It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year.

Look! My cone flowers bloomed for the first time in a couple of years. It must be all of this rain. I love them and best of all, so do the bees and butterflies.

Tonight we leave for South Dakota. I can't tell you how excited I am. I got all of the camping stuff aired out and made sure there were batteries for the air mattress and we had all the tent poles we meed. We will be staying in a cabin in Custer State Park, a motel in Speafish and tent camping for a couple of days of RAGBRAI in Iowa. So many bike riding, so much wow.

I'm not sure if I'll be able to blog or not while I'm gone, but I will try if there is any way possible.

The cats know we're leaving, because of all the bags in the kitchen. Archie is consoling himself by lying all over our pile of athletic shoes we're taking and dreaming of free feeding with dry food.

Of course, he'll be happy as a clam with Stinky and her boyfriend staying over and watching him and Heidi. He probably won't even miss us...

Now, I'll be Bold as Well as Strong. And Use My Head Alongside my Heart

Me in a gigantic chair on the corner of Big Bopper Ave. and Ritchie Valens Dr.

We had a great weekend in Clear Lake. Iowa. We stayed at the Hilltop Hotel, across the street from the Surf Ballroom.  It was such a great place and we loved hanging out at that side of town.

We got the rock and roll room. It was so kitschy cool!

We got into town on Friday evening. John did some messing around with the bikes, making sure they were ready to race for the weekend. We also wandered around the motel grounds and that area of town and checked-out the restaurants in the neighborhood.

  After we went down to the registration area to pick-up our numbers and say hi to the officials that were heading over to eat, we went to a place called Sips for some good food.

We got back to the motel and decided to go for a swim. It was a bit chilly for me, so we went to the game room/screened-in porch area. John kicked my butt in foosball, so we went out and played corn hole, where I handily kicked his butt. We decided to call it a draw and played ping pong without keeping score. It was a perfect evening.

The next morning, I woke-up to a migraine and couldn't race my time trial. I took my meds and went back to bed, while John went to his race. When he came home, I was feeling a little better, just tired and weak. We went to lunch and then he took a nap and I sat out in the courtyard reading my book. It was so pleasant. There were a few older gentleman smoking cigars and talking about sports and politics out in the center and kids running around and a family on the patio making lunch and playing a board game. It seemed like the best part of Summer..Until it got even better.

John woke up from his nap and got ready for his next race. I walked downtown and checked out the crit course and sat right by the lake and read some more of my book, while John warmed-up.  I walked over to the start to get his extra water bottle and see if there was anything else he needed before the race and ran into some women racers there.

John had a good, strong race. He got 6th, which I think is great for not training or racing much road this year.

We watched the rest of the races and then had a couple of appetizers and a drink on the outdoor patio at the Anchor Inn, across the street before going to bed.

I didn't have a migraine on Sunday when I awoke. Yea! John and I both got to do the 5.78 mile road race. It was a hot one. I still race the beginner category, since there are only 2 categories for women. There were a few first time racers, and the bonus for me with that, is that I get to try to help and make the new racers feel welcome. Bike racing can be pretty daunting. I got the riders form a paceline and tried to explain to the new racer why she didn't want to ride next to the paceline, and would use less energy drafting off another racer.

There was an extreme heat warning, so I was trying hard to make sure I took turns drinking from my water and my Gatorade bottle. Also, riding 50'ish miles that hard, means that I was burning about 1,000 calories an hour and needed to make up for some of that if I didn't want to bonk. I was doing pretty good at all of that, while trying not to get dropped, when one of the girls attacked, right as we were turning. It happened so fast, I didn't catch the jump, she slowed down and we all started to catch-up when she jumped again even faster and I was having a hard time catching on again. A girl came from behind me and I tried to jump on her wheel to see if she would bring me up to the pack, but I couldn't keep that pace long enough. I fell off and ended up riding the last half of the race by myself. It was just fine with me. I love riding my bike, and I still tried to go as hard as I could. I ended up riding that 50.78 miles in 2 hours and 43 minutes with an average pace of 18.6 MPH. I think that's the fastest I've gone that distance...And I did a good job of fueling and hydrating in that crazy hot weather.

We had a lovely weekend and the frosting on my pre birthday cake is that John found me a pair of bike shoes that are finally wide enough for my troll feet. They felt great!

Barefoot on a Summer Night.

 Just a quick overview of our homefront this week. John put the rack I bought on my commuter bike. I'm getting closer to touring and bike camping. Yipee!

 John is trying to shame Archie, but like every hour out of every other day, Archie doesn't care.

 Last night I made one of my favorite Summer meals - a huge salad with mixed greens, feta cheese, red onions, pine nuts, kalamata olives and red raspberries, we also had good bread from the Co-op, smoked trout, baked brie, roasted garlic and avocado. Food makes me so happy...Probably a little TOO happy.

This is the latest lily in my garden. I can't wait until a few more years when my entire yard is full of gorgeous lilies.

I hope your weekend is full of good food, beautiful flowers, fun, new toys and fat orange cats...Wait. I wouldn't wish them on anyone.

Well, I'm going Where the Water Tastes Like Wine.

Okay, kids. Here is where it gets crazy. Tomorrow afternoon, John and I are going to Clear Lake, Iowa for a bike race for the weekend. We are staying at this old style motel across from the Surf Ballroom where Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and the Big Bopper played right before they died. I feel like I might be catching a little cold, so I will see if I race or not. Even if I'm too sick to race, I will have a lot of fun hanging out at the beach and reading my book and watching bike races.

We'll get back on Sunday evening. We'll go to work for two days. On Monday evening, my friend Colleen is coming in from New York and my friends John and Shannon are coming from Des Moines. Originally, we thought we might have them over to hang out on the back porch, but now that it's closer and we have so much to do, I think we'll see if they want to go out to eat and have a drink and not have to worry about making food at home.

Next Tuesday after work, we'll head as far as we can get on the way to the Black Hills. On Wednesday, we'll drive to The Badlands and ride a 36 mile route around the park and then head to our cabin in the Black Hills. We'll stay there for 3 days and then go to a motel in Spear Fish for 4 days and then meet the kids on RAGBRAI for two days. It should all be lovely, but exhausting by the time we ride mountain and road bikes, hike, run and swim for a week in a half. I guess I'll find out if 50 is too old to have that much fun or not...

You Don't Need Money. Don't Take Fame. Don't Need a Credit Card to Ride This Train.

Me in college at the beginning of 1985.

This decade in review is from 1985, when I turned 20 and started my 3rd decade in the world.

1985 -

-was the year that new Coke was introduced.

-David Letterman started his top 10 lists.

-Rock Hudson dies of AIDS.

- British scientists report the opening of the ozone layer.

Me learning how to run a chainsaw in the Redwoods in 1985.

 Top box office draw for the week of July 16th, 1985 - "Back to the Future".

Top selling novel for that week - "Skeleton Crew" by Stephen King.

Top television show for 1985 - "The Cosby Show"

The number one song for July 16th, 1985 - "A View to a Kill", Duran Duran.

Me in the state park where we lived in the Fall of 1985.

1985 was another huge year for me. I was living in Iowa City and dropped out of college at the beginning of that year. I wanted to do something besides stay in a college town and cook or wait tables. I wanted to do something where I might be able to make a difference. My roommate's sister had been in the California Conservation Corps. I decided I should do that too. In March, I hopped on a plane went to Santa Rosa, California where I didn't know anyone and signed up for the program. I had a month to wait, so I went to Tempe, Arizona to hang out with my sister and then moved back to Sacramento to start the program in May. I hitch hiked (I know. I was an idiot) to get around and had a few scary experiences.

After being in the training academy in Calaveras  County for a month, I got assigned to a little town called Leggett, California, right on Highway 101. I worked on the Salmon Restoration Project until Thanksgiving, when I got a job at a ski resort in Big Bear Lake, California.

I felt a little lost during that year, but I was so glad I had those adventures when I did. By the time I got married and had kids, those opportunities were gone.

You Have to Sleep Late When You Can and All Your Bad Days Will End

I've been a bit of a bad blogger this past week. I've been insanely busy doing fun stuff and work has also been crazy, so writing opportunities have been scant.

I will try to make up for that today.

This past three day holiday weekend was wonderful for the most part. On Friday we met some friends for an early 60 mile bike ride to the Amana colonies. This area was originally settled by Germans who came to America because of religious persecution. They practiced communal living until 1932. The town is now an adorable tourist area with good German food and beer.

 We did have to ride about 14 miles of sketchy highway for part of our route, but when we got to the town, they had a great bike path. We ate lunch at a pizza place that served deliciously funky things like reuben pizzas and crabmeat ragoon pizzas. They were all really good.

On the way out of town, we stopped at Millstream brewery and had a beer and then headed to the lily pond, but with the higher water, there didn't seem to be too many lily pads there.

We had a great ride home and I headed to downtown Iowa City to meet my daughters at Jazzfest. I got to meet Stinky's boyfriend's parents and they seemed very nice. Coadster and I walked Stinky to work and then we went home and got ready for dinner. I took Coadster and John to the Northside Bistro. The food was incredible. We split a couple of appetizers and then pretty much ate off each others plates  for the entrees. It was so good.

On July 4th, we got up early to do the 5K in Cedar Rapids. I ran with the girls for the 5K and tried to help Stinky stay positive and not quit. Both of the girls did great. We had a fun run and talk together. Stinky said she doesn't know what she's going to do when she races the Bix and I'm not there to keep talking her through it. I told her she'd be just fine.

While we were running, someone was standing on the side of the road holding a sign that said, "this is a really boring parade". Nice.

There was also a woman in her 60's or 70's running by us and her husband was riding a bike on the sidewalk, following her and every couple of minutes, he would tell her how great she looked or what a good job she was doing, or what an awesome pace she was keeping. We need more men and relationships like that in the world.

John did an 8K (5miles) and was 11th in his category. He wasn't happy with his time, but like I told him, it's not like we tapered for the race or anything. John ran and then went on a 60 mile bike ride the day before the race.

The three day weekend also brought back a migraine for me. I hadn't had one for a month, and I used to get them at least once a week, so I do feel lucky. I just am hitting my saturation point in dealing with that kind of pain. By Saturday I was cranky and overly sensitive and emotional. As you can imagine, not a very fun combination. I try very hard not to take my bad mood out on John, but at one point I did have a little meltdown on him. He was understandably a little defensive, since I was just upset at stupid stuff and none of it was his fault. We talked it out and I apologized and we moved on. Sometimes we all have bad days. I also try to be as understanding when John gets grouchy and has bad days.

The rest of the day we did a 50 mile bike ride to Sutliff Bridge and back. The weather was lovely and even though my legs were a little sore, I am always happy to be riding my bike.

On Sunday, I still had a little leftover migraine, but felt better for the most part. John and I watched the Tour de France and then I went on a little 4.5 mile run. by about one o'clock, we met our friend Burne to ride mountain bikes.

The trails have been closed because of all the rain for so long, that even though we were so tired, we felt like we had to go out anyway. I was so glad we did. There is nothing better than getting out on the trails and going up and down hills in the woods. Even if I was having the worst day in the world, THAT would make it better.

I hope you all had a great weekend and there were no meltdowns involved.

Look in My Heart and Let Love Keep Us Together.

In keeping with my weekly half a century birthday theme, this week, we are entering into my 2nd decade on earth - 1975.

"Fun Facts":

-The Unemployment Rate in the US reaches 9.2% and recession is recognized by President Ford

-The Vietnam War ends as Communist forces take Saigon and South Vietnam surrenders unconditionally 

-Oil goes over $13.00 per barrel

-Jimmy Hoffa ex teamsters boss disappears never to be seen again 

-Patti Hearst Becomes Most Wanted and is Arrested for armed robbery

The number one song for July 16th 1975 - "Love Will Keep Us Together" by Captain and Tenille

The number one movie for July 16th 1975 - "Jaws".

The best selling novel for July 16th 1975 - "The Money Changers" by Arthur Hailey.

For me personally, 1975 was a huge year. I started it out living with my mom, 2 sisters and one brother. (my dad disappeared in 1969.) in Mesa, Arizona. My mom died of a stroke at the end of October of that year and we moved to Alsip, Illinois with my abusive aunt and uncle, their three kids and my brother and middle sister. My oldest sister stayed in Arizona and lived with a friend of hers for the first 6 months after my mom died.

I remember the Vietnam War ending. Some girls were doing a report on Vietnam and they got to end it by telling us the war had ended. We all cheered at the news.

We saw Jaws at a a drive-in. My mom was too scared to see it at an indoor movie theater. At one point, my brother and I went to get drinks at the snack bar, and thought we were going back to our Toyota, instead two hippie guys rolled down their car window and clouds of marijuana smoke came pouring out. We ran so fast away from them.

I loved John Denver, riding my red, white a blue Liberty Bell bike with an awesome banana seat, and my kitten Priscilla, that my mom got me for my 10th birthday.

After my mom died, we moved to a Chicago suburb where I saw snow and basements for the first time,  and the streets were all beached out from being salted in the Winter. We couldn't take my kitten or my bike to Chicago, so I never saw them again. We found out that everyone in the Midwest played sports. No one I knew really did much organized sporting in Mesa, so it was all strange to me. I was never good at paying attention, which meant I sucked at most team sports, but I found out I could run. It was one of the best things I've ever done for myself and 40 years later, I'm still running today.

I also started writing a journal when I was 10. We had to keep one for school and when my mom died, I was able to work-out a lot of my feelings that way. It became more and more important, the longer I lived with my aunt and uncle and things got worse and worse with them.

I still miss my mom every day.

Never as Good as the First Time.

On Sunday, John did his first mountain bike race at a beautiful park just North of Ames, Iowa.

I'm still too chicken and I don't have the bike handling skills to race mountain bikes yet, so I went for support and since it was so gorgeous there, I decided to go for a run on some trails and gravel roads, while John warmed-up on his bike.

If you ever want a whole bunch of people to give you a hard time, go running around a bunch of bike racers. I got all kinds of grief. People told me that running was for felons, or asked me if I needed a bike to ride. My friend Katherine was going ot race, and she told me I shouldn't waste my time running, since riding bikes was so much more fun, but then halfway through her race, after she crashed and was covered in mud, she rode by me and told me that maybe I was the smart one. Ha ha.

John had a very muddy race. After he finished, he said that he thought he had made every beginner mistake in the book. I told him that that was how we all learned. He certainly wasn't first, but he wasn't last either. He actually got 3rd in his category. Pretty impressive for a first race. I think he's excited to do another one soon.

Since we were both covered in mud from our respective activities, we decided to jump in the lake. I love swimming in open water. I like spiders and bugs and the little fish I can feel swimming around my ankles, so I don't get grossed-out by any of that and this lake was so lovely. After a hot, sweaty run, it felt so nice to swim around sand get the worst of the mud off of us.

We decided to stop in Des Moines on the way home and go to El Bait Shop. It is a bar restaurant that on one side has really great craft beer and decent Mexican food and is connected to Miller High Life Lounge that is a 1970's themed place with bad 70's beer and embarrassingly good comfort food.

It was a little early in the day, so I wasn't going to have any beer, but then I started looking at their menu and they had a jalapeno flavored beer and the really cute and nice bartender told me it was her favorite beer and asked me if I wanted to try a sample. Oh, what the hell. I decided to get a beer flight of Iowa Craft beers. John helped me drink it and we both got to try stuff we may not have wanted an entire pint of. Luckily, no headache ensued.

We drove home to a huge rain deluge and heard it rained on and off all day in Iowa City. We felt pretty lucky to drive two hours and have perfect weather there all day.

It's Life, Jim. But Not as We Know it.

This will be a mostly photo post.

I had another wonderful weekend. On Saturday, we met some friends around 8:30 and took off on our bikes to Riverside, Iowa. The future birthplace of Captain James T. Kirk. They have a Trek fest celebration the last weekend of June and our friend lives on the parade route there, so he uses that opportunity to throw a party. If you have ever seen the movie Trekkies, you will see a segment where they go to Riverside and talk to some of the residents.

We've gone to the party every year, but have never made it to the parade. It was a veritable nerd fest. Normally, when we walk around in lycra during a bike ride, we are the geekiest people around, but going to Trekfest wearing lycra, we are finally not the biggest dorks in town. It was kind of refreshing.

I suppose if you live on the parade route for Trekfest, you are required by law to have a box of bizarre masks and headresses. Of course, we were obliged to wear said items and be the aliens to their Star Fleet . It's all about balancing it all out.

I chose not to drink alcohol. With my migraines, I can't really drink during the day, or I will go into the evening with a headache. So, I had water. Lots and lots of water. I think I probably drank at least 10 bottles. I was well hydrated for the first time in weeks.

I didn't want to stay too very late, because I had to get home and mow the lawn. With the rains we've been  having, I could probably mow every day and still need to mow more often.  We did hangout until at least 2 o'clock. John's ex-wife and her family was in town from Norway and we wanted to make sure we got to see them. They come back once a year, so we don't get to see them very often.

Our friend Timmer wore a Tron outfit and rode his old school chopper bike along the parade route. Our other friend who lives there, just happened to have a bag of candy for Timmer to throw. He said the kids loooooved his costume and his bike. He was a huge hit.

We finally rode back to Iowa City, and I got the lawn mowed and we got the cats some attention. Lord knows, they never get enough...

Let Love Rule

Yesterday I took vacation time to go on a lovely bike ride. I originally planned to do ride the West Branch Loop. It's a bout 59 miles of rolling hills around the birth place of  Herbert Hoover, but I missed my turn and ended up in a little town called Tipton. Oops!

I had never ridden my bike there before, so it turned out to be kind of cool. I love that route because of all the prairie poppies on the side of the road and getting to ride by the very swollen Cedar River. I had a great ride. I felt pretty strong, but not my very strongest. It was hot, but not terrible and I brought a half of a peanut butter and honey sandwich to eat at the halfway point. The only big problem, was that I didn't bring enough water with me. Derrrr. Lately, I've been going on social rides with friends that are 30'ish miles at their longest and then we always stop to eat and drink along the way, so I don't need as much water. This was the first time in a while that I had done a longer route by myself. It was a good reminder of what I'll need to have on my for the Clear Lake Road Race, which is 51 miles long.

I headed back from Tipton, after I stopped and ate my sandwich by this adorable tractor. On the way back, I had lost my steam. I'm not sure if I just went too hard on the way out, or if I had a head wind that was harder than I thought, or whether I just was too dehydrated to get up and go. I just slowed my roll (literally) and enjoyed the beautiful Summer day. About a mile from home, I saw a lemonade stand run by two very stoic little girls. I gave them twice what they asked for a cup of lukewarm pink lemonade and it was the best I ever had.

Here is my cat Friday photo. The other night John brought up the marriage question again. He does from time to time. Not so much because he wants to get married, but more because he wants to make sure that I'm not resentful about not getting married. We've been together for almost 5 years now. We've each been married before and I know he's not really into getting married and it's not a big deal to me either. I said that I didn't really care about getting married, but at some point, it might be nice to have a celebration with our friends. John said, "Well, since neither one of us like parties with a lot of people, what do you think that would look like?" Um....Like we would both be in hell? Yeah. We're fine the way we are.

When I'm Ridin' Around the World. And I'm Doin' This and I'm Signing That.

I turn 50 in less than a month. So, in order to celebrate the fact that I made it this far, I thought I'd do a look back every ten years before I reach that magical half century.

I was born on July 16th, 1965. Here are some fun facts about that year:

Winston Churchill Dies At 90

Malcolm X Slain

Largest Blackout In History Hits New York

  Nat King Cole Dies At 45

 Beatles At Shea Stadium

In pop culture news, this is what happened in July in 1965:

More July - TV for housewives - a show called “ Girl Talk ” with Virginia Graham - each weekday on ABC-TV. The chatter can range from hair curlers to the atomic bomb to sex and perhaps husband changing….Grand Ole Opry star Roy Acuff is seriously injured in a two-car collision near Sparta, Tennessee. Two others were also injured. Acuff suffered broken ribs, pelvis collarbone… Columbia Records releases two versions of a new single by Bob Dylan - “Like A Rolling Stone” to radio stations. On one version - “Like A Rolling Stone” is backed with “Gates of Eden.” Interesting, because each song is about 6 minutes, giving the single 12 minutes of music. So as not to completely frighten top-40 disc jockeys, where the average song is just over two minutes, a special DJ single has been created featuring parts one and two of “Like A Rolling Stone.” The song fades out about midway, flip it over and it continues ...  The Kinks are set for a second U.S tour in October. The Britishers launched a four-week tour June 18 that included 18 cities…

The number one song of my birth week? "I Can't Get No Satisfaction" by the Rolling Stones.

The top box office draw for that week? "The Sound of Music".

The top selling novel was, "The Source", by James Michener.

The Vietnam War was escalating, the space program was taking off and Lyndon B. Johnson was president.

 In my own life, I was born around 11 pm on Friday, July 16th in Chicago, Illinois. My sisters remember my mom leaving for the hospital and that they were sitting on the step of our apartment, because it was so hot that night. I was the youngest of 4 children. My parents were Beatnik Artsy types. Later that year, my mom was hospitalized for the first time with unmanageable high blood pressure, and because my dad was already in Arizona, I stayed with my maternal grand parents until she got better. The following year, we would move to Arizona.  

I like that I was born in a time of HUGE changes.

Feel the Arms That Reach Out to Hold Me, In the Evening When the Day is Through.

After the race on Saturday, it was still only noon. A storm rolled in on the way home, but then it cleared-up and got hot.

John asked me what my plan for the rest of the day was. I told him I didn't know. I had been obsessing about the weather and what I would do for the race, but never thought about anything after. I told John it was as if I wouldn't make it through it. ha ha. John wondered if after a nap and a shower, would I want to have a sushi dinner and movie date. Hell, yes, I would!

He napped, and I read my booke. Even though I was sooo tired, I was too amped-up after the race to sleep. He went for a little run and then we went for an early sushi dinner. We saw the new Jurassic Park movie. It was good Summer fare, As we walked out, John asked, "How much did you like that movie and how embarrassed are you to admit that?" That was exactly how I felt about it.

 On Sunday I woke-up without any kind of migraine. Hooray! I read a little, went on a 4 mile recovery run, did some laundry, made lunch and then John and I met some friends for a 35 mile, hilly bike ride to Solon. It was a lot of fun. We went with a couple of guys who live in other towns, but are back because their dad is having surgery. So, we got to know them better and had a really good time.

We made it home from our ride and then watched a documentary movie about the 100th year of the Tour de France.

This warm and rainy Spring looks like it might turn into a warm and humid Summer. It's not good for mountain bike racing, but it is making my garden out of control, happy. One of these days, I might even get around to weeding it...

The Road is Long. With Many a Winding Turn.

Holy cow! but did I have an amazing weekend. I'm really not quite sure how it could have been any better...Unless somebody came to my house and gave me enough money to live on for the rest of my life so I didn't have to work.

We headed to Maquoketa right after work on Friday. We stayed at the Decker Hotel. It was built in 1870 and has a cool, haunted  house vibe about it. Full of antiques and quilts and wallpaper in every room. We always try to stay there whenever we go to Maquoketa.

Me and my fun friends who were doing the race and running support at the Lime Kilns.

My brother wanted to work on some canoeing skills, since I haven't been in one for three years, since the last time we did the race. So, we took the canoe out on the river while John and my sister-in-law went out for a drink. We worked on some things and my brother helped me with my form a lot and showed me how to do some quick steering from the front of the canoe, in case we got into a jam on the river. The tutorial really helped me. I think I finally understood the form better and a way to get more power with the paddle.

After we finished up, we met our respective partners and all headed to the Mexican food for dinner. It was a lovely night and we had a great talk, but we had to get back to the hotel and get to bed, in order to wake-up at 5 am the next morning.

On Saturday, we met my two friends, one who was doing the race and the other who was her support. They wanted to follow us to the drop-off spots and get some pointers. We met at the last transition and started to drive to the 2nd transition and drop-off our bikes and helmets. Of course, my brother was in the lead car of our caravan, which was a bad idea. He has the same sense of direction as I do - nonexistent. We drove by the caves and I commented to John that I didn't remember the bike route by the caves and then we saw my brother pull his car over.Yes, indeed. We were lost. John checked his map and GPS and figure out where we needed to go. We started to head back to our REAL destination when I checked the time. If we dropped the bikes off and then went to the start, we would miss our race. I told John that we should go to the start and our support team could drop-off the bikes while we were canoeing. He was worried that we wouldn't know where to fin our stuff, but I told him he would be there to let us know and if we didn't do it that way, we wouldn't get to race. so, we all headed to the beginning of the race.

 We finally made it to the start. On time, thankfully. The next challenge was getting into the canoe.

The river was high and the banks were very muddy. I kept getting stuck in the mud, much to the amusement of the race organizers. I'm glad I could provide the race entertainment.

thanks for the photo, Rebecca_Tunnicliff-Coady

We finally got into the water and started the 8 mile canoe leg. It was so wonderful. We had a fancy race canoe that made us really fast. The last time we did this race, the river was really low and it was so much harder to paddle. This time, it felt like we were cruising and still going so fast. We went ahead of everyone in our heat and then started passing everyone in the heat ahead of us. At one point, we looked up and saw a flock of pelicans (or is it a gaggle?). It was so cool!

By the time we saw the place to transition from canoe to bike, we had passed a bunch of people in the first heat too. I guessed that there might be about 8 - 10 people ahead of us.

Look at the mud hanging off of my shoe. Phto courtesy of Rebecca-Tunnicliff-Coady

 The theme of the canoe part was me getting stuck in the mud. When we landed, my brother got out with the help of the race volunteers, but I was still way out in the water. I hopped out of the canoe and was in about thigh high water and my feet were stuck in the mud.

I had a paddle in my hand and John told me to give it to him. "Good idea," I said. "That will give me a free hand to try and crawl out." "No," John said. "You give me one end and I'll take one end and pull you out." Even better idea!

Photo courtesy of Rebecca-tunnicliff-coady

 I finally got on the bike and started up the 20% grade  hill out of the river valley. Ouch! I tried to stay focused and figured the bike would be my best part to gain time on people. So, I went pretty hard. I passed 7 people during that leg. Of course, right before the transition for the run, I hit the highway and there was a lot of traffic. The official stopped me and several cars ofr so long, that two of the cyclists I passed, caught back up to me. Great.

When I got to the transition for the run, the official called out, "You're the first lady!" I didn't have the heart to tell him that I was no lady...

I have no idea what my problem is on the run for the last triathlons, but I just die then. It could be that I'm heavier than I used to be, it could be that I'm not getting enough food and water during the race, maybe I'm just sweating out all my iron, or it could be that I'm just old and I can't be a faster runner anymore. Who knows? But I did okay the first mile and then started to die. Sigh. Every time I came across a volunteer or offical, they made a big point to tell me I was the first girl in. that was pretty cool.

I finally finished and assume my normal post race position - in possible puking mode.

Photo courtesy of Julie Hugo.

My brother and I were the only people in our category, so we won! I don't have the official results and times yet, but I'm pretty sure that we did it a hell of a lot faster than the first time, and since I'm always just competing against myself, I'm pretty happy.

It was a really fun day all around.