The Adventures of Familia Bajaboy

Part Two Well after posting my last report at the Internet Café, I walked out to my truck and found a long-time friend waiting for me. Mark drove up from his place in Elias Calles and decided to surprise me. My routine was about to change with Mark in town, horse races, quincineras, dances, and a baseball play off all slated for the weekend. Without going into much detail, the weekend was full of fun and little sleep. The first night Mark arrived we were up until 2:30am playing horse shoes if that is any indication. Both Saturday night and Sunday night there were dances at “La Concha” a block from the casita. It was great to finally attend one of the parties/bailes as I had heard so much about them. I was not let down. I also really enjoyed the horse races. About four miles outside of town, cars line up for a number of races. They sell beer and people make wagers on the races. We parked next to Lupita, Rita, and Briseda. Later Juan, Shari, and the gang arrived. The highligh...

I left San Diego on Monday, June 30 about 4:30 am. I have a pretty solid routine now getting up at 4:00 am, showering, making coffee, and on the road by 4:30 or so. If I have my FMT (tourist permit), I might sleep in a bit more. Anyways, I drove to TJ and got the green light from Immigration. I had received the red light my last couple of trips so I was a bit apprehensive. I’m always bringing things down…nothing major…but I hate putting myself in a compromising position. Well, no worries this time. I park the truck and walk to the Immigration office for my FMT. Low and behold, I walk in and find two young ladies working the office. Usually, I have to wake up a grumpy old man and hope he’s in a good mood. Well, the young ladies had me on my way in record time. After making a detour through TJ as there is road construction, I was at Playas about 5:20. A big sigh of relief came out of me. Once I’m on the toll road, I feel comfortable. I head down the road alone….there is no tr...

Well my love for the trails is getting more intense as the miles unfold. I've always enjoyed getting off the beaten track whether I'm on my bike, in my truck, hiking, camping, or running. This year, I've spent a great deal of time trail running and it's quickly becoming habit-forming. As many of you may recall, Tracy and I ran a 30K trail run at Sycamore Canyon last November. Turns out, Tracy got pregnant that weekend so trail running must be a good thing. Since that race and the news of a baby boy on the way, I've decided to dig a bit deeper and longer with my runs. I'm signed up do race a 50K later this year. The race is the inaugural Skyline to the Sea 50K Trail run put on by Pacific Coast Trail Runs ( http://www.pctrailruns.com/Skyline_to_the_Sea.htm ). As part of my training for that race, I've been running on Thursday nights with a group from Tri Club of San Diego headed by Florian Hedwig. He's a great guy with a positive attitude...but don...

Wow-hard to believe we're already into April. It's been a busy and good year so far. The year started out with Tracy and I in Bahia Asuncion. With the help of some friends, we've done a major face-lift on the casita. Some of the major improvements so far this year include: a new roof new electrical outlets, lights, switches, and wiring new stove and refrigerator new windows drywall in one bedroom hot water heater tinaco (water tank) and a horse shoe pit On the next trip, I plan on installing a new vanity and sink in the bathroom and also new saltillo tile. I'm also debating on digging a new septic tank as well. And finally, we'd like to plaster the outside of the bathroom. Otherwise, I think most of the improvements will be cosmetic. While it's easy for me to get caught up in all the improvements I have planned for the casita, the reality of having a baby in August are starting to set in. We had a few scares recently but the doctor has promised that all...

Tracy and I have been enjoying the beautiful weather San Diego has offered recently. With a busy work schedule, a baby on the way, and planning for our upcoming trip to Baja, we've been on the go. But we're also making the time to get outside. We're both committed to living a happy, healthy lifestyle and today was no different. This weekend, we went for a 5.5 mile hike at Mission Trails Regional Park in San Diego. Our hike started on the Tierrasanta side of the park climbing a little over 920 ft of total elevation. The weather was perfect with temps in the mid to upper 70s. The best part of the hike was smelling all the wildflowers along the trails and taking in the wildlife. We have enjoyed the park for many years and this year is no different. Enjoy the pictures and get outside to smell the flowers.

I've been raving to Tracy for many years now the benefits of trail running. Up until recently, Tracy had primarily run on pavement. She has even completed The San Diego Rock and Roll marathon. But trail running was a new adventure and with a bit of coercion, she agreed to sign up for the Santa Monica Mountains Trail Run put on by Pacific Coast Trail Runs. There were 4 different distances but we set our sites on the 30K distance which translates to 18.6 miles with about 3,200ft of climbing. While visiting my mother, Zoe, in Sebastopol over the summer we opted to volunteer at the Salt Point trail run put on by PCTR. As a result, we each received a free entry. But more impor tantly Tracy got to see first-hand the laid-back nature of trail runners and the sport itself. The runners talked with each other, joked around, and were more concerned with the scenery than with race splits. I think this helped ease both of our nerves. At the suggestion of the race directors, we reserved ...

In an effort to maintain our fitness gains from this year's training, Tracy and I decided to sign up for some longer events. We signed up to do a 30k trail run in November as well as a challenging bike ride, the Grizzly Challenge. We coerced some friends to sign up and join us. Here's a brief report from the ride. The plan was to camp with friends at Bass Lake, California about 10 miles from the start of the ride in North Fork. Chuck and his wife Laura along with her parents reserved a large spot for us and we were excited to hang out before and after the ride. Our other friends Cheryl, Eric, and Kim stayed in North Fork at a friend's house. A storm was clearing out as Tracy and I arrived late on Friday night. We heard that snow had fallen at 5,000 feet and thus we might find some the following day on the ride. We decided to sleep in a bit as it would not warm until the sun had risen above the trees. After all, it was in the low 30s when we woke up at 6:30am. The r...