Fisherman's Festival

What an exciting, busy, SUNNY weekend we had here in Maine!  I worked a half day on Friday so my weekend started a little early.  It was beautiful out so the dog and I took a walk on some local trails.  He is getting old and slow but he needed the exercise.  When I got back, I changed and went for a 4 mile run.  In shorts!  And a thin, long-sleeved dri-fit shirt!  Outdoors!  Yay!  Spring is really here in Maine.  Finally!

Fisherman's Festival was this weekend as well so that was a lot of fun.  It is an event held mostly for the locals.  However, as it gains more news coverage, it is becoming an event that draws some tourists to the area a little earlier in the season than usual.  Saturday is when all the crazy events are held.  First thing in the morning is the cod fish relay.  Here is a little look of what that entails:

Yup.  You have to dress in full fisherman's gear and race down the road carrying a cod fish.  Nice huh?  Another popular event is the crate races.  Lobstermen fill the lobster crates with seaweed, tie them together, float them on the water and contestants try to run across them without falling in.  Obviously, the lighter and quicker you are, the more likely you are to make it across.  My 5 year old would be great at this but we missed the sign up deadline because we were on our vacation.  Here's another kid doing it on Saturday.

Yours truly participated in the tug-of-war.  Our women's team has won for 3 or 4 years in a row now.  And, of course, we won again! :)  So, if you can get 10 women together and want to try to beat us, plan on visiting Boothbay Harbor next year late April.  I'm the second from the front in the sharp looking grundens and green Tough Chik shirt. (I look tough, don't I?)

After my stellar performance at the tug-of-war, I had to head out of town 2 hours north to pick up my new bike!!  I was so excited to get this thing.  I had to wait until I got back from vacation and then also for the weekend where it was such a drive to get it.  I was heading back to my old college town, Orono so after picking up the bike, I took a detour to do a drive through of my alma mata.  University of Maine.  It has changed quite a bit since I was there twenty a few years ago.  It made me a little nostalgic.  I also visited my grandfather who just turned 92!  He still lives alone and drives and has all his wits about him.  It was great to see him and I think he was glad for my visit too. 

My bike is now at home with me and I can't wait to try it out.  The seller also gave me bike shoes and clips so I don't have to buy them.  I do need to practice with the clips a bit first so I don't kill myself while trying to dismount.  I'm going to practice on the spin bike first and I may switch out the pedals for the regular ones until I feel comfortable that I'm not going to break my leg because I can't unclip fast enough.  My next tri is June 5 so that is coming up pretty quickly.  I'll need to decide about the clips before then. 

I'm dropping the bike off tonight at the local bike shop just for a quick check.  I need the seat a little higher and I can't switch the gears on the front.  It won't go down to the lower gear.  The back one works fine.  Not sure if it's operator error (most likely) or equipment failure.  I also want them to put a computer on for me.  I need to know how fast and far I'm going!  Other than that, I think the bike is good to go.  I hope to be able to ride it Friday or Saturday. 

So now that we are back on schedule and trying to prepare for a race, I'd better get back to a regular routine and the best way to do that is to post that here and hold myself accountable.  Plans for the week:

Mon:  spin/cardio tennis/run at night (since it's going to rain every other night this week)
Tues:  spin
Wed:  spin/strength class
Thur:  spin/cardio tennis
Fri:  swim (I haven't done that in a month! Hopefully, those kids are done with their swimming lessons so I can have my lap time back!)
Sat:  run/swim?
Sun:  run/swim

No rest for the weary.  Most likely I'll loose either Sat or Sun because my daughter needs to have a birthday party.  We'll see. 

Make sure you check out my giveaway!  It is for prescription or non-prescription polarized Xperio lenses!  It's a really great prize.  It runs through the end of May so get your entries in!