Goin' Fishin'

Ever since Stuey's fishing pole broke last fall (after a summer of HARD use), he has asked, "how about a new fishing pole?". The past month I told him he could get one when the snow melted. So over the weekend when the snow was almost vanished from our yard, Sara took he and Nora down to Macks and they got him the fishing pole he has been waiting for. Stuey was thrilled...beyond thrilled. They went to the beach and tried them out--by the time they got home, the line was tangled and it took a good 20 minutes to untangle. Thus begins fishing season here at the Saltonstalls....months of casting a pinecone or stick in the yard...simple pleasures.

Zoya

Sunday Snow

Yesterday I went up Pyramid and went downhill skiing. Lately, I've been mostly cross country skiing - trying to catch the last of the snow at sea level before it disappears for the summer - so it felt slightly novel to go up the mountain to catch some powder. And the conditions were pretty darn good. About a 1/2 foot of powder and graupel on the North side of the mountain and sun warmed corn snow on the south side.

I climbed up the mountain by myself, but as usual when spring skiing on a beautiful sunny afternoon on Pyramid I was joined by lots of friends. I ran into Paul Z, Tia and Danny up for a family ski and Gregg and Lisa too. Up on Pyramid on a day like sunday is sort of like going to a Christmas Party. You really never know who you will meet and everyone you do meet you are really glad to run into. I guess like minded people climb mountains and go to the same Christmas parties together. Patrick

Playing Outside

This weekend was an outdoors kind of adventure. Nora and Stuey have discovered "playing house" in the small alcove of trees we have next to our house. They have little trails, "bedrooms", "bathrooms" (a boys and a girls), a kitchen, etc. Yesterday the kids played outside in the barely-40 deg temps for close to 2 hours. It was magnificent! I remember playing house for hours and hours and hours as a kid and its fun to finally see Nora and Stuey at an age where they are enjoying it also!

Yesterday we went sledding on the mountain across from Pyramid. The hill was steep, sleds were fast and there were lots of sqeals of delight from the kids.

There is still so much snow in the mountains! I'm getting excited about the prospect of downhill spring skiing. I didn't go at all last year and regretted it. Not sure how I let that happen...

I can feel spring in the air--snow is almost melted around our house, (just one tiny patch left) and our driveway is finally drying up.

Zoya

Kodiak's Tsunami

Japan's recent earthquake and disastrous tsunami got me to thinking about the earthquake and tsunami that rocked Kodiak 47 years ago. I found these images in the Alutiiq Museum photo archives - they were all taken by Nick Nekeferoff. The Good Friday Earthquake in 1964 was about the same size as the one in Japan (around a 9.2) and like in Japan it was the series of tsunamis following the quake that did most of the damage.

When I was looking through Nick's photos I was surprised how close the roads were to the water. And I suddenly remembered that during the earthquake the city of Kodiak also subsided approximately 6 feet into the sea - Hence, the higher sea level. If you look closely at the third (Old powerhouse after the quake) and fourth (old powerhouse prior to the earthquake) you can see the change in sea level quite dramatically. Prior to the earthquake the bottom of the snow line illustrates your typical high tide. Afterwards the high tide is quite a bit higher! It's kind of cool to think that that building on the left is now one of our favorite Kodiak restaurants.

The top photo is of Potato Patch Lake (taken from where Marion Owen used to have her garden) and one of those buildings floating in it is the old Beachcombers Bar. I gather the beach at Shahafka Cove was covered with bottles of booze and there was quite the party on the beach afterwards. They replaced the old beachcombers floating in the lake with the hull of a boat. The beachcombers was still a bar when I first came to Kodiak in the mid 1980s but closed shortly there after.

The second photo shows the Old Donnely Building where the USFWS Visitors center stands today. At the time it was a post office, but when I first moved to Kodiak it was the KANA building. Today the waterfront here is dominated by the ferry landing and canneries.

Looking through all these old photos and hearing about what's happened in Japan has me wondering what would happen if Kodiak got struck by another series of tsunamis. The scary thing is that I don't think we are prepared for another tsunami. I've heard people say that Kodiak only has a big quake every 400 years or so and that we don't need to worry about another tsanami. And while it is true Kodiak will probably not get hit by another 9.0 for a long time - we do have to worry about tsunamis and large earthquakes on the order of an 8.0. Three Saints Bay the first Russian settlement on Kodiak was wiped out by an earthquake on the scale of an 8.0 and tsunamis don't even have to be generated by a local earthquake. So you bet we should worry. This could happen again.

And if it did happen again, my biggest concern would be all the canneries. I think they would all get demolished just like the ones in Japan did. And while we don't have any nuclear power plants to worry about - I do wonder how hazardous all the cannery refrigerants are. Should we be worried about an ammonia cloud over Kodiak? How about a chlorine and bleach mustard gas cloud? Doomsday scenarios for sure, but I just hope the canneries and the City of Kodiak have considered the possibility of another tsunami. Patrick

Tracks in the Snow

The top 2 photos was what our driveway looked like in the morning. If you are a good tracker you could figure out that an adult walked out to the car side-by-side with a child. The simple story is that I walked out to the car holding Nora's hand, and then tucked her into her booster seat. And then it was off to preschool.

By afternoon the sun was out and the kids biking down the hill in the sunshine. Typical March weather in Kodiak - sun, snow and MUD. Our driveway is a swamp. I also noticed that the crocuses are peeking up out of the snow. Springtime in Kodiak. Patrick

Focus, Mom

Yesterday I was helping set the counter up for Nora to paint. She got her paints out and some paper. I was behind the counter, cleaning and putzing around. I realized that Nora needed a glass of water and I turned around to give it to her....right at that moment she said, "Focus, mom". I started laughing...as did she. I replied, "Did you just say, Focus?". She said "yeah! I needed my paint water". Some of the things she says take me by surprise! Its fun to be able to laugh at yourself--my kids surely help me do that!

Zoya

Photos:
A tower Stuey built when I was gone last week.
Birthday photos from Patrick's 46th!
Strike a pose!! Sara and the kids.

Spring Skiing

Yesterday Zoya and I went cross country skiing on the riverbed up above Buskin Lake. Absolutely beautiful. No wind, temperature around 40, and plenty of corned up snow. We are at that moment that happens every year when winter hangs in the balance and the skiing is great. It's basically still winter down at sea level, but spring is in the air, and with one big rain storm all the sea level snow could get washed away and never return. Pretty soon we'll lose our night and it will stop freezing at night. Crocuses will bloom and stuff will start to grow. But for now at sea level the snow pack is at its max and the skiing is great. Patrick

My Bozeman Family

Today I returned from a 5 day trip to Bozeman, Montana-to visit my sister and her family. My sister, Peggy, fractured her leg quite severely in a fall about a month ago. She underwent surgery and will have more weeks of rest and then rehab ahead of her. After finding out about the fall, I booked a ticket to visit her and give her family an extra hand. This was my first trip to Bozeman and I had such a great time with my family. The week was filled with visiting with Peggy, running errands as needed, grocery shopping, cooking, going on walks, watched a couple of movies...

My niece, Cami, is 14 and she and I cooked up a storm. She was an awesome prep cook and baker! There is nothing I love more than cooking with someone so enthusiastic and lovely as Cami.
Monday-Bean and veggie burritos
Tuesday-Home made Pizza (actually, dough was bought fresh from local co-op. YUM! wish we had that option here!!)
Wednesday-Salmon Patties, Roasted veggies and salad. For dessert, Cami made Apple Crisp. YUM!
Thursday-Roasted Broccoli and Veggie/meat lasagna

The meal which made me the happiest was the salmon patty night. I bought 3 small cans of canned salmon from the local store, and made the standard fried patties we make here at home. I knew my brother-in-law, Bern, would eat them along with me-as he loves seafood. But I didn't believe any of the kids would enjoy them. I went into it expecting that the kids probably wouldn't touch them. I was WRONG! My older niece and nephew ate them and enjoyed them! And their teenage friend who was over for dinner wanted seconds as well! I was so honored and excited to see kids enjoying salmon patties! (I know they would find me completely silly for getting so excited about this...) There wasn't a crumb left. I was such a happy chef that night. Seeing that the patties were gobbled down and appreciated.

The week went so well. Peggy is making a gradual recovery and has incredible strength through it all. I admire her for the attitude with which she has approached the injury and state of disability. She can't bear weight on her leg for 8-12 weeks total...and has to use an adapted walker, as she also fractured her wrist on the same size. Makes getting around challenging for her, to say the least.

Bozeman is a beautiful city--can't wait to go back some day with the kids and check out the natural wonders of the area....yellowstone, geysers...skiing...dinosaur museum...etc. Stuey and Nora would love it. And Patrick too. But its often hard to peel him out of Alaska....

Zoya

Photos: Cami and I cooking a batch of calzones (to go in the freezer for Peggy) and lasagna yesterday evening.

Philip's Snow Video

Snowboarding the Kodiak Backcountry from Philip Tschersich on Vimeo.

Philip made a video that partially uses some of the video he shot on my birthday ski. He almost totally excluded us skiiers, but if you look carefully Lisa and I do make brief cameo appearances in the background. Philip does an awesome job with imovie and his videos are so beautiful it actually sort of discourages me from making such videos. But mine are just different. I see myself more as a 'Robert Frank' type videographer (famous for grainy high contrast Black and white photos) while Philip is more the Ansel Adams type. One thing for sure - my videos load up a lot quicker.

In any case, take the time to watch the video. It's a pro job, and it really shows how nice the skiing was over the weekend. Best of all, with all the new snow it should be getting even better up there now. Patrick

Earthquakes and Rocket Fuel

The large earthquake in Japan and the melting down nuclear reactors has had me thinking about Kodiak's own rocket launch facility. Like Japan Kodiak is one of the few places in the world where REALLY large subduction type earthquakes take place. Our large earthquakes can be up to 1000 times worse than anything that'll ever hit Southern California where the faults are of the strike and slip variety. Kodiak and Japan are perched on the edge of subduction zones where oceanic plates slide under continental margins (Seattle and Chile are other such places).

Anyhow, a few years ago I was at a Kodiak Island Borough Assembly meeting where Rocket launch VIPs were making the case to store highly unstable, toxic rocket fuel out at Narrow Cape (see my blog post from February 2009).

http://saltonstall.blogspot.com/2009/02/alaska-aerospace-kodiak-rocket-launch.html

After the meeting I asked the head guy if they knew about the fault that is literally right next to the facility (you can see it both of the Google earth images I've posted - it shows up quite clearly from the air). The head guy assured me that the Vandenburg rocket launch is also built near faults and that Kodiak has already withstood a 7.0 earthquake. I pointed out that said 7.0 occurred over 50 miles away and far under the earth's surface and not on the fault that lies just 10's of meters away from the rocket launch. He got mad and stressed that these things are built to withstand earthquakes - END OF STORY.

Now with the melting down nuclear reactors in Japan I wonder if they too were built to withstand earthquakes. I bet that the officials that built them assured everyone that they could withstand anything nature threw at them. They were wrong. And I know that the rocket launch VIP is wrong about the Narrow Cape facility too. Nothing built by man can withstand a nearby 9.0 earthquake or even a 7.5 earthquake that is on a fault less than 10 meters away (a 7.5 that close would probably shake worse than a 9.0 whose epicenter is 30 miles away). And that is why nuclear reactors should not be built in subduction zones or on top of earthquake faults - END OF STORY. Nor should we be storing highly unstable and toxic rocket fuel in such places. Because in such places there will eventually an earthquake and the best laid plans WILL GO AWRY. Patrick

Birthday Ski

Today's my birthday, but yesterday I went for what has become a tradition - the birthday ski. For the last few years Philip, Adelia, Gregg and Lisa have joined me for a ski on my birthday. Every other year we have gone exploring on cross country skiis, but this year we went on snowshoes and alpine gear.

The conditions were pretty darn good - powder on a soft crust. A little windswept and icy up high on exposed ridges, but that made the sojourn a bit more adventuresome. I have been at a conference in Fairbanks, and cross country skiing every day on groomed trails. It felt good to get back on the ungroomed! Back into the backcountry. Patrick

Post-Tour Peace

The professional photos from the Tour were posted and its fun to look at them and be thrilled that the race is over. I have been able to breath easier with my schedule now that the race is over....our friend Bruce wrote on his blog (north 2 the future) about the relief of the race being over, and not having the details of the race being such a focus of his mind. I wholeheartedly agree-I feel lighter now that it is over. The good part about doing a race is it gives you something to work towards. The downside is that in the weeks preceeding the race, it is easy to feel mentally taken over by it.


Stuey has been in such a good spot lately. I had some hard times with his stubborness for several months and now he has come out of it. Yes-he still has a stubborn edge, but my sweet little Stuey is back. Kids go through phases where they push limits and its not fun but then they come out the other side of it, and all is well. Amazing how it works.

Nora is blossoming on many levels as well--tonight she wanted to make Patrick several Happy Birthday posters, as Patrick's birthday is this weekend. She had me write out the letters, "Happy Birthday Dad" on a piece of a paper and she quickly transcribed the letters and words onto her posters. She is becoming much more confident with writing. She draws big upper case letters, and it works. I can see she is having fun with writing which is the important part.

When school starts in the fall, she'll be very ready for kindergarten. Its going to be an exciting time to watch her start school in August!

Zoya

The Tour - Goals met and unmet

Oh where do I start. The Tour of Anchorage completely kicked my booty. That said, it was such a great weekend.

Patrick was VERY happy with his place-he took 36th overall in the 50K, which exceeded his goal of placing in the top 50, and he got third for his age group. He was very excited to keep up with some of the elite skiiers in the Spencer Loop. The Spencer loop is in the beginning of the Race and is a 800 foot climb up and is the worst part of the 50K.

It was so fun watching him ski by me...there were some very fast, very serious guys that flew by and then in the next couple small groups of guys, Patrick flew by. I had a feeling he was in the top 50, as there weren't too many guys before him. THe 50K'ers are 100% business. Shiny bodysuits, and legs and poles just flying ahead. I was proud to see Patrick with them and I yelled out "Go Patrick! Love you!!". He chimed back, "Go Zoya" as he flew into the sunrise and I was huffing and puffing along.

My race was brutal. The 25K course I did had a new start at Alaska Pacific University. At the start line, the announcer said, "We don't really know how long this route is...it could be 20K or it could be 30K...if you have a GPS, track it for us and let us know." At the end everyone agreed it was closer to 28K....

The trail looped back and forth all around, up and down moderate hills. I felt encouraged by how things were going until I saw the sign that said, "20K to finish". I looked down at my watch. I had been skiing for 56 minutes. I thought, "NO WAY". I have skiied more than 5K, surely. But I didn't let it fluster me and just focused on the trail and my form. Towards the middle/end of the race, the snow felt very slow. It was soft and dirty.

At 1 or 2 points during the race, I thought...how lovely would it be to catch a ride with one of these nice spectators back to the finish...but I really pushed those thoughts from my head. I had moments throughout where my hip flexor and low back muscles would tighten for about 5 minutes and I was just inching along. The final hills to the finish were brutal. Everyone was in the same boat--exhausted. As I approached the finish line, I saw my ski instructor, Lili standing in the crowd and I smiled at her...she said "Hi" and waved and then took a picture of me with a camera with a big lense. I wanted to sink away....my form was HORRIBLE. I was practically walking. I think she understood.

There were 9 people in my family cheering crowd, screaming, "Go Zoya! Go Zoya" as a I finished. Nora and stuey were 2 of them. I finished in 3 hrs 17 minutes, about 50 minutes longer than I had hoped for.

I'm really glad I did the race--it gave me something to work for this winter. The process of training got me back into regular exercise. And I'd like to do the race every year instead of having 3 year gaps between the times I do it.

Patrick did awesome and I'm so proud of him. He was up there with the big guns...he worked for hard for it all winter. Here in Kodiak--where there are no groomed trails.

A major highlight of the weekend was our friends and family who also did the race--my brother in law Todd did the 25 freestyle, My stepdad did the 25 classic and did incredible (took second for his age group!!), and our friends Ray and Bruce in Anchorage also did awesome. Bruce did the 50K for the first time and Ray met his goal of being in the top 100 for the 50K. Julie took second for her age group!!! Our friend Aubrey who has done archaeology in Kodiak before took first for our age group.
Everyones personal times were slower than prior years, because the race was most likely longer due to the new course.

Zoya

Photos: Nora and Stuey with the Tour Moose at the finish. On the car ride home last night nora said, "Mom-I think that moose is actually a human underneath. I think that moose wants kids." Pretty funny.
Cousin Will and Nora. Patrick loved that Nora wore his bib after the race, and struck a pose like she was double poling in the race!
2 pictures Beth S. took of me at the finish....the smile was somewhat forced....I was moving VERY slow.

My Take on the Upcoming Tour

While Zoya is excited about the upcoming race I'm VERY nervous. This year I have not gotten sick or injured, and we have had plenty of snow all winter long. I have no excuses - If I have a slow race it means I'm just getting OLD and slow. Last winter I'd only gotten in 38 total days on XC skiis (both skate and classic) before the tour. This year I've gotten in 74. Last year I trained on downhill gear 63 times while this year I only had to resort to it 34 times. So all and all I SHOULD be better prepared. And yet, .. ... I wish I wasn't so nervous! Last year it was kind of relaxing to just race without high expectations - it might have even been an advantage. ... .

And yes my race philosophy is different from Zoya's. I do go as fast as I can all the time. But I have to be careful not to go anaerobic too much or the lactic acid can build up and I can totally physically crash. This happened one year and I blacked out the last 10K of the race. I was slurring at the finish and still looking for the finish line even after I had finished. They had to wrap me up in blankets and put me in the boiler room. That experience always niggles at me during races and I sort of just know where the line I DO NOT CROSS is in terms of pace.

Another small worry is my old skin suit (see photo from 1998 top and 2002 where I am posing with Zoya and Ella). Zoya and I have been a little worried that it is too old and might suddenly catastrophically burst mid race. It is over 15 years old! So today I put it on and tried it out for a ski. It is a cold windy day, and at first I could not believe that I actually wear the thing with nothing on underneath in 0 degree temperatures. But it was sort of unbelievable, after about 5 minutes of skiing I was warm. And best of all the suit still seems to fit and it does not appear to be coming apart at the seams. So I guess it'll do for another year.

Sadly I do think I am getting old and slow. I look at my old race times and know there is no going back to the glory years of just 10 years ago. My fastest time was in my late 30's. I do not think I can duplicate those times anymore - but I'll be happy with a time that is 10 minutes slower. I used to break 2:30 - so this year my goal is to break 2:40. I also want to finish in the top 50. But goals are just goals. I already have accomplished the whole reason I try to do the tour every year. It has forced me to get in shape! And I know that no matter what I will still have a good time. And that beer and pizza after the race is done will taste so GOOD. ... .. Patrick

Nervous, Excited, Nervous, Excited, Nervous, EXCITED!!

Just 3 days left until the Tour of Anchorage cross Country ski race in Anchorage. I've been training for this race all winter and am really excited to finally do it! The past week, I"m putting together all the final details and taking measures for the race that I"ve never taken before.

I've done the race two other times, and during those races-I was thrilled to finish. Well, this year I'd be thrilled to finish and I"d be MORE thrilled to take 1/2 hour off my time....to do the 25K in 2:30 as opposed to the 3:00HR I usually finish in. There have been many phone calls to Pauline (the trainer who developed my training program)--bless her heart for taking the time to answer my last minute questions...

"What do I eat? Do I drink at every break station? How hard should I start off? How will I know if I'm crashing or going to hard?" When Pauline and I sat down to talk about race specifics, my stomach turned up into knots with nervousness. But in a good way.
You see, the last two times, I didn't do a whole lot to prep. The last time I did the race Stuey was 1 year old and I was just thrilled to have enough energy to finish....much less thinking about race strategy.

So new to my Tour program this year is a fanny pack with 3 energy gels in it, and a very small list of split times to complete the 25K in 2:30. I plan on taping it on my sleeve. This way, at various points along the race, I can have some idea of whether I"m on target for my goal time. And as Pauline told me, "If you're not near your target and you're tired, its not a big deal. Don't worry about it. The biggest thing is not injuring yourself and feeling halfway decent at the finish."

Patrick has a different race philosophy...and he is doing his 50K race with different intentions then me. His philosophy is push yourself as hard as you possibly can every moment of the race without bonking. Patrick recalled asking his high school cross country ski coach how to pace yourself during a race and he replied, "Go as fast as you can. all the time" Yeah....I won't be doing that. However, if I'm half way through the race and on target with my times AND feeling good, then I will push myself outside my comfort zone a bit more...

Nora came home from preschool today and told me that at prayer request time, she asked her teacher (ms.Stephanie) to "pray that mommy and daddy make it across the finish line." This got big laughs out of me. Too cute! Nora senses all of our excitement over the weekend! She and Stuey are beyond excited about a weekend in Anchorage...

:) Zoya

Picture: Posing with my splits list and one of the goo packs...

From Kodiak to St.Lucia...

A 4 minute video of my 11 day trip to St.Lucia with Mary Jane....trip was in mid February.
We went to visit our friends, Karen and Jeremy who are living there for one year-what a fabulous time we had!

Zoya