Aloha!

Mike and I came to Maui to celebrate my 45th birthday (it was last Saturday, the 25th).
So far its been, sleep, eat, read, sit by the pool, eat, (ok I went for a 4 mile run yesterday morning) read, etc. Three days to decompress and now we are on the "activity" plan:
Hiking in Iao Valley tomorrow, 60 mile bike ride around West Maui on Wednesday, Kayaking on Thursday, Bike ride UP Haleakala Crater on road bikes on Friday- if all goes as planned.

We had dinner at the Plantation House Restaurant for my birthday... with a nice window seat.

Who could complain about a view like this from your dinner table? Needless to say it was a nice birthday all around!

Ten pounds by February 10th!

Last Friday a few of us went on a Tiburon Loop ride, by the time we left Sweden House in Tiburon there were just three of us- John, Beau and me.

As usual, John brought along his camera and took pictures. The three of us decided that we look way too fat in them, so agreed on a pact: Lose 10 lbs by February 10th. (we decided this on August 10th, this is why we chose February 10th!) I mean 6 months to lose 10 lbs, how hard can that be?

The following Friday I weigh myself and I have gained exactly 2 pounds. Hell am I off to a good start or what?

Anyhow, if you're reading this- next time you see Beau, John or me, ask us how we're doing on the 10lb loss.... this will if anything, make us feel guilty and get us back on track!

Sisters and Nieces

Can you tell which ones are my sisters and which ones are my nieces???? My eldest sister is 11 years older than me and my oldest niece is 14 years younger than me.....

I think we all look pretty damn good for just about 30 and older....

The closest thing to a twin I'll ever have-
my sister "Bebot", which in Filipino slang means "hot chick" or "hottie"--LOL!

Marin Metric Century

I was unsure whether I'd be up to riding 62 miles today since I'd been recovering all week from the SF Marathon, not to mention the fact I hadn't been on my bike in three weeks! Michael said to me earlier in the week, " c'mon out anyway- you can always turn around if it gets to be too much". (famous last words) So- I figured what the heck, I like riding and I liked all the people who were planning to be there to ride with us so how could it not be enjoyable?

We (MB, Mark,Mo,Michael,Em2,me,Kas,& Nicole) met at 6:45 and attempted to ride out at 7, which of course meant we rode out around 7:20. I was a little winded at the beginning of the climb up to Big Rock on Lucas Valley Road but chatting with Kas and Nicole made it so much more enjoyable and more importantly, do- able!

Kas & Nicole before ride out...

My legs felt strong, but my lungs felt tired so I tried not to push it too hard even though I knew my legs could push harder. We rolled down Lucas Valley and on thru Nicasio and up "le alpe du fromage" (remember that?) to the cheese factory where we decided we'd use the restroom instead of standing in line at the next official rest stop on Hick's Valley Road. At the Cheese Factory we ran into Chris, who had arrived late and basically hammered to catch up with us. We also saw Bob Katz, Raybel and Paul ride by, but figured we'd see them at the rest stop soon after anyway.

From the Cheese Factory we headed over to the Hicks Valley rest stop for a pbj and some fruit. It was here we realized how many ALC'ers were out on the ride. We also paused for a pic in our ALC Jerseys, just after we ran into Doreen Gonzales, another CAR and ALC rider.

Rest Stop 1:
Em2,Mark, Mo, Michael, Kas, Doreen,Nicole,MB, me, Bob and Chris

Soon we were back on our bikes and headed toward Wilson Hill. Chris and I rode along and I realized- hey there are a couple of hills on the way to Wilson Hill! Anyhow, we climbed the climb and suddenly I heard my name- it was Jeff Swanson busting his way up the hill and descending it with us. Also along the climb I ran into Dion Coakley- another ALC'er and chatted a bit before hitting the top of the hill and then the descent.

The rest of the ride was pretty uneventful, which was nice. The next rest stop was run by AIDS Lifecycle and was themed and roomy and they made sure that they handed you food, instead of having you grab food with your gross gloved hands! LOL! I'm sure other non-alc riders didn't realize how easy it is to contract gastro-intestinal problems when you don't eat with clean hands...eeeewwww!!

We rolled into the last neighborhood mile, where we saw a nice little lemonade stand being run by a little girl and her brothers. We stopped to give them some business and enjoy some yummy lemonade, then headed on to the finish line.

All of us after some yummy lemonade

All in all it was a great day of riding, and the weather could not have been better. Warm and sunny with no major wind but just great company. It was a nice reminder of how fun it is to ride with fellow AIDS Lifecyclers!