Courtenay Brown

Today was a rainy one hear at Team VAC Camp in Healdsburg! Unlike in Seattle, where it's been 40 and rainy, it was more like 50 and rainy, so: TOTALLY trainable. I started off with a swim at the nearby Healdsburg Swim Center, which has an outdoor 25 meter pool. (Not pictured to the left - that's our house pool!). I had a great workout, enjoying rain on my shoulders and then gradually seeing the clouds clear and then return. I'm hoping I get at least one sunny day so I can wear one of my new Splish bikinis! Then we had a 3 hour team ride on ...

Today I learned from some real-live 21 year old boys why the social scene here in Incline is weak. It's because the girls are "really stuck up, and there aren't that many of them, so the hot ones know they are the hot ones and they won't talk to you, but like in Santa Barbara the girls are all hot and they talk to you." They also told me I "don't look that old" so that was cool, but clearly since I definitely do talk to people, I am either too old or insufficiently hot to be counted as an Incline girl. I am O.K. with that. I'd write a better/longer post but I am way busy here on the couch, working ...

Kelly says this is why she will never un-friend me no matter how many times I bug her about how does my hair look and does she hate me, because I always win things (and I am good at sharing things I win with her, like visors and backpacks and beer money at the ball game) and because I know everyone. She came to my cyclocross race yesterday, where I won $100 for fourth place (?!?!) and I was apparently talking to ALL the spectators, during the race, and she heard a lot of "go Courtenay's!". Kelly was impressed, I can tell. And I am enjoying this newfound security in our friendship. So now I'd like to share a ...

Back when I lived in the Bay Area and like actually hung out with people all the time, I had a frequent blog category entitled "quotables" - basically, funny things people said. Unsurprisingly, this category has been ignored for most of the past year here in Incline! Which is a bummer, because it was/is one of my favourites. Anyhow I have a couple good ones from the bike race this weekend... 1. Guy (who I have met before) is chatting me up: Him: So yeah, I'd love to take you on a date next time I am in Tahoe. Me: That would be cool. Us: bla bla bla for like 10 minutes Him: What's your name again? Um, huh? I forget people's names too but there is ...

Dave Towle, the voice of bike racing in the U.S. and the voice of tomorrow's 5430 Long Course Triathlon, asked me this today. How sweet! I was so flattered! This has to be quote-of-the-year for me, at least in regards to my sport, and I'm adding Dave to my list of people for whom I will race hard tomorrow. All my readers are on that list as well... thank you so much to everyone for your kind words and moral support, it really means a lot to me :) . Now it's time for some light reading, I am debating between the most recent In Style and the most recent Inside Triathlon... Hmm, Rihanna or Michael Lovato? Rihanna might win. "Umbrella" ...

There are several vocab words that I like but that Greg says are downright wrong. I call my "swim cap" my hat, my "helmet" is also my hat, all "shoes" are sneakers, including cycling sneakers, and "uniforms" are outfits. He does not condone my use of these words. Yet recently Greg and I were watching the movie Hoosiers and during one of the scenes...Me: Is that their home outfit or their away outfit?Him: I think they only have one outfit. Me: HAHAHA you said "outfit"!!!Him: Well that's what it is, isn't it? Their outfit?Me: You are a boy, you are supposed to call it a "uniform".Him: -resigned embarrassed silence-And ...

I am reviewing resumes for a valve tech position in my company. Today's group had one of my favourites... under the "skills" section of his resume, an applicant listed:Experience with Tape Measure

I guess it was about time to have a "down" sort of day, since everything's been going so well lately. I am going to cheer myself in a public sort of forum with a few random quotes I have been saving up...Bike Racers on Triathlon Logistics:"So after you finish the swim part, do you like really quick change into your skinsuit and then jump on your TT bike or what?"How Annoying Words Like "Booyah!" Come Into Existence"Instead of 'ginormous' I am going to start saying 'egantic'. So it's enormous plus gigantic, instead of gigantic plus enormous. Whaddaya think??""Hm. What's wrong with just saying 'big'?"Not Everything Soft is a Kitty"I am snuggling something ...

Today my boss's son Jack had his 3rd birthday party at the Rec Center, which coincidentally and conveniently is also where Greg and I swim and work out. They had a bouncy castle in the gym for an hour, then toddler swim hour in the pool, followed by cake and snacks and gifts.The swim part was SO CUTE. Yeah I know in the past I have bitched about kids swimming, but:1. My boss's kids are really cute (see previous description of the Cuteness Dichotomy)2. The party-goers were too small for the lobster, so no need to deal with that annoying and large reminder of how stupid IVGID can be with ...

"I can't wait till tomorrow, and we can get this thing over with."Race leader Levi Leipheimer at the end of today's Tour of California stage regarding tomorrow's final stage of the tour. What grace! What charm! What a champion!