Top 9 of 2017

2017 has been a goal crushing year for me. I don't think I have accomplished so much in any year before.  Picking highlights on such a fantastic year is a tall order, but here are nine that come to the top of my list. 

Noquemanon Podium

For one day in January, I was a professional skiier! The Noquemanon in Marquette, MI is the largest, most competitive race in Michigan (outside of collegiate races). It typically is a 50km classic race, but because of poor snow conditions in 2017 it was shortened to 30km. Classic is my technique, and after getting 4th, 5th, and 6th over the last 3 years, I had the best ski race of my life (and some pretty stellar skis) and managed to get 3rd place. The giant cowbell still has a place of prominence in our household. 

Illinois Half-Marathon PR

Running has always been love-hate for me. It comes pretty naturally, but I don't enjoy training to run unless it's perfect conditions. After my half marathons of 2014-2016 putting me so close to a 1 hour 40 minute half marathon that I could taste it, I decided to truly dedicate my training to breaking that barrier.  In April, after 13 weeks of training, I took on the Illinois Half Marathon in Champaign, IL and smashed my previous personal best. I finished in 1 hour 32 minutes and 34 seconds, and it has me seriously considering a Boston Qualifiying marathon in 2018. 

World Pork Expo

In June, the Barton-Davis clan went to Des Moines, Iowa for the World Pork Expo.  The last time I attended was in 1994, so this was an eye opening experience. We talked to industry experts, other producers, and sales reps, all while collecting tons of free goodies, and eating So. Much. Pork. 

AuSable River Canoe Marathon Record

2017 had me challenging myself more than ever, racing the AuSable as part of a women's team (something I love), and in the bow (something that terrified me). My partner, Edith MacHattie, is one of the best paddlers (and people) I have ever raced with, and I never dreamed we could have such a historic race. We tipped over within the first minutes of the race, but the water was high, and we were fast.... So fast that we broke a record I never thought would fall, the women's record set in 1994. We assumed after our rough start that any chance we had was firmly out of reach, and didn't realize that we were close until the final portage. After 15 hour 17 minutes ans 120 miles we crossed the finish line 9 minutes under the old course record.

Paddling on the Mississippi

It's funny to think that Iowa is a flyover state for most, but it was one of my favorite places of 2017. In August, the USCA Nationals were held on the Mississippi River in Dubuque, Iowa. The River is "small" that far north, but it felt legendary.  Seeing the freighters, bridges, lock, and beauty of the Mississippi brought up a deep respect in all of us that were lucky enough to paddle it. As a bonus, I was able to race there with my Mom. 

Top 10 Catalina Crossings

September had me crossing the continent a few times, and a quick trip to Catalina via team Hui Wa'a  was definitely worth it.  This was my third crossing, and two years of past experience left me much more confident on the ocean. The women's team finished 6th, and the men were able to week out a 10th place finish after taking an unplanned swim.  For a full race re-cap, check out my prior post (I will link when I get back to the computer). 

"Real" vacation to Washington

It's hard to believe- Mike and I traveled somewhere, and didn't race once! Our week in Washington took us to 3 National Parks, 30 miles of hiking, kayaks, and the Seattle Barton's.  It was the trip of a lifetime and we can't wait to go back. A full trip recap will be linked here once I get back to the computer. 

Girls take Louisville

I am always ready for a good girls trip, and Louisville was epic (look here once linked for full recap).  I seriously doubt we will ever top it for girls weekend, but we have agreed to try in 2018, probably in Nashville. 

Paddling in Rain

I started and finished my racing season of 2017 in 45 degree rain. I suppose it usually goes that way, but this year it had such an impact that I asked for TWO raincoats for Christmas.  I realized in Canton, NY that I don't melt and managed to have a 6th place finish with Mike in the General Clinton on Memorial Day in the rain. Fast forward to Halloween Weekend, and Dad and I were able to grind our way to a 2nd place finish in OC2 at the Chattajack in Chattanooga, Tennessee.  I don't know how we had Michigan weather that far south, but it must have kept us in our comfort zone. 

With this last weekend of 2017, I plan to ski as much as possible and squeeze every bit of fun out of the year. Happy New Year to all- see you in 2018!

A Long Weekend at Home

I haven't kept up on my race updates, so first things first, 8 days ago was the Roscommon Canoe Classic.  Roscommon is the first "points" race of the Michigan Canoe Racing Calendar, so it always has a lot of teams ready to show off their talent.  This race is on the south branch of the Au Sable River, which is really narrow so it has a different way of starting (see the video).

(Start of Roscommon- Andy and I are in boat #1- courtesy of Ryan Matthews)

I was lucky enough to race with my cousin, Andy, who has a reputation for being one of the best.  We knew we at least had a shot at winning the race, and went out hard.  We ended up coming in 2nd, but were hot on the heels of the first place team.  Mike had a good race, coming in 3rd, but he doesn't like it very much when I beat him.  Dad raced with friend Matt, and they finished 14th, not their best, but they managed to hold off a few pretty good teams.  The next race Andy and I will do together is in about a month, and we will have another chance at a win.  On Sunday, I raced C-1 and felt ok taking 1st place in the women's race, but was definitely tired from my effort on Saturday.  Mike was able to come away with a 2nd place finish, his best of the season.  Dad finished 12th, and Mom came out for a 2nd place women's finish.

This weekend Mike and I enjoyed the first weekend home in quite awhile.  We were looking forward to a really relaxing weekend.  At 2 pm on Friday we decided to do the Team Triathlon at the Jonesville Riverfest which was at 6 pm.  Mike went with Derek, a friend from work, and I went with Greg, another work friend.  The triathalon consisted of one person doing a 2 1/2 mile run, the second person doing a 5 mile bike, and then both people paddling an Aluminum Canoe 2 miles.  Mike and Derek pretty much lead the whole race and came off with an easy win.  Greg and I fought from 8th place on the run up to 2nd place in the paddle, before we took a wrong short cut and hit a log.  Samantha (my sister) and another team passed us on the jam up, so we came up short of the prizes in 4th place.

On Saturday the whole family went over to the Oaklawn 5k, where Mike, Samantha, and I felt that we wouldn't have the best runs, since we had ran our triathlon legs just 15 hours before.  Mike and I finished about a minute slower than we have been in our most recent races, and Dad and Samantha stayed about the same pace as usual in theirs.  Since we didn't feel winded enough, Dad, Mike, Weston, and I decided to paddle another hour and a half in last minute training for the big race next weekend.  I was so exhausted when we were done that I had to take a rare afternoon nap.

Sunday was our favorite local canoe race, the Crusing Class at the Jonesville Riverfest.  In one hour and 15 minutes we race through 4 portages, through 10 culverts and over/under 10-15 pipes. Other obstacles include sand bars, rocks, metal stakes, muck, and lily pads. The river is barely one canoe wide and turns sharply about every 20 feet.  Our family makes up nearly the entire field, but we have a blast.  Dad and I came in first, Mike and Derek were 2nd, friends Paddi and Andy (not cousin) were 3rd, and Samantha and Alex (her boyfriend) were 4th.   After the race Mike and I tackled the garden for the first time since moving in over a year ago.  It might not be pretty, but it is better than last year. After our "relaxing" weekend at home, I can't wait to get away to the General Clinton Canoe Regatta next weekend!

#MathieuStrong

This week is the first week of 2015 canoe training at home.  Last week, we were all recovering from Florida, so the training was pretty light, but over the weekend we got back out there for a 2 1/2 hour paddle on Saturday, and another 1 1/2 hours on Sunday.  Not the longest training for us, but it also isn't very nice out yet. We started our first interval training (well 2nd if you count the bit we did in Florida)  of the year yesterday, and I can definitely tell I haven't tried to move that fast in quite a while.  Hopefully we will be at somewhat prepared for the first race of our season this weekend.  

Besides canoeing, Mike and I decided to enjoy the weekend at home by going rock climbing at a nearby gym on Friday, and then run the first 5km of the year on Saturday.  The rock climbing was fun, but we tire out pretty quick, and were sore going into the run.  I didn't have any expectations going into the race , and once we got started I could see Mike was much further ahead of me than usual.  When I got to the finish line, I was shocked to see that I beat my time from last year by 20 seconds, and that Mike had set a new personal record by 45 seconds!  No wonder he was pulling away so fast.  Mom, Dad, and friend Weston also went to the race with us, and everyone had a good time.  

(Paddling Group on Sunday)

About a month ago I wrote about a fellow paddler, Mathieu, who suffered a terrible logging accident.  Tonight is a benefit dinner to help him transition his house to suit his new life.  Paddlers from all over are encouraging Mathieu with the #MathieuStrong logo.  So far, #MathieuStrong has been out skiing, on multiple rivers, at restaurants, St. Patrick's Day parties, and at different businesses.  We hope to continue to let Mathieu know we are thinking of him, and inspire him during his recovery.