Months of training at Courtside and climbing Sierra Azule with 50 pounds of water preceded the ascents. Alan Arnette of Colorado came up with the idea last year and put together the trip, along with a website for the Rainier 9, which his wife, Kathy, updated during the climbs. The site is http://www.alanarnette.com/alan
/rainier9.htm.

The group was fortunate enough to go out on a clear day. It had rained on preceding days, and in the days afterward as well. They took off from Paradise, Wash., part of Mt. Rainier National Park. Then spent the night at 10,000 feet at Camp Muir, a small enclosure nicknamed "The Box."

The Box accommodates 30, sleeping side by side on three different shelf levels. Calling it primitive and packed is putting it mildly. The climbers went to bed at 6 p.m. to be roused at midnight to start off, climbing about 1,000 feet per hour. The ascent, to be safest, should be done in early hours before the ice melts.

There's a greater chance of falling rock or avalanche under muddy conditions. The views were awesome as the sun and the summit welcomed them. An hour was spent at the summit, then it was time for the descent, which took 3 hours, 11 minutes.

It was great, says Mekechuk: a week in the Pacific Northwest with a fabulous group of people—and reaching two summits. Mekechuk is a management consultant when he isn't climbing or cycling.

JUMP ROPING TO GOLD: Here's another local Olympian, this one in a sport you wouldn't expect: jump roping. Christine Reed, 14, a freshman at Los Gatos High, took top honors, the gold medal, in a national jump-roping competition in Florida this summer.

She and her jump-roping team, Jump for Joy, next competed internationally in Australia, where they came in fourth. The team is coached by Cindy Joy and practices in two-hour sessions twice a week, to say nothing of the practice time at home.

Joy trains youngsters who compete in the Heart Association's awareness campaign Jumping for Health. Christine has been jumping competitively for the past six years, ever since her days as a third-grader at Marshall Lane School. The Jump for Joy team has some 30 members, ages 8 to18.

In competition, prizes are awarded according to the different age categories. Christine's team is composed of four members, and they've been featured on the Bonnie Hunt and Wayne Brady TV shows. One team member shows up in the beginning background shots of the movie Anger Management.

Christine also skipped to first places in hurdles and sprint on the Fisher School track team.

NEW OWNERS: Linda Durnell is the new owner of Tercera Gallery in Los Gatos and Michele Scott is a partner. Durnell's marketing and philanthropy leanings will combine with Scott's knowledge of the art industry to produce a complementary team.

The two plan to integrate art with business by holding special events wherein a portion of the fee is donated to a charity. Durnell is vice chairman of Silicon Valley Children's Hospital Foundation, founding member of the Saratoga­Monte Sereno Community Foundation and founder of the Chariot Foundation.

After spending 18 years in marketing and business development, she started an interior design firm. Durnell received a B.A. from the U. of Washington, and she lives in Saratoga with her husband and three teenage sons.

MOUNTAIN DAYS: John Muir's Mountain Days, composed by Los Gatan Craig Bohmler, will be presented indoors for the first time, Aug. 18­29, at the Alhambra Performing Arts Center, 350 E St., Martinez. The musical celebrates the life and legacy of naturalist John Muir.

While the outdoor theater is undergoing reconstruction, the production moves inside. So this year the audience will be warmer and be able to take in a matinee. The show's lyrics are by Mary Bracken Phillips, based on a concept by Richard Elliott. Elliott is the artistic director; Bohmler will direct the orchestra.

BOOK-GO-ROUND: The amusing world that artist Miss Grace inhabits is the featured exhibit at the Book-Go-Round for the months of August and September. Miss Grace (her complete artist name) is creator/illustrator of a comic book series. She graduated in art from UC-Berkeley and has an A.A. from West Valley College.

Book-Go-Round hours are noon to 5 p.m. daily except Saturday and Sunday, when the hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

PRIME: Prime Cuts Hair Salon has been just off Big Basin for 25 years, so it may be the longest-running salon with the same owners—Vicki Wildman and Michael Galletta—in Saratoga. Their garden setting is behind Patrick James, overlooking Wildwood Park. Gigi Stanley and Jeanne Kinn also add to the staff.

Got a tip for Saratoga Sampler? Send email to maryanncook@earthlink.net.