madcity girl

I spent the past weekend camping with a group of six friends at Peninsula State Park in Door County. As I’ve mentioned previously, I grew up camping there with my family. Door County continues to be one of my very favorite places to spend a summer or fall weekend. The area offers the perfect balance of the great outdoors with great dining and shopping. What can I say, I need a little bit of both.

I took the day off of work on Friday and made the drive with two of my friends. We took the scenic route along Lake Michigan, and enjoyed the great views from the port cities along the way. Upon arriving at the park, we set up camp and headed out on a bike ride to the beach. By the time we made it back to the site an hour our two later, our other friends had arrived and we enjoyed a delicious camp dinner—foil packets with potatoes, sausage, onions, peppers, and brussel spouts. After several rounds of competitive Banagrams by the light of our headlamps, we retired to our tents for the night.

Saturday was filled with more adventures. I woke up early to get in a short run along the lake with one of my friends. We arrived back to camp just as our other friends were beginning to emerge from their tents. After a quick camp breakfast, we hopped in our cars to head to the Cana Island Lighthouse. There, we took a tour of the grounds and climbed the daunting spiral staircase all the way to top. The views of Lake Michigan were incredible. We pondered what life must have been like back in the day for the families of lighthouse keepers. It was fun to learn more about the trials and tribulations such families faced.

After our informative lighthouse visit, we drove the peninsula and took in a few shops and boutiques. We stopped for ice cream at Wilson’s and then headed back to camp for lunch. Back at the park, we ventured out on our bikes for another trip to the beach. After some nice time in the sun and requisite lake baths, we got ready for our night out in the big city. We had reservations for a fish boil at the White Gull Inn at 7pm. I’ve been to a few fish boils at the White Gull Inn over the years, but the experience never gets old. I love the whole production of cooking the Michigan white fish in a big cauldron of water, and the giant flame and boil over that erupt as the master boiler throws kerosene at the fire. We drank beers as we watched the show from the patio. Once the food was ready, we headed in for a buffet dinner of white fish, potatoes, bread, coleslaw, and fresh cherry pie. Afterward, I was so stuffed I could barely move.

The next morning we did a group run together. It was great to further explore the roads and trails of the park. After breakfast and packing up camp, our time together sadly came to an end. We parted ways and headed home. But luckily, I’ll be back soon. I have a fall camping trip scheduled in Door County in early October. One thing’s for certain—I’ll never tire of long weekends in Door County.

I headed to Door County this past weekend to compete in my first triathlon of the season—the Door County Half-Ironman. It’s one of my favorite races, primarily because of its great location along Lake Michigan (there’s few places in the world I’d rather spend a summer weekend), but also because it’s an extremely well-run race. And luckily, I was able to share the weekend with two of my closest friends, Lauren and Brodie.

Since we arrived to Door County early on Friday, we had plenty of time to take in the sights before our big race on Sunday. On Friday, we enjoyed a Viking Inn fish boil, ice cream at Wilsons, and a leisurely drive along the penninsula. On Saturday morning, we woke up early and cheered for friends who were competing in the sprint triathlon. Later in the day, we picked up our race packets and enjoyed a pool-side potluck dinner with Brodie’s team, Madison Multisport. I’ll share a full race report in my next post—but for now, here are a few of my favorite pictures from the weekend.

Lots of bikes piled into our condo!

Enjoying ice cream from Wilson's after a fish boil at Viking Inn.

Lauren and Kristin serving as Dailymile spokesmodels during Saturday's sprint triathlon.

Attacking Brodie with the sharp point of my aero helmet.

UW tri team alums make a strong showing at Sunday's half-ironman.

Lauren and Kristin enjoying post-race festivities on Sunday afternoon.

To say that I am obsessed with Island Lava Java would be an understatement. During the course of my four days on the island, I’ve eaten at Lava Java four times. The very popular Kona dining spot offers breakfast, lunch, and dinner. The food is super fresh, and everything I’ve ordered has been delicious. And in the days leading up to a big race, it’s nice to have somewhere to go where the food is healthy and always good.

In my opinion, the breakfast offerings are most impressive. Everything from Kona coffee to pancakes with coconuts, macadamia nuts, and bananas, topped with buttermilk coconut syrup. There’s also an amazing bakery selection with mouthwatering scones, muffins, cookies, and the biggest cinnamon rolls I’ve ever seen (and have been salivating over all week). Without a doubt, I will be back on Sunday morning after the race to get my fill of gooey cinnamon rolls.

Entertainingly, Lava Java also seems to be the place to “see and be seen” among the triathlon community that has literally taken over Kona. Triathletes flock to Lava Java all day for good eats, smoothies, and some good ‘ol sizing up the competition. I’ve seen countless professional triathletes in line or sitting at tables on the outdoor patio.

Lava Java also offers “triathlete specials” for the week—many of which are named for well-known professional triathletes, like Bree Wee, Chris McDonald, and Chris Lieto. On Wednesday, I enjoyed the Bree Brulee—oatmeal layered with plain yogurt and sliced bananas, then topped with caramelized brown sugar brulee. Served with a cup of fresh fruit. See? Now you know what I’m ‘talkin about!

Yesterday my parents and I took a roadtrip to Hilo, which is on the opposite (east) side of the island from Kona (and a 2.5 hour drive). The trip really put into perspective the wide range of ecosystems on the island of Hawaii. For example, Kona is mostly made up of dry and barren lava fields. In contrast, the Hilo area features luscious vegetation—including majestic rain forests and water falls that are the result of 130 inches of rain each year.

Along the way to Hilo, we stopped at the dramatic ‘Akaka Falls, which drops more than 442 feet, tumbling into a pool drained by the Kolekole Stream. It was a breathtaking site.

Once in Hilo, we explored a few ocean-side parks, and eventually made our way to Island 100, a local favorite, for lunch. Not wanting to venture into traditional Hawaiian foods a few days before the race, I stuck with a “safe” grilled chicken sandwich. Boring.

After lunch, we strolled through the downtown area and explored the Hilo farmers’ market and several shops and boutiques. We then ordered massive quantities of shaved ice, a very refreshing Hawaiian treat with gallons of flavored syrup poured over shaved ice.

On the drive back to Kona, we stopped at Hapuna Beach, which locals apparently consider the “best beach” on the island. The beach is 1/2 mile long with white sand, turquoise water, and rolling waves.

It was nice to get away from the intensity of Kona for one day and take in the sights of another part of the island. I’ve been so anxious and nervous the last few days (didn’t sleep well at all on Wednesday night), so I think a little time away was just what I needed. But one thing’s for certain—I can’t wait to live a little and truly vacation once this race is finished! I’m picturing myself on the beach with a Mai Tai in each hand. Ahh…yes. But 140.6 grueling miles still separate me from that vision…

So this past weekend I entered a pie eating contest. What was I thinking? Seriously, I don’t know. When I was much younger, like probably ten, I entered a few pie eating contests during summer festivals in Rockford, the town where I grew up. Not only did I do well during the contests, I usually won. I could take down a whole pie in a matter of minutes. I was always the proud kid taking home the grand prize—I seem to remember baseball tickets and my pick of several CD’s from the local radio station. Clearly, I’ve been quite the eater (and competitor) my whole life.

So when I was in Door County this past weekend and saw that there was going to be a pie eating contest on Saturday at Orchard County Winery’s Fall Harvest Fest, I said sign me up. I arrived to the winery around noon, and immediately hit the sign-up tent. The woman manning the booth informed me that I was the fourth adult entrant, so my chances were looking good. I then sat and waited. And got nervous. Very nervous. My friend immediately noticed my nervous tendencies—I was tapping my fingers, had become very quiet, and my expression was clearly anxious. You know, you don’t have to do this, Kristin, she said. I know, but I have to, I replied. Then she switched strategies and told me something about how I’m all gun and no throttle, and I was like, it’s on.

So when the time arrived for the start of the contest, a woman from the winery called up all five entrants. Me and four huge, burly guys lined up and took a seat at the picnic table. It was pretty funny. All of the women in the crowd were like, you go girl! Go get ‘em. The woman leading the contest then explained the rules—one piece of pie, no hands, whoever finishes the slice first wins.

When the whistle blew, I dug my face into that piece of pie and started devouring. It was like I was ten years old again and hadn’t lost a thing. I still had it! There was a lot of cheering, and I could tell that I was keeping up with the guys. Chew, chew, chew, swallow. Chew, chew, chew, swallow.  But alas, I was not quick enough. Two of the guys beat me. But I totally held my own with the big guys. I’m going to practice up and come back next year. Then I’ll show those boys what this pie eating sister is really made of.

Last weekend I traveled to Door County (aka “Cape Cod of the Midwest”) for a great weekend of camping at Penninsula State Park. I grew up camping with my family in Door County, and in recent years, have traveled there for an annual fall weekend with friends. I look forward to the weekend all year. I love Door County, especially in the fall. There’s not much not to like—amazing Lake Michigan shorelines, five great state parks, idyllic lakeside communities, twelve lighthouses, great fall festivals and apple orchards, nightly fish boils, etc.

My friend and I arrived to the park on Friday afternoon, after having taken the day off from work. We were a little worried about the weather since forecasts called for a weekend of rain and storms. My friend had recently purchased a new tent (more spacious than my backpacking version), and I think she was looking forward to testing how well the tent would hold up in rain. Not me. I remained desperately optimistic that our weekend would not be a total washout.

On Friday, we set up camp and then explored the shops of Fish Creek during the town’s annual sidewalk sale days. For dinner, we opted for a fish boil at Pelletier’s. Last year, we had experienced the fish boil at White Gull Inn, so we were anxious to try something new. Pelletier’s was very comfortable and casual. We also loved the master boiler at Pellitier’s—super friendly and cute. After dinner, we headed back to camp. Sometime during the middle of the night, it began raining. Very hard. Luckily, the tent held up extremely well and we stayed completely dry. And thankfully, that was sort of it for the weekend rain.

Saturday was a big day. I had to do a final long run, so we did about ten miles in the park—primarily on the Sunset Trail. It was gorgeous, especially with the leaves beginning to turn. After that, we headed to two fall festivals—one in Bailey’s Harbor and the other at Orchard County Winery in Fish Creek.  The rest of the day we drove along the peninsula, stopping at the various shops and apple orchards along the way. I consumed an ungodly amount of sweets—caramel apples, pie, apple spice donuts, ice cream, etc. I even participated in a pie eating contest—but more on that later.

Later in the afternoon, we napped on beach chairs along the shore in Ephraim. With the late afternoon sun still shining, and a cool breeze from the lake, it was perfect. After restoring our energy, we headed to dinner at Wild Tomato, a great pizzaria near the park that recently replaced long-time Door County favorite Digger’s Pizza. After dinner, we drove to Wilson’s, Door County’s longtime favorite ice cream parlor, where I enjoyed the three-scoop Dusty Road sundae with french vanilla, chocolate, and chocolate chip ice cream topped with hot fudge and dusted with malt and a cherry.

The next morning we woke up bright and early for a short run. After that, we broke down camp and headed back to Madison so I could get in a long bike ride that afternoon. Albeit shorter than usual, it was a great fall weekend in Door County. The last few years, my Door County weekend has fallen after Ironman Wisconsin, so I’ve been able to completely relax and not worry about workouts and such. Although I didn’t have that same luxury this year, it was still a very relaxing and refreshing trip. And I definitely needed that coming out of last week’s work and bike-related stress.

In my mind, nothing is nearly as iconic of summer as “fun island.” As I’ve mentioned previously, fun island is the name we termed for the inflatable water trampoline that floats just a few swim strokes away from the pier at my friend Karen’s family’s lake house on Green Lake, in south central Wisconsin. I’ve had the great opportunity to spend both Memorial Day and Labor Day at Green Lake for the past several years. And in my memory, fun island is always in the water by Memorial Day and out by Labor Day, thus in many ways signaling both the beginning and end of summer.

Much in the same way, this past weekend at Green Lake was bittersweet. After a half-day in the office on Friday, Karen and I arrived at the lake early afternoon and immediately claimed sunny spots on the pier. Eventually we were joined by Karen’s sister Kate, as well as our friends Kim and Matt. The weather was amazing—sunny skies and 80’s throughout. We enjoyed an abundance of reading and napping on the pier, barbecuing, and an array of water sports—kayaking, tubing, water skiing, and swimming. And of course I had my requisite long workouts, which are thankfully soon coming to an end.

As always, the weekend went by way too fast. Before I knew it, Monday had arrived and we were hauling fun island out of the lake, officially putting an end to summer and all of its glory. So until Memorial Day next year, the still-inflated fun island hangs precariously from the rafters of the garage—Kate’s genius storage idea.

Until then. Farewell, fun island. I will miss you like the deserts miss the rain.

This past weekend I celebrated another birthday. Compared to last year’s surprise party, this year was relatively uneventful. Not that I’m complaining—I knew I needed to get in solid training miles, and beyond that, all I wanted to do was relax (and eat). So I spent the weekend with my friend Karen at my family’s cabin located on a small lake in Northern Wisconsin, inbetweeen the towns of Minocqua and Rhinelander.

Leading up to the weekend, the weather forecasts called for rain and severe thunderstorms. Undeterred and hoping for the best, Karen and I set off for the 3-hour drive from Madison at 2pm on Friday. Although we encountered rain throughout most of the drive, we arrived to sunny skies in the north woods.

As we unpacked groceries upon arrival, Karen noticed something in the freezer. She turned to me and sheepishly explained, I think there’s something in the freezer for you. I curiously poked my head in and found a note from my parents, along with candles and a cheese cake sampler from Joyce’s Cheese Cakes in Eagle River. Apparently they had placed the items in the freezer the previous weekend. It was a great surprise.

The rest of the weekend was filled with biking, running, eating, relaxing, and shopping. Luckily, the rain held off and the weather was relatively decent throughout the weekend. On Saturday, I slept in and then did an 88-mile bike ride—which seeemd to eat up most of the day (no pun intended). Afterwards, I rewarded myself with a massive root beer float. That evening, I enjoyed dinner at Culver’s (er, did I mention I also had Culver’s for dinner on the drive up on Friday…) and Karen and I went to see the movie Julie and Julia, which I loved. We hit up Dairy Queen on the way home so I could top out my day’s ice cream consumption with a thin mint blizzard. It was sheer bliss.

The next day, we ran 16 miles on the Bearskin Trail, which is a great gravel path from the town of Harshaw to Minocqua. The trail was a railroad in a former life, so there’s several great tressles along the way (like the one pictured, above). There were also many ripe raspberry bushes, which made for easily accessible fuel throughout the run. Luckily, we did not encounter any bears on the trail this time (you may recall that two years ago we were not so lucky).

After the run, Karen made me waffles for breakfast and then we drove into Minocqua to do a little shopping. Minocqua is like the most tourist-y lake town you could possibly imagine (picture gawdy t-shirt shops and hordes of weekenders). Needless to say, we didn’t end up purchasing much, but certainly enjoyed window-shopping and people-watching. We packed up and headed back to Madison later that afternoon. I did, of course, prepare a final root beer float for the road (hey, it was my birthday).

Since then, I’ve been enjoying my cheesecake sampler and all the many varieties from which to choose. There’s Turtle, Oreo, Chocolate Chip, Cafe au Lait, Butterfinger, Amaretto Almond, Chocolate-Chocolate, and Reguar (boooring). So far, my favorite is Amaretto Almond. Delicious. Each slice has been a lively accompaniment to my daily PB&J routine.

And so, the eating continues…

It’s official…I’ve booked my ticket to Hawaii. I’ll be there from October 5-16, with time on both the big island and Oahu. I can’t wait for sunshine paradise, pina coladas on the beach, swimming in the ocean, and learning to surf. And there’s that Ironman thing…

Speaking of which, my next task is to figure out how to get my bike to Kona. Initial research leads me to believe that it will cost upwards of $400 to get my bike  there and back, which is frightening. Considering I bought my bike 7 years ago for approximately $1,300, I’m pretty sure it’s not even worth $400 today. That being said, I’m considering other options. Possibly renting a triathlon bike once I get there. Not sure if that’s completely stupid, though. Obviously, it would be ideal to race on the same bike I’ve trained on all season. But, what’s the point of spending a small fortune to ship a crappy bike? And who’s to say my bike will be the same (as in the one I’ve ridden all season) once it’s disassembled, shipped across the ocean, and reassembled by mechanics in Hawaii? Thoughts?

Karen, Matt, Kim, and Kristin

Matty and Kim fire up the grill (aka the new Mr. and Mrs. Tobin!)

Allie proudly prepares to perform her dance recital number (clad in hundreds of yellow feathers!)

Kim follows with an energized dance number (laughing-on-the-ground-funny)

Matt juggles to the musical accompaniment of “Tijuana Taxi” and stellar pyrotechnics

Megan plays “Yankee Doodle” on the clarinet

Although I was tired from Sunday’s marathon, the prospect of pre-Memorial Day festivities at Green Lake with great friends was truly energizing. (It wasn’t until Monday that I was hit, like a wall of bricks, with marathon fatigue.) There’s no better way to kick off summer than a barbecue on the boat house, followed by a lively and humorous, not to mention fiercely competitive, talent show at Green Lake. Karen was the genius behind the talent show, which was originally conceptualized as an opportunity for Allie to perform her recent dance recital routine in full-costume in front of family and friends. But very quickly, the idea of the talent show became larger than life with smack-downs exchanged via e-mail before the show, great prizes, an MC, and numbers intermixed with dance-offs and group sing-alongs. Needless to say, it was an extremely memorable evening featuring  extraordinary talent.