Gianni's First Metric Century

Gianni successfully completed his first 100 km ride yesterday. Grandpa, G and I enjoyed a magical fall day, as we biked the Maine and New Hampshire coasts in the GSW's Seacoast Century. Of course camping out the night before was a blast, too. Last year Gianni road 50 miles. While he accomplished his goal of 63 miles this year, the last 10 were a struggle for him! A strong coastal headwind kicked up as G's legs tired. We are so proud of him for overcoming the hurdle of failing legs and strong winds; another example of how you can accomplish anything if you set your mind to it.

Century Warm Up Ride

Gianni and I went on a short warm up ride this afternoon to get ready for our big annual ride next weekend. We did 9 miles with several big hills. Gianni was testing out new pedals. A woman pulled out in front of us, he slammed on the breaks and had trouble getting out of the pedals; almost fell into the road. Now he is nervous about the new pedals. Back to the old ones. It felt great to get out there with him. I can't believe how much stronger he gets from one ride to the next. I have to ride often to get stronger, while he just has to play, grow and be a kid.

Almost Finished the Babson Island 14

After a year of on-and-off work, we finally finished building and sanding Gianni's new rowboat, a Babson Island 14. We put the final coat of primer on it this week. Hopefully, we can complete all the coats of finish paint in the next few weeks and test it before the snow flies. Gianni and my dad did most of the work over the course of the last year. Thank you Dad/Grandpa!

Narragansett Surf

We went surfing last Sunday in Narragansett for the first time. John Fogg and his son, Christian, decided to join us at the last minute. When we arrived, we were happy to see that the break was on. Gianni took a couple of rides, while Christian rode the body board. Gianni proceeded to teach Christian how to surf, pushing him in and giving him tips. Christian ended up standing and enjoying many, many rides. Gianni finished out the session with his trademark antics of the headstands and reverse coffin drop-ins. John and I shared my board in the outer break. We both enjoyed all the waves our bodies could handle. The September sun brought us warmth and the good times with friends made for a day to remember!

Labor Day on Block Island

Last weekend Gianni and I took our 20 foot SeaCraft, Hobbes, over to Block Island and met up with the Pearse's and other friends. We towed our zodiac over. Gianni spent the afternoon on the beach with the kids and I buzzed around to the south side of the island to surf. I anchored off Southwest Point and enjoyed one of the nicest days of surfing of the year. Back in New Harbor we rafted up and went to the Oar for dinner. The next morning Tim Comstock took us out fishing for black sea bass in his lobster boat. It was blowing 25+ knots. We worked hard in the seas to bring home just enough for dinner. The big surprise of the trip was that when we arrived back in the harbor Jon's boat was high and dry. We waited out the tide with him. It was getting late and the wind had not dropped off, so Gianni and I decided to spend another night under our tent fly in the front of Hobbes. Gianni had the idea of pulling Jon's boat off the beach with the zodiac, so Jon pushed and Gianni pulled with the boat and she floated. We helped Jon navigate through the anchor field and wished them safe passage, as they had to get home. By then it was late and dark so we went over to Champlain's to join in the New Years celebration. Gianni enjoyed an $8 ice cream cone and we headed back to the boat. We slept very well the second night on the boat as the wind finally calmed. Waking to a beautiful day on Block was inspirational, and the passage home perfect.

Mt. Carrigain

We had so much fun last week climbing the Presidentials that we decided to head right back up to New Hampshire this weekend. We had hoped for a two day trip, but the rain from the tropical storm kept us home on Saturday. I woke up early on Sunday and headed north. When Gianni awoke we picked a mountain to climb. Of course, he voted for Mt. Carrigain because it has a fire tower. The weather was perfectly September-like. Lunch in the tower was definitely a treat as we enjoyed the views. It was a lengthy hike, 10 miles, and thus we arrived back at the car late. We stopped for soup, as usual at the Common Man and then hit the road. We listened to Far North by Will Hobbs on the car ride home. What a fantastic story of survival in the Northwest Territories!

Presidential Traverse

Our last adventure of the summer was a four day traverse of the Presidential Range in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. We decided to try and do it the longest and highest way possible. So we started in the south up the Webster Cliff Trail and summitted all of the peaks possible (11) on our way over Madison and out to Appalacia in the north.

The climb up Webster Cliff was very difficult and hot, over 3 miles of straight up. Luckily we met up with two AT through-hikers who were absolutely wonderful characters. Gianni loved them and wasn't going to loose stride. He picked up to their blistering pace and we finished out the 7 mile climb over Webster and Jackson to Mizpah Hut in great time, beating the rain. Gianni could not get enough of their stories. Happy trails to those two wonderful men!

Day 2 found us setting out in a passing shower. We made very quick time over Pierce, Eisenhower, Franklin, and Monroe, arriving at the Lake of Clouds Hut by noon. The weather was calm but foggy, so the views were limited. After claiming our bunks and lunch we saw Washington appear in the sun. Inspired, we raced to the summit for some brief views and photos. Then as always the weather changed quickly. Our decent back to the hut was difficult with a strong crosswind and driving rain. We were soaked by the time we reached the hut. We met up with Wanda, Eric (9) and Ian (7) Rice at Lakes. The three boys were excited to hike together.

Day 3 was simply epic. The weather was perfect and we spent almost 10 hours on the trail enjoying it. We summitted Washington, again, and the headed over Clay and Jefferson. We began the difficult, 2 mile trip up Adams (second highest peak in the northeast) late in the day, but still made it to Madison Springs Hut by dinner. The pictures of our day tell it all.

On the final day, we summitted Madison in a 40 knot breeze. We had to hold on with our hands. Check out this video from the summit. We had a pleasant hike down Valley Way and reached the cars minutes before the rain. On the way home all we could think and talk about was doing it again soon!

Photo Album