WE'RE GOING TO STATE!

Saturday, Bake had his first chess tournament of the year. Up in Lynden at the fairgrounds. (Last time I was there, I was racing my cyclocross bike across the muddy demolition derby area and through the pig parn; see pics, etc. below.) He's been real busy with indoor soccer, basketball, and is in a much more stimulating school environment this year, so we've played just about no chess. Our expectations weren't great.

So, what does he do--he goes out and wins three out of five games to qualify for the big state tournament in Seattle! It'll be his first time. He was so happy and proud, as were his parents. (That's him in the rainbow dreadlock hat by the way.)

Chess tournaments are all-day affairs from like 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. One can only read so many magazines before mind-numbing boredom sets in. (Especially if you're in someplace like Lynden.) Below, Mary Margaret Bowmer of the Fanatik Bike Team passes a few hours spinning on her rollers.

Oh, and if you haven't seen it, check out the story I wrote for The Seattle Times about riding cyclocross bikes on the trails and roads around Bellingham: http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/outdoors/2004115882_nwwbiking100.html.

END OF YEAR RIDE

Went 'cross bike riding with Mark Peterson, athlete and sponship dude at Kona, and Ryan Rickerts, of http://www.cyclocrazed.com/ fame the other day. Strong guys both who thankfully waited up for me at various and sundry points. I'm writing a story for The Seattle http://www.seattletimes/ about such 'cross-type riding behavior; it should run next Thursday, the 10th.
There's Ryan giving me the Lance look. (Cheeky bastard.) We started at Mark's house where, after enjoying one of those mini cups of some amazingly rich espresso, we headed up the Pipeline Trail on Galbraith. See the snow in the distance (above); see it in my back wheel below?
Probably six or eight inches of snow once we hit where the road/trail flattens out, then we headed down the upper trails just east of Lake Padden. (That's the top photo.) From there we dropped down into Fairhaven and took various greenways back. Just about two hours riding in all.
Sunday, I went running with the Chuckanut 50K group from the Vet hospital. About an hour into it, as I was having a jolly time running with Mr. Clark and Mr. Scott, it just kinda hit me: I don't feel like training for this race. Even if it's the last time ever for this course, I just can't seem to get motivated for the long, long hours of running in the mud every Sunday until raceday in the middle of March. And for a race that long and painful, I need to be mucho motivated. (Still ended up running 2 hours 45 minutes with a couple thousand feet elevation gain.)

Went home, took out the 'cross bike and rode about an hour and 15. That was fun.

MERRY X-MAS OR WHATEVER!

OK, this being the end of the year, I'd like to share with you a mishmash of photos, some of which are from this year, some of which are not. Below is Lance Armstrong--I mean, me-- in the Mount Baker Hill Climb in September. Absolutely glorius day!
Speaking of another absolutely glorius day, here's the wife, Jen, paddling in June on Mountain Lake on Orcas Island. Below is the ice and snow on that steep-walled stretch of the Lost Lake Trail. That's Scott Young (looking like he's hanging his head after being caught doing something naughty) and Paul Ricci from a couple weeks ago.
Here we're at about mile 2 of the 105-mile Tour de Whatcom (http://tourdewhatcom.com/). I saw the photographer and went for it. That's John Clark's left arm. By the way, the TdW raised $15,000 for the Boys and Girls Clubs of Whatcom County. Right on! (Photo by John Brunk.)
Speaking of John, here he is about five years ago starring in "The Giant that Ate Mount Baker".Bake when he was about three or so.

Sunset from the top of Orcas Island's Mount Constitution back in June.

Emma Robbins and Bake on that same Orcas trip. Man, I wish it was summer now!

SUNDAY IN THE SNOW

Snow visited the Chuckanuts for the second Sunday in a row. Above, Christy Fazio reads from a large unabridged dictionary that for some reason sits on the Fragrance Lake Road sign above Lost Lake. That's Paul Ricci in the middle and then Scott Young who, as you can see, occasionally suffers from elephantitus of the tongue. Poor guy.

Below, Ricci and Young rip it up on the Ridge Trail. We ran about 2-1/2 hours, starting at the Vet hospital, heading up toward Lost Lake, turning up Dan's Traverse to Ridge Trail (opp. direction from 50K), down to Cleator, up to Fragrance Lake Road, then around to Lost Lake and back.
It was painful and quite hard and most of the time I felt about as happy and full of life as John Clark looks in the photo below. But the snow was beautiful and I can think of just about no better way to spend a Sunday morning.

SUNNY DAY ON GALBRAITH

Rode the Fantom CX to Col d'Galbraith Alpe d'Towers and beyond on what was a stunning, not-a-cloud-in-the-sky morning. Mount Baker was huge as were views far into Canada, the San Juan Islands and beyond.

Came across the sculpture below, one which I'd not seen before at Galbraith. This is on the Wonderland side, on the north end of the towers, though I was riding the dirt roads up there--the ol' reliable 2000, 3000 and 4000.

So ... speaking of the Chuckanut 50K, damn that Christy Fazio is all I can say. Looks like the course won't change for the upcoming race in March but most definitely will in 2009. Meaning this is the last time for this course ever. As Kristy pointed out to me, if I have any unfinished business with that race--as in every year I think I'm capable of running 5:30 but I've ended up at 5:50 and 5:53 the last two years--this is my last chance to get it done. Thanks for putting that in my mind, Kristy; I may be at the starting line next March after all.

No I won't.

(I don't know; maybe I will be.)