Postmortem

First, a little background. We actually knew marriage was right around the corner. In fact, we had a wedding date set before I even proposed. But proposing in a fun, creative way was important to me. The challenge here was maintaining the element of surprise since time was against me. It was not really a question of "if" but rather "when". I devised a high risk plan involving mountain biking in the town of Pacifica, CA on the trail "Mile". Our friend Jeremy was on support crew that day, ready to capture the video.

June 3, 12:24PM: We were at the top of Mile, transitioning from the climb to the descent. Magdalena was suspicious. You could see the smile on her face like she knew what was about to happen. The coastal ridgeline offered a picturesque backdrop under the clear, sunny sky - a perfect setting for a proposal. But I did not pop the question. I knew this would be too obvious. Again, I really needed the element of surprise. We started the descent. Later she admitted to me that she was certain I was about propose but convinced herself otherwise when we started downhill. Success!

I let Jeremy take lead, followed by myself, then Magdalena in the rear. Upon reaching the rock waterfall feature (a classic Pacifica line) I had a quick word with Jeremy. Magdalena caught up to us and I persuaded her to hike back up the trail a bit with me and try the feature again. She was reluctant but I got her to turn around eventually and the bait was set. Sessioning this feature is not out of the ordinary so it did not raise suspicion. Locked and loaded, it was now or never - one shot to get this right. I bombed down the jagged rock line to get out of sight and staged a fake crash. I laid down the bike and got on the ground. What felt like an eternity passed by but eventually I could hear her coming down. She was in full belief that it was real and asked "How can I help??"...then I popped the question and it was, in fact, a complete surprise. There were even some local Pacifica Rats waiting at the top that were 100% sure I was hurt. They clapped when it was over and we all had a good laugh.

A quick photo shoot on and around the trails. Be sure to check out my engagement ring box project while you are at it!

A few weeks later we got married! Check out the Grizzly Bear Wedding for the full story!

June 3, 2:37PM: Celebratory Banh Mi Sandwiches at Dinosaurs Sandwiches - pretty good, you should check them out too.