Bolder Boulder 2019

Running the Bolder Boulder is one of my favorite family traditions.  This year, Gavin and I ran together and Gage and Tara ran together.  Here they are on the morning of the race getting ready to rumble and throw down.  

For our race in wave E-D, I let Gavin set the pace but I tried to keep pushing him a bit which in the end worked out pretty well.  After some marshmallows, Doritos, and some bacon in miles one through four, I finally cut him off from in-race snacks for the final two miles.  This kept him topped off in fuel and energy without developing full on side cramps.  Overall we finished in 52:14 which is a record for Gavin by about four minutes over last year!  I think he placed 34th out of 410 entrants in the U11 category.

Gage and Tara also had a great time running together and started in wave H.  This was the first year Tara has done the race in quite a few years due to ankle issues.  Gage also took last year off but was excited to go again this year.  Here they are coming into the stadium together.

This guy was all smiles coming in and I am so proud of him for getting through it!  They came home in 1 hour and 18 minutes.  That put Gage at 99th out of 274 entrants in the U9 division.  Normally we enjoy spending time in the stadium and the tent market outside but this day turned cloudy, windy, and cold shortly after we all finished.  We bundled up as well as we could but ultimately headed home before the skydivers and the Pro races.

Gavin and Gage Commencements and Awards

As Gavin finished out his last year at Mountain View as a 5th Grader, he was nominated to be one of the speakers for his class at commencement.  What a great honor!  He was very nervous but worked hard on this great speech that he delivered to his classmates and all the parents at graduation.

He did such an awesome job!  We took pictures of the text of the speech to capture here but he stood with confidence and spoke to what must have been close to 2-300 people.  He is really seen as a leader among his peers and we are continually working with Gavin to make sure he uses his gifts and abilities to be a force for positive change.

Gage is also seen as a leader in his classes.  He won two separate awards this year in 3rd grade as he finished up.  He got an award for "Doing His Job" and also an attendance award.