Race To The TOP -Mt. Bike Race

Our friend Russ organized the first annual Tough Love Mt. Bike Race - it was a Race To The Top...
The race started at American Memorial Park -Micro Beach (sea level) and went straight up to the top of Mt. Tapachau - approx. 1800 ft.. It was a short race going straight up hill the whole time - with Nate taking 2nd place at around 35 mins.
The pictures I have are of Nate coming in to the finish line. It was an early morning race so I dragged the kids out of bed and off to the top of Saipan we went....
The joke of the race was that it was a race to the 'tallest' peak in the world...Saipan is on the Marianas Trench so that if you measure from the bottom of the Trench to the top of Mt. Tapachau, the race ended at the 'highest' peak in the world.

 

Kids Duathlon

Last Sat. a Kids Duathlon (bike/run) was held by the airport...both Tayah and Max participated and did great! Max has been riding without training wheels for a while but this was his first 'race' without them. He was really nervous and kept asking for his scooter (the 5 and under age group is VERY flexible) but in the end he rode his bike and had a smile on his face the whole time!!














I think that Max's favorite part of the race is getting his 'number' written on his arm!

This was Tayah's first race in the 6 -8 age group. Because of the rain, there were only about 25 participants so they decided to race all the 6 and older ages together. Let's just say that this was a HUGH step for Tayah to race with older kids - and she was the ONLY 6 year old and there was only one 7 year old - the rest were older than 7. Tayah's bike is WAY to small for her and when they all lined up with their bikes to start the race, Tayah's size and age really stood out. We were soooo very proud of her for sticking with it and doing the race. She was the last one to finish on her bike and start out on the run. Everyone stood at the finish line cheering her on as she finished the run part of the race.
 

Micronesian Cup Outrigger Canoe Races

Last weekend Saipan hosted the Micronesian Outrigger Canoe races and teams from all over Asia Pacific participated...including numerous teams from Saipan, Guam, Japan, Hong Kong, and Palau. After weeks and weeks of rain, this was the first clear weekend...the weather and water were in perfect condition for not only participating in the race but also watching the race. We spent both Sat. and Sunday at the beach cheering on our Saipan teams.

With a scowl like that, don't you think we have a future outrigger paddler??? She looks pretty tough in Dad's shoes huh!? 

Micronesian Cup Outrigger Canoe Races cont.

View of one of the boats in the race...
Tayah and Max are right in the thick of it...never mind that there is a race going on...they are in Sand Castle Heaven!

 

Rainy Days in Saipan...

Well it has been raining for what seems like '40 days and 40 nights' here in Saipan....or at least the past 3 weeks anyway. But I must admit that I am actually enjoying it! If I turn my air-con on pretty cold, light some candles and drink some hot tea, I can almost imagine that it is autumn outside my windows! So the rain has really gotten us in the Halloween spirit and pumpkins even arrived to the local grocery store last week...so we are set for our 4th annual Halloween Party. Every year tons of kids gather at our house for some pre-trick-or-treat fun (destroying my house in the process) and then we all go in a group trick-or-treating around our neighborhood. It is out of control, wild and fun and I must admit that I look forward to the craziness every year! There are not many good spots to trick-or-treat here on Saipan as there are not many 'neighborhoods' - so given that we live in one of the true neighborhoods with sidewalks on the island, our house is a hot spot for this trick-or-treat thing! Stay tuned for the pictures after Halloween.
I posted some pictures I took of our 'monkey' Sera (who will turn two on Nov. 15). She seems to think that sitting IN her hairchair is boring and needs to add some adventure to her meal time. I'm not sure what to do with her b/c she just isn't ready to 'join' our dinner table yet as she thinks that EVERYONES plate and cup are HER plate and cup...spilling everything in the process. There is never a dull moment here at the Hyper-Hawley household!
If you look carefully at the first picture, you will see that she is recovering from a black eye. Max was swinging on some giant wooden swings at the Hyatt and Sera thought it would be a good idea to walk in front of his swing.
Otherwise, we all have been great...Nate will do a mt. bike race next weekend here on Saipan - taking him from beach at American Memorial Park (sea level) to the highest point on Saipan - Mt. Tapachau (1800 ft.). He is also coaching Max's 4 year old soccer team - only requiement for that was 'a good sense of humor and lots of patience!'
Happy Halloween everyone! Send pictures of Autumn leaves and colors, costumes and even the snow...we miss it all!