One Amazing Thing a Day!

My goal for this road trip was to see or experience at least one amazing thing per day. A part of that goal was to get pictures of these experiences as well, both so I can use them to make cards to raise money for the American Cancer Society and become a National Geographic photographer someday (we'll see about that one haha). In this post, I've included one (sometimes two) amazing things that John and I saw. I will also be putting together a new video of photos to use for my cards... so stay tuned. I hope you enjoy this brief summary of a wonderful two weeks =-)

Day 1- Yosemite National Park- “The Grizzly Giant” Sequoia in the Mariposa grove at Yosemite- It was ginormous!

Day 2- Yosemite National Park- Waterfalls Galore! My favorite was Vernal Falls below that I trekked up alone with my camera wrapped in a sweatshirt so it didn’t get too wet while I snapped a picture.

Day 3- I didn’t say SEE 1 amazing thing per day- so anything goes! At Sierra Nevada Brewery (Chico, CA), I tasted at least 13 amazing beers!

Day 4- Lake Shasta, CA- Shasta Dam and a view of Mt. Shasta (a fourteener)- Shasta Dam is the second largest Dam in the country.

Day 5- Unnamed Beach (possibly “Klamath” Beach) in Northern California- I was suffering from sheer exhaustion after a long hike and few days that felt non-stop. While I was fast asleep in the car, John drove up to Klamath Indian Reservation to try to find me ice cream, on the way back, he found this beautiful beach! It was very secluded, was scattered with giant boulders, and had the biggest waves I’ve ever seen! This was a highlight of the trip for both of us.

Day 6- Oregon Vortex- A cheesy tourist trap, but fun nonetheless. Apparently this is a vortex in which the regular rules of physics do not apply… you get bigger and smaller in size at different points- FREAKY.

Day 7- Crater Lake at Crater Lake National Park in Oregon- This lake was formed when a volcano erupted and collapsed thousands of years ago.

Day 8- Portland, Oregon-Voodoo Doughnuts- I couldn’t remember the last time I had a doughnut before this, but if I never have a doughnut again, I will be satisfied for the rest of my life with this experience. They put everything from fruit loops to butterfingers to cocoa puffs on doughnuts. They even have a little voodoo doll doughnut with a pretzel spear through his heart- or maybe work your own voodoo and bite off someone’s jelly filled head.

Day 9- Portland, Oregon- The International Rose Test Garden- This 4.5 acre garden is used to actually test new varieties of roses from all over the world! It was packed to the brim with reds, pinks, oranges, whites, yellows, and any color rose you could possibly imagine.. up to 10,000 plants. Next door was a Shakespeare garden filled with every plant ever mentioned in a Shakespeare play… impressive!

Day 10- Mt. St. Helens- We visited Mt. St. Helens in Washington, a volcano that erupted in 1980. Unfortunately, there was a thick layer of fog covering a good portion of the mountain so we could not see the crater left when one side of the peak exploded. It was still amazing to be in the presence of this powerful force of nature.

Day 11- Seattle, Washington- Chateau Ste. Michelle winery and a sunset over the Puget Sound- I couldn’t decide between which one of these to use, so I figured I would include both of them! Chateau Ste. Michelle is a wonderful winery that distributes all over the country and is one of the first American wineries to actually compete with French wines. One word: RIESLING! When we got back into the city, we ate a seafood bucket feast (which probably could’ve also been included as an amazing thing of the day) and enjoyed a stunning sunset over the Puget Sound- Sailboats and all.

Day 12 (part a)- Vancouver, British Columbia- TIM HORTON’S- Now maybe most of you Buffalonians would consider Timmy Ho’s good, but not amazing. When you can only enjoy it a couple times a year, however, it becomes amazing. I was not expecting to see one either (forgetting that it is a Canadian thing), which made the experience that much better. I’m pretty sure John thought I was having a heart attack when I screamed in the realization that there is a possibility of a Tim Horton’s nearby.

Day 12 (part b)- Squamish, British Columbia- The Chief- This is the 2^nd largest granite monolith in the world. We were going to hike it, but it was too rainy =-( . I think that my favorite thing about Squamish, however, is the fact that the indigenous people actually spell it like this: “Sḵwxwú7mesh” --In case you didn’t notice, there’s a seven in that word! Haha

Day 13- Vancouver, British Columbia- The Capilano Suspension Bridge (and northwestern rainforest)- This was a fun, almost disney-like experience. We were able to cross an suspension bridge that is 4 full grown T-rex’s tall (really, that’s what they said). For those of you who have never had the opportunity to see a full grown T-Rex, this bridge can also be compared to the shoulder height of the Statue of Liberty.

Day 14- Mt. Rainier National Park, Washington- We camped overnight here (in the rain, yay). In the morning, there was still a thick layer of fog over the mountain. We were able to catch glimpses of some glaciers and some beautiful, surprise waterfalls created by the snowmelt along the road.

Day 15- MY BIRTHDAY- Columbia Valley wine country, Washington- It was my turn to pick where to go (not that John complained)! We got to visit a number of wineries in this region that pretty well known for Rieslings, but can grow just about anything. Some of the best wineries we visited were Bonair Winery, Maryhill Winery (2009 Washington Winery of the yea), Marshall’s Winery (in some guy’s garage, but delicious), and COR Winery. We also got to visit Full Sail Brewing across the river in Oregon! I highly suggest the Columbia Gorge area for a picturesque and relaxing vacation.

Day 16- Oregon Coastline- Although we were heading home (and had about 13 hours of driving ahead of us), we were able to take part of that drive down highway 101. It wasn’t a sickeningly windy road; John actually enjoyed driving it. I was able to enjoy spectacular views of the jagged cliffs above the ocean, waterfalls emptying into the Pacific, and giant waves crashing over still rocks. Although I wasn’t able to get many pictures since we had to get a move on, it was a brilliant way to end a magical two weeks before heading back to California for the summer!

Trivia- Just to see if you read to the end: We visited the second largest dam in the country, the Shasta Dam. What’s the largest?

Thanks for reading!

A long run and realization in the City of Roses!

While on our road trip, this past weekend, some friends in Portland, Oregon were nice enough to let us stay with them for a few nights. Not only did we stay with them, but they cooked delicious (and in my opinion, gourmet) dinners for us all three nights! This was greatly appreciated considering we still eat frozen ravioli and take and bake pizza like college students. They also showed us some awesome sights around the city of Portland including Powell's book store (HUGE), the International Rose Test Garden (more on that later), and Deshutes' brewery (among others). Thanks again guys!

I have discovered that being in a new city can have a wonderful affect on my running (particularly when that city is 5,000 ft. closer to sea level than the one that I live in). On Sunday morning, I was able to take a long run. It started out as a 4 miler, then 5, then 6, then... hell... why not 9 miles? I found that the excitement of being in somewhere new, one that happens to have miles and miles of walking/biking paths can inspire me to run farther. I actually didn't want to stop... it was so exciting to continue exploring... and what better way than by foot? I was able to run quite a ways along the Willamette (apparently pronounced with a nice Buffalo short a) River, a beautiful waterfront park/wildlife refuge, the Portland Opera House, and experience (on accident) a portion of the Portland Pride festival and parade.. heyy why not... I was on a roll!

PROBLEM: This was my longest run so far during this training period. It was somewhere between 9 and 9.5 miles. I can't be certain because my "awesome" iPhone shut off somewhere between 8 and 9 miles. Though it was a wonderfully inspirational and exciting run due to the new surroundings, towards the end, I realized that MAYBE I should not have run that far without having been totally ready. My hips ached and my back felt awful by the end. I realized what John has been telling me for weeks... "You need to strengthen!!!" When I spent an hour icing my lower back that Sunday afternoon is when I finally thought, "Yes, John, you are right, I am weak". I didn't do much strength training for the last half marathon, but I also felt very weak then as well. I think it's time to step up my game if I am going to run more continuously and for faster times.

SOLUTION: As a part of the DetermiNation program for the American Cancer Society, we get a "coach" of sorts. This is a professional who donates their time to the program to help the runners with training and any questions or problems we are having.... pretty cool huh? I was lucky enough to get an email from one of my coaches this week on the importance of core strengthening (abs, glutes, hamstrings, back, etc.). Just what I needed, thanks coach!

TIP OF THE DAY: As a runner, it may seem like speed, endurance, and cardio are what we need to focus on. Focusing on just those things, I've come to notice (as my body fights back against me), is like building a house on no foundation. I'm going to crumble and fall someday! Coach sent me a great core workout from Runner's World magazine that focuses on all the muscles I mentioned above. Hopefully with these workouts I can become a more balanced runner. The workout suggests exercises like planks, bridges, and supermans (among others). Coach also pointed out that Pilates' is very helpful for runners as well. This is about a 15 minute workout that I am going to try to fit in a couple times a week (after the road trip, of course). I think it will really help me improve and feel better after running! Here is the link to the article (it is 4 pages long)... Enjoy!:

http://www.runnersworld.com/article/0,7120,s6-238-263--13030-3-1X2X3X4-4,00.html

Superman

Plank Lifts

Thanks for reading! Keep looking back for some awesome pictures from my road trip that I am going to turn into cards! My goal was to see at least 1 amazing thing each day. Here are my latest pictures, you be the judge: https://picasaweb.google.com/KBuerster

Week 1 complete: Redwoods, Craters, and Vortices

My goal for this road trip was to see (or taste) at least one AMAZING thing per day.

Cue John: “Oh, well that’s easy, since you’ll be seeing me every day.”

Well, I had to let him down in the easiest way possible. Sorry John, what I mean is I wanted to see at least one NEW amazing thing every day. So, you do not qualify, although you are an amazing boyfriend ;-). Since I’ve last updated, we have driven to northern California, through Oregon, back to California, and back up through Oregon. Seems counterproductive, but let me explain.

We visited the Shasta Dam (the second largest in the U.S.), which was beautiful, but a quick trip. We quickly headed west towards the coast to Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park (and sort of National Park too). We camped in a Redwood forest near the coast and made a 7 mile hike through the forest and along the California coastal trail… BEAUTIFUL. We were even stared down by a herd of elk…. Terrifying if you ask me. While on the California coast, John drove north while I was fast asleep in the quest for ice cream (I had a terrible craving for some cookie dough). While on this journey, we found the MOST beautiful beach along the Pacific Ocean.. really. This beach was a completely random finding (perfect road trip material) and had the biggest waves I have ever seen in my life! We walked the boulder ridden coastline for an hour or two and of course we got some amazing pictures (to follow)!

The next day, we headed further north into Oregon, which is an extremely beautiful and picturesque state that I now believe does not get enough credit (but perhaps this is what makes it such a beautifully undiscovered area). A couple of hours into Oregon, I spotted a sign for the “Oregon Vortex” and “House of Mystery”. HOW CAN YOU TURN THAT DOWN?? I couldn’t, so we immediately left the highway on course for the Oregon Vortex, which is “A strange place where the improbable is commonplace and everyday physical facts are reversed”. John (the skeptic) and I (the gullible one) were in for most likely the cheesiest tourist trap in the west (although they call it “the west’s most-discussed attraction”). In this naturally occurring phenomena, people grow and shrink while walking across a level platform, a ball can roll uphill (I saw it, but do I believe it?), and standing level appears crooked. I don’t know what I thought of it, but judge for yourself with the pictures to follow.

I dunno... maybe I'm a skeptic

After that zany excursion came the long trek across part of Oregon and back into California to Lava Beds National Monument. We didn’t spend long here, but I must say, it was more impressive than I expected… once we found it! It took us a while to get to and I’ve never seen more mosquitoes in my life… they literally formed clouds. We did, however, get to see craters, chimneys, and giant beds of cooled volcanic rock formed thousands of years ago, pretty cool.

After that quick trip, we drove back into Oregon and north to Crater Lake National Park. We arrived very late and stayed in a “cabin”. I say cabin in quotes because, lets face it, it was more of a hotel than a camping experience… I NEEDED a real shower! We woke up early the next morning and left the “cabin” to greet even MORE mosquitoes! Apparently they lay their eggs in the snow and when it melts… it’s a giant mosquito party! Fun… huh? Since there was still about 10 feet of snow up here, we were not able to hike around, but we drove up to the lake and it was stunning! This lake was formed thousands of years ago after a massive volcanic eruption where the mountain collapsed. The lake is like glass and reflects much of its surroundings. These were the makings for some beautiful pictures. We were able to enjoy the lake for a bit while we lounged in the rocking chairs at the lodge. I was NOT upset that we were not able to hike around… I was more than ready for a relaxing rocking chair at the edge of a lake.

With some stunning acts of Mother Nature behind us, we headed out with some exciting cities, wineries, and views ahead of us. Stay tuned for my “amazing” things of the day for the second week of the road trip up the west coast! (... Trivia below...)

Trivia: Portland, Oregon was named after the city in Maine after a coin toss landed in favor of that city. What city was the other choice for the name of Portland, Oregon?

First stop: Yosemite National Park

So occasionally, my Rock 'n' Running blog will turn into a travel blog,my apologies. I have found a few ways to justify this. First, in my travels, I am taking tons and tons of (awesome) pictures to enhance my selection of cards that I'm selling. Second, I am trying to train while traveling. The first is going great, the second, not so well hehe.

John and I are currently on a two week road trip through Northern California, Oregon, Washington (and hopefully) Vancouver. This is our fourth day in and so far we have seen Yosemite National Park and Sierra Nevada Brewery (in Chico, CA).

Yosemite was AMAZING! My two favorite parts of nature are mountains and waterfalls, I got BOTH! I was literally surrounded by both of them in Yosemite Val

ley. I am so happy that we got a chance to check out this national

park, it was a wonderful and beautiful experience! There were two downfalls to Yosemite: 1. It was BUSY and crowded and 2. John was sick :-( poor guy. Despite the crowds, John was a real trooper and let me drag him around from site to site. At one point, he told me to go ahead alone and he actually fell asleep on a rock for an hour. What a guy... thanks! He could barely move by the end of the day.

Below are some pictures of some highlights of the trip. The only one missing is the part where I got to walk under Bridalveil Falls! It was definitely a highlight, but not one I was willing to bring a thousand dollar camera on!

John and I in Yosemite Valley with Bridalveil Falls, El Capitan, and Ha

lf Dome in the background.

Vernal Falls- with a rainbow! This was the hike that I completed alone so that John could nap... he said this part was a highlight for him ;-)

If you want to look at more of my pictures, check my Picasa link:

https://picasaweb.google.com/KBuerster/YosemiteNationalPark02?authkey=Gv1sRgCPqHocjbvv60OA&feat=directlink

Yosemite, we switched course and headed north to Chico, CA to visit Sierra Nevada Brewery. It was delish and awesome to visit! They have wayyy more beers than I thought and most of them are really good (in my opinion). I never took them to be such a creative brewery! After the brewery, we headed a bit further north to a HOTEL!! I have never taken such a lovely shower. Sorry I can't post pictures of that highlight ;-) I do not have the pictures ready yet from the brewery, so I will leave you with a bit of Sierra Nevada trivia:

Trivia Question: Sierra Nevada is the ___ largest craft brewery in the United States. Post your answers!

San Francisco, Salt Water, and Sweaty Bands... what a week!

So, a lot has happened since the Bolder Boulder and my last post. I'm continuing to make my cards to sell for the American Cancer Society and training, of course. I've done a few long runs, the longest so far is at 8 miles, so I'm feeling confident that I'm in a better place this year than last year.

The biggest news is that I am now living in Berkeley, California for the summer since John got a summer internship here. This would explain my lack of blogging since I've spent the last week with friends who are visiting, packing up, flying, unpacking, and dealing with our (let's just say) less than desirable living conditions (we'll chalk it up to "a story to tell the kids someday").

I went for my first run in Cali yesterday and it was AMAZINGGGG. I ran 5 1/2 miles, but thought it was only about 3... it is crazy what moving from 5,000 ft. altitude to sea level can do for ya. Now the trick is adjusting back to the mountains in August... eeeek! I also have a lovely sunburn to show thanks to the silly fogginess and cloudiness in the Bay Area. Yeah, Berkeley and San Francisco aren't known for their sunshine (miss you, Boulder)... but it is nice to be near water again =-)

So that was my training update, now for my Tip (running product) of the Day. I am trying to include one of these in each running post I write... so here goes:

TIP (product) OF THE DAY: So for all the girls out there, when I am working out, I have the biggest issue with keeping my hair out of my face. I can't wear the cool headbands that go all they way around your head because apparently I have a funny shaped head and they slide off every time I move. I'm also sick of the hard headbands because I keep breaking them. WHAT IS A GIRL TO DO?!?

At the Bolder Boulder Expo, I found the "Sweaty Bands" tent. It was very colorful and shiny, so of course I couldn't say no ;-) . Now, they swore "OMG... They don't slip", so I tried one on and despite the (sort of) steep price bought one. I have been using it now for two weeks since I wanted to make sure they really do their job before I tell you all to rush out and buy some. They are amazing! I want like 800 more! These headbands don't slip, but they also don't pull on your hair. They are so cute too, that you can even wear them when you aren't working out! Love them!

So here's the info: The company is from Ohio, but they have a website where you can buy all of their products. They offer sweaty bands in a thinner and thicker model. They are between $15-$18. Sweaty Bands boasts "turning perspiration into a fashion sensation", and they absolutely do. They offer so many cute patterns as well as sports themed ones, and even a Leukemia/Lymphoma society headband. I think all you girls who work out should check these out immediately: http://www.sweatybands.com/

PS- if you do not use this link, and instead choose to google, please google "Sweaty Band" haha... do not accidentally google "Sweaty Girl" like I did... ooops!!

Well folks, that's it for today. I'm off on a two week road trip of Northern California and the Pacific Northwest, sooo training is on the backburner for a bit. I will hopefully get some pictures up. Please comment to let me know what you think of the blog! Thank you for all your support!

SAN FRANCISCO TRIVIA (to test if you're reading to the bottom haha): There are more ____ registered in the city of San Francisco than children.

Bolder Boulder... 6.2 miles of marshmallows, beer, and fun

The Bolder Boulder is, according to Runner's World magazine (apparently), America's "all time best" 10k. It had better be considering it literally takes up an entire 3-day weekend in Boulder. Among the over 56,000 participants are world class runners, wheel-chair racers, children (a lot of them), walkers, and of course, my crew. I did not enter this race to win (uhh- 12 minute miles.. yikes), I entered to have a good time. Running this 6.2 mile course is like a mix between a giant Boulder block party, a circus, and an 8-year old's birthday party. Let me take you on our journey through the Bolder Boulder (pictures were taken with my iphone... while running...please excuse the poor quality).

This is a picture of Whitney (the other special ed. teacher at my school, and my other half at work) and I at the start of the Bolder Boulder. We've already ridden bikes to the start, braved the near endless lines of the port-o-potties and chased our wave for a few blocks (which, to give you an idea of how big this race is, started over 2 hours after the first wave). There were somewhere between 80-90 waves in all and we were still weaving in and out of people the entire 6.2 miles. We are ready for victory, glory, and a good time.

This picture is somewhere around mile 2. In trying to capture the enormity of this event by taking a picture of all the runners going up a hill, I actually captured the hilarity of the event by snapping a picture of the purple people. They may or may not have been the Boulder High track team... completely painted in purple... I couldn't wait for it to rain. Shortly after this, we rounded the corner to a family tossing marshmallows to the runners. Although I greatly appreciated the sugar, one could only imagine how difficult it is to continue breathing with a marshmallow in your mouth. Onward....!

Oooo look... we found Arlene and friend! Arlene is our "coach" in our district (and second mother) and hasn't missed a Bolder Boulder in years! We were grateful to have her waiting for us at mile 3, tu-tu and tiara clad. Maybe you think this is crazy, but in fact, this is the norm at the Bolder Boulder. Thanks for offering us the cheering section we needed. Quick picture... and we're off!

So somewhere between miles 3-4 (after the slip-n-slide and kiddie pool, but before the second group of stilted circus performers), was the Avery Brewery yard party. I had two words for them: "Thank God". We took a short excursion off the course to some dude's front lawn to grab some free Avery brews. I went with a nice, light White Rascal...mmmm. A half-mile or so later, when our beers wouldn't stop foaming up, we ditched them... but a little more revived for having drank 1/2 a beer. We were ready to conquer the hill of doom up to Folsom Field.

So the hill wasn't that bad. Here it is, Folsom Field, we get to run in with all of our glory to finish our journey... a bit intimidating, if anything. Notice the clouds and fog where there should be mountains. "A cloudy day in Colorado", you may ask? Yes, it's true, and it was a glorious day for this event, not 90 degrees like last year. It is at about this point where Whitney suggests (much like a certain friend last year), "let's sprint!!!". Also much like last year, I manage to trip and nearly plow down another runner over the finish line. Heyy.. let's chalk it up to tradition!

Here we are at the finish line, still alive. Notice, by the way, I'm wearing the American Cancer Society shirt... represent!!! It was a great time.. and hey.. I'm proud of our 12 1/2 minute miles... considering we also managed to take a picture with our biggest fan Arlene, scarf down some marshmallows, almost do the slip n slide, drink 1/2 a beer, and weave in and out of 56,000 people. Who's in for next year?