Driving to Port Angeles today

Later today we’re zipping of to Port Angeles for the North Olympic Discovery Marathon’s Kid’s Marathon. My son’s been training with his school’s running club. They’ve run a total of twenty-five miles before today. This afternoon, they’ll run the final 1.2 miles to complete the official marathon distance.

I love Port Angeles! It’s a gorgeous drive to get there; a fun way to spend time with family and friends. A ferry ride will be a delight. It’s been some time, and with the summer-esque weather, it’ll be a particularly delightful trip.

The Victorian downtown enchants me. Plus, the waterfront simply bubbles with charm. It’s not often I’m able to drop to a slower place. Love that, even if it’s just an afternoon.

Driving in Bothell

One of the students at my taekwondo school needed a ride home. I never want something as basic as transportation to prohibit participation. So, I find myself driving down old Filbert Road after dark.

I’ve driven this road countless times. It’s a part of the area that, on the surface, doesn’t look much different. But I see through the trees. There are many lights where, once, there were none.

Filbert is long and narrow, and quite dark. I remembered many dark drives over the years. Yet the twinkling of progress lurks nearby. For the good, and the bad, this duality of life.

There are times I miss the old, but I delight in the new too much to be put out. Life’s too short for misery 

Lynndale’s last days

Sitting in the old gym last night listening to another concert, I felt a sense of finality. This building, built in 1957 and remarkably unchanged since, is doomed. Within a month, this building will be gone. Making way for the new.

Memories haunt these halls. Though I never was a student here, my son’s whole academic career resides here. Over the past 7 years, I’ve been in many meetings, many activities in many of these rooms. This place contains many memories, and probably the majority of my son’s.

One of the Edmonds School Districts’s oldest buildings, it contains the style of those schools I grew up with. Going forwards, he moves into a structure built in the 2000s, then to one from the late 80s. Yet, there’s connection for me. Name-wise, these are the same institutions I attended.

Progress is good. The new nudge school and high school are well crafted, delightful places. They meet the needs of 21st century students. Good ol’ tired, when Lynndale will soon join those ranks. And the gladness I feel tempers the sadness. The connections will hold.

Observed changes in #Lynnwood

Yesterday I noticed that demolition started on the old Taco Bell just east of Highway 99 on 196th. It’s last incarnation: another taco place, this one of similar quality to the great taco trucks. Many memories, but the building’s neglect finally won.

We’re getting a CVS pharmacy, which surely shall add delight to an already very busy corner. It’s a high-volume intersection, so I expect they’ll do well. I imagine traffic to get worse there, though. Maybe it’ll hardly be noticeable, that whatever traffic improvements built will easily compensate. One can hope.

Gives me pause, all this development. Our suburb’s design focuses on cars. Parts of Lynnwood are walkable. Yet many spots require a significant level of bravery and/or desperation. I’d love to see more walkability and bicycle friendly design featured in our development. Maybe we can all feel encouraged to slow down and enjoy our neighborhoods. Discovering a great life that doesn’t involve lugging around tons of steel and plastic. One hopes. Well, on this one I act. Some things are important enough to demand action. Some things…

Grinduro: A New Kind Of Bike Race?

This looks like a freaking awesome party down in the Sierra Nevadas. But October is a hard time for me to get away, what with everyone else in school and all. Heck, maybe it will be a great time for ME to break away. Sigh, probably not.

GRINDURO
On October 10, the world will be introduced to Grinduro, a new format of bike racing that combines the best elements of a mountain bike enduro and a gravel grinder road race.The Grinduro is one long loop of pavement, dirt and singletrack, where finishing times aren’t based on overall loop time. Instead, you’ll be timed only on four segments that were designed to reward the most well rounded of rouleurs.

The course is a serious affair (8,000-feet of climbing in 60 miles of our favorite roads in California’s Sierra Nevada Mountains), but the Grinduro isn’t meant to be a sufferfest. You’ll ride with friends, enjoy the rest stops, take in the views, and then give it all you’ve got during the timed segments.

Once you’re done riding, the real party gets started. Grinduro is not just a bike race. It’s a celebration of cycling with as much emphasis on the party as the ride, with excellent food, an impressive display of art and incredible handmade bikes, live music, free camping and a festival atmosphere.

Grinduro is a new kind of bike race, and you won’t want to miss this party.
Learn more and register today.

GRINDURO

What is #Winning?

I read Om Malik’s great piece today about winning. Chris Michel looks like a delightful person, and the tale of their friendship exemplifies the power and delights of networking.

In the course of their recent conversation, defining “winning” comes up. I’ve been pondering that myself recently. Well, I’ve been looking at “success”, but it’s really the same discussion. I love Om’s thoughts on questions: starting the day with more questions than answers, ending the day thinking of new ones. I have one key add: pride. I want to feel good about what I do, both in terms of ethics and in terms of quality.

So, how about you? Let me know in the comments, via Twitter or Facebook.