(Noel, Nate,
Jarom & Bryce)
Bryce and some buddies from school decided that they needed some adventure in there lives. (I don't know why. All of these guys became new dads this year. Isn't that adventure enough.) So the four of them packed up their gear and headed out for a weekend they thought would be filled with fun as they participated in the Red River Gorge Adventure Race.
I know many of you are wondering what an adventure race is. It is and all day race that covers 60 miles. You participate in teams and have to get a card punched at 21 check point along your way. Your means for transportation changes through out the race. You start out on foot, repel down a cliff, mountain bike and kayak on the river. There is no official trail or route to each check point, part of the race is orienteering. You have to use a compass to find the area the check points are in and then search for the puncher in the woods.
Now that we have that out of the way, on to the good stuff. The guys headed out Friday night to camp out (in November doesn't sound fun to me). At 4:30am they woke up broke down camp, caught the shuttle at 6am and got ready for the race which started at 7am. Off to a good start on foot the guys found the first couple of checkpoints pretty easily. They repelled down a 200 foot cliff and then got on their bikes. They were looking forward to riding their bikes because their feet were getting tired after walking about 12 miles, but that soon pasted for Bryce. He got really tired, hungry and cold. Bryce and Jarom were feeling very tired and about to fall asleep behind the handle bars, so the two of them decided to stop right there on the side of the Highway and build a fire to keep warm until their team returned for them.
I wish I would have taken a picture of Bryce when he got home. He was covered in dirt and sweat and all around nasty. He was so tired that he struggled to stay awake long enough to get in the shower and head to bed.
"Hell is not fire and brim stone. It's the adventure race!" -Bryce Jones
This little doll pattern is from Martha Stewart. It was really easy to whip up so make one for your little girl, or niece or granddaughter. Brynlee loves hers. I would recommend double stitching the arms and legs. Brynlee drags hers around the house so much one of the arms is ripping out of the seam.
With so many little boys in my family, I thought a car cozy would come in handy. The pockets at the bottom are "garages" for matchbox cars. Fold it up and throw it in your bag for car fun on the go.
