Coming off a busy spring work season and the race-centric lead-up to Ski to Sea, we chose to wind down with some bona fide R & R in Maui. No races, no real estate deals, no expeditions or circumnavigations. Just the beach, a SUP, a mini-van and 7 days to enjoy watching Hayden — and [...]

We are off for some sun, snorkeling and R & R in Maui. We thought we would check the weather on our way to the airport! We will send some stories and pictures, and hopefully bring some sun home with us to the PNW! Happy Adventuring! Heather, Brandon and Hayden

One of the greatest pleasures for a racer is when THE race you train to peak for unfolds as an absolute PEAK EXPERIENCE!!! That’s exactly what happened for both Heather and I yesterday, and our respective Whatcom County teams in the 2010 Ski to Sea.   Heather’s team, Kulshan Cycles, won the Whatcom County Women’s Division for the [...]

A record breaking 465 teams (give or take a few)  will be racing the 7-leg, 90-mile Ski to Sea tomorrow! With 8 athletes per team… that is 3720 athletes racing in Bellingham tomorrow! Check out the Ski to Sea race website or Bellingham Herald website for good Ski to Sea Race news, view points and  finish line festivities! Brandon and [...]

When we talk racing, the Ski to Sea has a special place in the conversation, in our hearts, and on our race calendar for the year. On one hand, it’s just a 5.5 mile blast, in time-trial fashion (we’re not even able to paddle neck-and-neck with our main competition, usually), with a TON of logistical [...]

Yesterday’s weekly Wednesday Night Race at Bloedel Donovan was nothing less than epic! Winds gusting to 45 MPH and solid sheets of rain coming down couldn’t keep the die hards away. And — to add to the fun, USA Today had chosen THIS day to come interview some of the paddlers about the upcoming Ski [...]

Every Wednesday night, from start to end of Daylight Saving’s Time, dozens of kayakers and canoers gather at Bloedel Donovan Park on Lake Whatcom to socialize and RACE! The race follows a 3.5-mile course around the edge of the lake in “Basin 1″ as it’s called. If you’re new, it’ll take you a time or [...]

We spent Sunday up at the Tour De Indian Arm in Deep Cove BC at the second and final race of the THINK International Surfski Challenge. The Challenge, created 3 years ago as an informal competition between neighboring British Columbia and Bellingham / Seattle surfski communities. In the competition, Canada and the US each have 10 surfskis per [...]

I didn’t know it at the time, but, back in the early 70′s my destiny as a paddler was sealed with summers on Lake Tahoe paddling the Wee - 4. Today, Hayden was all smiles as he took his maiden voyage in the historic Christensen family canoe. Although, I am pretty sure his fate as a paddler [...]

Wherever you’ve been finishing in the pack at the latest races, if you’re not right up in front then there are a handful of pretty traditional but too-often ignored tips, tricks and techniques you can use to race faster and finish higher in the rankings. We’ve undoubtedly written about each of these Not-So-Ninja Speed Tips [...]

You better believe, when my boys ask what I want to do on Mama’s Special Day, I’m going to answer, “Load up the toys and go on an adventure!” We did exactly that! We spent the most glorious day at AM Beach in Sudden Valley paddling, kayak sailing, sand castle building and soaking up the [...]

Heather and I train on Lake Whatcom about 80% of the time. It’s five minutes from our house and honestly: we just love paddling there. If Bellingham Bay is our front yard then Lake Whatcom is our living room. It’s sooo comfy and familiar. So when the 13-mile Lake Whatcom Classic rolls around each spring, [...]