morning workouts

My time in Durango flew by way too quickly, and suddenly Missouri's 45 degree mornings feel balmy compared to the last week in the mountains. I miss the mountains.

I had a lot of big questions I wanted to sort out in Durango. I got a couple of them answered, realized I'm not ready to answer one of them, and may have discovered the answers to a few questions I didn't know I had. But most importantly, I was able to relax and just train. It is something my mind and body both love, to be able to focus so completely on one thing. Now I am back home with 30 things to juggle.

I hope I can translate the momentum I found in Durango back to life in the 'lou.

kansas, the rockies, and on to durango...

Finally, I'm rolling west. Kansas sucks up time, it always does. I slept in Hayes, KS for 8 hours! My back hurts. Here is a self portrait of me and kansas (here!) don't ask. Driving got interesting once there were mountains. Wolf Creek pass was some challenging driving, but I passed through after dark and could not take in the view. But I could sense the mountains, barely silhouetted against the moonlight sky, sliding along side me in the dark, giant and black. But I arrived safely in Durango around 9pm, Saturday the 17th. I will be here for 9 wonderful days of paddling hard, eating, napping, paddling hard, eating, paddling, taking ibuprofen, sleeping, eating, paddling... you get the picture. i am here to work very hard.

a few photos from the US Olympic Training Complex in Colorado Springs:
happy, muscle-bounds statues
Lifting the globe seems easy after winning this gold medal
Mountains on the horizon through the olympic rings

How's paddling? Great. Exhausting. Recovery Hot Chocolate (here) is amazing.

Must sleep now. More soon.

fresh paint

My deck has a new layer of paint and a fresh gel coat. Stern will be done in a few weeks. It finally feels like my boat; I am so happy with it. More photos:

Taping outlines of the stripes
A nice coat of lime green
View from the stern once it's done

If I even need to attend an 80's themed paddling event, my boat will be ready! Thanks, Caroyln, for letting me use your backyard!