Wharf to Wharf Weekend '07 (W2W)

Just fresh off the 5-Fwy, and back home from another awesome vacation in Capitola for Wharf to Wharf weekend. Nine of us made the journey this year, and Ali secured us a kick-ass house rental right off the beach (porch w/view, hot tub, stocked kitchen, comfy beds)!

Here are Amber, Ali & Eric, checking out the progress at the grill our first night. The boys cooked and the gals shopped and cleaned -- pretty nice arrangement if you ask me!
Jeanette, Amber and Brian.... the night after the 6-mile Wharf to Wharf run and on our way to Cava wine bar in Capitola.

At Cava... making new friends. Amber and I with a fella who moved to Capitola from Malibu.

My flight was called "Road Trip"... seen here... very tasty!

After the race... a little wine and cheese at Cava... I took on the responsibility of entertaining the group before dinner. Jeanette was kind enough to join me in this task. We utilized the shell decorations for interpretive dances to music of the 70s, 80s & 90s. The couch crew would hop up from moment to moment, but Jeanette and I were the most committed.

There was much time spent in the sun... Eric surfed... the gals sunbathed.... Here are Ali and Jeanette suited up and ready to soak it all in!

Lisa, Steve, Rebecca and Brian chillin on our porch.What a beautiful set-up! Thanks for a great time everyone!

Note to selves... book the same house in '08. I'll see you all soon!

Something is cookin' in Arizona for James & Amy

Cupcakes for now, but there is a bun in the oven for expecting pair James & Amy Lombardi! Ex Angelenos/LATCers who wed and now reside desert-side are awaitng the arrival of baby Lombardi sometime in January '08 (1/4 is the actual predicted date, a baby Capricorn, just like Auntie Liz, and Daddy James!). They've decided not to find out the sex in advance, so they'll be getting a lot of green & yellow until the little one is introduced. Congratulations!

LISA BEAT ME TO HIM!

Okay, so David and Victoria have only been here a week, and Lisa already met them! Okay, so, she's a Brit herself, so I'm guessing she knows best where to worm them out... but, now I'm only counting the minutes and hours before she introduces me to her new friends..., Lisa?

Here is the snap she got last night, just w/David... Yeah, he's hot.

LA Tri Club TriCHICKS

On Sunday we got about 75 or so ladies of the LA Tri Club together for a TriCHICKS event at Santa Monica beach. These type of events are free & members-only. The morning consisted of a one hour bootcamp session, led by Lori Christensen; a Yoga for Athletes session, led by creator Kimberly Fowler of YAS; all followed by breakfast on the beach & brainstorming about how LA Tri Club could best serve our femme membership. We had a wonderful time! Pics, below:
Warm-up run, led by Lori Christensen:

Lori had the groups chicken-walk between bootcamp stations:

After bootcamp & a quick sip of water, Kimberly Fowler led her Yoga for Athletes session. YAS instructor Amanda is pictured here, illustrating the moves as Kimberly leads class.

Chair, anyone?

A snap of the group from afar:

Downward facing dog:

Here I am in the back of the group, attempting to balance.

When the yoga class came to a close, we all gravitated to fresh fruit, Arrowhead water, PowerBar, bagels and croissants to satisfy the hunger we'd worked up.

Food and water in-hand, it was time to chat. Most of the group, both newbie and veteran athletes, stayed to let us know how we might better serve the membership. Many good ideas flowed, and we look forward to implementing them in the months and seasons to come!

The LA Tri Club consists of over 1,450 members. There is not qualifier to join. Many members join before ever participating in the sport of triathlon. Once a member, you will have all the access you need to training activities, seminars, social events and programs to plug you in with all the support you need, and get you fit for any swim/bike or run events you're intersted in taking-on. LATC has members spaning all accross Los Angeles, Orange County and even accross the US as well as members in South America, Canada, the UK and more! Plug in -- Be empowered! Be part of the Action!

PayItForwardChallenge.Net

On Saturday night I attended the kick-off event for Lamar Sepulveda's Pay It Forward challenge. It was Lamar's birthday, a dinner to mark a 50-mile run to the event, and the kick-off of his training for an ultra-ironman of sorts. Read below for all info, and, Pay It Forward!

Lamar's Challenge
"On March 2, 1984, my son Nick was diagnosed with every parent's worst nightmare: leukemia. The fear of the unknown was here. As we sat down with the doctors at Children's Hospital of Orange County to discuss our options and concerns, they took Nick away before we were done with our meeting. The seriousness of this set in really fast. One moment you have a very active three-year-old child. All of a sudden, he is fighting for his life. Questions run rampant through your mind: "What did I do? How can I fix this? Why not me? How do I pay for this?" Our lives had been changed forever.

Now, some 24 years later, it's time to pay it forward. I remember looking at the two bags full of bills that had stacked up so quickly. This was an enormous burden to deal with, along with all the other worries a young family faces. All these years, I've been grateful to watch Nick grow into a healthy young adult and to know that somewhere out there, some other person had already paid it forward by raising money for the fight against children's cancer and to help ease the burdens of a young family. For all these years I've been quietly looking for a way to make a difference in the lives of another family and their child.

As crazy as everybody thinks I have become, I'm now going to another level of "crazy." For me, triathlon is the ultimate endurance sport. Beginning on April 4, 2008 at 7:00 AM, I will be attempting one of the biggest challenges of my life. But I'm not doing just another triathlon.
My "make-a-difference" triathlon will be a 428.7-mile swim-bike-run from Venice Beach, California to Tempe, Arizona, followed by my competing in Ironman Arizona for another 140.6 miles!

Starting on the sand just south of the Venice Pier, I'll enter the water, swim out around the pier, then head north for 3.3 miles. I'll come out of the water just north of the Santa Monica Pier and run toward my "Transition 1", to change from the swim to the bike. Now it will be time to finish the rest of my first day by heading on the bike into downtown L.A., across the San Gabriel Valley, into San Bernardino and Riverside counties toward Palm Springs. Riding 17-hour days for some 373 miles, I'll end up in Litchfield Park, Arizona, near Phoenix. Entering "Transition 2," I'll be preparing my mind for the run. Slipping on my shoes, I'll head out once more, 52.4 miles to go, running to Tempe Beach Park, completing part one of this two-part challenge.

After I few days rest, I'll be back at Tempe Beach Park, demonstrating why I came to Arizona in the first place. After competing in Ironman Arizona's 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike and 26.2 mile run, I'll finish with a smile, knowing that I have made a difference in the lives of other children and their families.

Swim 5.6 miles. Bike 485 miles. Run 78.6 miles. 569.2 total miles, a few days of pain and a great burden lifted, knowing when Nick joins me to cross the finish line, that we will have paid it forward.

Working together, we can all be difference makers! In the weeks and months to come, I'll be turning to you for support. I hope you will join me in this great challenge.

Thanks, Lamar Sepulveda"

4th of July in D.C. (technically, Tacoma Park!)

I had a great visit with Matt, Stina, Merete & Mr. Finn over the 4th holiday. They just moved from Capitol Hill to Tacoma Park (all of 6-miles, and a state away). Their new house is perfect with a huge backyard and a park a block away. Here is the fam at the fireworks!
We played a lot while I was there... and, I ate a lot of Merete's sugary snack food... Here we are at the waterpark, a few miles from their house. Finn LOVED the water, and Stina even dunked him fully-under several times. He loved it all!

Merete, jumping to Stina. She couldn't' get enough of the pool. When we got home, she slept for at least two hours. We think she would have slept through the night, but we woke her up for dinner. Swimming is hard work for the kids!!

Stina and Matt took full advantage of my visit by getting some PAINTING time done in the house. Here is Merete with Stina during a painting break.

There is really nothing like holding a kids hand as you walk. What a warm feeling! Merete is a GREAT hand-holder. I had a lot of fun walking in the neighborhood with her over the 5-day visit. Here we are on our way to the Tacoma Park Parade (man, was she excited!!).... and, I guess, me too!

If you add up all the swinging she and Finn did during the visit, you'd guess I pushed them for about 3-hrs or something! Here is Merete, posing for me as she swings. She's a GREAT poser! She also won't swing herself... Matt is trying to get her to swing herself, but she says she prefers to be pushed (who could blame her?). Anyway, I was basically her personal assistant during this trip... if she wanted to hear "Yes", she knew where to come.

Mr. Finn isn't bad himself! I took over 400 pics during this visit... I kept trying to capture Finn with this look on his face. How sweet is he??!!

Lastly, here I am with Merete at the Fireworks. She had to sit in my lap and cover her ears because the pops were so loud.

It was a marvelous time. We could not have asked for better weather... and, it was such a nice break from LA for me, to see the fam & kinda lay low for the duration. I LOVE the house they bought, and can't wait to visit again!

Happy Birthday Rejean!!

July 2nd

Marrielle Monte & Luis Canales Elope!

Here are pics & details. Congratulations!!

June 26, 2007

Bali, Indonesia

ABOUT THE BIG DAY (by Marrielle)
Luis had always wanted a small wedding and when I would start to plan he had mentioned it would be romantic if we took off and it was just the two of us. We planned the wedding in three weeks with the help of Bali Exotic Weddings. We eloped in South Western Bali!!! It was the most perfect and romantic day!!! It was held at a resort called Waka Gangga by the sparkling black sand beaches with beautiful rice paddies as the backdrop. Just stunning!
Please check out the pictures at:
http://tripenguin.com/gallery/slideshow.php?set_albumName=OurBaliWedding

For more about Marrielle & Luis, visit: http://tripenguin.com