June / July 2003

It’s July, and summer is REALLY here now! The Pacers have been enjoying the nice weather; biking, running, street-fests, outside ethnic dinners, and everyone is looking forward to the 4^th of July party at Deb Bear and Jim DesJardins place…Seven Pacer girls, (Jennifer Leslie, Janet Omer, Debbie Hoegemeyer, Denise DeBo, Amy Tompkin, Kathy Layng, and Joanne Kaeding) had a really fun camping experience in the Dunes the weekend of June 27^th. Except for a few thunderstorms, the camping went off without a hitch. Well, there was a warning from the camp ranger about putting 3 tents on one site, and it remains to be seen whether or not there will be a fine issued!! Female bonding, relaxing on the beach with a good book, biking, roller-blading, hiking, and running were all accomplished over the course of the weekend. Camping wouldn’t be complete without a night visit from an animal! As Jennifer Leslie lay peacefully in her tent trying to fall asleep, she was interrupted by a huge raccoon, who came to ransack our stash of goodies. We were smart enough to hang most of our food in a bag on a tree, but some last minute food items were forgotten about. After the raccoon had made several visits, there was nothing left on the table by morning! It is surprising that Jennifer’s shrieking didn’t scare the raccoon away!! The rest of us had set up their tents too far away from the picnic table, and missed seeing the action. We heard it however!!!….Thanks to Hal Olin’s recommendations, the girls enjoyed the local eateries imbibing in some of the local beers as well. Janet Omer liked the Dunes so much, she went out to EMS her first day back and purchased a tent, sleeping bag, and back-pack. She is READY for a repeat!!! FYI, the South Shore train goes directly from Chicago to Beverly Shores, Indiana. You can then walk from the train station across the road to the Dunewood campground. The beach is walking distance (about a mile) from the campgrounds, and there are hiking and biking trails all around….We discovered that the walk-in campsites were best, being slightly remote, with lots of shade from all the trees. It is luxury camping however, with nice toilet houses and showers for those who find it necessary to consider their personal hygiene while camping!!! ..Also camping the same weekend up in Wisconsin were a group of rock climbers, including Russ Ramaswamy and Deb Bear. It was Deb’s first rock climbing experience, and she is ready to do it again! They had some significant rain also, but unfortunately, it happened as they were trying to set up their tents. They had to wipe up the puddles in their tents with paper towels before going to sleep!! Deb is an experienced camper and helped everyone adjust to the experience!! The understanding is that the guys along on the trip spent way too much time on their hygiene, and the 2 girls had to sit and wait for them to primp to perfection!!!…..Love is in the air for Pacers this summer!!  Urs Weber proposed to Lori Soderholm on June 28^th while on a vacation in Switzerland. It was a very romantic proposal, and the anniversary of when they met in the Pacers exactly 2 years ago! Urs and Lori will be in town the end of July and beginning of August…so we can all celebrate their happy engagement with them. That is one couple I KNEW this would happen to!!!… Amy Tompkin was proposed to on the banks of North Pond. She and fiancé, Mark, will be married in December. They also just returned from an adventurous trip to Iceland, where things must have been anything but icy!! They rented a car, and drove around a popular tourist loop, staying in bed and breakfast’s and farm houses along the way….Brian Hicks and his now fiancée from the burbs are tying the knot out in California. Brian, a long time Pacer, started his dental practice in Buffalo Grove just this year. Guess he decided it’s time to “settle down” and get serious about life!!!……Congrats to Denise DeBo who made it through her 40^th birthday by taking a wonderful trip to Alaska with her sister. We wondered if Denise might not bring back one of the many eligible bachelors that are residing up in Alaska??….Both Mike Ward and Dave Farley completed the Kettle Moraine 100 miler on Saturday, June 7^th. Photos posted at http://www.ibiblio.org/Dave/Dr-Fun/faq/running/km100-2003/Page.html  (Note, there are five pages of super photos !) Actually, they started on Saturday and finished on Sunday!!. This is an unbelievable feat, as it is rough hilly terrain and running throughout the night is not exactly a walk in the park. To make it even more challenging, some mighty big thunderstorms hit in the middle of the night, making the already difficult course even more treacherous. Mike vows to go back and run it again next year, as he is determined to finish in under 24 hours. He had a portable shower in his drop bag to use at mile 62, but couldn’t get it to work. As it turned out, he got plenty of showers a few hours later when the thunderstorms hit! Dave left a disposable camera in all of his drop bags, and took numerous photos along the way. (Check out his photos of the race on the Pacer website.) Some of the Pacers wanted to be a part of their support group, so went up to Wisconsin that Saturday to run a bit with the guys, and cheer them on.  Also, Dave has some great photos of the Iceland Iceland Ultramarathon from last year............ 
http://ibiblio.org/Dave/Dr-Fun/faq/running/icelandultra2002/Page.html   Jack and Amy Euskie with dog Maggie, Stuart Schulman, Jennifer Leslie, Tim Marsh, Dan Stohr, and Joanne Kaeding were part of the support team, all running a portion of the trail with David and/or Mike. Running just a few miles on those hills is like running double the distance, so running 100 miles seems like an impossible task!!! After both runners had passed the half way point, the support team went out for dinner. Dave and Mike continued to run and run and run!!!…Two pacers, Dean Battistella and Thomas Sandholm completed the Stockholm Marathon on June 14th. Check out the  photos on our Pacer website.  Thomas is moving back to Sweden this month, but hopefully he will come around and run and dine with us before he leaves?!! …..Gordon McIntosh and his wife Meredyth spent three weeks in Michigan, taking classes and enjoying? the cold June weather!!! They are back in Chicago for the summer though, to take advantage of boating on Lake Michigan on Gordon’s sailboat. If you ever are looking out on the lake and see a sailboat whipping by with chile peppers on the sail, it will most likely be Gordon and his sailing partner, Len….Tom McNichols and girlfriend Suzanne bought a new place that they are moving into together. This is a big step for Tom, who has been a confirmed Pacer bachelor since he joined in 1990!!… Hal Olin was quoted in the July 1^st issue of the Chicago Sun Times in regards to the porch tragedy on June 28^th. Hal was the former managing deputy of the Buildings Department. In his quote, he urged a ban on parties on porches attached to multi unit residential buildings, and signs to warn of occupancy limits. For more information read the July 1 issue online at Chicago SunTimes.com……We have a new Ron Weber in the Pacers. Hmmm, he has the same face, but the new Ron has a different body. Maybe it’s his twin? My bet is the new Ron will be running his next marathon with a blazing time!!!…Hal Olin and Gordon McIntosh will be participating in the The L.A.T.E. Ride"   http://www.lateride.org/ ,  being held Saturday Night / Sunday Morning - July 13th 2003.  10,000 bicyclists will begin riding at 1:30 a.m., for the 15th annual L.A.T.E. Ride, presented by Friends of the Parks. Enjoy a 25-mile bike ride through Chicago's neighborhoods and along the lakefront. Cycle past skyscrapers, wave to onlookers, and watch the sun rise over Lake Michigan. Plus, enjoy tons of snacks at two rest stops and breakfast back at Buckingham Fountain.  Finally, many congrads to Calvin Ma in completing the IronMan in Seattle !!Joanne Kaeding and Cary Adams spent 10 days in the Yucatan, Mexico, road tripping from one coast to the other. Along the way, they visited the Mayan ruins as well as many little Mayan villages. It was hot, at least 100 degrees, and humid due to the start of the rainy season. Running in Mexico is always difficult due to the narrow roads, but with the heat and humidity, it was almost impossible! Seeing pink flamingos in their natural habitat in Celestun on the Gulf coast was amazing. Cary had carried his fishing pole with him on the trip, so while in Celestun, he insisted on using it. He spent hours trying to find bait, and finally, as he had given up hope and we were headed out of town, he saw a fisherman under a bridge, and conned some bait from him. He spent 2 hours fishing off the bridge and caught 2 fish. He was upset because Joanne took his photo with the smaller of the two fish, which in reality was only about an inch smaller!!!

See you all on the path, and keep Joanne informed of your news…!!