The Great Chicken Caper

So...there was this chicken. She (and we are pretty sure she's a she) lives in the Respiratory office where my sister works.

And last week she went on an adventure.

Kim's coworker Sharon helped me 'birdnap' the chicken (the chicken got the nickname Elmira and we called her Ellie for short).

Ellie and I had some fun here in KC the first few days... We went to Starbucks with Donna

Shopped for groceries

Went on a test bike ride

and even went to rowing practice.

She seemed like a nice enough chicken and so I decided to take her on vacation.

But first I had to make some plans...and make some ransom notes. You see they had noticed that the chicken was missing and, well...it was getting kinda fun.

Note number one I planned to leave on Kim's car at work but when I got there she had parked in front of the smoking area and about 20 people where out smoking...I couldn't be seen!

I knew Kim was going to be at the hospital for a few hours so I waited, found her car in the hospital parking lot...she called me later so amused that 'someone from her office had driven all the way to the hospital'. She'd had a rough morning and needed the distraction.

I took some pictures and typed some notes. Addressed them to Kim and her coworkers and left them with Donna for mailing while June and I were riding the Katy.

I made her a nice little Chicken seat for the back of my bike, packed our stuff and off we went.

My friend June and I planned to ride the entire length of the Katy Trail in Missouri...with a chicken...and a little pink troll that was traveling with June.

We had a blast!

This is a big rock where they've marked the water height of the many floods.

We met many, many new friends.

Here we are on the last day...Mike rode from St Charles and Joined us for the last day.

The Chicken had a trip journal and she wanted everyone to sign it.

She was very popular.

She likes caves...


She's not afraid of heights...

She was so tired she took a nap in the bus on the way home.

This morning she was returned to the Respiratory Office...they were happy to see her.

And suprised that I was the birdnapper.

257 Miles, 5 days

June and I rode across the state of Missouri! Wow.

This trip on the Katy Trail was great fun. Great people, fun riding, amazing scenery, interesting stops, challenging days.

We left Clinton, MO on Monday morning for a short 39 mile ride to Sedalia, MO. SAGs (support stops with water, power aid and bananas...lots of bananas...) every 7-12 miles. This was my favorite part of the trail. It has a very gentle incline with some fun gentle downhills, a little climbing then a little fast! Very pretty, shady and cool.

We camped in Sedalia in a little park in the rain...light rain but humid and sticky. June reminded me how to play Gin Rummy and then promptly kicked my butt...reminded me a little of playing with the Bates family...it's the scoring that confuses me, 5 points, 10 points, 15 points, whatever. The tent stayed dry but everything felt damp and musty. Not much sleep with the excitement of the first night and a train every few hours.

Day 2 we rode from Sedalia to Columbia. Our longest day and the toughest part of the ride for me. Mile 45 came in the middle of a long sunny stretch of rough gravel. I was struggling and it wasn't until after a cliff bar and some power aid did I realize I'd run my body out of fuel. I haven't bonked like that since my competitive rowing days.

June needed some work on her bike so we lunched in Rocheport at the Trailside Cafe and had the BEST hamburgers! The bike shop next door got June's bike working and we headed out to the spur into Columbia. A nice weekend trip from KC would be to drive to Columbia, ride the MKT spur to the KATY and the west to Rocheport, some wine a nice B&B and back the next day. Beautiful views of the river as we rode along the bluffs. June had her hardest afternoon riding up into Columbia. The loose gravel made the going slow on her bike with the wider tires.

We camped again on Tuesday after eating dinner in town at a nice brewery. Made some friends and they joined us for some rummy after the riders meeting...the girls soundly defeated them but boys cheat, you know...slept like logs even though we were on the ground.

Wednesday was probably the nicest day. Cool and overcast with little wind, perfect for the 57 mile ride to Mokane. We caught the hotel shuttle and slept in beds...and decided that we really weren't all that crazy about camping.

Thursday promised to be hot and sunny as we rode to Augusta. Fueled by some of the best french toast ever we headed out. Long stretches in the sun and a two hour wait for a hamburger when all three hundred of us stopped for lunch at one of the only food stops along the way made Thursday a very long day.

After showering in 3 minutes and 52 seconds (a bet made on the bus) we caught the shuttle back to the camp in time for dinner at the local church. The riders meeting was accompanied by wine and some great music and our friend Mike joined us after riding from St Charles.

Another great night in a hotel and we rode the last stretch. It didn't take nearly long enough. You'd think after 220+ miles we'd be glad to be off the bikes but we all were a bit sad as we rode into the St Charles depot. They bussed us back to Clinton and we were home Friday evening.

ANYONE can do this ride. There were 83 year old riders and one 6 year old. It's very well supported and very fun. We will ride again next year!

I'll have more pictures up on Monday, having some trouble with my card reader...don't forget to check back.

Off To Ride

Remember, you can check our daily journal...starting Wednesday. The link is in the post below.

Back Friday.

225 Miles In 5 Days With 300 Of My Closest Friends

Next week I will be riding the Katy Trail with a group sponsored and supported by the Missouri State Parks.

The Katy Trail is the former rail bed of the MKT (Missouri, Kansas Texas) railroad. When the railroad stopped it's operations in Northern Missouri in 1986 the rail bed was turned into a long distance hiking and biking trail that runs more than 200 miles.

The National Trails System Act, which provides that railroad corridors no longer needed for active rail service can be banked for future transportation needs and used on an interim basis for recreational trails allowed the Missouri Department of Natural Resources to acquire the right of way. A generous donation funded much of the cost and in 1991 an additional 33 miles were added in western Missouri on unused Union Pacific Railroad.

So...next week my friend June (mama to Mel and no longer a lurker) and I will unplug and ride. Mike will join us for the final leg on Friday.

They post a daily journal in case you are interested in keeping up with us...Wild On The Katy

AJ's Preschool Graduation

Here is the video again...let me know if you can see it now...posting my own video is a new task and I'm not quite sure how to do it yet!

paula

Let's try this again

paula

And here is some video of Paula. The water was pretty rough that day!

AJ's Preschool Graduation

Here is a video of AJ and the 2007 graduating class.
Notice that he is about the only one standing in line and sitting still. He's all business!

It Turned Out Only To Be 'Two More'

Yesterday I was talking to a friend of mine from Tulsa while we stood on the shore waiting for his girls to come down in the Women's Eight. I asked him how he thought they might do..."they're going to get creamed' he replied. "Are they ready for that?" I asked.

Paula finished fourth out of four in her rep. She didn't get 'creamed' but she did finish last.

I was pretty sure where her head was. I thought I could predict how she would react.

I try to get them ready, prepare them for what is really going to happen. If they are going to get creamed I tell them. Not that they will get creamed but that everyone is fast, really fast. To not be surprised if you're behind. Keep your head in your boat, race your race. Be dignified, see the big picture. Your success is measured not on one race but on the body of work as a whole. From the very first stroke.

From where I was watching it looked like she had rowed exactly the race we'd been talking about, working on. 30 for the body, long, quick turn around at the catch. She sprinted just like she always does, with fire and great speed. She moved on the girls ahead of her...if she'd had another 200 meters...maybe.

I stood on shore silently thinking 'somebody flip, somebody flip'. Embarrassing to admit, but yes, I was wishing that someone else's kid would meet with great disaster and we'd squeak into the final.

Everyone finished clean and Paula didn't make it to the semi final.

As coaches we wait on shore, not able to gage their reactions until they land. Sometimes you'll see celebration, splashing water, hands in the air. Sometimes the heads are lowered and you see a hand wiping away what you assume are tears. You ache for them.

I just wanted to see her face. Her face would show me how much work I had to do that evening. Putting her back together if needed.

She pulled to the dock and turned around and flashed the biggest grin.

We were good.

She was good.

She was pleased with her race, knew she had done well, knew that the other girls were faster and that's okay because she was as fast as she could have been, no regrets.

So today we try to win the C Final.

One Down, Three To Go

Well...as many of you know (or at least the two of you who are actually checking my blog since I've gotten too busy to post) I am in Cincinnati, Ohio at the Youth National Rowing Championships.

One of my kids...and she really is my kid, not biologically but her parents are good with sharing her...one of my kids qualified to race by finishing second at our District Championship in May. An accomplishment in and of itself.

We left KC early yesterday morning, driving in cross winds gusting up to at least 40 miles an hour, with a 30 foot single strapped to the roof of my Isuzu. Fun, really fun. Ten hours later we arrived at Harsha Lake. Very tired.

Paula raced this morning in the heats. Now this kid has trained for the last four weeks...preparing for this experience. She's rowing beautifully...confident, long, powerful, relaxed. We have been preparing for the competition. Talking a lot about speed, realistic expectations, attitude. She knew what to expect...we thought.

Everyone is fast. I mean, REALLY FAST. Everyone. All three heats were similar, top two really quick, next 3 closely bunched. She finished 5th with the 11th fastest time. 11 out of 15. 11 of the fastest kids in the country.

When she came off the water she looked a bit stunned. Like she was not quite sure what happened. I believe she might have been thinking "Oh...so you meant 'really' fast." That's what I read in her face.

She handled it very well. Processed well, didn't get emotional or freaked out. she sees the big picture and is ready for the reps.

She will race again this evening in the reps. (A repachage is a 'second chance' to advance. They took the top two from 3 heats and then will take top 3 from 2 reps to get the 12 girls who will race in the semi)

She needs to be top 3 to advance to the semi final. It will be a bit of a stretch but if there is a kid capable of racing out of her mind and advancing, it's this kid. She can turn the brain off and the motor on and just flat go.

That's what she'll need to do.

You can check results today and tomorrow at www.racetrak.com. She's in the Women's Youth Single.

And Now It Is Summer

June is crazy...especially the beginning.

Posting will be unpredictable.

Happy Summer!

Favorite Eats

Bec tagged me again.
Here are the rules

1.Link to the name of the person who tagged you.
2. Include the state and country you’re in.
3. List your top 5 favorite places to eat at your location (locally).
4. Tag 5 other people (preferably from other countries/states) and let them know they’ve been tagged

I'm in Kansas City, Kansas, US of A

1. Fire station #10 (the food really is that good and the company is hysterical)
2. Chipolte (probably horrible for me but sometimes I can't resist)
3. Margarita's (Monday-2 for 1 chicken tacos!)
4. Jerusalem Bakery (that Lemon Chicken is soooo good)
5. That weird little place on Merriam Drive that sells those yummy tamales with the green sauce.

I tag...well, Odat and again Bec tagged everyone I know who blogs...but those of you who lurk can post in the comments...

I Give My Wonderful Sister Kimmy All The Credit

Yes, I swiped the pictures. Kim took them all. I have a crappy camera and was too busy "sitting on my tush and drinking adult beverages" to take any pictures.

Kimmy did all the work.

(there, does that help?)

ps...thanks for the ride home, sis.

How Was Your Weekend? Ours Was A Little Rainy But As You Can See It Didn't Slow Us Down Much

Steve broke his pole but note that he is in much deeper in his waders.

My best boy.
Nephew feeding the ducks...
Gina and Stevie on the jet ski.

Great hair and blue lips.
Cousins... AJ is twice as big but Stevie runs the show...
Austin sailing.
Pawpaw and the grandsons.
Tex and his big fish...notice he won't touch it.

13 Things I've Learned From My Grandmother

1. If someone offers you a mint...take it.
2. God has a plan for me. It's my job not to get in the way.
3. There is nothing greater than the love of children and critters.
4. Never give up on true love.
5. If a kid gets hungry enough...he'll eat.
6. Your family is THE most important thing...after God.
7. With a cold beer and a comfy chair on the porch, you can go a long way towards solving almost any problem.
8. Lipton Green Tea is fab.
9. Go to church if you can...it never hurts.
10. Cinnamon is NOT good in chili.
11. On a curvy road accelerate out of the curve...and ask your passenger to just close their eyes and be quiet.
12. You are never too old to get married.
13. Live, laugh, love, believe in God, pay attention to politics but don't get hung up in it, learn things and be nice to people.
    

I love you Grandma.

He Thinks I'm Beautiful

We were in the car waiting for traffic to clear. We'd been to the park and I was focused on getting us home. From the back seat in a small , sweet little voice he said "you're beautiful".

I hope he always knows how very much I love him.

(I wanted to drive him straight to Toy's R Us and buy everything.)

Why Do We Call It The Finish?

(if my rowing stuff bores you, this post is a skip!)

In this month's rowing news 'Dr Rowing' answers a letter about the finish. Why is it called the finish...it is neither the end of something or the beginning of something but just the change in direction of body weight and body parts. It's good. Read it if you can get your hands on an issue (Thanks Steve, for mine!).

Speaking of Steve, we did some work in the single today and were talking a lot about the finish. He always makes me stretch as a coach. He's so crazy smart and thinks about rowing...way more than I do...our conversations always help me to clarify what I'd like to teach.

So, today we worked on the finish and I was trying to get him to change direction with his body weight more efficiently, not settle into the seat at the 'finish' (which I'm no longer going to call the finish). And the way we figured it out is that you're not moving your shoulders or torso 'quicker' at the change in direction but that you need to anticipate the change in direction by engaging the core muscles as you snap the handles into the body. This supports the last part of the drive, giving more power to the blade all the way in.

Don't mistakenly rush the shoulders and torso out just make the change in direction more smooth by being ready.

Anyhow...just what I did today. Followed by a killer nap!

Major Ed Is Home!!!

Well, not exactly home quite yet but on US soil and will be sleeping in his own bed very soon.

WELCOME HOME ED!!!!!!!

A Shout Out To All My Lurkers

In the world of computers, people who visit and read but never comment are called "Lurkers".

I lurk occasionally. I regularly lurk around
Notes From The Trenches and Zeno Mueller.
What cracks me up though, is my peeps who read and even talk to each other about what they read here.

I try to write (mostly but my life tends to invade) with everyone in mind.

So today is just a quick "HI!" to those who lurk: Donna, Ed S, June, Mike, Jeff B, Mom (yes, even my mother is a lurker!), Sharon, Steven...and I'm sure there are others...

You know, you can say hi by posting 'anonymous'. You don't have to sign in or anything!

And today...I'm not going to lurk either.

Thursday Thirteen

Here are thirteen of my favorite photos in no particular order. Would you guess that I love my crew, my critters and my crazy family...

The pretty tulips that got nailed by the late freeze...

Our mixed Eight from Wichita a few years ago

My great big spotted trout, caught fishing with Charlie, Dad and Uncle Bob in Louisiana.

A cool house fire.

Most of the people I love the most.

Grandma and Mattie Jean...too cool gals!

While the rest of the grownups are on the porch, Luis is in the garden with the kidlets.

5

My love.

My other love.

(Stupid Blogger...wouldn't let me type where I wanted...)

Pic above is my brother Steve trying out his waders...he didn't realize he could go in above the ankles...

The one above that is my dad...The old man and the sea. One of the best days of my life!

GiGi, AJ and Aunt Jenn.

Wordless Wednesday (okay...with a few words...)

KCRC Is Going To The Youth National Championships!!!!

One of my kids (Paula) earned a bid for the National Championship regatta on Saturday!
I have never seen a kid more excited. she finished second in the Girls Varsity Single racing tough, as always, against a very fast field. Very fun!!

We will be going to Cincinnati in June to see how she stacks up against the rest of the Nation.

All of our boats advanced to the finals.

The girls earned a bronze in the quad, finishing 18 seconds behind Austin (who I think may win a National Championship in a few weeks) and 11 seconds behind Episcopal. They raced a perfect race, 33 spm up to 35 spm for the last 200 meters...they were very pleased.

Both doubles (light and open) finished sixth. We decided on the way home that when asked where they finshed the answer would be "1st...in reverse order". These kids have such great spirit. We thought we might do better in the open but after a grueling quad race they were a little out of gas. The light double raced about to their potential. They are young and will get faster.

The novice eight rocked! They raced neck and neck down the course with St Louis B matching stroke for stroke and ending up fifth but just by a hair. It was an exciting race and they had a blast. For such a young crew I couldn't have asked for a better experience. It was fun to watch.

The KCRC parents, as always, were such a blessing. Keeping us fed and watered and sunscreened and encouraged. Fetching oars, shoes, water bottles, making sandwiches and cheering 'till their voices were raspy. Never under estimate the impact an involved parent has on a young athlete.

The trip home was fun but long. A flat tire on the trailer and some trouble with the lights added a hour or so but we all got home in one piece.

These kids are the most amazing people I know.

I'll have pictures later this week.

Sheesh...Where To Start...

Well...I could not blog for the next few days, lord knows I'm busy enough. But the thoughts and feelings are spinning. Filling up the nooks and crannies of my brain.

This Saturday is our Central District regatta. It's the big one, the one we start talking about in September. The kids are keyed up, nervous, excited, freaking out. Me too...

Here are some things we've learned as a team this week.

• we cannot control mother nature.
• 15 + inches of rain in Oklahoma puts a regatta there in serious jeopardy.
• mono is a crummy thing to come down with the week before your biggest race.
• there is nothing sweeter than a young girl giving up her seat in a boat so her teammate gets to race. (she did this with no prompting from me, floored me!)
• commitment and responsibility are sometime lessons learned as a group. And it can be a painful lesson.
• no matter what the out come of an important race, you need to judge your season on the accomplishments of the entire year.
• when it's hot, we can load a trailer in under 45 minutes.
• after loading said trailer it's nice to sit on the dock with your feet in the water.

And here are some things I've learned this week:

• the arrogance of some high school coaches is mind boggling.
• information gathered from a group can never be totally confidential, some of it is just too dang funny not to share.
• if you talk on a cell phone all day you end up with a cell phone imprint on your face.
• hummingbird watching is a great stress reliever (even better paired with a cold beer and a comfy chair).
• the Kansas City Rowing Foundation is apparently planning to hold a rowing camp for the Kansas City Missouri School district the first three weeks of August...news to me. (this will generate some phone calls, I'm sure)
• Shawnee Mission Ford now has a vehicle we can rent to tow our trailer...and it has a DVD player for the kids!
• when I forget to put sunscreen on I get sunburned...duh!
• at 11 years old, Rescue can still get over the fence in one leap at the first sound of thunder.
• WIN for KC rocks!

I'm hitting the road. You can check results at Powerhouse Timing.

We are entered in:

Girls Lightweight Double

Girls Quad

Girls Novice Eight

Girls Double

Girls Single

Just for Comparison

This picture was taken yesterday. I'd estimate the river level at about 40 feet. Note the little bit of tre sticking out of the water and our dock floating...between the trees and the top of the levee. The dock usually sits on the other side of the trees and about 25 feet lower.

This picture was taken on Monday about 3pm. The river level was in the mid 30's.

They're Back!!!!

My beloved Hummingbirds are back!!!!!!

Here's What She Looks Like At 36 Feet

My buddy Mike (KCRC's esteemed Boatman) took these pictures this evening before coming to our monthly bored meeting (and no, that is not a typo).