#49 & #50 The Finale...Santa Barbara Bound!

A good friend told me I shouldn't end this 50th Birthday Celebration project with a run of the mill YMCA or community indoor swimming pool but to go out-BIG!

I took his advice and decided to cap this adventure off in Santa Barbara at two of my most favorite pools. To make it extra special Dad and Bill made the journey from Portland and Denver to be part of this journey. We did it right by staying at the Four Seasons Biltmore making it a combination "boys trip" and Christmas party. 

The first pool (#49) to tackle was a community pool, Los Banos Del Mar located by the Santa Barbara Harbor. It's a great outdoor long course pool built 50 years ago (kinda ironic) where you can see the sunrise over the mountains and boat basin. I have swam at this pool a few times in the past and was able to swim yet again with the Santa Barbara Masters morning crowd. It was a good workout and I recognized a handful of guys from past visits. Such a great feeling to swim outdoors!

After breakfast at the Cajun Kitchen it was time for a little culture at the Santa Barbara Mission. We took a self guided and learned of the important role the Franciscan friars had in the early history of California. We then knocked around State Street checking out old haunts. Late afternoon found us enjoying the luxury and holiday atmosphere of the Four Seasons in Montecito. To fuel up for the final pool the next morning we went to Los Arroyos for Mexican food and margaritas. 

The grand finale and 50th pool was the historic private Coral Casino Beach & Cabana Club that sits on Butterfly Beach in Montectio. While I've had the opportunity to swim here in the past, every time I go I am blown away by this awesome outdoor 50 meter pool that's literally steps from the Pacific. Bill joined me for this swim and dad was there as the photographer and videographer to memorialize the occasion. 

We capped our easy going workout off with a 50 fly (37 sec) followed by a jacuzzi overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Always thinking and one step ahead of the game, Bill thought the event wouldn't be complete without a dip in the chilly ocean. Speedo-clad we jumped in the ocean with the hoots and hollering of a bunch of surfer girls (in wetsuits) paddling past us out to the break. 

Two awesome outdoor pools in beautiful Santa Barbara in two days with Dad and Bill I can't think of any better way to put a bow on this 50th Birthday project!

Looking forward to the next trip and many more swims in Santa Barbara!

Mission accomplished and ONWARD!

#48 Thanksgiving Weekend Swim

We had a great Thanksgiving weekend Holiday. There was a lot of food and catching up with kids. Ryan, came home from USC and Jessica took the train up from NYU. We enjoyed listening to stories about early college life. We also got to visit with Tommy, Alden, and Katie. Everyone was having completely different experiences and they all seemed to be loving it.

I was clearly lacking from an exercising perspective. The weather was too cold to go outside or I was just plain lazy and didn't workout.

Today however was the exception as I knew I needed to kick it in to gear as we start the week. #48 was at the Boston Sports Club in Waltham where I got to swim with Shannon. It was the third time we have had the chance to swim together on this journey. We even split a lane! She is getting better every time we swim with each other.

It's one of the nicer health club pools. The water was a bit warm and it's a 25 meter pool. I swam 2000 meters.

This time of year I am reminded of the many things I have to be thankful for; my family, my friends, my health and a loving patient wife and kids.  I am also thankful that the next (and last )two pools will be outdoor pools in...stayed tuned. They will be good ones!

#47 Stars & Stripes and Friendship @ the Y

It was awesome and fitting that the Westport Family YMCA worked its way into the closing days of this journey.

This is the pool where roughly 13 years ago my passion for swimming and some would say swim fashion was rekindled. When we moved from Chicago to Westport I joined the Y and donned the classic Mark Spitz speedo for my first workout. The pic below is the modern version of the suit from Budgy Smuggler. A classic!

Little did I know that when I started swimming at the Y I would meet some guys (Andy, Mike, Mark, Paul, Clay, etc) that would become great friends and have such an impact on the way I start my mornings. Because of them I started actively swim as regular exercise in the pool, in the open water (Long Island Sound), to biking and to running. Eventually, it morphed into combining all three into triathlons of all distances. While triathlon doesn't play the role it once (replaced by swimming) did I learned from them; the importance of exercise, having fun, acting like boys, and most importantly building great guy friendships.

While it had been a good number of years since I had been at the Y it hadn't changed on the outside let alone on the inside. It seemed all the "regulars" from many years past were still showing up in the morning.

Not all the guys were there for our morning swim but Andy and I had a great swim in the very warm Y pool water. Good memories!

There were a lot of great things about living in Westport for five years but clearly one highlight was the friendships that were created at the Westport Family YMCA.  Pool #47 is a special pool.

#46 One Is Silver The Other Is Gold

Pool #46 at the Mercer Island Country Club was a small by product of an awesome few days with my college friends in Seattle.

After nearly 30 years of a long over due reunion we had a reunion of our Sigma Chi pledge class that coincided with our collective 50th birthday celebrations.  I flew to Seattle on Thursday and spent the night at the Seifert's and had a wonderful dinner and memorable visit with Anne, Matt and Katherine. Before dinner and I went to the club with Anne. She went to play tennis and I went for a swim. It was a 25 yard bubble pool (my third in the journey). Like all bubble pools at night the lighting was dim and the water seemed a bit warm. While I didn't swim particularly well or long (2000yds) it was good to get some exercise after a long day of travel. 

After seeing the Seif kids off to school and a catch up with Anne I went up to Shoreline for a short visit Bette Mae and Tom. They looked well and I heard the stories of their cross-country train trip. I was then off to quick lunch with Glen Biely (Sweet B). A short but sweet visit. 

Phew...by this time I was a bit pooped but after a short nap at the Residence Inn Lake Union I was ready to see "the guys".  While a small handful of our pledge class may catch up occasionally via phone, email or an occasional visit it had been a very, very  long time since we had gone to a Husky game and seen a majority of the class. In fact, in many cases we hadn't seen each other since we graduated 28 years ago.

We kicked off the night with drinks and apps at Cactus. It was such a blast laughing, hugging and telling stories and catching up. Unbelievable!

It's was then off at a much too late hour to Fado's and Irish bar near Pioneer Square where we proceeded to tell more stories of our glory days and our current lives. As the dj began to play 80's music the dance floor ended up being a bunch of 50 year old guys dancing with each other and requesting songs we use to dance with at exchanges. We closed the bar at 2:15. Very fun and funny!

Thankfully, the Husky game was a night game so we could sleep in and rebound. Eventually, we made it to Pagliaci's Pizza on The Ave for nourishment before we went to the Sigma Chi Annex for a party with the college kids and the off for a tour of the house. While we knew that a house with 80+ guys living in it can look a little rough. I am not sue we were prepared for how trashed it appeared. Better them living in it vs us.

It was then off to the game in the newly built stadium to watch the Huskies play Colorado. The stadium looked great and while not ideal, I guess appropriate for being back in Seattle-it rained throughout the game. Late in the third quarter when we established that it was going to be a blow out we left the game for the College Inn Pub. It was a muted celebration after the night before but a few pitchers of beer and some food capped the night well. Some of us went back to the hotel to watch tv and handful went out. 

It was one of the most fun weekends that I have had in a long time. As I sit here exhausted on the plane flying back to Boston I can't help but think of the old adage "make new friends but keep the old one is silver the other is gold!" Great times, great old friends and I know we won't wait another 30 years before we do this again.

#46 pool will be memorable for many other reasons than just another pool in the count down.

#44 & #45 Hopped Off A Plane @ LAX

I hopped off the plane at LAX with a dream to hit #44 & #45...

Shannon, Sean and I are here for Trojan Family Weekend 2013! 

Courtney stayed at home this trip because of her important roles in her Treasures of Weston play. We miss her. We spent our first night at the Georgian Grand Hotel in Santa Monica. After a long day of travel and some biking down Venice Beach a nice dinner we went to bed not too late to prepare for pool #44.

The pool was the Santa Monica Swim Center at Santa Monica College. It was a big outdoor facility with a 25x50m pool with and in addition a separate 25 yard pool. I got there late around 6:45 and it busy with an age group practice, masters practice and other lap swimmers. Outdoor pools are awesome! 3000 meters in an outdoor pool followed by Starbucks is a great way to start the day,

We had some time before we could meet Ryan at USC so we took a leisurely drive down Sunset from PCH to Hollywood. We drove through the Palisades, Brentwood, Bel Air and Beverly Hills before we decided to be tourist in Hollywood. Walking down Hollywood Blvd in front of Grauman's Chinese Theatre is quite entertaining. It was fun!

Eventually we made it to USC with Shannon waiting to see her boy and Sean chomping at the bit. The big excitement of the day "seeing Ryan" happened around 2:00 after class. With his long hair, blazer, tie and longboard he clearly looked like a pledge at SC. We had a great time catching up for a bit, meeting bros' on campoos and checking out his dorm. It was then back to class. We all had dinner at the Lab Gastropub with roommate Joe's family. Sean then went for a sleepover with Ryan.

Friday morning I got up early and walked around Alumni Park and then Shannon and I ate at the parents breakfast and bumped into a friend of hers she hasn't seen since college whose daughter goes to school here. Eventually, we caught up with the boys and very happy but tired Sean. 

#45 came at a welcome time in mid-afternoon at the old USC Physical Ed pool. It's an indoor vintage pool with big tiles and high gutters. It's the pool that Olympians; John Naber, Joe Bottom and Bruce Furniss use to train in. Today the water is very warm and it seems to be the teaching pool for international students. Swam only 1500 yards but that was all I needed.

We then had an early dinner at LA Live and then the Beach Boys at Bovard Auditorium. Ryan didn't go but we met up later to drop Sean for another sleepover. A great way to end the evening for game day tomorrow.

Game day USC vs Utah started with a trip to The Row for a brunch at the ATO house. It was great to meet Ryan's friends and to see where he hangs out. We then walked to the historic LA Coliseum for the game. SC won 19 to 3. We had the chance to visit with Billy & Janet Willson at half time and I bumped into an old, old friend from elementary school-Billy Ruth.

 

A long day was capped off with dinner at the original El Chollo with Ryan's friend Otto from Indy.  We are all packed and ready for the flight tomorrow. All in all, it was a great weekend. We really enjoyed seeing Ryan in his new environment and knowing he thriving. It was also fun to see how excited Sean was to hang with his bro.

Looking forward to the family being together at Thanksgiving and onward to pool #46!

#43 Game Day Clemson, South Carolina

Today's pool is the first in a series associated with college football games. A DSM meeting in Greenville, SC in the fall followed by a Clemson football game has become a tradition for our sales management team.  Today's game is a big one Clemson vs Florida State two teams ranked in the top 5. Because it's a big game it starts at 8:00 tonight which gave me time to swim at the Westside Aquatic Center in Greenville. It's a very nice facility that was remodeled a couple years ago. The masters team came in late so I swam solo and came up with my own workout for 3500 yards.

A good workout this morning before an afternoon of tailgating is key. Off to tailgate and the game!

#42 The Big D and my first senior discount...

I'm in Dallas for four nights at an airport hotel for a series of meetings. The view from my room is beautiful-see below.  Fortunately, I'm near a Mexican resturant that I really like Via Real in Los Colinas-already eaten there twice.

I was also able to find a nice pool at the North Lake College Aquatic Center very close to the Four Seasons and Via Real. It was a 50 meter pool under a huge bubble. The pool was very active with a swim team, synchro team, aqua-sizer class and lap swimming. Due to the configuration of the pool it was 27.4 meters long for lap swimming. I had a good swim and was good to get some exercise in a long day sitting through meetings.

My only beef with the experience was that when I went to pay for admission the young lifeguard behind the desk asked how old I was. I said 50 and she said "oh-you can swim for free". I replied "ok but, I would still like to pay".  She said, "you are old enough to swim for free-go". With one last valiant attempt to not let my age get me in free, I said "what would you charge me if I was 35 years old?" Her was reply was, "I'm not telling."

Finally I gave up and swam for free and got my first senior discount-ugh!