Just for you Mr. Collin Becker!

After some delicious Indian food from Sherpa's last night, we busted out the Scrabble board and got our competitive sides fired up. Jen Jen won in the last round follow closely by Ryan (who was rockin' it the whole game). Allen and I weren't far behind him but we definitely get props for having a 39 point 3-letter word! Collin just sucked it up.

Allen was in the giving mode and gave Jen and I both wrapped 'Christmas Logs' (see above pic) that had been sitting in his car since the holidays that ironically had an expiration date of last night.

After a solid bike and a pain-free run off of it this afternoon, I am starting to feel a little more confident about this knee issue. Still going to take it easy for the next couple weeks, but at least I'm going in the right direction. More to come.

More toys!!!

Since I have started using Training Peaks as my new coaching/training software, there was no doubt I had to check out Timex's new Race Trainer watch system that transfers your workout data straight into the program.

I first heard about it when doing some video fitness tips with Dave Scott and Gale Bernhardt in Boulder this summer (see videos here), but because I wasn't using that training software to log my training, I didn't really pursue the details of the product. I am now super excited to see what it can do and how I can use it to track my various training workouts. All I have to do is visit the wonderful people at Training Peaks and get the whole tutorial so I know how to make it function :) I will give a more detailed report on the rockin' features once I get my learn on!

The OR Report

Let's just say...HOLY CRAP! I cannot believe the amount of time, effort and money that goes into one of these shows. From the booths to the parties, each company can really make a name for themselves at a trade show :)

I had a great time meeting many of Franklin's clients and chatting with potential new ones as well. I got to hang out with the Timex folk (which was the best part of the trip of course) and Keith even snagged a pic of me standing next to the Headsweats booth...who is that good looking girl?!? Yes, I even got to sign my own poster. Haha.

It's been cold and snowy here in Colorado so the training isn't what it was like when it was in the 60s and 70s but I guess that's a good thing considering my first race is in less than 3 weeks and it's all on snow!!! Better get those skis and snowshoes back on :)

To Salt Lake City I go...

I will be traveling to the OR trade show (above) tomorrow morning at the ass-crack of dawn to meet up with the crew from Franklin and all the people from Timex. Should be a good time. The cooler weather is moving in so it's perfect timing to skip out of town for a few days...

If I can't run, I'll just ride!!!

After a stellar 5K swim Saturday morning, I jumped on the road bike for a 4+hr ride with me and the ipod. It was 60* and absolutely perfect!

This morning, I met up with the boys for another 4+hr ride in 60 degrees. This one was on the mtb with great company and good laughs.

Below is the forecast for the next couple days. Kinda funny how the weather shifts the day I leave to go out of town for the Winter Outdoor Retailer Convention in Salt Lake and the day Allen gets back from CA! Haha...sorry, Allen, I have to rub it in. Only in Boulder do you get high 60s and -20s within a month of each other. Craziness :)

No running for 2 weeks :(

Maybe this will make me learn to listen to my body when it's not feeling right...

I've had an 'irritation' in my left knee for some time now (probably a month and a half) and sort of just avoided it as it didn't really hurt all that bad, just sometimes. At any rate, I should have just gotten it checked out right away because now it's a much larger problem....

With severe pains and swelling under my knee cap, there is most likely a tear in the meniscus. Everything looks fine on the x-rays as far as bone and joint placement, but my doc is very concerned about the inner knee swelling...damn. So, no running for 2 weeks and if the pain is still there without the harsh impacts, MRI it is...ARRRRGGGGGG.

The real reason behind the firewood...

Smores!!! Homemade and right in your own fireplace!!! We even got out the little camping seats to make it more realistic.

First you get the goods...Jon even buys caramel filled Hershey bars...mmmm

The you roast the marshmallows...on real sticks of course...

Then you devour and love every second of it...bwhahahah....sooo good :)

Not sure who is completely responsible for the idea or discovery of this, but hats off to Jon and Jen because it's now my new favorite thing to do at home :)

WATCH OUT!!!

...because that is what was in the garage when I walked in the other day!!! You wouldn't think my roommate likes to make fires now would ya?!? Hehe.

There's more to the story...stay tuned :)

Let's Go Pistons!!!!

Pistons 93-Nuggets 90

Last night, the Torrance boys and I attended the annual Pistons/Nuggets game at the Pepsi Center.

We met up with Lisa and Derek Strong at Wahoo's for some beers and a bite to eat at Wahoo's downtown. We asked the homeless guy who came in staring at our bucket of beers to take a pic of us and the above photo was what we got. He wasn't quite sure how to actually operate the camera and it definitely didn't help that I told him to look through the view finder when there wasn't one, but hell, it came out alright, and quite artistic if you ask me! Yes, we did give him a beer :)

Not everyone who went with us were Pistons fans. As a matter of fact, I was sort of embarrassed to be one for ummm...the entire game until the last minute. After being down by 10-13 points and watching the Stones play like high schoolers, we were honestly about to take off. They finally rallied in the last minutes of the game and wining in the final seconds. Above were 3 happy Pistons fans :)

Boulder on fire

Wednesday was a very scary evening here in Boulder. After an electrical post was knocked down by rampant wind, it sparked a fire that set thousands of acres on fire along the foothills of North Boulder. As the winds continued to get worse, so did the fire and thousands of people were evacuated from their homes (many of my friends included). Most people were fortunate to only have smoke damage but others were not. People are helping out as much as possible but it's still such a devastation. Check out the slideshow of pictures below from the madness.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/amy_gosch/sets/72157612317527996/show/

I am now part of the Crackberry Mafia

Yes, that above contraption is my new portable nightmare! It was purchased on Monday and I have just figured out how to actually answer a freaking call with it. I was told to give myself at least 2 weeks to get used to the touch screen and functions but I am in desperate need of a full on tutorial. So if anyone wants to teach me how to use this thing and put in all my contacts, work info, etc into it, beers are on me! Haha...I really am excited about it, just frustrated right now as I can't do anything cool with it :)

Happy New Year!

Things have been incredibly busy with clients, year end wrap up, holiday parties, attempting to get back into training, etc, but lots of fun times have been had! Winston and I took Simon (his roommate's dog) up to Indian Peaks and skinned up the mountain on our tele skis then skied back down on New Year's Eve. This was great practice for the XTERRA Winter World champs and got me really excited to start incorporating those types of workouts into my training. That night was pretty worthless, but New Year's Day was pretty fun. After watching the Red Wings beat up on the Blackhawks outside at Wrigley Field - which by the way was freaking AWESOME - Jon and I threw a little '2009 kick off' BBQ' at our place. We got the grill going, played some video games and busted out Jon's Klackers game which is always a hit. Good times!

Since it was 64* yesterday, I was able to get out for a few hours on the MTB which was probably the best feeling EVER. It was really windy, but I could have cared less as I honestly haven't ridden outside in so long because of working so much during the day and losing daylight so fast. It was exactly what I needed and a great boost of motivation to get back on track on Monday!