Snowshoeing Mt. Rainier National Park

Went up to Seattle after Christmas to test out my new snowshoes on Mt Rainier. Got hit with a big batch of snow when I arrived, so not too many views of the mountain, but fun nonetheless.

Near Paradise, Mt. Rainier National Park

Heavy snow moving in.

Camping at Kentucky's Red River Gorge

Spent the weekend camping at the Red River Gorge Area in Kentucky's Daniel Boone National Forest.

The weather beat us up a bit. The first day we had temperatures just above freezing and steady (at times heavy) rain for most of the night. The following morning the snow and ice came with temperatures dropping into the 20s and below. Either weather would have been fine by itself, but an extremely wet transition to freezing temperatures made for a bit of discomfort.

The drive back to St. Louis was quite an adventure in itself. Crazy snow and ice storm with heavy winds left the highways difficult to travel. We tallied at least 26 cars off the side of the road... once we started counting.

Castlewood 8-Hour Adventure Race

Participated in the Castlewood 8-Hour Adventure Race, this year racing in the 4-person co-ed division instead of the usual 2-person male division. Ran as a sub in the team Epic Machinery (Brian Hey, Al Beers and Vanessa McKenzie). Finished a little better than mid-pack. 7th place out of 18 teams in 7h:39m - (28nd out of 82 overall).

Cardinal Harbour Aquabike

Participated in the Cardinal Harbour Aquabike (1.2 mile swim and 56 mile bike) in Louisville, KY. Originally signed up for the full triathlon, but was recovering from a foot injury and thought it best to hold off on the run.

The 2010 MFer ("Mostly Flat") 300 mile ride

On Saturday, June 19th, I completed the 3rd annual MFer, a one-day, ultra-distance bike ride through southern Illinois. This year we rode 300 miles in about 22 hours from Columbia, IL to Cairo, IL and back. Finishing the 300 mile route with me were two other riders: Colin Peeler (who completed the 250 mile route last year) and Stephanie McCreary.

Erin Wahl, Vanessa McKenzie, Dennis Regelsperger, Annette Koob and Brent Newman finished the 200 mile route this year - which ran from Columbia down to Grand Tower and back.

The group getting ready to roll out at 5am. Photo credit Phil Shoulberg.

Aaron Fanetti, Stephanie McCreary and Colin Peeler after completing the 2010 MFer.

Ironman 70.3 Kansas

Completed Ironman 70.3 Kansas this past weekend. Weather was great - I, however, just wasn't feeling it. About 20 minutes slower than last year. Ouch.

Iditarod Trail Invitational 2010

Completed the 350-mile Iditarod Trail Invitational on bike earlier this week with Vanessa McKenzie and nearly 50 other athletes from around the world. Starting a week before the famous Iditarod dog-sled race, the ITI follows the Iditarod Trail across the Alaska Range from Knik Lake to the village of McGrath.

Temperatures ranged from around 30F at race start to -40F near the end.

Finished the journey in 9 days - much slower than expected, but much too fast in retrospect. An incredibly difficult yet truly wonderful adventure. No prizes, except a T-shirt and the knowledge you completed one of the toughest ultra races on the planet.







More pictures here

Hennepin Canal Parkway Trail

Spent the weekend camping and riding on the Hennepin Canal Trail over in Sheffield, IL. The flat 104.5 mile trail parallels the Hennepin Canal through north central Illinois. We had a clear sky and nice temps in the upper 20s. Snow and ice covered most of the trail, but it was easy to maneuver barring a couple unexpected slick spots.

Didn't arrive at the campsite on the first night until about 1:30am. Hit the trail at about 8am on Saturday and got an easy-paced 70 miles in. One spare tube and two flats left me walking the last 20 miles though. With a loaded bike I only managed to keep going at ~3 mph. It made for a long, lonely 6.5 hour push. I figured it was good training - though mind-numbingly boring. I did however manage to memorize my ABCs backwards among other things. Eventually arrived at camp about 1am... and slept like a rock.

Winter Bike Training in Alaska

Spent last week up in Alaska with Bill and Kathi Merchant from Alaska Ultrasport attending their winter bike training camp. The camp was a great learning experience and gave me a chance to test out my gear for the big race in March.

We arrived in Anchorage on Christmas day and spent the first couple of days doing last minute gear updates and renting our Surly Pugs from Arctic Cycles.

The next 5 days we spent near Flathorn Lake riding sections of the Iditarod trail, learning about the bikes and how to keep yourself warm in the icy Alaskan temps.

Riding the Iditarod Trail in Alaska