The Gambler

"Now every gambler knows the secret to surviving is knowing what to throw away and knowing what to keep. Because every hand's a winner and every hand's a loser..."

This weekend my Gambler did a great job at the KTR -- the "r" standing for ride... not a race, yes, definetely not a race ;)

Chris finished the Kokopelli trail in 15 hours and 20 minutes. I had guessed (which Chris's help) that he'd make it at some point before 15 hours 30 minutes. That guess left me no time to worry about the boy which makes me a very happy wife! Chris and I were remembering all of the times through the years that he's made me a nervous wreck at races. I watched 3 wives nervously waiting their VERY late husbands and felt for them, but at the same time I was really happy it wasn't me. I wanted to make a blog of all of the funny memories of botched races which left me in a crazed state, but I think that needs more thought first... afterall, there have been MANY. I just want everyone to know how nice it is to not have to worry *as much* any more. He's done a great job at making sure of that.

I know Chris wasn't totally happy with his ride and it raised some serious questions in his head that he didn't want to have to think about, but I'm very proud of him and know that he will make good decisions. Riding races this long is a gamble. Keep playing your cards right.

In other news, hubby and I went on an awesome ride today after he got home from work. I love riding with him after big races -- the pace is slower, the rides are shorter, definetely suit me better than his usual rides! We went out without a plan, without a training goal, without time restrictions. We rode up by Stanley Lake and discovered some new (to us), super fun single track by the water. The green of the grass, the colorful wild flowers, the silver sparkley water, and the setting sun behind the blue mountains made for an incredible ride. For the first time in a long time I had that little kid bike feeling. I was out with my best friend riding for no good reason, just out to enjoy the night and goof around. We took lots of pictures, I got some wheelie instruction, we explored, swallowed some bugs, hopped some fences... I forgot that about that feeling. I can't wait to do it a lot more often in the future. Here are some pictures from the ride:









Go find your best friend and go for a ride... just for the fun of it. You won't regret it.