Bill and I traveled to Parker, AZ on November 5th & 6th so that I could compete in the 11th Annual Blue Water Casino Triathlon. This was a much smaller triathlon compared to the Mission Bay Tri that I competed in last month, but awesome nonetheless!
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| Pre-Swim |
I competed in the shorter distant event, which consisted of an out and back swim in the crystal clear waters of the Colorado River. The water was a balmy 74 degrees, but the 47 degree air temps made for a chilly start. The swim was followed by a two loop bike route that went around the casino and through a neighboring campground. This was a tough course as it was speckled with speed bumps that made it difficult to gain alot of speed. I lost a water bottle during this portion of the race as I hit one of these speed bumps head on at the bottom of a hill. Lastly, the race wrapped up with an uphill run out and around the casino once again.
Overall, I did relatively well. I was the first person out of the water for both men and women, placed 1st in my age group, and 3rd overall for women. In addition, I was joined by others from the Yuma area who competed in the event and placed high in their respective age groups as well. It was nice to be part of a group that represented Yuma so well!
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| Finished! |
Aside from competing in the race, it was a nice opportunity to get out of Yuma for a bit and spend some quality time with Bill as he had just wrapped up another WTI course the week prior. Also, it was nice to have his support as it is always nice to have someone cheering you on. We look forward to the next race on the schedule, which is the PF Chang Half Marathon in January that we will both be participating in, but have yet to train for!! I had high hopes of picking up the miles after the Bluewater Triathlon, but life got in the way... :)
The following weekend, we hosted a Huey Shop Potluck at our home. This turned out to be a fabulous event as it was a nice way to celebrate the successful completetion of another WTI and catch up with members of the shop and their wives. Bill and I cooked vats of turkey and buffalo chili. This turned into a chili cook off between Bill and myself since I originally told Bill that buffalo chili would be gross and not well received. Well, as it turns out buffalo chili is awesome, and Bill showed me up with his magnificant chili cooking skills :) We look forward to growing as a shop and can't wait for the next event!
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| Mark, Jen, Myself, and Bill Marine Ball 2010 - Jacksonville, NC |
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| Marine Ball 2011 --Yuma AZ |
We had smooth travels to Hawaii and got to spend 8 days/nights in a tropical paradise!! We stayed on the island of Oahu and stayed right at the military hotel, The Hale Koa, which was located right down in Waikiki. The Hale Koa was magnificant as it was right on the beach with several pools, a couple of restaurants/bars, beautiful landscape, and close to everything!
The first full day that we were there, Bill and I woke up bright and early and headed on over to tour Pearl Harbour. We were glad that we got up early to visit the site because at 8:30am the parking lot was almost nearly full! We lucked out and got tickets to the 9:30am historic documetary followed by a trip out to see the USS Arizona Memorial. This monument was beautiful and very profound. It was amazing to see that there is still oil leaking from the depths of this sunken ship 70 years later. it was also sad to think of the amount of life lost during this momentous event in history. In addition to touring the USS Arizona, we also bought tickets to the Aviation Museum, which was right up Bill's alley. There was so much to see at Pearl Harbour that you could probably spend a whole day there.
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| USS Arizona |
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| On the Memorial |
Following our tour of the Aviation Museum, Bill and I took a very scenic self guided tour around the whole Island of Oahu. We made it up to the North Shore where we stopped to get some world class shaved ice at Matsumoto and visit the famous surf break, Pipeline, which happened to be flatter than a pancake. It was a beautiful drive either way. We drove by the Dole Plantation and got to see the pineapple fields. The landscape of Hawaii was just breathtaking; it was SO GREEN, especially compared to the desert.
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| Pipeline (I think..haha) |
Also during our time in Hawaii, we got to take advantage of some of the landmarks that were close by. For instance, we got to hike to the top of Diamond Head, which is one of the more famous volcanic features of Hawaii. This landmark has had served many purposes over the years, which included acting as the host to the first US military reserve established in the Hawaiian Islands back in 1909. Diamond Head was also notably used for a filming location to the popular HBO series, LOST. Lastly, Diamond Head is probably most utilized for observation as the top offers incredible views of the Waikiki shoreline and Pacific Ocean.
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| At the Top of Diamond Head |
We also got to catch up with an old swimming pal of mine as her and her husband are stationed out there. We got to share some good food, drinks, and Hula Pie (haha) while reminiscing some of the old age group swimming days. It also gave me the opportunity to get some tips from her for future triathlons as she is an amazing athlete and future Iron Woman!! Keep up the good work Lectie!!:)
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| Swimming! |
Bill and I also got to enjoy some splendid beach time as we waited for our families to arrive. The whole purpose of our trip was to bring our families together and to officially celebrate and renew our marriage vows with them present. Therefore, we feel very fortunate and grateful that everyone on both sides of our families were able to make the trip out, especially since we have family in all parts of the United States and World including Texas, New York, North Carolina, and Japan. Bill and I even got to meet our newest niece, nephew, and sister-in law for the first time!
Our Family Wedding Ceremony took place on November 23rd at 3:15pm on Angel Bay Beach. It turned out perfect and we couldn't have asked for a better day, even though it was quite windy! Bill and I spent the day with Captain Howie as we got ready and had professional photos taken. We felt fortunate to have my brother, Shod, present as he was able to capture quite a bit of the actual ceremony through his own photography skills. Here are some of our favorites:
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| My favorite picture! |
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| Mid Ceremony |
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| Re-Married:) |
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| Silas and I |
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| Everybody! |
Following our wedding ceremony, we shared cocktails at a placed called House Without A Key that overlooked the ocean and gave way to a beautiful sunset while we waited for our dinner reservation. After a few strong Mai Tais we headed over to the Orchid Restaurant, which was located in the Halekulani Hotel. They put on a fabulous dinner and cake cutting ceremony. We could not have asked for better service, food, or family to share it with! I don't think that Bill and I could be any happier with how everything turned out and how special everything was!
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| With my brothers; Shod & Cody |
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| House Without A Key |
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| Cake Cutting with Diamond Head in the background |
During the rest of our time in Hawaii, Bill and I got to do additional hiking as a group of us headed out to hike out to some waterfalls. This was a pretty muddy trek, but the trails were awesome and the water falls were worth the hike out. Here are some pictures from that mini adventure:
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| The Group looking kind of tired.... |
Also, in lieu of the traditional Thanksgiving Dinner we got to attend a Luau with everyone. We loved the show and food! I think our favorite part of the show was when they broke out the fire....
Silas LOVED the Hula Girls.....
Sadly, our trip came to an end too quickly!! However, our trip home was not too quick! We ended up missing our flight home due to changes in the itinerary that we were unaware of. Therefore, we ended up spending an obscene amount of time flying from Honolulu to Maui, Maui to LA, and LA to Yuma. We are glad to finally be back home and getting back into our grind...well, I can at least. Bill had to turn around and leave for a week long conference in Vegas the next day!! Hopefully, Vegas doesn't get the best of him this week:)
Anyway, we hope that everyone had safe travels and a wonderful holiday as well!! We look forward to a low key December and Christmas. Have a safe and joyous Holiday Season and Merry Christmas!!
