If the air is thin, the locale exotic and the people as interesting-looking as the scenery, then you know you’re trekking with Vassi Koutsaftis. After previously taking us on a high-altitude adventure in Nepal (“Manaslu and Beyond,” July 2008), the Mill Valley writer and photographer returns to our pages in Journey this month with a tale of camels, wrestling and vodka from the land of Genghis Khan.
With the spring rains stopping—finally!—Marin’s undulating roads are filling with the seasonal influx of cyclists, who, depending on your point of view, are either spandex warriors (as a Sausalito politician once pejoratively labeled them) or eco-friendly antidotes to our SUV-loving lifestyle. These two cultures don’t always mesh well and that, as San Anselmo writer Austin Murphy reports in Think, can lead to dangerous behavior and tragic results.
Two cyclists who are taking off from Marin this summer are Marybeth and JC Bond, a Tiburon mother and daughter who tell Marinterview about their upcoming cross-country ride to raise money to fight osteoporosis.
Usually, our cover doesn’t need an introduction because you’ve presumably seen it before you arrive at this page, but this month’s features the vibrant work of Cuban-born artist Edgar Soberón, winner of our annual cover contest, showing at Gallery Bergelli. Coincidentally, a runner-up this year is Sausalito painter Georgette L. Osserman, one of three local artists photographed in their studios by Tim Porter for the feature Creative Spaces.
Also in the issue, FYI Music hums a few bars with ’Til Dawn, a Marin a capella youth group; FYI Garden harvests tips from local garden designers; GO ventures to Lake Tahoe for a look at summer activities; and Microclimate meanders out to Inverness.
As always, our wish is for your good reading. Enjoy Marin Magazine, as we continue to celebrate this extraordinary place!
Lisa Shanower, Publisher
Nikki Wood, Editorial Director
Jim Wood, Executive Editor
