Only Three Weeks To Get Ready! Yikes!!

With our departure for New Zealand only three weeks away, we're ramping up our training rides. Today we rode up Pattee Canyon, an area southeast of Missoula where we were able to get some good climbs in. As you can see, Jenn is pumped!












Tiika is all excited, too! Of course she doesn't know yet that she isn't making the trip with us. She'll be staying up on the Flathead Indian Nation at Mountain View Kennels where she'll have a great time with Lora Hughes, the owner. We came off the mountain tired, but glad we beat the storm. We have snow predicted for tonight!

The Training Continues...

We went for a nice ride on Sunday. Jenn & Tiika were all excited and chose the road less traveled. That bridge actually held for us in spite of its rickety appearance and we rode till we found a nice place by the river. We stopped and rested our weary bones.















There are several ways to "rest". Some choose a swim and a good stick while others are content with a cold one. We had a big hill to climb on the way back so calories don't count! We read, ate some jerky and nuts, lounged around and generally just enjoyed being there. Finally, the sun was fading into the western sky and it was time to go home. We mounted up and hit the trail and, yes, the bridge held again!

Friday Night Out

It was Friday and we had a classic Missoula afternoon/evening planned. After taking care of Tiika, we would head to Bayern Brewing, our favorite local watering hole, for a few German microbrews. Dinner would be across town at Sean Kelly's, a great Irish establishment, where they serve a mean Bangers and Mash to be washed down with Harp's on tap. Entertainment that evening would have a tropical flavor with the University Percussion Ensemble and Islanders Steel Drum band.

So what does all this have to do with the picture? Well, we have a grand trip planned to New Zealand where we will be sea-kayaking, hiking (or tramping as the Kiwi's say), biking, whale watching, glacier-trekking, etc. We're leaving in five weeks and that means we are in TRAINING. The only way to justify a couple of brewskis is to earn them with sweat (I mean perspiration, if my Mom is reading this :-) ). Spring is here so we broke out the bikes, drove to the edge of town, and did it all on two wheels. We had a great time. Unfortunately, we ate and drank more than we biked, so Tiika and I went off on a long hike today. Jenn, whose return from ArtFest has left her enthusiastic about more projects, spent the day rearranging her studio (easily equal to a long hike). Maybe if we work out hard for the next three weeks, we can justify going out again!

how could I forget?

I don't know how I forgot to mention this...

On our way to the main course we encountered wildlife in the form of a black bear. Someone in the group saw him (?) ambling through a yard and stopped to watch, giving him a wide berth. As the rest of us caught up and waited him out he gathered some speed and dashed across the path in front of us to the safety of the trees at the creek. He was eager to be out of our presence and get back to being a bear in the woods.

It was great to see him. I have been hearing about the bears in Greenough Park for weeks but hadn't actually seen any. A best guess at age and weight is about 4 years old and 350lbs. He looked as though we'd interrupted him from rolling around on the ground as his fur was covered in dusty dirt.

progressive bicycle dinner

The day after the James Taylor concert we had a date with the bicycle club. We have never done a ride with the club before but were invited to join them for their semi-annual progressive dinner.

The idea is this, you ride from house to house eating your way through the courses of the meal beginning with appetizers and ending with dessert. Everyone brings something to contribute so it's also a potluck. We got tagged for dessert, hence the pumpkin pie mentioned in an earlier post. (My red pouring bowl was perfect for the task of mixing the filling. Not a drop was spilled in the transfer! Thanks, Mom!)

We began with layered dip and chips as our appetizer at the first house, then we pedaled the long way to the next course: soup. One of the goals of this ride appears to be, never go the direct way if there's a more fun and invigorating option. Enroute to the soup course we had a pause so a member could announce that she had reached her 1000th mile for the year. Oh, by the way, this member is in her late 70's. She's pretty amazing in my book.

After soup, we headed to the University district for salad. There was a pile of luscious greens and a salad with chunks of chicken and pea pods. Both were delicious. The next course was the main dish. We were getting a bit nervous about arriving at this next stop. It was up the Rattlesnake which could mean a good bit of climbing. Luckily, they weren't located where it initially sounded like they were, though it was still a bit of a climb.

Main dishes included a quiche, two versions of a Mexican casserole and meatloaf. I'm not ordinarily a fan of meatloaf but decided to try this one. I'm glad I did, it was moist and delicious. We're supposed to be getting the recipe.

And now it was time to head back down the hill, returning to almost the starting point, for the dessert course. Besides our pumpkin pie there was chocolate cake and cheesecake served with a yummy punch. There was a small fire out in the front yard in one of those pit things and lots of lounging around as folks relaxed. We had ridden about 33 miles and taken six hours to cover it. Eating every 8-10 miles really slows things down!

As this was my first ride of the year, my butt was very sore for the next few days. I think Rob's was a bit sore, too. He hadn't ridden since the fires crept in this summer. We were pooped and satisfied when we got home.