Charlotte, Sally, and Michele are off to San Francisco again this year for the Nike Women’s Marathon. On Sunday, Charlotte will be proudly running like a girl. And there are their names up in lights. You go girls.
I’ve been wanting to pickup a new bike to use at the velodrome for a long time now. I finally spotted a great deal on a barely used Felt TK2 someone in Santa Cruz was looking to unload on Craigslist. I jumped all over that action. Now my current road bike (Sweetness) has someone to keep her company. Can’t wait for the next trip down to the velodrome.
We’re heading home after visiting Nick for his birthday, so it seems like a perfect opportunity to visit an important landmark along the way. Mission San Miguel here we come. The old walls, doors, and walkways welcome us in. The old chapel and entry ways were particularly beautiful. The central courtyard was so peaceful and inviting. It really was a great idea to stop and enjoy this great place. ...
The family is heading down to San Luis Obispo to spend the weekend with Nick for his birthday. Nick was up for some kayaking over at Morro Bay, and everyone else is excited to enjoy the day on the water as well. Everybody into their kayaks! Plenty of cool birds are out today enjoying the sunshine. It’s a lot of work paddling all day, especially with strong currents in some directions. Gabe takes a break occasionally, while pelicans and sea lions are diving and jumping after bait fish. ...
Yesterday we drove up to Santa Rosa for Levi’s Gran Fondo ride. This morning it’s time to head over to the start for the big event. I’m hooking up with Matt Twisselman to do the 100km route. Besides being a great guy, he’s also the LOC chairman for the the Santa Cruz stage of the Amgen Tour of California. He’s also the guy I have to thank for the great Chairman’s Ride jersey I’ll be wearing today. Matt is busy working the VIP area with Levi and the other ToC honchos. ...
Charlotte and I are headed up to Santa Rosa to do Levi’s Gran Fondo ride tomorrow. First we need to get through San Francisco. Then there are a few cool sites while we make our way through Marin. There sure is a ton of traffic around here. A few interesting shots now that we’ve made it to Santa Rosa. They’re just starting to set things up for tomorrow’s expo while I wait in line for my registration. Looks like local framebuilder Calfee is getting his stuff together. I think this is the closest I will get to actually riding with Levi unfortunately. ...
Charlotte and Gordon have finished up closing everything for the winter. One last walk around the camp before heading out to California tomorrow. Charlotte missed the fall peak, but it’s not so bad anyway. There’s time for one last visit with Betty in Rabbit Bay as well Then a trip to Cyndi’s Jam Shop in Bootjack for some sweets to take back home followed by a drive out to Calumet and Tamarac Waterworks. ...
Sunsets like this just make me wish I was up in Bootjack with Charlotte.
Charlotte is in Bootjack to help Gordon close things down for the winter before he heads back to Capitola for another winter with us. The sunsets are great any time of year on Portage Lake. George and his buddies are up north for some fishing, hunting, and good times in general. I heard from Charlotte that the stories were hilarious.
This weekend we’re moving Nick into his apartment and new life at Cal Poly. It’s still hard to believe that this day has actually arrived, but I’m excited for Nick to start this stage of his life. I have to say I never had a view like this from my freshman college dorms. Pretty sweet. His apartment has four private rooms, a shared living room, and kitchen. As if it wasn’t good enough, one of his roommates brought a big flat panel TV. ...