Pole Skate, pole Skate, Skate Skate Pole…stroke Stroke breath, stroke Stroke breath….meditative repetion.. developing a daily ritual

85 days of Nordic Skiing…90 days GSL OW….45 non GSL OW….

Family reunion, memories of dad… It’s impossible to be at the Rhode Island Beach with family and not think about my dad. Where was my dad who insured a love of the ocean. It was an unwritten rule that we had to spend at least a week in the mountains for my mom and a week at the ocean for my dad growing up. Before I mislead you into picturing some sort of luxury mountain top villa or beach side cottage the summer vacations of my youth were almost exclusively camping trips. Car camping vacations at idyllic and well maintained state forests around the northeast US. For many years the family would camp in Rhode Island. So this year as we planned our first family reunion since the start of covid we decided to rent a house near the beach In Rhode Island very close to the beaches of my youth… The nostalgia was further amplified by the fact that this was our first trip to see family in over 18 months before the start of the pandemic. Phone calls and video chats are not a replacement for face to face time with family.

Sore muscles from a week of swimming hard

Imprinted memories of the gentle sea, jumping fish, sunrise

Ice cream
Seafood

First college visit..

Labor Day weekend I was moving Fast! During the altered reality of the Pandemic I have increased the frequency and pace of my morning activities. Admittedly a bit obsessed I have been compulsively getting up most mornings to Get in some outdoor recreation, in the warmer months this usually meant open water swimming with the occasional Biking sprinkled in. In the colder months this manifested into Nordic skiing. Like an addict I needed my swim or ski fix or I would get withdrawal symptoms.

On Labor Day weekend I started my Saturday with a glorious early morning open water swim. after this I met up with some out of town guests to go mountain biking. A beautiful day, with beautiful friends on a beautiful trail. While enjoying a fast fun descent, I abruptly found myself flying off the trail in a spectacular and painful crash. I consider myself very fortunate that I did not suffer a more severe injury. My helmet protected me from a head injury and my manner of impact in a tree free zone avoided a neck or spine injury. Sadly I did suffer a pretty severe shoulder injury which I am still recovering from. This accident and the subsequent slow rehab has taught me quite a lot about adaptation and Flow.