The Great Solar Eclipse of 2017 crossed the continent, from Oregon to South Carolina, and gave millions of people the chance to witness one of the most awe-inspiring events in the natural world.

But you had to be within the "path of totality", a narrow band across the earth's surface several thousand miles long but only about 70 miles wide. Outside that band you would only see a partial eclipse, not a total eclipse.

And there is no such thing as a "partial total eclipse", despite the impression blogs and the news media might give. I honestly think that's why so many people misunderstand the utter beauty of the spectacle; they may have seen a partial eclipse in the past that was total somewhere else, and even though they weren't in the path the news kept gushing about it being a total eclipse, so they assume they must have seen a total eclipse and just didn't find it all that impressive.


Posted by Dan 08/29/2017, revised 09/06/2017

2015 marked the inaugural year for the Tri Club Championship Series, sponsored by Goodwell Fitness, and the almost too-good-to-be-true grand prize was a destination race package (flight, hotel and race fee included). The contest included almost a dozen local races throughout the 2015 season where athletes could accumulate points based on race distance and finish placement.

Since I am highly prize motivated, this challenge sucked me in immediately and by the end of summer, I had climbed my way to the top of the scoreboard. With just two events remaining, the top three slots were neck and neck, and it came down Scott Tinley's as my final opportunity to seal the deal. It all seemed a little unreal when my win at that race confirmed me as the recipient of the grand prize, a free trip to any location that Alaska Airlines flies!

The choice was obvious.

Over the years, I've won various loot at races, either for racing hard or for simply sticking around until the raffle is over. But rarely have I won anything that I can actually share with my #1 spectathlete, the man who groggily accompanies me to pre-dawn transition set-up, stands around for hours waiting to cheer me on during the twelve seconds that I pass by on the race course, and then helps me lug my gear back to the car when my legs can barely hold me up anymore.

It was time I properly thanked Brad for the role he plays in my triathlon success, and one thing he deserved was a second shot at our honeymoon.

He sacrificed much to make that original trip happen, with the intent that it was a one-shot deal. For months he stockpiled airline points, working a lonely, grueling schedule that included four flights and over thirty commuting hours per week, traveling back and forth between Wisconsin and California as a consultant. He worked long hours and lived in a hotel for the better part of year, with a laser focus on the end result: a first class dream vacation to Puerto Rico right after our wedding.

But things did not exactly go according to plan.

We did our very best to keep a positive spin on the experience, lest we seem ungrateful for the astonishing perfection that was our wedding day. But I know the "adventure" that began our Puerto Rico trip has never quite sat right with Brad.

A connecting flight cancellation and eventual re-route meant that we spent two days of our five day tropical vacation stranded at the airport, waiting in lines for re-booking, waiting to see if they could locate our luggage, waiting outdoors in the snow (with nothing but beach gear) at a makeshift shuttle stop amidst JFK airport construction.

The airline wasn't able to replace our first class booking and we weren't even seated next to each other on the eventual San Juan bound flight. It was a travel nightmare, and we arrived in Puerto Rico exhausted and ready to sleep for the remaining three days.

This serendipitous TCCS prize gave us a second chance to get things right. And where does Alaska Airlines fly? Hawaii!

Tropical Honeymoon: Take Two!

Of course, this prize isn't just a vacation, it's a race AND vacation (the best kind of trip, in my opinion), so I had to find a race in Hawaii to anchor our trip around. There were plenty of options to choose from, but I finally landed on the Waikiki Roughwater Swim, a 2.4 mile ocean race in Honolulu in September. This annual event has a significant place in triathlon history, as it was included in the first ever Ironman race in 1978, and is the reason the 140.6 starts with a 2.4 mile swim.

Honeymoon destination: Check

Iconic race in said destination: Check


Posted by Kimberly 10/26/2016

Yup, I'm taking over my page now! Since 2003 i haven't done anything except a trip on my bike last summer. Well, I guess that about brings us up to date. Moving on.

My summer was spent in the wonderful little village of San Luis Obispo, nestled against the California coastal range, where i participated in an internship at the 'we're too good for Nik' Cal Poly University. Let me just say, SLO rocks! As do all the wonderful people i met there this summer, and I can't wait to return next year.

We'll cut into this little reminiscion with a recount of my last mini-backpacking trip near Sequoia National Park, so i can put in some cool pictures.

A friend from the internship and I headed out after work on friday for a weekend backpacking trip in the Sierra's. We got in late and stayed at a little walk in camp that was tucked waaay up a small winding backroad near the trailhead. This was also the only bear sighting on our trip. We awoke early to find a black bear not more than 50 yards off in the camp area. He wasn't interested in our food though, just beating up the trees around there.

Backpacking in the High Sierras

Posted by nik 08/22/2008, revised 08/22/2008

Lately, every day seems to go exactly the way it should, and that goes especially for the weekends. The last couple weekends have been great, and this past one was no exception.

Friday night, our volleyball team (who is trying to hold our 4th place spot so we can go to the playoffs in a few weeks) played an awesome game against the 1st place team. We ended up losing 65-60 (high scores, I know! It's just one 40 minute game with rally score), but it was one of the most satisfying, enjoyable games yet. We're really coming together, and it was just a quality game of volleyball.

Saturday morning started off with an awesome picnic breakfast above the town with a few of my friends. We went and sat up on top of Castle Hill, which is the one high point in town - a beautiful jutting piece of rock coming out of the flat land. It looks out over all of Townsville and Maggie Island and the ocean and the coast... it's awesome. We sat on top of an old bunker and enjoyed the view and the morning with food and coffee, just lazing about for a few hours.

Me with friend Ben on Castle Hill, starting the weekend off with coffee and a view.

Then I spent my entire Sunday rock climbing on Mt. Stuart, which is part of the Great Dividing Range, just behind Townsville. As great as the view was from Castle Hill, it was no comparison to Mt. Stuart. My roommate Scott and 2 other friends and I climbed all day, surrounded by the beauty of the ocean and the land down below. It was really great to do some actual outdoor climbing, as well. I had an incredible time, climbing until my muscles could no longer hold me on the wall. I'm hoping I'll get some more chances to go climbing in the next couple weeks, because I really had a great time.

Hanging out on Mt. Stuart on Sunday for a great day of climbing and views.

Check out my Mt. Stuart photo album to see the view I got to enjoy all day yesterday!

Posted by Whitney 06/02/2008, revised 06/02/2008