Ashley Simpson is crazy!

 

Ashley Simpson, our ATV guide from Northwoods Outfitters, is one crazy woman! Blog Pictures 2010 476  What we thought was going to be a 2 to 3 hour excursion along the beautiful Moose Head Lake ended up being an 8 hour all day off road experience across 200 miles of the rocky terrain of the surrounding hills and mountains!

   

Before our trip, Bo and I read the website’s description so we’d be prepared for the day.

Guided ATV Tours
For the best riding experinece join one of our guided ATV tours. During your tour we will lead you to some of the regions highlights such as fabulous views, remote trout ponds, and moose and wildlife watching. Trips are offered daily as 1/2 and full day tours. Private or small group trips available.

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The first mistake was that both Bo, my mom, and I assumed my dad had purchased the 1/2 day guided tour. In addition we assumed the moose and wildlife watching was along the lake.

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Needless to say, we were wrong on all accounts and definitely assumed way too much. This was hands down the scariest experience I’ve ever had. Now that we survived it, my mom and I can appreciate it for what it was while the boys are already yearning to go back.

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Our adventure started promptly at 10am. We met Ashley about 10 miles outside town where she was waiting for us with three ATVs, one for her and two for us to share. It had been established ahead of time that similar to jet skiing, my mom nor I had any interest in driving the ATVs. We were definitely fine riding behind my dad and Bo. Ashley took us through the safety, use, and rules of the ATV for about 15 minutes before we took off. Notice the smile on me and my mom in these pictures. That is 100% ignorant bliss!

The first hour was primarily flat, gravel trails combined with a few rolling hills which took us to the beautiful streams and small water falls. Ashley was great about stopping for scenic picture opportunities during the entire trip!

The best part about all these pictures is the fact that Bo is in jeans. I think I see him in jeans and a t-shirt 2-3x per year. Normally his weekend wardrobe is khakis and a polo so this was a fun, casual change!

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And my friends, this is where the fun came to a rapid hault. After this picture was taken the terrain turned rocky and hilly. Once we hit the true off road terrain which included 45-60 degree accents over loose rocks and boulders, I was all tears and overcome by fear. This was NOT my nor my mom’s idea of fun. But, I kept thinking that it was okay because the less I yelled at Bo to slow down the more he would and the quicker the 3 hours would be over.

After finishing a rocky terrain Ashley suggested we pull on our bandanas as we were in for a fast, flat gravel area. She bragged that we’d be able to reach speeds of 65 miles an hour on the gravel and dust would be flying! Once again, I started to grow wary. I don’t like heights or uncontrollable speed. I’m not one to go bungee jumping though I don’t mind rollercoasters or sky scrapers because for some reason those seem safe.

Bo immediately became excited and gunned it. I yelled for him to stop as my gloves weren’t on. After a quick break for my adjustment we were off. Unfortunately my parents and Ashley were a good 2 minutes ahead of us and not in sight anywhere. In fact, that is my only complaint about Ashley. She liked to go fast and would only turn around to check on us every 5 minutes or so.

About 20 minutes into the path Bo took a curve too quickly and didn’t see the sharp curve ahead. Blog Pictures 2010 486We slammed off the trail into a ditch that immediately threw me out of the ATV and flipped it on top of me. HANDS DOWN THE SCARIEST MOMENT OF MY LIFE! I slammed on my back and at that moment knew all my dreams of running a marathon and living a normal life were gone.

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My second thought was that we’d wrecked the ATV which we’d already been warned was worth over $8,000. All I could think to do was cry and pretty much wail. Mean while Bo was fine and pretty much panicking as I refused to move. I’d seen Rescue 911 one too many times and knew that I shouldn’t try and move until help arrived. However, I saw the ATV sinking deeper and deeper and saw that Bo couldn’t flip it back over by himself. Out in the middle of no where far from my parents and Ashley there was no way we were going to get help. I gingerly tested movement. I was sore but nothing was broken. I gradually stood up and started crying again, this time with relief. We were able to flip the ATV over just as we heard another one approaching. Ashley had noticed we were missing and back tracked until she found us. She made me bend and try some twists before prescribing Emu Oil for my back and the impending swelling.

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Bo rubbed the emu oil all over my back which Ashley insisted would help the pain and swelling as it has numbing effects. I looked at her in tears and said I could continue as I didn’t want to ruin the fun and figured we only had another 30 minutes to an hour. “Ha, no we have about 5 more hours ahead of us, you’ll be great!”

Excuse me!? Oh yes, only my father would sign up for the full day as his family’s first ATV experience just because it was a better value. I love my dad sometimes. 🙂

The rest of the afternoon pretty much included me counting the seconds, enjoying parts of the scenery, bonding with my mother over our fear and hatred of this experience, and then a few laughs in between. It wasn’t that the ATV experience was bad as it wasn’t. It just wasn’t our cup of tea. But, we did get some great pictures and enjoy some amazing views of Maine!

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Now that I’m safely curled up in bed I can say that there were aspects I loved about this trip. It gave us a chance to experience something new which my parents love. It was also a great event for the four of us to do together as it was a great bonding experience. Even though Bo and I have been together for almost 7 years he and my parents are still getting used to this new relationship/friendship. Laughing about the tears today was great!

By the end we were all filthy, sore, and excited about a shower and glass of wine! The trip was 8 hours in total which meant engaging muscles we never knew existed. The guys used their legs, chest, and arms while mom and I primarily engaged our arms during the trip as we held on for dear life!

Look at this dirty gang!

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I’ve gotta say, I really do love that my family and I can have such diverse adventures and experiences together. I can now say that I’ve been off-roading in the backroads and hills of Maine on an ATV. And now, thankfully I never have to do it again. Or, at least not until my teenage children beg their cool mom to go with them! 🙂

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In the Morning Sun

After a wonderful night’s sleep, I was finally able to explore our room and the gorgeous inn! Breakfast was served from 8am-9am so I snagged a few moments before meeting my parents downstairs and captured our room’s adorable details on film. I love bed and breakfasts that understand the importance of details.

Blog Pictures 2010 452 Blog Pictures 2010 453 The bed was smaller than we are accustomed to but the feather bed was a treat! Blog Pictures 2010 454       Blog Pictures 2010 455 The bathroom includes a double soaking bath and a stall shower. Blog Pictures 2010 456 I love the double lamps in the bathroom.Blog Pictures 2010 457 The lobby is warm and inviting with the fresh flowers and warm hardwood floor. Blog Pictures 2010 458 Who is that dapper young man? 🙂 It’s amazing what a shower and good night’s rest can do for someone.Blog Pictures 2010 459

Their full bar which features an autographed picture of Jerry Garcia!

After my quick exploration it was time for a homemade breakfast in the sun lit breakfast nook. The area housed six tables included a four person round that suited our needs perfectly this morning.

The first course included fresh grapefruit broiled with brown sugar and Maine blueberries. I would love to recreate this at home as it gave the grapefruit a whole new flavor.

The second course was homemade blueberry waffles topped with toasted pecans and Maine maple syrup. I ate half of this one and half a piece of bacon before passing the rest to Bo and my dad.

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After breakfast Bo and I decided that a quick run would be the perfect way to take in the landscape. It also allowed me to use my new Garmin which worked perfectly.

Pre-Run

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The run was filled with hills. We ran 3.1 miles in about 34 minutes which wasn’t bad considering it included hills. We ran without headphones and chatted instead. Similar to Dori, I am trying to run without music more often.

Next up on our agenda was an ATV tour of Maine’s back woods. Mom, Bo, and I thought we were on our way to a two or three hour excursion. Hence our smile below,

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We’re about to leave for dinner so I can’t give a full recap but I’ll leave you with this picture which is worth 1,000 words.  Eight hours later our feet looked like this. Imagine what the rest of me looked like especially since my greatest fear happened and I was indeed thrown off of an ATV and then it proceeded to fall on me. 🙂

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Namaste with friends!

I love when exercising becomes a social event! Before that, I have to quickly share my new love: The Lululemon Athletic Deep V III. Equinox presents each of it’s new members a 20% discount which they may use during their first month towards any non-sale purchase in their store. Most of my workout tanks are at least three years old and therefore needed to be thrown out. However, I wanted to have at least one back up before I retired my nike tanks. Yestereday I stopped in the UES Equinox in hopes of finding a replacement. I knew I wanted something that I could use for all my workout styles- running, yoga, and spinning. Therefore, it would need to breathe, provide support, and anything else was a plus. I was quickly drawn to the v-neck style of this tank and hoped it would be a bit more becoming than the average tank. Great success! This tank has a fully breathable back panel, an ipod holder, is long enough to not ride up during yoga, and served as a great base layer during today’s run! I highly suggest it for anyone looking for a new top!

Yesterday, Geoff and Elizabeth invited Bo and I to join them at Life In Motion yoga studio since his sister, Jennifer, was subbing for the regular teacher. Friday night they both raved about her teaching style and promised that the class would leave you begging for more but your muscles begging for mercy. Life In Motion is a small studio located at 105th and Broadway on the Upper East Side. I had never ventured north of 95th street and therefore was amazed with the area. It’s located on the second floor above a divine bakery. Imagine smelling fresh bread and treats while in downward dog! Due to the studio’s size it is a bit difficult to enter especially during the winter. There was a flood of people leaving the earlier class which meant the boot/coat closet area was quite congested. Luckily Geoff and Elizabeth showed up a few minutes after I arrived and directed me to the sign in desk and studio. The staff was friendly and excited that their sub had drawn a following. The class was $10 per person for first time visitors and then $2 to rent a mat. I immediately regretted not lugging my mat from home. These were unfortunately the dirtiest, thinnest, studio mats i’ve ever rented. I was appaled that they charged me for the thin mat. Oh well, that is what I get for not bringing my own! The studio quickly filled and Bo and I grabbed spots in the back since this was his first hour and a half vinyasa class. He has only taken 5-6 yoga classes previously and most of them were bikrham. The class began with the longest chant series i’ve ever heard but Jen told us this is something the studio requires as it helps ground each person in the practice and the present state. Hmm, not sure three minutes of chants really does that for me. Jen’s music selection was fantastic and really helped me find my groove as we moved through the poses. Her class focused on opening up our hips and lower backs while strengthening the core with a number of pigeons, downward dogs, and plank poses. I loved that I truly didn’t know what would come next as it didn’t follow the typical warrior 1, warrior 2, etc pattern. In fact, we never entered warrior 2 during the class! Elizabeth was certainly right, shivasana was amazing as Jen personally walked around to each participant and adjusted their shoulders!

If the studio wasn’t such a far trek I would definitely return as the price is very reasonable and the staff was pleasant. However, due to the 7 subway being shutdown for 9 weekends, the trek took almost 45 minutes. But, Bo and I have already decided that if Jen is teaching again next Saturday then we’ll definitely be there! Hopefully I can convince her to do a few one on one classes. My goal is to become comfortable in my practice and make improvements on my inversions. This is often difficult in packed classes as the instructor doesn’t have time to provide proper coaching. Have any of you ever taken small or 1:1 yoga classes? Is it worth the price?


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