Summer 2024

C finally got his driver's license.

School's out! V finished Grade 8 and H Grade 10.

H is keeping busy with projects and learning to cook dinners for when our schedule is busier this fall. Including making ramps to get bikes off the deck easier.

V graduated elementary school and will go to the same school as H in the fall.

V had a busy July-swimming on swim team and taking the HS required PE Credit.

We celebrated V's 14th bday with cake (We went to the water park with a friend of hers when we got back from seeing family in August):

In Aug we went to WA state

The kids got to meet my parents' dog in person.  She's adorable...

She's super smart

I was able to meet up with some friends on my own (former coworkers and a childhood friends) and go to a scrapbook retreat with other friends while the kids visited with my parents and their cousins.

We met up with my high school Spanish teacher and her partner at the Seattle's Japanese Garden then Pagliacci for pizza.

I was able to get out for a few runs:

In Lynnwood to the sound at Meadowdale Beach Park:

On the Chehalis Western converted rail trail:

And Mima Falls in Capital Forest:

We went to the ocean (note to self-WA oceans are for afternoons, not mornings).  The kids joked we were at the edge of the world and might just fall off because it was so foggy you couldn't even see the ocean until you were practically in it.

Then my dad sprung for the go-carts

The younger kids and I visited Mount Rainier and walked up from Paradise to see the glaciers.

We visited Narada Falls on the way down the mountain.

My cousin brought over baby squirrels from her newest venture-wild animal rehabilitator

We attended my parent's cul du sac picnic and met their neighbors.

We saw more cousins and then headed down to Portland to visit Powell's book store and have Shake Shack.

Then dinner at Red Robin where the kids tried to bankrupt them with free refills on fries and drinks.

Then we finally had to admit H can't just be a carry-on anymore... we're going to have to check him...

Maybe V too

When we got back V went to the HS orientation. And had a great time!

We got out on the paddleboards a few times with the help of adding an electric pump.

Then just like that school was back.  V is starting HS in Grade 9, H is in Grade 11, and C goes to our local college and has been biking most days to school.

Sulphur Springs 100k-end of May 2024

 The end of May 2024 I ran a 100k race-Sulphur Springs.  Sulphur Springs is the first ultra marathon in Ontario to qualify for a ticket for the Western States race . The stipulation was that 100 people between the 100k and 100mile races had to finish in 18 hours for 100k and 30 hours for the 100 mile.  The lap before my final lap my crew came down to let me know they'd gotten their 100 finishers.

I'd run the route many times with friends training. Sulphur Springs was the first ultra I was supposed to ever run-I'd signed up for the 50k back in 2020 as the pandemic started. Sulphur was the only race to refund race entries (the rest deferred, which made for a very busy 2022 season).  Last year, 2023 I was going to run it and my friends asked me if I'd crew for them for their 50 mile race.  I agreed to that and ran other races in 2023.  Crewing a race means like a pit crew for Nascar.  The Sulphur Springs route is a 20 km loop that you come back to the start for every loop. You can set up a tent and have support people to refill bottles, duct tape your feet, etc. etc.  So their 50mile race was 4 laps or 80km.  For this race a friend from my speed training group offered to crew for me.  As well as relay race with a trail run group we run with.  Then one person ended up not being available for the relay, so she crewed me as well as ran two 20km laps!

The day started pretty good. Weather forecast was a little iffy but not too hot and the first loop went great. I'd trained and gotten in all my runs including long runs up to 60km.  I knew the route well and because I'd only run without the aid stations in the loops I was happily surprised how fast it seemed the race was going. I got my first loop done in about 2 hours 15 minutes.  The loops are fairly hilly. Not serious elevation, but up and down, up and down.  Friends stopped by to surprise me after each loop and spaced it out to make the time go faster.  

I was glad I'd brought poles though because half way through the 2nd loop a thunderstorm started.  I finished my 2nd loop wet but still in good spirits. I was almost a marathon into this thing.  I grabbed my rain jacket and headed out for Loop 3

Then it kept raining. Way longer than was forecasted. The mud got deeper and more difficult to climb up the hills in it. That's when the poles got important.  It ended up raining for about 4 hours.  I saw lots of people who were walking the trail who talked about dropping out of their races the next time they got into the start/finish line.

My race photos are dark even though they were taken in the middle of the day because of the rain and forest canopy.

On the last lap it became clear I was going to need my headlamp for the last lap.

In just over 16 hours I finished and sprinted for the finish.

I felt it went really well. I changed my shoes and socks every lap and had to duct tape some blisters and wear gloves with my poles due to the extra moisture from the rain, but the fact I could sprint at the end and never wanted to quit make it a success in my books.