Video of the Colorado Trail (Race)

Found this really nice video of the CTR (Colorado Trail Race), but it shows the Colorado Trail from a first-person perspective. It condenses 550 miles into 13 minutes of really beautiful scenery along really breath-taking singletrack. Ellie sat on my lap and watched nearly the entire thing and agreed it felt like she was riding a bike in the mountains. She also graciously agreed (acquiesced?) that bikepacking this trail or one like it would be an awesome family vacation. It's well worth the watch--and the Bon Iver track on it is heart-squeezingly beautiful.

2013 Colorado Trail Race from Aaron Johnson on Vimeo.

Alum Creek P1 Video

This is one of the two trails I ride as often as I can, Alum Creek's "Phase 1" Trail. Someone recorded this hi-res video of an entire 6 mile lap, though they finished in just under 30min. I think a good lap time for me has been closer to 40. At 13:00min you can see a pretty awesome boardwalk section that usually keeps me nervous, followed by a wicked rooty descent. And the section after 23:00min, just after the trail dips back into the woods from the road, is a pretty fun, techy part. Because the camera is strapped to the rider's chest, it's hard to tell when he is climbing and when he is going down. The elevation gain/loss is not crazy, but it is very much like a roller coaster in my opinion.

Alum Creek P1 whole lap on Pinkbike

Bike camping inspiration

i want to go to there

Back to Earth from El Zumpango on Vimeo.

Bikes! Bikes! Bikes!

Here is a pretty creative sideways view of Ellie rocking her balance bike down the hallway. She has been rolling around on this thing every waking moment since we bought it yesterday. It was pretty much an impulse buy--I couldn't resist it--which was easy to cave into considering the price was $13. These things usually run $50, up to $100. This particular model is the Chicco "Red Bullet" bike and I wouldn't have bought it if it was much more. Then again, Ellie is all about this and I've been super proud about how much she is enjoying it. This video shows Ellie's skill level after using it for almost 2 days at 32 months old (a.k.a. 2-years-and-8-months). I can't wait to post her improvements after a year... Maybe on the mountain bike trails...

Holidays, Excitement

This video is a tiny excerpt from our conversation with Ellie last night before "bedtime," just after watching our town's firework display from the end of our driveway. It's a long one but I'm glad we caught a bit of Ellie's hilarious ranting which is something I want to look back on forever. The volume is low, so crank it up. You can hear me say "I love you, El" a couple times, at around 02:30 and 02:50, which was my weak attempt at shutting down the conversation and wrapping up the video, but Ellie keeps on trucking. So we kept rolling.

Emery: Peek

When this girl is not pinching, slapping, or trying to bite you, she is killing everyone with cuteness.

Ellie made it.

In one piece. This is only the twentieth time she did this and said this exact thing with the same amount of pride. I, too, am pretty proud of her independence, despite the fact that such stubbornness is responsible for many bumps, bruises, scrapes, and tear shedding moments-each and every one breaking my heart just a little more. It seems, however, that she's getting even just slightly more coordinated and maybe those boo-boos will be fewer and farther between as she becomes more adroit in her growing self-awareness.

ellie_stairs_accomplishment from d strong on Vimeo.

Emery Conversation

Emery_Conversation_2-19-12 from d strong on Vimeo.

Cool pool party

Last night we had the energy of good parents and took the girls to the pool! It was Emmie's first trip, and Ellie hadn't been swimming in a looooooooong time. Ellie is of the age where new things are intimidating and she approaches it with both excitement and caution--seeing her experience things with new eyes always makes my heart swell. It was a great trip and at least accounted for Emery's good night of sleep. On a side note, I should mention this song from Yo Gabba Gabba!, "Pool Party" by the Aquabats, is my favorite:

Emery crawling: evidence

Emery_Crawling from d strong on Vimeo.

Film: Riding The Long White Cloud

I'm in the middle of watching the coolest series of videos and it's blowing my mind. A bicycle tour of professional skateboarders across New Zealand: "Riding the Long White Cloud." I heard mention of this a while back, never had cable to catch it on TV, and recently thought to look into it. Well the film is viewable in a 5 part series (at thepredatorybird.com). Unfortunately our internet is pretty slow, so I've been struggling to get through the first couple of videos, but my excitement has helped me be patient. I don't usually have enough time to watch for more than a few minutes anyway. This whole concept is a dream to me and I'm in awe of the whole project.

It has inspired me to look deeper into realizing a goal I have merely considered in the past: biking across Ohio. Cincy to Cleveland; or, perhaps, Cleveland to Cincy. Whichever. Both. Not sure what is realistic in terms of how soon, not to mention how to prepare; to train. Maybe a solo trip (that is, if I can't convince C to get a good bike suitable for the trip!)... not sure. I'm thinking this is a couple years down the road, but maybe now is time to start planning.

I really think you, whoever you are, should watch at least one of these videos. Maybe it will inspire you, too.


Riding the Long White Cloud Part 1 from predatory bird on Vimeo.

Rolling: Evidence

Emery_rolling from d strong on Vimeo.

Ellie: Spinning

This is Ellie figuring out the art of spinning. On this day, C is 36 weeks pregnant with our second daughter...

ellie_spinning from d strong on Vimeo.

Happy Valentine's Day (with a couple of treats)

I don't have anything planned, but felt like this post would be my card to the world: forced like so many other holiday cards, it's not going to say anything very meaningful, but please know I'm thinking about you and I love you nonetheless.

For you gardeners out there, here's a dope Growing Calendar on the Burpee's Seed website. Plug in your zip code and be amazed. It suggests when to sow seeds for particular crops of plants. Cool. I should be sowing a bunch of stuff inside right now... Oops.

And finally, for all you young parents, here is Will.I.Am on Sesame Street. Pretty sweet. I gave up on trying to find a free download of it though. Holler if you do

Ellie: Walk It Out

Ellie_walk it out from d strong on Vimeo.

Ellie shake it

Trying to not abuse the new power

Ellie_Shakin from d strong on Vimeo.

On the move

finally figured out that rugs have too much friction to let this baby glide across the floor...

it's like lookin down in a fish tank

This stone is rollin

This week, just a few days from the 5-month mark, E-stro has mastered the art of rolling. Here's the proof:

Ellie_rolling from d strong on Vimeo.

Video: fun with noises

Ellie_yelling from d strong on Vimeo.

100 Days of Ellie: Day 13

First Tummy Time from d strong on Vimeo.