The Great Solar Eclipse of 2017 crossed the continent, from Oregon to South Carolina, and gave millions of people the chance to witness one of the most awe-inspiring events in the natural world.

But you had to be within the "path of totality", a narrow band across the earth's surface several thousand miles long but only about 70 miles wide. Outside that band you would only see a partial eclipse, not a total eclipse.

And there is no such thing as a "partial total eclipse", despite the impression blogs and the news media might give. I honestly think that's why so many people misunderstand the utter beauty of the spectacle; they may have seen a partial eclipse in the past that was total somewhere else, and even though they weren't in the path the news kept gushing about it being a total eclipse, so they assume they must have seen a total eclipse and just didn't find it all that impressive.


Posted by Dan 08/29/2017, revised 09/06/2017

This was my second year at HITS Palm Springs, returning to defend my 2015 title. Since I didn't write about last year, and last year was kind of a long time ago, just a single, emphatic word summed up my memory of that winter desert race:

COLD!!!!

So this year I did a fair amount of preparation to brace myself for the 55 degree water and the prospect of emerging soaking wet into 55 degree air to go bike in the wind:

1. I spent the week reminding myself to quit whining like a wimp.
   
   
2. I showed up to transition dressed like I was ready to go ice fishing, to preserve my core temperature as long as possible. (This made body marking something of a challenge).
   
   
3. I got in the icy lake 10 minutes before my wave start to "warm up" or more precisely, to "numb up." This was a critical step. I got the painful part out of the way early, so that I was able to start the race devoid of all feeling.
   
   
4. I added one more piece to my T1: an insulated vest with the pockets loaded up with hand warmer packets.

The swim was a success, despite the fact that almost half of it was into the direct glare of the morning sun.

I put on my toasty vest in transition, and I knew I was going to be plenty cozy, even if I couldn't feel my feet for the next three hours.

And then I set off for the "easy" part of the race.

The first obstacle came up early in the ride. The course support was a bit sparse out on those desert highways, and a few intersections had police presence, but they weren't necessarily actively directing traffic.

I approached a red light, and felt a little nervous since no one was preventing cross traffic from taking their green. But you don't stop for red lights during a race! I proceeded through with some hesitation, and cleared the intersection just in time to avoid a pickup truck barreling through. Yikes!

Not long after, I found myself at another huge intersection. There were no other racers in view ahead, and I panicked, wondering which way the course went. One of the downsides of being at the front of a race is that sometimes the course disappears.


Posted by Kimberly 12/07/2016

Bangkok is one of those cities that makes an impression the second you get there. However after you get over the smell and the traffic there actually is some wonderful wonders to be found. We were fortunate enough to be staying with a couchsurfer and he acted as our tour guide while we were in the city. Our first day we made our way by train, boat and taxi to Canchanaburi where there is a train bridge.

Jen got over the wonderful wonders quick.

Posted by nik 09/14/2008, revised 09/21/2008

Old problems rise again. What is it this time? It's the beloved old challenge of taking in all the beauty, adventure, and fun that life offers, and turning it back out in written form in order to share it with all of you. Often, the silence that transpires on this page is a good sign - an indication that my days are filled with life and the living of it.

So I must apologize for the brevity of the following posts, but I can no longer stay hung up on trying to write of my adventures in detail. I will instead simply have to catch you up with a few smatterings of thought and rely on photos to do most of the talking.

So let's rewind to 5 weeks ago, when I embarked on a 9-day stint in Argentina with the USFQ fútbol team. One tournament, 13 girls, 8 games. The tournament was in the city of Córdoba, and as this was not a sight-seeing trip, this was essentially the extent of what I saw of Argentina. But I can tell you that this was all I needed to know that I will someday return to Argentina to get to know it properly. There was something about the land, the people, the life... something that planted a seed in my heart that makes me want to know this country enough to be able to say "I love Argentina!"

Posted by Whitney 03/27/2011, revised 04/07/2011