Review of the Mountain Athletics Training Program and Mobile App or How to Get Beast in 6 Weeks!

It's time to get down to business.

After a year of new adventures that included leaving behind familiar stomping grounds and exploring new places while struggling to stay fit on the go, Char and I stopped moving around and settled down. We could finally try and answer one burning question:

How are we going to stay motivated and get ourselves into prime shape to enjoy our favorite activities this summer?

We needed a plan, something that would keep us on track to meet our goals, included simple metrics to judge our progress, was challenging enough to keep us interested, and simple enough that we wouldn't be too intimidated or confused to start something new. It had to hook us early on and keep us on track long enough to see results. And there had to be results. How else was I going to get my gorgeous beach bod ready in time for summer?

There are plenty of workout plans to choose from in the wide world of the web (see what I did there?) and many that can be tailored to specific fitness goals.

But what were our goals? I wanted to be a better cyclist, to maximize my score on the Army Physical Fitness Test, and to be an all around beast. Plus, I wanted to start training and preparing for a Half Ironman Triathlon in 2016. Char wanted to lose weight, build muscle strength and improve her endurance capacity. Our goals didn't seem to synch very well at first and I realized that we needed to start with a foundation before we moved on to something tailored to our individual goals.

A cursory search of online plans led me to the Mountain Athletics app available from North Face.

It's basic plans seemed limited in scope; you're either a skier, climber or a runner, basically all the sports that North Face sells equipment for, but the interface was simple and straightforward. I wasn't ready to be one of those gym rats carrying a notebook with complicated charts and diagrams to follow while trying to get my swoll on. One of the six basic plans is titled "General Fitness" and we decided it was exactly what Char and I were looking for. Plus, the app was free so we weren't investing much capitol into the adventure.

The program was fairly simple. Mondays and Fridays were heavy on weight training, Tuesdays and Thursdays are core strengthening and closely resemble a HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) or Crossfit workout. Wednesday is a moderate run and the weekends are for resting. Though, I usually sneak in a long distance run or bike ride.

My first 6 weeks,
all summed up.

The workouts themselves were not overly complex. Each consisted of a warm-up phase, usually three or four exercises repeated for four rounds, then two sessions dedicated to a specific capability, (i.e., lower body, unilateral, or upper body strength) with specified repetitions or time.

The beauty of the program was the application interface and its ability to keep you on track. First, set up your profile, then choose the workout program. Each day you hit the start button and follow along with the basic instructions. There are video links if you need to see a workout before you perform it (very important in the beginning). Each week, after completing the daily workouts, you earn a new badge. It's a little motivation to not skip a workout and entices you to stay dedicated to the program.

The workout plan was the same every week, with only certain exercises increasing in repetition or duration. I thought this would become monotonous after a couple weeks, instead, it lent some predictability and consistency to my workouts. I knew what to expect and, because the workouts didn't change from week to week, could actually measure my progress over a short amount of time. From week to week I could see my bench press reps becoming easier, even adding a little weight and needing less assistance from a spotter. Gradually, I chose a heavier dumbbell or kettle bell, and added a lot more weight to my box squats. The repetition also helped us both to improve our form and focus on doing the workouts properly to prevent injuring ourselves.

We cheated occasionally, adding a swim workout in the evening, and we always ran farther and faster than the planned "moderate pace" during the Wednesday run. But what's life without a few broken rules? Otherwise, we stuck to the plan, which also gave us another added benefit. Since the workout program was consistent week to week, we used it as a control against another experiment involving diet and supplements. I'll save the results for another blog post, but we were able to try different pre-workout and recovery powders and actually notice a difference in how they affected our performance against the routine workouts.

A constant struggle with Char and I is the delta between our fitness abilities. Too often, one of us is stronger than the other in an activity and we struggle to stay together. I ride circles around her on the bike and she laps me in the pool, literally. But with this program, we could do the same workout everyday, together, albeit with different weights or sizes of boxes. On days that we worked out separately we compared our sessions together later, keeping us both on track and motivated to keep going.

Not everything was perfect, and there's always room for improvement. The beauty of the app was its simplicity, but sometimes it was a little too simple. As badges become unlocked they're viewable from the "Badges" page, but there's no interaction or ability to see what triggered them. The "Progress" page allows you to preview upcoming workouts, but not view past sessions at all. One minor glitch that I found annoying was the difficulty in controlling my music while running the app. Once I started a song and reopened the app, it paused the music. Luckily I can control my music using my headphones, but it was a minor nuisance. The last downside to the app is that once you have selected a program, you can't preview any of the other programs without quitting the current one. So, if you're three weeks into the program, and decide to check out what the other plans offer, you lose those three weeks of progress.

There's also no link between the website and the app, so you can't go online and view your progress or preview upcoming workouts on a regular computer. The website itself changes constantly. When we first started, you could preview all the fitness programs to see what the workout plans consisted of. Maybe it's North Face's way of protecting proprietary information and driving folks to use their app, but there were a few times when I wanted to see what the other programs looked like and show them to some of my coworkers to entice them into it.

Overall, the app was great, did exactly what it was designed to do, and my complaints are mostly nitpicking and personal preference. Neither Char nor I had difficulty in figuring out the controls, as they were simple and intuitive, and never experienced any strange glitches or technical problems other than my small and easily overcome music issue.

A great and simple interface is nice. A good workout plan that kept us hooked and dedicated is also good. But what about results? Where's my beach-ready abs and swoll guns?

As with any fitness goal, true results take time, and six weeks is a pretty short window to see a true transformation, but, since we started, I have increased the amount of weight I can bench press and squat, box jumps are much easier, and there is definite tone and development of the muscles in my arms, legs and core areas. I'm no professional body builder or weight lifter, and my focus is definitely more about endurance sports, but the muscle strength this program helped my develop is already paying off during laps in the pool and while climbing the local hills on my road bike.

Yup, that's what Beast Mode looks like!

Most importantly, Char and I are both already looking forward to starting the next program, this time with a running focus. It's an area that we both want to work on, and the Mountain Athletic program still maintains the strength training days so we don't have to worry about losing what we've gained.

Check it out and decide for yourself: http://www.thenorthface.com/en_US/mountain-athletics/.

Watch their slick promo video on the website above or on YouTube.

No Rest for the Weary (or Wicked)

For the first time in over 6 months I have no future!

Sounds depressing, but it’s actually quite a relief.

Let me explain. I always have a project to work towards; some bike ride, a road race, a specific PT test, triathlon, marathon, you name it. It shapes all my workouts, meal plans, and stress levels for the months leading up to it. I eat, sleep, and train for it. After I survived the Body vs. Earth sprint triathlon last week I had nothing else planned to follow it. For the first time in months, I’m free.

And it feels great!

My body was ready to quit at the end. The last week saw my final CCC APFT (a final physical fitness assessment as part of the Army course I’m in Oklahoma to take), a double workout the next day that included Cross-Fit torture and an intense soccer game, a hard 5km run on Friday, and the cold and rainy triathlon on Saturday.  This was less than two weeks since the Hotter ‘n Hell 100 mile bike ride that I had also been building up to all summer. Once it was all said and done I fell into a deep coma on both Saturday afternoon and Sunday morning. It also didn’t help that I had finally completed all the academic requirements for both my Army school and grad course of the last half a year.

Sports trainers and coaches tell you all the time to get enough rest. But sometimes it’s hard for those of us that need something to work towards to keep us motivated. There are just so many exciting things to do that keep me going that I always have to have something on my calendar. And that keeps me from ever truly taking the time off to recover and reset my whole system. 

I also have my annual personal requirement: 1 marathon + 1 triathlon + 1 standard century ride.  I checked off the marathon twice at the beginning of the year, and then the last two over the last few weeks.  So I also don't feel the personal obligation to myself for the rest of the year.

So, here goes my first break in a long time with nothing on the horizon that will drive my training (also might be without my road bike for four months while traveling, so that won’t help much). Will I be able to keep motivated, will I get fat and lazy? Or will I have the time to fine tune my overall health, build a solid foundation of strength and cardio during the wintertime, and posture myself for more adventures in the spring and summer of next year?

No clue.  Guess we’ll just have to see.

Yup, time to take a break.

I Wanna Go Fast!

I get asked all the time, "How do I get faster?"

Well, being the wise sage that I am, I suppose it's time to provide some wisdom to the masses.

Truth is, I'm just learning to get fast myself.  If I was an expert I'd already be in the Olympics and on your cereal box!

But I do know some fun tools that have helped me progress from the slightly pot-bellied, lethargic, couch potato to the stunning, statuesque, Adonis-like semi-amateur-professional triathlete you see before you today.

To get faster you must first realize how fast you are now.  Very zen, right?  Here are some good ways to start.

I am a huge fan of Strava.  Swedish for "strive", it's an easy to use and highly useful website/app to track activities and analyze feedback.  I use it record my rides and runs and compare my progress with past activities.  It gives me data on elevation changes, total distances, splits, and even calculates calories based on my physical stats entered into the database.  My favorite part are the race segments.  After completing an activity you can go back and create a segment on the route you just completed and compare yourself to everyone else who passes through that segment using Strava.  Doesn't matter when they pass through, so you can "race" against other athletes and compare your performance anytime.

My favorite part about the app is the simplicity of using it.  I hit the record button, do my ride or run, then hit the stop and save buttons.  Done.  I can play around with my phone or computer later on to analyze to my heart's content and I never feel overwhelmed with the amount of data or features.

Of course, there are some that abuse the segment chasing features on the app, leading to some very serious and even deadly consequences.  Some great articles about the deaths and insanity caused by misuse of the app can be found here and here.

Another great tool I discovered in the last year, is to get your metabolic rate and VO2 level tested.

Your metabolic rate is how fast you burn calories when resting and working out, and helps build a nutrition plan to fuel your athletic pursuits.  Your VO2 level measures your oxygen intake and how you process lactic acid and will give you the "workout zones" for your cardio measuring to determine when you are pushing yourself, and when you are just sandbagging.

The only way to get faster is to work outside of your comfort zone and push your limits, so you need to establish what those limits are.

Charla and I are fortunate that we can get tested on the local military base at the Army Wellness Center, for free.  Usually, testing like this costs quite a bit which is why so many amateurs don't partake.  There are devices and online tools that can help you determine your own VO2 level and metabolic rates, but I highly recommend seeing a doctor or professional sports physiologist to get a more accurate reading.  Your body will thank you later.

What my heart rate monitor usually says.

Our next step was purchasing heart rate monitors for training.  We found some inexpensive sets on Amazon.com from Timex.  Each comes with a chest band monitor and a wristwatch display.  The wristwatch also has the basic Timex stopwatch modes so it doubles as a regular workout watch.  Supposedly, these work in the pool, but I haven't tried them out yet.  One hint, use a little Body Glide or anti-chafe ointment for the chest band if you're going out for a long run.


Our testing gave us 4 zones to work with.  Resting, Endurance, Threshold, and VO2 Max.  Using these zones we can determine how hard we're working and how hard we need to push ourselves to either get faster, or recover. 


Basically, it works like this.  In the Resting zone, you're not really doing anything and can do this all day long without fatigue.  You should probably get off the couch and start moving eventually.  If you're riding your bike, you need to quit drafting off everyone and start pulling your share.

Go Squatch, Go!

In the Endurance zone, you are working but not producing more lactic acid than your body can process.  You can keep this pace for a long, long time.  You're probably running a marathon (slowly) or pedaling on a relaxed group ride.  At the upper end of this zone, you will eventually get tired, but it will take a long time.

In the Threshold zone, you are producing more lactic acid than your body can handle and you're going to tire out in a few minutes.  How many minutes depends on how deep in the zone you are and how in shape you are.  I can run about 7-10 miles with my heart rate in this zone, but I'm also part animal.

If you drop back into the Endurance zone you should recover somewhat and keep going for a long time.  The pro-cyclists that you see in the Tour de France typically push themselves into the Threshold (or beyond) to sprint ahead of the pack or catch up with a breakaway, and then drop back down to just inside the Endurance zone to keep racing.  They can do this all day long because they train for it and it makes them seem insanely fast.

Above the Threshold zone you are approaching your VO2 max and will drop dead very soon.  You're probably sprinting in a 100 meter dash or outrunning a T-Rex.  If you don't slow down, you will fall down.

The Threshold zone is great for building some speed and endurance.  You will get faster and develop slow twitch muscles to support your endurance.  Pushing your VO2 max will develop your fast twitch muscles, give you super speed in short bursts, increase your ability to recover from a hard workout and will hurt a lot.  Good for you.

Learning more about your bodies abilities is a good first step into improving upon what you can already do.  Know your limits, then push them.

Then, you have to have a plan.  You need to find a goal to work towards.  It can be a specific race, event, obstacle course, or distance that you want to accomplish.  Don't focus on anything banal like a pants size or weight class.  We're here to get fast, not diet.  Those tips are for another blog.

Backwards plan off your goal.  Think about all the steps and obstacles you have to overcome before you hit your goal.  Common wisdom says not to increase your weekly total by more than 10%, so always plan plenty of time before you hit your goal to incremently lengthen your run/ride/swim.  I don't always follow that rule, but then, I also don't respect any of my physical limitations.

There are all sorts of programs and training schedules to pick from.  And, it doesn't matter which one you choose, just so long as you stick with it.  The key is to know yourself, what you're capable of, and where you want to be in the end.

Know your limits!

Respect your body, work towards your goal, and stay motivated. 

And don't get eaten by a bear!  Seriously.

In The Pursuit of [fill in the blank]

I've been blogging about my pursuit of fitness for over a year now and I've learned that the conecpt of fitness is an interesting one.  Everyone has an opinion.

"I pick things up and I put them down!"

"I qualified for Boston, again!"

"Who just pee'd in the pool?"

Crossfit! Delts and Lats! Tempo Run! WOD! Paleo! Intervals! Squats! Taper!

N.O.Xploooooddddeeee!

I have my own view of what it means for me to be fit.  And it doens't require a gym membership or a $10,000 bike.  Though, honey, if you're reading this, that would be ok for a surprise early anniversary gift.

I want to be a monster.  I want to be fast.  I want to be strong enough to lift heavy things and throw them over my shoulder while grunting loudly.  I want to walk down the beach without my shirt on and feel like I can strut it out a little.

Please stop throwing up while I type.  Seriously.

Most of my fitness has often been geared towards endurance sports, but in the last year I've learned to appreciate strength and agility training as well.  While my goals are all endurance oriented, other areas have increased my success in the go fast arena.

I break my personal fitness down into three areas: endurance, strength and flexibility.

I am not professionally trained to do any of these, and I have no school training in sports physiology, exercise science, sports nutrition, biology, or really anything having to do with sports or athletics at all.

I am an average, pasty, skinny, hairy, goofy wannabe that likes to ride his bike and run really far.  But I do have a definite opinion about pretty much everything and feel like it's time I shared it with everyone.

So, here we go.

I'll start with the two areas that I only recently (in the last year or so) began pursuing to compliment my endurance dreams.

Because, getting faster is not just about cardio, it's about improving your fitness as a whole.

First up, strength training.

This is where Charla and I head to the gym, grab some weights and straps, and I try to make her puke. She says puking while working out isn't healthy, but I think it's a natural part of the creative process.

Either way, we've learned to start enjoying this part of working out, building some upper body and core strength where before there was not much.

Charla getting her pump on in the weight room.

Handling lower weights and slower movements gives us increased strength and low twitch muscle fiber, increasing our endurance.  More weight with violent, quick thrusts and movements works the fast twitch muscles helping our ability to explode into a sprint finish or power through a climb.

On top of the endurance and speed benefits is the fact that increased muscle mass also burns more fat.  Your metabolism matches itself to your body make-up.  Build muscle, burn fat, weigh less, then move faster thus burning more fat.  Awesome vicious circle that can work for you.

The harder workouts also help our muscle recovery.  This means that we can push ourselves on a race, ride or training event, then wake up the next day and feel ok.

Less crying like a baby while curled up on the couch.

And, as a mentor of mine once said, "We do bicep curls for the ladies!"

The next area of fitness is flexibility.

Squatch says, Namaste!

I am not flexible.   My wife makes me do yoga and it hurts.  I do it so that other things don't hurt as much.  Ask her if you want to know how to get flexible, 'cause I have no idea.

Honestly, I just started doing yoga with her, and while I can't truly attest to the benefits yet, I know that it's an important area that I need to focus on more.  I've had injuries in the past that I directly attribute to a lack of flexibility and unbalanced muscles/joints.

It's not just about how you can touch your toes, but how your whole body moves together and the perfection of your form or style.

Proper flexibility (and balance) helps achieve proper form and technique in whatever you're doing.  Otherwise, your body moves or strikes in improper ways and leads to stress injuries, twisted or broken joints and bones.  Bad news.

Moral of the story, stretch more often.  And learn to do what you love correctly before you break yourself.


Next time I'll cover endurance, my favorite.

To summarize, hoholo na pia! (runs for beer/carbs)

I'll probably talk about using the Army Wellness Center, VO2 testing, and heart rate monitor use in improving my swimming, biking and running.

Michelob Ultra El Paso Marathon, Ultra Fail

The Michelob Ultra El Paso Marathon was an abysmal, embarassing failure for the city of El Paso, and they don't even know it.

I first ran in the El Paso Marathon in 2009, when I first moved to El Paso.  I only ran the Half Marathon; my first full would take me another 10 months to train for.  I remember the excitement, the anxiety of running in a big city race.  Since then I've competed in 4 (now 5) full marathons and multiple road races.  This last week was my first time running the El Paso Marathon (full, that is) and I have to admit that I was sincerely disappointed in the overall production of the race.

The weather was awesome, the water stations had enthusiastic volunteers, and I was running (sort of) with friends.  What could possibly have ruined the event for me?

Well, let's take a look at what I think truly makes a successful marathon.

There are four things you need to successfully pull off hosting a marathon.

1. Decent pre & post-race support.
2. Ample water stations with goodies.
3. People to sign up and run.
4. A route with a view.

The Michelob Ultra El Paso Marathon failed at all three of the above.

Let's start at the top and work our way down.

1. Decent pre & post-race support.

The Pre Race Support:

The first thing you receive on behalf of any race event, once you register, is the goodie bag (technically called your race packet, but that's not very exciting).  It's where the race sponsors toss their swag (free promotional materials) and is a great way to experience new products.

The best El Paso could offer this year was the promised t-sirt, mandatory race bib, and some pamphlets for a couple upcoming races.  Not exactly exciting.

Typically, at other races, there's a selection of snacks, energy chews/goos/gels/bars, coupons for sponsoring businesses, promotional products for athletic industries (think lip balm, deodorant, sunscreen, etc) and a huge collection of advertisements for upcoming events.  It's a promotional product placement dream come true.  I ran races where I didn't have to bring anything with me for before or after care.  In the race bag was enough sunscreen, wipes, and snacks to fuel me, bathe me and prepare me to run/ride.

Very disappointing, El Paso.

The Post Race Support:

For weeks/months the El Paso Marathon website and Facebook page advertised that their post race care would include chocolate milk, burritos, Michelob Ultra beer, water, and a special post-race brunch menu at The Garden (swanky club/restaurant located at the finish line).  Chocolate milk is a big favorite among many endurance racers for its carb to protein ratio in post race recovery.

And let's be honest, everybody loves burritos, especially me.

Well, cross the finish line when I did and you would have discovered the burritos were all gone, no chocolate milk, and The Garden serving alcohol but no food.  According to their staff, the kitchen was closed; maybe they had no clue what was meant by a "brunch menu."  All that was left to a few hundred hungry, depleted, dehydrated marathoners was crappy beer and a full bar.  Exactly what you need to create a real medical crisis in a hurry.

Another fail, El Paso.

2. Ample water stations with goodies.

Not too bad here, El Paso.  There were water stations every two miles for the first half, and then a station every mile thereafter.  But, there was only race sponsored energy gels at miles 10 and 20.

Because we don't eat any other time in the race?

Are you that cheap, El Paso?

The one saving grace, and the marathon directors can't take any credit for it, were the volunteers at the water points that put on quite a show in motivating us to keep moving.

Still, for a large, annual, metropolitan marathon, why can't we afford some more carbs on the route?  Might see some much happier marathoners crossing the finish line.

Mild fail, El Paso.

3. People to sign up and run.

Let's all do some math.

Yay!  Math!

Marathon participation averages a ~2% growth across the nation, annually.  (go to RunningUSA for more details and their annual report so you can criticize my inability to read stats correctly)

*The NYC ING Marathon was cancelled in 2012 for Hurricane Sandy, and would have contributed an average of 40,000 runners (and they were already sold out when cancelled) which would have been substantial growth from 2011 to 2012.

The El Paso Marathon data I have been able to collect goes back as far as 2008.

*No data was available for total participants (the 5K and Half Marathon were recorded separately).
The El Paso Marathon was cancelled in 2011 for inclement weather (Snow'pocalypse 2011!).

The El Paso Marathon has seen a 53% growth in total numbers since 2008, far outpacing the national average.  However, that growth has declined to less than 1% total in the last 2 years.  Suddenly, people seem less interested in the marathon and the El Paso Marathon is no longer keeping pace with the rest of the nation.

I wonder why?

One more number game.

El Paso population (according to a 2012 survey) is 672,538.

The entire population of the island of Maui, Hawaii, (according to the 2010 U.S. Census) is 144,000.

It's no secret that Charla and I just ran the Maui Oceanfront Marathon in January.  Just see my last few blog posts for details.  So, I'm using the beautiful but small island of Maui as my comparison.

With only 20% of the population of El Paso, similar weather on race day, and a healthy group of volunteers, the marathons could have offered similar experiences.  The biggest difference would be the type of scenery (which El Paso can offer when it tries) and the logistics of attending each.

Easily, El Paso has more hotels, cheaper and shorter flights, and more affordable local logistics (rental cars, restaurants, etc).  Therefore, logically, it should attract more racers.

There were 349 finishers in the Maui Oceanfront Marathon in 2014 compared to 373 in El Paso a month later.

Hmmm, I think that's fail number 3, El Paso.

4. A route with a view.

This year's marathon started at the top of Transmountain Road, one of the most epic starts ever.  I won't describe in detail what it did to my quads, but let's suffice to say that I still have trouble walking.  However, that's about where it ended.  We were kept off the major roads, and even spent several miles running alongside the city landfill before entering Fort Bliss.

How about a west side route through the river valley?  How about taking us up onto Alabama and maybe even crossing over Scenic Drive?  It's name is Scenic, and it's already blocked off on Sunday mornings for pedestrians.  The El Paso Marathon will never gain ground as a scenic or worthwhile marathon until the city accepts its responsibility in producing the marathon and giving the participants something to remember the city by.  But then, El Paso has always been accepting of its role as a second rate town.

Time to conclude this argument.

What's most disappointing about the whole experience is that the City of El Paso has so much potential to do so much more than it ever accomplishes.  One of the saddest moments came when race participants were forced to pay for parking to pick up their race packets and then again for parking on race day.  I keep asking myself why a metropolis of more than 600,000 couldn't foot the bill or why the race registration couldn't include free parking for the two mandatory events for participants.

It's the little things that add up to eventually kill you and the El Paso Marathon seems content to continue to let things grow into mediocrity and stagnation while the rest of the nation leaves them behind.

Thankfully, this will be the last time I will be running the El Paso Marathon.  Perhaps, if I ever have the misfortune to visit again, they will have learned from their lack of success and devised how to work together to put together a more marketable product to the hordes of endurance athletes looking for interesting and fun challenges.

Here's a hint.

Deliver what you promise and take care of your athletes before and after their event.

Make sure they want for nothing during the race so they can focus on what your city has to offer while they pass by the beautiful scenery and cheering spectators that should be on the route.

Recognize that you are much smaller than a big city marathon should be, and do whatever it takes to change that.

Give us something to look at other than garbage and desolate run down businesses.

When you start attracting more runners, you will make more money and realize how much this marathon should matter to the city.  Until then, no one will care.

Cabin Fever? Meet The Bullfrogs

July has not been a good month for me.

First, Char gets sick, twice.

Then, I get the horrible head cold of death, from Charla.  Thanks.

Then, I get hit by a car on my bike.

Then, I get a horrible 72 hour flu.

July, I quit.  You win.

The worst part about being sick or injured is being prevented from doing the things I normally enjoy.  I can’t focus on work when I’m at work.  Too many emails, not enough energy and way too much cold medicine make for a grumpy and lazy Jason.  And then I can’t enjoy anything at home because I feel too terrible. There’s no enjoying any guilty pleasures like playing a computer game to take your mind off anything.  You can’t focus on the screen and don’t have the energy to click the mouse or keyboard.  Can't help cook dinner or clean up.  Just.  Nothing.

Nothing is not fun.

But the absolute worst part was not being able to go out riding or running or swimming.  For obvious reasons all three activities have been mostly off the books this month. 

But now, thankfully, I am getting the last of the flu out of my body and can start living again.

Char and I went for a ride Sunday out on the west side to the border crossing.  I wanted to take her on a new route, put her on a nice long hill and see how she would do.  We ended up backtracking within the first two miles to find another route that hadn't been washed out and covered with mud after the previous weeklong storms.

Along the way, we kept hearing the strangest noise along some of the flooded fields and irrigation ditches.  A long, rough, droning tone.  We thought at first it was the power line transformers buzzing, then maybe some birds calling to each other across the fields, and then it hit me.  Bullfrogs!  

With the increased rainfall and flooding, they were mating like crazy before everything dried out again. Such is the transient nature of living in the desert.  (ok, high steppes to be exact)

Wonder Woman relaxes with a hot coffee after  a muddy ride.

I’ve never regretted going for a ride.  Not even the time I got hit by a car.  I always appreciate something about each ride, whether I learned something new about my body, technique or just saw something memorable out on the road.  Even though Char and I had some sticky, messy moments and had to backtrack out of a muddy disaster, I’m thankful we did.  

Or we'd never have gotten to listen to the bullfrogs calling.