Crazy Weather in Vancouver

This has been a crazy summer in Vancouver in terms of weather. We're just getting over an extreme heat wave, where we broke records dating back to the 1800s. I think I jinxed us when I told everyone that I wasn't worried about being pregnant in August, because Vancouver NEVER really gets that hot...LOL.

But the silver lining to the crazy heat is that it resulted in a wild thunderstorm last weekend. You might be thinking "so what", but Vancouver only has a thunderstorm approximately once a decade. So this was a huge deal for me who LOVES thunderstorms and hasn't experienced one since we moved here almost 3 years ago. We had all the windows open, and we just sat back and enjoyed the show. James managed to get a few good shots of the lightning, and the incredible sunset afterwards.

Click on the image below to check out the photo gallery:

BC's Crazy Weather

Richmond Oval & Night Market

On Friday night James and I went to the Richmond Olympic Oval, which will be home to the long-track speed skating events during the 2010 winter olympics. James had his very rusty skates sharpened, and then timed himself on the track in hopes of matching the current world records :) He was quite sad when he realized that the world's best are twice as fast as he is.

At the Oval, we met up with our friend Andrew, and his buddies from the gym. Andrew was brave enough to rent speed skates, and really give the Oval a try. He did remarkably well.

Since I'm 8.5 months pregnant, I did not join in the skating festivities, but I had a lot of fun playing photographer/videographer.

Next we headed to the night market, which runs every Saturday throughout the summer. I had heard about the market before, but I had never bothered to go. But since we were already in Richmond on a Saturday night, we thought why not check it out; and we were very happy we did. It was just like the night markets that we've been to in various asian countries. With lots of great asian food stalls, a stage with performers (that we didn't understand, but enjoyed nonetheless), a Muay Thai Boxing ring, stalls selling every type of trinket imaginable, and a little midway with games. We enjoyed just meandering around the market sampling food, and taking in the atmosphere.

Click on the image below to go to the photo gallery:

Richmond Olympic Oval + Night Market

Baby Bump Update

We've been adding photos of my growing baby bump over the past few weeks. And just recently we met with a professional photographer to capture this time of the pregnancy. So we've added our favourite professional photos to the baby bump page too.

Also, James and I made a belly cast last weekend, which we will decorate after the baby is born. We've included one photo of the belly cast process. This project was a lot of fun, and I'm sure that the final product is a memento that we'll cherish for years to come.

Click on the image below to go to the photo gallery:

Baby Bump

New Bikes

After my last adventure race I decided to look into retiring my hardtail mountain bike and find a newer west cost cross-country bike with full suspension. A friend of ours lead me to Brodie Bikes, where I picked up a 2008 Rite model. I'm very excited about the purchase, but have yet to get out on the trails with it.




I have also been in the market for a road bike for some time and recently managed to find a used one that fit my criteria (my size and price!). It's a 2005 KHS upgraded to 105 shimano components. It's very light and very fast. I've clocked 50+km in 5 days of owning it and enjoying every minute. It really puts into perspective how easy the tour de france riders make riding look, especially the climbs.

Trip Home to Ontario

James and I took an impromtu week of vacation and headed back East to visit family and friends. It was a whirlwind tour, but it was great to see everyone and spend a bit of time enjoying the Ontario summer.

The first stop was Toronto, where we met up with my family for the annual birthday party. It was the first time that all my family including Aunts, Uncles and cousins have been together since James and I moved out west. So we had a great time catching up with everyone. All my aunties gave me their baby gifts. We got all sorts of knit blankets and sweaters, and a homemade quilt. It was quite lovely.

On Sunday we stopped by my sister's new home to check it out before heading out to lunch with her and her new beau. Then it was on to Kingston for some rest & relaxation....sort of.

On Monday night, we went to Rockport to have dinner with James' family and enjoy the river. And unbeknownst to us, James' mom had arranged a surprise baby shower for us. It was a very pleasant surprise!!! We got loads of great baby stuff and best of all, I got to catch up with all the Huck ladies, which I haven't done in a few years.

On Tuesday we headed back to Rockport to celebrate our nephew's 4th birthday. It was a lot of fun to hang out with our neice and nephew whom we hadn't seen since Christmas. But the highlight of the day had to be flying the little motorized plane that we got for our nephew. It didn't seem to matter where James aimed that thing, it always ended up either stuck in a tree, or sinking to the bottome of the pond. We all found this quite hysterical.

Wednesday was Canada day, so James, Mom, Dad & I headed to Ottawa for the best Canada Day celebration that I know of. We decided to stop for breakfast at a diner that we used to frequent when we lived in Ottawa. And much to my surprise, when we arrived we were greeted by all our university friends who threw a surprise baby shower for me (James was in on this one). It was so great to see everyone, and I was so pleased and honoured to have such a large turn out, especially on Canada Day when everyone already has plans. And of course we got lots of great baby stuff; which we are very grateful for. I was also grateful that I brought an extra bag home, because we filled that sucker right up with all the baby stuff we got :)

That evening we went on James' family boat line for a Canada day cruise. It was nice to finally get to see the family business in action. And I don't think that there was a better place in the city to watch the fireworks than from the deck of the boat. During the cruise I even got to see storm clouds and lightning, both of which I miss terribly living in Vancouver. But happily the clouds rolled away from parliment hill, so the fireworks were a go!

On Thursday we hung around Ottawa for awhile, killing time unitl James' flight. We went to Kettlemen's bagels for breakfast, which is a real treat since we haven't been able to find Montreal bagels in Vancouver. After enjoying a coffee at Starbucks, and once James met up with his brother, Mom, Dad & I headed back to Kingston.

Friday was my rest day, I didn't have any plans whatsoever, and I just enjoyed relaxing. We went to 2 of my favourite Kingston eateries that night: the Brewpub for the best nachos I've ever had, and then of course to White Mountain for ice cream. No trip to K-town is complete without a visit to both of those fine establishments. Although I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a bit sad to have to order a root beer instead of the delicious cranberry cider that I normally enjoy :)

Then on Saturday it was back to Vancouver. As always, it's good to get back home, but it's sad to leave Ontario and all my family and friends. But at least I got to see almost everyone on this trip home.

As always, click on the image below for a link to a photo gallery:

July Ontario Trip

Another year, Another MOMAR

Since moving out to BC almost 3 years ago, Kerri and I have raced the MOMAR (Mind Over Mountain Adventure Race) in Squamish.

For those new to the concept of Adventure racing, you are given a map of the local area that include check point locations you need to get to and stamp your sheet, the 1st team to do so wins. Included in the MOMAR races is mountain biking, trail running, orienteering, and usually either rappelling or kayaking.

Kerri and I have usually compete in the 50km course, but this year due to my UK travels and here final exams, we decided to jump down to the new short course (30km).

The race started out ok, with a simple 3km jog up and down the mountain side. Following this we jumped onto our bikes and started climbing out of the Alice lake area to some fun and simple single track corners.

The day was beautiful for the end of May, but it was a little hot. As such, Kerri wasn't feeling that well and decided to pull herself out of the race. I know it was a very tough decision for her, but overall it was the right decision and the best as she had exams coming up.

She told me to continue on and finish for team "Huck 'n' Eh." Race rules are that teams are required to start and finish together so we knew we would be disqualified, but hey, we paid for the race so I continued to see how well we could do.

Going solo, I started to realize that Kerri was an excellent pacer for me. Without her it was like having my accelerator stuck at 100%. This also lead me to realize that our team pace was great, which allowed me time to navigate and judge the proper turns we needed to make. Without this I made the wrong decision right at the start of the navigation section. This let me astray for about 1km. Figuring out my mistake and losing some time I made a quick decision to shortcut through the dense, unmarked, trail-less forest. It worked and got me back on track (read - I was lucky!!).

After the quick 5km run on navigation, I picked the bike back up for another climb to the start of the downhill mountain biking section. Fortunately I have ridden this trail in the last 2 races and was use to the terrain, until the last section. This is where things got interesting.

The race marshals at this location were trying to motivate me by saying that the 3rd place team was only 2 mins ahead and if I picked up the pace slightly I would be able to catch them. This worked, until I turned the next corner. All I remember thinking is "WoW... This is steep and Fast, I can't believe I'm riding thisssssssssss......" My bike ended up at the bottom of a 10 foot embankment and I supermaned down the trail with a nice soft landing on a mixture of limestone and shale. This clearly slowed me down for a minute or two. I ended up brusing my left thumb bad enough that I couldn't mountain bike and leaving 2 holes in my right elbow, but my helmet didn't have a scratch on it!

I pick up the bike and with a couple of curses I started into a slow jog through the rest of the 7km of mountain biking. The were about 2 or 3 times following this where I almost quit the race, but knew that Kerri would be disappointed that the team didn't finish, so I kept telling myself just a couple more steps.... After those couple of steps my legs fully seized, not just one but both. Man did that hurt, I quickly massaged them and chewed back a couple of liquid painkillers.

The raced ended in Squamish, which provided some paved areas where I could hop back on the bike one handed. At this point I assumed I was maybe in 5th or 6th. Just then I spotted another team ahead. They saw me as well and we all raced to find the finish line through the back streets of Squamish. I managed to pass them just as we reached the bike drop and were told to race to the finish line 100m away. The adrenalin was kickin and I pushed it all the way to the line.

Kerri and Adam were there to cheer me on and also to my suprise let me know I finished 2nd!! Overall it was a great day, it was too bad Kerri had to stop, but we'll kick it next year. It took me a couple of weeks to heal each day finding new cuts and bruises.

Have I convinced you to try Adventure Racing yet? It is an amazing time and the squamish race is by far one of the best as the scenery is stunning.

Here are some pics:

MOMAR Squamish 2009

Home Owners at Last

After years of trying to get into the real estate market, James and I finally managed to purchase our first home.

We very excited (and a little terrified) with our new purchase, and we're looking forward to moving in and making it our own. It's a heritage house in Vancouver, with a basement suite which we plan on renting out to help us cover the mortgage.

The only downside is that our closing date is just one week before the baby is due. Needless to say, August is going to be a very hectic month for us, so we're thrilled that my parents are coming out to help us with setting up the house and taking care of the baby.