We are Tough Mudders

On June 25 we earned our bragging rights for finishing the Tough Mudder race in Avon, Colorado (near Vail). It was an absolutely gorgeous morning when we started out - warm, but not hot and just a light breeze in the air. We were surrounded by mountains and Aspen and Pine... absolutely the prettiest place to have a hard-core race like this!

Just a bit about the Tough Mudder: it's a 10-mile race up and down hills and through forests with 25 obstacles interspersed within the course. Some obstacles were not that bad and others were nearly insane. Actually, on second thought, they WERE insane! We were glad when we got to a not-insane obstacle so that we didn't have to worry about DYING. :) If you go to the website you can learn a bit about the course and see a video, etc. http://toughmudder.com/ (copy and paste link in your browser.)

Let's see... highlights of the race... Well, we started out huffing and puffing up a steep hill. Thank goodness for doing the incline so often! We were able to pass a lot of people who weren't used to the altitude. Then we came to the Berlin Walls - two vertical walls that were about 8 or 9 or 10 feet high (heck, it seemed like 15 feet high for us not-so-tall people). I was glad I've been working on my pull-ups because once Brian got me up to where I could reach the top of the wall I could pull myself up and get over. Dropping down over the other side was always a nice awakening to the joints in my legs, haha. :) There were also 4 more of these walls at the end of the course. In a row.

By far, the most difficult obstacle was the one where we had to swim/wade in 36 degree water for about 30 feet to cross a little "river." If that wasn't bad enough, we got to walk about 100 yards (just enough time to start to warm up) and then we had to cross the same river. This time, however, we had to swim under barrels that were floating on the top. We had to dunk ourselves completely under the water and keep going. That water was beyond ice cold. I was shivering so bad that I couldn't even really breathe and my muscles certainly didn't want to work! The thought of holding my breath (even for a second to get under the barrels) was a bit scary. Finally, I made it under the barrels then had to just keep swimming to the shore. By that time, my muscles had nearly locked up completely! Brian was kind enough to pause and turn around and extend his hand to me. When he did that, though, he whacked his right ankle on a rock below the surface. Of course, his body was so numb at that time that he didn't really realize what he had done until we "thawed out." His ankle swelled up so badly that I couldn't even see his ankle bone (more specifically, his medial malleolus!). We still had 6 miles to go at this point.

Immediately after the water, we were handed 20-30 pound logs to haul up a muddy hill and back down. That was crazy - cold water then heavy lifting!

The only other injury Team BS (yes, that was our registered team name) incurred was my knee injury when I went down in a mud puddle. When my left foot slipped I went down on my right knee and whacked it squarely on the kneecap (er, patella). After pausing for a moment and uttering only one bad word, I got back in. With Brian's help, I finished the rest of that obstacle. My knee hurt SO bad. It was bleeding and it swelled later. It's been over a week since the race and Brian and I still even have a little bit of swelling/bruising on our injury sites! This picture was taken as I told Brian I was okay to get back in the obstacle - you can see how he is taking such care of me and letting me lean on him. There was also another guy who stepped in to support my other arm - that's what's cool about this race. It's totally about team work and helping others.

Other than that, nothing too extraordinary happened. Just walking through some electrical wires with our feet in water and climbing up and over cargo nets and scrambling up icy snow with no clearance between you and a cargo net so we got tangled in the net...

Good times! We're making plans for how to train for next year's race!

We finally went to Moab together!

Now that I finally have the time to blog about our trip to Moab, I'm finding it difficult to remember every detail! Anyway, we went at the end of March and the weather was absolutely perfect. We got there and pitched our tent at Moab Valley RV (a great place with RV hookups, cabins, and tent spaces for pretty good rates...) . We got there fairly late so we didn't do much on the first day...


The next day we got to go whitewater rafting! We had a BLAST! The water was frigid cold but the sights were breathtaking. Our river guide, Ian, was pretty fun and he pointed out faces and animals and other things you could imagine the shapes on the rock walls to be. I saw a standing bird on one of the rock faces (pretty clearly) and neither Brian or Ian could see it.

The next day we went for a bike ride around Gemini Bridges and around that area. It was so good to be back in a familiar place! I hadn't been there for about 5 years and I always love it there. It was so fun to show Brian around - and he and I discovered some new trails in that area that neither one of us had been on. Those were very fun downhill sections!

Brian went for a solo ride the following day (over some stuff I didn't really feel a need to go over) and I spent some time studying my beloved anatomy and physiology (I had a practical and test only a couple days after we were to return). I also went for a jog on a new trail (new to me) and did a little yoga on a big flat red rock. It was awesome.

When he got back, we lounged by the pool and soaked up the sun. It felt nice to be so warm there when it was so cold at home! Oh, and we had a great dinner that night! We ate at a Mexican restaurant and the food was delicious!

We spent some time hiking through arches national park and I saw some arches I had never been to before. It was nice to see some new sites with the man I love!

The day we left, the weather turned very crappy! (Good timing!) The last night we were there in our tent, the wind picked up and was gusting to about 40 mph (no joke). We didn't sleep much at all that night! In the morning, we got pelted in the face by a mix of drizzle and sand as we ran into a restaurant to grab some breakfast. Visibility was about 100 feet and there were massive tumbleweeds rolling across the road. Wow, we were happy were weren't staying that day! We left at a good time.

It was a great trip and I know we'll be back again soon... hopefully it won't be 5 years before we return. ;)

Snow Camping!

With the temperatures being in the 50's (and even low 60's!) AND with Brian having MLK day off, we thought that there would be no better way to enjoy the extra time than going camping! The temperatures have been unusually high this January and we were excited to take advantage of the nice weather.

So, we headed out yesterday (Sunday the 16th) after I was done doing my spinning and yoga classes. We went up to Woodland Park, headed up Rampart Range Road, and found a very nice spot up jeep trail 325. There was already a large fire pit in place, plenty of flat ground for the tent, and some trees to break the wind (it was slightly breezy!). Surprisingly, there was quite a bit more snow on the ground than we had anticipated and the temperature was a little lower than we thought it would be due to the fact that there was some pretty thick stratus clouds blocking the sun. Nevertheless, we set up camp and then went hiking around the area.

Tundra was happy... but she acted like she couldn't quite figure out exactly what we were doing. She has only been camping one other time and that was at Stanley Canyon Reservoir last summer. When we take her out in the snow, it's usually for a quick jaunt on the snowshoes through the forest, so she had no idea what this whole excursion was all about. She still seemed to have fun though!

We made dinner using the dutch oven and hot coals we had brought with us. I made our all-time favorite camping recipe - Chicken Pot Pie. It was delicious! We washed it down with hot cocoa and it was the perfect meal for a chilly night in the snow by the campfire. At the end of this blog, I will include the recipe if you ever want to try it... it is truly spectacular. ;) (And very easy to make, too!) Tundra ate her dinner and kept asking for more. I guess she worked up an appetite trying to stay warm! Thank goodness we brought plenty of extra food for her. We even had to keep an eye on her water dish because it kept freezing!

Before the sun set, Tundra found a chipmunk. That little guy kept Tundra entertained for about 30 minutes... she didn't move from the bottom of the tree, hoping she would get a chance to see it up close.

Around 7:15, we went to bed. There really wasn't much else to do since the sun had gone down and it was freezing cold outside! We all snuggled in the tent and read our books by headlamp-light. Tundra had her little spot in the tent outside the sleeping bags next to me (Sara) and I snuggled close to Brian to keep warm while we read.

Finally, we decided to turn the lights off and catch some sleep. Tundra, even though she was covered with a small blanket, still seemed a bit chilly so we invited her to come inside our zipped-together sleeping bags. There was plenty of room for her between me and Brian and she climbed in without hesitation. She is like a little human! She laid down and even put her head on our pillow. So cute! Sometime during the night, she got too warm and crawled back out... and then back in a few hours later (with a little invitation to come back in).

In the morning, we had oatmeal and hot cocoa by the fire and then broke camp down. All of a sudden and without warning, Tundra turned ferocious and barked her meanest bark as she went full-tilt into the woods. Immediately, we called her back and she came (thank goodness she listens so well!). A moment later, we saw two beautiful deer bounding through the forest about 100 yards from where we stood. It's nice to know that Tundra DOES actually have an ability to sound threatening and a sense to protect her people! :)

It was a nice adventure, camping in the snow. A little chilly at times, but I would definitely do it again!

As promised, here is the recipe for Chicken Pot Pie in the Dutch Oven. I hope you get to try it! Keep in mind that this is enough for 2 people... if you are serving more, be sure to double it. I am certain that you will enjoy it!!

You will need: *2 skinless, boneless, chicken breast halves, diced *1.5 TB olive oil *2 cloves garlic (minced) *1/2 onion, diced *2 red potatoes, diced *8 ounces frozen mixed veggies *1 (10.5 ounce) can of cream of chicken soup *1/4 cup evaporated milk *3/4 tea poultry seasoning (I use Mrs. Dash, Original Blend) *1/2 TB Worcestershire *salt and pepper to taste *1 small can (the 4-roll size) crescent rolls

Directions:

At home, gather 2 quart-size and 1 gallon-size ziplock bags. To one of the quart-size bags, put the chicken, garlic, olive oil, and some salt and pepper in it and then seal tightly. To another of the quart size bags, put potatoes and onion in it and then seal tightly. To the gallon size bag, put the frozen mixed veggies, the cream of chicken soup, evaporated milk, seasonings, Worcestershire sauce, and some salt and pepper.


At camp, put the dutch oven over 20-22 HOT briquettes. (Briquettes are hot when they are white and glow a little red color.) Add contents of chicken bag and stir frequently until chicken is no longer pink. Then add the contents of the potato/onion bag and stir frequently until the onions are translucent but still crispy. Then dump contents of veggie/soup bag in and bring to a boil. When the contents of the oven come to a boil, unroll the crescent rolls and place them on top of the "stew," trying to cover as much of the top as possible. Place the lid on the dutch oven. Remove about 12-16 of the briquettes from the bottom and place them on the lid. Then put the dutch oven back on the remaining briquettes on the bottom. Let sit for about 20-25 minutes, checking occasionally to make sure crescent rolls are cooking and not burning. When crescent rolls are slightly brown, dinner is done. Enjoy!

The Crags

Last Sunday (Jan 2) we all went snowshoeing in the Crags. It was a perfectly gorgeous day with just enough snow to really use the snowshoes. Tundra had a lot of fun running up and down the trail, crashing through the woods and plowing through the snow! (Anyone who knows Tundra knows that snow is her FAVORITE!) She rolled in it, ate it, and even jumped mid-air trying to catch some of it. She is truly an Alaskan dog (she was born there).

It's amazing how different the trail looks with snow. We hiked the same trail last summer with the dog all the way up the back side of Pikes Peak. (And, oh, by the way... the back side may be shorter, but it's quite a bit harder than taking Barr Trail!)



The snow wasn't quite sticky enough to build a snow man, but we are hopeful that sometime this season, we will be able to build a "snow-dog" instead of a snow man! When we do we will definitely post pictures.




Here's Tundra running through the snow...





When we were done snowshoeing for the day, we headed back to the truck. There was a large snowbank next to the parking lot where we parked, and another dog running around. Of course, Tundra had to say hello... they romped for a bit and then Tundra went plowed right into the snowbank! This wouldn't have been an issue, but she has been having some chronic knee pain and so she immediately came out of the snowbank limping severely and whimpering a little. Brian and I feared the worst and we resigned ourselves to the fact that she'd probably need surgery soon to fix it... but strangely, the next day she was even better than she was before the incident! Weird how things work out sometimes. :) We hypothesize she has a meniscus tear (for all you anatomy nerds out there, you'll know what I'm talking about!) and it must have been shoved back into its proper place when she ran in the snowbank. But man, Tundra sure looked like she was in pain after that! She said it hurt like a "son-of-a-cat!!!" Anyway, let's hope she doesn't need knee surgery again anytime soon.

The Perfect Day... well, almost

Hi, my name is Tundra. Brian and Sara are my people - I am the Dog. While they are busy watching TV, I am sneaking over here at the computer and writing about my amazing adventure today. There were ducks, but only a few; water.... yeah, lots of water!; and chicken and salsa (two of my favorite foods! Yum!).

So, my day began with a not-so-fun adventure. I got stuck under the bed. It wouldn't have been so bad, except my MOMMY kept LAUGHING at me and DADDY wasn't helping either 'cuz he was laughing, too. Since I can't talk (er, my people think I can't talk, so I never do...), I wagged my tail so that it would thump on the floor and someone would hear and see that I was stuck under the bed. Sure enough, Mommy saw, but instead of helping me, she sat there and laughed!

Oh, well. My people took long enough, but they finally pulled me out. I was mad because they took so long. But then they fed me breakfast and everything was okay. I love my breakfast. It tastes like duck. Well, I don't really know what ducks taste like since I have never eaten a real one. But I think that's what they would taste like. I like ducks. I like to swim and chase ducks. And I got to swim and chase ducks today, too. That's why today was such a good day. (Well, except for the being stuck under the bed part.)

My people got their Camelbaks ready and loaded the car. Usually, this means something good is about to happen... like we are going to go somewhere FUN! But sometimes, I am still not sure if I'm allowed to go. Then they invited me in the car, and I KNEW it was going to be time for an adventure! I LOVE when I get to go in the car. Car rides are fun. I don't know why my mommy and daddy don't always take me in the car, but when they do, we always have a good time!!!!!!!

So we went to my favorite place EVER! Stanley Canyon!!! I once heard my daddy say it's on the "Care Horse Nacadimy" but I don't know what that means. Anyway, we drove in this big road that led to another road, and some man said hi to my daddy through the car window and my daddy showed the man some little card or something. I don't understand why those people on the road always like to say hi to whoever's driving... but anyway, we made it to the parking lot at my favorite place!

I love to swim. That's why I like this trail so much. There's water the WHOLE WAY! It's the BEST! We hiked and hiked and the leaves were a pretty yellow color on some of the trees. I walked alongside my daddy when we were almost to the top.


We made it to the top... where there's the big pond. I think it's called a "rezevore" or something. I don't know how to spell that. I'm a dog. I swam lots and lots and chased ducks around. I get sort of frustrated because I can't catch them! They are just too fast, and when I get close, they fly away. I wish I could just get one of them! Just one. I haven't decided what I would do with it if I ever caught one, but I would think of something. Maybe they have squeakers. Like my duck at home. I want to find out someday. They sure smell good.

I was very happily tired when we got home. I even got to have some extra treats when we got home because my people seem to know when I'm extra hungry and they give me something to snack on. But tonight, I got shredded chicken, AND chips and salsa! (Pico de Gallo is my favorite. My birthday is March 29 and I would love some for my birthday!)

I hope I don't have too many dreams tonight that make me run in my sleep. If I do, I might push myself under the bed again and then Mommy and Daddy would laugh extra hard if I got stuck again.

Bye!

San Francisco and Camping

Wow, so I am WAAYYY behind on keeping everyone updated here! Sorry for the delay, but here I will attempt to get everyone caught up on our goings-on. :)


So, in November (of 2009) Brian and I got to fly out to San Francisco and be a part of his best friend's (Kurt's) wedding. It was GORGEOUS there! We drove over the Golden Gate Bridge a few times, ate wonderful Sourdough bread, and relaxed on Pier 39. The wedding was simply beautiful, too! It was in a Catholic Church and the reception was at an unbelievably breathtaking winery. Brian got to be the Best Man, which he really enjoyed. (And he was very handsome in his uniform!! ;) ) I will attach a few pictures here, but there's no way to do it justice!

In December, I (Sara) had foot surgery... nothing too major, just a little bunionette that needed to be surgically broken and reshaped. In March, I had the plate and screws removed... and on the same day I went in for that minor surgery, Tundra had a knee replacement! She was a trooper, but I'm sure it was painful. She has recovered quickly and has been hiking a lot this summer with her new knee! No more limping, which makes me and Brian happy. Here is a picture of her right after her surgery with her ice-machine-ice-pack on her knee. This was her comfy recovery position... ice pack, a pillow between her knees, and her toy birdies.

Brian got a new job and is currently working at USAA. The job keeps him busy, but at least it's a somewhat solid job. In today's economy, job security is everything! Here is a picture of Brian on his first day at his new job.

We have had the privilege of doing lots of hiking and some camping this summer. We have hiked Pikes Peak (up the back way - through the Crags) and Stanley Canyon. I have done lots of trips on Section 16 and other local trails. Unfortunately, we usually only have the availability of doing one backpacking trip per summer (logistics of getting time off, etc.) so this year we thought we'd try backpacking up to a place that's situated between 2 fourteeners (Mt. Huron and Mt. Missouri, near Buena Vista).

It was our intent to pitch camp on the day we arrived and then hike up one peak the next day and the other peak the following day and then come home. With the best of intentions, we set out hiking up Mt. Huron after setting up camp the day prior. We got an early start and the weather was beautiful! Oh, and our campsite was absolutely perfect. It was level, soft, had a beautiful view and a nice big fire pit nearby. Anyway, we set out to hike up Mt. Huron. The route we were taking was a "back" way and so the trail wasn't well-used (or well-marked) but we were making good time up the face of the mountain nonetheless. Finally, after scrambling and bouldering and scrambling some more, we came to a high point on the ridge of the mountain. From there, we could see the peak of Mt. Huron - but there was a rocky, spiney, treacherous distance of ridge we would need to hike in order to get to the top. Since there were pretty steep drops on either side of the narrow "trail" - we decided it wasn't worth the risk and we came back down.

On the way down, though, I got a horrible leg cramp that would not release no matter what I did. I stretched, massaged, ate potassium-rich snacks I had brought along... nothing worked. All the way down, it felt like my hamstring was being wound up like a guitar string. Upon reaching camp, I went immediately for the multivitamin I had brought along, thinking that if I hydrated well and gave my body some extra nutrients, it would release the cramp. Turns out that a little chipmunk thought he'd like to try my vitamins first! He literally ate a hole through the bag they were in and opened the pill box off in the trees. It was kind of funny! I found a vitamin in the dirt and blew it off, then gulped it down. :)

So, as I'm hobbling around camp with my stupid leg cramp, Brian is preparing a snack for us that requires boiling water. Usually not a big deal for us... but we were both so exhausted from hiking that he somehow dribbled a little of the boiling water down his hiking boot and so his ankle got a nice burn on it! :( After seeing the skin that was beginning to bubble up on his ankle and me with my cramp that STILL wasn't letting go, we decided to pack it up and go home.

It was too bad it didn't work out. It was really a beautiful place with the lake nearby and the awesome scenery. We had perfect weather, and the deer around camp took our breath away. But it was time to leave, so we did. Maybe we will return someday! The four-wheeling road to get there was fun enough in and of itself to return someday and do it again!














































So, after having a not-so-pleasant camping experience there, we thought we owed it to ourselves to have at least one good camping trip this summer. We decided to go to Stanley Canyon and backpack in with the dog. Tundra had a blast, everything went perfectly, and we had a very pleasant trip. Whew! :)

Tundra even loved swimming all day long in the reservoir, chasing ducks! Haha! I thought she might end up getting bit by one of the protective mama-ducks (since Tundra was chasing her little ducklings all over the water). But, turns out the ducks could swim just fast enough to stay away from the ever-curious Tundra-dog. Here she is, tired from swimming - and ready to go to sleep in her spot which was semi-in our tent. She also got to chase lots of squirrels around camp which also wore her out!!

As we were packing to leave the following day, we had the WEIRDEST coincidence of running into a friend of ours! She happened to be there that day (from Larkspur) and had happened to hike up the trail early enough to meet us, and HAPPENED to be a the off-the-trail-remote-location we had picked to set up camp. Weird. But cool.


Tundra did the incline for the FIRST time EVER today (August 13)! I am so proud of her. She was hot and panting like crazy! With her new knee, I wasn't sure how she would do, but she did great. We took lots of rest breaks along the way (I didn't want her to overdo it) and I kept her hydrated all the way up. Even with stopping so much, her time was 1:02. Way to go Tundra! :) And, another funny coincidence: I ran into a good friend of mine on the way down Barr Trail! What were the chances of that?! And she had even parked her car *literally* right next to me. How funny! :)

Pumpkin Carving

Brian and I have a tradition... now we've done it for 3 years (so I guess that makes it a tradition, right?). Every Halloween, we each pick out a pumpkin and carve a face! It's so fun. I love picking out our faces every hear and then drawing them and carving them. Check out our pumpkins this year!