Jimmermania

Okay so my family and I had a really fun year as fans of The Jimmer. Jimmer Fredette swept the nation by storm as the greatest player in college basketball and the best player to put on a BYU jersey since Sir Danny Ainge in 1981. The best part about the entire year was taking my family to the games. Wow I mean the kid would throw up shots from 30+ feet and make them and the Marriott Center would go wild.



We had so much fun that we even had "You Got Jimmered" shirts printed and wore them to the games. So about 3/4 the way into the season a local group made a rap song "Teach Me How to Jimmer" and that was a hit. In fact, it was so huge that one day I downloaded the song, took it home for my boys to listen to and my 5 yr old Trevor was so energized by it that he did a break dance routine that we posted on You Tube and since it has had thousands of hits/views. Check it out! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gKb9Pl1a8hM



Anyway it has been really cool to be a part of and share with my family. I mean who knows how many years it will be before we see another Jimmer at BYU. Until then we are going to sit back and enjoy watching him receive all of the NCAA Player of the Year honors and enjoy his top vote getting "All American" status, oh yeah and enjoy his career in the NBA which I hope will be a success. Let's all enjoy the great success and excitement that was displayed by the man we call....Jimmer.

Leadville 100 MTB Race 2009

Okay so my brother and I had this great idea this past year to register for and train to race the Leadville Trail 100 Mountain Bike Race in Leadville, CO. So we got in the race and the rest is history. We trained all spring/summer and finally when race day came we were ready and excited to race in this historic event.

The best part about it was having my wife and two of my kids there to cheer me on in the difficult moments when I just about quit. Another one of the highlights was the simple fact that I was able to race with my brother Ryan and several friends from Orem, Utah. Even though my brother was 2 months shy of competing in his first complete Ironman in Florida and was in better shape than I was, it was still fun to know that he was a few minutes ahead of me the entire race and that along with the presence of Kristin and the kids gave me enough strength to keep going even in those times when I wanted to quit. I went through more energy drink, shot blocks, PB&J's, Cliff Bars, etc. than I care to ever do again over the course of what turned out to be almost a 12 hr day.

Another highlight was to be able to race with and see the greatest cyclist of all time, Lance Armstrong. He is an amazing athlete and was such a specimen on the bike especially after just coming off the podium and a second place finish in this years Tour de France. The race is an out and back course so before the 52-mile turnaround point you get to see everyone that is ahead of you coming back down what was the most difficult 2+ hr. climb of my life. The race starts at 10,200 ft. above sea level in the beautiful historic mining town of Leadville, and tops out at 12,600 ft atop Columbine Mine. From the mile 40 checkpoint you climb non-stop for 10 miles and over 3,200 vertical feet high above the tree line. When I saw Lance flying down the trail at full speed right at me it was exhilarating.

This photo is at the turnaround of Lance out in the lead all by himself. So many have asked, "Do you think you will do it again." My answer is yes. I think I will take a year off because I am probably going to do LOTOJA in 2010 and it is a different kind of race so I will train mostly on my road bike this next year, but I definitely want to try and do Leadville again. It was the race of a lifetime and if I am fortunate to get in the race again I will train harder and hopefully turn in a faster time.


THIS WAS IN THE MORNING WITH LOW 30'S TEMPS AND NERVOUS PRE RACE JITTERS.














THIS IS LITERALLY JUST A MINUTE BEFORE THE SHOT GUN START.














THIS WAS RIGHT AFTER CROSSING THE FINISH LINE. STILL A SMILE BUT IT WAS HARD TO PULL THAT ONE OFF. THE BEST PART WAS HAVING MY KIDS JUMP THE ROPE SPRAY FOAM ON ME AND GIVE ME A BIG HUGE HUG.











THE REWARD!














THE HARDWARE!!!























MY BIKE!!! LANCE'S BIKE!!!

Devin's Baptism

We had a big even in our family last week.  Devin turned 8 on July 2 and he was baptized a member of the LDS church.  He was so excited and has been glowing all week.  As you can see in the picture Brynlee is so proud of her big brother and was especially excited for him on that day.  We have had a great week spending time with family and friends and enjoying the summer.

Look at me guys, missing my two front teeth for my baptism day.  Devin lost both front teeth in the past few weeks and was so cute the day of his baptism with no teeth.  

Skooter Here I Come!

Okay, here is the deal. Kristin and I have been complaining now for some time about this high gas price garbage. So after much thought and discussion we are throwing down and going to skoot. I am going to skoot to work during the warm months because it hit me last week when I filled up and the ticker hit $95 at the pump that, "man I could have a skooter paid off by the end of the summer for how much it costs to fill up the truck." So, with "SAFETY" being the the biggest concern (yes I am going to buy a helmet as well) we are going to buy a skooter. Above is the exact model we are buying except this years model with a few new modifications. I am going with Black and Silver because I don't want to look like the teenie bopper/college fad cruising down the street in a shiny red or blue or purple gizmo. So wish me safety and good riding. Unfortunately I couldn't talk Kristin into a Harley but this is the next best thing, right? NOT! Oh well since this one only goes 55mph maybe I won't be tempted by high speeds. I do commute a total of 8-9 miles each way to work so this will help a bunch on gas. Instead of spending $100 every two weeks to fill up, now it will cost me $4.00. Should be fun, we will see. I will let ya'll know how it goes when it ships in a couple of weeks.

Been Too Long....

Okay, so it has been way too long since I have updated anything on my blog. I can't believe that I am actually putting a Jazz picture on here but here is the deal. I am a Phx Suns fan to the bone, however, now that I live in Utah and my son is a huge fan I have gone through some changes as of late. If the Suns are playing, of course I still cheer for them, but listen up. I figured that as long as I am living here and my family likes the Jazz which will probably be forever, I better get used to liking the Jazz. So, I am now a Jazz fan (when they aren't playing the Suns).

So right now we are in the 2nd round of the NBA playoffs and the Jazz are down 3-2 to the Laker's with game 6 back here in Utah in a couple of days. Will we beat the Lakers...probably not in 7 anyway, but it is kind of exciting to watch them play and cheer for them with the rest of the community. So I will see how it goes, but for now I am cheering for the Utah Jazz and hope that they do well. I will be back in a few days with something new.

Lava Hot Springs Idaho Trip - Feb '08

Lava Hot Springs has long been a McKee (Kristin's) Family Tradition. Grandpa Trevor would be happy that we try to keep this tradition every year. We actually have missed out the last few years on the family trips. This year our family was the only ones that could attend so we took off in the snow and made a long weekend out of it. Plus it was Trevor's (grandson) 2nd birthday and we celebrated just our family and had a blast. Many memories are made with the imediate family, fun times.

This below is a video of us singing to Trevor the night of his party bash in the Marriott Hotel where we stayed. The best part is the end when Trevor checks out the lens. Give it a look!!

President Gordon B. Hinckley - Prophet

"President Gordon B. Hinckley, who led The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints through twelve years of global expansion, has died at the age of 97. President Hinckley was the 15th president in the 177-year history of the Church and had served as its president since 12 March 1995. The Church president died at his apartment in downtown Salt Lake City at 7:00 p.m. Sunday night from causes incident to age. Members of his family were at his bedside. A successor is not expected to be formally chosen by the Church’s Quorum of the Twelve Apostles until after President Hinckley’s funeral within the next few days."

My family had the opportunity to pay respects tonight Monday Jan 28. 2008 as we visited the Gordon B. Hinckley Alumni and Visitors Center on the BYU Campus in Provo, UT. Upon arrival we encountered many others who had shown their love and admiration for one of the greatest prophets this world has ever known. What a privilege it has been to live at a time while this man was prophet. Our family will miss him, we will miss his humor, his faith, and his legacy. We know that the church will continue onward and upward as we await the calling of the new prophet.