to climb, descend, and climb again just to reach the top. Grabbed a ham and cheese sandwich, a nice big cookie, took some bites, snatched some photos, used the bathroom, and I was off.

The ride back down was nice. My butt and hamstrings and triceps were a little tired from staying in a constant position going down. Once I got to lower elevation and my fear of getting stuck up high in bad weather was gone, I ate my sandwich and cookie, which I was thankful to have gotten.

Ran a little late getting down the Thompson Canyon. It was most definitely pushing darkness, so I was really careful to stay on the shoulder. Got back to my car at 9pm. Wee hee! Did it! I was pretty excited. And felt really good. My legs were worked, but I totally wasn't wasted.

Headed home for some puppy lovin' and a nice shower.

A good day.

Old Stomping Grounds

Saturday got the spark to head down towards Colorado Springs - a place I lived and loved the summer after my sophomore year of college, doing my first internship.

The area near the Springs is so amazingly beautiful. I always forget just how much I love it down there. All the pine trees and mountains and green - it's just an amazing landscape.

It was time to get outa Dodge and just have a fun day.

One of my favorite trails down there - not long, but fond memories is a trail in the town of Monument, just north of the Springs, that loops around Mt. Herman. The trail is always fun, and beautiful, and never ceases to be an adventure. Typically the adventure starts towards the end of the trail b/c it's always ambiguous how to get back to civilization, and once you figure that out, how to find the car. Getting back is almost as adventurous as riding the trail itself. Although the trail, imo, though short, is well worth anyone's time.

You park on the flats, which already has pine trees. There's a labyrinth of trails, meandering up and down towards the mtn. Lots of fun. Once you get near Mt. Herman, you start climbing on the Rampart Range Rd, which I think goes for at least 25 miles (the road, not the route to the trail) and can take you all the way to Rampart Reservoir, a huge beautiful reservoir that overlooks Pikes Peak. Another place that's awesome to go.

One day I'd like to explore the entire Range Rd. This time I climbed up towards the trailhead and beyond by at least a couple miles, just to see what was at the top of the hill. It was evident the road continued in similar terrain for some time, so I headed back to the trailhead.

Back in the day, the trail started at the location of a small shooting range. You actually had to ask the shooters to stop shooting so you could ride through the range and get up and away on the far hill, which was their shooting barrier. Kinda funny, I think. The shooting range has since moved. :)

The trail is somewhat gravely - small 1/2 inch size broken dirt of sorts. A turf common around Colorado Springs - like lots of broken up pieces of sandstone. The trail starts off climbing in the woods, and then starts the little ups and downs heading towards the backside of Mt. Herman. Each descent is interesting b/c it's a little steep and really lose. I was freshly in my clipless pedals, and being that I was on my own decided to err on the conservative side. Next time I come back I won't b/c this trail is just so fun. It did seem to be more eroded than in the past, seemingly from recent rains.

After some fun climbing and descending, through woods and over roots and rocks, passed streams, you plunge to the valley and things open up to a nice little meadow behind Mt. Herman where there tends to be lots of nice plants and wildflowers.

The trail continues till you climb back out on the north side of the mtn and begin an interestingly loose and long and kinda exciting descent towards the front of the mtn.

This time, found a new trail that appears to head upwards on the mtn, looking like a nice hiking trail. I did not venture far on this as it appeared to be a lot of climbing and hike-a-bike, but would be cool to come back and explore sometime. Also, there is another trail intersection on the backside I'd like to explore. I'm guessing it comes in or starts from further up the Range Rd. Need to get a map of this area.

The venture back to civilization did not let me down, and it still proved an adventure, but I'm getting better at finding my way back out. It seems inevitable that you have to cross private property posted with no trespassing signs - the trails drops you out between two gates, both stating "Keep Out". I've gotten yelled at here before but have no idea what other way you'd exit the mtn. And you can tell quite a few others have done the same.

Enjoyed that ride.

2nd venture was to head down towards the Air Force Academy and see if they still let visitors onto that campus. Apparently yes, although the security is much stiffer than when I lived there.

Decided to hike a trail that was my favorite at the time. A hike up to Stanley Canyon reservoir. The hike is scenic, with some rock scrambling. You get up to a cool little mtn reservoir where I felt the water temps (warm), took off my shirt, and jumped in. The favorite part of my day. I'd have stayed in longer had I not needed to get back to the Fort.

So that was my day Saturday. Made my mood happy.

Bloody Knee

So it's been quite a while since I've had a skinned up knee, but tonight did a good one. Did a late mtn bike ride which was fun, but was coming down the Mill Creek trail after dark w/o a light - getting close to the bottom. It had rained so things were wet and rutted. Hit a log wrong mostly cuz I didn't see it and went down skinning my knee.

I quickly, kind-of instinctively brushed it off, all the dirt. Which was good b/c shortly after that I started riding and could feel a fair bit of blood running down my leg to my sock. It was dark, so I couldn't see anything.

Felt like I skinned it, but didn't hurt too badly. I could feel the blood continue to run down my leg though, to the point that I could feel my sock getting soaked. Hmmm, haven't had *that* feeling before.

Got back to the car, all is well, packed stuff up. It's still dark, so still couldn't see things very well. Got sort-of an evaluation inside the car, but not too good. Could tell blood ran all down my leg.

In the car, it was still dripping - I think the seat in the Mazda now has blood marks.

Got home, took care of critters. My sock and shoe were notably red, as was my whole lower leg. Oops.

Finally got to the bathroom and did clean-up. Took a while just to soak it with warm water since a lot had already dried. My sock looked like a lost cause. One of my favorite biking socks. But, biking socks must be made with this in mind cuz the blood came out amazingly well. I was really surprised how *much* blood was in it though. It was rather impressive. You'd think I did something bad. :)

Finished up with peroxide which stung, and then took advantage of the nice bandages I got a while back - mostly for potential critter injuries.

All is well.

I'm starting to think I should keep a first aid kit in my car cuz this is the 2nd blood incident this week. Sat I was getting ready to ride up to Estes Park. Flipped my road bike upside down to put in the front tire (I'm in a habit of doing it this way now from my mtn bike). Anyway, for whatever reason I decided to spin the tire. Not thinking, I started fastening the wheel to the fork and stuck my finger into the spinning (and bladed) spokes, taking off a nice chunk of skin off my finger. Once again blood everywhere, with no bandages, and the yucky part is that the skin was still stuck to the spoke. Eew.

OK, enough disgusting stories!

Have a good one :)

Holiday weekend

The holiday weekend was pretty good. The goal was for relaxing. Enjoyed watching some fireworks by Horsetooth reservoir Friday night with the pups. The night was warm and I headed down towards the marina where they let off a few fireworks. Enjoyed hanging out under the stars with the pups.

Saturday was hot, but I was really looking forward to a nice bike ride. Rode up to Estes Park which I haven't done in some time and it kicked my butt, but was great. Karen and I want to ride from here up to Winter Park this summer on our road bikes, so this is step one in preparation.

Last weekend headed out to my friend Bill's in Winter Park and had a great time with him. Decided to take a look at the distances, and it looks like from here to his place will be just shy of a century, which would be totally cool. I've not ridden 100 miles in one shot yet. This would be fun. May have to loop around Winter Park (town) to get in the full 100 miles. Would be worth it.

Sunday was home and critter stuff. My lawn got mowed (which is pretty big), but thankfully only have to do it a couple times each year! Took the pups down to the river for play. Baka decided to roll in something really nasty, so it was a good reason for puppy baths.

Read a little and did an evening run up on the North Fork trail up the Thompson. One of my favorite trails. Ran out to the first larger meadow and hung out for a bit. So pretty. Was kind-of a contemplative weekend, but nice.

Winter Park fun

Got to head up to Winter Park Saturday and had a pretty great time biking with my friend Bill (who's also my brother's long time friend). The plan was to also meet up with my friend Brian and crew and pre-ride a race course, but we ended up splitting into two rides and I joined Bill. Was fun.

We rode from just above Tabernash to the Tipperary creek trail. The trail conditions were really good and the weather was great.

The trail has a nice climb followed by a fast descent. We then meandered towards Winter Park. Had some lunch and met up with Bill's wife Patty and friends and got to enjoy music at a Blue Grass festival. Everyone was super nice.

Headed back Sunday morning, thanks to Bill and Patty for letting me stay at their place.

Critters got a bit of a late breakfast but it was a great weekend and hopefully they'll forgive me. :)

Simple pleasures

Was feeding the horses this evening.

They were out on the big pasture - a treat for them. I could see Misty way in the far corner of the field. Rasheed was out of sight, eating grass in the ditch/ravine.

I thought about just leaving the corral gate open for them. Figuring they were enjoying the evening out. But decided to call out their names. Immediately Rasheed's head popped up and both horses game galloping in full speed, entering the corral full of spunk.

Those two really enjoy each other's company. And it was kinda cool getting their attention so easily with just my voice.

I've thought of selling Misty - to someone who wants a more laid back horse, but she's a pretty good girl. And watching them together makes me think it's unlikely I'll separate them.

Can't go by feel

So, they finally posted the 2008 race results for the Buffalo Creek Tri. The results were interesting - at least to me.

Since they nicely keep up the results from over the years (and I'm bad about saving that stuff), I could compare.

I knew my overall time was much slower this year than in 2005. And somewhat slower than I raced it in 2006. I didn't race last year (this one). What's interesting is the breakdown.

------------2008--------2006--------2005
Swim:------40:21--------37:39--------31:17
T1----------3:02---------3:08---------3:56
Bike--------2:22----------2:18---------2:09
T2----------1:07----------2:10---------1:47
Run--------48:21---------49:57---------49:47
Overall-----3:55:01-------3:51:44-------3:36:09
Place-------58th/85-------40th/51------26th/40

By feel, I knew I was going to do worse in the swim - it's just hard to get good propulsion in the water without being able to flex one's ankle. This was reflected, although I didn't do too much worse than in 2006. I did *way* better in 2005. The `05 race was just after a 6 week swim clinic where we focused on efficiency and T pressure and rotation and did about a million drills - in addition to being critiqued. This clearly helped.

T1 transition times - nothing notable here, except that I've gotten a little faster.

The bike leg surprised me a little - not majorly. Biking is the one thing I've been able to do. I think I was more fit in `05. Would have expected better than '06 perhaps but I did also have shoe lace/pedal tangling issues, wiped out once, and had to stretch my back a couple times on the climb back up.

T2 - this year I biked in the same shoes I was running in, since I was using cages - so that time is of course faster this year.

Now the kicker - to me. I figured I did *way* worse on the run this year. I felt like I was just surviving - and walked several of the steeper hills - just had nothing more. Had a hard time lengthening my stride (very short steps). But, I actually ran it faster this year than the other two years I raced! This part was funny to me. Totally not what I'd have thought. Especially since I haven't been able to run!

My only thought is that my running style has improved over the years, and even though I felt slow, I was still actually running better.

So that part was interesting to me. There are more things I can read into these times, but those were the interesting tidbits I thought I'd share.

Coolant boiling over not good

There are certain things you only do once..

For me, locking the keys in the car - with the car running (and my wallet inside), running out of gas (I think I was ~16 - this was in WI) - thankfully this occurred while rolling into the gas station.

Well today it was realizing it's been too long since I've had the oil changed in the Mazda (oops!)

Took a day trip to a new (to me) bike trail near Nederland. It's a nice climb to the trailhead. Heading up the hill, the Mazda is just not producing power. I'm thinking, darn, the old power issue is back.

Pull into the parking lot, park in the shade, get out, and I hear not good sounds coming from under the hood. Some kind of "churning". Huh.

Decide I better open the hood before it stops so I actually have a clue what's causing it. Open the hood and the coolant is boiling violently and running out the overflow hose. Uh Oh.

I decide to leave things be for a bit, change my shorts (into bike shorts - no other accidents), get my bike down... bla bla bla. 10-15 minutes pass, the coolant is still boiling, but not quite so violently. I decide I better check the oil. Huh... pretty much none left - like slight wetness at the end of the stick. Uh Oh. The smell of the burning coolant isn't so great either.

Now, I'm pretty much in the middle of nowhere. The good part is that it's basically a coast back down into Boulder. Worse comes to worse, I could bike to town, get oil, and bike back.

Good part #2 is that the car has not yet seized up. Yeah!

I decide, since the car is hot, I might as well bike. The ride was nice. Need to head back to this area. Didn't get as far in as I'd have liked b/c mid-afternoon storms were moving in. I was on the Switzerland trail, which is essentially a jeep trail that takes you down to an old little mining town (I'm guessing that's its origin) and back up another mountain. There are great views of the Indian Peaks mountains as well. Snow capped. Super pretty.

After about 1 1/2 hrs I'm back at the car. Boiling has stopped. Engine is still a little warm. The coolant has all but boiled out. So, I added water from my camelbak.

Drove almost the entire way back to Boulder (~15-16 miles) in neutral. Yeah for downhill! I kept an eye on the engine temp too - it seemed to stay stable in a safe zone. Good thing. Also turned the A/C off and just had the windows open.

Stopped at the first gas station. Added 2 quarts of oil - to a nearly dry reservoir. And headed back to Loveland, where I stopped right away to have the oil changed. They also sucked out all the water I added and re-added coolant. We also had a little chuckle about the adventure.

Good part is that it appears I didn't do anything too bad to the car. I'd waited a bit over 6000 miles to do the oil. I generally let it go longer than 3k, but didn't intend to wait this long. I'm blaming it on the window reminder sticker that fell off some time back.

This is making me think I should carry some spare oil in the trunk, just in case. I was lucky at when this happened. It could have happened while driving somewhere longer and me not know anything is wrong until the engine seized up - which definitely would have been worse!

That's the story! Perhaps it is a good idea to check the oil from time to time.

XTERRA Racing

Saturday was the Buffalo Creek XTERRA race I competed in - it kicked my butt - and I'm glad I did it!

This particular race has been my favorite out of all the races I've done - it was my first tri (and race) ever 4 years ago and got me hooked. Then, I did the sprint, but as soon as I finished my thought was - I shoulda done the full course!

Headed in Friday evening - it always takes me most of the day getting my gear together for racing, camping, and getting the critters set for being pet sat.

The folks that put this race on are super nice. I know they don't know me, but you get to know them over the years. I have gotten to know the "ambassador" for this race, Rodger, and his SO Theresa (who's a kick-butt competitor and trainer).

This race has grown to nearly 600 competitors across all the events (full course, short course, and youth race). It doesn't "feel" that big though, and that's why I like it. You camp right by the lake, which is amazingly beautiful. You're up in the mountains. Everybody is super nice. Would be an awesome race to bring the pups to. And between camping and the lake is the start.

Going into it, I knew I wasn't really race prepared. This was a long course, and I'd not even gotten 10 runs in over the last 7 weeks. I'd done two 6-7 mile runs up at HT, one 6 mile flat run, and the rest were 3 miles or less. Typically I'm running 2-3 6 mile runs per week. Big difference!

The swimming has been interesting as well since I can't flex my right ankle. Hard to quantify how that affects my kick, but being that my kick is typically my strong point in the swim, surely doesn't help.

Set my alarm for 6am Sat morning - actually started getting up ~6:15am. Race didn't start till 9:30am for me. Plenty of time. I'd gotten my bike all ready the night before, and all my gear. Put on a new rear tire, since mine was getting bald. Also, Friday afternoon decided to put on my cage pedals. I've not ridden with cages in 4-5 years, but decided attempting to ride competitively for 20 miles on flats would be insane (no way I could even try to compete). I decided to trust my 16+ years of experience with the things - that it would come right back (and it did, they worked well).

I think the race coordinator's wife really likes Enya and John Denver because that's what we wake up to each year. The music gets progressively more up-beat after that. Some people weren't so excited that it started blaring at 6:30am, but I found the music calming, and I love it!

I don't know if I'll admit what *my* pre-race, get excited, music is :)

There was ample time in the morning to eat, get stuff over to transition, do a warm-up run, etc.

The lake (surprisingly) wasn't too cold. It was about 65 degrees - according to the race folks. Mornings in the mountains are obviously nippy, so the wetsuit was welcome none-the-less.

Stuff kicked off. The first 1/4 mile of the swim is always the worst for me. It's when I hyperventilate a little. You have a mass of swimmers heading out into the water, fighting the shallow, muddy start. The good part here is that there are so many bodies and bubbles, sighting the direction isn't really needed. Just follow the mass.

Eventually, people start spreading out. And me being a strong (but not fast) swimmer, I fall back to the rear. It's always hard to tell how many people are behind, but the majority are ahead.

The swim had 2 laps. Swim out, around two buoys mid-lake, and back to the start where you round two more buoys and get to run through the mud in the shallow. The hardest part for me is 1) planing out well in the water, getting good glide 2) not zig-zagging all over the place. I tend to wander a bit, generally drifting to the right.

On the way back from the first loop I was feeling better - definitely not in great swimming shape, but I could keep it up. 2nd lap, I rounded the buoys just as the gun fired for the short course racers. Back in a mob of swimmers. I decided this was really a good thing b/c out on my own I had the tendency to get a bit lax in my efforts. I kinda need the competition. Plus, these swimmers (most of them) were more my pace. Most were fast outa the gate, but I tended to catch and pass them. This made me feel kinda good.

Finished the swim, out onto the bike. The scariest part, by far, of the bike were the sections of gravel roads. 1 mile descent at the start with pot holes plenty big to swallow tires and sharp turns on lose gravel. I opted to take it easy on this part and not wipe out. This is where Derek, 2 years back, took a digger and was none too pleased.

After the descent, the climbing starts. There is a fair bit of climbing on this course. I've never looked at the course profile, but I think it's a decent mix of up and down. Total cross country style, faster paced, not too technical. Nice sections through the woods. The course follows National Forest trails (single and double track) most of the way. Get some awesome views of the snow-capped mountains.

I thought the trails would be really snowy and wet, but it was warm there and they were dry. Apparently low enough elevation.

Had a little mishap right at the start with my shoes and pedals. My quick pull laces on my Salomon running shoes nicely tangled in my pedals, so had to stop twice at the start of the rocky bits to fix that.

I loved the downhill sections, and did ok on the climbs. I definitely made use of the cage pedals - they were a big help.

At some point during one of the climbs, the view was really nice. I made a comment to another racer, and he said, "yeah, it's nice to have something good to look at when you're hurting!"

I did catch folks on the bike. Was passed by some, but not many.

The bike had sandy sections. Took one digger on a faster bend. My front tire started washing out. I hit a small burm of sand and went over, doing a nice shoulder roll. My right foot happily slid right out of the pedal cage (very happy about that). It was fast and didn't hurt (no scratches even), so I was immediately up and back on the bike.

The last 3 miles of the bike are a grueling climb back up towards the transition area (on the gravel roads once again). This is where I really started to hurt. My lower back hurt the worst. I had to stop 2-3 times for just a few seconds each to twist and stretch my back. Then continue.

Getting to the top I was definitely feeling spent and very ready to be off the bike.

Then running! Damn I'm tired. The run starts with a climb (of course). It's a nice run, mostly on trail. You climb to the top of a waterfall, down and around the lake. Most is in the woods. You can hear the announcers at the finish b/c the sound travels well across the lake. The last section you run along the beach. Very pretty.

The run was 5 miles long. Somewhere mid-way a guy passes me, we say some words briefly and he encourages me to lengthen my stride. I appreciated this advice and tried to take action, thinking this would be much easier if I *didn't* feel like I was going to keel over! The flat sections of the run felt ok. The inclines killed me. I *did* walk sections. Haven't done this for some time.

My ankle did well. I wasn't going very fast, so it was unlikely anything too bad would happen. I did take it easy coming down the stairs by the falls.

I was really happy to come to the finish! I did it! Woo hoo! It was not a stellar performance, by any means, but I felt good accomplishing it. It's been some time since I've pushed my body this hard. Reminding me what it felt like.

As soon as my timing chip was taken off, I walked over to the lake, took off my shoes and socks and number, and went in - no wetsuit. I swam happily in the water playing, swimming underwater and all for at least 15 minutes. It was great! And probably did my ankle well.

This is turning into a marathon story, but some following thoughts - I really liked the challenge of the race - motivates me to train harder. I also would like to get involved with the race setup or take-down. I really have an affection for these races and think it's good to be a bigger part of it. Do something for it - not just take away. So this is something I'm thinking about.

Saturday night was spent at my friends Aaron's and Jen's Colorado wedding party which was lots of fun, and I was happy to have gotten to go. Aaron has been a friend for a long time, working and biking and hiking and camping and he's now got an awesome wife Jen.

When I got home I was super wiped! Today was much more low key. Lots of critter play. Did get in a short bike up at HT.

That's the scoop! Pictures are up on flickr - the scenery was pretty.

Racing!

Getting ready to race Saturday and I'm starting to get excited. This will be my first race this year - an XTERRA off-road tri in Bailey, CO. It's been iffy whether or not I'd be able to compete due to my ankle, but I think I should be able to do it, being careful.

I head out Friday, mid-day. Camp overnight and the race starts Saturday morning at 9am (XTERRA race time!). It's a 1 mile swim (in cold mtn water), a 21 mile mtn bike ride on a fun cross country style course, followed by a 6 mile run up the side of a mtn, to the top of a waterfall, and back down to the lake where you run along the beach. Not a bad course.

Had a nice bike ride tonight with my friend Kevin - a good, fun ride. Explored a little jaunt of a trail up high on the mtn as the sun was heading down in the sky - very pretty.

Also saw a wild turkey and the tiniest little baby deer I've ever seen. It was only about a foot tall. I accidentally scared it, but it seemed like it didn't have a mama. So that made me sad. Cute, spry little thing.

Trail report

Kevin and I rode the Ginny trail Tuesday night and it's in great shape to ride now. Everything is green from the rain, the trail meanders through the burned forest and there are tons of purple an yellow flowers out, especially on top.

The view out the back side is super nice. So, if you're looking for a good trail to ride now, this would be a good one!

Bike mechanics

This evening got in a nice, shorter ride, and came to some conclusions on bike mechanics.

I've been trying to figure out why, with my flat pedals, I've been having such a tough time on the technical and/or steep ascents.

What I've determined is that do get up bigger obstacles or on steep climbs, I need to get my weight forwards to keep weight on the front tire and throw myself over bigger obstacles. Well, with the flat pedals, to provide drive, the forwards force needs to come from the rear with the pedals at least slightly angled downwards in the rear to prevent my feet from flying off forwards. Well, these two requirements (weight forwards for climbing, force back and down for pedaling) are kinda mutually exclusive, at least for my body and ankle flexibility. And so, b/c I now fear the ever present danger of pedal spikes implanting in my leg, I opt for weight back, which makes it quite nearly impossible to climb well. And, there is no way I can lift "up" on the pedals for additional drive.

I'm kind-of excited to figure this out - exactly what's been the difficulty.

I've yet to switch back to my normal pedals, mostly b/c I can tell that motion, for my ankle (I'm sure everyone is sick of hearing about it) is not yet healed. I may be forced to move back to cages. I've been reluctant b/c - A) they are klunky, B) the motion to step out of the pedals is very different from using clips (called clipless, go figure!).

Some pros to all this: I've gotten pretty good, in general, of having nothing holding my feet to the pedals. Also, I've moved to working on lots of service road climbs, since early on I couldn't handle the technical and need to suddenly step off. I've started learning the benefits of climbing roads in the fitness department, something I would rarely work on or focus on otherwise (simply b/c it's not "fun"). I'm hoping this will pay off in Bailey b/c that ride has lots of not-so-technical climbing, and it's a longer cross country race.

One more tidbit I'd thought about. Since the topic came up over the weekend on "chain suck" mtn biking, this was on my mind too (I really should move to mechanical engineering instead).

Chain suck (in my experience) typically happens when the chain is dirty and/or needs lube. The chain gets bound up in the derailleur, causing the pedal action to jam and come to a sudden stop.

Well, was thinking about this today, about exactly what is happening to cause this phenomenon.

I think this is what happens..

From going around the front cog, the chain is bent into an arc. There is a lot of force in the chain at this point causing this to occur. Well, as the chain leaves the cog, the links should unbend and travel straight towards the rear cogs. If, however, the chain is dirty or dry, this straightening does not happen immediately b/c the links aren't moving freely against each other. The links stay in the arced position for too long, traveling up on the cog and essentially the chain doubles back on itself, jamming in the derailleur. This is my theory. It's hard to watch this in action b/c it happens so fast.

End of bike tidbits!

Mexico Travels

Just got done chatting with my mom, who just returned from Mexico - she was there for a wedding. Something I have to say about my mom is that she's so adventurous and outgoing. She loves getting out and exploring new places and trying new things - most certainly where I got a lot of my drive to explore. Her car always has "gear" stashed for last minute trips to the lake or horse barn or heading out on a hike. Not so different from me, who quite nearly has a bike permanently mounted to my car in the summer. Why take it off if I'm going to ride nearly every day? :)

She had a great time down south - her first trip to Mexico. She loved the people there. Something else I found entertaining is her quick adoption of the language accent - for whatever reason, it comes quickly to me as well. Even when we have little to no previous exposure. Maybe it's our desire to connect with people. Anyway, we spoke a few Spanish words to each other, and I quickly heard it in her voice.

As a side note, ironically, I have the hardest, most terrible time with the German accent. I find this really funny. I tend to mutilate that language :) I kinda wonder if it's b/c I attempted to learn German in high school, where I was surrounded by English speaking students, and there was no need to adapt? I'm guessing this is pretty likely. :)

Something else that was cool - when I was home in WI for the wedding, got to chat with my dad. I don't get to visit with him nearly as often as I'd like, and I love talking with him one-on-one b/c that's when his best stories come out.

He's a very knowledgeable guy, and often knows things you'd never guess b/c he tends to not bring stuff up unless you're specifically talking to him on the subject. He's a quieter guy, speaks more in actions - I have a lot of my dad's characteristics as well.

Anyway, while I was back in WI got to tell him about my trip to South America. Was telling him about my experiences and commented on the wonderful German bakery there. He was like, yeah, I know. And then went on to tell me about his uncle who moved to Argentina. My dad never traveled south, but he knew a lot about the area, and ranchers, and land. Was cool. I think if he'd ever gone there, he would have fell in love with the place, and all the horseman, personal connections, and trades people had.

So, that was fun! I love getting little experiences with my dad. I always learn some cool stuff.

On the downside, WI (and the midwest in general) has experienced some major flooding as of late, so my mom, returning after 2am last night, came home to a basement filled with water.

Apparently houses are floating down the river in some areas. This has been a tough spring for many people I think. For my mom, thankfully her basement is mostly cement, but she had cardboard boxes filled with stuff that are now all water logged. Hopefully things won't be ruined.

Critter Pics!

I've linked in some critter pics - down and to the right. More stories coming (hopefully!).

A little biking

Headed up the tower road tonight on my bike. It's been a while since I've been out riding and the weather was amazing, so had to head out. It felt nice. Got out late, and opted to not bring my light, so it was just a road ride - no single-track, but felt good to be on the bike nevertheless :) There was a nice breeze which I appreciated. The thing that made me the happiest is that my fitness didn't feel so bad. Running and dance must be doing something good. Hills still feel like hills, but I could actually accelerate up them if I wanted - at a pace that at least seemed faster than my normal, when I'm biking all year. I guess this says something about cross training. The moon was shining brightly when I finished which is one of my favorite summer things. Being outdoors under a shining moon.

Ultimate Frisbee!

This is a short post - tomorrow is my first ultimate frisbee game!!! :) I'm super excited. A little nervous. I still need to read the rules :) I've watched ultimate games, but it's been a while. Frisbee throwing and practice is going to be key. Tomorrow my goal, mostly is to have fun and learn the basics. This is spring league. And if I have fun, my goal is to play over the summer, so we'll see!

Got my first pair of ultimate cleats yesterday. Found a nice, not-so-expensive pair of soccer cleats at the Soccer Stop in Fort Collins.

One cool thing is that I have a number of friends who play (none of my close Fort Collins friends), so hopefully when we travel we can play together - that would be fun. First I'm gonna need to get lots better.

I think it's just gonna be fun getting to do a team sport. Last team sport I've played (beyond softball) was high school soccer.

I'll post more once I actually get to play!

Peppermint Party Cake

That wonderful evil - got this recipe from my mom. One we've enjoyed since kids. How come things that are so bad for you taste so damn good?! Mom said she got the recipe out of a magazine from 1970 - 6 years older than me! And that's still the one she read it to me from! It's gotta be good. It's stood the test of time. Chocolate, mint, ice cream, and Nilla wafers - simple-n-good :)

The owner of this cake has yet to get to try it, but I had a little in his honor :)

Yum!

A little on music

Sometimes you get to do some cool things, and last week Friday night got to head down to Denver with my friend Mark to see Ingrid Michaelson in concert. I discovered Ingrid's music not so long ago and really enjoy it. She sings, plays guitar and piano - songs a little deeper than Colbie Caillat's - sorta in line with Brandie Carlile, but more upbeat.

Anyway, the cool part - the treat, is that this ended up being part of the Hotel Cafe Tour, which hosted 5 artists, each playing 6 songs (3 each, and then they rotate). The atmosphere and format was super informal and fun. It was at the Bluebird theater. Mark and I managed to make our way to the front where we found a little space, giving us a great, up-close and personal spot.

Ingrid was great to listen to in person - she had a fun, confident nature. All of these artists are on tour together, in a bus, so they've gotten really close, and that was apparent in the performance and their interactions. And stories of doing flips using the bunks in the bus and perfecting dismounts - this was Ingrid, although it sounded like they all took part. Some songs were solo, some they all did together, and any variant. It was fun.

The other artists were Meiko, Cary Brothers, Jim Bianco, and Dan Wilson.

Meiko is an up-and-coming artist - pop/folk/guitar. She played well. My favorites were Jim Bianco and Dan Wilson. They played outside the norm. Jim Bianco was kind-of a crazy guy, a little off, but super creative and I found I really liked his style. His first song was a soulful love song he played on the piano - you got the feel he meant what he said. This was contrasted by his next song which was up, crazy and dynamic, singing about online stalkers. He doesn't just sing though, his whole person gets into the act. He varied - his voice, the instruments, the topics. He was showy, wearing nothing fancy. Mark pointed out that he spat a lot into the mic, which was true.

Dan Wilson was the other artist I really got into, but totally different style. Mellow guitar, thoughtful music. He had a song on freedom. When asked, people say they want freedom, but what do they do with that freedom? He pointed out, most of us just put one foot in front of the other and continue. But, if you really notice that freedom, what would you do with it? He's an artist from MN, not fancy. He struck me as pretty sharp. Sometimes I find it interesting how musicians can sound similar to the artists they really like. He said he liked Storyhill, and I could definitely hear similarities. Dan used to sing for Semisonic, with his more famous song being "Closing Time".

Cary Brothers was intense in his music, but had a super soft voice which made it very difficult to understand what he said, which I think was a little sad. His instruments way outdid his voice.

Now I have some more music to get and add to my iPOD collection - always a good thing.

And I have to say it was great getting to connect with Mark and heading down to Denver. I think we both had a good time.

Manure Methodologies

I live on dryland - 4.5 acres of it in the foothills of Colorado. Colorado is a pretty arid state, and unless you have access to irrigation water, grass has a hard time surviving. So, living on a small acreage property, with grazing critters, it's a continual challenge keeping the grass green - or bare minimum alive.

Grass in my little neck of the woods pretty much has one big chance each year to grow, and that is in the spring, provided there is adequate rain and snow! The soils here are pretty loose and sandy, so water retention is minimal.

In my time here, I've done a couple experiments managing the pasture. The biggest thing I learned is that too much critter time on the pasture brings it down to dirt in short order. So, the horses are limited to a small section of the pasture most of the time, to their dismay, and are turned out onto the large pasture about once a week for grazing and play. This they love!

The grass, however, does not. Even if the horses ate nothing, just walking on the grass kills it because it's so fragile.

But, a perk of the horses is manure. And their manure is excellent fertilizer for the grass. So long as it is not in too high of concentration.

What I've been doing is maintaining (growing) a manure pile, which ideally I'd spread each spring, before the precious spring rains come.

I have a tractor, but not one with a front end loader, and I do not own a manure spreader. A couple years ago I opted to hire the work out, thinking it would be a quick-n-easy job. But, with coordinating and assistance, it took multiple days, and I had to be here anyway. This year I contemplated putting up a sign in the neighborhood seeing if someone would be willing to rent their tractor and spreader out to me, but I hadn't gotten that far.

Well, last weekend I got ambitious, and decided to go at it with a shovel, wheel barrel, and rake, doing the equivalent job. I actually put a pretty good dent into the pile, and it's an awesome upper body and core workout. Try shimmying and shaking a full wheel barrel to dump just what you want for easy spreading. Not to mention warding off the occasional goat who wants to head butt and enjoy the simple pleasure of knocking that wheel barrel over. I can clearly cancel my membership to the gym.

The dogs were out helping too - I was sure they would roll and cover themselves, as I had just that morning finished the not-so-easy endeavor (for the bathroom - and me) of giving them baths. But, to my surprise they were good and stayed clean. Yeah Baka and Luke!

Anyway, I'm wondering now about not maintaining a manure pile, but rather always spreading it immediately onto the pasture. I know there is some benefit to letting the stuff "age". I think that helps mellow out the ammonia content, making it easier on the grass. Dunno - haven't done research. But, it would be MUCH easier than slowly building a pile over time, and suddenly having to eliminate it. Curious.

I've in the interim begun spreading right away for cleanings done now. We'll see if I end up with burn patches.

Anyway, last weekend's spreading turned out well timed, as I awoke to SNOW Monday morning! My cube neighbor teased me that if I'd known it was going to snow, I probably would have worked longer. I told him he was right - I probably woulda considered an all-nighter :) The only girl, surely who would spend a night excited to haul poop.

We're getting good moisture and the grass is already greening. Should take some before/after pics and see how things progress.

A nice pic from earlier this winter :)

Skiing Vail with family

One of the rare times I got to ski with *both* of my brothers! :) Happy day.

And seamstresses became button sewers...

This post is actually about my car, but it's inspired me to think about this - something I think about often. -- The line is from one of my favorite movies, Seabiscuit :) -- How specialized in tasks we have become - as a world. And how people are either unwilling or unable to debug a problem beyond their scope and template. This is crazily even true in the engineering world. And without readable error codes we are lost.

I'm thinking about this now because my car, sadly enough, is STILL broken! This is just about a classic case for Click-n-Clack. I'm preparing to call. One more shot.

So Tuesday I picked up my Mazda from Collins Mufflers in Loveland (I'm putting in a BIG PLUG for these guys - they are cool - and actually do have brains and are able to debug - and their prices and response to solve something - very good).

I should back up. My little car - 2001 Mazda Protege (yes, it's green, but that can't be a bad color) has been super reliable - up till Oct/Nov timeframe. It's got some good miles - I drive a lot. 132,000+. Well, it was in need of a new fan belt, as it had been exhibiting the classic squeal - for a long time (worst in Moab cuz it's dry). The Mazda LOVES trips to Moab, btw. Well, what drove me to take it into the Dealership is that it started not responding to pressing on the gas, beyond a certain speed (like 40 mph on the flats). This wasn't a constant problem, it was intermittent. And when it happened, the check engine light would start flashing, and when the problem ended, the light would just stay on. Typically once it started, it wouldn't stop until I restarted the car (sometimes that would help). When things got REALLY bad, it would also start shaking/shuddering when stopped b/c it couldn't idle properly.

At the start I wasn't super up on things, car-wise, and the car was getting older. The dealership suggested everything under the sun that needed to be replaced. They assured me that when all these things were done, the car would be all fixed up and good to go. They said the problem was just bad spark plugs. Anyway, replaced the spark plugs, they talked me into replacing the timing belt (which cost both an arm *and* leg), fan belt, and a bunch of other things to run my bill up to a whopping $1600. For my $3000 car. My bike is worth more, but the Mazda has been a good car, and I figure $1600 is way better than buying a new car, which I have a whole other set of thoughts on.

Car gets done - after multiple days. Pick it up, happy to have things done (I'd been biking to/from work, which is a bit of a haul). Picked it up, drove to work, and by the time I get there, it's already acted up and the check engine light is back on. Grrr... They also never changed the oil, which was past due, despite having done a 100 point check (oil must be on another sheet).

Take it back. This time they gave me a rental car, free (thankfully). And that part was cool - it was a new, sporty little Ford Focus. Nothing special, but fancier than the Mazda.

This time they said it was the ignition coil. OK. They only charged me for the part ($145 - still high), but no labor. And they changed the oil.

This *did* fix the press-on-gas-no-more-power problem, but the check engine light was STILL on! By this time, I was fed up with the dealership. Had the engine code checked later at Jiffy Lube, and it simply read that the car was idling fast. Seemed ok.

Since the car was driving well, I put on some new tires - nice ones this time b/c I wear out tires super fast. I ALSO replaced the windshield which was super badly pitted, and I figured if the car is all fixed up, and I'm going to drive it for another 100,000 miles, I might as well be able to see.

Well, a month or so later, problem came back. I drove it this way for a while, till it got super bad. Had an interesting time getting up and over Loveland Pass one day, and later getting up the last hill towards Denver. I needed my car back. Driving the Tahoe takes *way* too much gas.

Took it back to the dealership, since the check engine light was still on from their last job. They told me it was the catalytic converter - at the manifold. And, it would cost $1300 to replace. NO WAY!

This time I decided to compare prices b/c this was getting out of hand, but once again, this still seemed better than a new car.

Well, called Collin Mufflers in Loveland. They were able to do it for $700. Getting the part the same place - the manufacturer. They also took the time to talk about the problem, and what was going on. And also told me that catalytic converters don't just go bad on their own. They are designed to burn fuel that is left unburned in the engine intake manifold. And, if an engine problem is causing excess fuel to be present, you can replace the converter and the new one will go bad again. This was good to know. The dealership didn't bother to tell me this. Collins Mufflers did tell me my converter was indeed bad - off the charts, but recommended I immediately get the car re-checked once replaced. I wondered where, as the dealership surely wouldn't find anything (real). I also should say, Collins Mufflers had limited ability to read the engine codes, so they could only debug so far. They said there was a chance the dealership had replaced all the stuff that caused the converter to go bad at the get-go. That was the hope anyway. Hoping the converter was the last thing to replace. Kinda made sense to me - spark plugs and ignition coil could both affect fuel burning.

Well, picked up the car Tuesday, and none such luck :( Biked to pick the car up. Drove to work, and half-way there on the interstate, got the tell-tale hint of power loss (I'm getting good at feeling any change). Then real power loss hit, and the check engine light flashed, once again. My heart sank. It really did.

My poor car, I've given you everything and have really tried to keep you going. And you are failing me!!! Crap. I've put in so much $.

Those were my immediate thoughts.

Lunchtime I decided to call Collins Mufflers and let them know the check engine light came back on and power loss is back. They said I should get the car checked out right away. Cuz if I just keep driving it, I'll kill my new $700 c.c. I asked where? I told them about my $1600 dealership experience.

They recommended Advantage Automotive in Loveland. Gave me specific guys to talk to. Cool. Thinking positive.

A side story, I called information to get their #, and info greeted me with "Happy April Fools Day!" I have to say, I didn't find this funny.

Dropped the Mazda off this morning, and once again the discussion came to engine codes. Those damn engine codes. I already know the engine codes are not pin-pointing the problem. W/o them though nowadays mechanics are dead in the water. I feel like I should know engines better so I can start debugging on my own. How hard can it be? How many parts are there really that affect fuel burning and can go bad and have the specific symptoms I'm seeing? Feeling a little frustrated. More-so b/c they weren't too curious about hearing the specific car behaviors, which is crazy to me, b/c those are the clues!

Anyway, biked home. Called later in the day to check on progress. Engine codes are telling nothing, BUT I was reassured to hear they were driving it around to get it to act up. So far, the Mazda is playing nice and not showing the issue, so it's staying overnight. I really hope it acts up in the morning.

So, that's the story and status. Still do not know the final issue. I'm hopeful for Advantage Automotive. And, they've told me I've incurred no cost at this point. I'd have to say they are also on the cool end. Maybe not quite as cool as Collins Mufflers, but if they can resolve the issue with the Mazda, they will be WAY UP THERE on my list! :)

So, think good thoughts for my little Mazda car. The ATM (all-terrain-mazda) would be sad missing its trip to Moab this spring!

It's your plate..

Something I brought back from Chile..

Everyone has their own plate in life, and it's yours to do whatever you want with it. Nobody can take that away.

Thought that was cool.

-from Manuel

Why do old ladies perm their hair?

So today my friend Karen and I went on a little adventure. But, we've pondered this question. Wondering if when we're old and gray (well, gray with a blue hint) will we be calling each other up to go to our weekly beauty appointments to perfect our curls?

I don't believe this will ever be the case for me. I shall resist - no matter how frail my hair is. Surely curling it won't help.

Karen, however is a lost cause as her hair is curly already. Although she is working to grow it long as I (apparently) told her STARTING OUT with short-n-curly hair would just be bad.

Fitting enough, Karen was on her way to Boulder for a hair appt - by people who know how to perfect those curls. (this is me joking a little)

I heard the opportunity to play in Boulder - with Karen - and so our adventure was set.

Our plan was to head down, she gets beautified, I check out REI - and see if they have the crampons I've been interested in, and then we meet back up and run.

Karen and I like motivating each other.

Well, I've been trying to make progress at home, and working towards school. It's easy for me to jump onto physical activities and adventures. Sticking to my guns and plans and being dedicated to career progress, etc takes more discipline.

Well, I woke up this morning (early), my mind racing with progress I want to make, feeling I really should finish my home projects and school research and bypass playing in Boulder.

Dropped the Mazda off for repairs - biked home. Felt nice. Happy the Mazda is soon to be back to life!

Called Karen to say I thought I'd better stay home, but would still run. Could hear her voice sink.

Immediately got off the phone and thought "what did I just do?" We weren't planning to leave till noon. Plenty of time to make progress at home. My options. Be at home - alone - working on projects. OR, work on stuff in the morning, head out for a playday adventure. And still have time in the evening to make progress. Option #2 it was.

We had a great day and it was well worth it. We ran up to the Mallory cave near NCAR and got to help an older (but spunky) lady get up there - it's a rock scramble and many younger people were balking. The woman was so excited when she got back down and exhilarated, Karen and I both thought she'd go sign up for a triathlon or some other crazy adventure when she got home. She was so pumped, I thought she might beat us back down the trail, running on adrenaline.

So, we had a fun day. Responsibilities are still there, but play is important. And I think Karen and I are gonna still be egging each other on when we're old `n gray. Now it's just a question of curls...

Moab May 7-11!

It's that time of year again, and Moab is calling! :) Really looking forward to it. Heading out May 7, returning May 11. I love camping out there (and biking), and this year it's a big crew. Contemplating desserts and salsa!

If anyone is interested in joining, let me know. The more the merrier :)

Progress at home

A little update from home. Today was day 6 (I think) of shed and fence work, and almost completed taking down the privacy fence. Shed work I completed over the weekend. Yeah! Had to get up my nerve to take out the circular saw to cut the roof into smaller pieces I could move (with roofing material, supports, and plywood, it was heavy). Circular saws really scare me. I always fear I'm going to hit something and it's going to kick back and get out of control and something bad happening. But all went well. The shed was a messy, huge job, but I'm super glad it's gone.

Today dismantled the other 1/2 of the privacy fence, taking down all boards (and removing nails for moving) and cross supports. Now just have posts to pull and a big (2nd) trip to the dump. Everything is already loaded into the trailer - one of the great, multi-use benefits of horse trailers.

The cool part is with the fence down things look much more open, which I like.

My house isn't clean, but made good progress outside. Pups got to help.

Feeling - a little tired.

Little Digger

One more story/tidbit - have a crash story from this week - a good one.

Enjoying the daylight after work, and warm weather after our little snow. Feeling good Tuesday, decided to do a quick little ride up at the Backbone. Coming down from the mesa, thinking about organizing group rides, happy I was making good progress over the rocks. Starting thinking about a guy at work who'd recently crashed badly on his road bike (he's OK) - thought about sending him a funny little message saying mtn biking is SO much safer!

Well, 2 seconds after that, I hit a rock wrong - on an easy section and it knocked me off balance and to the right. Went to put my foot down but happened to be riding beside a 2ft drop followed by a steep embankment. No foot spot. Flipped upside down and landed ~10ft down onto rocks and then rolled. I stopped and pretty quickly started feeling nauseous from the impact. I just laid there for 10-15 minutes, weakly saying "help" a couple times. Mostly to make me feel better. Pretty sure nobody was out still. There were only a couple cars at the lot when I started. Pretty sure I hadn't broken anything. Took my watch off b/c I was afraid my right wrist might start swelling, and I wasn't sure if I'd pass out. Thinking it woulda been nice if I'd grabbed my cell phone. Thought I was hearing air come out of my tires - wondering how in the heck I'd pump them back up, but it was just my head making sounds.

Eventually my body started feeling better. Got up. Things seemed ok. Knowing I'd be sore. Bike was upside down but intact. Actually rode my bike back down w/o too much difficulty. Had planned to go to the grocery store after riding, so did that.

By the time I was done shopping, pretty much had no use of my right arm or hand. Smacked the tendon or ligament on my right arm so hard, couldn't bend it very far. Thumb couldn't move either - hurt too much. Had to turn the ignition with my left hand and also use it to operate the stick shift driving home. Get home and it took a while to do critters and put groceries away. Couldn't get out of my clothes. Decided I really LIKED wearing what I was wearing :)

Called mom for a little sympathy :) Now I'm better matched to her - she recently fell off a horse injuring her thumb. And my boss, who just came out of knee surgery after hitting a tree skiing - with me (although we weren't actually together at the time). I think I'm actually in better shape than both. Have some nice color on my hand. Fingers on my other hand are also a little sore. And knee and arm and back where I rolled and hit rocks, but the rolling part really saved me.

Thinking it would be smart to start carrying a cell phone and/or telling someone where I'm riding if I go alone. But all is well. That's my story! Hopefully I won't have too many more of those.

An update from home!

Been home for almost two weeks now - it's crazy how fast the time flies by. Seems surely I packed in more activities while I was away, but not having to work makes it easier.

Have gotten some of my writing up - I'd like to complete it. For a memory and to share.

Enjoyed getting together with my neighbors for dinner and picture/story sharing. That was lots of fun. They are great neighbors and friends. Also had fun at my friend Karen's place. Enjoyed seeing her and Jeremy and Val. Having a great dinner, shared more pics and stories, and I decided to bake a cherry and strawberry pie! Turned out yummy. Been in the mood to bake. The freedom to cook for myself again!

Today I have off work for Good Friday - I didn't even KNOW it was Easter until this week. Last year over Easter I was out in Washington visiting my friend Dylan, and also my mom and relatives, and my friend Lauren in Canada. Would enjoy another trip out that way - such a beautiful place.

Four solid days of work was a bit of a shocker after being off for a month! Days 1-2 - good. Working on a cool project with good people. Day 3 really felt like work. The pups were noticeably worried too. They'd had me home with lots of attention for a week, and suddenly I was gone again.

Pups and I today are gonna finish dismantling the shed out back. The shed is mostly gone - only the roof is left. Spent parts of 3 days last week doing the big job. Privacy fence is next which the wind helped take down last night.

Trying to use my energy to make good progress. Some things in the pursuit - Spanish classes (a desire - hopefully this summer or else fall), working with my vet neighbor this summer volunteering at her clinic. This sounds like a go. May start as early as next month on my Wednesdays off!

Will likely try my hand playing ultimate frisbee this spring. Gonna sign up - we'll see if I make it onto a team.

Thinking about school and finances - how to make that all work. Taking some steps in that direction.

Was great seeing my brothers out here in Colorado. Rare I get to see and play with both at once! So, that was great :) I have to say I've got great siblings and family :) Smile again.

Looking forward to re-starting dance. My class this week was canceled. Enjoyed a nice run up at HT instead.

OK, pups and I are off to shed work and playing with the horses! Take care :)

Bluebirds in Colorado

I've gotten a chance to get out onto the trails a few times since I've been back home - enjoying that. Something a little unique is I've been seeing tons of bluebirds out on the trails. Was trail running at Horsetooth Mountain Park and saw a flock of 50-70 bluebirds. I've never seen more than 1-2 together at once. Pretty cool. Over the weekend saw more nearby on the Ginny trail. Wonder if this is typical springtime migration or unique this year?

Had an awesome run after work Monday night with the snow. The sun was starting to set, but still up. Near the top of Horsetooth Mountain. Colorful skies. Snow covered trees, and a slight breeze blew and the pine trees were suddenly in a mist of snow.

The cool things one gets to see :)

Backpacking the AGT

A little more..

My favorite part of my trip south was meeting the people in Chile and Argentina and the personal connections. I loved the mountains and glaciers and variety of terrain, but it was really that mixed with the people that made it a pretty awesome trip, and one I enjoyed a lot.

The 8 day Aysen Glacier Trail (AGT) backpacking trip was the outing I loved most. We headed in by boat from the little "town" of Puerto Bertrand. Four of us went on the backpacking venture, and since I was the only formal client, it turned out being more like a friend backpacking trip than a guided tour which was pretty cool. It was Yoani (main guide for the AGT), Manuel, Andres (friend interested in the area - his first time on this route), and me. Three Chilean guys and me. Not bad :)

-- Andres, Me, Manuel, Yoani, Jonathan --

The boat ride to the start of our journey was awesome. Blue water, views of glacier capped mountains, waterfalls all around. Could it be better?

Turned the corner, heading towards a valley marking the start of our journey. The home of a cattle rancher, Ramon. We had to cross Ramon's property to access the trail. Spent some time visiting with Ramon, seeing some super cute little kids dragging this huge canoe across the lawn - helped them out, dogs, met Ramon's son-in-law Ektar.

Everything is so personal in Chile. This I really loved. Even at the fancy hotel I stayed at in Coyhaique, met the owner and people who worked there and felt like family. Different from the states.

Shortly we are off on our venture. Packs are fairly heavy. Mine, I come to learn is light compared to the guides'. Mine weighed in around 35-40lbs I think. Their's were significantly heavier as they carried all the food (but didn't have to carry their sleeping bags).

We ate REALLY well on the backpacking trip. Chicken, beef, fruits, veggies, chocolate. The meats were vacuum sealed before our trip (I asked) to keep it fresh. Dry foods - some - were already stashed at the camp sites.

Because of the location of the route, it's been largely untraveled and untouched. Both ends require travel across private property and water, so logistically it's hard to get there.

On day one, my boots were biting into my heals a bit, as they were fairly new and suddenly being used with a heavy pack, climbing and descending steep terrain. I smartly (thanks to Andres) taped up right away before blisters began - stayed taped for day #2, and then I was good to go. These same pair of boots now have very little tread left - says something I think! :) Need tougher tread.

I loved the variety in terrain - mountains, and glaciers, and grasslands, and dense, moist forests, sand dunes and beach, river... it contained it all.

Had ample time to practice my Spanish and three guys to practice on. The language barrier was somewhat challenging and proved a separator. One of the tougher things for me. Most stories on this trip were told in Spanish, and I wanted to be a part. By the end of the 8 days I'd have to say (proudly) I could at least make out the jist of conversations. Good progress considering I started off knowing next to no Spanish. I brought my Spanish dictionary along, and spent a fair bit of time writing down words and trying to translate my thoughts.

The mountains were beautiful. My favorite was a glacier encrusted mountain across from our 4th camp. I was finishing "Into Thin Air" on the backpacking trip, and tried to picture what the ice fields on Everest looked like. After seeing that mountain and the ice on it and hearing and feeling the boom and rumble of the glacier shifting, crushing rock and boulders in its path, I felt like I had an idea. I'd never seen something so ferocious and beautiful looking.

Ramon rode in on horseback and joined us at camp #2 and stayed the night. This was cool. He brought his two horses and his dog and Mate (Argentina tea that is packed into a small, round drinking cup/mug with a special filtering spoon and passed around and enjoyed in a group).

People in Patagonia eat lots of meat and potatoes or bread and not a lot of fruits or vegetables or grains, so they use Mate as a source of vitamins and as an aid to go to the bathroom. I wondered about the passing of germs, but I was told people don't really get sick down here.. It was a strong tasting tea that seemed to have a bit of caffeine.

A funny thing about this trip is that I went off caffeine mostly for this trip, and quickly was offered coffee and mate and so I was pretty much on caffeine the entire time. Ah well :)

We got to rock climb and boulder. There were a couple tricky rock traverses that we did with our full packs. Lots of story telling. The Chilean people seem to be excellent conversationalists. We didn't have radio or TV or any other distraction. So you talk and laugh.

Andres was an awesome story teller, and got his whole body into the story telling. He is a teacher at an outdoor guide school in Chile.

Things I learned - dogs are liked, but have a pretty tough life in Chile. Ranch dogs get whatever scraps are given and work hard. They are all very skinny. City dogs are plentiful. Most are strays. Most intact. Some are pets. Most are super friendly, but a little shy. I enjoyed seeing the dog interactions and which ones were friends with which. They knew where to wait to get meals.

Made friends with a few on my way. My favorite was a pup in the little Villa of O'Higgins. Met him one day, and the next I was laying down in the park reading, and he saw me and came bounding down the hill, landing happily in my lap. That was cool. We played for a bit and then he spotted his jack russel terrier friend, and was off on a new adventure playing.

That's the way things worked down there - an endless set of adventures. That's the way it seemed.

I enjoyed Yoani's serious, but smiling and joking and fun nature that came out on this trip. Apparently he rarely shows the joking, fun side around clients, but he told Manuel he felt like it was a friend trip, and not a guide trip. This I thought was cool. I appreciated his nice smile when things got challenging and he could tell I was putting in my best effort to keep up and make good progress - like crossing the ice field when it got rainy and slippery and we're navigating steep crevasses that were a mix of ice and rock and sand, and it was raining and we hadn't eaten because of the weather. He gave some nice smiles at my efforts, and I appreciated these.

I have to wonder a bit on other clients who come b/c surely I'm in better shape than most. But, from talking, it sounds like I was carrying a much heavier pack than most clients carry. So, this makes me feel better.

The mountain peaks and ridges were awesome. All were begging to be explored. I desperately wanted more days to explore. We were on a schedule - partly b/c of logistics. We were meeting folks at the other end by boat. We had one rest day with opportunity to explore. Our gear was all wet from crossing the ice field, including my boots, but I was determined to explore, so I set off wearing my tevas. I think I should make a new commercial for teva :) Crossing boulder fields, bushwacking and climbing up through raw, dense forests, to reach a ridge line I so badly wanted to explore. Didn't get as much time as I'd have liked, but it was fun nonetheless.

I almost convinced the guys to ration food and stay out more days - we had a satellite phone with us, so there was a way to communicate. But, didn't get total buy in. I know the guys wanted to. They'd never explored either.

Another time.

The peaks and terrain reminded me of so many areas. Parts looked like Colorado. Parts like WI. Parts like New Mexico. Parts like Arizona. All in one small area. Pretty unique.

At our 5th camp site (6th night), Ektar hiked in to meet us, bringing a slab of beef from Ramon's cattle (and bringing our boat!). That was our best meal. Had fresh guacamole, amazing meat, excellent burritos. Sleeping under the stars.

I loved sleeping outside under the stars. Being a part of the group. Awesome views of the southern cross and Orion. Seeing the bunny rabbit in the moon. Watching satellites fly across the sky.

We had quite the bushwacking adventure getting to the water from camp #5 to where the boat was stashed. There was no trail, and there were times we were 1-2 feet off the ground, suspended by prickery brush. My legs were so scratched up. I finally resorted to getting out my gators. We're wearing sandals to keep our boots dry. Getting into the water as needed. If was (literally) ice cold, and took only seconds to make your legs and feet ache with cold.

We're laughing though b/c it's so crazy.

My favorite night of this venture was camp #6 at the Sol de Mayo ranch. A ranch of working mountain gauchos. Beautiful horses. More hard-working dogs. We stayed in this tiny cabin. Taking showers in an outhouse with a water heater heated by wood. Our light was by candle.

I carried glacier ice in my gators so we could enjoy Bisquo Sour - a drink of Bisquo (grape made alcohol), lemons, sugar, egg, and ice. Manuel, in Santiago, is a bartender in addition to student.

We had goat for dinner - this part wasn't easy to eat. We'd passed the herd of goats on our way in.

Story telling, dinner, and singing and guitar music by Ektar. Ektar has an amazing voice, singing old ranching and funny songs in Spanish. Caught a little of it with my camera - sound only :) The table took up most of the cabin. Old bunk beds around. Wood burning stove. Out in the middle of the mountains. If I could repeat a moment, it would be that night. Morning was just as good, awakened to warm breakfast, and more singing and guitar by Ektar. Everybody around. If all days could start like this. I was the only female on this whole venture. It was unique.

From this ranch, headed out on the last day by horseback. The scenery was so beautiful, it felt like I was in a movie.

All I can say is that I felt super lucky.

We crossed the last river by barge and off to "civilization". The backpacking outing was definitely fun and memorable.