Lincoln is this weekend....

May 2, 1999....I ran 26.2 miles at the Lincoln marathon in 5:03:00.....It was my first marathon and this weekend, I will run this event 10 years later and, assuming everything goes well,
it will be marathon #74.....It will be fun to retrace my steps.

Frisco Highline Trail Marathon

Craig, Kim and I headed down to Bolivar, Mo to run the Frisco Highline Trail Marathon Saturday morning.....a 2 am alarm clock and hitting the road by 3 am. This was the inaugural race for this event, with about 30 marathoners. There was a 50K and a 10 mile race that had a lot more runners, so there were over 100 people for the three races. We parked at the finish and grabbed a bus to the 50K start and then grabbed a second bus to the marathon start, which was at an intersection of the trail and a gravel road. The race started at 8:30 and it was already getting warm and humid and after 2 miles, I was soaked. The combination of the humidity and the soft trail really took it out of me, but I was expecting that to happen, so I just ran at my pavement pace until my legs started to burn out.....then it was just run-walk to the finish....5:30:12. I waited around for Kim and Craig to come in so I could get some pictures for Craig's first marathon finish. Congratulations! That was a tough marathon for a first one and I am sure he is suffering today....

This was a nice race...they had a few problems, but nothing that can't be fixed for next year. The race shirt was a dry fit and the medal was very nice also. It is a trail race, so don't expect manned water stops....I would also recommend a carrying a water bottle, because some of the waterstops seemed like they were spaced 3 or so miles apart. It is an easy drive down to the finish area and most of the course was crushed gravel. Tough but fun.

Century Babe....

Miss Molly went over the 100 mile mark for leashed walks in 2009 earlier this month...and now well on her way to 200 miles. Kim took her on a 2 mile walk and she was still wired all evening....so we had to get the frisbee out. She slept well......

Kitchen Cabinet Refinish....

The remodel of the living room is getting close to being finished, but the kitchen which is part of one big room along with the living room is just getting started. We just completed the first section of cabinet refinishing (the left side is refinished). We love the way it turned out....it matches the crown molding pretty well and the method we used was pretty easy. We start the next section tomorrow.....Kim is roughing up and deglossing the cabinet surfaces and hopefully we get some staining done too. We will be putting in all new appliances and I am going to pour concrete countertops....we will see how that goes.

Spanish Cock Fighting Chair.....

I bought this old chair today. It is very small and I am not sure what we will use it for.....but for 90 bucks, it is unique enough that we will figure something out for it. The shop owner said it is a stool that was used in Spain to watch cock fighting....who knows if that is true but it still makes for something different. One thing we have thought about was a place to put folded bath towels in our bathroom once it is remodeled.....any other ideas????

Stained glass windows are done!

The glass color was not captured well on the camera.....it is bleached out a ton so I will take another shot later when the lighting is not so bright....new and improved picture is now up...the colors look more accurate now.

A new small marathon that looks like a lot of fun....

There is a new marathon (also a 50K) in April that looks like it could be a very nice race. It starts in Willard, Missouri at the Frisco Highline trail head which is just north of Springfield and runs along a crushed limestone trail to Bolivar. It is just a 2.5 hour drive to Bolivar to catch a bus to the start and there is race morning packet pickup.....I am thinking this would make an excellent one day race trip.....

http://s122036257.onlinehome.us/images/race_apps/frisco-fifty/Frisco-Fifty-Flyer.pdf

http://www.ozarkgreenways.org/fht_map.pdf

Miss Molly goes over 100K

I took Molly for a 3 mile walk yesterday and Kim took her for another 3-miler today, which puts her well over 100 kilometers. Kim took off for school and Molly went straight upstairs and crashed.....she did not enjoy the disruption in her nap for this picture to be taken.....

Mystery Wine.....

Just bottled the backyard mystery wine....it was made from a mixture of grapes of which only one variety is known, (Concord). It is very dry and actually tastes okay...well maybe not so okay...

Southern Comfort

I am making my own whiskey.....haven't done this before, so we will see how it goes. I am starting out with a 3L batch, mainly because I have a 3L barrel. It should be done in 2-4 weeks. The ethanol is now in the barrel aging with the sugar and other flavorings. It smells really good!

Livingroom remodel progress.....

The floors are going in....slowly. I have to install it in about 3 foot wide strips, then stain that strip, followed by polyurethane. The new tile is installed, but can not be grouted until the hardwoods surrounding it are done. Having to use the room while doing the floors is dragging it out, but it will be worth it when it is all done.

Snow Tubing....

Looks like Kim, Connor, and I will be heading up to Snow Creek to do some snow tubing Saturday night. We did this last year and had a blast, so looking forward to doing it again.....though last year I woke up the next morning feeling like I had been in a car wreck. I took out a few hay bales at the bottom every time I went down the slope.