What a weekend

What a weekend, Heather had a 4 day weekend so we decided to take full advantage of what Oregon has to offer. So we got up early Thursday morning and headed up the mountain. We went to a place called Gold Lake sno-park. Heather and I both got snowshoes and we got Zach a sled and all the things needed to go up to 5ooo' were there is already 4.5' of snow. Snow pants and a new jacket were in order for Zach and Heather and I got new snow pants. It was about an hour drive to our destination and man it was worth it. It was really cool as you went higher in elevation the snow got deeper and deeper. Zach had a blast once he got used to walking on the snow. Here is video of Zach sledding down the hill on his bottom. He loved it and we plan to go back a lot this year.

Friday morning we decided to go to the Oregon Aquarium in Newport. That was a 2 hour drive up the coast. It was a great day to drive up the coast, the seas were pretty calm and it was sunny for part of the day. When we got inside the aquarium Zach went crazy yelling fish, fish!! It was a really neat place. Not only did they have all kinds of fish they had sea lions, seals, otters and all kids of local birds. The coolest part of the day was the shark tube. You walk through this tube and the sharks are swimming all around you Zach went crazy, then as if it wasn't cool enough they started feeding the sharks. Man that was awesome. Here is some video of Zach watching the fish. It is not a very good video because of the lighting but you get the picture. After leaving the aquarium we went to eat at a place that overlooked the water and had step that went down to the beach. So after lunch we went down to the water and Zach had a blast playing.

Saturday we took it easy and did some things around the house and tried to figure out what we wanted to Sunday. Zach made that decision easy for us. All day Saturday he kept giving use the "fish" sign and the "car" sign. So we decided to go back to the coast on Sunday, but not to go all the way to the aquarium, but to the beach in Florence and to the sea lion caves. It is about an hour drive there so that was not to bad. Here is video of Zach and Heather playing on the beach.

The last thing we did before leaving the coast was the sea lion cave. The sea lion cave is the largest naturally formed sea cave in the world. The main building was built in 1942 and there used to be steps you took 200' down to the cave. Now there is an elevator that you take down thank God. It was amazing in the cave, there must have been around 500 sea lions in the cave, making an enormous amount of noise. I don't have any pics of the sea lions because you were not allowed to use a flash, but when I figure out how to download my movie camera on the computer I will post some video of the sea lions. All in all it was a great 4 days and today Heather came home early so I got to get a ride in. What a weekend.

X-Mas

Well another x-mas is here and gone. This was our first x-mas in Eugene and it was pretty good. Zach is starting to understand what a present is and that makes it a lot more enjoyable for us. He opened almost all his presents this year which was fun. I can't wait till next x-mas when he is really talking and will truly understand what Christmas is. Zach is really starting to talk, he said 2 words together last night which is a first so we are working hard on getting that going. Well the buzzer just went off so back to making dinner.

Oh, I almost forgot. We were going to go whale watching today but the seas were to rough, 15-20' waves, to see the whales so hopefully next weekend.

The end of the year

I was just going back through my results of the past year and thought I would post them. I had an awesome year. One big reason is my teammates on the MOB. I had so much fun the past couple of years racing with these guys. We raced so well together as a team and I am going to miss that. So thanks to everybody that raced the Masters races and good luck to you guys this coming season. Here are my results:
April:
Hillsboro RR- DNF
Mississinawa RR Masters 3/4- 2nd, Teammate won
Ceraland Crit Masters 3/4- 4th, Cat 3 race- DNF
Moorseville Circuit race Masters 3/4- 2nd, Teammate won
May:
Eagle Creek Master 3/4- WON Thanks guys
June:
Salem Circuit Race Cat 3- 5th
July:
Eugene Crit Cat 3- 4th
August:
Eugene Celebration Stage Race Cat 3-
Stg one RR-11th
Stg two TT- 22nd
Stg three Crit- 3rd
Stg Four RR- 22nd
22 Overall

Whats been going on

Well its a few days before x-mas and the Hill family has been a little busy. We have been in Indianapolis and Philly visiting family. That took up the fist 8 days in December, since then we have been getting back into the swing of things and get over colds. I have been sick for a month and am getting tired of it. Now back the story. Indianapolis was great, I got to see my families and they got to see Zach and Heather. We ate Thanksgiving dinner at my Moms house and it was great. I got to drink some beer with my past neighbors and see my friend Mike and Brian, so that was cool. Then it was off to Philly to see Heathers brother Matt and his wife Deb and their new baby Collin, also the rest of the Brice clan was going to be there so it was a little family reunion which was great. The coolest part of that trip was the ride on the real Thomas the Tank Engine(thanks Matt). Zach is big time in to trains right now so he was in heaven. We rode in the caboose which was pretty freaking cool. Here is the video of the train coming into the station.

Running Sucks

So after a brutal cyclocross race yesterday, in which I totally sucked, Heather wanted to run today. Oh, I forgot to mention, poor out of shape, Heather won her women's Cat A Race yesterday. That chick is a genetic freak and I hope Zach got some of it. We decided to check out the local MTB trail first to see if it was ok to ride, it was not. I am totally against people riding when it is muddy, it destroys what precious trail systems we have left. So after a little recon on that trail we decided to turn around and head to the top of Spencer Butte. It is 2.5miles up and 2.5mile back on mostly good trail until you get to within about a quarter mile of the top, then the trail ends at a boulder field. From there it is find your own way to the top. But the view was awesome. On the way up we went through a foggy section of tail, it was pretty cool, but as we got to the top we realized it was a cloud. When we came out of the fog it was totally sunny and we were looking down on the clouds. We could see the Sisters which are part of the Cascade Mountain Range. I wished I would have brought the camera, but I didn't. But I can assure you I will next time.
Scott

A Eugene Sunrise

I thought this was pretty cool the other morning. The last couple mornings we have awoke in a cloud. It is really kind of spooky. This picture was taken when the town was in the cloud. As we descended down the hill we went into it. But it was sunny at our house when we left.

Awsome Shoes

These are the new Shimano R-300 Custom Fit shoe. I got these a few weeks ago when we were in St. Louis for Heathers medical school reunion. I got them Custom fitted there but had not had a chance to ride them until yesterday.

Lets start with the custom part before I tell you about the ride. First they take the insoles out and bake them in this special Shimano oven. After a few minutes they pull them out and put them back in the shoe. Then you put the shoes on and stand for 5 minutes. After that is done they take the insoles back out and put the shoes in the oven for a few minutes. This is the fun part. After the shoes have cooked you put your feet in them. They are really hot at this point. Next comes the the vacuum bag. They put this bag around your foot a suck all the air out forcing the shoe to mold to your foot. I will not lye, the pressure is almost uncomfortable. But man the shoes fit like a glove. You can see the bumps your toes made on the outside of the shoe.

Back to the ride. As most of you know with new shoes comes new cleats. I am always worried about getting the cleats just right, because a cleat that is off just a little bit can cause big problems with your knees. After a lot of measuring and guessing whether or not the cleats were right I was out the door. After a few peddle strokes I now know why pros get custom fitted shoes. I can't believe the difference, it feels like you are wearing slippers on your feet. You don't really feel the shoes at all. And as far as the cleats go, this is the first shoes I have ever owned that I did not have to go back and readjust the cleats. I can't wait to ride again. If you have an opportunity to get these shoes they are well worth the price.

scott

New Cross BIke

Well everybody else was showing their new rig, so I thought I would put mine on. I got this Redline Conquest Pro frame back in September and took parts off my old cross bike to finish it. The frame is super light, it is all aluminum, with a carbon fork. Very light and nimble. I have had to experiment with tire pressures to get the bike to handle the way I wanted it to. I had a big problem with the front end washing out the first time I raced it. But I have the bike dialed in now.

Why I Race Cyclocross

For those of you that have never done cyclocross you don't know what you are missing. Not only is it a total blast, but it really helps with bike handling skills and most of all keeps you fit. My last race which was 2 weeks ago, was 60min. During the race I was in zone 4 for 45 minuets and zone 5 for 15. Not all at once but at various points in the race. That kind of effort every couple of weeks keeps your Anaerobic Threshold up, so come December you don't have to work so hard in the building phase.

I raced today in Salem,OR, that is about an hour north of Eugene. Today's race was on an old golf course. It was a really cool course but totally brutal since it has been raining for the last week. The ground was totally water logged which made for insane rolling resistance. As the race started I was in pretty good position, but could not hold the pace of the leaders and fell back through the pack. I was completely out of gas, but decided to finish no matter what. At the end I was completely wasted, but I had finished and that is what is important.

THE NEXT DAY

Look at the pretty colors. Kinda looks like Africa..