Monday Night at the Beach

Megan’s Birthday/Acroyoga and slacklining at Jericho beach

Following a solid road ride I met up with SJ and Tom and we rode over to Jericho beach to celebrate Megan’s Birthday. After some delicious bbq goodness I introduced some acroyoga to the group and set up a slackline. We were playing well into the night. Due to my lengthy ride home I was one of the first to head out, left the slackline for others to play on and I made my way home . I had a gorgeous ride home. I hear people stuck around played some guitar and sang into the night! Way to go team!

Live, Love, Laugh,....DREAM!

Whistler and Comfortably Numb Race Report

Whistler a multisport weekend!


I love that Whistler despite having lived and worked there is still such a magical place for me. I caught a ride up with Marshall, a friend I know from kayaking. Thanks to the long summer days we got up with plenty of light left for the evening. I met up with my good friends Ali and Graeme and eventually we made our way to Alpha Lake park and I showed them some slacklining and we played around with acro yoga until dark.



Saturday Graeme, Marshall and I ripped through some amazing Whistler mountain bike trails. My favorite trail of the day was Danimal, a fab trail by Alta Lake Road. I remember having to walk most of the trail…I’ve come a long way.. ..We finished our 3hr ride off with River Runs Through it and a cold but refreshing jump into Alta Lake. Later that evening Ali and I made our way to the disc golf course in Spruce Grove and practiced our mad tossing skills….





Comfortably Numb 25km Trail Run Race Report



I can’t believe I had never been on this epic trail before. It is a gorgeous technical trail. I can now understand how it is far faster to run it than ride it. The first ¾ of the trail is an uphill battle with some undulating sections. There are some steep down hills with loose rock and some bigger drop offs. The views are breath taking and magical (so worth the pain). The race began at 9am and I was feeling good but I was lacking in the good pre race butterfly/nervousness. I just wasn’t feeling like I normally do on race days…I shrugged it off and took it as a good sign to be more relaxed than ever…maybe too relaxed? I began the race in typical Lina fashion slow and steady letting people outfront giver’ off the line. I was actually feeling pretty good but as the race went on I started to notice that maybe I was feeling too good for a “race”. I couldn’t understand why I just wouldn’t go faster…hmmm…I still don’t quite know. To make a long story short, I finished the 25km with lots of energy and a smile but a little disappointed in my lack of speed throughout the course. I believe it is a mistake on my part for not doing as much speed training as I probably should be doing but I have been shifting my focus from ultra running to surf skiing/marathon kayaking….watch out kayaking world there may be a new girl hitting up the surf in the near future…hahaha…



I finished the weekend off with a beautiful evening surf ski paddle out in deep cove….



All in all a fabulous weekend…



Live, Love, Laugh,…DREAM!

Back on the Rock among other things...

The Uniqueness of Self Exploration

This past week I’ve been thinking a lot about this topic and how wonderful it is and how it makes our world unique and functional. Lots of people in the last while have come across my blog which is awesome and the responses I’ve received have been tremendous. One of the most popular comments I keep receiving is how inspiring and motivating it is. This is my goal with my blog, when I speak to people, and through my actions; but what I want people to realize and differentiate is that what I do, how I deal with certain things, how I learn about myself and my goals and dreams are unique to me and not anyone else. Although I can be inspiring I would never want to inspire someone to follow MY dreams but inspire them to think about THEIR goals, dreams and passions. Although I may be able to run 100km or race for 4 days in the wild and you have trouble running 5km doesn’t make you a lesser person and me a bigger more important person. Heck if I can sing one note on tune or play the guitar or cook an amazing dinner. Each person has their own means to help them deal with pain, or help them to discover more about themselves and the world. I just happen to choose extreme adventurous endurance sports and you maybe the same or most likely something completely different. So don’t hide behind your strengths and passions live them and cherish them as they are YOU and only YOU.



That leads me into my weekend of Rock climbing, Mtn Biking, Running, Kayaking and chilling with fantastic Friends!!

This weekend was a blast; I managed to spend most of it with some of my favorite people that at times I don’t see for weeks on end. Our good friend Alex West was in town and another friend just moved into his own pad in the quaint yet sketchy neighborhood of Gastown. These two events were the platforms that controlled our plans for the weekend.



Friday night I cycled down to SJ and Tom’s place in the West End and we all got together for sushi and chats.



We hit up the Bluffs in Squamish for a fun rock climbing session. I worked on my crack climbing and am feeling more and more comfortable. It seems like this fear that used to hold me back has dissipated which allows me to climb more confidently and in return tougher routes. We ended with a slab sport climb that had no hands and at one point no hands or feet…made for an interesting climb…it re-confirmed my love of juggy holds..but a fun climb nonetheless. Upon the return into town SJ and I enjoyed a run through the Stanley park trails before heading over to Pete’s for more good times with a solid crowd of fine people. I enjoyed teaching acroyoga throughout the day!



Sunday morning was trail day with Steed Cycles. I cycled up a massive hill (made me re-think my fitness level….) and met up with the crowd at the bottom of Floppy Bunny on Fromme Mountain. It was super well organized with an awesome chili lunch made from scratch by Scott and lots of exciting workstations. I happen to help build a bridge and a corner. It was my first NSMB trail maintenance day and I hope to make it out to a few more.



I managed to hook up with SJ, Marg and Melissa for an all girls power mountain bike ride. We hit up the Mt Seymour trails and ripped! To top of a packed day full of activity I got together with Johnny for a fun relaxing surf ski paddle out in Deep Cove. We were both pretty exhausted but it was a blast to cruise around on the ocean on a beautiful Sunday evening. Something I would like to do more often. My favorite time of day is dusk: peaceful and beautiful.

Another fantastic weekend full of good friends, lots of exercise and time in the gorgeous outdoors.

Live, Love, Laugh,…DREAM!

Round Bowen

Round Bowen Kayak Race and much much more….




It is rare for me to spend a weekend at home. I really like to use my weekends to explore surrounding areas and use my week nights to further explore my wonderful backyard…..this weekend has proven to me that my backyard is pretty amazing and that a weekend at home can be just as plentiful and wonderful as one away.

Saturday morning I met up with Kim Steed, Tom C and Ward and we started off the weekend right with a fabulous 3 hour run on the Baden Powell trail. We began at the bottom of Grouse and followed the Knee Knacker route to Deep Cove. It was a great training run as I am racing the Knee Knacker race in a month and have been a little negligent on having some good long pure running runs in. It was so great to have company on a long run….at times you can lose yourself in conversation but at the same time you can just be quiet and run away with your thoughts knowing that someone is there pushing you…..oh and these guys are quick…..thanks guys…



I came home to having no plans for the rest of the day…I didn’t want to do too much activity as I was heading to Bowen Island to race in a 32km kayak race on Sunday morning….I called a bunch of friends with little success and was feeling a little bummed when an old high school friend gave me a call…him and some others were in town for the weekend. Next thing I knew after a 1.5 hour bike ride I was in Stanley Park, teaching Kyle and Howie how to slackline and some basic acro yoga tricks….it was such a great time, the sun came out, we caught up and despite not seeing each other for over 6 years it felt like just yesterday that we were sitting in the halls of SRB back in Nepean…these guys are hilarious! After some fun in the park two other guys joined up and we headed for all you can eat sushi downtown….



Following sushi I said my goodbyes (in hopes that our time together would not be the last in a while…Kyle, I’m comin to visit you in San Fran..woohooo!!!) and biked over to the Jericho sailing club to meet up with Cyn and Jessie for a sailing party. I can’t remember the name of the band but a local band was playing, I got to catch up with Jessie, a wonderful friend and ex roommate from my UBC days…A “small world” occurrence happened where I got to meet the girlfriend of an old Lithuanian camp playmate…I managed to sneak into bed just after 1am…exhausted but fulfilled and excited about Sunday.





Round Bowen Kayak Race





7:10am I got woken up by a call from my kayak partner Gary. CRAP! 20minutes to get ready….I’m becoming better and better at my last minute packing and managed to not miss a thing…woohoo!!!! We caught the ferry to Bowen with a bunch of other kayakers…quite the funny scene, lots of kayaks on wheels on the ferry boat. The wind was up, the rain had stopped but the clouds looked like they were there to stay for the day and the temperature was cold… it was going to be long 32km kayak race. There was a great turn out (140 people). Out of the harbour we turned right (south) and the race changed right off the bat with fierce wind, waves, currents, cold and lots of boats. Gary and I paddled the double sea kayak Passat and felt ultra stable so we could motor through the waves (that were hitting us from all directions). I was so happy not to be in a surf ski…A big congrats to all surf ski racers that survived this leg of the race and moved on to finish the entire course….impressive. The first half of the race was a battle with the waves and currents, at times we were getting knocked around and others we were surfing the waves and woohooing the ride….the other side of the island proved to be calmer but with a deceiving current against us….it was nice to have a little break but with the loss of the excitement with the waves and wind I started to feel the soreness in my butt… I never considered myself to have a bony butt but I think otherwise right now…I was wiggling and moving around a lot for this portion of the race. Our good friend Chris D snagged a little rest behind us in his surf ski before zooming past us. Heading into the last 4km of the race we were again welcomed with fierce winds and waves and our good friends Mickey and Bill flew past us in the double baidarka….In the end we finished off in a time of about 3 hrs and 15minutes which is great for a double sea kayak. We managed to score 2nd place in double mix kayaks behind a double surf ski (which really isn’t in the same field range at all as it is a much much quicker boat).



Following the race there was plenty of salmon, delicious bread, other great foods and drinks….a quaint quartet played some soft tunes and awards and prizes were given out. They were giving out a free evo think surfski which I was praying so hard to get….but alas it went to someone else…next time…



I finished off this fabulous weekend with a hot tub at Gary’s place and a great dinner with Gary and Andreja.



Wow,
I feel refreshed and alive (albeit a little tired). It was so great to catch up with friends that I have not seen in awhile and hear what exciting life adventures they have been on and to share my own experiences with them. I am constantly being re affirmed that I live in an absolutely stunning place with endless opportunities. As I was able to enjoy the simple life in Nevada, this weekend I yet again was able to appreciate the little simple things in life and learn how beautiful and important they are to me like friends, the environment, healthy competition and peoples graciousness. Thank you!

Live, love, laugh,…DREAM!

The Simple Life

My 5 day trip to Nevada..



There I was on a sunny Tuesday evening sitting inside a car in the desert with a new close friend, fellow adventurer, explorer, driving to a park after three days of climbing in the red rocks canyon, a day of adventure racing, camping, slacklining, mountain biking, hiking, sweating in the desert heat, sleeping under the stars, not showering, wearing the same clothes……beaming! Jason and I looked at each other gave a nod, a deep breath and a smile,…. ahhh this is the life…but how can we be so pleasantly content living with relatively nothing, among the dirt, the grass, the mountains, with no houses, no showers, no tv, no couch, no bed, no plate, just a spoon we all have to share?....EASY.
One glance around, one look up and down and side to side tells me how I know this simple life is the ultimate…



what do I see? I see a beautiful landscape, I see natural light, a blazing round sun, I see wandering burrows




what do I feel? I feel a cool breeze, I feel the touch of solid sandstone rock, I feel the touch of closeness from dear friends, the trust, the laughter, the emotions



I hear the wind gushing from side to side while I am swaying 200feet in the air along side a massive wall of rock,



I wipe the sweat droplets from my forehead while running aimlessly along dirt trails leading to nowhere but somewhere all at the same time.,…I lose myself in endless story sharing …the peacefulness yet utter strength of the mountains and canyons….


I enjoy the ultimate FREEDOM to be me.





These past 5 days spent in the Las Vegas area were special: I grew, I laughed, I cried, I was confident, I was extremely nervous and scared, I felt love and I felt pain.


What we physically did was exciting and amazing, we won a sprint adventure race (our second race together as team yogaslackers), we climbed several pitches of both trad and sport climbs, some higher than others some more technical than others,….we mountain biked throughout the desert, we learned some acro yoga maneuvers that strengthen trust between a group, we cooked out in the open, we slept under the stars, we ran on remote trails with backpacks full of climbing gear, we sweated and we laughed!


I am constantly striving to learn more about myself, about my joys and dislikes, my strengths and weaknesses, I am continually sharing and re adjusting my goals…. I am trying to find out what I truly appreciate in life, in myself, in others…but most importantly I am trying to live by my mottos:
1. No regrets
2. Live on purpose
3. Live, love, laugh,…DREAM!

Every experience, every moment, every word, and every touch is a pebble towards our road and our journey to ultimate happiness and peace!

Ahhh…the simple life

Live, love, laugh,..DREAM!