Rain

After a week of record high temps in the 70's & 80's and a fire that burned 700+ acres at Point McKenzie leaving Los Anchorage smelling like a camp fire, we got a much needed bit of rain. The air is cooler and the skies are grey with a Seattle-like mist of precipitation. The weekend was busy again with bike racing (woke up tired and flat and got 8th of 17 in a crit - at least the weather was nice... if you so desire, you can check out a cool pic of me on bikeak.org in the race photos section under Andy Romang... I haven't taken the time to figure out how to post links yet), yard work, soccer camp & games twice a day and a fun BBQ up at Michelle's folks for BK's birthday. As far as work goes, I've taken a few days off for me.... "I wouldn't say I've been missing it, Bob". With that, I bid you farewell for now and in the spirit of Casey Kasem, keep your feet on the ground and keep reaching for the stars (DUUUUUHHH!!).

Nostalgia

For some reason, I'm very nostalgic. Certain songs tug strongly on my heartsrings reminding me of sad or joyous times gone by, I'm deeply effected by almost any kind of anniversary, and when I think of missed opportunities that will never again get a chance to be realized, I can physically feel a pang of sadness in my heart. I think I got it from myMother and my Auntie Moie... and it's not a bad thing. They were/are forever remembering to reach out to family and friends to let them know they were/are thinking about them on important days. I still always remember to call friends on their birthday. Even old friends like Jeff Jarvi, my best friend from kindergarten to 6th grade - though I haven't spent time with him since the mid 80's.

I have dear friends that are like family and we've all been close for roughly 20 years. We've been through it all together - the best and the worst. My brother Brian and my Anam Caras (soul friends) Max, Bobby, Kev, Todd, Tony, and Rick... It's not very common for people that formed friendships in their youth to be as close as family this "late" in life. It's our tight bond that I believe gives us each strength even when we're not together - the knowing that a brother is there just in case.

I was the last of the group to get married and I was in all of their weddings in one form or other: Officiant, Best Man, Groomsmen, Usher. I made sure that they were all in mine. Although it was a day I was blessed to marry the woman of my dreams, it wouldn't have been as amazing as it was without them.

Here's to good friends, family, and the magical times we share on this ride.

Another Sunny One

My recipe for happiness on a hot day: Iced Raspberry Latte... Might not sound good at first but try one and you be glad you did. Enjoy

Global what?

Coming to you live from the sweet new laptop I got from work... Summer has arrived here in Los Anchorage and yesterday we set a new record high temperature of 76 degrees. That might not mean much to folks in the lower 48, but up here it's great news for late May weather. Last night I had a great ride and was so happy not to have to wear arm wamers or shoe covers. Hopefully the weather is treating you well in your town.

What a Weekend

Following the recent theme of my blog, which Bobby pointed out stands for "Bike-LOG", I'll do my best to bore you with a recap of last Saturday's road race around Bodenburg Butte (although these pics are from a downtown crit a few weeks ago). It was a big success for me and an even bigger success for my old friend Tony. The 12 lap, 82 mile race began innocently enough with the group rolling out nice and easy on the chilly morning north of Anchorage. Tony and I increased the pace only slightly and we got a small gap on the group. We decided to see what we could do with it and before we knew it, the group was out of site. After three laps, I was unable to keep the pace Tony was pushing because on Saturday he was 2/3 animal. As Tony raced on, I tried to recover a bit and thought I was going to have to join the group when I noticed that two riders had broken away and had a good gap on the main field. I joined them and we worked together for the rest of the race and ended up having about a 4 minute lead on the field by the end of the race. Tony was on fire and he beat the three of us by 8 minutes! I tried a sprint for second place but started a bit early and got third place by one second. That put Tony's team - Team Alaska - in first, Team Kaladi in second, and I got my team - Team Alaska Waste - a "podium spot".
Later that night at 9:00 we had a soccer game and needless to say, my legs were a bit tired. By the second half I was o.k. and we won 5-4.
Sunday I cut down 10 trees in our backyard and raked leaves unitl my shoulder was about to pop. Another soccer game at 3:00 on Sunday and I was DONE. So, there's that. Check back in about a week or so to see what's up... That's about as often as I can do this thing. Until later, keep the rubber side down.

Spring Omnium

The new spring stage race was held this weekend. Friday night was the Highland Rd. hillclimb and for me it was, in a word, ruthless. I've yet to become a really good climber and this race was incredibly hard for me. It was 2,230 ft. of climbing in just over 8 miles with some pitches of up to 17% grade. To top it off, it started raining/hailing very hard about halfway up. We rode right into it and I was able to hang on to a couple of riders that blocked to cold wind and allowed me to recover a bit. I pulled in front of one of the guys I was drafting and just at the last second he came around me and finished just in front of me. I've been thinking of filing a suit agianst Highland Rd. to seek damages for pain and suffering and for pounding me down lower than I've ever been - crushing my hopes and shattering my confidence. There were times on that dreaded hill that I wanted to quit, crawl into the ditch on the side of the road, curl up in the fetal position, and die... but when it was over, I was happy to have finished.

Next was a crit out at Fort Richardson and it was a blast. The skies were sunny and the temperatures were approaching the 60's. Captain E went off the front with a rider from another team early in the race and held the lead until the finish, only to come in second in the drag race to the line. I finished in 8th place just after a horrible sounding crash in the second to the last corner just behind me to the left. The rider was o.k. but probably has some bruised ribs.

The third and final stage was a time trail, also at Fort Richardson. It was two laps of a 4.7 mile loop with only about 100 ft. climbing per lap. I finished in 22:35 to take 9th place and gain 22 more points. Based on the top three finishers for each of the three teams, our team - Team Alaska Waste - took second... and I was able to hang on for 10th place of 24 riders. Big props to Captain E, Heavy D, and The Seaman for their efforts. Go AK. Waste!

Today the Mrs. had a great Mother's Day and we won our soccer game 5-3 (I put one in the goal after my daughter took a shot and it bounced off of the keeper's hands). Another player and I knocked heads. I hit the turf hard and now have a silver dollar sized knot on my forehead that will turn a beautiful shade of baby shit green in a day or two. At 6:00 pm I have to board a plane to Naknek and then on Wednesday I'll be in Dillingham and arrive home Thursday night. Next Saturday is the first big road race out at Bodenburg Butte for our team. Sunday I'll be spending the day cutting trees down in the backyard with my new chainsaw. Have a good week.

Mars Drive

Here's one for the siblings... I was obviously enjoying teasing my younger sister with my Shake-n-Bake pork chop. Dig the red shag carpet. Ahh, the 70's in Alaska - those were the days... kids ripping around the neighborhood on dirt bikes and three wheelers, a moose eating our hippy neighbors pot garden and getting so stoned it spent the day in our front yard and might as well have been in a wheelchair, all the neighborhood kids getting together to do our version of The Gong Show in our driveway with parents as judges and a big iron skillet as the gong, broken bones, riding bikes, building forts, playing Kick the Can until midnight, getting stung by bees more times than I care to remember, and exploring hillside trails that are now neighborhoods. Those memories are but a drop in the sea of great times I took with me from my youth. After getting my brains scrambled in an accident a few years ago, I'm more thankful than I can say to still have those timeless moments locked in the vault.

Trip North

These are a few shots from my trip to Kotzebue last week. The first shot is of Kotzebue from the hill just out of town. Shot two is the hotel (grin). I had a blast riding Fango above the Arctic Circle on Kotzebue Sound and out onto wide, smooth snowmachine trails that rolled through the hills for miles and miles over frozen tundra. I also rode up to the United States Air Force Long Range Radar Site above town and just beyond that to the Kotzebue Electric Association windmill farm. It was still a bit chilly and on one ride, an icy wind kicked up on my way back to the hotel and I was glad to get there when I did. The trip could have been a real drag but I was able to bring my bike... and that made all the difference.

Got the Junk

I'm back from Kotzebue and that trip was alright... pictures and post to follow. Had a downtown crit on Saturday and finished in the group after giving my a buddy on my team a lead out. We placed 3rd on the day. Stayed home from work today with a head/stomach ache. More travel to the bush soon and family coming to visit.

Hooray

Oh, joy. Work is sending me to Kotzebue for an emergency trip to put out the proverbial fire - or at least keep it from spreading. I told them I'd go... on one condition: They would pay for me to bring my bike with me. (Actually it was my wife's idea... and a good one, at that).