Roadtrippin' - Part 1 : World Superbike

We went on a road trip up to the Bay Area. First stop, was a few days at Laguna Seca once again. This time we were there for the 2015 Superbike World Championship as headliner events, and MotoAmerica Superbike/Superstock races.

The drive up was the usual, lots of stop and go traffic.. slow and a tedious test of patience. The up side was that the kids found different ways to entertain themselves. A quick stop at McDs where we picked up a couple of Happy Meal Minions provided comic relief to our little minions.

A cardboard box can have multiple fun factor uses...

Emilia not phased by Liam's minion antics. She was busy color Melissa & Doug's On-the-Go Magic Color Blast. These travel color books are awesome with lots of colors and details that can keep the kiddos occupied for quite a while. We have gotten other brands, but they are not as good as these.

Walking into the race track area near the starting line.

Checking out the yellow Ducati while strolling around Ducati Island.

Kid cuteness factor scored them some red balloons from the Ducati girls.



And later on, their cuteness factor would also get them a much needed awesome umbrella for sunshade from a Suzuki vendor. See the arm above Liam's head? And a little portion of the black/red umbrella? Yup. That's Ryan holding up shade for the kiddies.

The races are always a blast. The kids watch every time the racers go by. They even watch when it's non-race time and there are safety cars just driving the track. Turns out one of the racers of Superstock 600 is someone we know from our climbing gym! So it was double neat to see him ride. We didn't know it at the time, but Ryan heard his name from the announcer. Later on during the weekend, we bumped into him and this was his first time ever qualifying for the race.



The kiddos walked around all day, checking out vendors, going to different parts of the track to watch the races, etc. But they were troopers and lasted all day. At the end of the day, in less than 5 minutes in their carseats, they were passed out.

The races are always an experience. This may be our last year since the fate of motorcycle races at Laguna Seca is unknown. It is suppose to be sold to a NASCAR family, so we'll see what happens next year!

15 Miler Training Run

Here on out, we rotate taking turns on doing our long distance training run. While he's out for his 15 miler hill/distance/elevation training run, the kiddos and I hang out somewhere and chill. Found a nice shady faux-grassy spot for the kiddos to color and run around.

Running is not fun. It's physically hard work and mentally challenging to have your mind dictate over a tired, dehydrated body. But, no one can dispute the high that comes towards the end of a run, hitting the target goal whatever that may be. These last few minutes, especially seeing the kiddos cheering, are the best!



And then consuming massive amounts of food and water that tastes like the best meal you've ever eaten!! We are so proud of Ryan even though it's not race day yet.

BackTrack : Gone Fishin'

(This is a backtracked post from May.)

The kiddies are at an age where they can start to play GAMES!! And when I mean "play", I really mean, they are not eating the pieces, or tossing them around, or cheating left and right, but they can (sort of) play by the rules, follow instructions, and take turns. They understand the notion of winning and losing. And they do not like losing!

First family fishing session...





These videos were taken back in May, the first time they played the fishing game. There was a learning curve on various aspects of "gaming". The kiddies had to learn how to play well together or else they both lose when mom confiscates the game. They also learned that you won't always win with the most fish on this round, but you may win it on the next round. Oh, and don't forget the power of persuasion, you can barter a blue fish for a red one. They also learned the power of teamwork. The two kids combined (with Liam's cheating hook method) guaranteed a sure win over a parent.

Now several months later, they go fishing unsupervised (*gasp*). Emilia has gotten pretty good at hooking a fish the proper way. Liam still likes to hold the hook and shove it in the mouth. There is disappointment still sometimes, but the kids have learned how to move past it (aka play another round, barter a fish, or change the rules!, etc.)

This fishing game is definitely an old classic fun for all of us and has been a good intro to games for the kiddies.

Back in Training!

Kids coloring and having a brunch date with me while we wait for Ryan to finish his run.

Ryan and I are officially in training season since the beginning of June. We both have separate races coming up in a few months time, and we both have our own training regimen and program. So even though it is summer, our schedules are again a fine juggling act. But well worth it! It feels great to be back in training mode. Of course, seeing Ryan train motivates me even more to train!

Our conversation goes something like this:
C: How many miles are you going to run for your long run this week?
R: 14 miles.
C: Oh. Well, I'm going to do 12 miles (even though I planned for 10 miles, and am only capable of 6 miles).
R: I'm running ----- Mountain (the steepest local mountain with the highest elevation gain).
C: (thinking to myself.. I can't do that, so I'll do an alternative)
C: Okay, I'm going to do 12 miles on some kind of terrain, then another 5 miles the next day, and throw in some ninja obstacle training on top of that. Yeah.
R: (sighs. and rolls his eyes.) The kids and I want to come and watch.

So what did we do? I found a local mountain and did my 12 miles Friday, and then obstacle course training with additional running on Saturday. And Ryan followed it up on Sunday, with 14+ miles of THAT mountain.

Yup. That's just our way. It's how we do things.

Here is Ryan, at the end of his 14+ mile run, at the base of the mountain where kids and I were waiting for his return after our brunch.



We're back in the groove of training!

Becoming A Regular Habit...

It's not always easy getting these two down for nap time. They want to keep playing. However, if I let them nap together, both of them eagerly rush into one or the other's bedroom to take a nap. Usually I have to go in several times to scold them for talking, but eventually they fall asleep.

They had started off laying down on the bed, but wound up sleeping like this:

July 4th WOD

Thinking of our friends and family and their families, that have served our country and those that are still serving our country for all of our freedoms to live a life of our own choosing. (*Hokesters.. thinking of you!)

Special July 4th WOD.

We stay together. No man or woman left behind.

Indian Run while passing a 20# slam ball.

Broad jump burpees on an uphill incline.

Dive bomb push-ups, flutter kicks, etc.

4 man tractor tire carry while other 4-man teams are doing other exercises and waiting for us to get back to switch stations.

Gotta finish off with an SUV push.

Group pre-photo...

Group post-photo, and after ice water dunk tank!

Why do we do this? Because we can!!