Nearys Winter Visit

Hey Cody, guess who's coming this weekend?  Gramma and Grampa!
*Perks up ears and runs through the house looking for them*
Heh, gets her every time. 

 We went for a long hike around Barton Pond with Cody having even more fun than anyone.  As per usual.

"Just a few more steps there, Gramma"

This spot always feels like a step back in time

The dam stops for no season.

Not so weary travelers

The old meets the new

"Someone sooooo left this for me!"

Dirt Bike Dog Jump Course

"Puh-leeze, you call that a jump!"

Train dust

Tom insisted we take the pic this way

Sharon insisted on snow angels

Which are always a good idea

Winter 2.0

Winter took a break for a second there, and then punched us in the guts with a big storm.  Alaina and I weren't fooled by the brief reprieve.

HA Ha ha. Today was supposed to be an EZ run through the woods with Coder Bear. The 6-8 inches of fresh stuff had other plans though. It didn't take too long to figure out that running in other people's uneven, barely packed down tracks was actually harder than running right through the calf-deep powder. Which meant doing high knee drills for about 30 minutes. OW! Lungs will be burning from this one for a while.  Cody had a blast as she always does, and watching her little waggly butt bound through the snow made me happy like a seal in the surf.

Amazingly, my Smartwool socks kept me totally dry and warm through the deep stuff, even though they were caked with an inch of ice chunks when we got home. LOVE those socks.

I shall henceforth be known as Snowbeard.

Smartwool loveliness.

Cyclocross Mucky Wheels

Getting to ride outside on a day off in February with temps in the high 40s is like getting asked to the prom as a Freshman by the hottest cheerleader in school.  You don't turn that down.  Needless to say, this was a stellar dirt road ride out in the country on my cyclocross (CX) bike.  It was sunny too, but with 25mph winds, gusting up to 40mph, trees were getting blown down into the road and I got hit by one flying stick.  Just on my helmet though. I found some new roads to explore near Hell, Michigan, and they were gorgeous.

Best part: I counted 25 cars that passed me, with 10 of those coming on this 3 mile stretch of paved road that I'll try to avoid next time. I LOVE the dirt roads!

The one st00pid thing I did was to ride on this unpaved 5 mile section of Lakelands "trail", which had not completely melted and was so soft it was like pedaling through wet sand...when I wasn't slipping over ice + snow. I tried riding on the grass/reedy area just off the granular trail, but that was so bumpy that my head hurt. Couldn't go faster than 8mph during this section and I was bombing out some major watts here. But when the trail turned to pavement, it was sooooooo sweet.

Car free for miles down the road.

This is my engine.  It runs on watts.

This is my steed.  It runs on love.

Do not look at the booger.  Hey! You looked!

The 5 miles of st00pid started like this.

Then came this sludge.  Legs were toasted.

Doyles are EVERYWHERE.

Aw, it's not so bad here.

Some of my friends.

Holy cow! 

Mighty Huron

Someday you'll find it, the rainbow connection...

Last of the snow, for now.

Skunk stripe.

Can you see me now?

Totally covered in FUN.

Original Six Hockey Game: Wings vs. Rangers

We've been hoping to get to the famous Joe Louis Arena for a Red Wings hockey home game since we moved here, so when the UM Grad Student Body offered a bus ride and game for $30 we bit that action right away.  Even on a Monday night!  We were like young pups again.

It was a one goal game with two lead changes through three periods when the Blueshirts went on a 5 on 3 for the last 4 minutes, and a 6 on 3 for the last 2 minutes, yet the Wings prevailed in this classic original six matchup.  Great times.  Definitely worth waiting for. 

No hat tricks tonight, so this is the only squid we saw.

Yeah, it was that fun.

Oh no, I think we've starting dressing alike.

Ice action

The legends

Buncha showoffs

Love the hockey.

 Pass me a tissue, I think my nose is bleeding.

The Deep Freeze

Greetings from Antarctica.  It was 5 degrees, feels like -12 this a.m., with 12mph wind driving off the river.  On the bright side, don't worry about bringing water on your run today (it'll probably be an ice cube in your hand very soon), but you can just grab a handful of snow from the woods and pop it in your mouth for perfect belly satisfaction.  Mind the yellow snow, of course.  Running and walking outdoors is making that single-digit specific squeaking sound again underfoot, which is when you know it's really really cold.

Cody and I went out for an easy 30 minute run through the Argo trail woods at the end of the street and needless to say, didn't see another brave soul out there aside from 3 runners wearing half the protection I was and chatting along like it was a summer jog.  Punks!  These pics are from after the run.

Eyelash icicles make for good wind protection.

Why aren't we inside yet?

Leslie Front 9 Snow Hike

After a 13-mile long run in some sloppy road conditions with Alaina this morning, I took Cody out to the hilly front nine holes of Leslie Golf Course.  We love this area because it's rather difficult for most people to get to, with either a hike through Stapp Nature Area or a long trek through the back nine and under a tunnel.  Ergo, we almost always have the place to ourselves.  The drifts were 2-3 feet deep at times, so there was romping a-plenty for the two of us.  I posted my first video at the end of this blog, which gives a glimpse of Cody atop a hill, looking out for coyotes and protecting her flock of one, me. 

Is the color working on this thing?

I'll crush your soul, Mr. Stick!

Hey, gimme, I was just soul-crushing...

Which way for dog sleds?

Obligatory glamor shot.

Ryan discovers the magic of macro setting.

Should've brought the pancakes with all that syrup.

Who says winter is all black and white?

Perch #1 under canopy of pine.

Puppy bliss.  Look at those eyes.

SHROOM!

Best buds, obviously.

Dad's hand me downs + yaktrax, aka MY Michigan boots.

Looks like a ferocious Lord of the Rings creature, but Cody's not scared.