Paul Asay

I'm in my last couple of weeks of training for Ironman Steelhead 70.3 which also happens to be the most difficult part of the journey.  Saying your prepping for an Ironman may sound like high level stuff, but most of it is downright distasteful.  Here are the 10 worst: 1.   The smell of running shoes after a long run on dirt trails on a humid day 2.   Getting back in your car to drive home after the above run 3.        The touch of a sticky bike with Gatorade and sweat all over it 4.        Eating warm gel packets from the back pocket of a sticky cycling jersey, or worse your running shorts 5.        Dumping your gym bag contents from a hot run you did on your lunch hour 2 days ago 6.        Sweat dripping off the guy cycling in front of you which lands all over you 7.        That big hairy guy in the pool lane next to you 8.        Naked old guys in the locker room 9.        Cycling to work on a humid morning, turning around and putting those same cloths o

Like last year I went with a team of 28 from our church to Camp of the Woods Ontario Canada for a week of work/retreat, but in truth all camps are about just one thing.  The purported goal of the trip is to help prepare the camp for the first group of teens starting the week after we left.  To be honest, I love camp, and particularly this one.  Pick any kind of camp you want and you will find they exist to refocus your efforts on something specific without all the distractions.  Camp of the Woods is 40 miles from anything, 1000 miles from home with no phones, computers or TV.  What it does have is a huge lake, great food, hiking trails, canoes and plenty of comfortable space for just plain focus.   Oh yeah, and the occasional bear or moose. What is the focus of Camp of the Woods?  The answer is pure and simple, to model Christ.  The theme for camp this year is “Your Life Story”.  Inspired by hero’s, what about your life speaks of overcoming the odds to accomplish a worthy goal?