This summer marked Emma’s third and final high altitude cross-country camp with Kokopelli. She was a little nervous about her fitness after taking 3 weeks off in June and then another 4 days after her car accident. However, she later told me that although this camp was the hardest in terms of mileage, it was also the most chill of all the times she had been at Kokopelli. Her weekly mileage reached 50 miles which was the most she had run in one week ever. She recounted one of the hardest runs where they warmed up the first few miles all uphill. She learned the importance of hard work, comradery, and fueling properly. The food was delicious, and the other athletes were fun to be around. One of her favorite night activities was when they choose to watch a horror film. For some reason it had become tradition after last year’s camp. What makes these camps spectacular is her coach, Lisa, and the other counselors that Lisa recruited to be at camp. We will forever be grateful to Lisa for the amazing things she has taught Emma about running and life.
This was a really great training month for both running and biking. There were many runs up Barr Trail, one in the Pineries, Red and Iron Mountains, Ute Trail, MVP, and High Drive. One of my favorite runs was the first day of the month running up Barr trail and seeing all the purple wild flowers along the trail. It was also this day that I made it to Barr Camp for the first time this season. Mike and I spent a few long biking days up in Denver riding the trails up there as well as taking advantage of Garden of the Gods and Gold Camp Road in preparation for our Triple Bypass ride. We really do live in such a beautiful place for training in the summer. It’s never too hot or too cold. Most days it is absolutely perfect weather! RunningbikingFor the past couple of years, we have been slowly adding more miles to our biking during the warmer months in preparation for this monstrous ride. The Triple Bypass is nothing to sneer at and takes a great deal of time to train for. I would say that this ride exceeded all of our expectations and gave us the confidence to climb and ride long. This truly was the most epic ride Mike and I have ever done. It was not only the farthest but the most climbing we have done in one day. We had 3 climbs…Juniper Pass, Loveland Pass and Vail Pass with plenty of other shorter but not insignificant climbing along the way. We even enjoyed a local bag piper on Juniper Pass and at the top of Loveland Pass. We played it smart and took it easy up Juniper Pass. I pushed both of the other climbs. I was able to speed through the Loveland pass in 30 min (3.6 miles), and the Vail Pass in 24 min (4 miles). Other than a few pushes, we rode together the entire day. We stopped at every aid station and took advantage of the great food that was provided as well as refilled our water bottles with water and electrolytes. I even had them adjust my derailer at one of the stops because the gears kept skipping. We couldn't have been luckier with the weather. It was warm and blue skies the entire day. I felt really strong on all the climbs and most of the ride and just when I was ready to be done, Mike pulled us both the last 10 miles. We rode hard from Vail to Avon. I would like to think this was a one and done but I'm sure we will be back to attempt this ride again!
We are so lucky to have such an amazing pool only 7 min away from our house. Since Flying Horse is a club and smaller than Lifetime or Villa, there seem to be less people even during the summer months. We always find lounge chairs available which is awesome. During most of this month we tried to go as often as we could, inviting friends as our guests to come and play and seeing other friends who are already members of the club. This was a time when Madeline really learned how to swim, and she became proficient at holding her breath under water while doing handstands and other tricks. She also spent a great deal of time going down the big slide. She loved playing with daddy, but she was not fearful of making other friends her own age at the pool. The older girls occasionally accompanied our many trips to the pool. Our 4th of July at the club was probably our favorite swim excursion in July! We all loved being together and frequently enjoyed eating by the poolside. Some of our best memories were taking off when Mike would get home from work and heading to the pool in the early evenings to swim and eat a casual dinner by the pool.
It’s every mom’s worst nightmare when she picks up the phone and on the other end is a distressed child who has just been in an accident. The last time I experienced this was when Peter called because he fell off his bike while riding in the snow on campus. It was horrible. I thought I would have more time before getting another one of those calls but this morning I got a call from Emma who had just been in a car accident coming home from run practice. She was only a few blocks away when a lady pulled into the intersection at Lexington and Old Ranch Road. Although this accident wasn’t Emma’s fault at all, it was still extremely traumatic for her. Luckily, nothing was broken and the only injury that she ended up having was a burned wrist and shin from the airbag deploying. She was so lucky that was the extent of her injuries. Unfortunately, the RAV4 was totaled. It’s times like these that you thank your lucky stars that the situation wasn’t worse.
For Mike’s 47th birthday he wanted to celebrate by riding on his first ever summit to the top of Pikes Peak! He did an amazing job and I’m so proud of him. A nice group of visitors even sang to him at the top!!
We started in clouds and fog, and it eventually broke for us around mile 11. We had a beautiful ride to the top. We ate sugar donuts at the top (a Pikes Peak special) and munched on some other snacks. The newer visitor center is just amazing. Before we headed down we put on our new Pactimo lightweight rain jackets for warmth. Those jackets totally delivered. We were plenty warm on the descent. We hit fog again the last 6 miles which was so crazy. At least by that point we were almost finished. After a big day of riding to the top of Pike's Peak, we came home and rested and then let Mike open up his birthday gifts. This year we got him a Rumpl down blanket for camping, a new silicone wedding band, a nice button down from Kuhl, new Hey Dude shoes, and a cozy soft shirt from Vuori. He basically got something from each one of his favorite brands. Madeline also made him a really cool rainbow card. I think he was happy with his gifts and happy that we all got to celebrate him turning 47!
Abby has spent the last year falling in love with a relatively new band called, "Ritchie Mitch and the Coal Miners." Coincidentally 3 of the 4 band members graduated from Pine Creek High School the year before Andrew. She even got me listening to them and when she found out that they would be playing at the Dusty Boots concert in Denver, we quickly bought tickets as part of her birthday gift. We had so much fun bouncing from the different concerts that were playing at the Civic Center Park, eating snacks from the park vendors and drink water from a gigantic can. The best concert, however, was definitely Ritchie Mitch and the Coal Miners. They were even better in person and since we got to the stage before they started we had front row views of them. I loved watching Abby's excitement as this was her very first concert!
Girl’s camp was a good time, and I was able to have fun and spiritual experiences. My absolute
favorite part of camp was the high adventure stuff. The first day we did the high ropes course. Last girls camp I didn’t do it but this year I wanted to face my fear of heights and decided to do it. It was super fun, and the trees were scary. The second day we did the catwalk and leap of faith. This was my favorite because I ended up front flipping, back flipping, and doing a spider man pose off of the catwalk. The third day we did the zip-line and with the zip-line you could go upside down, and I did. Girl’s camp was a time I was able to be adventurous, have fun and face fears that I didn’t know I had. Written by Abby This was a big month of training both on the bike and with running. Mike and I spent most of our time on the bike doing some intense hill training as well as some endurance rides. We started with our typical loop to Garden of the Gods and back home. I got my first flat in a long time and learned how to change it on my own. We attempted the 719 loop again and just did it casually, It was still a beast even though we weren’t biking hard, We also rode up in Denver a few times and did some rides up Cheyenne Canyon. On the running side of things, we spent most of the time at Bear Creek Park doing tempo loops on the “dirt” track, hill repeats, and intervals on the flatter garden side of the park. Dionne and I ventured one day and did Section 16 to the Palmer trail. The short but steep section up Section 16 is never an easy one and I was breathing hard the entire time. However, the effort is worth it after you crest the top and run down the flowy Palmer trail. Overall, training this month was really awesome! BikingRunningMadeline has been learning how to ride her bike slowly over the past year. When we were at the bike store she saw a bigger bike that interested her that had hand brakes and such. Her eyes got really big when I told her that if she learned to ride her current bike really well that this could be her next bike. Up until this point I had been struggling to get her to want to ride her bike outside. She was so afraid of falling. With her new sense of desire to be better at riding her bike, she and I headed outside to learn the last piece of being a good bike rider - starting by herself. Today was the first day that she figured out how to get going on the bike all by herself. It took her several times and a solid 30 minutes to get her feet positioned just right to get going. I loved watching her determination to figure out this last piece of riding a bike all on her own. There were times when she would get frustrated, but I just kept encouraging her and eventually she found her grove.
There is nothing better than spending a pleasant Colorado evening outside with the girls. Mike and I sat on the porch while Abby entertained Madeline by blowing bubbles so that she could pop them. Madeline was excited by the bubbles but also by showing us her amazing cartwheels. She was right in her element jumping from one activity to another. She loved riding on her belly on the longboard. These are the moments I savor. The innocence and simplicity of it all makes me smile. One thing is for sure…summer evenings in Colorado are simply the best.
Mike and I headed up to Denver the day before the race with hope that our race would go well after an extremely stressful week for both of us. We did all the things that would help us have a successful race the next day. When we got to the drop off point and headed on the bus to get to the starting line, we quickly realized that the bus driver didn’t know where he was going. We eventually made it there but not without some anxiety. That should have been a sign to me that the day would not turn out like I had expected. The weather couldn’t have been more perfect for a running race. I started at the front with all of the other fools and when the gun went off I went out at my intended pace and was able to hold that even through the crazy first 2.5 miles of rolling hills. The uphills were not insignificant and by the time I made it to mile 4 I was already a little tired. It was the first time that I had no umph or energy at the beginning of a race. It was all I could do to hold a 7 min pace. As I descended down the course, I noticed how horrible the road was with a bank at every turn. This did not pose well for someone like me who already struggles with a testy SI joint. Despite all of this, I gave it my best and just tried to hold a somewhat decent pace so I could finish. Somehow I still managed to place 2nd in my age group even though I only ran this race in 1:33.37. It would have been easy to be disappointed in my time that was 6 minutes slower than my last revel half marathon, but I knew deep down that my efforts were truly the best I could have done that day. EXPOrace dayToday was the official first day of summer break for the girls and we planned a fun day in Denver. We drove up to test drive the new Rivian. At first glance the car looked amazing but upon further inspection and a quick test drive we were not that impressed with the way it drove. Seeing as this is an electric car we were expecting a smoother ride and a nicer interior. Not so much. We left the car lot and headed to get some brunch before walking around the zoo. Even though Madeline and I had just been to the Denver Zoo a few weeks earlier, it was still so much fun walking around and showing Mike and Abby our favorite animals and sections of this zoo. We saw many of the big animals before taking a ride on the carousel. Then we headed towards the elephant section and saw both the elephants and the cool monkeys swinging on the ropes. We were about to watch the elephant show when it started to rain. At first it was a light rain, and I was in line to get dippin dots for everyone. Then as I finished paying the rain started coming down harder. Luckily we were sheltered by the nearby shops with covered tables. We sat and ate our ice-cream until the rain died down and then we walked very quickly to the tropical discovery house so that we could spend some time looking at the reptiles and fish and other tropical animals. By the time we finished up in the tropical discovery zone the rain had almost all died down but there was still a hint of a storm in the air, so we decided to call it a day and headed out of the zoo and back to our car. We saw most of what we wanted while the weather was nice and so it was a very successful adventure to the zoo.
Today was the official first day of summer break for the girls and we planned a fun day in Denver. We drove up to test drive the new Rivian. At first glance the car looked amazing but upon further inspection and a quick test drive we were not that impressed with the way it drove. Seeing as this is an electric car we were expecting a smoother ride and a nicer interior. Not so much. We left the car lot and headed to get some brunch before walking around the zoo. Even though Madeline and I had just been to the Denver Zoo a few weeks earlier, it was still so much fun walking around and showing Mike and Abby our favorite animals and sections of this zoo. We saw many of the big animals before taking a ride on the carousel. Then we headed towards the elephant section and saw both the elephants and the cool monkeys swinging on the ropes. We were about to watch the elephant show when it started to rain. At first it was a light rain, and I was in line to get dippin dots for everyone. Then as I finished paying the rain started coming down harder. Luckily we were sheltered by the nearby shops with covered tables. We sat and ate our ice-cream until the rain died down and then we walked very quickly to the tropical discovery house so that we could spend some time looking at the reptiles and fish and other tropical animals. By the time we finished up in the tropical discovery zone the rain had almost all died down but there was still a hint of a storm in the air, so we decided to call it a day and headed out of the zoo and back to our car. We saw most of what we wanted while the weather was nice and so it was a very successful adventure to the zoo.
Field day is one of them most exciting days for any elementary schooler during the end of the school year. With all of the frequent rain we have been having the field day was postponed twice and it ended up falling on the last day of school. I loved watching Madeline and her friends rotate through all of the different stations. She seemed to love the obstacle course the best, the three-legged race, and the big bouncy ball station. After the rotating stations, all of the first graders headed over to the running relay station. I loved watching Madeline run her little heart out. She was so fierce and determined during the hurdle relay and it was amazing to see how much height she got over those hurdles. Lastly, the kids competed against the other first grade classes in the tug-o-war station. Unfortunately, Madeline’s class didn’t win their first one but that was expected as their class was a little bit smaller in size. Still, she had so much fun!
EMMA’S TRACK MEET #1 – BANANA BELT CLASSIC MARCH 11, 2023 Emma’s first track meet was down in Pueblo at Dutch Clark Stadium where she ran the 3200m. These aren’t my favorite track meets early in the season because there is no competition for the distance runners. Emma’s goal was to get under 11:15 which would give her a pretty hefty PR. She and I figured out her splits and came up with hand motions for me to give her after each lap so that she would know if she was on pace. It’s too bad we can’t rely on the coaches to help her out. They all don’t seem to know how to coach her which is why we hired her club coach during the season to give her workouts and tell her what races to run during the season. Emma crushed this race, beating the next girl by 1 min and 15 sec!. She got a huge PR, finishing 1st in 11:12.27. If this wasn’t amazing enough, she also got nominated shortly after by Mile split as one of the top 5 female performers in CO for that week. After a week of voting, she ended up as the 2nd most voted. Way to go Emma! This was a great start to her official HS track season. EMMA’S TRACK MEET #2 – LARRY PICKERING INVITATIONAL MARCH 18, 2023 Well, it was another amazing race by Emma today! She ran the 1600m this week and was only seeded 5th since her previous times have never been that competitive. She knew the #1 seeded girl broke 5 last year so she had her sights on that girl. The goal today was to break 5:15 which would give her a 15 sec PR. She ran a smart race, running right with that girl for the first lap, a little behind her on lap 2 and 3 and then on the 4th lap she started to pick up the pace. At the last curve she pushed it into high gear after listening to her head coach’s words of encouragement. By the 100m mark she was right in line with the other girl and just like that she passed her and kept going to finish 1st in a time of 5:11!!! It was incredible! We were all stunned and so proud. I’m still in awe at what she did today and how much time she has cut already this year. Way to go Emma!!! EMMA’S TRACK. MEET #3 – POMONA INVITATIONAL APRIL 14-15, 2023 After driving over an hour to this track meet in Denver and battling the snow, wind, and rain to get there, we hunkered down in the car while Emma went back and forth between the team tent and our car. Eventually they took down the tent and had all the athletes sit in the bus to stay warm. Despite the crazy weather conditions, this meet was an exciting one to watch as she ran against some of the top distance runners in Colorado. Although she was a little frazzled before the race with where to check in, when she stepped up to the starting line she was focused. Luckily the snow and rain had stopped when the race started. She shot out and just like that she was running faster than she did during the first 3200m of the season. She ran this race in 11:05.54 which was a new PR. Afterwards she quickly cooled down and then we headed to get her some dinner before heading back home in the rain and snow. We helped her repack her bag for the next day's race and all went straight to bed. The next day we headed back up to Jeffco stadium to watch Emma run in the 1600m. After not a great nights sleep and tired legs, Emma struggled during this race. For the first lap or so she was right on target but by lap 3 she had lost that mental focus and she just ran to finish. It definitely wasn't her best time but it also wasn't her worst time. This race was a learning experience for her and one in which she needed to not repeat. EMMA’S TRACK. MEET #4 - COUGAR CLASSIC APRIL 28, 2023 This was a tough race for Emma since she once again did not have competition, and she had to run the 1600m against 17mph winds. She still gave it her all and ran a good race considering the windy conditions. She finished the 1600m in 5:23.65. In hindsight, she probably should've skipped this race. EMMA’S TRACK. MEET #5 - SPARTAN INVITATIONAL MAY 6, 2023 Emma was really hoping to break 5 minutes in the 1600m today and ran with this goal in mind. With no competition today she really had to push herself to reach this goal. She was on pace for the first half of the race and then lost a little momentum during the second half. Although she didn't break 5 minutes, she did run in a new PR of 5:10.98. Way to go Emma! EMMA'S TRACK MEET #6 - ST. VRAIN INVITATIONAL MAY 12, 2023 As the last meet of the season to qualify for state, Emma entered the 1600m race. She needed at least a 5:05 to qualify for the extremely competitive 1600m field this year. Unfortunately, she wasn’t able to pull that off this race. She was extremely disappointed in herself this race, even though she gave it her best with the energy and will power she had for that day. She expended too much energy getting pushed around to the second lane and then getting stuck behind slower runners. This race is so fast and short that there isn’t any time for the field of girls to spread out. It’s always so hard to run with that much pressure on the line. We were so proud of her for pushing herself and still getting her 2nd best time of the season with a 5:11.90. This time would’ve qualified her for state last year. For some reason this year is ultra-competitive. At least she has one more year to qualify for state in the 1600m. EMMA’S TRACK. MEET #7 - CO 5A STATE TRACK MEET MAY 19, 2023 If there is any race that has incredible amounts of pressure it is the state race. As Emma’s official first solo event for state in track and field, she was both excited and nervous. With only the top 18 girls to qualify in each event, she was fortunate enough to qualify early in the season for the 3200m. Seeded 15th, she went out with the pack of girls who all stuck together for the first mile. During the second mile is where things got interesting. The lead pack took off and ran that second mile faster than the first while the second pack was just trying to hold the pace they were already running. Emma didn’t get the time she wanted, but she did manage to come in 14th which was one place higher than her seeded place and was only shy of her PR by 2 seconds. She ran this race in 11:07.63. I have no doubt that next year she will achieve her goal of breaking 11 minutes. Season Results:
The Banana Belt Classic Dutch Clark Stadium, Pueblo 3200M – 11:12.27 March 11, 2023 Larry Pickering Centennial Invitational Dutch Clark Stadium, Pueblo 1600m – 5:11.92 March 18, 2023 The Pomona Invitational Jeffco Stadium, Lakewood 3200m – 11:05.54 1600m – 5:32.06 April 14-15, 2023 Cougar Classic Invitational Garry Berry Stadium, Colorado Springs 1600m – 5:23.65 April 28, 2023 Doherty Spartan Invitational Garry Berry Stadium, Colorado Springs 1600m – 5:10.98 May 6, 2023 HOKA St. Vrain Invitational Everly-Montgomery Field, Longmont 1600m – 5:11.90 May 12, 2023 Colorado State Track and Field Championships Jeffco Stadium, Lakewood 3200m – 11:07.63 May 19, 2023 My Mother’s Day actually started on Saturday this year because I got a super special call from Peter who was calling me on Mother’s Day in his time zone. I wasn’t expecting that phone call at all, and it really made my day. Mike is always so good about helping me feel so special on Mother’s Day. This year he made a wonderful pancake breakfast with bacon and fresh fruit before we all headed to church. During Sacrament meeting we heard the most amazing talks, but my favorite was Mike’s talk. It was the best talk he ever gave. After church we all came home, quickly took some photos, and then Mike made chicken salad sandwiches on fresh croissants. That was one of my requests and it did not disappoint. For the remainder of the day, we all lounged around in the family room, just resting, and chatting until Peter called. I loved being able to talk with Peter again. The day ended with homemade Chicago style pizza, root beer, and back rubs. I am a really lucky girl to have so many people who care for and appreciate me on Mother’s Day!
Madeline and I headed to the Denver Zoo to meet Andrew and Alex while they were visiting for a few days. The Denver Zoo is amazing. First, we saw the penguins and then we strolled around the zoo seeing all of the big animals like the lions, zebras, giraffes, bear, and sea lions. Then we stumbled upon the Tropical Discovery house where we saw lots and lots of fish, turtles, sting rays, lizards and snakes, many different kinds of frogs, alligators, bats, and other land and water creatures. This place was awesome, and we spent most of our time exploring this amazing place. Afterwards we headed around to the other parts of the zoo, but not before stopping to eat some Dippin’ dots for our treat. After filling our bellies full of goodness, we saw the rhinoceros and elephants, and monkeys swinging across the sky-high ropes at Gibbon Island. The black monkey was having a ton of fun while the white monkey just sat and watched. We weren’t able to see all of the animals at the zoo today but what we did see was so much fun. We will definitely need to come back to this zoo and see the other animals!
Madeline had another fun running season participating in the Landsharks track program. She was able to run in 2 of the 3 meets this season and made it to all of the practices. She loved running with her friends after school. For the two meets she ran in, she did the 50m for the first meet and the 100m dash for the second meet followed by a 400m race. Madeline is definitely a better runner the longer she has to run but this season she just wanted to run the shortest race. I was definitely ok with that since the shortest race finishes first. She loved running her one lap around the track and then getting her ribbon. I am so happy that Madeline loves to run. She has real potential to be an amazing runner. I hope she continues to love running as she gets older! meet #1 - Rampart hs trackmeet #2 - rampart hs track |
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