Running in Las Vegas

Last weekend the husband and I were in Las Vegas for my cousin’s wedding.  We were there for five days and it was quite the trip!  We got a phenomenal deal to stay at the Bellagio and I may or may not have tried the $20 trick upon check in.  This was the view from our room:The hotel is gorgeous and the room was really nice.  The best part of staying at the Bellagio was being able to watch the fountain shows from our room.  We never ate at our hotel at all – instead opting for more casual meals at the Paris or the Forum Shops and fancier meals at other restaurants on the strip.  Probably our most amazing dinner was at Tom Collichio’s craftsteak.I admit it, we are huge Top Chef fans and the head judge’s restaurant did not disappoint.  We also went to Firefly on Paradise (delicious tapas and pitchers of sangria), Scott Conant’s Scarpetta in the Cosmopolitan Hotel (delicious, highly recommend), and Thomas Keller’s Bouchon in the Venetian (also very nice).

We drank delicious cocktails – I highly recommend the Fusion Latin Mixology Bar in the Palazzo and our favourite, the second floor of the Chandelier Bar in the Cosmopolitan.  There are three levels to the Chandelier, each very different.  The second level is where the bartenders get super creative.  Tell them your favourite liquors, if you like sweet, sour, savoury and they will mix a unique drink for you.We also took in a few shows (Cirque du Soleil’s O and Mystere – call and ask for Canadian resident discounts), we walked the strip and we went to the top of the Eiffel Tower.We even spotted Elvis as he was officiating my cousin’s wedding.We checked out the Welcome to Las Vegas sign.And we ventured outside of Vegas by spending the afternoon exploring Red Rock Canyon (only 20 minutes west from Las Vegas).I also took advantage of the fact that running shoes are so much cheaper in the US than in Canada ($140 versus $200…yikes!) and picked up a new pair of Asics Kayano 17s.Then I put them to test while running the strip one morning!  I went out around 8 am when much of the strip was still shady, so even though it was hot out it was still relatively comfortable.  Outside the Monte Carlo.Over the Brooklyn Bridge at New York New York.On my way to the Excalibur.As I ran past the Planet Hollywood I realized I needed water.  I had hoped to find a bathroom and water fountain near the entrance of the shops but no dice.  Instead I ducked into the casino and drank out of a tap.  Blech, but you’ve gotta do what you’ve gotta do!  Then as I ran past the Flamingo we got detoured off the sidewalk and into the smoky casino.  That was interesting!  Outside the Venetian.And the Palazzo with the Wynn in the background.At Treasure Island – time to turn around.At Caesar’s Palace.  From the Bellagio down to the Excalibur, then up to the Palazzo, over to Treasure Island and back to the Bellagio was about 4.1 miles.  It was nice and quiet out there with tons of runners.  This was my first trip to Vegas where I’ve actually been up early enough (and motivated enough) to go out for a run.

Rainy Days in Seattle

I’ve been away from the blog for a few days, having fun and being very busy on a little vacation!  I know I have a ton of people to catch up with and race reports to read…with just a little over 400 unread posts in my Google Reader.  Thanks again for all the congratulations on my race last weekend.  It was a fun one!  After the race I took off on a little road trip to Seattle for a few days.

I stayed at the 11th Avenue Inn, a really great place in Capitol Hill, a mile or two away from downtown.  The rooms were quaint and charming, with an amazing breakfast in the morning.  The hospitality was second to none and I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend staying here.  Monday was mostly about driving down to Seattle from Kelowna, popping in for lunch with my grandmother along the way, and then hitting up a few shops.  On Tuesday, May 18th, it was the 30th anniversary of the eruption of Mount Saint Helens.  I’ve always wanted to visit, so this seemed like the right time.  I hit the road for a 2+ hour drive each way to see the sights.  Unfortunately it was rainy, cloudy, windy and pretty cold so the views of the volcano were not the best.  There were all kinds of television crews out there for the anniversary. On Wednesday it was time to get back in the swing of things as I had a one hour run to take care of.  I thought about running around Lake Union, but I needed to run fairly early and I wasn’t sure what the route was like.  Instead I opted to drive up to Green Lake.  I’ve run there before, in fact it was the site where I first broke 60 minutes in a 10K at the Iron Girl race a few years back.  There is a 2.8 mile path around the river and it was busy with runners, cyclists, roller bladers and people walking their dogs at 6:30 in the morning.  The run felt great – nice and speedy – and the scenery was beautiful.  Unfortunately I didn’t take my camera with me though!

In the afternoon it was time to explore Seattle a bit and I stopped in at the Columbia Center.  It is an office tower downtown, but they have an observation level on the 73rd floor.  It isn’t a 360 deg view of Seattle, but you do get to see quite a bit.  Plus, is is only $5 and you get to see the Space Needle!  Unfortunately rain was pouring down when I went so I couldn’t see the mountains. From there I hopped in a cab to check out the happy hour at Elliot’s Oyster House.  Starting at 3 pm they have a progressive happy hour.  Oysters start at $0.50 a piece, and every half hour they go up $0.25.  I got there just in time, grabbed a dozen oysters and a beer and hung out to enjoy my last night in Seattle.It was a great few days, but I had to head back to the Okanagan in time for the weekend…  

Over the top!

Teacherwoman over at Dare to Tri says that my blog is over the top!  Thanks TW!  I’ve been following and reading her blog for quite some time.  I'm keeping my fingers crossed for her that she is able to figure out what is wrong with her knee soon!  So..in order to accept the award I have to answer these questions with one word answers...

1. Where is your cell phone? Purse.
2. Your hair? Blonde.
3. Your mother? Enthusiastic.
4. Your father? Best.
5. Your favourite food? Sushi.
6. Your dream last night? Unremarkable.
7. Your favourite drink? Beer.
8. Your dream/goal? Ironman.
9. What room are you in? Living.
10. Your hobby? Triathlon.
11. Your fear? Crashing.
12. Where do you want to be in 6 years? Happy.
13. Where were you last night? Towa.
14. Something you aren't? Hungry.
15. Muffins? Yum.
16. Wish list item? Bike.
17. Where did you grow up? Everywhere.
18. Last thing you did? Ate.
19. What are you wearing? Hoodie.
20. Your TV? On.
21. Your pets? Finlay.
22. Your friends? Supportive.
23. Your life? Full.
24. Your mood? Happy.
25. Missing someone? Yes.
26. Vehicle? Subaru.
27. Something you're not wearing? Hat.
28. Your favourite store? Express.
29. Your favourite color? Purple.
30. When was the last time you laughed? Earlier.
31. Last time you cried? Tuesday.
32. Your best friend? Far.
33. One place that I go over and over? Work.
34. One person who emails me regularly? Coach.
35. Favourite place to eat? Chipotle.

Just for the record, Biggest Loser had me bawling on Tuesday!!  I’m supposed to pass this along to 6 of my favourite bloggers.  I really hate to play favourites so this is going to be hard!

Worth a Tri – I am super excited to see this girl start to make her way into the triathlon world!
Julie over at Running with Dogs – She’s getting faster and faster and even though I’m fairly new to her blog she feels like an old friend.
Molly at Muppets on Parade – She has the most adorable beardies, plus she’s kicking some serious behind on training for Ironman Arizona.
Marit and Charisa – These girls are off to Kona!!  Best of luck ladies!
And finally Shirley over at Humble Triathlete – cuz I think she is hard core for doing two Iron distance triathlons two weeks apart!

And on a final note…falling asleep on the couch and waking up at 1 am to Star Trek – The Next Generation…then attempting to wake up at 4:30 for a swim?  Not happening.  And as much as I’d like to go this evening I need to pack for a weekend away.  Hmm, maybe tomorrow morning, but I have one busy day at work and I’d probably be better off going in early.  Yup, crazy busy work time has begun!!  Have a great weekend all!

Change of Plans!!

As I was riding along on Monday morning I started to wonder how I was going to spend my day.  After all, I would have the entire afternoon and evening ahead of me now!  My plan was to drive from Winthrop through the North Cascades National Park and stay in Marblemount, about 88 miles away.  Apparently there is phenomenal hiking in the park…but since I wasn’t so interested in solo hiking I wasn’t sure how I would spend my day.  I started to think that I could actually make it to Vancouver in plenty of time instead…

The drive through the North Cascades was beautiful.  Such different scenery compared to the southern route.  There is actually a town within the park, Newhalem, that is owned by Seattle City Light.  The only people who can live in this town must work for the Skagit River Hydroelectric Project, or in local county, state or federal agencies.  Interesting, eh?

Ultimately I decided to keep going toward Vancouver.  The hotel I had booked had enough availability that I could arrive a night early and I got here just in time for dinner.  Now where to go for dinner?  It was a toss up between oysters at Joe Fortes, or some possible Iron Chef winner Rob Feenie cuisine at Cactus Club.  Turns out that pints of Udder Ale are on special at the Cactus Club on Mondays, so that sealed the deal.

The place was packed, but I managed to snag an awesome table at the bar.  Shortly after this arrived…
…a lady approached me to ask if I would mind sharing my table with herself and two other folks.  They were teachers in town for a BC Teachers Federation conference and I wound up having a blast chatting with them all night.  One of the ladies, her daughter is racing Ironman Canada this weekend, plus will be racing Clearwater in November.  Turns out her daughter and I live just a few blocks apart.  Weird coincidence!

So the moral of the story is that sometimes a change in plans is a good thing.  You never know where it may lead you!  For me, it was a terrific night at the Cactus Club, plus something fun on Tuesday morning…

Postcards from the Road - Winthrop

It has been a busy few days…let’s catch up!  Sunday morning I left Leavenworth and continued on the Cascade Loop towards the Methow Valley.  The scenery changes quite dramatically as you go from mountains, to more dessert terrain with orchards and wineries everywhere as you continue east.  I went as far east as Wenatchee, then headed north from there.

I had a few ideas for places to stop, but one place that caught my eye as i was driving past was the Rocky Reach Dam.  Being a civil engineer (by degree anyway) I find dams to be pretty fascinating things.  Rocky Reach has some terrific exhibits open to the public.  You can stand by viewing windows and watch for different fish to make their way along the fish ladder for the dam.  You can see the turbines where all the magic happens.  (Although ultimately you can’t see a lot since all the action happens below the concrete surface)It was actually a beautiful spot, and everything was free to the public.

From there I drove past Lake Chelan to Manson.  Wineries and orchards are in abundance here, plus it is a popular spot for all kinds of water sport related things.  Can you believe it, I actually didn’t stop at any wineries?  Where I did go was to Blueberry Hills Farm in Manson.  They have a great spot for lunch and the pies are fantastic.  Since people will apparently drive 400 miles for the beef dip sandwich I decided to give it a try…and it was mighty tasty!After I left Manson I drove through the Methow Valley to my next destination for the evening, the Mt. Gardner Inn in Winthrop.  Winthrop is a pretty cute little town – it looks like you have stepped into the wild old west.  I arrived in town around 5 pm…so unfortunately a lot of the shops along the main drag were closing, but it was still neat to wander around.For dinner I drove a short distance to Twisp as I had heard good things about the Twisp River Pub.  I decided to throw caution to the wind and order their bacon cheddar burger since apparently all of their ground beef is sourced within 100 miles of Twisp.  I have to say…the burger was a heavenly experience!  Their ESB (extra special bitter) was pretty darn tasty too!

On Monday I had planned to laze about in the morning, check out of my hotel, go for a bike ride, then hit the road for my next destination.  As there wasn’t a whole lot of distance between my two stopping points this seemed like a pretty good idea.  Unfortunately I woke up before 6 am as the person upstairs was stomping about.  There was no going back to bed, so I decided to hurry up and get ready, ride, then be back in time to shower before checking out.

I had planned a nice route from Winthrop, south to Twisp, on to Carlton and back.  There are some roads that parallel the main highway with minimal traffic, and even better scenery.  Plus the route is essentially pretty flat.  Starting this early in the morning meant that it was still pretty brisk out – thank goodness I had brought my arm warmers along!  As I rode along I started thinking that I might change my plans since I was now riding a fair bit earlier than expected…  I got a fantastic ride in though, just over 36 miles. 

Postcards from the Road - Leavenworth

Leavenworth is one big ol’ tourist trap..but it is so cute!  After industry had left the town and it was dying community leaders decided to promote tourism as their main industry.  The town was converted into a Bavarian style village.  I stayed at the Bavarian Lodge, a place I would definitely recommend.  Beautiful rooms, comfy beds, and the most amazing breakfast spread I have ever seen (included in your room rate).  Breakfast included omelettes, potatoes, ham or sausage, homemade biscuits with country gravy, plus your usual suspects of cereals, toasts, waffles and fresh fruit.  I’d show you a picture but it looks like pure gluttony on a plate.

When I got in on Friday I grabbed a bite to eat, then was off to take in a performance of the Sound of Music.  Leavenworth has a great summer theatre, and seeing the Sound of Music outdoors seemed like a terrific idea.  I should probably admit that I have never seen this show, either on stage or the movie, ever before.  Seeing it live with the mountains in the back might be hard to top.

On Saturday I decided to head out for a ride along the Chumstick Highway to Lake Wenatchee State Park and back.  It would be about 45 miles or so.  There weren’t a lot of road riding options around Leavenworth in MapMyRide, but this one was listed a few times.  This ride was kind of similar to riding Highway 1A to Cochrane and back.  You slowly build elevation and it really isn’t an exciting ride.  When I was about 7.5 miles into the ride the scenery wasn’t the most amazing in this direction and it was just a boring ride overall.  I decided to cut it short and head back in to town.  I sat on a bench in the town square and ate my peanut butter sandwich and some cantaloupe and felt pretty content with my decision.FYI…better riding would be to go out Highway 2 (Cascade Highway) in either the east (flatter) or west direction.  More traffic for sure, but much better scenery!  Of course I know this in hindsight now, but that’s okay!

In the afternoon I wandered around the tourist shops and had dinner at an AMAZING place, Munchen Haus.  The menu is simple with several types of sausages to choose from.  They grill them up, then choose from a wide variety of mustards, plus relish, onions, ketchup, horseradish and sauerkraut for toppings.  Seating is in an outdoor biergarten that is pet friendly.  Plus they have some terrific beers on tap, my favourite being the Alpine Amber. This morning (Sunday) it was time to test out the legs and see if they remembered how to run!  I didn’t want to go very far, so I just did a loop from the hotel along Highway 2, up to the ski hill, then back down.  Just over 3.5 miles.  Of course, running up to a ski hill implies that this run won’t be all that flat…but it felt good to get the blood pumping running uphill.  I got going early to beat the heat, grabbed breakfast, then packed up the car and hit the road to continue my journey along the Cascade Loop…