Happy Hallowe'en!

Ken's spider turned out really good!  We got a carving kit and did this ourselves with the little saws.  It was really fun since neither of us had done this in years and years.

Mine turned out a little goofy looking, but I like that about him.  He looks like he is laughing.  :)

Carving Punkins

Before.

After.

Ken's Scary Spider!

Jen's Goofy Pumpkin.

Jen Wins Second Match!

Here's Jen playing her second league match yesterday against Beth.  They played at a great little public court in Raleigh even though all day it had threatened to rain. 

This is Beth.

Rained Out

When we got to the courts in Apex yesterday afternoon it wasn't raining.  But by the time Ken's opponent arrived, so had the rain.  This was taken right before the downpour that prevented Ken's first ever league tennis match.  We are going back today at 6:00 to try again.

Please Watch This

Don't Miss This Video - Wow

The Tour Route

As many of you know by now, April 1, 2010 will be the start of The Just Be-Causes TerraTrike Tour.  Many of you have inquired about our route, so I am posting the map so you can see exactly where we will be heading.  Once we get on the road there will be regular updates to our location and daily blog entries as well so please keep coming back to check this site! 

Our starting point will be in VA where we will begin the TransAmerica Trail portion of the trip.  This trail ends in OR and from there we will take the Pacific Coast Trail to San Francisco.  Then we will take the Western Express Trail back into Denver.  From there we will take a train back home to NC. 

Total Trike Miles:  6675   

Jen Wins First Match!

Jen and I recently joined the Peach Tennis League put on by Prince. Today was Jen's first match and it was an interesting and fun day. The match was in Cary....that is about 36 miles away from where we live. So this morning we got ready to go and packed all the Frescas to take with us....and headed off to Cary. Of course Jen was kinda nervous since this was her first match and she had not played in a league since she was a teenager. I, of course assumed the role of reassuring her that everything would be great...  Well that got harder to do when we got to the tennis courts and realized we'd forgotten the racquets. Hmmm.... So we figured they would have loaners in the Tennis Center....and they did... so we tried to get a court but two of our credit cards would not work there.... kinda embarrassing....  What a start... Jen was getting so upset and I was running out of ways to convince her that it was going to be ok.  Not sure what we were going to do, Jen was on the verge of tears when the phone rang.  It was her opponent Lisa, and boy did she save the day. She said she had an extra tennis racquet, a can of balls, and a place to play for free....wow....she was so very understanding. When we met her at the tennis courts she put Jen completely at ease and Jen played a wonderful match without being so upset about the earlier events.....thanks so much Lisa!  Below are a few pics from todays event.  Oh yeah.... this is the first time I could really watch Jen move on the court while not worrying about watching the ball....I realize why I lose all the time.      ~Ken

This is Lisa. 

Jen's forehand. 

Keep your eye on the ball, Jen!

Rainy Day at Kiwanis

Walking is a great way to wake up and start the day and we do that here several times a week.  We especially like it when it's raining since the park is mostly empty.  It seems like we have some really great conversations here and we often come up with new ideas while we walk and talk.

We are getting really serious about getting into shape!

Our Gear

                                    

We decided the other day to return our old tent and instead get this smaller one and some of the gear we will be needing for the trip.  There are still quite a few things we need, but this is a really good start!

Our EdieBug

EdieBug saw me with the camera and jumped up to have her picture taken.  Unlike Simon she is not camera shy.  Simon is scared to get his picture taken!

The Wetlands

The turn-around point for today's ride was this Wetlands Area.

Southern Pines

 We rode around the Southern Pines/Pinehurst area today.  They have miles and miles of trail connecting their many parks and lakes together.  They also have LOTS of golf courses there as well as country clubs and tennis courts.  We didn't play today, though.  After we rode, we went into the village and looked around in the neat shops and had some lunch at a little deli with tables outside.

The Passport Program

Exciting News!  Sanford Nautilus belongs to the IHRSA which means we are eligible for guest priviledges at over 3200 affiliated gyms all over the country!  The people at our gym here are going to enroll us in the Passport Program as a way to support our ride.  This will be an enormous asset for us on our Just Be-Causes Trike Tour!  Showers, hot tubs, and massages!  Woohoo!  Not to mention the number of people we will meet there!  We see this as yet another very positive sign that we are moving in the right direction.  :)

Nautilus

After asking Susan Larsen

(Diane's Mom) where she did
her swimming, we checked it
out and today we officially
became members of the
Sanford Nautilus &
Racquetball Club!
The folks there were nice
enough to give us 5-day
free passes and we took
full advantage of that going
every day to make sure we
liked it there.  Getting fit has
become very important
to us.  Thank you Susan!

The New Gym!

Torture Devices.

The Torture Chamber.  I love/hate this room.

Ken standing by the pool, daring me to push him in.  Heh heh heh.

An Afternoon at Raven Rock

This afternoon we went to Raven Rock State Park which is about 15 miles or so from home. We hiked about 5 miles and got to see the Cape Fear River up close - and we discovered some great campsites, but at Raven Rock you either hike in or canoe in - there is no driving in the camping areas. Nice and quiet!

Ken taking a break.

Jen climbing around on the rocks.