Weak Odds...for the week End

Tri, try again

It's mid July, and in Nebraska the triathlon season is bearing down on us like a Hummer on a bike commuter. If you haven't yet participated in an open-water swim this year, or if your favorite pool was recently closed, or if you need to burn some calories after pigging out at Ribfest, Team Nebraska Triathlon has organized a triathlon practice Saturday morning at 7 am.

First off is an open-water swim in Lake Manawa (its name being derived from a Native American expression roughly translated as "lake where the water smells like it's from a man"). Next is about 25 miles on the old aluminum horse, and finally the meeting is capped with a short run. More information can be found at Team Nebraska Triathlon's Facebook page.

Wear a brightly colored swim camp, get there early, and make sure you have all of your gear, as this is a self-supported practice. And don't expect to put the hammer down--some of these guys and gals are so hardcore they're also going to be racing Sunday at the Papillion Mayor's Triathlon.

Free fall, in the summer

If you've ever yearned to jump out of a plane while another man wears you like a front-facing fanny pack, then this weekend, my friend(s), your dreams have been answered. In Plattsmouth, the Lincoln Parachute Club is offering its annual Redemption Boogie, a celebration of tandem skydiving. Print a $10 off coupon off their web site, show up at the Plattsmouth Municipal Airport between 8 am and 7 pm (no registration required!), sign a waiver or six, take a short instructional course, fly up to 13,500 feet, anchor yourself to an instructor, and experience the thrills of all-out freefall. Proceeds benefit the American Cancer Society, and the massive flow of adrenaline benefits your adrenal glands...and your soul.

Let's kick it down a notch, shall we?

If the aforementioned actitivies create too much of a strain on your constitution (weekends are for relaxing, after all), DeSoto National Wildlife Refuge, in Missouri Valley, Iowa, offers ranger-guided nature hikes on a variety of short hiking trails at 10 am on Saturday morning. Bring along a cooler and do some post-hike picnicking among the wildflowers. In the afternoon (or as I like to call it, nap-time), if the heavy chimpanzees of sleep aren't hanging from your eyelids (hey, you have your sleep-related mythical folk characters, and I have mine), shift gears and get ready for some nature films, or check out the nature photography of Jeff Murray.