Brooke is being inducted into RHS Hall of Fame!!!!

Brooke Vessey, ‘Braga Boys’ among latest to be inducted into Redlands High School Hall of Fame

By Ed Castro, Redlands Daily Facts

POSTED: 05/22/14, 7:26 PM PDT |

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Redlands High School 12th annual Athletic Hall of Fame Induction

When: Thursday, Oct. 2

Where: Orton Center, University of Redlands

Inductees: Brook Vessey, class of 2007; Sami Grisafe, class of 2003; Red (Richard) Simmons, class of 1956; Dan Finfrock, class of 1964; Wayne Braga, class of 1951; Dennis Braga, class of 1973; Matt Braga, class of 1976

REDLANDS — Two female athletes and a father and son are among the latest inductees into the Redlands High School Athletic Hall of Fame.

The 12th annual induction ceremony is set for Oct. 2 in the Orton Center on the campus of the University of Redlands.

The field of inductees is as impressive as there has been in any of the 11 previous classes.

“The accomplishments is just amazing,” Hall of Famer Hank Mercado said. “I’m working on the plaques and I am having such a difficult time because of all the accomplishments. There are so many. I can’t believe it.”

Mercado said the Hall of Fame committee went through the usual selection process.

“It took us several months,” Mercado said. “We had to have the bios and people had to make recommendations. We had to do the research. It took us about three months for us to make a decision and to take a vote.”

It will be the first for the Hall of Fame to feature a father and son induction. Father Wayne Braga (class of 1951) was a three-sport athlete in football, baseball and track. Son Matt Braga (class of 1976) played football and track.

Sami Grisafe, a 2003 graduate, played football for the Terriers and then gained international acclaim as a women’s professional football player. She guided her team to the IFAF Women’s World Championship victory. Grisafe has rewritten the record book during near-decadelong career in women’s professional football.

Dan Finfrock (Class of 1964) played football and baseball at RHS and went on to coach Arrowhead Christian Academy to five CIF championship finals.

Brooke Vessey (Class of 2007) is the second in her family to be inducted into the RHS Hall of Fame. Her sister Jamie is already in the Hall. Brooke Vessey was a standout in water polo and swimming, she was named the 2007 CIF Division 5 Player of the Year in water polo.

Red (Richard) Simmons (Class of 1956), stood out in football and baseball. But he went on to excel as a professional softball player and is a member of the National Softball Hall of Fame.

Reservations for the dinner and ceremony at the Orton Center at the University of Redlands can be purchased by sending a check for $45 per person to: RHS Hall of Fame, 453 Cajon St., Redlands 92373.

Link to article: 

http://www.redlandsdailyfacts.com/sports/20140522/brooke-vessey-braga-boys-among-latest-to-be-inducted-into-redlands-high-school-hall-of-fame

Water Polo with Mikayla

Saturday we tripped it down to LMU to see the second day of the LMU invite. Traveling with Brooke and Sean always has its excitement. Plus you add in LA traffic and well the excitement of being dead stopped grows on you. 

After rushing to the pool, we managed to only miss the first quarter. During the start of the fourth quarter KK got in. It was awesome to see her play. In that time she was all over the place. On a 50/50 ball she swam hard. Then from there she made a great pass for a goal. Mark up a great assist cause of not giving up on the play. Then a few possessions later she almost scored a goal. KK got up on a counter and got the pass late, then just missed the cage. 

During the break in games was probably the best part of the day. KK was able to give us a tour of the campus. I had been given a tour earlier in the year. But Sean and Brooke had not yet. It was great we saw where she would be living next year. A few of the building that she has classes in, the different type of restaurants available on campus. Plus she showed us UHal which is an awesome building with one heck of a view of LA. It was pretty clear for an LA day and we could see about 2 or 3 miles. Since KK needed to be back early to warm up for her next game we dropped her off. Then the rest of us headed down to the marina to have a small lunch and wasting sometime before the next game. Luckily the Aztecs were on TV as well. It worked out nicely since we were able to watch the first half before leaving to head back to the pool. Great news is the Aztecs advanced to play in the Sweet 16.

After the game we waited for KK to have her final meetings. The tournament ended with the Lions ending 2-2. Then it was off to dinner. We headed to a great little pizza place right off campus. They had TV's which allowed us to catch the last few basketball games of the day. During this March Madness you never know who is going to be the winner, you just gotta watch the games. Plus watching sports with my family is one of my favorite hobbies. Spending Saturday all together was amazing, the older we get the less it happens. So just getting to be in a relaxed restaurant hanging out is time I am thankful for. Saturday was a lot of fun! Being with the family is always a pleasure. Mom took this great picture of us all. Look even Dad got into the day with a smile! 

Great job playing KK we are all so very proud of you! Thanks for giving us all a reason to see your beautiful campus and hangout. I have the best parents and siblings anyone could ask for! 

Simply Irresistible Cakes and Catering by Jenna Main

Jenna & I in Hawaii with water polo

This weekend I had the pleasure of visiting my good friend Jenna Main's new bakery that she opened with her Aunt. It is called Simply Irresistible- Cakes and Catering located in La Habra. Congratulations Jenna on such an awesome accomplishment and a beautiful shop.

Jenna & I during the Final 4 with NCAA

Jenna and I played against each other in high school. Then we both went to San Diego State to play water polo. Freshman year we were roomed in the same suite in our dorm. Then a few more years spent as roommates. Over those college years we had many amazing memories and experiences together.

In the last few years Jenna got serious about food and desserts. After graduation she headed off to culinary school. I do wish she would have had some of that cooking training all those years we lived together. As we were normal college students, eating not the best food! Over the past few years I have had many of Jenna's amazing desserts, plus her Aunts amazing food! Making me even more excited to see her dream in person, her own shop! I was so excited to visit her shop. The store had been open a little over a month and I have been trying to get down to Los Angeles area to see it in person. Plus Saturday she does fresh baked Cinnamon Rolls- which I have been dying to try!

Front of the shop

On our way to see KK play water polo at LMU we made a small detour to the shop. Sean and Brooke were great and excited to visit the shop as well. Plus they knew they would be getting some great treats. As soon as we entered the shop it smelled AMAZING! Instantly made me want to eat everything. It was great to see Jenna as well. After spending some time chatting with Jenna and meeting her employee's. We got to sit down and really chat. During the time we were there it was great to see the business and customers. A woman ordered a cake, lady called in a cake and a few people dropped in for some Cinnamon Rolls. Which I have to say are worth the trip and make a great breakfast Saturday morning. The three of us managed to order four cinnamon rolls, 6 mini cupcakes and Brooke order some crazy brownie chocolate pecan desert. That desert was amazing. After spending about an hour hanging out with Jenna and getting fat- we headed along to LMU.

Inside the bakery

Please do not think that we eat all those deserts just the three of us. Each of my family members got a mini cupcake. We had six different flavors and everyone loved it. We have mini cupcakes of double chocolate, ho-dad, vanilla, red velvet. Each person loved there flavored cupcake!

If you are in the area and need a cake, cupcakes, other deserts or catering I highly suggest Jenna and her shop! Jenna made the deserts for her OWN wedding, that's how dedicated and awesome she is with baking. It was also my pleasure to have Jenna bake my wedding cake. We had so many compliments on how elegant and beautiful it was. Plus it tasted like a small piece of heaven!

Congratulations Jenna on an amazing bakery! I wish you all the best with your business. I plan on making it a normal detour on my LA route! Love yea girl.

Jenna & I at my wedding! She made my beautiful cake. 

Simply Irresistible Information:
Location: 2408 W. Whittier Blvd La Habra, Ca 90361
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/simplyirresistiblecakesandcatering
Website: http://www.simply-irresistible.com/

Carlsbad Half Marathon

I have been terrible at blogging lately. Mostly because I have been wedding planning (which I am not much better at). But then between running, coaching, working, planning I am just to tired to want to blog. But there are so many events that I want to share- so I am going to try and get back to it. I am going all the way back to the end of January and the Carlsbad Half Marathon.

I have run in the Carlsbad half the previous two years always raising funds for Insulindependence.  This year Brennan and I convinced my sister Brooke that she should also run. It would help her have something to focus on and she could also help raise some money. Brooke started off great training with the PEAR Pro, but within a few weeks into her new job life go in the way of training. Going into this half I was determined to stick to my training plan I wanted so badly to beat my previous best time.

My training went surprisingly well. I managed to stay away from any major injuries.  Only missing a few training sessions. Brooke on the other hand seemed to miss most of them. But our fundraising was going well. Over the course of a few months Brooke and I managed to raise over a thousand dollars together to help the organization.

Once race weekend was upon us the weather was not that great- cold and rainy. Brooke and Sean stayed over the night before the race since we would be heading out early. With the rain we decided to leave Sean at the apartment. Where he claims I left him with nothing to eat! Turns out Sean does not eat healthy stuff : ).  Brennan would leave before us Sunday morning so he could get to the aid station at mile 2 (where all the volunteers where from Insulindependence).  This meant that Brooke and I were on our own.  There is a reason Brennan and I never race together- it is so that someone is totally focused and there to help the individual racing. With this set up that was not going to be the case.

Brooke and I left with plenty of time to spare. Once we were parked our nerves started to get the best of us- so we got in the bathroom line. Woman seriously take forever! After that we headed to the Insulindependence tent where we would meet up with the other 50+ runners who had raised money as well. We got a group picture. Then we were off to get into the starting area.


All the IN racers

At this point Brooke was really starting to freak out. This is when you look back and think why did I miss those training days. I honestly was thinking the same thing. Her plan was to run 5 minutes walk 1 minute. With a goal to just finish the race. I had a plan to run faster than ever before. As we waited for the race to start I became more and more nervous. Then it was time to go- I told Brooke go get it and see you at the finish. I was OFF!!



Brooke all smiles at aid station #1 ( 2miles in)

My goal was to not go out hard with all the others. I had a plan and was going to stick to it. I had been using heart rate based training and pace over the last few months. But again when race day comes all of a sudden none of that matters. Within a few minutes into the race my heart rate was sky high as in the 190's. But I felt good.  At the first aid station I saw my amazing fiance Brennan taking some pictures. I guess I do not stand out in a crowd cause he almost totally missed me had I not yelled at him.  I loved seeing him but sad cause it was so early in the race.


Again I was just focused on my plan. Quickly it started to hurt (like any racing). But I just kept going. At the turn around I was looking and looking for Brooke but with thousands of people and no idea what pace she was holding it was worthless. With about 3 miles to go I was really hurting. My heart rate had been up in the 190's for the majority of the race. At this point my legs were heavy and my chest was on fire. When I saw Brennan at 2 miles all I could say was it hurts! He yelled a few positive things and I just kept trucking away. The last mile seemed to drag on and on. When I turned the corner for the finish line I had hardly anything in the tank to speed up. I just wanted to get across so that I could walk. 

This is what 195 average heart rate makes you look like

This is what Brooke looked like.. All Smiles!

I finished with a personal best time. It was not the time I was hoping for but better than ever before. Plus I was not injured. I managed to make my way through the crowd to get back to my stuff. I did a bit of stretching and then was trying to decide if I could get to the aid station in time to see Brooke. I called Brennan and he had not seen her yet. I decided not to risk it and to just go stand at the finish. Brennan gave me a heads up when she was at the aid station- he said she was still smiling. Which I thought was a good sign. You can see this video of Brooke finishing her 1st ever half marathon.

I cannot explain how proud I am of Brooke. Not sure if she will ever do another one. But once I got to her all she could say was "I didn't walk, NOT one time." I was not surprised Brooke has the highest pain tolerance of anyone I know.  Plus she is competitive! She beat her goal time even!

Slowly the soreness made its way for Brooke. By the time we got to the car she could barely walk. I think the next three days she was in extreme pain but she had run her first half marathon! So way to go Brooke. I could not be more proud of you!!!

With our finisher medals!

Half-Ironman.. We did it!!

I say we did it, but I guess I should say that Brennan did it.  He finished his first Half-Ironman!!  I feel like we both finished it because were a team.  As a team we both have made sacrifices and survived the training schedule of early mornings and long days.  I mean I got up at 3:45 just like him on race morning.

In terms of training and the long hours that was all Brennan.  An Ironman takes a great amount of mileage training and hours to be successful.  Plus a very strict schedule.  Brennan did all the training and stuck to his schedule.  I did however get in some training with him.  I survived some killer rides through North County on Saturday mornings.  We also have a deal for Brennan's long training runs.  We figure out the distance he needs to go and then come up with a designated pick up place.  This way he does not have to worry about turning around, instead can just keep running forward. Toward me.. Or so I like to think.  As for the swimming portion I give Brennan all the credit I have helped very little in the last few months. Besides a few tips we have not been able to get to the pool together. 

 It was awesome to watch Brennan dominate the Orangeman Triathlon.  

If your not familiar a Half-Ironman is a ....

1.2 Mile Swim

56 Mile Bike

13.1 Mile Run

I did no racing.. Well unless you count running to different points on the course so that I could cheer for Brennan.  It was a great day watching Brennan dominate the race as well as have some of our friends come out and support him.  Plus the race lasted close to 7 hours, so I may have appreciated our friends even more then Brennan.  I had them to hangout with all day!!

Getting situated in the wetsuit- see were a team

Having a laugh before things get serious.  I remembered the gum for him.

Exiting the swim

This is me enjoying the day.. 

Brennan enjoying the bike. Only 2 miles till transition. 

 Starting the run course

Almost to the finish

Brennan Cassidy is a Half-Ironman!!!

The group that came out to support!!! 

We did it!!! My fiance is amazing!


So we have done it, well Brennan has done it completed his first Half-Ironman and then some since the race course was a bit long.  He has another half coming up in two weeks in Arizona.  This course is supposed to be the right length as well as much flatter.

Thanks to our amazing friend Blair for all the pictures!!

I am a week away from my first Olympic Distance triathlon.  So we shall see how that goes!! Brennan gets to be the spectator at that one.. Will be an interesting twist for us. But it is always a team effort!



"You and Me Against the World"- Brennan Cassidy