I thought that I should finally post something. Granted, it has actually taken us nearly this long to get on our feet after the move and in a position that would allow for a little bit of "blog time". So, consider this a bit of a make-up post!
Toward the end of the summer Lindsay and I trained for and competed in our first-ever triathlon! My brother, Paul, put the triathlon on in Richfield, UT. There were about 40 participants and it was great competition! Because it was our first time, we decided that we would stick it out together and do the whole thing side by side--it was a BLAST!
We happened to be in the "fast" heat (because of our decent swim times) and Lindsay ended up being the second fasted swimmer there. In fact she beat everybody except for the overall winner of the triathlon out of the pool--I had to catch up with her on the bike portion because she was so fast! In fact, she enjoyed the training for the swimming portion so much that she regularly swims in the mornings up here in Heber.
Another thing that made the triathlon so much fun was doing it with family. We saw each other out on the biking and running routes and it was great fun to see everyone trying our best to look "tough". Lindsay and I have decided to make the Richfield Tri a yearly event, and I will be doing a couple more than that a year just becuase I want to see how much I can improve my time.
At any rate, we had a great summer. I figure that, as a family, we went on 3 camping trips together (I went on an additional two with other people), we went on a couple of 5-mile bike rides with the kids (Mae was a real trooper), we hiked so much and so often that even Ian was sick of it (though now he wants to go every day), we swam in the pool nearly every day and had fun every time (thanks Terri and Wendell), I went on two backpacking trips (one 3-day and one overnighter), we moved to Heber (and plan on moving again now that we are buying a house), I got a new job (which is great), and I refurbished a media cabinet just in time for football season (I will post before and after pictures later)!
Anyway, here are a few pictures of my recent backpacking trip up King's Peak--the highest mountain in Utah:
The pictures never do it justice, right--this one especially. Craig is taking a nap only inches away from a 50-foot drop off on the literal top of King's Peak--Crazy, dude.
Us (and Craig's Camelbak hose) at the top of the peak. The view was great, and we were able to enjoy the summit alone for about a half-hour. There was no wind, not a cloud in the sky, and my only complaint was the flying ant that bit me.
We spotted some mountain goats on the way to the top--click on the picture... can you spot them? There are two in this picture.
Though the trip was great, we may have overdone it a bit (we did take the shortcut up "the chute" rather than take the traditional way to the top). I had a few blisters on my feet and Craig sported a bum knee on our hike out of the Uinta range.
Anyway, this is "the chute" from a distance--with the top of the mountain peeking through in the background. After we climbed the chute we still had about two miles of pretty steep climbing to get to the summit. Below is the view from the top looking down at the chute.
Anyway, it has been a great summer--and we are looking forward to many more with all of our family in Utah.
We ate at a Mexican Restaraunt that evening and Ian was a little more than surprised when the waiters came out to sing to him--but he did enjoy the ice cream they left behind!
