biggun

ARIE is 10!!!!!

2011-01-27T07:49:00.000-08:00

We are celebrating another birthday! Arie's birthday always causes me to reflect on her life and the many blessings and miracles that we have seen happen in her short life! We have been extremely blessed. Arie is always excited about everything that she is doing, she is our family's best cheerleader. She will tell you at the end of the day exactly what everyone has said or done at school. She has been skiing a few times and now is a pro! She got to go skiing for her birthday and had a great time. We went on all the lifts! I love her "no fear" attitude! When we first put on her skis, waiting for the instructor she tells me "I am going to ski down that hill" and off she went (with me chasing her)! I love to spend time with Arie, she loves to shop and spend my money, but that is ok! I wish that I had skiing pics to show, but I forgot my camera....next time I will remember! Happy Birthday Arie!

BIRTHDAY BOY~JACE

2011-01-07T12:39:00.000-08:00

Today Jace is 14!!!! Where does the time go? Arie made him a birthday card that says "I hope that you would not grow up and leave home". I hope that he doesn't grow up and leave home either. I can still remeber his cute turned up nose with a bunch a strawberry blond hair on the back of his head when he was born. He was such a happy, content baby. I miss the days that the kids were little. Jace keeps us on our toes, when he is focused on something that is all he thinks about. He has started to grow taller. He is getting excited to try out for the high school soccer team in the fall. He has enjoyed snowboarding this winter. Jace's teachers all say what a great
he is! If only we could freeze time!!!! Happy Birthday Jace!!!

Re-do of Wellsvilles

2010-11-05T07:58:00.001-07:00

Marker on top of Box Elder Peak.

View of Brigham City, Great Salt Lake, Willard Bay

Brynne, Janet and Scott

On top of Wellsville Cone with dogs.

We hit the trail again. This time we went end to end. It took 7 hours to make it to Sardine Canyon. It was 11.4 miles. We had to forge snow in several spots. The view were amazing. I am so glad that we made it the whole way through and the weather was perfect!

On the home front, JT has passed the written and driving part of his getting your license steps. We only need to go back in and pay more money and actually pick up the drivers license. He has basketball tryouts and girls choice dance next week. His competitive basketball team won the championship this week. He played awesome.

Adventure Day

2010-10-23T07:51:00.000-07:00

Emily and Janet taking a break.
Enjoying view of Tremonton and Cache Valley.

Brynne the tuff climber! Behind her is North side of
Brigham City and Tremonton. You can see Willard Bay
and Great Salt Lake.

10.21.10
Adventure Day~ Place Wellsvilles~ Peeps; Emily, Janet, Brynne and Me.
What a hike! Awesome day..... Where Janet and EM are sitting having a break in top photo is where you can see Cache Valley and turn and see Brigham City the other way. On this hike you can make it from Mendon to Sherwood Hills in Sardine canyon. About 5.20 miles in we had to turn back because I needed to go to JT's Xcountry race. I would really like to finish this hike.
Round trip the hike took 5 hours and came to almost 10.5 miles. Even as I write this today my quads are letting me know how steep the climbs and descents were!
Thanks to the Adventure Day Crew!

Cross Country

2010-10-22T13:07:00.000-07:00

JT running to finish at Region Cross Country. JT is really excited to be done with the season. He won't admit it but I think that he enjoyed being on the team!

I am a mean mother!

2010-09-27T14:56:00.000-07:00

Shane was gone to Alaska, so I decided to take the kids on a hike. Not a big hike, just up to Willow Flats Spring. The boys complained the whole time getting ready. Arie and Molly were excited to go. We had a great time even though some of us walked through stinging nettle!

Can you guess what I got for my birthday?

Fall 2010

2010-09-26T17:49:00.001-07:00

Pre and Post Salsa Making!

HALF IRON-MAN

2010-08-29T16:14:00.000-07:00

August 28th 2010~
I completed my first Half-Iron Man (Bear Lake Brawl). The race was delayed almost an hour due to a storm that had gone through the night and still lingered in the morning. Janet and I left the cabin at 5:00 am to head down to the lake. While driving down to the lake, lightning was really lighting up the sky. I was kind of half hoping maybe they could cancel the swim and make us ride a few extra miles on the bike!

I won't bore you setting up transition details, but Shane was a great help to me. The swim went really well for me. I was one minute behind my friend Janet who is a really good swimmer! I was a little bummed to see two ladies start with the men, because that meant they had a 5-10 min. head start on the rest of the women.

I headed out on the bike and I was really makin' some bacon! It was a great ride until I turned on the North Shore at Bear Lake. The winds had started up. After I turned around at the 1/2 way mark the wind was a little more bearable until I turned to go back on the east side of the Lake. I figure that the winds slowed me down by at least 20-30 min. JT, Shane and Arie would drive by and cheer for me. It took around 3 hours and 11 min.to bike the 56 miles.

I was happy to get off the bike because of the wind......but I think I should have stayed on the bike! The wind on the run was even worse than on the bike! I was by far the worst run I have ever had in my life! It was almost half walk/ half run. My body had no more to give, especially fighting the wind. The aide stations were out of water and gatorade. I started to cry when the volunteer told me that there was no water...he took off the lid and poured me out the last few drops of water. Luckily Shane, Brynne, JT and Arie came by soon after and Brynne had a little water left in her bottle. I told them to go back and check on Janet, because she would need some water also. They kept checking on me every few min. which was nice. Shane was really nice to tell me I was looking good, (which I really was not!) I was able to run/walk with a guy for awhile which was nice to visit with someone. I gave him some of my swedish fish and sport beans. He was worse off than me some I moved on. Shane told me that everyone in the race was walking, the wind just simply took it out of you. The best part of the race was when I had less than a mile to go Shane drove by in the truck holding a bottle of Diet Coke out the window!

I didn't make my goal time, but I did accomplish two of the three goals. I did work really hard all summer to do this, and I am not so sure I will do it again! It was the worst organized race that I have ever attended. I am now excited to ride my bike! I have missed riding my bike as much as I am used too!

Race distance for Half Iron Man- Swim~ 1.2miles Bike~ 56 miles Run~ supposed to be 13.1 but this race was 14.

Pictures to follow----maybe :)

BIG 16!

2010-08-09T07:10:00.000-07:00

Today is is JT's 16th birthday! Wow, it is hard to believe that he is 16 and that I am old enough to have a 16 year old! (I don't feel that old!) He is such a good kid! You just couldn't ask for any better! His nickname of late around the house is the BFG (big friendly giant). He is so kind hearted, he will do just about anything to be with Shane. When Jace and JT have been away from each other for a few hours or days they lay in bed visit to catch up on what they did while away from each other. Another great thing about JT is that he loves my cooking and enjoys eating a home cooked dinner. He loves to ride his motorcycle and was able to go to the sand dunes for a early birthday celebration. I am so proud of JT and the great person he is growing up to be! HAPPY BIRTHDAY JT!

My New Life

2010-05-06T15:24:00.000-07:00

Funny Call(s)

2010-03-25T11:34:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I was driving home from soccer practice. My cell phone rings I answer thinking it was my sister. All I heard from the other end was some breathing, so after saying hello for a few times I hung up. A minute passes and the phone rings again and I answer thinking again that it was my sister.
Me: Hello....Hello.....Hello
Caller (niece B): Hi, Kara.
Me: Hi B. What are you doing?
B: I am riding my bike with one hand.
Me: While you are on the phone?
B: Ya, I can ride with no hands and talk on the phone!
Me: Do you have a helmet on?
B: (laughing) no, I am in the house.
Me: Oh, that is good.
B: Is Arie there?
Me: No, She is at home. I can have her call you when I get home.
B: Okay, Do you want to talk to T (little brother)?
Me: Sure
B: My mom says "No".
Me: Ok, I will have Arie call you when I get home.

On to the next call.....about 30 minutes later. Phone rings, I answer and it's B again. She says "Kara you told me that you have Arie me and she didn't call me!" I tell "B" let me get her. I give the phone to Arie and they visit for a bit. I was worried that B is calling to say thank you for some clothes that I sent down. (Arie is a hoarder and doesn't get rid of anything, unless her mother sneaks it out of the house.) But it turns out that "B" has just called to visit with Arie, wanting to play and go to the mall with her. The call ends. Another few minutes go by, the phone rings again. I answer and it is "B" again.
"B": Hi Kara I just called to say that I miss Arie really bad. (In a really sad voice.)
Call is then interrupted by parent taking away the phone from her, and apologizing to me and promising to hide the phone better. The parent tells me that (B)know how to look up my number to call. I thought the calls were just great!

Don't mess with the Zohan! (Arie)

2010-02-04T16:35:00.000-08:00

I went to PTC for Arie today. The report was great. Her reading score was amazing. No complaints from the teacher. This kind of PTC makes a parent proud! Until......I had heard that Arie had been sent to think time. Arie wouldn't tell me all of the details, so I asked the teacher what had happened.

The story goes like this: Arie was playing with her friend Vanessa at recess. AJ (a boy in their class) wanted to play the kissing game with Vanessa. Arie being the good friend that she is, intervened. In the teachers word "she took him out". The teacher said that it was some type of karate/take down move. She was giggling a bit telling me what had gone on. Remember Arie weighs 40+lbs. The teacher wasn't too mad because Arie was taking care of her friend. But she would like to see Arie resolve problems with talking rather than violence! I am glad that Arie is on my team!

The Big Nine!

2010-01-26T20:32:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow Arie will be 9! Where has the time gone? It doesn't seem too long ago we were celebrating her 1st birthday with a really big party! She had her oxygen on, her new pink dress and a new pair of shoes. The years have flown by. The oxygen is gone and the getting up several times a night for "Bear Milk" are gone. Some things have not changed though. Arie still loves parties, loves new dresses and shoes. She wants me to wake her up early in the morning to open her presents. (She already knows what she is getting.) Arie makes our home complete. She is always excited and animated about everything. She tells you every detail of the day. Today's big event was that the computer lab teacher was the devil today! Most days she loves school. She loves to ride motorcycles, her bike, go snowmobiling, go sleigh riding and play with anyone who will play with her. She is a great helper and likes to tend her cousins. Arie will try to carry them even though they weigh as much as she does.

Arie started playing basketball this winter. Of course I worry. She is one of the best defenders! She told her coach last week that she gets the offense and the defense. After last weeks game she sent a text to Shane saying: "the other team was hitting, scratching, and biting us. I dribbled the ball down the court 2 times and Ken was there." I love how confident Arie is. She is not afraid of anyone or anything! I love how Arie loves to snuggle, if she beats you awake in the morning, you can bet that she will be in bed next to you! She loves animals, even though she has been praying for Riley to die! (So she can get a new puppy!)

I love you Arie and hope that you have a Fantabulous Birthday!

Jace is 13!!!!!!!!!

2010-01-07T15:08:00.001-08:00

13 years ago Jace entered this world and our lives have never been the same! He was 8pounds 15 ounces, with a really big head. He was often called the Michelin Baby! He is the source of great entertainment in our family! He has many talents, like contorting his body, doing origami, playing soccer, and the best talent is figuring out how to not work too hard! He is so smart, he is fearless. He has a few quirks. He has been known to be funny about food. For awhile the only foods he would eat was chocolate milk and instant oatmeal. He has since expanded his foods. (Just don't try and feed him fast food.) Jace has a kind heart, you can often find him playing with a younger cousin or a younger neighbor. He is quick to forgive (forget). Over the years as I have gone to parent teacher conferences the teachers would all say just how cute Jace was.....being cute does not help the bad grades! Jace has been known to strip down to his underwear and swim or shower in public. He loves to be with JT, it is fun to watch them. Ater they have been apart for awhile and they see each other, they can't stop talking to each other. And often they stay awake in their room talking. Jace gets excited to tell Shane things, especially things that have to do with explosives! Jace makes my heart stop every time he rides wheelies up the road. He rides some of the best wheelies I have every seen! He has been known to come down with sudden cases of paralyzation and an occasional case of amnesia. His future hopes for a occupation are always changing, some include; homeless, working and McDonalds, pyrotechnician and the latest was a exotic dancer. He told me that he would give me free lunch everyday when he works at McDonalds. He can dance a mean "lawn mower"! As you can see he keeps me on my toes! Jace, thanks for keeping me on my toes! We love having Jace in our family! Happy Birthday!

Nie Nie Dialogues

2009-11-13T15:09:00.000-08:00

I happened to catch Oprah the other day. She had Stephanie Nielson and her husband on. They are both survivors of a plane crash. They now live in Provo. I was so impressed with Stephanie. I looked up her blog and now check it every day. Check it out. Go back and read some of her older posts.

Updates on the home front: I lost my camera. JT has the swine flu and basketball tryouts for the High School. I GOT A NEW CAR!!!!!!!!!! :) Shane and Jace are off on a special draw deer hunt.

Grace...

2009-09-30T12:41:00.001-07:00

Sometimes it is just kind of funny how things come to you..... I was in the shower at the gym getting ready to go to the Dr. and I happened to read my shower gel bottle. It goes like this:(from Philosophy)
"Life is a classroom, we are both student and teacher, each day is a test, and each day we receive a passing or failing grade in one particular subject: grace. Grace is compassion, gratitude, surrender, faith, forgiveness, good manners, reverence, and the list goes on. It's something that money can't buy and credentials rarely produce. Being the smartest, the prettiest, the most talented, the richest, or even the poorest, can't help. Being a humble person can and being a helpful person can guide you through your days with grace and gratitude."

Sometimes we just need a little reminder :)

As it turns out....

2009-08-19T13:46:00.000-07:00

As it turns out I won the women's division in the Triathlon. Here is my photo for the win. It just very well be my one and only win ever! (Beginner/intermediate division :) )

Picture of My Number on my Leg

2009-08-15T15:06:00.000-07:00

HAFB Triathlon

2009-08-15T14:55:00.000-07:00

Today I did my first Tri with my sister Kris. It was one cold, rainy, summer morning. We checked in. We waited by the pool for our heat. We were in the last heat. We were glad that we were in the last heat so there weren't too many people watching us swim! The swim ended up not being as scary as I thought it would be. But the whole time people were hitting, kicking and pulling on you. I wasn't really able to use my newly aquired swimming skills. I am not sure how long the swimm took because I forgot to stop my watch. The biking was fun. It was raining and very windy. I did well on the bike. My feet were freezing! I transitioned to the run. My feet were numb and frozen. The run was not my best run ever but I feel pretty good about how I did overall! The event was free and you also received a free T-shirt!

A big thanks to Jared, Brecklyn and Trey for cheering us on!

PICTURE LOADING PROBLEMS

2009-08-12T11:21:00.000-07:00

LOTOJA Training

2009-08-12T11:13:00.001-07:00

Heidie, Sara and I in the early morning hours getting in our 50 miler!

Goals

2009-08-11T10:59:00.000-07:00

I have had a busy year of setting goals and accomplishing them!

JT

2009-08-09T14:28:00.000-07:00

I am truly getting old. Today is JT's 15th birthday! I can hardly believe that he is that old! I am so proud of JT. He truly is such a good person. JT has the kindest heart and has very sensitive feelings. He is concerned for others feelings as well. He is growing so tall. He is over six feet tall now. He is getting ready to start high school this year. For his birthday Shane took JT and Jace to the sand dunes in Rexburg. They had such a great time. I am glad that JT, Jace and Shane have such a good friendship! JT is a awesome older brother! Honestly I just can't say enough good about that boy! We love him so much! Happy Birthday JT!

Pictures of JT's birthday party at the dunes.

Clunkers for Cash

2009-08-06T18:05:00.000-07:00

I have to admit, I was thinking that the clunkers for cash might just be the answer for me! But it was not to be. My car does not meet the EPA rating of 18 mpg or lower. Plus then I heard what they do to the cars when you turn it over to the dealer, and there is just no way I could do that to my car. :( So I sit dreaming of a new vehicle. But while I was at Girls Camp Shane bought a Crane Truck for our business. At least it is automatic for when I have to drive it!

In the meantime I have been to Girls Camp and Pitcher Family Reunion at Lava Hot Springs. It has been a really crazy summer. I have been doing as many bike rides as I can to get ready for the LOTOJA!

The most recent and exciting news at the Johnson family home is Arie's new ride. She has had so much fun riding and riding. She has been practicing so she can beat her friend Jackson in a race. The boys at my house are getting ready to leave for the sand dunes in the morning They are going to celebrate JT's birthday!

I don't have too many more updates on the bike tour. But one thing that is pretty funny is one day Tony, Chris and I were riding in Eureka,CA and we were getting pretty hungry and we saw a COSTCO, so we stopped. The door employee wouldn't let us in. Chris was telling the lady that he was a gold member but wasn't carrying any ID. (The Lady was not nice.) Finally a manager heard and let him in to the service desk and he got us in temporarily. Tony and Chris went in for the food and I sat with the bikes. They brought out the food, pizza, diet coke, ice cream, churro?, and we just sat right outside the exit of the building and ate. As it turns out while Tony and Chris were getting the food someone asked them if they were going to play football or golf. They thought that was pretty funny. Like all the spandex might help their golf swing or something. While we were sitting outside Tony told me something and my reply to him was " I heard what you said, but I don't get it." I was getting so exhausted I just couldn't think very well. I went into the restroom and on my way out a lady stopped me @ the deli to ask me what the deal with my shoes was. The rest of the patrons of the deli seemed to stop what they were doing to hear what I had to say about my tapping shoes. When I told her that we were cycling to San Fransisco it seemed to set her at ease.

Part 2

2009-07-09T18:49:00.000-07:00

There are going to be lots of parts to this story :) So because all of us rode the first day we left my truck in Lincoln City. We arrived at camp late in the evening. It was my night to cook dinner so I worked on that while some of our group made their way to camp. Everyone had arrived, but Tony noticed that Chris hadn't made it. Tony started trying to call Chris and we were just starting to think that we needed to get in the truck to go find him when he wheeled in. Had gone too far into the town. So people in the group ate and set up their tents...my camping gear was in my truck. Luckily I had my suitcase so that I could shower. You have to use quarters to shower. After a quick shower (not real quick) Andy, Andy, Bri and Brooke and I headed back to pick up my truck. We arrived at my truck and I drove that back to camp. It took about 1 1/2 hours each way. When I got back to camp it was around 1am. I thought that I was smart sleeping in the cab of the truck. Turns out, it was not such a idea! After a uncomfortable night some of us were up early and ready to ride. Evan, Andy B and Gary cooked us a nice batch of eggs. After getting everyone up and breaking camp, we were ready to ride. I left my truck again.

Many parts of this trip are a blur. But some of our group this day only rode about 1/2 the mileage so they headed back to pickup the truck, so we didn't have to do a late night run again. Lunch once again by Evan. Ham--sandwiches. It was hard to dress for riding. Sometimes it was so cold and then you would go inland and it would get so hot. Stopping for lunch was very chilly. We found that sitting on the asphalt helped warm you up and get you out of the wind. There was a section of the ride this day called the Seven Devils. They were steep son of a guns!

On the second night that we rode, we had dinner at a bar and grill in Bandon,(?) OR. They had fantastic burgers and garlic fries. This was the first night that I used my new lightweight backpacking tent and pad. The tent was cool, the pad was not so cool! After another great breakfast of eggs and toast we were ready to ride again (and application of the dz nuts). I am starting to get my days confused. So I guess I will just have to give trip highlights.. at least in the order that I think that it happened. Here are some pics.

We had to walk across this bridge. Tony, Chris and I took off our shoes to help save our cleats. The wind was blowing soooo hard. I was worried that it might blow the bike out of my hand. We were able to cross lots of bridges.

Pics of Bike Trip Part 1

2009-07-08T10:57:00.001-07:00

Bike Trip Part 1

2009-07-08T10:20:00.000-07:00

Friday morning we met bright and early in Bountiful and did a long day of driving to Portland. The crew consisted of: Andy B, Bri, Andy N, Brooke, Tony, Chris, Evan and me :) The drive was pretty uneventful except for losing the tread off the tire on the trailer which in turn took off the fender/wheel cover on the trailer. So the menfolk changed the tire and we stopped at Les Schawb and bought another new tire. We arrived in Portland and stopped at the airport to pick up Blake and Gary. Then we headed off to Lake Oswego (sp) where we had a hotel for the night. Early the next morning Andy B went to pick up Jesse who lives in Portland. We loaded everything back up into the trucks and off we went to start in Lincoln City. Lincoln City was holding their annual Kite Festival. I took a couple of pictures of kites. Pretty awesome. We unloaded and prepped our bikes. That took awhile. We left my truck and Evan went ahead with the other truck and trailer. It was rather chilly and it was hard to decide what to wear. We started off down the coast. This first day was a coastal ride. This was one of my favorite days. The wind was blowing so we had a nice tail. Nothing is flat. There is always a up and down. It was nice when the bike trail took off the main highway. There is not any shoulder on the highway.
Here are some pics of the first day.

PORTLAND TO SAN FRAN

2009-07-06T12:56:00.000-07:00

I am just putting up a couple of pictures of the end of the ride at the Golden Gate Bridge on the 4th of July. When I regain brain function I will give a trip update.

The end of May

2009-05-31T16:25:00.001-07:00

I think that May is one of the busiest times of the year! I am now done with field day(2 days)!!! Soccer is winding up and try outs are going to start. Basketball camps are about to begin, swim and tennis lessons too. I think that we will be plenty busy, but we just won't have school to worry about!

On Tuesday night I had the chance to go with Arie to the Taylor Swift concert in Salt Lake. It was sooo much fun! It was fun to watch the girls sing along with Taylor. Arie and I went with Chalisa, Kaimbre and Aubre. We headed down a bit early and ate at the Red Robin and then went to the concert. The video clip is the beginning of the concert. Kelly Pickler was one of the openers, but cancelled. Arie and I didn't make it home until 1 am. We were even later than the bear hunters!

The boys in our house have come and gone on the bear hunt. They had a good time. Jace was able to shoot his first bear!

I bought my camera with the purpose in mind of taking pictures of some of my bike rides. Last night Shane and I went on a really pretty ride, and of course no camera. It is really a good thing that I didn't bring the camera because I wrecked so many times that I would have broke the thing! (I just put on my clip pedals and shoes--- I am not doing so well on the loose big rock :( ) I will keep working at this so I don't wreck so much. I will also start wearing my helmet, gloves and longer pants--maybe even some elbow pads!

The weather has been so nice. I have been on a couple rides this week. I hope I will pick up a few rides this week. This upcoming Sat. is the Little Red Riding Hood. Sara, Heidie and I will do the 80 mile ride :)

Marathon Report

2009-05-17T17:12:00.000-07:00

The good news is I finished the marathon. With my injuries and training, I was wondering if I could finish. So I was happy to finish. The worst part of the whole deal was that I felt good other than the pain in my knee. Which I think is still that darn IT band. The "Special" cream that the Dr. gave me did NOT help in any way! I will stick to 1/2 marathons, bike races/events, try a tri & other stuff that doesn't hurt so much. I am glad that I was able to run with Kris. I hope that I didn't hold her back. We were able to finish together. Shane, JT, Arie, Jared, Brecklyn and Trey were all at the finish line waiting for us and cheering us on!

Preparations

2009-05-15T08:33:00.000-07:00

Imodium-Check, Inhaler-Check, Numbing, SwampJuice Cream-Check, Drugs-Check, Ipod-check& Chiropractor. I don't know what else to do to prepare for this race. It will be good to have it over with! I think that I will work on a little mental preparation. It has been quite a process to prepare for the race.

This weekend my brother Zach is graduating from dental school, and then moving next week to Memphis to start Ortho school. We are so proud of him! We wish that we could be there to see him graduate!

Heidie is heading to Bear Lake on Sat. to do the Bear Lake Classic. I feel a little sad that I am not going. I love to ride my bike and will miss doing the race with her. But I am crossing something off my bucket list, and I am excited to be able to do it with my sister Kris. She has had to promise to leave me when things start to hurt on me!

Shane is coming down to the race. He has so kindly offered to get up at 4 am to drive Kris and I to the bus that will take us to the start line! Hopefully it will be a respectable finish so that Shane won't die of embarrassment!

Rain, Rain, Go AWAY!

2009-05-02T14:21:00.000-07:00

I have no fun and exciting pictures to share. But here is a update on my life. We have recently had a pretty bad bout of illness with Arie this week. She seems to be on the mend now. We have been busy with soccer, scouts, track, PTO, and everything else. Our family had to speak in church last week. We are glad to have that over with. It keeps raining alot. And it keeps raining. I guess that is how it goes when you have a new bike waiting to be rode!

Since I opted for the new bike instead of the car, I decided to have a little work done on the car. The Honda was in the shop for 2 weeks!! I truly missed my car! I called the mechanic everyday. I'm not sure if the work that was done to it helped any. I also sold my old road bike. It pulled at my heartstrings a little to see the old guy go. We had spent many miles together.

I am in the final preparations for the Marathon. I will pick up the special cream for my legs on Monday. This is supposed to block pain and inflammation, so hopefully I can finish the race!

I have still been continuing my swim lessons. I am excited because that is going well. I am starting a new program on Weds. called TRX. I am excited to give it a try.

I need the sun to shine so I can ride my bike! I am tired of standing in the rain at soccer games. I need the sun! I need the sun!

The good news is that school is almost out and I got confirmation on the LOTOJA entry!!!

A NEW ARRIVAL

2009-04-17T18:49:00.000-07:00

Today Shane and I headed back down to Salt Lake to pick up my new bike. I was really excited to get the bike. I have been having some nightmares about getting a compact double. Shane and I were both really impressed with the service at Contender. I would highly recommend checking out this awesome bike store. Shane took a picture of me, Alison (my cousin), Ryan and the bike. They are the owners of the store. I definetly have been riding the wrong size of bike! I took the bike out this afternoon for a ride. What a difference! I am excited to try a few hills to check out the gearing. I test rode alot of bikes before arriving at the conclusion to buy this Orbea Orca. So now I need to eat a little crow...... I opted to buy a new bike instead of a new car. I know that I mentioned in a earlier post that I was for sure buying a new car. I guess the Honda will just have to keep on going for another hundred thousand!

Pineapple Cake Recipe

2009-04-11T20:57:00.001-07:00

I don't like Pineapple but this cake is really good-

PINEAPPLE CAKE-

2 Eggs

2 Cups of Flour

2 Cups of Sugar

2 Tsp. Baking Soda

1 Tsp. Vanilla

1 Can 20 ounces of Crushed Pineapple, do not drain

(I have added 1/2 cup or so of sour cream)-

Mix these ingredients together and bake in a 350 degree oven.(9X13 pan) The original recipe says 20-25 min, but I bake it for 35min and then lay tinfoil on top and finish baking. You will need to keep testing it to see when it is done.

While the cake is still warm, frost with the following recipe:

1 pound powdered sugar

8 ounces cream cheese (softened)

1/2 stick of butter (softened or melted)

1 TBSP vanilla

Beat well together. If the frosting is way thick, thin with a little with milk.

The original recipe called for nut in the cake and pecan on top of the frosting. I have not done that when I have made the cake.

More Moab Pics

2009-04-11T19:42:00.001-07:00

Spring Break!

2009-04-07T09:38:00.000-07:00

For spring break we did our annual trip down to Moab. I would like to say that it was warm and sunny, but it was NOT! The first day of riding (thurs.) was pretty nice. The rest of the days had rain, snow, wind and rain. This year was the first year that Jace rode a motorcycle. I was really concerned for his safety. The first day he struggled at bit. By the second day he rode like a Pro. He was bruised from his hips to his toes. If he wrecked he just got up and got back on the bike without complaining! I called him "Evil Kanevil (sp)" while we were in Moab. That boy is not scared of anything or as I say, no sense of self-preservation. JT got a new motorcycle, a KTM. He also struggled the first day. I thought that we might be bringing that bike home and selling it, but the next day he rode so well. It's really nice as a parent to see your kids growing up to be good people. I was really proud of my kids on the trip. Arie says that she didn't like to ride. She just wanted to play with her friend Addi. Most of Arie's time was spent in the hot tub! Shane has officially retired from the tour guide down in Moab. He says that next year he will be on a motorcycle! The kids were having too much fun without him!

Now we are back home, back to the regular routine of things. Back to school, track practice, YM's, scouts, achievement days, and soccer practice. The nice thing is that I think that spring is somewhat here!!!

Genetics

2009-03-24T14:27:00.000-07:00

I have had a run with my genetics the past few days! I did a body fat and VO2 max test. The results were ok but not great.(We were told that the results were affected by genes. So I can blame my results on that!) Then I went to the Dr. for my ITB pain. He told me that my hips were the problem due to genetics. So I started physical therapy today. Hopefully to correct some of the problem so I can do the marathon that I signed up for. Kris.... How are your genes working for you?

Shane has not been working for the past month or so. It has been a adjustment for him. We drove to Logan last night for some dinner and some errands. There was a man standing on the side of the rode with the sign "Will Work For Food". Shane thought that he might give that a try. As soon as they can get cement in we can start work!

Car update. We have decided on getting another Honda Accord. There are many reasons for this decision. The kids are not very happy about it, but since they are not paying for the new car they have no say! I keep watching KSL classifieds everyday trying to find the right one at a good deal!

We are starting to get ready for our annual trip to Moab. The kids are so excited to go! It is always a blast when we go!

Stunning

2009-03-12T14:51:00.001-07:00

This is a picture of my new swim cap and goggles. I have been using hand me downs. I just signed up for a Masters swim class. It is a bit interesting because I have worked on my swimming and I can now swim 80 laps no big deal. But in this new class you start all over at the beginning. The teacher tells you not to go back and swim how you used to. You can only practice the drills you are assigned. I think it will be much better for me in the long run. (I'll understand if no one wants to be seen with me!)

Today was Arie's Cardiology appointment. She had a echo and EKG. Everything looks about the same as last years echo which is good. So we are good to go until her next appointment. It sure is nicer to go to these appointments now that she is older. This appointment was over 2 hours long. Shane took her to Walmart after to get her own Wii controller and numchuck (sp)? Shane took me to Al's and bought my new cap and goggles along with the new lightweight tent to go with all of the backpacking gear he bought me the other day. I guess I am now committed to go backpacking. I think that it will be fun. Plus I have a new really cute sleeping bag.

Tomorrow is the long run day. Kris can correct me if I am off schedule again. I will be doing my 18 miler. This will mean I get to watch a couple of movies. Shane has given me the Transporter movies.

I don't think that I mentioned in the last post that Shane said I could definitely get a new car or whatever I pick. But the more $$'s it is the longer I may have to wait. I have looked at a few Honda Accords but I really would like to drive a few other cars, especially the Nissan Murano. I asked Shane that he would promise me that if I got another Honda Accord that I would not have to drive it as long as this one! It has been a trusty steed!

Roadshow

2009-03-06T16:12:00.000-08:00

Our stake did roadshows for the youth. Our ward did one like Hee-Haw. It was great. JT and Jace were both in it. Our ward won first place last week so they got to perform it this week. Some of the kids (OK most) had no idea what Hee-Haw was.

Here is a picture of the boys and one of "Cletus".

He was awesome!

We have a very exciting week! Shane has been home all week. He has helped various people do some odd jobs like; tiling a shower and welding on a manger. I call him farm boy right now because he has to stand in a foot of cow crap to do the welding. It is very strange to have him around all the time.

We had a little car trouble this week (shocker)! I am cruising down the highway with the kids. (in the fast lane) The car makes a funny sound like the door is open going 70. I pull off to the emergency lane. The boys pile out of the car to check it out. As it turns out the plastic inside the wheel well has partially come off and was rubbing on the tire. So I pull on it to try and rip it off, well it was still screwed on. So I opted to drive the back roads home. It made very loud sounds and flipped gravel and rocks all over the place as it dragged on the ground. We passed a man who was out walking who turned around to stare at us as we went down the road. I turned a corner to a dirt road. I did not see a pothole in the road so we hit it going pretty fast. Hitting the hole was just what the plastic needed to be ripped off. I stopped and all the kids jumped out to run back and get the plastic. They were cheering and laughing the whole way. Arie told me after they got back in the car that she would not ride in the car anymore! (Extra Parts that the car really doesn't need--better gas mileage.)

Today Shane and I got our taxes prepared and filed. It was nice to have done! We stopped for lunch and then went to Staples to pick up a few supplies. I really needed to use the restroom so I headed to the back of the store. There was a note on the door saying something to the effect that the lock on the door was kind of broke. That if you chose to use the restroom you might get locked in, Sorry for the inconvenience. I REALLY had to go. I checked out the lock. Seemed to work, so I went in. After washing my hands I tried the door. LOCKED! I tried a little bit more- LOCKED! I thought what now.... The restroom is at the back of the store, do I bang and yell until a employee hears me? Ah ha..... I have my cell phone. 911? No, I just call Shane who is shopping on the store. Please, off all the times answer the phone! He did. It went something like this:

Shane: Hello

Kara: Hey, I 'm locked in the bathroom.

Shane: In the store?

Kara: Ya. Could you help me?

Shane: Do you want me to find an employee and tell them my wife is locked in the bathroom?

Kara: (Kind of laughing) Ya,.... No wait! I got it!

Lucky for me I kept working it and jiggling it till it opened. Saving me a big embarrassment! What if Shane hadn't been shopping with me? Call 911 really?

Is it almost spring?

2009-02-25T19:35:00.000-08:00

It seems like it is taking me longer to do new posts. Maybe because I am too busy??? Or maybe things are pretty routine??? Today was my Grandma Bergesons funeral. It was a really nice funeral. All of my cousins were there. My brother Zach was able to come from Pittsburgh. Although I will miss Grandma I am glad that she was able to go peacefully. She would have really loved her funeral. It was good to visit with old neighbors and friends. My cousin Addi was there with her 2 little boys. Because I read her blog I was not surprised at how big her boys were getting.

JT is now done with school basketball. He will be starting competitive basketball and track soon. Jace and I are just finishing indoor soccer and will be starting outdoor soccer. Arie is now in achievement days. Shane has some down time for work right now. He plans to do some snowmobiling, I have some plans for some honey do's for him! We shall see! (Ha Ha Ha)

I am getting excited to start riding my (road) bike outside. You can only ride the trainer for so long. I am still working towards the marathon. I had a discouraging run yesterday. I hope that the next long run goes better.

I will be following Jill's (Up in Alaska Blog) progress in the Iditarod race. She is using a SPOT tracking system. I think that is a totally crazy race! I am such a boob when it comes to being cold. Her blog has some really cool pictures.

Winter update

2009-02-12T14:35:00.001-08:00

I have been so busy lately that it has been hard to make time to blog! We had Arie's baptism and confirmation on Jan.31st. It was a really neat experience. Afterwards the family came over and ate, then we headed out to do some sleigh riding/tubing. I think that everyone had a good time. It was fun to have everyone over and stay and play for a while.

Today is JT's last basketball game of the school season. I am really proud of how well he has been playing. Shane and I have really enjoyed watching him play. Jace and Arie are a little tired of going to watch the games.

Last Sat. Jace went and moved chickens for the first time. They sent the forms to fill out for taxes for Jace, so I am assuming that they will ask him back again.

I have rode my mountain bike outside a few times in the last couple of weeks. I had a wreck on one of my rides. (Ice- got me.) In getting ready for the marathon I ran 17 miles. And then after I was done checked my e-mail and realized that I only needed to run 15-16 miles. Kris has to keep me on track because I seem to like to get ahead of the training schedule. It is time to also start planning the upcoming events for the year. It is hard to decide what to do.....so much to choose from. I heard that the LOTOJA is the 13th of Sept. I have not yet checked for myself.

On Monday night Shane took the family to the Rock Haus in Logan to do some rock climbing. We had a really good time. Arie really likes to climb!

I hope that everyone is doing well. Especially with the economy the way it is. We just signed another building. So we have work for a few more months.

Arie's 8th Birthday

2009-01-27T08:30:00.000-08:00

Today we celebrate Arie's 8th Birthday! She is so excited about turning 8 and being baptized. Shane and I were talking about how time flies. Arie is turning 8, Jace passed the sacrament for the 1st time, JT is getting so big and is almost ready to start driving. Arie adds a spark of life to our family, everything is such a big deal. It seem just like yesterday that we were in the hospital fighting for her life. It is truly amazing how her health has improved year to year! Sat. will be such a special day for me to have Arie baptized, it is a day that I sometimes wondered if I would ever see happen. Happy Birthday Arie!!! We Love You!!!

Family Trip

2009-01-08T17:09:00.000-08:00

I thought that I would share some of our activities in Hawaii and some of our photos. We left on Mon. Dec. 29th 2008. We had a direct flight to Hawaii. We stayed at a beach house in the town of Laia. Which is close to the North Shore where the famous pipeline is. Of course we checked out the pipeline and Sunset beach. There were lots of surfers and bodyboarders. The humidity was very high and it rained every day. But at least it was a warm rain. The boys and Shane took surf lessons with Cory and Jaden at Chun's Reef. Their lesson was taught by "Uncle Bryan". "Uncle Bryan" claimed to be the coach of alot of the pro surfers. All of our surfing students did get up and surf. While I was watching the surf lessons I saw a guy surfing with a bulldog on his board. I told Shane that we are turning Riley in for a new model.

We hiked to a waterfall that was about 700 feet tall. It was a waterfall that tourists don't go to, just the locals. We had to climb a rope up 2 sections of water. We ended up with a ton of bug bites. We had to hike up the river bed and in the river for about one mile. Only Bret and Chalisa's family and ours went to the top. The kids had the chance to jump into pools of water under some of the smaller falls on the way up and down. I slipped and fell into one of the pools, which was ok other than I had a bag on my back with beach towels and clothes in it. The bag quickly weighted me down as I tried to make it to the edge of the pool.

We did alot of body boarding at different beaches. We only ended up with one major injury. Bret totally got ate by a pounder. He injured his neck. He had a painful couple of last days and had to miss his surf lesson. When he got home he went to the Doctor, who told him that he had torn his ligaments in his neck.

We went to Pearl Harbor, the PCC, Hannama (sp) Bay (snorkeling), saw the blow hole, the most photographed beach, visited Tim and Elaine Hobbs (serving a mission at the PCC), ate at the Hard Rock Cafe, went to the Flea Market, ate fresh shrimp at the Shrimp trucks (yummmmmy!). I am leaving out many of the sites and beaches we went to. We did alot of beach walking and gathering shells. We enjoyed snorkeling at different beaches in our touring.

New Years Eve in Hawaii is a HUGE deal. They start letting off fireworks around 5pm and don't stop until sometime early in the morning. The smoke is so thick from all of the fireworks. The Hawaiins save their money to buy fireworks. They have firework wars and shoot them across the street at each other. If you wonder what the picture is with the smoke it is New Years Eve on the street where the temple is.

We drove up the West side of the island (north). This is really the ghetto of Hawaii!

(See the picture with the Holiday Inn Flag!)

Kids Photos

2008-12-19T08:06:00.000-08:00

On Thanksgiving my sister in-law took the kids pictures. I wanted to share just a couple. She did a great job! I am adding her photo blog to the blog list.

Pinchface.....

2008-12-19T07:52:00.000-08:00

This morning after I dropped the kids off to school I stopped at to get a DP from a vending machine in town. I was waiting in my truck to get back on the highway to head home, and Pinchface drove by. She about broke her neck trying to turn around to see, well I guess me. I didn't even think---- I up and stuck my tongue out at her! I wonder if she saw my childish gesture! Oh well, it made me feel better.

My BFF

2008-12-02T11:03:00.000-08:00

These are 2 pictures of my new exercise room. We are just waiting for the heater and air conditioner to come. It is really a hardship to exercise out there!!! (Ha-Ha)

I hope that everyone had a good Thanksgiving. I had a really good Thanksgiving. I got sick with the stomach bug the Sat. after Thanksgiving. It has taken awhile to feel all the way better.

Shane and I rode our bikes on Sunday afternoon. I didn't feel very well but gave it a good effort. We rode up to High Creek (down by Richmond). It was a really pretty ride. I would like to do it another day when I feel better.

On Thurs. Shane will go back down to the Mount Ogden Eye Center to get his eyes touched up! He is pretty nervous.

The other day while driving a person who I call "pinchface" passed us and seemed to have a really hard time waving to me that day. So Arie asked me why Pinchface and myself do not like each other. I told Arie that Pinchface was my BFF ,that I totally liked her and that Pinchface just didn't like me. Well Arie believed that and thought that was a good answer, but the boys were snickering because they knew some of the really great things that my BFF has done to me. So at our house we have done some joking about how my BFF waves at me, and how I wish that she would just give me a 5 finger wave. Last Sunday in primary my BFF's daughter said a talk in Primary. Yes, that meant that my BFF came into Primary to listen. Arie saw her, hopped up out of her seat and ran up to me (in the front of the room) and announced "Mom, there is your BFF." I was just dying. I do not think that my BFF heard!

Lesson learned- be careful what you share with your kids even if you are kidding around!

Thankful

2008-11-20T15:42:00.000-08:00

Three weeks ago Shane and I took the kids up the canyon to the four wheeler trail that we like to ride our MTB's on and we picked rocks off the trail for a couple of hours. We thought that it would really help us make up it up a really steep long section. On Sunday after church and before the Priesthood Preview we went up to give it a try. We thought that the removal of rocks will definitely help, but there was new complication that day! MUD! It made for some slick riding. I had a minor wreck and slid on my back down a hill with the Blur on top of me! (Just a few bruises.) The easy part was the climb. The hard part was going down a steep hill. It was muddy enough that we couldn't even pedal our bikes because there was mud jammed everywhere. After alot of work getting down the hill we stopped in the river and Shane put the bikes in the river and washed then off enough to get us home.

So I have been trying to be thankful. Sometimes that is a hard thing to do and maintain. I decided about 2 weeks ago that I would stop wishing for a new vehicle and just be thankful for what I have. I have discovered new things about my car. Such as that she has Secret Super Powers. You may not believe that, like my kids do not believe me. She can really fly when needed, she is invisible, she has an crash sensing system that keeps me safe, built in radar, and many more powers that I won't mention. So I was telling the kids about the cars powers and JT just sits there and rolls his eyes. As we near Preston in the car Jace says "There's a cop Mom."
I told him my cars Secret Super Power Radar System had already sensed it and had automatically slowed down. (He believes now!) If you do not believe me about the powers take a look at my dash and you will see that I have a light to let me know that the Secret Radar System is on! (The light says SRS in red!)

I have had 2 mechanics tell me that it is ok if I buy a new car, and my accountant. But I still wonder if I am just not being grateful that every time I turn the key she starts, and she can still fly over Sardine and down the freeway.

Caught the culprit!

2008-11-10T18:15:00.000-08:00

As you can see by the picture we caught the one mouse who was reeking havic on my car. Now you may wonder how I can be sure that there was only one mouse. I am sure because Shane left FIVE set mouse traps in the car after we caught the one. The traps have been there for awhile.

I'm sure not as excited to drive my car!

The other pictures are of a ride on Nov. 1st up Logan Canyon. Shane, Jenny and I went up Spring Hollow for a ride it was sure alot of fun.

Shane has moved my treadmill and bike trainer up to my new exercise room. It is almost done. We just need to do the finish work like lights, electricity, and the baseboards. He hung the Blur up on the wall tonight. It will be soooo nice when totally completed! (Thanks Shane!)

Maple Creek Spring- Ride

2008-10-26T17:27:00.000-07:00

Shane and I did a Sunday afternoon ride. We went up Maple Creek. The ride started out great. But soon it turned to walking up the river. It was more like hike a bike. It was beautiful! Towards the top we parked our bikes and finished hiking to the top of the spring. The really green photo is the top of the spring. Always an adventure when you go with Shane!

Pics of Friday Ride

2008-10-26T17:23:00.000-07:00

Heidie and I rode the four-wheeler trail up to Willow Flats. It was a great ride!

Help-Help-They're Back!!!!!

2008-10-22T14:48:00.000-07:00

If any of you recall a couple of years ago I had a problem with my car. It was infested with mice. So I asked Shane what to do about the problem. He told me wither use de-con or a mouse trap. I had de-con and used it. Well, that was most certainly a mistake. Soon I had dead mice in the car. Dead up in the dash of the car. And you can probably guess that the car began to stink. Shane and I took the dash out of the car to get some of the dead mice out.

Today I noticed little pieces of gray foam along the dash of my car (no, it was not mouse poo!) And then when I came out of tennis and swimming I found alot more foam on the floor of my car. (Party animals.)I told Shane that this makes me soooo mad. I just want to wreck the car into a telephone pole. Start it on fire, or drive it into a lake! I mean really! Couldn't they find a better home.

I might could try and sell the car. Great car lots of miles and mice. How many horses does the car have, you ask. Well it depends on how many mice are running that day! The smell? Not to worry there is a can of Lysol under the seat. Feeling sick? Don't worry I have had the mouse poop tested for the Hanta (sp) virus! Hungry? Just pop the hood and help yourself to the dog food that the mice have stashed there! But don't forget the special tool that you need to shut the hood. Lightweight seats. If you are lucky the mice might be awake and riding in the seat right under you. It can also be a self-cleaning car. Kids just drop a few crumbs on the floor or seat and poof! In the morning it will all be cleaned up.

You can see the donation tab on the left (jk). I am trying to raise money for the stick of dynamite that I am going to put in my car!

Green Canyon

2008-10-14T16:03:00.000-07:00

Today I had a great ride! Heidie and I left the parking lot of Green Canyon around 10:15 am. The temperature said 35 degrees. We dressed pretty warmly. As we headed up the canyon we started to warm up. Heidie ditched some of her clothing off the track. The higher we climbed up in the canyon the more snow and ice there was. All of the single track was a ton of fun. When we got to the point where we were stopping we both decided that our feet were totally froze. We cruised down but, we went a little slower due to the fact that we were very cold. As we came to the lower section some of the snow had started melting. That made for a mud fest. It was great fun. Mud up the front and mud up the back. It was fine until it made my seat rather slick to sit on.

When we got back down to the trucks, we decided that we would go to lunch. We had hat hair and muddy clothes, but we thought that some hot food sounded better than looking good. I think I had a smile on my face the whole ride. These are a couple of the pictures I took today. I don't think that the bike picture quite shows how really muddy the bike was.

On another train of thought...... After my U11 soccer game on Sat. another one of the coaches was talking to the kids about practicing on their own because our season was over until we start indoor. He told them " It's the things that we do when no one is watching that makes us great." He related how this applies in life not just soccer. I have been really thinking how true this is with everything that you do in life.

I read another post a while ago that has caused me to do some thinking. The blogger wrote that she felt like a wannabe. I thought about that because there is a lot of things that I wanna do. I might run, bike, swim or play tennis but I never win the race or take 1st place. But I set goals for myself to try something new out of my comfort zone, or finish the next race a little bit faster or go a little longer. So, I was wondering if this made me a wannabe because I was not winning the race. I have thought for a few weeks about this and I have concluded that it is ok if I am a wannabe because I enjoy what I am doing. I like setting new goals and trying. Sure, sometimes it is really scary to stretch yourself, but wow when you accomplish it!! So, I don't think fellow blogger that you are a wannabe because I think that you can be whatever you want to be! I also think that you a extremely talented person! ( If this blogger person reads this I hope that you take this as a compliment.)

Beautiful Fall Day

2008-10-08T14:39:00.000-07:00

On Monday on my way to Logan my car started making funny sounds. Hmmm, I thought to myself that sounds like it could be a loose tire. I pulled over by the La Tienda no loose lug nuts, but there was one missing lug nut. So off I went, excited to buy paint for my room! As I pulled into Cove the noise was very loud so I pulled off the road. I took my trusty lug nut wrench thing, that rides next to me and got out to check the tires again. Sure enough the rear tire was a little loose so I being the great mechanic that I am tightened ALL of the lug nuts on the car. I put quite a bit of weight into it. Off I go. Then as I enter Smithfield the noise starts again. I pull over in Smithfield, sure enough a loose front drivers side tire! My car is trained, kind of like Herbie. So what is really happening is that she is telling me that she is tired and just wants to rest in the nice warm garage sipping on her Vitamin "O". I'll just keep talking real sweet to her.

Skip on to Weds. I thought that after swimming and tennis I would run my car into Les Schwab to get the tires rotated and balanced, but after I was done with my swim, I saw what a great day it was. The Blur has been feeling a bit neglected so I thought that a ride up the canyon would be a great idea. I hopped on the Blur and headed up Cub River Canyon. It was a great ride. I took these pictures. The picture with the shoes is titles "The Lost Soles of Cub River". (HA HA HA)

What a great fall day!

Just as a little side note: I swam 40 laps today!!! My teacher (friend) Janet couldn't come today so I even got in the pool all by myself!

P.S.

2008-09-24T19:30:00.000-07:00

Lately Arie has been really worried about Grandpa and Grandma Bergeson having enough money. The other day she asked if they had enough money to pay for lunch. She tells me that she will give them her five dollars so they will have some money. I keep telling her that they have plenty of money, but for some reason she is concerned.

Catching Up?

2008-09-24T12:53:00.000-07:00

I just recently read Miles's blog. I took a good look at his new ride. I have to ask, I guess because I am not in the know how. But why a single speed? Is it about the challenge? It is a fun looking bike, but I would like to know why people buy them.

I have been so excited to ride my new mountain bike. So you would think that as a stay at home mom that I would have plenty of time to ride, but I have not had any time to ride. I have been so busy with soccer and other things. I guess I did make a couple of big batches of salsa, and froze a ton of corn.

Now that the goal of finishing LOTOJA is done I need to decide what is next. I have alot of thoughts. Marathon? LOTOJA? LOTOJA relay? Wasatch Back? STP? Washington, Oregon Coast Ride? Triatholon? Trail Running Series? All of them??????
After my tennis class on Weds. I have been taking a swimming lesson. I tell you, swimming is a struggle for me! I panic with my face in the water. But I do have to say that I have improved from the 1st time to the 2nd time. I hope that I keep improving and becoming more comfortable in the water.

I am still contemplating a trail run in Ogden on Sat. I really am not up to par for running 7 miles. But I figure that I can endure it and give it my best.

I drove to Pleasant View on Mon. morning. The drive up Sardine canyon was really beautiful! I hope that the drive next week will be as beautiful. Arie is worrying that is almost Halloween because that means time for the flu shot. It is interesting to me that she remembers that the shot always happens around Halloween.

I had the opportunity to attend my cousins funeral on Tues. It gave me a chance to think about how thankful I am for my family, friends, other blessings in my life and the gospel.

LOTOJA Report

2008-09-08T11:45:00.000-07:00

First of all it should not be Logan to Jackson because you actually finish in Teton Village.

I have had people ask me if this was worse than having a baby, and I think that this was worse than having a baby. This was 13 hrs and 24 mins. of labor. It was a great experience! We learned so much just being a part of it.

Our start time was 7:01 am with all of the Cat women (real racers). We really should have been in the fun ride group. It was a great ride to Preston. We took a little long at the stop and lost the group of women that we were with. We then headed up Strawberry which was pretty ok. I started having some breathing problems. We met a girl named Elise from Phoenix,AZ who happened to be a brain surgeon. I took it a little slower at the top of Strawberry so that my breathing would be ok. The descent was awesome (of course).

We made it to Feed Zone #3 in Montpelier and took a really long time there (40 mins.). We didn't know we took so long. Heidie had a inhaler. I took a couple of puffs off of it and wow! Did that make all the difference! So up the next canyon we went. The climb was not bad. Another great descent. We were all by ourselves and started to climb Salt Pass where we hooked with a small group who we did a double pace line with. We stopped at the neutral feed zone and proceeded up the steep part of Salt Pass. There was alot of riders struggling with this climb. We had another great descent. We almost hit 50 mph.

The head wind had started picking up. A group of men hooked on the back of me and Heidie. I said "this is stupid let's drop behind them and let them break wind for us even if they are a little slower. " So we dropped and got on with them and as it turns out they were just waiting for the rest of their group to catch up. The rest of their group caught up and they had us do another double pace line with them. There was about 14-16 of us. It was a lifesaver in the wind. We stopped in Afton and this group of guys said that they would wait for us. So we started off with them again. But then some guys in the group needed to pee so they stopped and said that they would catch up to us. They never caught up. So Heidie and I were by ourselves against the wind. Heidie really started to hurt on this stretch. I offered to cut off her leg and let her finish with one leg. But she opted for keeping the leg.

We got to the Alpine stop and we knew that it would be tight, but we KNEW that there would be a tailwind because there ALWAYS is a tailwind. No tail, more like a head. I was out of steam. I told Heidie she could go on faster if she wanted, but she stuck with me. We stopped quick at the last feed zone to top off my water and eat some fruit snacks. The fruit snacks must have worked because I picked up a little.

I tell you they need to fix the descriptions for the race. I realize that I was getting tired but the hills just kept coming. The sun was starting to set and it was getting dark and cold. Neither of us had our lights with us. There was a guy in head of me with a light so we caught up to him and hooked on to him for a minute. He was totally pooped. He told me that he was sorry but he had to drop and not go as fast as us. So we rode on. A few minutes later was back, he said "all right I'll give it another try." So he hopped in front of me and we followed him in. He told me that had done this race 4 times by himself. I was really impressed that he dug a little deeper so that he could help us out. We crossed the finish line. I kept thanking the guy for helping. We turned in our timing chips and numbers. I saw Shane and Shad and gave them a yell. I got to the bike path and laid down by Heidie, she was crying & I started to cry a bit. It was a long walk back to the truck. We stopped and ate at Pizza Hut and drove home. We made it home at 2 am.

I was so happy that we made it!! I was really glad that Miles made it. I kept asking about him all day. I felt like we rode really good. Our slow time was due to our rest stops. But still it was an amazing feat to accomplish. On the hills nobody passed us. The ride home was quite painful, but I am feeling OK now. I was also glad to hear how well Tracen did.

Shane and Shad were a great "pit crew" and we met some really neat people along the way.

The question is will we do it again? Heidie says "no". I say we'll see. A relay might be alot of fun. But the most important part of all is that I can now place the sticker on my car!

It's the final COUNTDOWN!

2008-09-04T19:10:00.000-07:00

Here it is the night before the eve of the race. I am starting to pack food and making lists. I put on new tires, tubes and brake pads today. As I read other blogs I wonder if I am prepared enough. I have come down with a hurt leg. I have had a stomach bug this week. So I think that by Sat. I should have everything worked out. Oh, and lest I forget the bag I ordered for my bike for the race will not arrive until Mon. I mean come on. I ordered the stinking thing on Aug.25th. So I placed another overnight order to get the bag by tomorrow.

Today JT asked me why I wanted to pay $300.00 (not really what it cost) to do this race. I and I asked him "why not?" He said you could just go do this ride alone without paying all of this money. I told him that I was just doing it for the sticker! (He offered to make me a sticker just like the LOTOJA sticker.) Thanks JT.

The next time that I will post will be after the race. I am hoping for good things to report.
Ride on!

Is this the race to Jackson?

2008-08-24T14:01:00.000-07:00

Sat. morning Heidie and I started the Cache Valley Century Ride. We had just left the Rest stop in Preston and we were heading south out of Preston when a (heavy) lady in her bath robe on her front porch yells to us "Hey, is the the race to Jackson?" I was chuckling to myself, "sure it is I am just taking the long way." But I was nice and told her what the event was and that the race to Jackson was in 2 weeks. Anyway it was a good ride. Both Heidie and I have been plagued with knee pain. But the knees help up for the ride. We were definitely the minority on the 100 mile ride. It was interesting to be the only 2 women at the rest stops. Occasionally a lady would come in when we were leaving the rest step.

Last night was the Preston Demolition derby. What a treat. All of Preston's finest come out of the woodwork. The derby is the same, just different scary people that come. JT said he learned last night that you should stay in school and off of drugs!

It has been a crazy week. The kids started school on Thurs. I am now catching up on all that I got behind on in the past month. Shane is really busy with work, which we are very thankful for.

Ride, Hills, and Pain

2008-08-13T18:19:00.000-07:00

We started out this morning about 6:45 am, and headed up Strawberry Canyon. It was cold and windy. Tracen was a good sport. He was really fast on the hills. We took off our jackets about 10-12 miles into to ride/climb. It was a really pretty morning. As it turns out the top of the canyon was about 3 miles further than where Heidie and I turned around last time. I was thinking to myself this morning "why am I doing this?"

So we dropped down the other side of Strawberry and went through Ovid and on to Montpieler. Tracen led the way and we made pretty good time. We stopped at Maverick for a pit stop and then headed for the Canyon (Geneva) as we started to head up we noticed the road closed signs. So we pulled up to talk to the flag girl. She told us that the canyon would be closed until tomorrow night. We had 2 options, 1- Ride back over Strawberry and home, or, 2- Head up to Soda Springs and then down to Grace. It was decided to ride back how we came. Tracen led the way again. Of course there was wind. The rollers heading back up to Strawberry were tough. My knee gave me total trouble, to the point I couldn't pedal. This passed after a minute. We stopped at Camp Bartlett and had a sandwich.

We then continued up the Canyon. It definitely had warmed up. It was HOT! We reached the top which was a good thing because I think that I might have got off my bike and pushed if we had to keep climbing. We started the descent. My bike decided to start making noises and the wind was strong enough that we had to pedal the whole way down. My knee still was giving me trouble. Heidie had foot pain. I need to figure out what the trouble is with my bike and fix the knee pain. I think that we can make the LOTOJA if our bodies will hold up to the aches and pains. Tracen was a rockin' rider. It was good to ride with him and push ourselves a little bit harder. Thanks to Teresa who was our support/bug lady.

I have had people say to me that they think that riding the LOTOJA will be fun. I tell you this- IT WILL NOT BE FUN! It will be hard and long, but a great goal to accomplish!

Bear Lake Week/Weekend

2008-08-11T15:01:00.000-07:00

Heidie and I attempted our 100 mile ride on Weds morning. We ended up with only 90 miles. We had several mishaps. My bike had seat issues, so I ended riding with the seat all the way down for 20 miles. Heidie got a flat on the railroad tracks which also ruined her tire. So we rode to Al's and spent a hour there making repairs. On Weds. morning we are planning to ride 80 miles on the LOTOJA course.

Jace and Arie spent the week at our cabin with Grandma Ellen and Chalisa (& kids). I was back and forth for the week. I picked them up on Fri. afternoon and we went and met my family at the Ideal Beach Resort. Shane and JT came over late Fri. night. On Sat. morning we went out on Miles's new sweet boat! JT tried wake boarding and got up. Jace gave it a try and got up (kind of). I gave it a try and got up. It took alot of squealing and screaming for me to get up though. Zach and Shane thought that it was pretty funny to take pictures of me while I was trying. There was a airplane crash at the lake Sat. morning. Kris, Melanie and I ran the Raspberry Days 5K race. It was alot of fun to run and be with them. We had milk can dinner and played noodle soccer. We went swimming in the swimming pool. It was nice to spend time with the family.

On Monday morning on my way home from Bear Lake I stopped at 7-11 for a drink and to go to the bathroom. I was just about to walk into the restroom when a man stopped me and said " I wouldn't go in there for a couple of minutes." I stopped. He said "I just pooped in there." I said "oh", and turned and walked off (trying not to laugh). So I was thinking, would you stop somebody or would you just let them go in? I am pretty sure that I wouldn't stop anyone. I would just get out of Dodge.

Happy Birthday To ME!

2008-08-05T19:05:00.000-07:00

Shane just bought me a early B-day present. I am now the proud owner of a Santa Cruz Blur LT with an anodized frame! It has been alot of fun to ride! I look forward to being able to get and hit some trails.

Car update- The Hondarooski is still at the car doctor undergoing more tests. Cross your fingers that it is a simple fix!

Heidie and I are planning to ride a 100 miles tomorrow morning. On Sat. morning I rode 52 miles. The bicyclists Sat. morning were very friendly. All of them waved or acknowledged me. Some of the time some cyclists don't acknowledge you. What's up with that? I don't need like a huge wave, just a little hey would be ok!

So Sat. I went to Logan to pick up a few things. There was a guy walking down the sidewalk with a Big Gulp in hand. It looked like he puked while he was walking. He didn't stop walking or bend over or anything. He just kept walking while he spewed stuff everywhere. I guess if it was me I wouldn't stop either (since he was on main street in Logan). Just act like nothin' ever happened!

We are gearing up for a Bear Lake week and also JT's B-Day. He will be turning 14. (WOW)

I was glad that Miles finally posted about his Sat. ride, because I was wondering how the ride went for him. Way to go Miles!

Over and out!

PS A question to ponder for the day: Have you ever received a food gift or item from someone, and wondered if they poisoned it or might have put ex-lax in it? Did you pitch it? Or did you try it?

Car Woes....

2008-07-31T13:55:00.000-07:00

On Weds. morning Heidie and I headed for a ride up Strawberry Canyon. The old Hondarooski had other plans. She started sputtering. So I decided that it would be best to park the car at the golf course instead of the bottom of Riverdale where there is no cell phone coverage. The car doctor can't check her out until next Mon. or Tues., I am afraid of where the cancer has spread to now. But the positive is that I have been driving the new truck ( great air conditioning)! Back to riding. We dropped the Riverdale dugway and rode up the canyon. The canyon has just been chipped sealed. It is already getting packed down well. Due to mommy time constraints we only hit about 31 miles. But alot of that ride is uphill. The Hondarooski did make it back home. I have decided to keep her parked until I know the diagnosis.

My soccer team is in the middle of a soccer tournament we have lost 2 games, each 3-2. We have one more game tomorrow morning.

Shane and JT are very busy with work. (Out in the heat.)

Good Times

2008-07-27T15:27:00.000-07:00

Nothing too exciting to report up here in potato land. No arrests or stories of interest.

I didn't get very much riding in this week. But Heidie and I did climb Strawberry Canyon again. We thought that we had made it to the top, but Shane tells us that we didn't quite make it to the top. This ride up the canyon was alot warmer this time. Although on the descent I did put on my long sleeve jersey. On Sat. morning I did ride from Garden City to Paris, ID. and back to Garden City. It was a good ride other than all of the tourist traffic.

Product review- Strawberry fruit snacks-- Thumbs up!

We stayed at the cabin this weekend. On Fri. we went to a cave up Paris Canyon. It is called the "Mud Cave". If you can not guess what is in the cave from the name, I will tell you. When you get down into the bottom (after a few tight squeezes) there is mud everywhere. The walls are mud and the floor is mud. The kids like to slide down the walls. They also like to throw mud at the ceiling of the cave and see if the mud ball would fall on someones head. It was fun, but the girls hands got cold. We headed straight from the cave down to Bear Lake. The Lake was not as busy as the 4th of July weekend. After a few hours at the lake and then dinner, we headed outside for a round of night games. We had alot of fun playing capture the flag, kick the can, and sardines. We came away from the games with only a few injuries.

It is good to be home (doing laundry). I hope to ride more this week. I had to buy a new pair of biking shorts to hopefully eliminate some bottom hurt. (I'll keep you posted) Jace has a soccer tournament this week. I sure hope that the coach has her crap together (that's me)! We are looking forward to heading back to Bear Lake a few more times this summer.

BUSTED

2008-07-21T09:59:00.000-07:00

I know another post. But this is to good to let it pass.

Shane is doing a job on 10th west in Logan right now. For those of you that don't know 10th west is a pretty busy road. Every time the guys at work hear a siren they kid Luke that the cops are coming for him. Well today here come the sirens the 1st cop pulls into the job site and then 3 more. The guys were all looking at each other wondering what the heck was going on. Earlier when the guys were giving Luke a hard time about the sirens, Luke went to his car, got his handcuffs out and handcuffed JT. Some concerned citizen driving by called the cops when they saw JT being handcuffed by Luke. The cops had guns and it scared JT when they started questioning him, needless to say he started crying. The cop kept asking him "are you sure you are ok?" JT kept telling him that he was fine, and that it was a joke. Shane told the cop that JT has the same reaction when we ask him to take out the trash and that he was probably scared because of the guns. The cop didn't believe Shane that he was the father. Luke felt terrible. The cop told them how uncool it was for him to have to drive across town with his lights on. (I thought cops like to drive like that.)

JT is ok.

Farewell

2008-07-20T17:17:00.000-07:00

I realize that I just posted yesterday...but something happened today that was sooooooo funny that I just had to share the laugh!

Today was Dustin's missionary farewell. It was a great sacrament meeting. There was so many people there to see him. We had to open the gym and it was filled all the way to the back. Anyway it was a great meeting. We were invited over Dustin's Uncle's new house for the "dinner" after. Dustin's Uncle Eddy's house was very nice. We went out around the back to the large covered deck for the dinner. After everything was set up and we had the prayer on the food everyone lined up and started through the food line and started sitting down and eating. I need to describe the deck just a little. It is a LARGE deck, but halfway out there is a step down that was hard to see and there is no railing around the deck or down the stairs. Dustin had tons of really cute girls over to the dinner. One of the girls had her plate and drink and went to sit down in her seat, but..... her chair was a little to close to the edge of the deck. Yep, you guessed it off she went backwards off the deck. Her dress went up over her head, but while still in the air she manged to pull it back down and she landed sprawled spread eagle out on the lawn. Everyone kept checking on her to see if she was hurt, she should have been hurt because the back of the chair was broke and because it was a quite a fall. Needless to say she was quite embarrassed.

Lesson learned today- Always look before you sit!

Sat. Morning Ride.....

2008-07-19T13:00:00.000-07:00

Heidie and I left the Park and Ride (Preston) at 6:00 am. We rode to North Logan where we stopped and Don and Marilyn's house. We refilled our drinks and the four of us were off. As we dropped down the hill by the mouth of Logan Canyon there was terrible canyon head wind with gusts of crosswinds. One gust totally about did me in. We headed through Logan to River Heights, to Providence, to Millville, to Nibley and then started up Black Smith Fork Canyon. At the mouth of Black Smith Fork Canyon there was another terrible head wind and the road a just been chipped and sealed. We decided to give it a try up the canyon. When cars would pass you they would flip rocks on you (painful). It was about 15 miles up the canyon. It was a very pretty ride. We turned around at Hardware Ranch and headed back down. The wind had changed directions now and once again another head wind!! We followed the same route back to Don and Marilyn's. Once at Marilyn's we tried some of her chocolate Endurox (I didn't really like it). We ended up with about 80 miles.

My favorite treat of the ride was my "Payday". The swedish fish weren't so bad either. One thing for sure, Utah drivers can be awfully rude! I am not sure because of the MB ride but I ended up with about 146-150 miles this week.

On the way to North Logan we passed a couple of big groups heading north, it definetly looked like training for the LOTOJA! We will try to climb Strawberry Canyon on Tues.

Internet Woes

2008-07-15T20:36:00.000-07:00

I have been wanting to make a new post, but my new fancy Internet has been down all weekend. So there is much to report! Last week I rode over 130 miles on my bike!!!! JT and Shane went to a long range shooting competition on Sat. They had a lot of fun. JT took 2nd place in the "B" flight. (Out shot Shane.) Arie had a cardiology appt. on Thurs.. Things are still looking good for her heart. We will need to do a echo in Feb. We will continually have to keep on eye on the mitral valve. Jace was able to go to a gymnastics class where he learned "circus" tricks. He is going again this week. Well poor Riley is not fairing so well in the heat. I shot this video of him licking his nose. He licks his nose all day because it is sore. We try and put medicine on it but he just licks it off. Enjoy! More biking updates to come. Maybe 100 miler on Sat.???

Review of Strawberry

2008-07-09T08:24:00.000-07:00

Tues. morning Heidie and I started out about 6:20 to start climbing Strawberry Canyon. It was cold even with a long sleeve jersey. It definitely was not a fast climb. There is not much of a shoulder on the road the whole way. It is a very curvy road, so cars are a concern. Some lessons learned on this ride--
1. Watch for road kill. (mostly fox, a few skunks and raccoons.)
2. Wear warmer clothes- especially feet. We kept out jackets on the whole climb!
3. Bring more food.
4. Ride this canyon a lot more.

We climbed for over an hour, 15.4 miles, due to mommy time constraints we turned back. The descent was nice but still really cold. We braked a lot because of the cold and also worried that we might meet a deer at 40 mph. We rode again this morning, trying to use it as a recovery ride and also to help add up the miles. On Fri. morning I think that we will head out to Clarkston and ride the race course out there.

Heidie and Kara's product review. On the Tues.morning ride we tried the cherry flavored sports beans and we also tried the orange. We think that you should skip the cherry and stick with the orange.

Holiday Weekend

2008-07-07T19:33:00.000-07:00

I think that I achieved a PR for my race on the 4th of July, but it was still not as good as I had hoped. I will have to do this race again next year to do better!!

We had a good holiday weekend. We went over to the cabin in Bear Lake. The kids had a great time. It always nice to go and have a break from the everyday stuff. Then on Sunday we traveled down to North Ogden to baby Trey's blessing. It was really nice to go down and see and visit with the family.

So as I have been talking to various people and reading different blogs, I am wondering what the heck I was thinking when I registered for LOTOJA. Miles has totally been training and it sounds like he is going to rock on the race! My friend Sara recently changed her entry in the race to a relay team due to an injury. I am excited for the challenge, but at the same time it scares me to death! On Sunday morning I did 51.5 miles with some hills. My legs were still pretty tired from the 4th race. Tomorrow morning Heidie and I are going to climb Strawberry Canyon. (Emmigration-part of the LOTOJA course)

I had a little oops at tennis today... I am in charge of using the ball picker upper, because I run while I pick up the balls. Today I got a little close to the fence. The ball thing stopped rather abruptly and I went over the handle landing flat on my face on the court. It was a way lot embarrassing to be laying face down on the court, with people watching. No injuries--just my feel bads.

Flat

2008-07-03T08:46:00.000-07:00

It was 6:45 pm last night. Heidie and I were headed out for a great training ride. We decided to head down the highway to Smithfield. We were making great time. We thought that we would easily hit 50 miles before the sun set. As we entered Smithfield I blew a tire. I thought no big deal, I can change a flat. In the next few minutes I broke my tire tool, had the wrong co2 cartridge, gave my tube mouth to mouth & got grease on my new jersey. All the while this old man and his family sat on their porch watching us struggle with what should be a pretty easy fix. Heidie asked what she could do to help, I told her to stand right there on the side of the road looking really cute so that some man (preferably a prepared cyclist) might stop to help. No such luck! It didn't take too long for us to start calling around, and we found Mike and Chris home in Smithfield and they brought down their bike pump. I put my wheel back on the bike. Looked it over and found that the rock I hit had slit my not only my tube but the tire as well. Obviously we did not make 50 miles but we were able to at least ride 26.4 miles before we had to call Shane to get us because of the dark. So as you can probably guess I am heading to the bike shop today!

I am posting this video of Jace. It was my trial run with the video option on my camera!

Comings and Goings

2008-06-29T13:34:00.000-07:00

I thought that I would post a picture of my exercise room that is being built. It won't be to much longer until it is ready to use. Shane is really tired of me stinking up his gun room. The best part is I don't even have to bug him about getting it done, he just wants me out of his room.

On Sat. afternoon Shane took all of us to work to set bolts. It was really hot. Jace was hovering in the shade. He had on black exercise pants and a navy shirt. I told him to take off his shirt so he wouldn't be so hot. He told me that it was his pants making him hot and asked if he could just take those off. He looked so miserable that I just said yes. Here we are just off of 10th West in Logan with Jace in his white boxer briefs. Boy, did he perk up when he got his clothes off and he cooled down. It didn't take too long for Shane to tell him to get his pants back on. (It was funny for a few minutes, wish that I had my camera!)

This week I am planning to run a 4th of July race. It is a 15k. My body has had a hard time recovering from the Wasatch Back Race. I am hoping to get a PR on this race. (We'll see.)

Race Weekend

2008-06-23T19:39:00.000-07:00

Shay, Heidie & Jen. My fav shoes. Ben with snowball.

This weekend was race weekend for the Wasatch Back. Shane was good enough to watch the kids. He had a hard week at work so I left him a note telling him thank you for helping and thanks for being a such good dad. He called Fri. night to see how the race was going, after I gave him the race update he said "by the way I am not a very good dad", I asked him why he would say that. He said that he had forgotten the kids at Chalisa's house and had to drive back down to get them.

This year for the race I got to be in the 2nd vehicle. It was pretty cool to see the other legs of the race. It was fun to meet new people. I met a guy on our team who was so impressive. He was so humble and kind. Now we are talking that this guy was doing 5 min. miles. It was pretty funny, we had stopped at a exchange waiting for our other van. So of us tried to get some rest but Ben had gone and ate and was coming back with some hot chocolate. He saw a baby kitty and thought that he would call to it and try to help it. As Ben got closer the "kitty" lifted its tail and Ben quickly realized that this "kitty" did not need help. Luckily he did not get sprayed.

Our team this year finished in 27 hours and 30 min. We finished 190 out of 500. I am already starting to think about next year.

Kris (my sister) and her little family came to cheer me on in Hunstville. It was fun to have them come up.

JT is off to scout camp this week. He is not very excited about it. He would rather be going to work with his dad every day.

Hip Shot

2008-06-18T20:13:00.000-07:00

Well, well, this is my first attempt at blogging. It is definitely a hip shot! I was inspired by my two brothers. Miles http://www.atomicmiles.com/ & Zach http://pitcherspost.blogspot.com/ Summer is under way and we are as busy as ever. We thought that we would post a picture of our bulldog Riley. He has very unique problems. He is scared of the dark and will cry if he is not in his kennel at night. Well, he has been disappearing in the evening around 7:30. This has been going on for about 3 weeks. We have to drive up the road every night and load him in the truck to bring him home. One night while we were up picking up Riley the neighbor lady was outside. I was totally apologizing for Riley coming up every night. ( Often people are very afraid of Riley.) She was really nice about it and said that she even puts out a bowl of water for him. I asked her if some of her dogs were in heat and she laughed and said that both of the dogs were males. I couldn't figure out why then Riley would make the trek every night up to their house. The neighbor said that they had decided to call him "Fred". She leaned in the window of my truck and kind of whispered to me (because the kids were in the truck)" he sure likes to hump a lot though". I looked in the bed of the truck where Shane had loaded Riley and sure enough he was collapsed in the truck totally exhausted from his extracurricular activities. The neighbor must not mind Riley to much because she even gave him a ride home the other night. I think if she knew Riley very well she would have not put him in her vehicle. He sort of has a problem with wiping himself very well!

I bought myself a new camera today and hope to take some great pictures to share. Riley was the test subject for today. I am going to be taking pictures of my race this weekend. I am on a team that is running the Wasatch Back. (Logan-Park City 178 miles)