Outside Features

Take a number.Pole Pedal Paddle is only 10 weeks away. It's time to start thinking
about your training program. But the most important training technique
of all, in my opinion, has nothing to do with heart rate training
zones, lactic acid removal, 40-30-30 diets, intervals, overdistance or
visualization. It's specificity. In other words, the best thing to do
to prepare for racing PPP is to race PPP, or at least something like
it. Believe it or not, there are some other towns as obsessed with
outdoor sports as Bend, with equally crazy events. I like to put some
of these "other PPPs" on my race calendar.

Spring Forward
King of the Cone surveying his KingdomHey, don't forget to get up at 2am this Sunday to turn
your clock forward one hour! Some people lament the loss of sleep time
but I usually throw a "Happiest Day of the Year" party which includes
looking for crocuses poking out of the ground, dusting off the bike or
kayak and planning summertime adventures. Oh, and filling out the PPP
registration form, of course, which is now available at www.mbsef.org.
Now that Spring Forward Day is in March, skis are still in the picture,
but if you're growing weary of the same old trails, these two upcoming
events are opportunities to try something new.

When my Mom was growing up, girls were expected to wear dresses, look pretty and not cross over the center line on the basketball court. Lucky for me, I grew up in the age of Title IX, crossed half-court and got dirty. Even today though, sports and the outdoors are more a guy's realm, and many girls need encouragement to venture there. This week, I'd like to motivate you to thank someone who inspired you and to share your passion for the outdoors with someone new.

Winter is back! After a long drought, new snow arrived this past week just in time to make WinterFest feel like WinterFest and prevent local powderhounds from committing hara-kiri. In fact, it presented us with a classic Central Oregon dilemma: What is the best way to utilize a perfect powder weekend? Which, of course, is part of the much grander existential question of how to maximize a lifetime of powder, waves, singletrack, endorphins, full moons and sunshine. I've been pondering such things lately.

WAXING POETIC
We're jammin'Valentine's Day is upon us and I'm sure you've planned a romantic getaway for your main squeeze, right? Well, if you're at a loss for what to do for your sporty sweetie, here's an idea. Personally, I think a bouquet of glide waxes and a poem on my doorstep would be quite romantic. Something like:

Roses are Red
Violets are Blue
Here's some Toko
So I can ski with You!

Everyone is familiar with the symbolism of roses of different colors, but why not "Say It with Wax?" Just follow the temperature chart to pick a wax to match the warmth of your feelings. With Toko, it's simple: Blue, Red or Yellow. Swix and Solda allow for more colorful bouquets and a wider range of feelings. Here's a quick guide to the Meaning of Wax:

Dear Readers,

Greetings from sunny Orlando, Florida!
Driving away from the airport through a dead flat sea of urban sprawl on a jam-packed highway tossing quarters into tollbooth baskets, I thought about how much I missed Bend already. I'm here with Meg and Dave Chun to spend four days at Surf Expo, the biggest trade show for the surf industry, selling Kialoa stand-up paddles. Working in the surf biz is a pretty good gig, but even so, you sometimes have to pay your dues. Here, in the land of amusement parks, it's all about escaping reality. My love of surfing is all about connecting to the ocean, oneness with the water, the sun and the moon (what else would you expect from a Pisces?). Ironically, we couldn't be farther from that inside the cavernous, windowless Orange County Convention Center surrounded by thumping music, aisles of stickers and wax flotsam, and a flotilla of surfboards. But, some mid-winter stoke is a very good thing and I thought I'd send some along to the surfers in the crowd.