In Like a Lion

March roared in and graced us with a few inches of pristine late-season snow yesterday. I, unfortunately, have had to spend the past couple of days in bed with a terrible cold, so while he was supervising the dogs' outside playtime, Steve snapped a quick photo of Mother Nature's pre-spring gift.

Sporks Rule!

 

This past weekend, Team Sporks competed in the Trio category at the Six Hours on the Lake endurance mountain bike race held at Harris Lake County Park. The individual results are not yet posted, so we're not sure exactly where we finished for this particular race (although we believe we came in second). However, after participating and posting decent results in all three races in the series (where we also served as volunteers for the events twice), we ended up with enough points to win the overall Series Championship, and each member of the team was awarded one of these lovely trophies. Many thanks to my teammates, Pryde and Steve - you guys rock!

Happy New Year!

May 2009 be filled with peace, joy and love.

Happy Birthday to Me!

     Today marked 47 years I've lived on this earth, and despite the usual ups and downs of life, I have to admit so far it's been a beautiful ride. Much of the reason for this is the fact that I'm happily married to the love of my life, and being able to share yet another birthday with him - and our four loving pets, Spyder, Zoe, Andy and Venus - makes my birthday even more of a celebration.

Women's Mountain Bike Clinic

 Despite the cold and blustery winds, around 30 ladies showed up today for the Women's Mountain Bike Clinic held at Lake Crabtree. In the park's free-play field area, participants learned cornering, balance and log-crossing techniques and then headed into the bike trails to put their newfound skills to practical use on guided rides. I saw many smiling faces, and hope the women who came out found the clinic useful and left inspired to ride their bikes more often with all the new friends they met today. I also hope that those of us volunteering as leaders were able to offer helpful advice, encouragement and support to the ladies as they learned and practiced techniques to make mountain biking a safer and ideally more enjoyable endeavor.

Thankful

 

This Thanksgiving was a very special one. For the first time in our nearly 14 years together, Steve and I were able to share the holiday with both sets of parents at our home. Hopefully the table setting was deserving of the outstanding meal Steve prepared for us, including a multitude of yummy vegetable dishes to accommodate my vegetarian lifestyle.

Despite their somewhat lackluster expressions - probably a result of being unprepared for the camera's surprise appearance  - our parents all got along beautifully and everyone had a delightful visit, even though due to various and sundry circumstances this was their first meeting ever!

   

Following dinner, it was time to kick back, relax and enjoy each other's company...

 

During this season of thanks, there are many things for which I'm grateful. It would be impossible to list them all, but of note, I'm thankful for:

• The unconditional love and joy my pets bring into my life


• My comfortable and cozy home


• A loving family and precious friends


• Gainful employment at a meaningful job I enjoy, working with wonderful people


• My health, sight, hearing, and having the strength and ability to do the many activities I enjoy


• The courage and compassion of people who rescue, protect, care for and speak out on behalf of animals


• Having enough food to eat, warmth and shelter


• Living in a country where things many people would view as luxuries beyond imagination are considered simple conveniences or even necessities


• Being able to share all these things with the Love of my Life, my husband Steve

Heel of a Race

    This afternoon and evening, Steve, Brian Hubley and myself competed as a Trio in the Heel of a Race, a 6-hour mountain bike race at Carolina North Forest in Chapel Hill. We ended up in third place of three trio teams, but had a fantastic time, despite the fact that today's temps were close to record-breaking cold! Our team also volunteered to serve as course marshals between laps, and the good folks putting on the race couldn't have been more hospitable, bringing us coffee, hot cocoa, sandwiches and hand warmers. Unfortunately, I never saw any of the photographers on course while I was riding, but luckily Steve captured a few of pictures of me and I got a couple of him and one of Brian, posted in my photo gallery. The trails at Carolina North Forest are a challenging mix of fast cruising sections, lung-collapsing steep climbs, rocks, breathtaking descents, narrow angled bridges, rocks, multiple log crossings of various sizes, rocks, hairpin turns, roots, twisty spiral wooden berms, and did I mention rocks? By my best estimate, the race course was close to nine miles, but it sure felt like a lot more, especially in today's bitter cold. I'm glad I had such good teammates with whom to spend the day. Thanks Team P-Nutz and Hair Dooz!