Love Without Resistance

I've been too busy to blog. My life is full and I should be thankful. I've been busy doing stuff like rushing around to get 3 girls to their last soccer game of the season where they just had fun. This team ... oh my. They have a few girls who have played before but the majority of the team are first timers. For a Middle School age group, this is not a recipe for a championship team. Mine tends to watch and process the game more so when she makes a move it's deliberate. Our Tinkerbell sweetie who only entered the fray for the last 3 games of the season, charges like a mama elephant even though she's half the size of the competition and hadn't kicked a soccer ball until a month ago. Then there's "the bull". I love watching her play. She gets in the way, she accidently ahem knocks people over. She is all legs and elbows and laughter. This game she even managed to let a ball bounce off her shoulder and right into the goal. Our goal unfortunately but still...it was the only goal of the game for our team. And when she got up from the ground where she let herself collapse after realizing what she'd done, I could hear her laugh. She has a very loud raucous laugh. There is no mistaking it. I was worried she would cry but most of her teammates were laughing with her. Not the goalie, but I wouldn't have laughed if I were her either.
Immediately following the game we hit a fast food joint for a bite then hurried back to town 30 minutes away to drop the others off at home so we could turn around for a 3 hour drive to Winslow, Arkansas and one of my favorite places in the state. Devil's Den State Park.
The Man was going up for a video/photo shoot in the park for new commercials and ads.  The small one and I went along because 1) who passes up a night in a cabin in a beautiful park? and 2) maybe we'll get lucky and get to be in the shot.  We didn't get to the cabin until almost 11 p.m. I would love to rent this cabin again- screened in porch with rocking chairs and a picnic table facing the woods and we could hear the creek. #12, go, make reservations NOW. Having had a long day, we all fell into bed until the alarm went off before dawn the next day.

And then the work began. The 3 of us set out for the campground to meet several others including the always gracious and lovely Park Wife and her clan. Luckily the boy was able to free his schedule for the morning and he met us in the campground too. I think he was happy he did since he spent the entire morning at the forefront of a video shoot hiking across Lee Creek with the park interpreter, Rebecca, who is very easy to look at. And smart. And funny. The poor boy. It was such a chore for him.  It amazes me each time what goes into just getting some pictures on film- waiting for the light to be just right, doing the same thing over and over again to get the right shot. It's exhausting, I can't imagine how the film crew does it all the time. We had a fun day, a full day, a long day.




Someone kept yelling "Smile!"

In the middle of the day while there was a break, mostly due to the cloud cover moving in, I caught the small one and the boy playing in the creek and on the dam. J usually has sole custody of the camera but he was busy so I grabbed it to catch the fun. I marvel at times such as these that our little blended family that has been through such trials and tribulations, has grown into this. Moments of peace, camaraderie, gentleness. Moments when the tensions and anger of the past don't show. Love without resistance. Caught on film.

2 Lazy 2 Blog Workout

Busy or Lazy. I could go either way. I'm having issues with foot pain (fasciitis), so I had to replace all the running exercises with something else, like rowing or elliptical. And I missed blogging the workouts the last 2 weeks so here we go:

Monday 19th
warm up: CORE and 4 x 8 hang clean 1 x 65lb, 3x 75lb
3 Rounds of:
group hang clean x 10 x 75lb
200 rows on rowing machine
15 single arm push press 20lb DBs
200m backwards on elliptical
tuck jumps x 20
It was supposed to be 5 rounds but I had to get to carpool so I did 2 more rounds at work in the afternoon

Tuesday 20th
warm up CORE
5 Rounds of : 1 min at each station, 1 min rest after completion of all 5  
Box Jump 18 inches
wall ball 12lb
plate push 35lb
jump rope (try for at least 100 jumps)
push press 65lb

Wednesday 21st
warm up CORE
30 minutes to do as many rounds as possible- I got 3 1/4
15 single arm snatch each arm 25lb
200 rows
15 kettlebell swing 20lb
10 pushups, 10 chair pushups, 10 clapping pushups ( i had to do the clapping ones on my knees, grr)

Mountain bike for about 45 minutes in the evening- easy pace

Friday 23rd
1 1/2 mile on the elliptical with call outs (stop to do whatever C says do: pushups, jumping jacks, mountain climbers, etc)  50 tire flips to be done any time. I did 20 in the middle of the "run" and 30 after.

Monday 26th
warm up CORE
20 minutes- as many rounds as possible
10 lat pulldowns 70lb
10 push ups
15 squats with 12lb DBs

Friday 30th
warm up CORE
Jump rope- 1 min dbl foot jump, 30 sec right leg, 30 sec left.  2 min rest, REPEAT
1 min dbl foot jump, 30 sec shuffle jump, 30 sec dbl under- which I could NOT do. Kept whacking my ankles with the rope.  2min rest REPEAT
20 sec work 10 sec rest x 8 intervals (4 min of ea exercise)
push up
squat
full sit up
walking lunge

I Heart Tractor Tires

What a great way to spend a Sunday morning and afternoon.



















Monday: warm up with Core work
10 min limit- do 50 tire flips- GO!  Did it.
Overhead tire presses- 4 people pressing. Supposed to do 50, I'm not sure if we did. I think I blacked out.
50 tire flip and jump  (flip, jump in, jump out)

Tuesday: warm up with bench press...5x65lb, 5x75lb
 Bench press 2x3x95lb, 2x2x105lb, 1x1x105lb
50 chair pushups, 15,10,10,10,5
superset: incline DB press 3x10x20lb, 1x10x25lb AND Ab Ball Flys 4 x 15 x 15lb
50 pushups wearing 25lb weight vest 15,15,13,8

Wednesday: warm up with Core 
30 minutes to do as many rounds as possible: did 7 Rounds in just over 30min of:
20 mt climbers each leg
20 sec sprint 20% incline 6.6mph
10 single leg plyo jumps 90lb
200m run
Wednesday night was just nuts and I didn't feel like cooking so instead- we had this lovely plate of cheese, fruit and smoked salmon rolled with cream cheese and grilled squash. 

Thursday: warm up with Coreand bench press 1x5x85, 2x2x100, 2x3x95
20 min limit to do as many rounds as possible:did 4
400m run
21 kettlebell swings x 20lb
12 pullups (used a band for assist)

Friday: NADA, did nothing. Felt guilty. Dunno why.

Saturday: Heavy Yard Work. Still hoping I saw the Poison Ivy before it saw me. So far so good.

Sunday-GOT MY MOUNTAIN BIKE ON!

This morning we set out at Murray Park, close to the Big Dam Bridge and headed over the bridge into NLR. At the Soccer fields we cut over to the trails at Burns Park to ride in the woods for a while. We rode for several miles and there is a sweet  but much too short ridge ride that we love. There's J on the ridge, and here's me coming down the end. J says I always look stressed in every picture so he said SMILE! Now he says I have a cheesy fake grin- Bud, you can't haven't both ways.

We rode out of the park and down the river trail to the Emerald Park turn to head up the switchbacks to Ft. Roots. We rode the rough and tumble rocky trail down to pick up the river trail once again and into downtown Little Rock. We stopped at Rumba Mexi-Cuban Kitchen for a bite to eat. Turns out they do a brunch on Sundays with a make your own Bloody Mary bar. hmmm. Didn't try the Bloody Mary bar since we were still riding. I had grilled fish tacos and J had the chorizo with cheese grits. If we hadn't eaten 2 count them 2 baskets of chips, it would have been better. : ) Those last 6 miles or so to finish the river trail were a bit  tougher than they had to be.

We'll have EASY workouts, April Fools!

Monday: warm up with Core
6 rounds of:
Max chair pushups
30 kettlebell swings (20lb)
350 m run holding 15lb medicine ball
50 m of backward lunges holding med ball at chest height

Tuesday:
Bench Press warm up then 2x3 @ 95lb 1x2 @ 100lb but failed on #2 so 1x1 back @ 95lb
Superset: 4 x 20 close grip push ups with 4 x 12 tricep pulldowns @ 30lb
Superset: 5 x 10 lat pulldowns @70lb with 5 x 10 curl and press @ 15lb for some, 20lb for some
partner curl with 30lb bar: 10 reps,8,6,4,2,1,3,5,7,9

Wednesday: 1.5 hours mountain biking with the girls : )

Thursday: warm up with Core
20 rep-15rep-10rep each
Thrusters (front squat with push press)  45lb for 20 and 15 set, 65lb for 10 rep set
squat thrusts
 Followed immediately by 1.5 mile run  total time 21:02

Also did 45 minutes of step aerobics in the afternoon

Friday:
Upper Body-50 push ups, bench press 2x5 @ 85lb 2x3 @ 90lb, 50 chair pushups
followed by 400m run, 400m backward jog, 200m sprint

And then the trouble started!  Hot dogs, chips, ice cream- fish tacos, margaritas and apple crepes with grand marnier!!!! It was a good (bad) food weekend. And now there is a pork loin a cookin in my kitchen. I love to eat. 

These Boots are Made for Walkin'...

A little more than seven years ago, I purchased a pair of hiking boots to wear on a dream trip to hike the Inca Trail in Peru. I love those boots. Rather, I loved them. I loved them till they looked like a ratty old doll in the bottom of the toy chest. That pair of boots carried me, my pack and my dreams on countless adventures. They have hiked trails on 2 continents. They have been on my feet as I helped build new trails. They've played in the rare Arkansas snowfalls and kept my feet dry while throwing the snowballs I'm lucky to make every couple of years. They've crossed streams and rivers and mountain passes yet have never once given me a blister. The boots must love me too. They carried me along when I was in front of, in back of, and most importantly beside my treasured partner in outdoor adventure.

Alas, as all good things must come to an end, so it was with my boots this past week. About halfway through a 27 mile hike we were walking along a rocky riverbed when something didn't feel quite right. I looked down to find that the sole of my boot was flapping freely in the breeze. And the other boot was about to blow too.  Did I immediately worry about how I was going to finish the hike with no sole? No. My first thought was "How will I ever replace these!?"  Everyone knows that duct tape is essential. Not only when hiking in backcountry...duct tape should be mandatory equipment for life.  My boys quickly bound both my boots at the toe and we continued on our way. Those duct tape covered boots made it through the rest of the day, over rocks and roots, up steep hills and back down again and then I asked for more. We still had another 6.5 miles to go on day three. The terrain would not be as demanding but it would be wet. And they held together. I'm tempted to keep them regardless of appearance. Perhaps like the worn out and hard loved Velveteen Rabbit, my boots will have another life after this one.

Thanks to LOWA for 7 years of fantastic adventure. Guess I'd better start shopping.

What Grade is that Climb?

Because I'm kind of sick and wanted to learn more about the Marathon and the 17 mile "fun run" that happens on the trail we hiked last week, I went back and looked a bit closer at the website for the run. This is what I found about the climbs of late day 1 and all of day 2 of our trip.

8 Ridge Passes:
Missouri
Hurrican Knob
Brier Creek
Leader
Brushheap
Brushy
Big Tom

Max elev. 2028 ft     Min elev. 1023 ft     Climbing Gain 4600 ft 
Climbing distance 7.10 mi       Avg Grade 12%

Nice. So the marathon involves all these climbs- twice? It's an out and back. My original assumption that these people are crazy still holds.

Spring Break Hike

Several weeks ago, my stepson David asked us if we would take him backpacking for Spring Break. I couldn't let that opportunity pass! A trip that we have planned several times but never made happen was waiting for us. We could start the Eagle Rock Loop , the longest loop trail in Arkansas, in less than 2 hours drive time from home. Monday morning bright and early we packed up the car and headed straight into adventure.

We started at the Albert Pike Rec Area in Langley, AR. We each got our gear out, changed into boots and looked down the trail. Immediately all the information about water crossings that we had read and heard  came roaring to the surface. There was a low water bridge and a small stream crossing within 0.1mi of the parking area. It's going to be a wet day. A fantastic, beautiful, scenic, lovely, wet day. Which meant a slow start because the camera was out. A lot. Within a couple of miles we ran into a large youth group from Illinois who had sheltered overnight in the rain and snow flurries of Sunday. They stayed with us until the first river crossing. It was thigh high (for me anyway, knee high for the guys) and I learned a lesson to last the rest of the trip: Choose your path carefully before you step into the water. It's cold in there! The group went in search of a better crossing spot and we didn't see them again. I hope they had a good time enjoying the sunshine after the rain.

One of the most popular sections of the 

Little Missouri Trail  is Winding Stairs. I found a you-tube video from Exploring Arkansas with Chuck Dovish about this part of the trail. We found the perfect spot for lunch and took our time enjoying peanut butter and honey sandwiches while listening to the rushing water and dreaming about using that rope swing over the deep blue swimming hole on a hot summer day. This part of the hike gave us a lot of small stream crossings, I think we stopped counting at 10 by mid morning.  Most of them were rock hoppers but a few were sit down and put on the Tevas or Keens. At one rather deep and wide crossing we ran into some girls from OBU on a day hike. I think they learned some lessons that day too. Like believe it when someone tells you you're going to get wet. And don't wear so much cotton. David got to play the chivalrous knight and offered advice from the far side, a hand as they made it across and shared his Shamwow to dry their feet. No ladies, chivalry is not dead. At least not on the trail.

We knew the section of the Athens-Big Fork trail was going to involve multiple steep climbs over mountain ridges so we tried to get one over with before we made camp for the night. We made it up to Eagle Rock Vista about 3:30 p.m. and spent a few minutes enjoying the view. The climb up was moderately strenuous for the old  'rents, but the boy just went up like he had wings. In the valley we found the perfect camp spot with plenty of room for both tents, off the trail, and next to water. We were pleasantly surprised at the number of campsites along the way. It was still relatively early so we hunkered down for a lengthy UNO game before making our standard first night camp dinner of Mac n Cheese with Summer Sausage. Don't judge, just understand that some traditions hold dear, even if it means carrying a pound of sausage in your pack. J could barely keep his eyes open and though we all debated about the dangers of going to bed too early lest we all be up at the crack of dawn...we crashed and didn't get up until after 7 a.m. the next morning.

Finishing the Athens-Big Fork trail will be the toughest part of the hike. We all know it and we're ready for the assault. Up. Up. Lots of Up. and killer down. Did I mention there was a lot of water too? We had 5 ridges to pass over and lots more stream/river crossings. I can't believe this was once a mail route between Athens and Big Fork. There is a marathon and a "fun run" in this area. See these people? These people are nuts. This is a tough trail. Look what it did to my boots!  These trails are rocky and require sturdy soles and souls. Thank God for duct tape and prayer. Amen. 

A recent controlled burn made parts of this trail seem a bit desolate, especially since life hasn't had time to "green up" even in areas not burned. Still there is beauty to be found in the desolation, you just have to dig a little deeper to find it. Like this guy. He was finding the beauty in a sunny day on the trail until I almost stepped on him. No I did not leave the starburst...snakes don't like sugar. That's how they keep their slim figures.

The plan for the day was to hike as long as we could, at least until 5 before we started looking for a camp site. We made it within 0.25 mile of the Little Missouri Falls Rec Area which we thought was pretty good since the last 6-7 miles would be much easier terrain than the day we just completed. After setting up camp and making jambalaya for dinner, I brought out the treat of the day- Chocolates. It's rare we have the right temps to carry anything chocolate and they were a welcomed treat out there in the woods.

The morning started out a bit cloudy and threatening. We stopped at the Falls to take in the view.

Pretty soon we came to a section of the trail with multiple crossings of the Little Mo River. I don't know what it looks like in the Summer but it was flowing fast and was knee to thigh deep on me at every crossing. At the 3rd big crossing of the morning we caught up to a couple from Texarkana who were on their first backpacking trip. They had camped on the opposite side of the river from us the night before. We had a nice chat and were back on our way. About 2 miles from the end of our trip, the clouds parted, the trail became green and life was good. The boy was making it hard to keep up with his long legged strides and I unfortunately could not help but break into song every few minutes. This is an annoying trait, I recognize and embrace it. A few more small stream crossings and we were back to the low water bridge, tired and grinning from ear to ear. And most likely smelly. And most certainly carrying good memories in those heavy packs.