O Christmas Tree - O Christmas Tree!

We know it's not December yet, but this is the first year we've been able to put up a tree in our house (we've either been by the beach or in Port), so we made an exception today!

It's just a little one - but it has lots of character.

Next Sunday we are having the Official Tree Trimming Party, so it will look a little bare until then. If you didn't get your invitation, please consider this your invite and stop by anytime between 2pm & 6pm. (Internet stalkers are NOT welcome! hee-hee)

We've made the Boyd Christmas iPod Mix and it will be rockin - it's something you don't want to miss.

See you next week.

Quick Update

Hi! We haven't been the best bloggers recently -- most of the times we come to the computer we are downloading from our new toys. Yup, more Garmin talk -- they are just so much fun!

Anyway, biking is going great - both feeling healthy and into our routine.

Katie is in Mexico this week training the woman who is going to take over her position. She is happy to be handing it all over!

We've been busying catching up with friends over dinner, drinks or whatever there is time for. Work Christmas parties start next week -- yikes! Katie's is an overnighter again - but just in Calgary. Unlike last year when we were spoiled and we went to LA!

You're now up-to-date. Thanks for checking in - talk to you soon!

Information Overload!

Although our Garmins have way more information than we will, likely, ever require -- they are soooo much fun to play with! So far we've programmed a month's worth of training exercises into them (now all we have to do is turn them on & our Garmin tells us how fast, how hard and how long to pedal!)

Today we started with a Max Heart Rate Test to help us program our training zones (can you say ouch!) Basically you pedal as fast/hard as you can until your lungs and legs give out. The computer keeps track of your heart rate, and thus you now know your Max Rate.

The Red Line = Heart Rate. Orange Line = Cadence (RPM)

After that we took the bikes (and the Garmins!) for a road ride. We picked a slightly different version (a few more hills) than one of our favorite rides -- out to Priddis and back. And we couldn't wait to get home & see all the data!

So here's a Physics question for all you wizards: If you cover 15km in 40mins going West and 15km in 20mins going East -- what's the wind speed and direction? Here's a hint - it hurt getting there and was way fun on the trip home!! To help you with the question - here's a bunch of data on a chart that our Garmin produces for us after each ride.

Red = Heart Rate. Green = Elevation. Blue = Speed

Because it has GPS, we even get maps to plot our rides! This was a pretty simple 34km out and back - made slightly more difficult with a strong head wind!

We look forward to your answers, almost as much as we are looking forward to our next ride!

Stormy Sunshine

Stormy Sunshine -- it may sound like a bit of an oxymoron. But when we're talking about the names of the horses we rode - it's very accurate!

Katie rode Sunshine and demonstrated a true cowgirl spirit by being eager to learn to put on the saddle, brush the horses, etc. Scott rode Stormy and was hopped up on Allergy medication to stop him from sneezing the day away. He took a more hands-off approach to help prolong the day of riding - and it seemed to work, once we were in the cool fresh air, his allergies were fine.

Katie was totally in her element - surrounded by cats, dogs and all the barn yard animals. There were several cat discussions as she played with the new kittens - but we came home as we had left...cat-free. Although, Scott did actually touch the kittens (could he be changing his mind?!)



We had tons of fun with Kyle & Melissa. It was a definite "laugh while you learn" type of session! As you can see by the photos, it's already snowing in Calgary - much more so near the mountains where we went riding. But we had a great time and we went to their place afterwards for some hot chocolate and an amazing dinner -- thanks again guys!

Giddy Up!

We are going horseback riding tomorrow with our friends Kyle & Melissa -- we'll be sure to take some photos. These are some of their engagement photos - totally amazing!

Our trip is sure to be funny, since neither of us are really the cowgirl/cowboy type! But we can't wait for the fun to begin. Katie hopes to ride a horse called Wilson and Scott hopes to ride a horse called Trigger.

Yee-ha & Giddy-up!

The Edge

After getting back from our holiday, we began our training for the BC Bike Race. Between Oct & January, training is all about getting back into shape and not feeling the pain from the workouts. To help us with a distraction during this process, we bought The Garmin Edge 305. It should arrive next Thursday, but we already can't wait!!

Our research shows that this little machine should be wicked fun. Here's a little more about it, until we can give you our consumer review next week!

"Edge 305 automatically measures your speed, distance, time, calories burned, altitude, climb and descent, and records this data for your review. For extra-precise climb and descent data, Edge 305 also incorporates a barometric altimeter to pinpoint changes in elevation. GPS, cadence & heart rate monitor in one!"

The weather is still good enough for biking outside - so we are doing that when we can. The rest of the time it's on the trainers in the basement. We also have a competition as to who can create the best IPOD workout mix. Katie's mix this week was an inspired old school mix that made the bike intervals pass quickly -- well done!! But Scott promises a solid sample of beats for training on Saturday. If you want to judge the IPOD selections, let us know & we'll post them for your comments!

Until next time - keep pedalling!