U2 in the Windy City

It was a concert I have wanted to hit for years…U2. Whether they come to me or I go to them, someday I was going to see them. My friend Kristi also had the same idea. Back in May of this year, U2 tickets went on sale and we picked Chicago as the spot to see them. And what an incredible concert it was!

Ahh, the famous “Bean” at Millennium Park with the Magnificent Mile (Michigan Avenue) in the background. Can you find me?

I arrived in Chicago on Saturday and took the train downtown to meet up with my friends. Taking the train was a great way to experience the famous “El” (called that as in many spots in the City the train tracks are elevated above the roads). We checked into our hotel (The Intercontinental no less, thanks to an amazing hook up from Kristi’s aunt). Spent an hour touring the NBC studios where Kristi’s aunt works, including getting our photo taken with the anchor on the set of the local news after we watched it taped live.

Just a little flavor of Chicago on a beautiful weekend… Incredible architecture and waterfront.

Then we hit the town in search of dinner and some drinks. Had a great dinner at the ESPN SportsZone to watch some football. The Huskies won their first game in over a season…yet another reason to celebrate! Go Dawgs!! Went to an Irish pub for a drink and then we hit a dessert & wine bar called ENO located downstairs of our hotel.

Tailgating before the big show! Thanks to Kristi and Christie for the Midwest brews! Soldier Field, where the Chicago Bears play, is in the background. Da Bears!

The next morning I woke up and went for a run along the famous Magnificent Mile aka Michigan Avenue and then proceeded on a loop along Lake Michigan. The weather was amazing and the locals were all out running, riding and swimming. We all met up again for lunch and had a few hours to chill before the big show. We then drove to the concert venue at Soldier Field for an hour of tailgate before the show.

Snow Patrol opening for U2, another fav of mine. They were awesome too!

At 7:00pm we went inside and stood in awe of the stage! U2’s 360 tour was no joke. The pictures don’t even do it justice. Snow Patrol opened the show, which was excellent as they are also a great band and a favorite of mine. Then the lights dimmed and the show started. Holy cow, it was absolutely incredible.

Our crew sooooo amped about 30 minutes before U2 took the stage.

New songs, old ones and even others we didn’t even know of—at least that’s how Bono introduced it. The stadium must have been packed with 90,000+ people, including those on the floor. The show went by so fast as we were having so much fun…and they played for 2 hours and 20 minutes!

Pictures just don’t do this justice. U2’s 360 stage in one of many forms it took all night. The screen made you feel like you were right there! So cool!

Songs they played included: Sunday Blood Sunday, Until the End of the World, One, No Line on the Horizon, Vertigo, Elevation, With or Without You, Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For, etc., etc. So many more! And my favorite was the Amazing Grace interlude and progression into Where the Streets Have No Name.

Later guys, thanks for the incredible show! ‘Til the next one…where will we go?

It was hard to get to sleep that night but I eventually did and we all woke up the next morning for some breakfast (I’ll spare you the story on the service…there are times where leaving no tip is absolutely necessary!). Then we took the water taxi to the Willis Tower (formerly the Sears Tower) for some incredible overhanging views of Chicago from 110 stories up! Got a lift back to the airport and now I’m on the plane back to SoCal. What an incredible trip—definitely one for the books!

Standing 1,500 feet above the streets of Chicago protected by nothing but plastic! The new skydeck is awesome! Takes the Ferris Bueler scene to a whole new level!

A Stumptown Weekend

Some time in early August I was craving another trip up to Portland to take in the late summer weather, fine brews and incredible coastline. With my good friends Jon and Missy having never been to Portland, two days later we all had tickets for an early September weekend trip. Jon and Missy had never been so I was a bit of a tour guide but we did plenty of activities new to me.

The three of us atop Multnomah Falls with the Columbia River in the background.

We arrived on Friday late morning, rented a car and took a drive along the Columbia River to Multnomah Falls. We hiked to the top of the falls for some incredible views of the River and then continued east to Bonneville Dam. Being a civil engineer, I can never pass on a stop at a dam. We checked out the fish ladder and huge salmon swimming upstream and then hopped back in the car and headed east once again. Next stop, Hood River.

Jon and I: Two hopheads in front of the Full Sail Brewery.

Hood River is an incredible town with an energetic buzz and incredible views. Had lunch and some pints at the Full Sail Brewery, walked around and had some coffee before heading out to the Pheasant Creek Winery. The winery was small but very inviting. Chilled outside with views of Mt. Hood…doesn’t get much better than that.

Mt. Hood is incredible and is quite a handy navigational landmark.

We next drove around Mt. Hood and enjoyed the 360 views of an incredible peak. Then we drove into Portland and checked into our hotel. After chilling for an hour or so we headed downtown for a late dinner, brewery style. We experimented with using nothing but public transportation while in town, complete with the MAX, bus line and Portland Streetcar. We eventually made our way to the Laurelwood Ale House.

When shopping for garlic at the farmer’s market, be careful what a recipe means when it says “add two cloves of garlic.” Holy cow. No vampires live here.

Next day we went spent the day exploring downtown, starting with the farmers market for some breakfast and drip brewed to order organic coffee. Best I ever had. We explored the art of Pearl District and found our way to the Rogue Brewery where we met up with our friend Mike. Had some pints and then walked down the street to the Bridgeport Brewery, Portland's oldest. After saying adios to Mike, we went back to the hotel for a rest and then went out for dinner at a Pearl District Thai restaurant.

Our crew, Mike and his son, Noah, chillin’ at the Rogue Brewery…one of two trips we made to this spot.

Next morning was time to visit the coast. We drove along the 26 towards Cannon Beach and hit Camp 18 for breakfast. We then continued west to the coastline and what an incredible view. It was storm front weather so our walk along the beach to Haystack Rock was quite windy, but it added to the adventure. We then continued our walk back into town and hit the Sleepy Monk Organic Coffee Shop on the way. We then hopped back in the car, headed toward Astoria, took a quick trip over the massive bridge to Washington State where we explored Fort Columbia. We then headed back into Portland and had a quick pint at Rogue, our favorite.

Gettin’ artsy on Cannon Beach.

After a quick rest, we walked into the neighborhood of Hawthorne looking for some good seafood. Along the way we made a pact to walk inside each brewery we walked by. Starting with the Lucky Labrador and then the Bridgeport Ale House, we found ourselves in dire need of food even though we didn’t find seafood. So we hit the local Thai food spot and had a great dinner there, complete with Mohitos. Made our way back to the hotel and got up early for the flight home. What an amazing, jam packed weekend! I’ll do it again anytime!

Our crew on Cannon Beach with Haystack Rock in the background.

A Seattle-UW Reunion Weekend

Ok, first we must pause and realize that such an incredible weekend could not have been possible without my good friends Dan and Machiko getting married! It's amazing what can bring our UW swimming crew back together again. They are an awesome couple and I wish them all the best!

Our Mansion for the weekend!

So the whirlwind weekend started with a carpool and plane ride up to Seattle with friends Marcie and Brad. This was the first time we realized how close we now live to each other! When we landed, we grabbed a rental car and drove to downtown Seattle for dinner. We met up with Joe and had a great seafood dinner while overlooking the Puget Sound. Incredible views! A few glasses of wine and champagne later, we hit a small bar downtown for a night cap.

Ahhh, the kegstand. Prelude to some good times!

Next came the adventure of finding our mansion for the weekend. Machiko, the bride and ever the event planner, knew that many of us would be coming from out of town for the weekend and reserved for us a huge mansion on the Sound in Edmonds, WA. It was awesome to be living again with many of my same roommates from college! We got there about 1am and stayed up until about 3am playing pool and having some more drinks. You can't get the swim team together without some good drinkin'.

Dan and Mach--what a great duo.

Next day I woke up semi-early to meet up with one of my great friends from school, Shauna. She brought her daughter along and we all spent a few hours at a coffee shop catching up and reminiscing on the college days. It was so great to see her and I'll keep her to her word for staying in better contact! Went back to the mansion for an afternoon of BBQing, volleyball, and hitting the keg. What a great way to celebrate our friend's marriage. That night a few of us grabbed some dinner in downtown Edmonds and came back for some pool and a few more drinks.

Me, Machiko and Anne.

Next morning was wedding day. A bunch of us went into Seattle early for some breakfast and Bloody Marys. We then made our way to the Shilshole Bay Club for their wedding. It was an incredible morning in Seattle, quite warm in fact. The Puget Sound was the backdrop for their ceremony and both Mach and Dan looked money. After the ceremony came the party. Not much dancing, but a lot of chattin' and catchin' up. I even spent some quality time with my UW swim coach! It was great to see good ol' Earl again. We exchanged stories--Earl on his endurance swimming adventures and me on my recent Ironman.

Me and my Coach Earl. This guy is a legend!

After the wedding, we had an hour or so to kill, so a few of us walked to downtown Ballard where they were having a big Seafood Festival. Great times. A quick drive back to the airport and we were airborne back to the OC. What an incredible weekend of friends, fun, weather and catching up!

Brad, Marcie, Tim, Julie, Joe and I.

The Ironman Adventure: Day 5 ("The Aftermath")

I just don't know where to start... This will likely be a length entry so get comfortable!

My experience to become an Ironman has been memorable, complete with the ups and downs. What I most appreciated yesterday during the race was just being there and being with others of all fitness levels, shapes and sizes, all there to cross that finish line with the announcer saying "You are an Ironman!" CDA is an incredible place and presents a tough course, but I would take the hills, wind and rain anytime to take the grand tour around a beautiful section of Idaho.

Before I get into my story, below are a few random blurbs from yesterday's adventure:

• During the second half of the bike course, some guy on his Specialized Transition TT bike (amazing machine) cruised by and asked if I knew how to pee on the bike. I said, "Uh, never tried it, but I imagine you're going to have to stop pushing on those pedals for a bit and make sure there aren't any sharp corners ahead." Good advice, I thought.
• At the top of one of the bike climbs there was a pipe band, complete with tartan quilt full dress and one incredible sound! Got some chills and yelled, "Yeah Scotland!" Dorky I know, but I had a moment of patriotism that kept the mind on something else.
• Riding around the northern part of the course takes you through some interesting neighborhoods. I recall one in particular with "an ol' coot" yelling positive thoughts through his industrial sized megaphone. ZZ top beard and all.
• After the race, many racers chilled in the athlete tent to grab some grub and get a quick massage. One dude said he was going home to take an ice bath. I asked, "Are you serious? You're shivering! I'm hitting the hot tub." He replied that he has done this all season and makes the next day so much more comfortable. He said you fill your tub with cold water, dump two 4 lb bags of ice in, and tuck that dude in between your legs and sit for 15 minutes! After taking 10 minutes to put my pants on this morning I realized that maybe this guy was right!
• Total number of snot rockets on the course: around 438
• Best aid station supplement ever: warm chicken broth (you were right, Heather)
• No. of house parties I passed complete with kegs, loud music and incredible cheering sections: too many to count

That was most definitely the single most challenging, most painful, and most rewarding race of my life. Now for the story...

Woke up at 3:30am to have a cup of coffee and some light breakfast. Made last minute gear check and we're off to CDA just before 5am. After parking, making final gear bags modifications and loading the bike up with food and liquids, we had time to sit near the swim start and watch the pros take off. They started 35 minutes head. A few minutes later I coated all appropriate parts with Body Glide and Okole Stuff (a thick vaseline-like substance developed by our professional mtb friend, Pua), and put on my wetsuit. Thanks again to Josh for letting me borrow his suit with sleeves. Mine is sleeveless and would have been a bit chilly for a 2.4 mile swim. Went to the water, swam around a bit and stood waiting for the start with 2,500 athletes. I decided to line up in the front row. A risk I know, but being a former swimmer, I was hoping it would give me that few extra feet to develop some space between the rest of the swimmers. And the gun went off...

Chillin' before the start of the race. (Kudos to Jen for taking my camera and capturing all of the race day pix below.)

The start was a blur. The waves were choppy but I just concentrated on a few power strokes through the water after sighting a far out buoy. Before I knew it I had broken away from the mass of swimmers and shut my legs off completely and concentrated on long, smooth strokes. The tough part was trying to conserve energy with tons of head on waves. I don't think there was a way to save energy on the swim and the other guys said the same thing after the race. I rounded the first lap and even passed a few pros! Was stoked on that! After the first lap, you run out of the water and go around a marker and timing mat and dive in for your second lap. The crowd was AMAZING! Talk about an adrenaline rush. Going out on lap 2 seemed a little rougher as the wind picked up again. It made the ocean swims we did in prep feel like swimming in a koi pond. Finally, the home stretch... Semi-body surfing back I was able to shut everything down and control my breathing. I had plenty of space and was stoked to be done with the first 2.4 mile leg of a very long day. Upon exiting the water, the crowd was going crazy again and I ran over to the transition tent to find myself a stripper!

2,500 or so athletes ready to start the swim at once.

Mayhem at the start of the swim. I was luckily able to be up front.

I even got two strippers all to myself! Ok, here's an explanation. The strippers are there to help you get your wetsuit off. They are pretty tight fitting and it takes some time. If you want, you can use their help. Better believe 'dat! Holding onto my shorts in an effort not to flash the curious crowd, my wetsuit was off in about 0.8 seconds. I ran to grab my swim-to-bike gear bag and went to the changing tent to get ready for a 112 mile bike ride. The volunteers at CDA were incredible. They guide you into the tent, make sure you're not dying, and help you get ready. One guy helped me put my socks on while I fastened my helmet! Just go with it. About 6 minutes later I was on the road riding through town. Again, the crowd was fantastic and it took everything to hold back and not get caught up in the rush.

I decided to take the professionals advice to not fuel or drink anything until you're about 20 minutes into the bike. Reason? Get your heart rate under control and your stomach and system reset. It worked like a charm. The first 20 mile section of the bike course was fast, complete with the pipe band I mentioned above and cheerleaders and live amateur bands. We had a head wind most of the ride so it was challenging to keep your frustration at bay. Although the head wind turned into a tailwind at points and knowing those were out there made it bearable. The second section of the bike course is known for the famous CDA rollers. They hurt. My plan was to work the flats and downs, and sit up and spin the climbs. Another challenging experience for me was relaxing when guys were passing me throughout the course on the bike. I was holding ahead of my goal pace so I was stoked, but it was still tough. I can still hear the sound of those disc wheels approaching! Sounds like a train coming... That's what you have to deal with as a swimmer I guess. But it was cool to catch back up with them on the climbs.

A portion of our incredible cheering section having a pint while we're out there racing... I would have done the same thing. In fact, mid-pint, I came by and they all came out hootin' and hollering! Outstanding.

I also decided to stop at two bike aid stations to fill up my bottles. It would have been too difficult with the turns and rolling terrain to try and fill your bottles with more. Plus I didn't want to lose my commemorative CDA bottles! First lap done at mile 56, time to do it all over again. I really only had one point of near-bonk, but I just kept fueling and it quickly subsided. It was also fairly difficult to get solid food down, but I was able to get down some Fig Newtons, almonds, salty chips, and half of one of Cindy's famous oatmeal chocolate chip cookies. Add two flasks of EFS fuel (equivalent to 8 goos) and six 20 oz. bottles to that, I was happy with my nutrition plan. The whole point is to top up completely knowing you have a marathon ahead of you...

Finishing the bike leg in aero form and trying to spin the legs out before the run.

At the completion of lap two I saw some friends, gave a wave, and headed into the transition zone. Again, the volunteers were incredible. A guy took my bike and I trotted to pick up my bike-to-run gear bag. Another volunteer grabbed my bag and helped me empty the contents on the grass. I decided to keep the same socks on (Smart Wool socks are the best at regulating temps and in the rain). A few minutes later, I was all changed and started jogging. I forgot to mention that perhaps the best decision I made all day was to put bike shorts over my tri-shorts for the bike leg. I was so comfortable the whole way and kept me warm. But about 20 steps in I realized I still had them on! Ran back to the transition tent, found my volunteer, gave him my shorts and he put them in my bag. Cool, aren't they?

The run start was difficult as always to get your legs going up and down and not round and round. Jen and Jake were running along side for about 250 yards which was really funny! Kudos to them for cheering all day! Just like the bike, I did not fuel until about 5 miles in. I had two goos on me just in case. My first 2 miles were too fast as I was just trying to find my feet. I was at 15 minutes in 2 miles, way too quick! I recall advice from Molly, back off right away and save it! The run turned into a bit of a shuffle after going through town again. Knowing I had a full 26 miles ahead was daunting...twice the distance I had ever run. My goal was around a 4 hour marathon and I had no idea if I could do it. We always here about "the wall" and I did not know when mine would hit...it hit around mile 23 but we'll get to that in a second.

Somewhere on the run course ready to ditch my undershirt (too warm). That was a VERY painful run!

At the far end of the first leg, there was a hill to go up and down. Coming down that hill was agony! My quads felt like knives were stabbing them and the pain never subsided. That was mile 7. I knew this was going to be a long day. Coming up on mile 10 I remembered my plan to stop and stretch at miles 10 and 20 no matter what. I tried to, but when I tried to stretch my quads, my hamstrings would cramp! Oh well, just keep pushing. Coming through town at the half marathon point was helpful, but I was in a total daze. From that point forward I decided to walk through every other aid station (which were spaced about a mile apart) to take a break from the pain in the quads and to fuel properly. Chicken broth, gatorade, water and oranges were my fuel of choice and I stuck to that. That is, other than a few bites of my Hostess Apple Pie I stashed in my run special needs bag! A few bites of that was enough. The next 13 miles was likely the most painful experience I had been through. Oscillating around 8:30 pace and 9:00 pace seemed to work ok. I stuck with my aid station nutrition plan and tried to keep my eyes on all things around me. I hate to say it, but it was somewhat comforting seeing most of the runners in some sort of distress as well!

I saw Jeana at some point but we were both so focused that we yelled and that was it. Knowing I only had 5 more miles was an amazing feeling. I just kept telling myself that this is the same mile square park distance that I'm used to! But it hurt way more. Finally at mile 23, I hit that wall. It took everything I had to keep moving. I now know what all those marathoners say about that wall. Quite the head trick! I slipped back to around 9:30 or so pace but I was still jogging. Finally, a few streets later through the neighborhood with parties going on and my eyeballs ready to bounce out of my head, I reached the sign that said, "Finish this way, 2nd lap this way." It was an amazing feeling knowing you are almost done. I actually saw Jeana start her second lap and she gave me some kind words, but I was so done I barely grunted! Then the most amazing left turn of my life down Sherman Avenue...

I had somehow spaced myself out between the runner ahead and anyone behind me. The crowd was incredible. People were having some pints in the porch of a pub and I yelled "be there in a few minutes!" They roared and my adrenaline took off. There are no words to describe the feeling of coming down that final 0.2 mile straight away. I looked skyward and thanked those who count most and then gave high fives to spectators who lined the finishing chute. Finding some last second energy I sprinted to the finish, arms raised high and crossed as an Ironman in 10 hours and 32 minutes... I was so stoked.

Here I am finishing in one of my most proud athletic endeavors of my life. What a rush and the crowd was awesome!

A catcher (volunteer ready to grab you and guide you to your finishing medal, t-shirt and running hat) draped me in a space blanket for warmth. I took a quick photo and headed to the post-race tent. I was quite wobbly on the legs and one of the volunteers noticed. She guided me over to a chair, gave me another space blanket and gave me some warm chicken broth and water. Then she led me into the massage tent! Didn't know that was part of the gig. Two minutes later I was on a table with two angels giving me a rubdown. Warm oil, space blankets, warm room, and the friendliest of folk...amazing! Then I stumbled over to the feeding area to grab a few slices of pizza, some water and shared stories with the other guys. Watching people come in an out was comical (in hindsight). You simply can't sit down or get up. It's a total tricep push so your chair better have arms! People were shivering as it was low-to-mid 50s with rain. But somehow everyone had that spark of accomplishment in their eyes.

Jeana, already draped in a space blanket, on the finishing straight. Way to go Iron Woman!

Post-race, space blanket wrap to keep warm. (Notice the sweet Kia rental car!)

I waited around for Jeana to show up and tried to find our friends (long story there). Ultimately we all met up. I missed Jeana's finish but she finished just over 13 hours and she is truly an Iron Woman! Finding our way back to the car, taking the elevator back up to our rooms still draped in space blankets, our day was done. I tried to keep drinking water, didn't feel like dinner, just wanted to lay down. After a restless night of dealing with an upset stomach, I awoke this morning to some seriously sore legs. But it was all worth it in my pursuit to become an Ironman.

You know, they say it's the journey and not the destination, and they are right. But I can't tell you enough how amazing it was to reach THAT destination! Thanks again to all my friends and family for such incredible support throughout my journey. I am so grateful to you all!

The Ironman Adventure: Day 4

I am an Ironman!!

This is going to be the shortest post ever due to being very tired... It was an incredible day, albeit extremely painful, and it deserves it's own (lengthy) blog coming tomorrow.

Thank you so much to all my friends and family for the incredible wishes during and post race... Your commentary on the text messages was awesome. I am grateful for you all!

The Ironman Adventure: Day 3

Well, this is it! In about 10 hours, I'll be hitting the water for the big race. Today started with an early morning road spin near the hotel. Just as I left the parking lot, another CDA racer rolled up on his warm up. We rode together for 15 miles or so before calling it a day and a good warm up. Next up, head back into CDA for some lunch and gear check-in. I have to say, this is (so far) one of the most stressful parts of the race--sorting out your gear and nutrition plan. I wasn't planning on using any of the special needs bags, which are bags placed in the middle of the course with whatever you want. But I figured what the heck. So I put an extra tube, CO2, and a snickers in the bike bag and an apple pie, snickers and gel in the run bag. They will be there if I need them.

My gear bags, sort of all set to go.

Thousands (literally) of gear bags line the CDA City Park lawn. One set of bags for the bike transition and another for the run transition.

After check-in, we drove one loop of the bike course. Man, that is one hilly course on the north end! Have to keep that in mind. Chill on the climbs and push on the flats and rollers. After the drive, we came back to the hotel with some time to chill out before dinner. Went over to Hay J's again and had a good dinner, even celebrated Jeana's dad's birthday. Now, after finishing up some last minute prep and setting 2 alarm clocks for 3:45am, I'm getting ready for bed. This will likely be a fairly restless night's sleep as the nerves/excitement are starting to kick.

My bike, all racked and ready to go. You should have seen some of the incredible time trial machines on the racks. I swear, there must have been $millions in bikes there, guarded all night long I would imagine. Notice the plastic bag over the seat to at least keep something dry in the event of rain!

Next time I enter into my blog, I hope to have been called an Ironman, as I cross the finish line. Thanks again for all the well wishes and good luck calls!

The Ironman Adventure: Day 2

Today started with some breakfast downstairs in the hotel followed by a quick 15 minute drive to CDA. First impression? What a lake! And a storm was brewing as well... Found a parking spot and walked down to City Park for a morning swim. Gatorade apparently hosts morning swims each morning where they check your bag for you while you swim and then give you some gatorade when done. Not bad.

Can you see the last bouy? No? Niether could I. Two laps of that.

The morning swim was...interesting. The water was pretty warm at 62 degrees, but thanks to Josh for the full sleeve wetsuit, the water temp was not an issue. In fact, cooler would have been ok too. What was challenging were the choppy waves and white caps coming straight for you on the outbound leg of the lap. Talk about learning to swim again with those big arms! The water was so clear though and the inbound straight was semi-surfing.

Thanks for the sleeves, Josh!

After the swim, we changed and realized the line to check in was about 60 minutes too long. So we all decided to go for a road ride, Jen on her mtb bike. We rode the bike course and I double-backed a few times to get some extra spin miles in. The run course seemed awesome, but long! Two laps of that will be super tough. After the ride, I walked into town to pick up some lunch and then headed to check-in where the line was nothing. Good timing.

Jeana, Jake, me, and Jen. Athletes and cheering section unite!

After signing my life away countless of times and finally getting my timing chip, I was now officially entered into the event. Now comes the hard part of organizing my gear tomorrow morning for the mandatory gear check-in which happens the day before the race since race morning will be ridiculously hectic. After check-in, we came back to the hotel, I had a quick 15 min nap and checked some e-mail and then we headed for dinner. We were going to head into CDA for dinner but the freeway was locked up due to some accident no doubt. We ate at the local grill and bar which offered a pretty mean BBQ chicken pizza.

After dinner we drove into CDA for the mandatory athlete meeting. They basically reiterated what was in the athlete guide, but they also had staff available for questions. After getting a few questions I had answered about gear bags, we ate a quick ice cream dessert at the local parlor. I forgot it's name, but I remember it's slogan: "High fat, high taste, and high prices." Perfect. Ate some killer "Rastachio" ice cream. After ice cream, we drove back to Liberty Lake for a quick grocery store hit and then back to the hotel.

The mandatory athlete meeting was like a standing room only sold out show. I would imagine most of the 2,300+ athletes were there.

Now I'm chillin' in my hotel room getting anxious for a big day tomorrow. It's big because all game plans must be set. Gear bags are in and the bike is left at the venue. Game on!

Parting shot for the night... I haven't seen stormy skies like this for a while. Amazing, huh?

The Ironman Adventure: Day 1

Today marks the first of a 5 day quest to become an Ironman. Today was all about traveling from SoCal to the Idaho and organizing all of my stuff. The day began with a mad dash in the morning to hit stores for last minute items. Then I left Orange County around noon and arrived in Seattle around 2:45pm. I had a few hour layover to get something to eat and chill in the new terminal. That terminal is awesome! A huge wall of glass with the Olympic Mountains and Mt. Ranier as your backdrop. Not to mention how green everything looked.

Then came the flight from Seattle to Spokane, WA, the nearest airport to Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, which is where I would be racing on Sunday. Landing in Spokane was surreal, sort of a semi-flashback to a phenomenal snowboarding trip to Canada more than 1 year ago. Same prop airplane as last time, complete with free microbrew tastings! It was a local Portland brew and it was good.

Got the rental car and hit I-90 heading east to Coeur d'Alene. (I'm already tired of typing that out...from here on out, it's CDA.) Ok, so the first thing I notice is Spokane rush hour at 6pm, or lack thereof! I mean this was the first time in a while I was cool with chillin' at 60 mph on the freeway! No one was in a hurry and the views of the surrounding landscape was incredible. Next stop, Liberty Lake, Washington, which is where I will call home for 4 nights. (CDA was way too expensive and Liberty Lake is only a 10-15 min drive away.)

Hotel room and mock staging area for a few nights. Great room and lots of space for everything.

So I have to say, I was expecting Liberty Lake to be a small little town with not much more than a lake, a dock, a lodgy hotel (where I would be staying), and a liquor store. To my great surprise, Liberty Lake is a cool place! Two grocery stores nearby, a bar, Spokane River, a sky that won't quit, and some of the friendliest and most welcoming folk. My hotel, the Cedars Inn, was nothing short of perfect. It's always a chance to just make a reservation for some unknown hotel, but the Cedars Inn at Liberty Lake did not disappoint! While checking in, the following amenities were offered: free wi-fi, free in room coffee maker (outstanding for the future 3:30am race day wake up), jacuzzi, tons of room, and free continental breakfast! All for a 1/3 the price of CDA...I know, that's my Scottish side coming out.

My own little grocery store... Energy for the warm-ups and race day. Notice the Calvin-inspired Hostess Apple Pie and Cindy's Killer Cookies!

After a totally chill 20 min jog with Jeana and Jake (who arrived not long after me...by car), I cleaned the bike off and cruised around looking for some dinner. Randomly tried a place called Hay J's Bistro. If you're ever in the Spokane Valley area, check it out. The bartender and waitresses were very friendly and the food was phenomenal. This is sort of a sick vacation right? So I had a great glass of Columbia River Valley wine (Desert Wind Merlot) and an awesome dish of seared Ahi with garlic mashed potatoes, all soaking in an incredible peanut type sauce. Awesome.

After that, hit the grocery store for a cheap cooler and supplies and now back at the hotel to hit the sack. I can't believe it's almost 11pm already, the sun seemed to have gone down only an hour or so ago!

Yes, I'm getting antsy and anxious. Tomorrow will be a fun-filled day with my first visit to CDA and the venue, a quick swim in the likely frigid lake, a chill road ride, and a drive to check out the course. Athlete mandatory dinner to follow in the evening. My goal is to write a blog each day of this adventure, even when I get home from the race (I say that now). Thanks to all for the support and well wishes. Pictures will be coming on the next entries. Good night!

My Second Century

Since I'm now WAY behind on blog entries, most would not even know that I'm training for an Ironman that starts in less than 5 weeks! I have been training on my own "program" complete with bike rides (both mountain and road), runs (both trail and asphalt), and swims (I know, I thought I retired from that as well). With the exception of a foot injury last month which had me off running for about 5 weeks, training has been fun. I have not been going long, but have tried to be consistently cross training. I enjoy the challenge but it truly makes me appreciate riding with my friends. One can only ride or run solo so much before it loses its luster...but the group rides every now and again provide a recharge! 

Anyway, this weekend has been a great weekend for my crash course training program since I missed quite a bit with my injury last month. Friday I ran 13.1 miles (half marathon and my longest run yet) and then swam at our local 50 meter pool. Then hooked up with friends for poker night (thanks Jen and Jeana). Saturday I woke up early and did about a mile ocean swim with my friend Jeana (also an Ironman trainee) and followed up the swim with a great three-parks mountain bike ride with the fellas. Then went to The Bruery for some excellent beer tasting, not to mention killer grub courtesy of Beachwood BBQ (another fine establishment). 

Then this morning rolled around and I was looking for some motivation to get out a do a long ride. I decided to get suited up and just go and see what I felt like. My legs were pretty tired and I was stoked when Molly wanted to join me for a part of my ride. At mile 20 we split and I was on my own heading south down PCH. Feeling pretty good and concentrating on pedaling not mashing, the tunes made the ride go by quick and I soon found myself at the entrance to Camp Pendleton. Well that's 50 miles down which means 50 back! Feeling pretty stoked, I turned and headed north concentrating on eating and drinking all the time (had to stop at the local San Clemente food mart for some water and gatorade). Then kept riding and soon enough made it home with 100.5 miles on the odometer! Sweet, my second century ever. Now just add 12 more miles to that and that's the bike leg for the Ironman. Ugh.

They Call Me Reverend Drew

This past April, my good friends Molly and Steve were married. They are an incredible couple and we have some great roommate stories to share. About six months before they were married, they came to me with a question..."Would you be interested in marrying us?" At first I thought it was a joke, but they were serious and I was humbled beyond belief. What an honor to have even been asked. "Of course," I replied. 

So in November 2008, I became an ordained minister. There's really not much to it as I received my certificate as a .pdf file in about 2 minutes. But I took it seriously as I had a commitment to Steve and Molly within 6 months. And those months went fast! After chillin' over some pints one afternoon prior, I developed a story of their relationship which became the bookend for their ceremony. We filled in most of rest with their own vows and stories of symbolic rings...

I had a lot of fun giving it and to this day I feel honored to have even been asked. Their wedding was a lot of fun and Molly looked incredible. Steve looked pretty money himself. We all finished the evening with some whiskey at the local night club and the rest is history. 

And I'm now a retired minister.

R.I.P. Oliver

Our old family friend, Oliver, passed on today. He was a great pup and kept my Mom and sister company when I went up to Seattle. Susan and her family took over care for Oliver back in 2000 he helped raise their two girls. I will always appreciate the care that they gave Oliver. He had a great life...lived to 14 years old. He will be missed and can now rest and keep an eye on us. Later buddy!