Well, Chris and I are now officially triathletes. Yesterday we completed our first Triathlon and I have to say it was a great experience. Hard though. Probably the most intense thing I've done in a really long time.
We had lots of friends come out to support us and yell their cheers. It was a neighborhood event with the Sarkelas, Bakkes, Ashers, and Gendreaus all there!! Way to go support team! Thanks everyone for coming. It meant so much to have you there! My best friend Kristen did the race too. It was fun to be at the finish line with her.
Here are our results and some pictures to see! May it be the first of many. We have the tri bug! :) Now the money saving for road bikes begins! You can send your contributions to us here at home. hahahaha!
Chris: Official Time: 1:22:09
8th in his age group (35-39)
37th out of 159 men
50th out of 301 athletes
swim .3 mi: 9:50
bike 14 mi: 42:57
run 3 mi: 25:04
Jan: Official Time: 1:29:59 (my goal was 1:30:00!! HA!)
4th in my age group (30-34)
30th out of 211 women
102 out of 301 athletes
swim .3 mi: 10:44
bike 14 mi: 47:23
run 3 mi: 26:48
The boys had a good time cheering us on. Keir and Tricia stayed at our house and brought the t-shirts for the boys to decorate. They turned out great - THANK YOU ASHERS!
Me checking my progress. Keir Asher in the background taking pics and cheering us on.
Chris and this guy sprinted across the finish line yelling and cheering the whole way!
Congratulations hug as I came across the finish line.
Dylan, Lukas Bakke, Cayden, Griffen Asher, and Landon Bakke - they were giving the athletes high fives as they were coming up to the finish.
Landon, Griffen, Cayden, Lukas, Dylan and Will all giving fives and cheering everyone on.
Here's us with Kristen who absolutely smoked the swim - doing it the 14th fastest out of 301 athletes! Thanks for all the training help Kristen!
JNV
Dare to TRI, Results Are In!
Benkufsky's Cabin
Last weekend we took a trip up to the Benkufsky's (our neighbor) cabin. The Sarkela's, our other neighbors, also went so we had a cabin full (12 with all the kids and 2 dogs). The weather was perfect and everyone had a great time. Bentley ran and swam so hard that he pretty much collapsed on Saturday night about 7 o'clock.
Cayden, Matt and Hadley Sarkela trying to catch something at sunset. If Cayden found himself with a spare moment he grabbed his fishing pole and hit the lake. He is pretty much a self-sufficient fisherman now - baits his hooks and takes the fish off himself. He even helps the other kids get their fish off. I think he has a passion for fishing.
We woke up Saturday to a thick blanket of fog. The lake was like glass and it seemed the dock was floating in grey. Bentley went in for a stick right away in the morning.
Here is Teresa, Jan, Matt, Leo, and Sharri (L-R) relaxing by the cabin. The boys, Jan and I, and Bentley all slept in the tent (thanks Wiley and Shelly) since it was tight in the cabin. The boys had fun camping out. Bentley liked it too except for all the sounds he kept barking and growling at. The first night just as we were falling asleep an acorn fell on the tent and scared the peewaden out of Jan!! :)
I love how this picture turned out! The funny thing is I think Cayden was giving Hadley a frog! :) 
We set a record for the most people (and dogs) on the swim dock.
The highlight of the weekend was both boys skiing on ski trainers! Poor Cayden was the victim of the adults learning how to launch the kids. We finally figured out it worked best if the kids just stood up from the get-go. He was a good sport and went through all these tries! Way to go Cayden!!
Dylan was brave enough to try it out too! He got up the very first time, which ended up being a blessing because when he tried again on Sunday he fell and was ready to quit. We talked him in to trying again with his goggles on - he thought that was ok. So he got up twice!! Way to go Dylan!!!
Thanks very much to the Benkufsky's for inviting us up, we had a great time!!
CCV
North Shore Trip
We took a trip up the north shore to Lutsen on our own recently. It was the first trip we've done alone for quite a while and we had a great time. We spent the night visiting the Vos family in Duluth on Friday night. It was fun to see them again and the kids had a great time playing together. The boys really liked having a sleep over on Luke and Joe's bedroom floor.
Saturday morning we headed up to Gooseberry Falls so the kids could walk in the river and climb on the rocks. We also stopped at Split Rock Lighthouse and took a quick tour - the boys liked going up in the light house to see the great big lens turning around on a mercury bearing.
We stayed up at the Caribou Highlands Lodge right at the bottom Lutsen ski resort. We did some swimming and had s'mores Saturday night.
Sunday we went on the boys first real hike on the Superior Hiking Trail. They did great - we made it about 1.5 miles and they loved the moss, mushrooms, bugs, and trees. They created a little picture journal of what they saw and did texture rubbings of trees and rocks.
After that we took a quick ride on the tram to the top of the hill for a great view of Lake Superior. The boys weren't too impressed by the view but they loved the ride. Then we rode alpine slides for quite a while. They LOVED that!
Then we headed home with a stop in Two Harbors to throw rocks in the lake for an hour or so.
All in all it was a great weekend!
CCV
Playing a little street hockey before we left town.
Cayden, Nora and Luke Vos, and Dylan clowning around.
Playing by Gooseberry Falls.
They had fun walking through the river.
This was so cute - the boys were both quietly working in their activity books while Jan and I got ready to head out for s'mores.
Self portrait on the Superior Hiking Trail.
We found out the boys are not afraid of hights.
Fishing Frenzy
We finally made it down to my Dad's cabin this summer! Michael, Kristen, Matthew, and Thomas Gendreau came down with us. It was a nice relaxing weekend. The boys put it a lot of time catching fish left and right off the dock!
CCV
Hon's Cabin
Recently we went up to Mike and Jenny Hon's cabin for a long relaxing Saturday. It was a great time! Cayden got up on the ski trainer for the first time and he loved it! He even crashed once and it didn't bother him. Dylan and Cayden loved playing in the lake while we got to visit with a bunch of friends, eat good food, and play some bags.
Here's Cayden on the ski trainer.
Bentley got some really good exercise playing with Kota in the lake. Here is a shot of the dogs chasing the RC boats - they thought it was a blast. Bentley slept well that night.
Thanks Mike and Jenny for inviting us! We had a great time!
CCV
