Buckskin Gulch - more than mud meets the eye

Ten of us headed down just past Kanab to hike Buckskin Gulch. Paul, Lindsey, Scott, and Whitney hiked this trail before and never really told us what we were getting ourselves into. The hike was gorgeous but the mud, muck, and cesspools were totally disgusting and well worth it.

The science nerd in me loved the signs of weathering & erosion the whole time. I am currently teaching soils, weathering, and erosion in 4th grade science.

Lindsey's attempt of passing the mud hole without getting dirty...it was a loss cause after ten feet. Scott did try!



I love reaction on Scott's face as he walked through this cold mucky mud water.

After a wash in 6 inches of river water the night before and tasty breakfast burritos we were on the road again heading home.

Ingrid

Saturday Jana, Melissa, and I went to the Ingrid concert at The Venue for Jana's birthday a few months late/early;). The opening singer songwriter was okay but Ingrid was brilliant. She has such a great stage presence. She was funny, got the crowd involved, and sang better in person than on her cds and that is saying something.

We got there early enough to get above the stage so we were not in the sea of sweaty fans. I am short and I hate smelling everyone's pits all night. Dirty! Luckily were on the railing overlooking the stage and enjoyed every moment.

They only crap part of the night was getting two tickets for not registering my car. It is a long story but two tickets. Didn't the other cop see the bright pink ticket envelope on my windshield along with the one he placed there. Add that bill to the list...I need a second job or a roommate. That would solve the problem.

California Craze (cont.)

I couldn't narrow the pictures down to the best so I added almost all of our pictures from our trip to California in these collages. I love Picassa.com! To see the photos bigger you can click on the collage.

We took Makell and Kaison on Tower of Terror not realizing how scary it was. If you can see their faces it is kind of funny. They are shocked and frozen. They did not go on this ride again. We did - we went 2-3 more times!

The night life of Disneyland is simply brilliant. The lights, fireworks, music, and joy just keeps you going. My mom and dad were exhausted by lunch we kept them going! They were great helpers with the kids and they really did enjoy themselves.

After Disneyland we went to Universal Studios. It wasn't my favorite park we went to but the Shrek 4-D made the day worth it! The chairs moved in the movie, it squirted water on us at the right times of the show to make the movie come to life. We even were squirted with air and something touched our legs and feet to make it feel like spiders. It was a creepy but awesome experience. The kids loved it and they loved meeting Shrek and their absolute favorite - Curious George.

Sea World was a wet day. We got soaked at Shamu, at the Seasame Street 4-D movie, the river rafting ride wasn't that thrilling but it sure get us wet, and the favorite ride of the trip was Atlantis. Kaison went on that ride 5 times or more.

I love Quinn's face in these pictures. He is so curious and amazed by touching the sting rays. He loved touching the rubbery & slippery wings. Makell wouldn't even get close.

The San Diego Zoo and the Animal Safari Park were on the City Pass. We decided to go to the Animal Safari Park to try something new. It was just okay. There wasn't much to see and everything was pretty dull. I was definitely recommend the zoo to others. We did enjoy a bird show and a tour around the park but nothing compared to the Hogle Zoo and the zoo in Omaha. This was our fifth day of walking around and seeing this...that could've made this park's experience not top notch too.

The green bird above on Kaison was a neat exhibit. We didn't buy the nectar is was $3 but a lady gave us a little bit that was left. The birds would land on you and eat the nectar. The kids who had a full cup had a dozen or more birds on them. There was a little kids who got scared and was crying bloody murder. It was pretty funny! Kaison and Quinn were amazed and loved it! I should've bought the nectar to get a better picture but they did enjoy themselves.

When we were at the Animal Safari Park and at the beach Makell asked if we can go back to the hotel pool. She is a little fish and loves to swim but didn't like the salt water and waves. Kaison is swimming really well too. He felt comfortable with a noodle in the pool but there were times he would push the noodle away and swim to it. He is going to be as strong of a swimmer as Makell soon. They are both little fish!

California Craze

My family and I went to California for a week with the kiddos. We didn't stop having fun! We went to Disneyland, the beach, Sea World, Universal Studios, San Diego Animal Safari Park, and the beach again.

The kids were amazing troopers. We dragged them up, down, through, and through Disneyland. They rode almost every ride and stuck with us. The tye-dyed shirts sure helped us keep track of them!


The beach was gorgeous and comfortable. It was perfect weather both days we went (at least for me).

We took Makell to breakfast at Arielle's Grotto to meet all of the princesses. She had all of them sign her crown. She was in heaven!

The Pixar parade at California Adventure was brilliant. The kids loved it! I did too! (More pics to come.)

Brandi

My friend Ben introduced me to Brandi a year or so ago. I recently started listening to her music even more. She is brilliant!!! If you get a chance - check out her vocals and lyrics.

Epic Film Festival - Ben Cook's film of Wheeler Peak

A group of hikers make a daring journey up Wheeler Peak in Nevada. Complete with frolicking in a meadow, eating pine cones and a dance party at 12,345 ft. Does it get any better?

Lake Powell in September (cont.)

I finally uploaded the pictures from my dad and mom's cameras. Here are a bunch of shots that captured our adventures on the red sand and lake at Powell. I can't thank my family and friends enough for making each vacation a party! We always get along and have a good time.

On the other side of our camp there was a golf ball terrain for the kiddos to play. It was like a race car track but they used golf balls. They played with it for hours and I did too...maybe;)

We couldn't get enough wake surfing, air chairing, skiing, and wake boarding!

The air temperature wasn't as hot as in August so the little tykes played a lot more on the beach and on the house boat. Kaison and Quinn loved going out with Krehl, my dad, and Gary to fish. Makell and the girls played on the tube above water and on top of the houseboat.

My sister, Amy, and I really got the hang of air chairing this trip. Way to go us! Maybe next time we'll attempt a back flip on purpose.

We found some drift wood and made a great fire. The smores were tasty! These smores were left over from my trip to the Great Basin. Thanks traveling crew for letting bring the smores goodies.

Braden and Quinn were the cutest together. They played along the shore all week. They also pulled each other around with a jump rope. Most of the time they played fair but once in a while one would run too fast and the other would start crying.
Check out Krehl's almost back flip on the air chair - sweet! Krehl was getting some good air jumping the air chair and landing. He continued to backflip too. The above picture is one of the attempts that was pretty close. He'll get it!

Until next time...

Online Race Results

Daybreak Tri Sprint Individual September 19, 2009 in Salt Lake City, UT

Valery Gines

bib number:	696
gender:	F
location:	Sandy, UT
overall place:	287 out of 329
division place:	36 out of 43
time:	1:48:53
pace:	0:
swim:	16:32
t1:	3:46
bike:	50:07
t2:	2:31
run:	35:59

I am definitely not a competitive tri athlete. I have a lot of training to do before I get to that point. I need to get my butt in gear but this was a start!

1.48:51.39 but who's counting?

This morning I raced in the Daybreak Sprint Triathlon. It was less than a sprint because they made the swim 75m in a pool instead of 750m because of the roundworm in Daybreak Lake. I was not complaining;) I had the best support crew: Mom, Dad, Melissa, and Tandy. They kept me going every transition and along the way. To keep me going during each event I kept looking at people in front of me and worked to pass them. I was the fourth the last swimmer into the pool. I had a lot of ground to cover during the bike to not feel last. Luckily my legs got me going on the uphills and I was able to pass quite a few people. During the run all of us were seemed like we were dragging out feet. I got into a crew (4) of Olympic and Sprint runners and we chatted, laughed, and ran to the finish line. I kept a slow and steady pace during the run but I am proud of myself because I didn't stop to walk once. When I ran through the finish line I felt super great! I love that feeling of accomplishment. Exito!!!

According to my Garmin here are my results:
START TIME: 9:11 AM
Total distance: 15.66mi
Total time: 1 hour 49 minutes
75 meter swim (473.51 ft)
Swim time: 1 minute 34.1 sec
1.22 mile run
Transition & run time: 15 minutes 9 sec
Transition to bike/bathroom break: 3 min 50 sec
11.13 mile bike
Bike time: 49 minutes 55 sec
Max speed on bike: 37.3mph (I was speeding)
Transition to run: 2 min 38 sec
3.13 mile run
Run time: 35 minutes 47 sec
END TIME: 10:24 AM

I can't thank my dad, mom, Tandy, and Melissa enough!!! They are the best;o)
Future goals: Spudman Tri (olympic distance), Half Marathon, and a Century. I can do it!!!

Roundworm

Would you still swim in a lake that is possibly contaminated with roundworm? I have been training for the Daybreak Tri which is Saturday. I received an email yesterday stating this:

Daybreak Triathletes,
On Wednesday September 16th, Kennecott Land informed us that the Salt Lake Valley Health Department collected samples from the shores of Oquirrh Lake to determine if it has been contaminated with Ascariasis, known as roundworm. There have been three confirmed cases of roundworm in the valley, however it is unclear if the exposure occurred at Oquirrh Lake.
As race directors, we are committed first and foremost to your safety during the race. In accordance with USAT guidelines, US Trisports tests the water at each lake to ensure safety. Kennecott Land also routinely tests the water quality of Quirrh Lake to ensure that it meets Utah Department of Health standards. In all cases, the tests have shown that Oquirrh Lake meets proper safety standards for the tests conducted.
However, the test for Ascariasis is not a test that is conducted due to the rarity of the organism here in Utah. For additional reference we have included the statement from Kennecott Land below.
We continue to await the results of the testing from the Salt Lake Valley Health Department and will work closely with SLVHD and Kennecott Land in determining the best course of action for the swim portion of the race. The bike and run segments will remain unchanged and will go forward as planned. We will keep you updated by email and on our website as to the contingency plans for the swim.
Best regards,

I am curious what the test results will be. I will be a little bugged if they cancel the swim. I've been swimming more than anything else. Not that I am good but I will definitely not sink. Here's to good luck for tomorrow! If we do swim in the Daybreak Lake I sure hope I do not get roundworm.

Lake Powell Live

Lake Powell in September

To bring in the Autumn season we headed to Lake Powell one last time before the cold hits. The weather at Powell was simply brilliant. Perfect water conditions and the outside temperature was comfortable.

We played all week: wake boarded, wake surfed, air chaired, skied, tubed, canyon explored, and had a ball on and off of the house boat.

We celebrated my mom's birthday! The boys were great helpers to blow out ALL of those candles. Amy was sweet and made my mom her favorite cake and orange frosting. Happy Birthday Mom!

Not only did we boat but we found some great cliffs to jump, rocks to throw, and canyons to explore. Our days together are always full of adventure!

We all had plenty of boat time. There were only three families at Powell this time. Thanks Krehl and Amy for letting me take advantage of your toys while we have family time too. I feel lucky!