The Season is Over! or is it???

This past week has been one of the busiest I can remember! Brian and I finished up our season with some fantastic racing and achieved numerous goals. After the great week of racing I ended up securing the Overall Super Tour which will give me the Continental Cup Start rights for the World Cup next fall. This is a goal I have been trying to achieve for a long time and I couldn't be more thrilled. Brian and I also secured the Overall Distance Super Tour and Brian ended his last race of the year for Team Gregg with a 3rd place podium in the classic 50K!!!

Brian and I were originally planning on spending a few extra days in Alaska after the season so that we could visit with friends and explore some of the beautiful mountains! When we found out that Brian's Presidential visit fell between the last races and our trip to the Nana Region for Nana Nordic, we decided it would be the perfect opportunity for me to head to LA and visit my brothers and sister.

It's been 7 years since I visited my siblings in Los Angeles and ironically it's been 7 years since I won the Overall Super Tour too! I packed up my light bag (I only had a few items that would work for the 70+ F temperatures in the forecast for LA anyways) and headed down to a different world.

Camille, Calan and Travis helping me pack my skis for Norway! Not something they do very often.

The best part about being a sibling is realizing how different we all are but how similar we are at the same time! When all 5 of us are together (Gavin couldn't make it from NYC), you can tell we are all related by the way we look, the way we walk and even more so, by the way we talk! Ironically I am the only one out of the 5 of us who graduated from high school. I feel pretty lucky to have had sports as a positive influence on my education. Although school wasn't easy for me, I knew I had to get good enough grades so that I could go to practice and compete at events. Although my siblings have not taken the most conventional route their passions are strong and their competitiveness even stronger! I had a blast offering perspective and wisdom to them, while trying to help them achieve small goals while I was in town! We got a lot done and it feels great!

Our Sibling portrait! 

Calan is my middle brother, he is 24 years old and in the past 4 months he has lost 100 pounds! I am beyond proud of him and I had a great time hanging out with him and seeing what a transformation he is going through. Last summer he didn't even want to join me on the family hike, this spring he was leading the charge!

Calan getting fit.

It's been 7 years since I visited my siblings here in Los Angeles and ironically it's been 7 years since I won the Overall Super Tour too! I packed up my light bag (I only had a few items that would work for the 70+ F temperatures forecast for LA anyways) and headed down to a different world.

Cami and I on an adventure.

Camille is 17 and there is 16 years between us! This spread in our age kind of confuses people when we introduce ourselves as sisters. Despite the age difference we seem to be in perfect sync when we re-unite! My sister is awesome and is a gifted athlete. Although athletics is not a huge part of her life on a regular basis, whenever I am in town she LOVES to join me for runs, events and fitness adventures! She is hoping to get into cosmetology school someday and she is extremely dedicated to her work!

Sisters

Getting pumped for a race together!

Cami and I headed to San Dimas one Saturday morning and raced in the competitive wave of the Warrior Dash 5K. It's a 5K trail run with 12 obstacles through the route. The course was hilly and the obstacles were way tougher than I thought they would be! I was worried about whether Camille was going to have fun in such a grueling event but when I went back to find her on course she was all smiles and wanted to do another one the following weekend! I won the overall for the women's event so I have an entry in the World Championship Event in October. I am actually thinking about doing it because running speed was such an important component and my upper body strength helps on the obstacles.

Tired, Muddy and extremely happy!

Cleaned up and ready to head back home.

Bus ride with the men's champion and his horns.

 Travis is 20 years old and also has his own athletic talents. He found out I had never really played golf before so he found some clubs and took all of us for lesson. We went to the driving range and then played a game of 9 holes on the Par 3 course! The course was only $2.50 a person and we shared the clubs! I always thought golf was super expensive! I was psyched it was so affordable because it was a lot of fun and Travis is an amazing coach!

Travis preparing to drive!

All in all I had an amazing 5 days with my family and I was sad to leave. I am now heading right back to Alaska to meet up with Brian for Nana Nordic. We are headed to Kotzebue, AK which is a Native Village un-reachable by car. We fly in tomorrow morning and start working with the local kids right away! I can't wait, but I am a little nervous about transitioning back to -10F after the 80F we had on our hike today in Southern California!!!