Gone to the Dogs

Tomorrow is the first day of February and I can hardly believe January is already at an end.
It has been a terrific month. I have been mighty busy, wrangling of my furry beasts and having a blast doing so. "Bella Mia," is now nearing 7 months old and is one fiesty little chihuahua. We have two more basic obedience classes prior to her graduation from this level of training. It takes a lot of patience (something I can always use more of) working with dogs, but Bella certainly makes it fun. She is so eager to please and a happy little girl. So far we are doing very well with sits, down, stay (short periods of time), 'leave it' and we are working on heeling as well. She knows how to shake and position her little legs so she can receive belly rubs. I think she will be a great trick dog and maybe I will even take her to learn agility. Not that we need anymore competitive events in our lives! Zola is doing well, and learning some new things as well. At 2.5 years of age, she is accomplished in a lot of basic obedience and a fair amount of tricks, but isn't too food motivated. I guess that is one big difference between her and I!
In between working with the dogs, feeding the cats and multitudes of fish I've been getting into the training groove.

We definetely had a bit of a deep freeze, by California standards, this past month. Frankly, I couldn't have been happier. Dry roads and really no excuse to not ride. Cold is cold, but that is what good gear is for! I'll admit though, it was so cold on several occassions that I dug out some stuff that I had when I was a runner back in Boston and upstate New York. Save the lack of snow, it really felt like an average central NY winter on a number of mornings. Who knows what February will bring, but I am ready for it. I've gotten the best January of training in ever. I've got a long way to go, but I'm on a roll!

Taking the Plunge into 2007

Happy New Year!
I just had to do it. I have raced run races and cycling races to celebrate New Year's Day past, but for '07 I decided to take the plunge. Not a race, nothing fancy, just a frigid dip into the San Francisco Bay. Somehow I had in my head that if I didn't get into the Bay NOW, it might not be until March. So, I packed up my Blue Seventy wetsuit and goggles and headed across to Bay Bridge to San Francisco. New Year's Day brings the annual South-End Rowing Club New Year's Day swim. However, I would not be taking part in the club swim today as I wasn't in town for the qualifier. So when I got to the club it was a buzz with tons of swimmers, rowers and folks enjoying a brew and some food. It felt a little weird to be getting in the water solo with so many folks at the club. Of course in the locker room I heard war stories of the morning swim...
-too foggy for a full Alcatraz
-water temps rumored to be 49 or 50
-a rower 'got lost' in the fog

Given the water temp, I decided to wear a one piece Oomph! tri suit under my wetsuit figuring anything to add some warmth would be helpful. I waddled outside and feeling a bit like one of the penguins I saw on the Animal Planet I hesitated at the shore and then plopped in.

?&^%#%#%#!

Definetely some profanity running through my head. Those first few minutes are nothing short of, shall we say, rough. Still, like most winter swims, pain turns to a blissful numbness.
I enjoyed a nice short swim, pausing a few times when sea birds crash landed in front of me.
As I made my way back to the club I was reminded how quickly truly cold water can affect the body...I rapidly developed 'the claw' in both hands and decided it would be smart to head to the shower and sauna.

Now that I took the plunge, it will be easier to get in the bay again...small steps.