For my backpack:

• Food/snacks (a little extra just in case)
• Stove
• Gas
• Pot to boil water in
• Spork (an all in one fork, spoon and knife)
• Lighter, fire starter
• Extra Clothes – socks, liners, underwear, undershirt, rain jacket
• Pack cover
• TP and shovel (for the special places…)
• Multi-tool
• Cordage
• First Aid Kit
• Water bottles, bladder
• Streripen (water purifier)
• Tripod
• Camera
• Sleeping bag
• Hammock
• Slap straps (to hang hammock)
• Sleeping pad
• Flashlight
• Headlight
• Spare Batteries
• Summit/day pack

To wear when I set out hiking:

• Hiking pants
• Socks
• Liner socks
• Boots
• Hiking shirt
• Undershirt
• Garmin watch

For Althea’s Pack:

• Dog food
• Leash
• Dog bowl
• Water bottles
• Bear bell

To bring & leave in car:

• Tent
• Extra sleeping bag/pad
• Cooler with water and Mountain Dew
• Fleece Jacket, hat and gloves

We will begin our hike east to Grassy Ridge Bald.  Then we will come back to the trail head and hike west to Roan High Knob.  We will then continue on to Roan High Bluff.  Each of these peaks are listed on the Carolina Mountain Club’s South Beyond 6000 list of 40 peaks in the southern Appalachians over 6000 feet.

Roan High Knob Shelter

After Roan High Bluff, we will return to Roan High Knob, where a shelter awaits.

I am extremely excited to be going on this trip and to this area I have not had the privilege to explore as of yet.

And of course, I will update my special places as well!

One way I plan to do this is with the help, yet again, of the Wii.  You may remember that the Wii initially motivated me to become healthier and lose weight with Wii Fit.  This year, with the recommendation of my friend, Andrew, I will use Jillian Michaels Fitness Ultimatum 2010.  I am on my first week of the program, but it appears to really whip you into shape.  the workouts are intense circuit style and last nights consisted of:

• Running (in place) ~5.5 minutes
• 25 push-ups
• 20 back kicks (1 rep consists of kicking leg straight back and “punching” with both arms then repeat with other leg)
• 20 sledge swings (1 rep consists of swinging the Wii remote like you would a sledge hammer on one side of your body then repeat on other side)
• 25 water pumps (holding Wii remote with both hands at your chin then squatting down bringing remote almost to the floor then back up)
• 20 boat poses (half sit-up at the same time bringing both legs up to form a “V” with your body)
• Quick stretching (knees to chest while laying on the floor)
• Running ~5.5 minutes
• 25 push-ups
• 40 sledge swings
• 20 back kicks
• 25 water pumps
• 30 sledge swings

Jillian Michaels

This all left me completely exhausted, especially after running a little over 2 miles at lunch yesterday.  I will continue the 2-3 runs during the week and a long run on the weekends.  I will also try to cycle to work and home when the weather permits.  As long as I can get to the pool or lake, I should be set for the triathlon season fast approaching!

I have a hiking trip with Andrew and others coming up on 3/20/10 in the Roan Mountain Highlands.  I will certainly keep you posted on that with (I hope) wonderful pictures from the trip.  I am also looking forward to taking Althea along on the trip as well!

I look forward to what this training will add to my abilities.  And with a trainer that looks like that, how can you resist?

Another reason for this post is to spread the word about 344pounds.com.  Tyler is on his quest to lose a lot of weight and is doing a workout pledge.  So all of you get to his blog and comment/friend him, whatever to add more time to his workout!

That being said, after (what I hope will be) a relaxing weekend with Jenn, I plan to start a 3-run-a-week schedule to get back into a routine.  I only have a little over a month before my next race, a half marathon, and I am a little intimidated by that thought.  Follow that up with a triathlon a month later and I realize I have a lot of work to do and that I need to be careful not to injure myself.  I need to stay injury free and in shape all year if I hope to finish my first Half Ironman that I have signed up for in November!

On another note, my Grandmother, Great Mia, is in the hospital with kidney complications.  Read more about it on Melissa’s post.

I did run my first 5K of the year last Saturday and it felt good to be in a race again.  It was the Alyce T Guettler Hunger Run in Rock Hill, SC and I mainly raced the event because they were doing it to raise money for a good cause.  It was cold and drizzling that morning, but it didn’t keep 100 people from showing up.  After I finished, I noticed that there weren’t many people cheering for the others as they finished.  So I stayed around and cheered people in, then went home to spend time with Jenn, Mia and Sadie.  As it turns out, I finished second out of four in my age group and missed out on collecting the award.  Oh well, hopefully there will be others.

Unfortunately, I think racing came at a price.  On Sunday, my back started to hurt pretty bad and after visiting the Chiropractor on Monday, I messed my back and shoulders up pretty bad in the wreck.  So I am forced to take it easy for a bit while I recover.  Hopefully the Chiropractor can work his magic the way he did before the marathon and I will be back at it real soon.  I will keep you guys posted!

And now to present my new (well 2007) Toyota 4Runner:

My New Ride

 It is a 2007 Toyota 4Runner SR5 4WD.  It has just under 60,000 miles on it and has a clean history.  Was owned in North Carolina by one owner.  I found it at an Infiniti dealer and they made me a good deal on it.  Perhaps the flack Toyota has received recently helped me land it at more than $4,000 under NADA retail value.  What do you guys think?

My foot hurts as it is still pressing as hard as I can on the brake.

I gasp for air (I think I might have been holding my breath)

I am covered with glass and the items that used to be in my backseat.

I am in the middle of the road and thankful other drivers were able to stop/go around me without hitting me and making things worse.

I think I am okay!  Nothing hurts too bad and I check to make sure I can move body parts.

The friendly motorist that came to check on me had a look of terror on his face.  His wife came to give me a hug after she realized I was okay.

Luckily the guy in the other car was okay as well.  He apparently spun around a time or two and then hit the guard rail as well, but not very hard.

Also luckily, I was okay even though airbags did not deploy.  I would have expected them to come out in a much less serious accident.  Makes me nervous about buying used cars again as I suspect it was in a wreck before I bought it and I wonder if the airbags were properly repaired.

As I said before, I feel extremely lucky.  And as I commented on Melissa’s blog:

Live life to the fullest by doing what makes YOU happy

and

Don’t dwell on things that aren’t important and things that you cannot change

Good-bye my dear friend...

When I saw Jenn, Mia and Sadie later that afternoon, I gave them all the love I could.

When in bear country, remember this: if you see a bear, the best thing to do is to lie down and pretend you are dead.

Signed,

The Bears

While that theory may be a bit far fetched, it is strange and fascinating the different techniques for protecting yourself from a bear.  There are products commercially available that claim bear protection such as pepper spray, noise makers designed to deter an interaction and even electrified fences that would provide a protected perimeter.  I have heard that if you pee around the site where you make camp, it will deter them as well.  Everyone seems to think hanging any food and items that have an odor will help keep them away while you are sleeping.

Andrew shared an article with me that prompted this post.  It tells the story of how a woman fended off a bear by throwing her IPhone at it.  I immediately thought of you, Melissa!  It seemed to work by distracting the bear, but perhaps we should reach for something less valuable than an IPhone to throw.  Perhaps a rock would do the trick?  Of course, carrying a firearm with you would do the trick as well.