All Abord!

Just a quick up date before I catch some sleep. I catch an early flight to AZ for the TNT race Tour de Tucson. Race day is Sat the 17 and I am very excited to experience my first bike race.

Jayna's team (crown college) took first at nationals for their division. I am so proud of her and her team. I wished I could have been there for that.

I will get a post after the race as soon as I can!

Think positively and masterfully, with confidence and faith, and life becomes more secure, more fraught with action, richer in achievement and experience. – Eddie Rickenbacker

Thank You

Wednesday night I woke up at 3am and could not get back to sleep. It seems that I had too many things unfinished and my brain could not relax. This isn't the first time this has happened but for the first time I got up and started doing things about it. One of the biggest things that I have not made time for, is my final Disney Tri letter, with thank yous to all who have sent donations since my last letter. Tonight I put some of the finishing touches on addressing envelopes and all that. What a job. What a blessing, what a big job.

This week was interesting. Dad went into the hospital with chest pains and they kept him over night. He had all the scans, tests, and what not done and they turned up nothing. I think that if they wanted to do and accurate stress test for him they should hook him up at the store and see how things read. I hope dad takes things seriously enough to change the way he sees and dose things from here out. Warning signs are good only if you pay attention to them. I was able to take the rest of the week off with Twin Peaks and work at the store Tues. - Fri. to try to take a little more stress of dad. I was able to accomplish a ton, but of course there is still a ton left to do.

This weekend Jayna flew down to Florida for nationals in her soccer conference. Last year they won it for the first time and this year they came in as the #1 seed. Mom and dad flew down to support Jayna and the team. Jayna has not played for some time because of a knee injury, but she worked hard to get back to play in the final tournament of the year. Fri they won 5-0 and Sat they won to get to the championship game Monday afternoon. I am excited to hear the results.

With all the fun things going on this week and the long hours at the store I did not train all week. It's had to go out to run when you get home from a long day and it's pitch black out. I think it was good to give my legs a rest after last weekends 16 mile run and the final bike training 50 mile ride.
So today I did a light 10 mile run with the TNT group from Harriet Island Park in St. Paul. I had a great run with Greg. We held a good pace and shared some good conversation along the way. Good times. With this past week of emotions and not training, I felt like opening it up for the final quarter-mile of the run, so I did. It felt fantastic to burn all the emotion at the end of that run. I ran with purpose. Please continue to pray for Mckenna, our honored teammate. http://www.caringbridge.org/mn/mckenna/ things are to the point where they must solely trust and lean on God to give them peace and hope. I run with purpose, in memory of Adam and many others, and for little Mckenna and her family. May Gods grace be strong in their presence.

One Foot in Front of the Other

Few things in life catch me off guard. I have always tried to quickly look at the big picture, figure out what is there and what is best to do. Regardless of how hard, or how difficult, I have always been confident in the end result. That is good most of the time, but not all. I must admit that this time of year has caught me off guard. I can pretend to see the big picture and it looks beautiful and promising, yet there is so much missing. I was not prepared to feel this weight, and there are so many needless things that make it heavier. For now I sit on the unfortunate realities of life. Unfortunately it feels lonely at times. I don't know how that is possible. My wife is the most perfect woman for me and my precious Bijou is so perfect and happy all the time. Yet life has dealt me some ugly cards here and there. Those people and those places are irreplaceable. Thus is the pit-falls of life.

I am so thankful for all the added support in my Team in Training races. I would have stopped at one race if not for all the amaizing generosity. Having two more race goals has become such a blessing to me right now. I do not have time to sit and feel down. That is a good thing. A great thing. I continue to make a difference with many of you in the fight against cancer. That makes me feel good.

This morning, after my morning team run, I looked back in my computer tracking log, to see the miles I have put in since all this began. I was pretty surprised! Since I started training at the end of last May I have biked all most 900 miles, and ran all most 100. I began training at about 225 pounds and now sit at a solid 185. I feel that I have more energy than ever. I am definitely healthier than I have ever been. I had to look back because I was starting to wonder if I was getting burned out. I have come this far and I do not want to get burn out. I am getting so close to finishing. I think a lot of it is this month. It is all ready proving to be a hard one. I just don't know what to do about it. I think I know that I can't do anything about it, and maybe that bothers me.

Difficulties are just things to overcome, after all. – Ernest Shackleton

I want so badly to pray with Dan Roelofs but he is gone. I want so badly to go back to Woodland Fellowship and be washed away by the worship and feel the genuine concern of my brothers and sisters, but that is gone. I want so badly to walk over to my brothers garage and hang out with him and the boys, but he is gone and the feeling is not the same. I want so badly for there to be honesty among adults and a desire to seek the truth, to lift one another up and grow as we have been commanded to do. To love one another as we have been loved.

I know my pain is not new, just new to me, and is nothing compared to what so many others have faced. I know that my Father hold my heart and I can feel comfort in my times of hurt. I see so many blessing in my life that He has orchestrated on my behalf, to be able to handle this chapter of my life.

I am blessed, I am able, and I am going to make it through this month.

On the Road Again.

Another weekend of training. I have learned one valuable lesson about the difference in training for these different sports. One is very healthy for your body and the other two are very wearing. I am now at the mileage point with the bike and the run where the constant motion of one or the other is wearing on the bones. In tri training your body is never taking a serious pounding. Now that I am doing 90 plus bike rides every weekend and 6 to 14 mile runs in between I am feeling it. I am really enjoying the distances. The weather has been great this past week but I am excited for the bike race to come. It is very interesting having so many miles under my belt. A six mile run mentally and physically seems easy. A 30 mile bike is just a warm up. It's amaizing what perspective will do for the mind. I am very excited for next years tri season. Training will be very different. I am excited to share all the things I am learning next spring, when we get to training for the tri's next spring.

Outside of the training, I have been busy. I have been getting into Mom and Dad's store to help organize the back room as much as I can. Their christmas merchandise is all shipping in now and there is no place for it to go. I have been seriously tested in my building and organizing skills. I really enjoy helping them as much as I can.

On the home front, we are all doing great. Janet and I are still training for the Vegas half marathon, Dec 2. Janet is doing great getting back into running. Bijou is now fitting all those super cool clothes we have had that were too big for her. I remember not long ago, thinking that it would be so long until she would ever fit into much of it. Well, we're here now. It's just crazy. She is coming up with new noises all the time. It will not be long before she's walking. Two weeks, give or take a few days, is my guess. I am looking forward to a break with all the training so I can have more time to just hang out with her and mommy more. I get some, but not enough.

As things get long going into winter with training, I am reminded, and so very thankful, for all the people that have been so generous in supporting me to do these things. I feel my time with Team in Training is helping me to grow in a difficult time of adjustment. Being a part of two new and different teams now, I am learning many new things. New relationships and new focuses. I am happy that I am being pushed. I am thankful. I am excited that we are making a difference in the fight to find a cure and the encouragement that we give to so many that are dealing with the real life struggles. That was the theme on my mind today. I was on my bike for over six hours today and when things started to get long, I was given much peace by the support that so many of you have given. Today I felt blessed by you.

THANK YOU!

Bike of the Century.

Last week's weather was not good for training. Not a bad thing, I was able to help dad and mom out at the store a lot. Janet and I went for a six mile run with Clark and Molly around Calhoun Wed. evening. I pushed Bijou in the stroller, that was an adventure. She was only happy when she could stand and "surf" her stroller while we were running. That was rather tricky.

No bike training during the week, and last Sat's ride was cut in half due to cold rain. So today, we more than made up for it. The team (five of us today) meet in Afton, MN. We got a late start at at 9am and planned at least a 80 mile ride. Because of the great weather and the exceptional scenery, we decided to stretch it into 90. Because I am choosing to push harder and attempting to race it I raced ahead and tracked back to the group. I did that enough to break the 100mile mark today. It feels great to know that I can do it and even better to have done it on the course we took today.

About a half mile into the ride today we hit our first hill. Not a horrible grade but a good hill non the less. The not so funny part was that it was over a mile and a half to the top. Then down, then up a much steeper one, but not as long. Bob had warned us about the hill, that was nice of him. What he failed to mention was the 10 other major hills, that made the first one look tame, that were on the way out on our ride. And the fun part was that we got to turn around and do them all over again on the way back! Our turn around was in Maiden Rock, WI. along Lake Pepin. It was so worth it. Granted it would have been easier in a car, but it was so worth it. The end of my ride was filled with fun. Two weeks in a row I have gotten a flat front tire. Flats are definitely part of the ride.

Tomorrow I'm supposed to put in 10 miles running, but I have a feeling that I am going to need a day or two to recover. Today's experience with the distance and the hills supported the fact that so much of all of this is 80-90% mental. I had to choose to get to the top of those hills, it was not something that I ever thought I could do but I convinced myself that I could and I convinced myself that I liked it. At the end of the day I did.

What a man accomplishes in a day depends upon the way in which he approaches his tasks. When we accept tough jobs as a challenge to our ability and wade into them with joy and enthusiasm, miracles can happen. – Arland Gilbert

Fall Into Adjustment.

Like many, fall is my favorite time of the year. I love to see the change in everything. It is also a time to enjoy the last warmer days.

I have been adjusting to the new schedule of life in the house here. Monday, I went for a challenging bike with Andy Claflin. Wednesday, I went for my first "run training" with the Phoenix run team. We put in six miles and it felt good. Thursday, was a night with the family at home, and that was great. It had been too long since we just hung out on a week night. Friday some friends came over for a bonfire. That is always a highlight, but Janet and I turned in early.
Saturday morn, I was up and out the door at 7:30am for a morning run. I needed to get in 14 miles, so I did a seven mile loop solo, and at 8:30am Clark, Molly and Janet joined me for the second loop. My body definitely felt the added miles. I have never run fourteen before, but it felt great.

The rest of the afternoon was rather special. Dad and Grandpa Eno (mom's dad) came up and we spent the afternoon putting away the pontoon for the winter season. Doing anything with the boats is rather emotional because they were Adams "babies." That was his thing. It was extra special to spend the day with dad and gramps. The pontoon was originally purchased by grandpa and grandma new, and it was fun to see gramps work so hard on his old boat.

The evening was perfect too. The weather was perfect and Janet had invited some people over for a fire. It was special to enjoy the fire with some close friends. I have not had many days or nights to sit and enjoy the house or others company. Saturday night, I felt like I finally could, and I did!

Sunday morn was another early rise. Bike training down at Lake Calhoun. I was not going to miss this ride because we rode over to Eliot's house ( the boy we are racing in honor of) to give him his first bike. Eliot turned three this summer, and I had not yet meet him. What a cute little guy! He was shy, but very excited to show everyone how he loved his tents. He is why I am doing this, and it was so fulfilling to see his precious smile and fun spirit. From Eliot's house we were scheduled for a 70 mile ride. We had cold rain and multiple bike issues, so we tapered the day to a 35 mile ride and called it a day. My legs were not disappointed because of Sat's 14 mile run.

The rest of the day was spent with my little baby, Bijou.
Oh, what fun. She is such a jewel. She just popped four more teeth last week, for a total of 12 now. Crazy! She's only 9 months. She just started using a couple of the sign language signs we have been using with her. Milk, and "more," it is so amaizing to see her respond. It is crazy what babies understand. She is also walking along chairs and tables and anything she can balance on. It won't be long before dad is chasing her around the house. CRAZY!
I love Janet's new work schedule. No late nights, no weekends. It is starting to feel like a home around here. I like that. My wife is an amaizing woman and I am very blessed. Bijou is a jewel, so you can imagine how amaizing her mommy is. I feel so blessed.

Change-over

Training for the Disney Tri was a great challenge. Having it done is somewhat of a relief. I did manage to drum up a stomach ulcer over the multitude of things going on. What's next?

I gave myself a week to rest after Disney. Took my time organizing things around the house, and mentally prepared to start training for the Century ride in November and the Marathon in Jan. The Sunday after the race, I got back on the bike with Sean Pease for the first time and we had a nice 15mile ride. Monday I went for a run to keep the legs moving and had a good 7 mile run.

In conversation with Kinghorn and Angel, from the disney tri team, we started to set goals for Tri's next year. We are planning on doing a half Ironman and probably two others. Most are planning on doing the Maui Tri with TNT but I think I'm going to give TNT a one year rest. I will do more races for them, but I think it may be best to take a summer off to focus more on home. I am very excited to attempt a half Iron next year. The following summer we should be able to attempt a full Ironman, I mentally can't even imagine that yet, 2 mile swim, 112 mile bike, and 26.2 mile run. My bike coach did it this year and his experience is very inspiring.

So now the training schedule is much lighter. Two bike's a week and two run's a week. That means I get three days off. That works great with Janet's new job that she just started.

After 6 years at Daytons-Marshall Fields-Macys, she decided to cut back hours and get into office work. She is an office administrator for a small non-profit health club association. She works with health clubs and health care providers managing customers who take advantage of health care providers paying part of the monthly club dues. It is a big bold new world for her and she is very excited and overwhelmed learning lots of new things. Her new schedule is fantastic, and after she gets the hang of things it will be flexible. No more working nights or weekends!

So lots of change around here. We do not fear change.

When I was younger, I thought that the key to success was just hard work. But the real foundation is faith. Faith--the idea that 'I can do it'--is the opposite of fear ('What if I fail?'). And faith creates motivation which in turn leads to commitment, hard work, preparation...and eventually success. – Howard Twilley

I take that statement one step further, with faith. Being a child of God gives me the gift of the Holy Spirit and my faith in that which is bigger than myself, empowers me, to do that much more.
I had some more sobering news yesterday. As many of you know Jayna and I graduated from the same school, Meadow Creek. My gym teacher was Mr. Budish. He also had a son, Nathan, who grew up with Jayna at Meadow Creek. Jayna and Nathan both went on to college at Crown to play soccer. Last night I learned that the phenomia that the doctors thought Mr. Budish had over the past year, was actually lung cancer. He is now in stage four with his cancer, and will start the process of fighting the strangest battle of his life. My heart goes out to him and his family. I pray that they hold hope and peace in the middle of this storm. God is consistent, and will meet them in their time of confusion. I pray for Jayna having to see the face of cancer again so close and so soon. One could never answer the question of why? Choose to be strong, no one has answers, but we have faith that goes beyond our selves. Learn together, grow together.

One more reason to Bike....One more reason to run....Mr. Budish will fight, I will fight with him...
He will be on my mind every time I train, my groups all ready know his name and why I am Biking and running....We can all make a difference....What can you do....What will you do?
It is never too late!