My First Garlic Braid!

Late last week I harvested all our garlic and laid it out on the table in the backyard to dry for a couple of days while we were out of town. Last night I finally got around to braiding it - and I think it went really well! (at least it turned out looking like a braid - and I can hang it).

Our garlic didn't turn out as well this year, and I'm not exactly sure why. Part of me wonders if it's because I didn't buy special garlic to plant as seeds - instead I just saved a head or two from last year's harvest to re-plant. I feel like the heads are much smaller this year - and we had 3 or 4 that were mealy and beginning to mold in the ground. Ick.

A Weekend in Oakridge

This past weekend Thor and I, and a whole pile of our friends rolled down to Oakridge for a weekend of fabulous biking and camping. Thor headed out of town early to snag a campsite on the Middle Fork of the Willamette - and the rest of us trickled in throughout the evening on Friday.

Saturday's plan was to get up and ride the Middle Fork of the Willamette - which is about a 28-mile trail running from Timpanogas Lake down to near where the Middle Fork dumps into the Hills Creek Resovoir. It was amazing! The upper section was all downhill - which was a blast - then there was a slightly less amazing middle section where we had to carry our bikes a lot - and then the final 8-10 miles which roll along the river and are just super fast and flowy.

Thor with the truck getting ready to run the shuttle on Saturday

I didn't manage to keep myself that clean - and I broke off a piece of stick in my leg. Ouch!

Our 'swimming hole' right next to our campsite - so pleasant for our post-bike swims!

Sunday we headed up to the Alpine area to ride - it was gorgeous - the trees are huge and it was just a magical ride!

Short Track #5 - July 19

Thor and I raced short track, again, last week - and here are some links to pics taken of us during the race by OregonVelo! (One of these days I'll get back on schedule and start posting the same week that things happen - i promise!) Both Thor and I demoed Turner bikes - I think we both rode Sultans -which are their 5.5" full suspension 29'ers. Very fun! My bike had super fast race tires on - which were a blast. Thor's bike had some knobbly DH tires on it that made it a titch slow on the flats, but he still had a great time trying out the bike!

Pics of Me

Not sure this is my best look: http://photos.oregonvelo.com/p/pdxstxc021910r4/pdxstxc071910379_7_11_24_4

This is pretty cool though! http://photos.oregonvelo.com/p/pdxstxc021910r4/pdxstxc071910420_7_11_24_4

And finally this: http://photos.oregonvelo.com/p/pdxstxc021910r4/pdxstxc071910467_7_11_24_4

THOR

Head down and pedaling hard! http://photos.oregonvelo.com/p/pdxstxc021910r3/pdxstxc071910228_7_11_24_3

Pushing towards the end to get his slow tires rolling!: http://photos.oregonvelo.com/p/pdxstxc021910r3/pdxstxc071910272_7_11_24_3

This one is the best though! http://photos.oregonvelo.com/p/pdxstxc021910r3/pdxstxc071910315_7_11_24_3

Short Track #4 - July 12

Thor and I have been out racing short track every week up at PIR - here are links to two shots of us from last week's race that were taken by OregonVelo!

Me - Looking like I'm having fun on my way to 4th place in the Women's Cat 1 field: http://photos.oregonvelo.com/p/pdxstxc071410r4/pdxstxc071210302_7_11_23_4

Thor - pushing it hard for 5th in the Men's Cat 2 field! http://photos.oregonvelo.com/p/pdxstxc071410r3/pdxstxc071210227_7_11_23_3

Plains of Abraham - Biking near Mount St.Helens

This past weekend Thor and I stayed in Portland over the 4th of July weekend. We took advantage of being around by getting in a mountain bike ride that we've been wanting to do for ages: Plains of Abraham up near Mount St.Helens. We went with our friends Abby & David - and ended up riding Ape Canyon --> Plains of Abraham --> Windy Ridge --> Smith Creek. A long day - but beautiful - and now one of our all time favorite rides!

Once again my photos are all out of order - for some reason blogger won't let me re-organize the photos when I'm using Google Chrome - but I don't think it will matter too much. We rolled out of Portland about 7 in the morning - and were back by 5 or 5:30, I think (including a stop at Burgerville for fresh strawberry milkshakes, of course!)

A steep hill somewhere along windy ridge. I actually rode down part of it before having to hop off my bike to walk!

Abby & I crossing Smith Creek.

This shot gives you an idea of the magnitude of the mountain! You can barely make out David & I riding along!

Gorgeous scenery up on Plains of Abraham - we had perfect weather. Sunny and dry, but not too hot.

A view down towards Smith Creek.

At the top of Ape Canyon.

From low down in Ape Canyon - looking up towards St. Helens (still shrouded in morning fog)

Abby & I attempting to ride across a snow field - it's tough!

Lemon Basil Sherbet - It's Summer!

Summer is about to hit with a bang! After cool, overcast weather over the 4th of July weekend it has ramped up to over 90-degrees in just a day. Today is supposed to be about 95 - and tomorrow it may reach 100 or hotter!

I've had this Lemon-Basil Sherbet recipe I've been wanting to try - and I decided what better time than the first heat wave of the summer? A friend from work brought in meyer lemons last week, so I had a number of those on hand - and the recent sun has encouraged Thor & I's basil to come out of hiding so I was all set on that front as well.

End result = delicious! I made the sherbet last night and put it in the freezer to firm up overnight. Of course, I had to sample it before heading out to work this morning. =) The meyer lemon flavor is outstanding, although I am sure the sherbet would be delicious with any type of lemon. Here's a link to the recipe if you'd like to try it out yourself.

Hooray Summer!