My Official Apology

This winter has be unkind to me...frankly this winter has been mean and cruel. My heart has been breaking slowly for the last five months...I barely feel alive. Pretty soon I will need to be on heavy dosages of meds to keep me going. Everyday I think about the Sun and try to remember what she looked and felt like. If there is one woman out there I miss more than anything it's the Sun...she always had a way of making me feel better when I was down...she would make me laugh. She was probably one of the best friends I ever had...but I must have done something to make her very very angry, because she hasn't been around for quite a long time.

Last week I think she tried to make amends with me, she came out for a few days...it was wonderful. Something must have spooked her because she left and now it's cold, dark and snowing. I plan to make this right again so this is my official apology to the Sun. I am so sorry for what I did to offend you. I know there was that day in the Fall when it was sunny out and I decided to stay in the house...I should have come out to play, I don't know what I was thinking. Also I remember the time when I was driving home and you were in my eyes and I cursed you...I was being stupid...I didn't mean any of it. You're my girl, I can't imagine my life without you. I promise I will play outside whenever you come to visit, I will always appreciate your warmth and light. Accept my apology and come back to play.

Sincerely,
Eugie

Name and Such

Today I need to pack because I'm heading out to California tomorrow for a couple days. Since I procrastinate I will update my blog instead. In California me and most of my family will be participating in a race on Angel Island. Angel Island is the next island over from Alcatraz...it's in the San Francisco Bay. I'm pretty excited because both my parents are doing it, and my sister and her husband are also doing it. I'm doing it because well, I'm 5 months pregnant with nothing to do. I figure I can just take it easy and enjoy the views. Right now California gorgeous ...it's green, the trees are filled with blossoms...it will be nice to get away from this tundra for a couple days. While I'm there we are going to have a big birthday fiesta with amazing mexican food and there will be pinyata's...it should be awesome!!!!

Well since we found out that we are having a boy the names have just been pouring in. Tell me what you think.

From the brothers:
‘17’ (yes it will be just the numbers)
Skulldozer,
Maxamillious,
Fabio,
Alejandro,
or Speed-Racer

Pretty good stuff there really. Then there is Seth;

Frank is his #1
Earl
Dwayne
Cleydus
Gosh, there are so many more names he has suggested but I’ve just tuned him out…so I can’t remember anymore…thank goodness.

As for now we are calling the baby/lizard Mordicai.

Traditon of Heritage

My husband comes from a family of 5 boys...no girls. I could not even imagine what is was like when they were all young. Even now they are all quite a handful when they get together. One thing the boys all have in common is a strong tradition of heritage (it's one of their families motto's, that and, 'comfort in neither tolerated or welcomed here'). Strange bunch of kids. Well Seth and I decided to keep tradition alive by adding another boy to the Gunderson clan. He should be here in the beginning of August. Just in time for Fall mountain biking season. Don't worry though, we will keep the EPO on ice till he comes.

Spring Time

I can feel it in my bones, spring is on it's way. They only problem is...I don't think the snow in my front yard will ever melt. We have piles of snow on the north facing side of the house. I think it will be late May before it is all gone. Oh well. What we are doing now is preparing for spring we have started our seedlings for vegetables and flowers. It's pretty exciting...last year we tried to do the same thing...we got all the seedlings started and we bought a table for them to sit on so they could get the best sun light. Well we came home one day and our little colony of plants had a visit from our fat dog. Kiowa got on the table and laid on all of our seedings. We call it 'The Destruction of 2007'. Because of that and Kiowa's stubborn fat ways the plants got booted off the table per her request and she got the table. Which to this day that table still sags in the middle. Check out the picture below that her on the table, oh wait never mind that's her getting into the garbage. Bad Dog!
Here it is, oh wait a second this is where Kiowa saved Seth. Seth fell in a well and Kiowa went in to get him. Good Dog!This is the picture I'm talking about;Pretty soon after this picture she kicked that tree off the table...she wanted to be Queen of the house, while I wasn't there of course. She always knew what was going on in the neighborhood....snoopy little dog.

Here she is again in our new house...still her same table and her same fat ways.

Winter Wonderland...No Such Place

We moved to Logan this last summer...and I could not have been happier...it's a gorgeous place to be. The weather is perfect up here...you are tucked away in this little mountain valley. The mountain biking is amazing. We find new trails all the time and they are all so good. Autumn came around and the weather had a little bite to it...but still were hiking and biking the trails. It's such a great place to live...up until a few months ago. Now my devotees know that I have a hard time with winter...but I usually make the best of it. I'm still running outside...training for some race...I try to keep it real still. But here it's a different story. I haven't seen the sun since....hmmm....I honestly don't remember when I saw the sun last...maybe sometime in December. There is no way I can run here...there's way too much snow every where on the streets and sidewalks...and it's too cold anyway to go out side...too cold for me!!! What has happening to the perfect most fabulous summer hide away.

I don't really snowboard anymore so it's not like I get all excited about the snow and since it has been snowing for the last month...I have not been that excited. However I am going to start changing everything...I am now going to start liking winter...it may not be my favorite season...okay it will still be dead last...but it should start getting more stock. Here are the things I am going to start doing to enjoy the frozen waste lands of Cache Valley;

Build a Snowman: I can't remember the last time I built a snow man...but this snowman will be dressed to the Nines. It also has to be atleast 5-6 feet tall. Once completed I will take a picture if my camera works by then and I will post the beast on this site.

Extreme Snowshoeing: Snow shoeing is fine and all...but it's kind of like walking....on the snow. Actually that is exactly what it is...walking on the snow with tennis rackets on you feet. Truth be told not that exciting...so now I am going to go extreme, I'm going to start hucking myself off drops, doing 360s, flips, going in the trees and getting all sorts of out of control. Since there are a lot of areas with ridiculous amounts of snow I am so going to set off an avalanche and ride that home. That should spice up my winter. I think any near death experience always livens things up.

Snow Shovel Races: My younger sister is coming out to hang out with me for a month. Why? Because she is freaking awesome and knows this is the time of year her sister going into a deep dark scary depression...so she here to be a bad ace and keep me happy. One thing that makes her super awesome is that she is so super uber competitive...but she's the quiet type...I'm kind of the louder trash talking dissing your momma kind of competitor, but she the sweet quiet tear your face off when you least expect it competitor...and when you put us together it's war! So we will be having Snow Shovel Races around the property...(truth be told I may lose this one on purpose I hate shoveling, but I won't tell her that).

Dog Sled Racing: You know my dog is a snow dog...so I am going to strap a harness and a sled on her but i won't get on the sled...that's just dead weight for her to carry and then I am going to race her up green canyon...winner gets a bath...(she needs one...I like them so it's a prize everyone could enjoy).
I wish I had a picture of her in the snow...but she so fast once she hits the snow that there is no chance of getting a good picture.

Snow Ball Fight: I am going to have a good 'ole fashion snow ball fight...with the people walking by the house...I will build a fort wait for the older people in the neighborhood to take their daily stroll in the court then I will pelt them with snow balls. (This may not actually happen) Truth be told if anyone is going to get a snow ball to the head it will be my husband when he least expects it. If I do actually hit him I will then run away like a coward because he is way better at a snow ball fight than I am. I think it's a guy thing.

I will follow up on my winter plans and let you know if he has changed the angst in my heart toward the worst season of the year.

I'm Back...For Now

Sorry about my extended leave of absence.  The last post I was going to write was to plan out my race calendar for 2008.   I had a Marathon, Half Iron Man, smaller triathlons, and some Bike Races.  It was going really well.  I started my training.  Then I started to get really sick and then stayed sick...but now I am feeling a little better.  So I signed up for a Half Marathon at the end of March it will me in Napa Valley, CA.  Some of my family members are going to participate...that makes it worth the trip to get out there.  That and it is absolutely gorgeous out there.  I really won't be able to do that many races this year because I am pregnant.  Yup.  Tomorrow is the 12 week point, so for the last 2 months I really have done nothing...I've been feeling like a dump truck.  I wasn't anticipating feeling so junkie.  Luckily I am feeling better so I need to start running so I will be ready for Napa.  I am not going to get my best time or anything, I am just going to have a good time and hang with my family.  I will try to do better at posting more often, I have been getting death threats regarding my lack of posts. 

Thanksgiving in Moab

We spent Thanksgiving this year in Moab with some of our friends. We had three days of amazing mountain biking. There's not much to say about the weekend except that I am now an official mountain biker...I know many of you did not know that I was faking it, but I was. Not anymore though because I am official. I was able to ride more , drop more, and climb more than I ever have before. We did Slick Rock on Thursday, it was chilly but a lot of fun. Then Thursday night is snowed a bit so we decided to do a little sandier trail so we did the Sovereign Trail which was the first for all us. Okay the climibing on that trail was freaking bonkers for sure...but once you got to the top it was a total rush. Below is a pix of me on Sovereign. My friend Paul who was with us is an animal and while climbing to the top he stripped out his free wheel which means he has no power. The wheels can't turn with out the free wheel...so he ran up any incline and rode his bike down. He was still faster than me most of the time. Then he and I got to a level portion of the trail and we started towing each other with three tubes tied together. I t took a little practice to get used to it but it was pretty fun and we were out of control. Then on Saturday we did Porcupine Rim, again that was my first time on that trail and I loved it. I loved dropping down stair cases of rocks . Climbing up the staircases were a little tricky, but I really got the hang of going down the slabs of rock. I like it because you have to stay really focused on what your doing because if you aren't you crash. I like trying to pick out the right line to take , and near the end I started picking out harder lines to take. Yeah I guess I just had to grow a pair. It was a great weekend and I am completely converted to mountain bike on Thanksgiving. We did it last year and loved it, and now this year was just as much fun. We had our great friends meet us there; Paul and Titus. They made the camping experience all the better too. Sovereign Trail

Our pulley system.

Holiday Run

I have started to organize a race. This race is a little different. It is on Christmas Morning, or Christmas Eve. The cool part about the race, is that it is up to you to decide on your own distance and route. Since most of us are in different parts of the country we obviously can't be together for the run, but we can run on the same day. I have started a blog to track the runners who are signing up.

If you have never done anything like this, please give it a try. It will hopefully be a little challenge, and something you can do to stay active during the holiday season. You know try to keep the holiday weight away.

Check out the blog
Holiday Run

Sign up the run...you will be great. It will be so much fun if you get your family and friends involved.

You can sign up for 1 mile walk, 5 k run, 10 k 13.1, 26.2, 55.4 or whatever it doesn't matter the distance...just do something that will challenge you. Hopefully you will have a good time.

The login is
Christmasrun or christmasrun@gmail.com
password: runnersworld

Also let me know what you think of this idea.

FMRBRSRP seeking FMRBRSRP

I'm thinking about putting an ad in the paper in hopes of finding a girlfriend.

FMRBRSRP* seeking other FMRBRSRP* enjoys long bike rides, grueling runs, polar swims with snapping turtles, sarcasm and sass. Will train** and commit to any race you offer.

I need to find some cool girls to kick it with, but I don't want to find friends that don't like to do everything I do. They should at least do some of the things I like to do. Otherwise our friendship just won't work. I have enough good friends I can talk to about life and such, but I need a training partner who I can have slam*** nights with. She will need to be tough and have a great sense of humor...otherwise she will dump me. (it's happened before)

Seth has been getting me numbers from mountain biker women. He's such a good guy. He will talk to any woman who has a bike to get their number for me...wait a second...that doesn't sound right. I think he's alright though.

I have a couple numbers and emails so I am going to start making some first dates happen here. Wish me luck...it's like starting all over. I have this awesome girlfriend who would do anything athletic with me...but she doesn't live in Logan yet...we thought the long distant relationship would work but it hasn't. It's been pretty hard on both of us. Until she moves out here so we can continue making each other wake up too early in the morning and bringing the rain to every work out I have to make new friends...friends we can share.

I'll let you know how it all goes.

*Female Mountain and Road Biker Runner Swimmer and Racquetball Player
**training may not actually happen
*** hours and hours of crazy work out in the middle of the night

Night Mountain Biking

Last night I went mountain biking at night for the first time. I thought I would be a little freaked out by biking single track at night, but I loved it. It took on such a different feeling. I don't know how to explain it...it was like riding in the dark. Yeah that's exactly how it was. No, we had lights on out bikes and helmets...but it was still exciting. You didn't exactly know what was ahead of you so you had to be quick to adjust. I thought I rolled over a lot of stuff I normally would have avoided had there been more light. I think I am hooked, it's a great time for Seth and I to bike together esp. if we have had long days and ran out of day light.

Big Sur

This weekend I did a Half Marathon in Big Sur California. It was great, I really need to start looking at race profiles. This race was straight up and down for the entire race. It didn't feel like a race it felt more like an adventure. It was fun I got to run with my Dad, Sister and some friends.

Great Run

Late this evening I had a great run - I ran up Green Canyon and the colors of the trees are changing right now. I wish I took a picture, but the reds were so vibrant and cooling. I just loved it, the air was moist and the soil was soft. It was a perfect run. I am going to try to go back up tomorrow and take a picture. Utah really knows how to age gracefully.

This weekend I am going to run a half marathon with my family in California. I really couldn't not be more excited and proud. I am proud of my family for stepping out of their comfort zone and try something new. I hope they enjoy the rush of the race and sign up to do another one. This race is in California and you run through the Redwood forest and ocean grasslands. It is going to be a great weekend.

Lotoja - Part 2

It was time to line up for the start of the race. I registered as a Cat 5 which meant I got to start earlier, but I started with the men. I was in a pack of 50 men, so it was kind of cool being the only woman in the group.

Logan - Preston 34 Miles

This leg of the race was of course the easiest part, we were in a good size pace line, the roads were flat, and everyone was fresh. We weren't going as fast as I thought we would so I was pretty happy about that, I think we averaged about 23-24 mph. We hit Preston, most of the group fed on the fly which meant they did not stop to get water or food, it was in a bag they grabbed while riding by. This was the last I saw of my group. Captn' (father-in-law), Scott (Seth's cousin), and I all stopped to get water bottles and food. Most everyone else kept riding.

Preston -Montpelier 46 Miles

This part of the race is where things start to get a little sucky. So we didn't have a group to ride with anymore so it was just the 3 of us. Then somehow the Captn' fell off the back, I don't know when it happened I just looked back and he was gone. We had a plan that we would wait for each other at the top of the climb. That's right we had a pretty big climb ahead of us. Anyway I will just summarize what happened.

Climb begins - Eugie slows down - Scott takes off - Jay the Dentist past me - just about everyone past me - I hate guys - the climb was long and took forever - I finally get to the top - I didn't feel well - waited for the Captn' - no one else waited, Captn' and I by ourselves for plentysix miles to go - suck - descent - fast - we were flying to Montpelier - feeling better - stopped feeling better - feel like crap - slowing down - get in to town to the feed zone - grabbed new water bottles - sat in the middle of the road while Scott's wife lathered me down with sunscreen.

Montpelier - Afton 45 Miles

Don't remember much - climbing - wind from all directions - a lot of climbing - some steep climbing - I wanted to vomit for the rest of the day - body hurts - legs cramping - what is going on with me?

Afton - Alpine 35 miles

Again don't remember much - didn't talk much to Captn' - I couldn't spare the calories - I hate riding my bike - playing mental game on my bike to keep my on it - stopped on the side of the road - laid in the grass - heaven - everything hurts - met another woman on the ride and she told me this was harder for her the natural childbirth - okay not afraid of labor.

Alpine - Teton Village 47 miles

I hate riding my bike - hate it - scenery was beautiful but who cares - I'm in hell - I hate riding my bike - I kept going slower and slower - I stopped eating - contemplating crashing to get me off this bike - no just stay on and finish - roll into Jackson - Oh we must be close to the finish - no - not at all - still so far away - turned right to go to Teton Village - I must be close - nope again - where the hell is the end of this race - I want to die - I hate biking - I am selling my bike - don't anyone talk to me - finally I think I see something - nope nothing - how long is this final stretch? - who planned this course? - why did I do this? - I now can see the finishing line - Captn' made me sprint to the finish - I hate biking - Thank heaven it is finally over!

Teton Village - Recovery

There is something about Lotoja that makes people lose their desire to ride their bikes. Once you cross the finish line there is a bike path to the parking area it's about .5 miles away. No one rides their bike there, everyone walks their bike back. It's crazy. I felt sick that night of course and I was pretty hungry the next day, and the day after that. I am feeling much better about my experience. I actually think I may do it again one year. Seth wants to do it next year on a Tandem. We will see about that.

All and all I can't believe I did it, sure I was a little disappointed in how poorly I performed and I am not exactly sure why I had such a bad day. I suppose just finish the race is an accomplishment all in its own rite. I'm happy I did it, and I feel that I no longer have anything to prove. Thank Heaven!!!

Lotoja - Part 1

Okay I think I am ready to talk about it. I finished lotoja 2 weeks ago or something like that...or maybe it was just last weekend...I don't know everything has kind of been a blur. If you are interested in what could have been the last few moments of my young life please read on.

Let me give you some quick description of the course. For 206 miles you will meet 7,000 feet of climbing, wind from all directions, false finishes (the race actually ends in Teton Village 10+ miles pass Jackson), rough roads, and plenty of opportunities to get off your bike and call it quits.

Pre-Race Party
The pre-race party was awesome...it was probably my favorite part of the event, the pre-race party started the night before. We had all the pirates over for a fun pasta dinner. I made these sweet pink cupcakes with the Jolly Robert's on them....they were awesome!

I woke up early and got a light ride in before the start of the race. I felt good, that was the last time I felt good for the rest of the day. Awesome....

be continued......

Hell in a Handbasket

I did it. I will be able to tell more about later...but the important thing is that I did it. It was probably to most definitely the most painful experience of my athletic career.

Eve of Victory or Disaster...

Tomorrow is the big day. There's a lot riding on this race...mainly my pride. I am starting in a pack of 50 riders...and I am the only girl in the pack...that's right boys you better bring it. Nah I'm just kidding I don't want anyone to bring it.

Today to kick off the festivities we are going to have a huge pasta party at the house. There are going to about 25 pirates at the house. Okay so even though I am riding I still need to be a good hostess...so I am going to make cupcakes with pirates on them....

Okay well i need to get cracking.

Lotoja - The Calm Before the Storm

If you have been a devotee to this blog then you are familiar with my 'doom and gloom' attitude toward any of my athletic events. You where with me when I did my first marathon...then my second...then again when I did the half iron man....and during all those events I was sure I was going to die each time. This next race is no exception...no exception indeed! Saturday I am going to do Lotoja it's a local bike race with just about 1000 riders. It starts in Logan Utah and finishes in Jackson Hole Wyoming, that's right Wyoming the Cowboy state...tough mothers come from Wyoming - watch out for them cowboys. It's going to be about 206 miles on a bicycle. I am thinking it may take me about 11-12 hours...I know for those of you that have done it already it's no big deal...but for me it's a big deal...so big in fact that I don't even think about it. Thats right I try not to think about it at all. I do have a simple game plan...it's as follows; Wake up early Saturday morning...eat breakfast...get dressed for a normal Saturday bike ride...start biking...don't get off 'til it's dark. That's all I have for now. Yeah if I think about it then I start to get an ulcer. All and all it should be fun.

Native American Fry Bread

I just made this for dinner tonight and it was so good.

3 cups flour
1 T b powder
1t salt
3 T butter
about 1 cup warm milk or water (I used milk)
vegetable oil for frying

1. In a food processor, combine the flour, b powder, and salt. Pulse a few times to mix. Add butter and pulse. With the motor running, slowly pour in the warm milk through the feed tube, adding only enough liquid and processing only long enough for the dough to come together into a ball.

2. Transfer the dough to a lightly floured work surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes. Shape into a ball, cover with plastic wrap, and let rest for 20 minutes.

3. Divide the dough into 6 equal portions. On the lightly floured surface, roll out each portion into a round about 1/4 inch think. In a heavy sauce pan or a deep , heavy frying pan, pour in vegetable oil to a depth of 3-4 inches and heat to 365 degrees or so. Add a dough round and fry, turning once, until puffed and golden, about 1 minute on each side. Using tongs, transfer to paper towels to drain; keep warm. Serve warm.

After all of that I top with taco goodies. Enjoy.

Life Aquatic

Here is the story of our lives.

Official Pose