Xmas has come and gone

Another xmas had come and gone. It goes so quickly that it makes my heart ache a little bit. I love listening to Christmas music, but can only really do that in December. Too short for my taste, but then again it makes it that much more special! One special thing that happened this year was that the Pedersen clan got together for the first time in a few years. There were a few people missing, but it was still a good time.

I pulled in a fairly good haul for gifts. I got a helmet cam, some Oakleys, a sweet shirt, a fantastic coffee mug-that I can't bring to school because of how great it is! Plus some other cool stuff too. Twas a good xmas for all.

I have been working out a lot lately. Doing lots of skiing and running with some biking thrown in for good measure! The trails in the metro are great right now and it makes the skiing that much better. I feel like I am getting into pretty decent shape.

Here are a couple pics from my ride. Maybe next time I will have video???

Oh, p.s. I have a mtn bike now. Boom!

Snow

Well we did get a good amount of snow over a couple days. Traffic was terrible the past two days. It also means that for me I need to wax my skis! I also gotta get my trail pass for Three Rivers Parks... ugh lots to do.

Maybe I will also do some lessons for then as well... who knows.

I have difficulty motivating myself to get out and run. I have slipped into a ritual of staying up too late and not running in the morning. Perhaps I could even have running stuff with me at school and run after I teach? Although now that we have snow I think that time will be reserved for skiing!!

Running around in the area by new place it's really fun though. There are hills, spectacular houses, and lots of new run routes for me to explore.

Tonight I must admit is a night for me to bum around and watch a Christmas movie. Love Actually perhaps?

Restful week

Well, report cards are done for my students. I had a successful thanksgiving. Now tomorrow I get back to the grind of school.

I am looking forward to getting back to a new trimester at school. I have learned a lot over the past couple months to say the least. I know that this go around I will enter student's grades way before the last possible day. I am going to make sure I get in some social studies and science. Perhaps art as well? I am not an artist, so it is very difficult for me to teach art  to anyone. The crazy thing is that there are only 15 days of school until winter break!!! That is fantastic news for me, but that also means I got some work to do. I am looking forward to it.

Yesterday I ran twice and then did a ton of lower leg work. I am sore. I haven't done that much in a long time. Now I need to make sure I get in some fantastic skiing and running in this winter! Perhaps biking? That means I need to get a fat bike though, and some better winter cycling shoes...

Lots to do

People are out in West Yellowstone getting in some serious skiing. Apparently it is fantastic out there! I wish I could have joined them. Alas! I have to get the kiddos' grades turned in on Wednesday. I will have a busy few days a head of me.

I went for a solid rollerski on Saturday with Grant while Adam biked along side us. Adam froze while biking. I felt somewhat sorry for him. It was kind of funny though. I was happy he toughed it out. We did almost 10 miles and I am feeling it today in my shoulders and back.

Now all I have to do is keep up with my running and then Hady will run with me once more.

2 days left. 2 days left. 2 days left...

Winter is coming

The high for the next couple days are going to below freezing. I am very excited about that. That means snow is coming! I am very excited to start skiing. I am very close to French, Elm Creek, and Baker. There will be no excuses for me not being able to get in some solid workouts this winter.

There are 12 days till the end of the trimester at school. I have a great deal of stuff to get through in that time. I think I can get some great things done in the next couple weeks. Such as entering grades! Blah.

My goal for this week is to get up early everyday and run. I need to start doing that. I was able to leave school last week at a decent time which definitely was nice.

Teaching Teaching Teaching

It seems like my life has been consumed by school lately. I really need to get better about leaving at a decent hour. I feel like I just putz along once the students head out for the day. I do get some stuff prepped, but not nearly what I could accomplish if I stayed focused. I find it hard to concentrate some afternoons especially if I have had a challenging day.

This past week was definitely a memorable one. We had some really great points, and then some times that made the days rather difficult. They are all fantastic though. I am really happy to be teaching where I am. Where I find myself struggling is having multiple ways to teach a given topic. The teachers that have been there for years have many, many activities they can pull from their bag of tricks. I am still developing and honing in my skills. I find it helpful to journal about my days from time to time. I figure once I look back on them months from now I will gain really good perspective on how the year is playing out.

My goals for this week are to leave school at a decent time. Then also to really make sure I am actually getting in some workouts. I need to get back and focus on my running. No better way to decompress for me than to run.

Heck of the North

I am finally getting down to writing about this race. I would have typed it up sooner, but these past few weeks have been very busy with conferences at school.

I left for Two Harbors on Friday right after I got out of school. Drove up there and headed to the motel to meet the crew. Dino, Jo, Mason, Kasey, Eleanor and me. Lots of people (with bikes and gear) crammed into a smaller space. We spent the night getting everything ready and set for the day ahead of us. While getting ready, I was planning my potential dropping out of the race. I really had not ridden much this year, and especially have not ridden overly far nor long.

We awoke skies without storm clouds and temperatures that were not overly cold. I was highly surprised by that. If if had been raining at the start the likelihood of me not starting was 97% because in all of my arsenal for training in terrible weather I don't have anything waterproof (nor really resistant). Alas! This was not the case. I had on my arm warmers and a vest at the start. Once we loaded up the cars we set forth on our adventure we made our way to the local McDonalds and I got a big cup of coffee. I really don't like coffee, but it gives me a wicked kick of energy.

We arrived at the parking lot about 30 min before the start of the race. We turned in our drop bags, set up the bikes, and prepared all that we could. We then made our way over to the start. I was mentally getting ready for the day, and it sure did surpass anything I could have possibly thought up about this race.

The race started and we all stayed at a pretty casual pace. I knew if I would have tried to race my legs would have given out around mile 50. I am seriously lacking in the endurance department.We all stuck together for the first part of the race. Within minutes we started seeing people pulling over to fix flat tires. I bet there was 10 within the first 6 miles. The weather was perfect at this point. I had on my vest and arm warmers, and it was all I needed.

About 10 or 15 miles into the race we turned down what would be one of many snowmobile/ATV trails. Tall grass, and lots of bog mud. These sections were not easy. There were big rocks and large, standing pools of water. I would be biking and then I would hit some mud and lose all momentum. It was then time to hike a bike. I felt alright walking my bike when I saw those who had to walk their fat bikes.

We lost contact with our group after a couple of these sections. I am still reflecting on how intense they were. In my mind the race was going to be mostly gravel roads, not bogs! It was an experience to say the least. For the remainder of the race it was just my little group. We stuck together in our little group. We did ride with others from time to time, but mostly it was just us.

The rain started around mile 30. People pulled on their rain jackets and I pulled up my arm warmers. Needless to say nothing about me was dry. We continued to bike through it all. Everything was getting super dirty and it was impossible to draft without eating gravel that was sprayed up from the tire in front of you! I was very much looking forward to getting the halfway point.

I would say 30 minutes before I got to the halfway point is when the negative thoughts started to creep into my brain. I was not wanting to continue. I was cold, wet, and cranky. It was good that none of us got cranky and negative at the same time though. That meant there was always someone to keep the spirits up and alive. We were getting close to Lester Park and I noticed my front tire was getting super squishy and I realized it was going flat. This just added to my anger and loathing for this ride. I was not going to change it until I got to the check-in point.

We climbed the 7 bridges road and made it to the check point. I really wanted to quit when I got there. I didn't want to deal with the flat tire, and I didn't want to be wet anymore. We ate our lunch and put on some fresh, dry clothes. I was glad I packed my leg warmers and long sleeve wind jacket. Then I got to work on my flat front tire. All in all we probably stopped at halfway for about 45 min. I really didn't want to continue, but there was nobody there to pick me up, so I kept on biking.

We left the checkpoint and continued in the rain back towards Two Harbors. I was in a bad spot mentally, for I wanted and needed to be done. I was becoming very frustrated. Eleanor was happily singing while I was beating myself down in my brain. Although in retrospect I know that cheery manners helped keep my spirit alive and well.

We kept biking and biking. We were making good progress and I was starting get get out of my funk. We were getting down to the last cue card and we were very excited. The one thing I didn't anticipate was 2 more sections of snowmobile/ATV trails. My watch died after 7:45 of ride time at mile 97. We had 7 miles to go. 7 miles... 1 cue card...I knew I could do it.

The last 7 miles seemed to take forever. I was on the last cue card and everyone was in the mental state where we didn't care anymore. At one point there was a huge standing pool of water. Nobody cared and we charged right through it without a 2nd thought. No more messing around and going around the mud and puddles. It takes too much time!

Then the most amazing thing happened. We crested a small hill and just in the distance we could see civilization! We saw the Basco clan and the finish line. It was an incredible feeling to finally be done. Our results said about 9:30 for total time out there. That was the longest I had ever been on a bike.

Once we were done we packed up the car as fast as possible. Mason, Dino, and Kasey were sure that we were going to drop out. They were happy to see that we finished. We then made our way to go get some well deserved pizza. I don't know if it was the fact that we had ridden almost 9 hours, but that pizza was some of the best I have ever had in my life. After we ate we went to Mason's sister's place. That is where we showered, had a drink, and then went to sleep.

The next morning I woke up to a bright, sunny day and surprisingly wasn't very sore. I could tell that I had ridden my bike for an extended period of time, but I didn't wake up feeling like I had been hit by a car. The Heck for me was more challenging mentally than physically. I had some very low points and also some really high points. I will be doing it again in 2014. Probably not on a single speed bike though...

We all had a great time (for the most part) and it was a great weekend with great people. I don't know too many people who would do a 104 mile race in the rain, over gravel, and through the woods.

Until next time! Bye bye.

First week of school

Here I sit on a Sunday evening. The Vikings lost, which is sad! The Packers lost, which makes me happy. I have spent 2 hours looking over what I am supposed to teach tomorrow, reading up on promoting harmony in my room, and finally attempting to wrap my brain around life.

The first week of school was an adventure to say the least. I got to school everyday at 6:40 a.m. or a little earlier, and then would get home between 7-7:30 at night. I have realized that NOTHING can prepare you for the first weeks of school unless you have been through them before. Routines, classroom procedures, routines, routines, and routines are more important that I had even imagined. I still have lots of things to work out, but each day has been more positive than the day prior. The days go by incredibly quickly. It seems that the day starts and then before I know it the kiddos are out of the room to go home. Then I sit down and check all the emails I missed out on and attempt to sort out the day in my mind. Reflection is a powerful tool that I am fond of using.

I do really like being at school. I am very happy for my choice in being an educator. I am excited about the staff I work with. All the 6th grade teachers are pretty fantastically fun and helpful. The school staff seems to get along quite nicely as well. Everyone there is very kind and encouraging. Right now I feel as though I barely have a grip on what I am supposed to do, but I know that this is very temporary. As the year goes on I will be able to breathe and complete what I need to do. My big goal of the week is to get the lunch count in on time!

In other news the Heck of the North is in a few weeks. Am I ready to ride 103 miles of gravel and crazyness? Mentally-yes. Physically- my legs will hurt. There are lots of people going . It will be a big ol' gravfest. Potentially I will have a new bike by that time??? If not it will be singlespeed the whole way. #crushgravel


Until next time!

-Mr. P.

School.

Wow.  6th grade. I don't think it has fully hit me yet. I have been in meetings for most of the last couple weeks.  Lots of good information and almost overwhelming at times. I am confident that I am ready.  There's just all the small things I need to get done first.

Call me Mr. Pedersen

I did it. I finally have obtained a full-time teaching position. I will be teaching 6th grade at Oak View Elementary School in Maple Grove. It has been my 4th summer applying for teaching jobs and I now have reached my goal. It is now the time where I start to figure out what I need to do between now and September 5th. It is so close! I have lots of ideas in my head and grand plans, but alas! We shall see what occurs.

On another note I ran a half-marathon in Richfield the other weekend. It went alright I thought. I ran 1:23:50. Which that time is still over 3 minutes off of my PR, but for my lack of training I will take it.

Before the start of the race I ran into Ross. We decided that our time goals were the same so we should run together. It worked out really well. We kinda sat back and hung out until about mile 4 or 5 and then started to increase the pace. Around 9 miles I thought, "Dang. I need to run more and do longer runs." I was starting to hurt. I kept on pushing even though my legs wanted my to ease off a bit. Once I reached mile 12 I knew Ross could push more so I told him to chase some fools down. I got a firm slap on the butt, and off he went! Around this same time I hear someone behind me and eventually he passes me. I let him go a little bit, but he never firmly passed me. So I re-passed him. I kept him off my tail for the next 1/4 mile, but as we were about to enter the woods at Veteran's Park he passed me once more! No way. This is my home turf buddy. I knew if I waited patiently that in the last 1/2 mile or so I could storm past him and suffer until the finish. Which is exactly what I did. Ross finished in 10th place with a Clydesdale course record! I was 12th place and feeling happy.

Until next time!

July

So long, June. I will miss you very much. July is already here and it seems like summer hasn't even started. This week was crazy. It was probably my lightest work week I have had thus far. I am stressed about the fact that I didn't make as many Benjamins as I could/should have, but I did use my extra time wisely. I dug out the window well to the basement because the dirt was too close to the base of the window and the board rotted out. Not good. It has been temporarily fixed for the moment.

On the training front this was a good week for me. I did some solid runs with a couple bike rides thrown in for good measure. I also did another track workout! This time the weather was very humid, but with less wind. I was sweating buckets by the time I finished. One thing I am attempting to do is learn to push myself more. This workout was good for me mentally as I battled the head and stuck to my plan. 3:27, 3:30, 3:24, 3:27, 3:23 were my times for the 5x1000m that I did. I started out slower than I had wanted, but I was happiest with the last couple. The humidity was really getting to me and I had no cool water to drink. These were faster than a couple weeks ago! #progress

I am now registered for The Urban Wildland Half Marathon, City of Lakes 25k, Lifetime Torchlight 5k, and The Heck of the North (pretty sure). Should be a good few months!

I leave for CO in 3 days!

Sunday

Another long week is finished. I still an unsure as to what I have accomplished. I have been very busy. With all of the rain and work lately I haven't been on the bike. That all changed this week. I got out three times! It felt really good to be riding again. Monday was a grav ride with Sven. Then I rode again on Thursday. Then Saturday morning I was up at 5 a.m. to go ride again. This was a good week for me riding wise and also running.

Friday I did a track workout. First one I have done in quite some time. I did 5 x 1000m repeats. I felt sluggish, but that was alright as I know they will get better the more I do them. 3:15, 3:29, 3:23, 3:32, 3:31
Those were my times and I wasn't happy about them, but I also know I am not in good shape yet. I signed up for the Urban Wildland Half Marathon in Richfield. I haven't done that race in a few years so it should be a good time. I also will sign up for MDRA 15k, City of Lakes 25k, and the Torchlight 5k. I am also on the fence about signing up for Twin Cities Marathon... Can I commit to the training? That is my biggest worry.


Soon I shall type more.

Sorry

I promise I will get a blog up soon. I have been stupid busy with work lately. Feel like there isn't time for me to sit and type something up.

Here is a little info on what I have been doing. Three rivers is going well and I love it there. Gear West is very busy with tunes that need to be done and bikes to build. A couple races under my belt. Some decent running last week. Had an interview- didn't get the job.

Whew. There is a lot more. I will type soon.

Peace!

Whoa, a day off

I don't get too many days off at this point in life, so when I do it is nice. Well, it actually is sort of odd because I don't really know what to do. I putz around the house, go run, clean up, and then it is still only early afternoon. I was going to go to Gear West today and work, but I didn't!

On the other front I have been loving working for Three Rivers Park. The people that work with me are fantastic, very helpful, and kind. This past week we did paddle rescue training at the Minnetonka swim pond. It was a good experience. The water was nippy, but not terrible. The wind is what was really the worst part, for it was chilly. I did better with the canoe than the kayak. I flipped my own kayak attempting to flip over the other one. I leaned over and lost my center of balance. Lesson learned.

Now comes the training. I swam twice this week. The first was only about 500 yards. The next one was about 1500 and if felt really nice to be back in the water. I think I will get a pass for the gym because the pool is actually the right temperature for lap swimming. I loathe jumping into a pool that feels like bathtub water. I have also set a mini goal for myself-that I will keep to myself until I accomplish it. Once I do that then I will let you all know what my goal is.

Until next time. Stay classy.

I bailed on the Almonzo

      I had hoped that this write-up would have been all about how I did the Almonzo. Alas, this did not occur. I decided to pull the plug the day before the race. After working multiple 10+hour days back to back I was quite worn out and needed a small break. I mentally wasn't ready and that is huge in a long race. I couldn't fathom a 2 hour drive, 7ish hour race, time hanging out after, and then driving home. It would have made for a very long day for me. I also realized how ill-prepared I was for that race. I haven't been biking a great deal and I am also lacking some essential gear for a race that would have taken me somewhere around 7 hours time. That being said, I feel like a gigantic slacker. I need to get some serious goals set up so I can become more motivated to get after it.
     I had high hopes that I would get a mountain bike this spring in order to do some endurance mtn bike racing and that seems far off. Unless I can get a super awesome deal on a good bike. I have priorities over purchasing a bike at the current moment- fixing my car, dental work, and saving money for the sake of having a back-up fund. Not to mention paying my student loans! Those things are horrid.
     I believe I shall sign up for Twin Cities Marathon. That would be a great goal race for me. I haven't ran a marathon since Grandma's Marathon in 2007. That race was a fantastic learning experience. The biggest thing for me would be to make sure that I commit to the training so that I may run the race as would make me happy with how I ran. Too often I do a race and after say to myself, "That went alright or if I would have trained more..." I don't want that. I want to finish and say, "I crushed it."
    Either way- I need to step up my game.

What a week

Tons of training with Three Rivers and also was part of 2 programs. Canoeing at Hyland with students from Cottage Grove and then kayaking at Nokomis with 2 groups of students from Hiawatha Academy. It is a lot of fun and I am learning a lot of new skills. I am very happy to be with Three Rivers Park District. The staff is amazing and very helpful. I look forward to this summer.

The job application process has picked up quite a bit over the past couple weeks. I have already sent in close to a dozen within the last two weeks. Hopefully they produce some great results. I have high hopes for this fall.

In one week's time I will be heading down to "race" the Almonzo 100 mile gravel bike race. I have been running and biking, but I wish I could have ridden more. My longest ride so far has only been 3.5 hours. I am going to imagine this race will take me closer to 7 hours. I am going to bring my camera and lots of water. It will be a fun adventure. Be on the lookout for pictures and a recap of the event.

Otherwise I have just been working all the time. Seems as though I don't get much else done. Between subbing, Gear West, and Three Rivers I am busy everyday. Some days are long and others aren't too bad. Stressful, but rewarding.

I have also been obtaining parts for my car. I have the head gasket kit and new brake pads. I still need head gasket bolts and then a timing belt kit with a water pump. Once I have obtained all the requited equipment the work on my car will commence. The engine lift is at my house and I have friends who are willing to assist-even if they didn't quite say yes. Adam, Dusty, Zach, Sven, Justin, and others will be a part of this process. I am happy to have such a good group of people.

3 days of Three Rivers

On Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday I had staff training for Three Rivers Park District. It has been very fun thus far and I am very much looking forward to a summer of great times. Monday we did a bunch of team building exercises and got to know one another. It was also a day of general information. Tuesday was a day of canoeing and kayaking. I learned many new skills. I was told that I will be doing a lot of kayaking this summer, so by the end I will be a kayaking champ. Perhaps an arctic adventure is in order? I could even do something like THIS. Wednesday we spend most of the time indoors because of the SNOW! Yes, snow in May.
I cannot control the weather, but it is disheartening. It is also snowing as I type this right now. Last Saturday I thought it was very warm and even did a 3.5 hour bike ride in just shorts and a jersey. I am still happy to have been out.

Saturday I will be doing climbing wall stuff at the fair grounds. Should be quite fun albeit a long day. 7:30 to 7:30. This boy will be tired.

Get in Gear 10k

Well, that sure helped dust out the system. It has been a few years since I have done just a 10k. It was a good gut-check for sure. I left the house around 7:35 this morning. When I got to where we park the cars I realized I forgot my race number. I felt so dang stupid for doing that. I turned around for home to go grab it. The race start line was at Minnehaha Falls, so the drive went quickly. Had I known before that there was a bike corral I would have biked there! Next year I will for sure. Driving sucks. Well, I got back, parked the car and then ran to the start line. Got in a good warm up.

The race started and I felt really good going through the first mile. I stayed at a comfortable pace when usually I go out way too hard. Not today! Instead I let my legs fall apart around mile 4! The last two miles were rough. I did my best to stay focused even though the negative thoughts started to brew. I pushed through and kept my heart rate up. I did have a good time even though my time wasn't what I wanted. I was hoping for around 37 minutes, but I finished at 38:05. Not the best in the world, but I still feel it in my legs as I type this.

It was about 60 degrees at the start line when i am used to 30's and maybe 40's, so when I got going I was wicked warm. My mouth had no moisture at all in it. I had some serious cotton-mouth.

TC 1 mile is the next race. I'm going to go sub 5 min! That is my goal.

So much to do!

It appears as though my days fly by without getting anything accomplished. Part of this occurs because of an ever-changing schedule. When I do get a day off I am almost unsure as what I should be doing. I do my best to clean the house and go run with Journey, but that doesn't take all day.

I did get to go for a run with Mr. Michael Williams on Tuesday. That was a good time. We went running over at Hyland. I still need to run more and also need to get on the bike. The Almonzo is going to crush my legs if I don't get on the bike over these next few weeks. It will be a long day in the saddle.

It is also supposed to snow another 2-6 inches today. This weather is making me lazy.

Some randomness in Eau Claire

Here is a bunch of pictures from when Easter at Paul and Sarah's house in Wisconsin!
Note- I didn't take all of them.

Danny and goofy Paige

Eric's face. It is always blurry. It isn't just the picture.

Paul paints his nails pink. 

Faced! 

This is how she always looks.

Smile!

Eric and Claire's doggie.

and again... 

once more?

They have anti-gravity up there. Ceiling time!

Lexis is a goofball.

NO NO NO NO!!!

 I will draw you a Corgi!

Claire got tired and slept right at the table.

Must, concentrate, stay focused... 

The grandmas! Joan and Joyce.

Emily without her phone plastered to her face!

Emily and her Boyfriend. He is a brave soul for showing up. 

Sarah and her mum.

Joan! Camera is over here :)

There we go. 

Blurry is the new cool.

 Who is this?

Ahhh it is my odd cousin Emily

Emily went tanning and then took this picture. #skincancer

He is very focused when drinking his water. If he wasn't it would be all over his shirt!

Help me!

We played the Logo game. 

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!

Camping

I really would like to get more into camping. I have done it loads of times, but never deep into the woods or with "gear". It has always been at a campground for me using a tent that I have at my parent's house. It works and is fun, but I would like to start doing some camp trips where I hike into the woods. I would also like to attempt winter camping. There is lots of gear I would like to get first. There is always fun stuff to get.

My goal over the summer is to start compiling gear to do long winter races on a fat bike. I don't own one yet, but I will build one up over the summer. I have the components for one, but I don't have the frame or wheels! Am I nearly there? Not really, but I will. I might have to see if I can procure a Mukluk, but more likely I will get a Pugsley. Then a solid wheel set and I will be ready to roll! My hopes are high that we get loads of snow next  winter. So I can do some hardcore snowmobile trail riding (I ran on them quite a bit which was fun) and also because I got much more into skiing this past winter and would really like to step up my skiing abilities. Maybe I will even race the Birkie! Nah! I will stick to City of Lakes Loppet and maybe a couple others.

The teaching jobs are starting to become available for next fall. I have already started sending in applications for them. Again, if I don't obtain one this fall I am unsure as to what I will do. Substitute teaching isn't motivating me anymore, and my licence expires in 2015. In order to renew it I must get a certain amount of hours of workshops and what not to renew. It is far easier to get them when you are teaching than if you are just subbing. We shall see what happens! I still have many months to sort out life!

Out for now.

It is raining and will snow

This is Minnesota. We get all seasons in one week. I will say that we do need this moisture to help combat the drought that most of the world has experienced this past year, but it is a motivation killer for sure.
I hope to get out for a run tonight after work while it is snowing outside. Journey will love it and I will tolerate the weather.

Sweet April showers do spring May flowers. - Thomas Tusser

On another note I have lots of pictures from some bike rides, Easter, and other things. I will put those up soon.

Also, I may be getting my car fixed soon. I have to order the parts and then they can be installed! Then the subie will hopefully last for 100k more miles. I would be happy with that.

Les Miserables

Blah, I am addicted to it now. I still love my Phantom, but Les Miserables is pretty cool as well.
 The 10th aniversary to be exact. I will not claim to be an expert about Broadway or musicals, but the cast of Les Miserables is incredible. Michael Ball, Lea Salonga, and Colm Wilkinson are two of them. You may know Lea from Mulan and Aladdin. It is almost as awesome as The Phantom of the Opera crew: Michael Crawford, Sarah Brightman, and Steve Barton.

Here are some of the songs from the play.

Red and Black

Do You hear the People Sing?

A little fall of Rain

Monday

Ahh another Monday. I have some spare time while subbing so I figure I can write up a post. I am subbing for an English class at Edina High School. I find subbing high schools is either incredibly boring or interesting. It all depends on what classroom you're in. Sometimes I actually get to lead some fun and engaging lessons/activities. Most times though it usually it involves handing out a worksheet and telling the students to finish it by the end of the hour or popping in a movie that I will end up watching 5 times over. It isn't horrible, but I feel underutilized. It is understandable because some substitute teachers have no background knowledge in any subject, so teachers will write a general, easy to accomplish lesson for the day. Needless to say I look forward to not having to sub anymore.

I have been tossing the idea around of doing some winter fat bike racing. Over the summer I plan on building up a fat bike. I have the drive train, so I need a frame and wheels. Then I will probably do the Tuscobia and the Arrowhead 135. I have a lot of gear to obtain and training to do before those things happen though. I am sure it will also depend on what job I have next winter. We shall see what happens. I am expecting big things for this spring, summer, and fall.

I am sure I will think of other things to post, but not right now.

“All that is gold does not glitter,
Not all those who wander are lost;
The old that is strong does not wither,
Deep roots are not reached by the frost.

From the ashes a fire shall be woken,
A light from the shadows shall spring;
Renewed shall be blade that was broken,
The crownless again shall be king.”

J.R.R. Tolkien

March Madness

I don't mean basketball. I think the sport is boring to watch. Fun to play with friends like Ese, Hady, and Aaron. Though I am terrible at playing. I mean March is insanity in terms of weather. I don't mind the snow, quite the opposite really, I love it. I am finding more motivation to run, and am missing skiing. I haven't gone skiing in a few weeks and it makes me feel as though I am missing out on a fundamental aspect of winter.

I might do an 8k on Sunday. I haven't run one of those in years. Pretty sure it would wreck my legs, but feel absolutely wonderful at the same time. I also need to hop on the bike a bit more. Almonzo will be here before long. 100 miles of gravel on a single speed? Sounds great eh?

Another exciting item of information I got a job with Three Rivers Park District to be an outdoor recreation educator. I am excited about that to say the least. Now it will be a matter of working my schedule so I am not busy all the time. I do wish I shall be able to accomplish that task.

It is Friday! Weekend is here.

Motivation?

I am having some difficulties finding my motivation. I think it has to do mostly with what I tell myself, "I will run when I get home." That phrase is killing me. I am still running, and even biking. Although I could be doing so much more. My troubles arise when I don't get up in the morning to go run. If I were to do that I would get my run over with on the days that I work till 8 p.m. I just need to do it. I am a notorious when it comes to hitting snooze. I want an alarm clock that turns on the light or runs around the house forcing me out of bed to turn it off. I could also just harden up and get up. I know for a fact Journey is always game for a run. Doesn't matter to him what time it is.

I gotta start hitting the running hard. I have races coming up and I need to do well at them. I feel as if I have a pretty good base built up from skiing and running over the winter, but I would like to build my mileage back up to 70+ per week. The running plus roller-skiing, biking, and swimming (hopefully). I know I can do this because I have done it before. I need better time management skills. Blah. Enough complaining.

On the positive side of life I have an interview today with Three Rivers Park District. I am interviewing for an outdoor recreational education position. I think this could be quite fun. If the pay is nice, and the hours are good I will do this in place of summer school. I wouldn't mind teaching people about outdoor activities! Maybe this will turn into a full-time job! I could then work at Three Rivers and Gear West and slowly take over the world! More realistically I would just inspire people to become healthier and make better choices. I would like to foster environmental awareness and increase the number of people who participate outdoor adventures. That is just a good goal no matter where I work. It is a big reason I bike to school when I teach or walk to the store. There are better, healthier ways to do the same duties. Minnesota has a great network of bike routes, paths, and streets with bike lanes that could potentially allow anyone to commute to work or school via bicycle. I believe most people just don't realize how easy and enjoyable it could be. I have been doing research about commuting via bike to put up as a blog post. I found some pretty interesting facts and statistics. I will post that once the snow melts in the hopes that more people will attempt to give it a go. People tend to be more inclined to go outside when it isn't cold. I find it refreshing, but some days it does make me question my sanity.

Here is a poem for the coming spring. I thought highly of it. It may be a little early, but its fun to read nonetheless.

Spring Pools by Robert Frost

These pools that, though in forests, still reflect
The total sky almost without defect,
And like the flowers beside them, chill and shiver,
Will like the flowers beside them soon be gone,
And yet not out by any brook or river,
But up by roots to bring dark foliage on.
The trees that have it in their pent-up buds
To darken nature and be summer woods --
Let them think twice before they use their powers
To blot out and drink up and sweep away
These flowery waters and these watery flowers
From snow that melted only yesterday.

It's Friday

I enjoy a good Friday every week. Yesterday I took the day off. I didn't get a sub job that interested me so I slept in. I then got up, did some cleaning, and then took Journey to the dog park. It was a good time up there. He was bounding through the snow with endless grace and speed. It is highly enjoyable to watch  Journey run with unrivaled joy from one side of the park to the other. We stayed here for a little over an hour before we took off to head back home. Attempting to leave is usually tricky. Trying to catch Journey and bring him home is a very difficult task.

I got back and then set out for Hady's house. We laced up the runners and went for a cool 10 mile run. The warm sun gracing my face and hands was a much welcomed experience. I need to keep up the running and start biking. I have some big races in mind and I cannot slack in the training department.

Still haven't quite figured out the summer yet. I have been looking at some jobs for Three Rivers Park District  because they have quite a few positions open for the summer that would suit me well. Outdoor recreational educator is one I am pondering. Teaching outside? Yes please!

All about the Birkebeiner

So it took me a little while to get this post up. The Birkebeiner was on February 23. I went up on the Wednesday before the race. The expo was Thursday and Friday. The race was Saturday and the demos were on Sunday. I was working at the Salomon trail running booth with Derek from the run shop. It was a fun, albeit exhausting, time. Evan was kicking butt at the One Way booth. Lots of people were buzzing around there.

This is how Wednesday went: I stopped by QBP in Bloomington to pick up a bunch of START wax for Evan. That was the first time going there for me. That place is very neat. Potential place of employment??? I picked up about $15,000 worth of wax. Then while I was filling up gas at the gas station some dude says, "What kind of explosives do you have in your car?" To which I replied, quite seriously I might add, "Wax explosives." Weird people. Then I was off to Evan's place to load up the car with all sorts of One Way stuff. The car was packed. This was going to be the first long trip in the Subaru. I was highly excited. I then spent the rest of the morning/early afternoon running around town to drop off poles and pick up stuff from Hoigaards and again to QBP for more wax. Finally finished with errands I left for Hayward. The drive was nice and quick. I got to Hayward and promptly brought stuff to Riverbrook. One Way and START Wax were partnered with Riverbrook for the expo. After all of that we went to the Angry Minnow for some food. We stayed the night at Evan's buddy's house and played Mario Kart! Epic.

Thursday: Got up and went to the middle school for the expo. I helped  Evan set up the One Way booth. It was looking good there. I was waiting for the Salomon folks to show up, so I could begin helping out there. Once they showed up we set up the Salomon booth and got everything ready. Around noon is when people started to trickle in to pick up their packet and check out the expo and vendors. Thursday it the shorter of the two days. The expo only goes till about 9 p.m. Derek, Adam, and I were rockin' the trail running. Adam also brought all of the new 2013 shoes. There are so many sweet shoes. I must get them all! We didn't sell a ton of shoes Thursday, but on Friday we did far better. When the expo shut down we went to Coop's Pizza. They make a real good pie. After the pizza we checked into our motel... Twas a shady motel, but it was cozy. The people in the room across from us had a little dog in their room... Yes it was yipping. Yes it was annoying.

Friday: Get up. Go to expo. Work from 9 a.m. to 9ish p.m. This is when most people will pick up their packet. The line is huge and the people are ready. We sold a lot more shoes this day than the previous. Evan was keeping busy at his booth too! It was good to see. I did have some guy come up to me and ask what was new with the 2013 Salomon S-lab skate pro boot. I told him that they moved the buckle a little bit and that was one of the bigger changes. This is when he said, "Good. Your boot broke my pole. Every 15k or so I would hit the buckle with my pole." I told him that "my boot" didn't do a damn thing. I didn't design it. I didn't make him ski in such a way that he steps on his own pole! He still insisted it was my boot's fault. I told him to go get a new pole. I don't like when people blame me for things I have zero control over. The ski boot being one of them. Ha, oh well. There is always a fool in the bunch. Once we were finished with the expo it was back to the motel for some chow and to watch Evan nearly explode when I told him that they are going to lock the wax room before he can get in there to wax about 15 pair of skis. It all worked out though. He was able to sweet-talk the manager to keep it open. Evan and Svan stayed up all-night getting those skis done.

Saturday: The big dance. We all got up around 6 a.m. to head to the start line. we hopped into the car and drove up to the Telemark Lodge. I met up with Josh so we could do our usual spectating and handing out water and energy to people! Once we got to the start line Mariah put on her kick wax we bid her farewell and good luck! Josh and I headed back to the car to go to our first spot. Northern Lights Road is where we had our first stop. We got there before any of the classic racers. This is when we become volunteer volunteers. We grab cups of water or energy and hand them to racers. It is quite fun. We have been doing this for 3 years now. We get better every year. This aid station I saw everyone: Mason, Oumar, Trevor, Elanor, Alan, Adam, and Mariah, Tons of others too. Awesome.

Once we saw them pass we headed to "00" where we parked and did the same thing at that aid station. After we left this place to head to our next stop is when things got interesting. I got the Subaru stuck in a parking lot earlier at the Sawmill and thought that our troubles were over once Josh helped get me unstuck. Nope. Josh and I decide we are going to the aid station Phipps Fire Lane. This is the same road that 3 years ago we got the van stuck. No way that could happen again. We have a Subaru! All wheel drive, to me, means that I can drive through anything. We start down the road and it is mostly plowed. Then it turns into not being plowed. We do see other car tracks and think that it's all good. Well once we start on this "road" we realize that it was a poor choice as this road is mostly meant for snowmobiles. All seems fine for the first few minutes because the trail is pretty packed down. We do decide that we must turn around at the next high point. Low and behold right before that occurs the car drifts to the side too far and we get stuck. The whole right side of the car goes off the side of the trail into the deep, soft snow. Now we are super stuck. Josh and I laugh about it because what else are we to do? Snowmobiles drive pass and we can tell they think we are fools. I don't blame them. I called Sven and let him know I will not be to the finish line for quite some time. Two trucks pass by and tell us that they will pull us out once they turn around. Excellent! Once they get back to us they give us even better news: The tractor that grooms the trail is coming and can pull us out! Only minor detail is we don't have a towrope. Josh does in his car though. Once the tractor gets to us Josh hopped in and went with him to the end of the trail, hitchhiked to his car, got his rope, drove back to the trail head, climbed back into the tractor, and they came back to the car. We hooked up the Subaru to the tractor and he towed us out. It took about 100m before the car climbed back up onto trail and out of the deep snow. We were very thankful he came along.

Once we were back on the trail Josh did a 30-point turn and we were turned around headed back to actual roads. All in all I think we were stuck for about 1 hour. Not too bad. It was because of this that we didn't get to go to any other aid stations and just went right to the finishing line. We didn't miss too much. I also did not get any exciting photos from during the race. Next year I think Josh and I will just spectate on snowmobiles. This way if we get stuck or stranded it will mean we really messed up! After the race we all went to Coops for some after Birkie chow. It was a lot of fun. The big dance was over, we were out of Phipps Fire, and on our way to relaxation.

We got back to the motel so everyone could shower and change. I went to the pool area to jump into the hot tub. My lower back felt as though I was 95 years old. The hot water allowed my lower back to attain the age of 25 once more. I also ended up chatting with a few people from Madison. They were happy with how their race went. I sat in the swirling water for quite some time. I then returned to the room and Evan, Sven, and a couple of Evan's buddies were lounging around. Sven laid down and fell asleep. Evan laid down and fell asleep. This was at 4 p.m. Guess their lack of sleep caught up with them. I attempted to get Sven to rally by drinking a rockstar... It didn't happen! Oh well. Around 9 I headed to the Sawmill to see everyone. It was packed as usual. I hung out, chatted with friends, and then left around 11 p.m. I drove Tom back to Jan's cabin because everyone left him stranded there! I can't leave a friend behind. I got back to the motel. Sven was awake for some odd reason. He looked like a zombie earlier. Evan was sleeping, and his buddies were hanging out watching some T.V. As soon as my head hit the pillow it was off to dreamland. Only to wake up at 6:30 to head to "00" for the demos.

Sunday: Demo day. I helped Evan at the One Way demo tent. It was a perfect day for it. The weather was perfect and the trails were expertly groomed. Each company had their skis, boots, and poles to try out. A good amount of people actually showed up! It was nice. The fun thing about the demos were that it wasn't nearly as hectic as the past few days. This was way more relaxed. Sven was with us and was running around trying out everything. The demos went from 8am-3pm. Another long day, but once it was over Birkie week was done! We could go home after this. Back to our own beds where the pillows awaited our return. After the demos were done we went home. We stopped at Applebees and had a bite to eat. Sven took some super weird way to get there and I became paranoid that I followed the wrong car! We were going through all sorts of back roads and country roads. Once I realized that we were just taking a faster route to Applebees in Cambridge I was no longer on edge. I was still dismayed that we had to eat there. Blah. I managed through it. I would say it was about another hour before we got back to Maple Plain where  I stopped at the One Way office to  unload all the stuff. Having accomplished the unloading I went and drove myself home. I got back around 10 p.m where I emptied all my bags, threw in a load of laundry, laid down and drifted off to sleep.

All in all it was a highly successful week. Salomon is going to hook me up with some gear for helping out at the expo too! Boom. Josh and I are planning for next year already-snowmobiles. Mason, Sven, and others are attempting to convince me to race it next year... We will see. I like cheering and spectating.

Last night we got a good amount of snow and it is still snowing. I will ski as much as I can. March always brings one last good round of snow. Ski season isn't finished yet. Biking season will start soon and the thought of that is intoxicating. I look forward to early morning rides, night rides, epic mtn bike rides, and gravel races! I also plan on running my brains out. I have started planning my racing for this season. Excited!

I am also on the lookout for Green Apple Rockstar. I must try it!

Over and out!

Crazy couple of weeks

The past couple of weeks have gone by far too quickly. Mora Vasaloppet, the Birkie, work, and other random stuff have kept me busy and away from the blog. I hope to keep on top of this a little better from now on. I will devote my next post entirely to the Birkie because it will take up a lot of space. It was crazy and fun up in Hayward.

I am attempting to figure out my race schedule for this summer. So far I only have the Almonzo scheduled. There will also be some trail races that I will do. Trail mix, Afton, Birkie trail marathon, and maybe a couple others. Then I will do a few tri's here and there. If I can procure a mountain bike I will do some racing. I am thinking a 12 hour race and maybe a 24 hour race. I have looked at Wasau 24 and 24 hours of Seven Oaks. Then there is the mountain bike series. Blah. So much to do and so little time. I need to get a moment to figure all that out. If anyone knows where I can find some free time that would be awesome!

I still am unable to decide what I want to do this summer. I also need to decide if I want to teach summer school again. I had a great time teaching in the summer, but between that and having to go out to Gear West  I was always working. I would get to school around 7 a.m. and then head out to the bike shop and work till 8 p.m. It made for some really long days. If I only teach and don't go out to GW then I won't make enough money to pay my bills. I could just work at the bike shop and I would make enough money, but then I miss out on the experience and fun of teaching. I will most likely end up doing both like I did last summer. It just isn't a great deal of fun feeling as though I am running myself into the ground.

I have also decided that if I am unable to obtain a full-time teaching position this fall that I will start to explore other options. This summer marks the 4th year I will be searing for a teaching position. I have made some headway with my long-term position, summer school and years of substitute teaching, but I can only have my life on hold for so long. I would say I am getting demoralized more than anything. Sending in application after application with little or no response gets old after a while. Possible options I have been tossing around in my mind: Working at a nature or history center, full time at the bike shop, QBP, working for outdoor industry in one form or another, work for the Minneapolis Parks, work for a company that works with green technology, and who knows what other possibilities I could find. Lots to think about in the coming months. I will keep sending in applications to schools. September is when I will decide if I am to take another road in the game of life.

Finally, City of Lakes

I was pretty nervous leading up to the start of the race. I had no idea what to expect, nor did I know what I was doing. The race didn't start until 10:30 am. I am so used to running races or triathlons that start at 7 am that I didn't know what to do with myself. I went for a run the night before and that helped calm my nerves down.  I was starting out of wave 5 and I knew that I was going to have to do a fair bit of weaving in and out of other people. It also meant coming to a standstill at times on the uphills or nearly getting stabbed by someone on the downhills.

 The cannon went off for my wave at 10:50. I started next to Kip and he told me to stick with him. Alas I lost him after the first kilometer haha! The race started at the Par 3 at Wirth. I know the course out there pretty well and there are some good hills. Sven waxed my skis and they were pretty fast. I felt fast going uphill, screamed past people on the downhills and on the flats I was able to really cruise. It was great. The course goes from hills, to flat, to hills, to a flat finish. The first part of Wirth is hilly. Ok, Wirth is all hilly. It is a ton of fun though. The back 9 has a couple steep buggers. I do like going up the hill by the tubing area. Its long, gradual, and early on into the race. Then you come around the stadium, go down another hill, and up a smaller hill. Then you make a left turn that leads to a nice downhill that I almost crashed on. Everybody in front of me started to fall, but somehow I made it out! Then you cross over the parkway via the bridge and ski around the other side of the course. Eventually you head into the bog area where there is a lot of good hills. If you have never gone skiing back her I suggest you do. It's very nice. This is where things got congested again. Blah. I just took my time and made sure to get around people as quickly as I was able. Once you get through this area we headed out toward the lakes. This is where the course gets flat and fast. Going over the lakes was a blast. It wasn't as scenic as in the woods, but it was fun to be out in the open and see everything. You ski on all the lakes until Calhoun. You're on the Calhoun for less than a kilometer before you cut up the boat launch onto Lake Street. Then its 1,000m to the finish! It was great seeing the crowd of people cheering. I crossed the finish like in 1:55.41. I was very happy with that time. In my mind I had the idea that if I did it in 2 hours I would have been happy. I beat my goal and ended in 209th place. I will take it!

I am already looking forward to next year. I would love to place top 50! That's my goal and I plan on obtaining it. It will take lots of training and some good coaching.

Over and out... For now.

Fail

I was just typing up an awesome race report for the loppet when I accidentally closed out the window! Stupid superfail. I will type that up again later. I am not going to redo that tonight. Ah! It was really good too.   Hopefully I can remember all the cool stuff that was in it.
Here are future blog post lists: City of Lakes Loppet (redo), Mora Vasaloppet, section ski meet, and other random stuff.

Later.

Wednesday

City of Lakes is in 4 days. I did a nice long ski yesterday and felt pretty good. I do wish I had trained a lot more. Skiing is a great time. Physically it makes me feel as though my arms will fall off, but mentally it is great! I am looking forward to it. They should have the whole course open because of this recent snowfall we had. It will be a good time.

I didn't get a sub job today which is no fun. I like going to school! I will head out to Gear West soon though. It is nice to have additional work for the days that I don't get a sub call. Bills won't pay themselves. I do wish they would though... Meh. Hopefully I am offered a full time teaching position for next fall and then I can continue on my quest. If not I will seek out full time employment from somewhere else. I have been applying to schools for about 3 years now. Hundred of applications, a hand full of interviews, summer school, and 1 long-term position. That is where my count is currently. I can only hold out for so much longer. It makes me upset when I see a society that puts more emphasis on funding wars and weapons than they do on education.                               I will go into that later! For now I must go.

Good job Mr. Doom on your 4th place finish at the Arrowhead! That's hardcore to the max.

Subaru

 I held out for as long as I could before buying a car. Here is what my new (to me) car looks like. It is a 2002 Subaru Outback Legacy. I do actually enjoy this car. Hopefully I can get 60,000+ more miles out of it. Then I can add a bike rack or a box on top. So many options! Probably the best thing about it is that there will be no more bickering about who gets a car and when. I can do whatever I want with it at any moment in time.

Boom! 

Sorry!

Ah! Sorry for the delay. This has to be a short one. It is late and I wanna sleep.

I bought a car! It is a 2002 Subaru Outback Legacy. So far I dig it. I am excited about it! Only thing that worries me now is that any weird smell or noise makes me paranoid that it will all of a sudden stop working. The joys of car ownership.
I also sent in my registration for the Almonzo 100! First gravel race ever. I wouldn't know about the races if not for Mr. Doom. I owe him thanks!
I only have 2 weeks left before City of Lakes. I am going to be destroyed. I have been slacking on my skiing and running. I need to find my motivation. I cannot remember where I placed it.

quick quick quick

I will post a longer blog later, but for now this will have to do.

Mesabi meet went as well as it could have considering the rain and the brutal cold that accompanied it shortly after. It turned everything to ice and destroyed the snow.
Check this out. Mesbi falls  We saw all of these and more. The last one where he jumped over the rocks was crazy! Just glad nobody got hurt and only saw a couple broken poles!

I also hung out with Mike from Revolution Cycle and SKi! Fun to see and talk with him again. I miss the revo gang.

I have been test driving a few cars as well. Nothing that has tripped my trigger yet. I will test another one tomorrow, and I am excited about it!

-until next time...

Mesabi meet

Saturday is the big Mesabi Invite. I shall be heading up there with Orono to help out waxing and coaching (cheering). I am looking forward to it. They shouldn't be hit as hard up there with is nasty warm January weather we are experiencing. So the snow up there should still be alright. I don't understand how some people think climate change isn't real (again, another post! I will not rant now). It should be super cold right now, and with lots of snow. I do hope that changes very, very soon.

My one complaint with this weekend is that I will not be able to run the Winter Wilder 30k race down in Spring Valley, MN Wilder races. Hopefully next year. I also need to send in my Almonzo registration too.
Blah. So much to do with so little time. I need to set stuff in stone and get on a better workout routine. I am slacking.

Sunday

Vikings got beat down last night. Twas a shame. I wanted to witness at good game. Not a blowout. We stopped watching the game after the 3rd quarter and preceded to watch the Tour de Ski races instead. I also played Adam in cribbage and whipped him up.

Today will be a nice casual day. I am going to go see The Hobbit. It should be a good time. I also plan on getting in a run later this evening. I have spent the morning putting away clothes and attempting to clean the basement. Tackling my room is another story. I have too much junk and too little space to put it. Not to mention my over flowing array of running/cycling/skiing clothes.

I biked to and from work yesterday. Took about 1 hr and 25 min to get there. My toes started to get a little chilly with about 10 min left in the ride. I am attempting to locate some winter cycling boots. That or I shall use a different pair of socks and see how those work. I love my smartwool socks and base layers. They are incredibly nice. My goal for January is to put in a 100 mile ride. It will be an all day affair to say the least.

On another high note I am about 1 week away from getting a new (to me) car! I talked to my bank and they basically told me that once I find the car I can go back and get the cash money from them. I am looking at cars in the $5,000 range that get around 30mpg and have less than 90k miles. This week I will go to different dealers and take a few test drives. If all goes well I should have a car by the end of next week or so!

City of Lakes Loppet is coming up in a month. I need to ski more. We need more snow too.
Maybe I plant more ice cubes???

New year!

It is now 2013. It will probably take me a solid week or two in order to consistently write 2013 instead of 2012.
It is late and I will write more later.

Things to report next time:
1. Ski camp
2. 2013 goals
3. Something else that I am unable to think about right now...


“A courageous person is one who faces fearful things as he ought and as reason directs for the sake of what is noble.” 
― Aristotle