Sayulita JR SUP Team - Pacific Paddle Games 2018 - Part 3

Sunday was the final day of competition and we were able to arrive at the beach a little later than Saturday.  The day's race would be the "technical" race where the racers basically sprint one lap of 1.4 miles around several stationary buoys navigating swell and waves along the way.

The course was essentially the same as last year so the kids were well prepared.  Alex' group was up after a few races so she sat on the beach with her helmet on and waited with butterflies in her stomach.  Again, Jade Howson appeared and wished her new friends from Sayulita good luck and provided some hometown advice to Alex.  Super cool of her to take time from her JR Pro pre-race prep to encourage some of the kids on our team.

Alex gets some advice from Jade Howson.

Minutes later Alex was on the starting line with several of the girls she met during the previous day's race and they were off!  The wave conditions had mellowed a bit but there were still moments where large sets came through.  Fortunately for Alex' group the race began during a lull in the surf and they paddled off to the first buoy.

Alex begins her technical race.  Black helmet on the right.

During this time Trace had been on the beach waiting with his best buddy and team mate, Kolbi.  Jade gave our boys a brief "pep-talk" and soon after the they were off!

Trace and Kolbi get ready for their start. 11 and under boys and girls all raced in a single group but placed separately.

After the kids were in the water we had a few minutes to move over towards the finish line and grab the binoculars to be able to see the race progress a bit better.  The race is a fast one of only one lap but part of it far from the beach and we tried to locate Alex in her group.  We spotted her in second place and not far behind the leader.  And, she was actually closing on her!!!  Whaaaaat!!!?  The swell had picked up a bit and we could see the racers moving parallel to the beach between the large rolling walls of water.  The leader made the 180 degree turn to head to the final buoy turn and Alex was now right behind her.  Things got a bit crazy from there as her coaches, other parents and friends of both girls began yelling unheard encouragement from the beach.

They made the last buoy side by side and both looked to grab a wave in to the beach and the finish line.  Super exciting and the group of parents around us watching the race began to buzz!!  Alex and the other girl picked up the same wave but Alex was trying to ride it where the wave was a bit steeper than where the other girl was at.  She tried like crazy to hold onto it but it was just too much wave with such a long board and she went down as the other girl rode a smaller less steep section of the wave all the way to the beach.  Ughhhh!!  So much fun to watch the hard fought contest between the two girls.  Alex collected herself and was able to catch a wave finishing only 30 seconds behind her in second place.

Traces contest was less of a nail biter with a whole lot less drama but was also really fun to watch.  He knew his buddy, Kolbi, was going to blow the doors off the competition so he had his eye on the next fastest boy in his group who was just 30 seconds faster than him the previous day bumping Trace to 3rd.

We picked up Trace with the binoculars as he made the second to last turn heading to the last bouy to  pick up a wave to the beach.  11 year old boys with helmets on look so similar at a distance so it was hard to figure out just who was who.  The boy who he wanted to beat this race was able to grab a wave ahead of Trace and rode it all the way to the beach to foil Trace's plans for second place.  Trace grabbed a wave too and finished third just 25 seconds behind.

The awards ceremony followed and it was fantastic to once again see the kids hard work and dedication pay off standing on the podium.  During the weekend our team brought home 11 medals!  We loved hearing the commentators say "From Sayulita" as each one of the kids received their medals.  The coaches and parents were so proud of the team and how they got after it with energy, skill and sportsmanship.

The Elite Team!

Once again, our team from this year made it's mark on the Pacific Paddle Games.  Our group of kids put it all out there on the water in tough conditions that even challenged the pros and did it with skill, class and a smile.  It was hard not to notice the team from Sayulita was in the water and doing well.

One of the biggest things to happen over the weekend was a donation of a handful of 12'6" race boards from The Paddle Academy SUP race program. Their program picked up a sponsorship from SICMaui and the loaner boards they let our team borrow for the weekend's event were just taking up space in storage unused.  Amazing and super generous!  Several of our Elite Team kids have received the attention from Brawner Boards and received a discount to purchase their own 12'6" race boards to train with in Sayulita but much of the kid's group trains with the older 11' boards.  So, with the addition of the donated boards the Elite Team may be able to come close to all be training on real race sized boards for the first time ever when the boards arrive later this winter!!

So, second year at the Pacific Paddle Games.  What did we learn?

-Our team is prepared.  Training in variable conditions is to our team's benefit.  You could see a difference in competitors, including the pros.  Some were comfortable in surf and some were not.

-Our team really likes to have fun but competes at a high level too and supports each other.

-The announcers can actually pronounce "Ostrowski"...most of the time.

-SUP pros continue to be so supportive and always give back to the kids.  

-It is great to meet new kids with the same interests in other places.

-Our program is unique.  We now know of and met a couple other kid supportive programs out there but there are few like our program in small town Mexico.  Fun to meet parents from other programs too.

-I am not sure if other SUP kids know what to make of our team from Sayulita.  I watched kids around them during the weekend's parties and events and it was interesting. All of them are Spanish and English speaking but most are sun bleached blonde. All are physically very fit thanks to their training and ocean lifestyle.  They all have ocean skills, compete hard and are composed under pressure.  They are always having fun no matter if they are at beach, competing, having dinner, traveling or at a pre-race party and it is noticeable. They are kids being kids and the youngest member on the team can hang out with the oldest kid.  The team has a positive energy and it is contagious. I am not sure all this is the norm so I feel like our group is special.

-SUP racing, like other sports, takes money.  Gear, travel, lodging, logistics and other expenses really add up to be able to attend races.  Our team of 30-40 kids practices weekly on essentially smaller recreational boards that are getting tired and constantly need repairs and many kids who could travel cannot with the costs involved.  If anyone out there wants to help support the team in any way or may know some who could contact the The Sayulita JR SUP Team here or drop us a message via the blog.

Some of the kids applaud at the SUP The Mag Awards party.  Photo by SUP The Mag.

Alex Podiums Twice At Hipico del Mar

Alex continued to collect medals but this time it was off the water at her team's horse jumping competition that was held last weekend.  She competed both Saturday and Sunday at a height of 65cm at Hipico del Mar just across the state line in Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco.

Alex and her favorite horse, Pegasus, jumped both days penalty free making this the first time Alex brought home not only one but two-third place medals.  She was super happy to place at the weekend's competition and along with Pegasus will be competing again in December most likely a bit higher at a 75cm jump height.  Even better Ashley was here to be able to cheer her on and see her do so well.  Each time we see her she looks more and more comfortable on the back of a horse and she continues to get high praise from her riding coach.  Check out the video too.

Alex and Pegasus

Aspen Lane House Has Sold!!!

It is done!  We have closed on our house in Park City.  As of yesterday we no longer own property in the USA.  About a month after the initial offer came in the house is now owned by a new family.  Ashley and I are happy and sad at the same time. After our summer in Park City we knew it was not a place we want to come back to so we put it up for sale and luckily for us the right buyer came forward and is now the new owner.

Aspen Lane August 2018

At the end of October Ashley headed to Park City on her own and started organizing, donating and selling anything that would not be coming back with us to Mexico.  The kids and I joined her on the November 1st and we packed up the last of our remaining items that would fit in a suitcase or duffle bag. Seeing our artwork, furniture house stuff etc drive off with other people was difficult.  Pretty much everything in the house that was still there had some kind of memory attached to it from our time there.

The kids were patient and did not give us much grief for being bored since they were too busy just trying to stay warm under puffy down jackets, socks, beanies and blankets.  It snowed too!  They loved to see old photos of us and our families before they came along.  Friends and neighbors stopped by to say hello and some to even pick up items that they wanted for their own.  Everyone knew how we loved that house since many friends really enjoyed the house as well.  It just had a good feel to it and one could sense that just sitting in the living room.  The house just felt right.

During our time at the house we receive the buyer's pre-purchase inspection report.  The items that needed to be attended to were substantial to say the least.  Some things were not unexpected for a 40 year old house, some items were a surprise and some items were things we knew we couldn't pay for.  Lacking time or money to set everything straight pre-purchase we hoped that the buyer would come back with an amount to deduct from the purchase price to make up for the inspection issues.  Until that happened, all we could do was to keep packing so that we did not have to return to Park City at some later date.

After about 5 days of work, the kids and I left Ashley alone to finish the job and headed back to Mexico with 11 bags of personal and house items.  If we did not get to LAX and then on to PVR we may have had to stay somewhere until we could get seats to come home.  Fortunately we were able to  get to both destinations flying "stand by" and by the time we arrived in Puerto Vallarta all our luggage had made it as well.  Ashley stayed on to ship, clean and tie up lose ends and say her own "good byes" to the Aspen Lane house.  

During that time she had a chance meeting with the buyer.  Not something that usually happens but they introduced themselves to each other and had a bit of a visit.  Apparently the buyer had been recently widowed and had a 10 year old daughter and were relocating to Park City from an outlying town to be able to attend school in the school district.  The house reminded him of the time he spent with his wife in Maine and really wanted to make the deal work...and so did we.  He loved the house and the fact that it would continue to be occupied by a family made Ashley and I feel good about handing it off to new owners who would make their own memories.

The last sunrise from the Park City house.

Shortly after the kids and I got home and Ashley returned to Atlanta we received news from our realtor with an updated offer for a sale price deduction based on the items that needed to be remedied.  It was substantial though not really surprising and we agreed to the price deduction just to be able to walk away and allow the new owner to take care of items he felt were necessary to correct.  Just yesterday we received news that the deal was done and could see the funds that were wired to Ashley's account following the closing.  It was a cash offer so things went very smoothly with no banks involved for financing etc.

We are sad to leave the house but we are happy another family is excited to make it home.  We now turn to our construction project in Mexico that has been limping to the finish line due to an unresponsive contractor and capital we just didn't have any more of.  It is time to make memories in our new home south of the border.

Sayulita JR SUP Team - Pacific Paddle Games 2018 - Part 2

Before sunrise another team dad and I took the kids down to the beach for check-in for the event.  The kids love this part since it is a lot like Christmas with a all the SUP related swag they get.  T-shirts, jersey's, bags, stickers, energy drinks etc.  We were early which made for a short wait in line and a little less stress leading up to the morning's race.  Once checked-in and the kids were able to just chill out and focus on the long distance race just a little bit later.

Pre race briefing. Photo by SUP The Mag.

The race, just like last year, would be a water start and be 6 miles long. No surprises like last year when we were supposed to race only 3 miles and the organizers doubled the distance for the youth competitors at the very last minute.  We were thankful for having accurate information this year.  The professionals and more experienced racers would head out first with the youth competitors heading out last.  The surf continued to be strong as the swell grew waves pounded the beach.  Fortunately for some of the racers they only needed to contend with the surf one time when they were on the way in to the finish line.

With the pros already started, the Open class waits to begin while the youth sit waiting.

From the jetty behind the next wave of racers. Photo by SUP The Mag.

 Just like last year the kids received their pre race briefing, grabbed their boards, paddles, water and headed out to the starting line beyond the surf break.  Thankfully there was a pause in the wave action and our racers were able to get out for their race without dealing with waves and burning up precious energy.

All the kids headed off into the water confident of what to expect this year.  The coaches and parents assumed their position on the beach and waited.  The racers would paddle 1.5 miles out to a turn buoy and come back to complete one lap.  They would do this twice completing the 6 mile distance so they would be out of range to keep track of for about half an hour, be visible again at the half way point and at the finish. The race began and so did the waves once again.  The race followed the coast line so the ocean swell was coming in sideways to their race direction.  It was big enough that the racers actually disappeared between swells and some racers with less ocean experience even opted to paddle on their knees.

As the kids approached the half way point they had to make a turn in front of our location on the beach.  With our handy binoculars we were able to identify and point out each kid as they made the turn to the coaches and other parents.  The idea was for the kids to stay grouped together drafting to conserve energy but the conditions immediately spread the kids out and they made their way the best they could individually.

SUP Parents.

Close to an hour passed by and we could begin to see the colored jerseys our kids were wearing approaching the final turn buoy and hopefully find a wave to ride all the way to the beach.  We picked out Trace from the crowd and he grabbed a wave but was a little toward the tail of his board and went down.  He recovered quickly and surfed to the beach like a pro and after briefly getting tangled in his leash he sped to the finish line to finish 3rd in his group.

Trace surfs to the beach during the PPG2018 long distance race.

Just a half minute behind him was Alex.  She too caught a wave early but was able ride it to the beach without falling in.  This has always been a weak point in Alex' racing but she was totally solid this day and finished 2nd in her class.

All the kids finished the race battling the tough conditions and everyone was happy about the results.  Our ocean kids adapted really well to the waves and it showed.  Once all the competitors were off the water it was awards time.  We were so happy to see the kids on the podium receiving their medals.  They both had goals and worked hard this year and to see them come home with something for the effort was pretty special.  Trace was determined to podium and was super happy to share the stage with his best friend and teammate, Kolbi.  Alex has almost always finished behind her other girl teammates and would come home after practice frustrated that she was not getting credit for her hard work from some other girls on the team.  In the last year she has grown physically and improved so much on the water it was fantastic for her to go out and finally earn respect for her skills from her team and other competitors.  She was fired up and determined for this weekend's races and it was awesome to see.  Super proud of both of our racers.

Trace with buddy, Kolbi, center.

 The day concluded with some preliminary races for the next day's events so the team got off the beach early and planned to meet up at the house we rented for dinner.  Again, the kids get along really well and they were all happy to hang out at dinner, playing on the Wii computer game console and watching a movie.  To bed early for everyone and off to the beach the next day for the technical race.  The first day was a success and everyone knew the team from Sayulita was in the mix this year!

The kids playing tennis on the Wii.

Team dinner.

Sayulita Scenes - Dia De Los Muertos

Dia de los Muertos Sayulita style!