This is cool, and what a great cause!
Saturday, May 14, 2011
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
Don't be a Jerk!
The first part of the video reminded me of Kent "the Mountain Turtle" Peterson... not because he's a jerk, but rather because of the bike. Looks very similar to Kent's little red Dahon. Why is Kent always right about stuff? May have to look into picking up one or two of these as "fun" bikes for the family.
Friday, April 29, 2011
Not my post, but worth re-posting here.
Feel free to post this on your youtube, FB, Tweet, or anywhere you want to post it. A fabulous little video that I stole from good ole Kent Peterson's blog. I want to be just like Kent when I grow young!
Cascade Bicycle Club - Vision 2011 from Punch Drunk on Vimeo.
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
Tinkering in the garage....
So tonight K was playing with a new lens for her DSLR which meant that she and E were going to be busy until bed time. This was perfect news for me since my new SKF bearings arrived via USPS on Monday. I was able to press in all 8 bearings, my DW Link is now "smoove" and better than new. Since my hands were already dirty, I figured what the heck and re-built the Mach 429. This forced me to also re-assemble the El Mariachi to a rigid fork configuration, which made me take it for a test spin. I had been noticing that my pedals were making a lot of noise, and chalked it up to shot bearings in my pedals or bent axles... nothing new for me with old atac's, but when I spun back into the garage I noticed the the drive side of my BB was dangerously close to falling the phock out! Jeez, what a dunce. Removed and inspected, re-greased and re-installed. The El Mariachi is back in service as is the Mach 429. All in all a solid 3 hours playing in the garage... it's good for boys to tinker in the garage from time to time... now it's time for a cold shiner and some idiot box time until I fall asleep.
Saturday, April 23, 2011
Madrone Trail Fire
Went to the Madrone trail yesterday to get a little ride on. I contemplated trying to ride my bike from the house up river road and hitting the trail for an all day outing, but ended up being lazy and driving. I also went back and forth trying to decide on hydro pack or just 24oz. bottle... ended up going with the bottle since I drove and figured it would be plenty.... little did I know that after a very short 1 mile a hiker would ask me for help with a wild fire. The fire started small, but quickly got out of hand with high gusting wind and very dry conditions. I spent roughly an hour on the phone with 911 while stomping the fire by foot and with green juniper branches. Eventually we got the 80 yard by 20 yard fire under control, nothing for the fire department to do but douse the area with water and cultivate the earth to eliminate the possibility of re-kindling an ember... I was exhausted and have a whole new appreciation for what fire fighters go through!
Thursday, March 24, 2011
OP R&I on Mach 429
Another Wednesday night R&I.... Saw Sandy from Mojo, who I haven't seen or ridden with in at least two years... maybe 3. It was great to see her again, and I'm glad she's taking time out to get on her bike and ride. I could sense her frustration, as things that wouldn't have been a challenge for her in the past made her second guess her skill set, but by the end of the ride she was feeling more comfortable again. We also got to see Will last night, amazing that the guy was up and about and probably 50% on his right side. He's got a long road ahead of him. I didn't list the details of his "incident" as the location was a black ops situation, I've not spoken much of it, but on Saturday last week we had to call in EMS and a helicopter to air lift him off the side of a trail due to a nasty crash which caused his C2 & C3 to compress. He was air lifted to the hospital and had surgery that evening. The scar from his incision is tiny, and they went in from the front which I though was unusual. Needless to say it was great to see him on his feet and out of the hospital so quickly, we of course had to give him a hard time in typical mojo fashion and ask him if the hospital staff removed the Frankenstein bolts from his neck. I think being around the fire and watching his chums drink beer post ride was the best medicine he had all week. Heal quickly, Will.
The ride tracks
OP R&I on Mach 429 by fatbob29r at Garmin Connect - Details
The ride tracks
OP R&I on Mach 429 by fatbob29r at Garmin Connect - Details
Friday, March 18, 2011
Wed Night @ OP
Untitled by fatbob29r at Garmin Connect - Details
Finally remembered to bring the GPS with me on the OP ride. Of course, had a double mechanical. First my chain kep dropping, N-Gear had gotten loose and my chain kept dropping to the inside. After fixing that, found that my rear hub was super loose, so decided to call it quits. Lost about 10 miles due to mechanicals, worst Wed. ride for me yet.
Finally remembered to bring the GPS with me on the OP ride. Of course, had a double mechanical. First my chain kep dropping, N-Gear had gotten loose and my chain kept dropping to the inside. After fixing that, found that my rear hub was super loose, so decided to call it quits. Lost about 10 miles due to mechanicals, worst Wed. ride for me yet.
Sunday, March 13, 2011
Sunday, March 06, 2011
Untitled by fatbob29r at Garmin Connect - Details
Untitled by fatbob29r at Garmin Connect - Details
A nice casual loop @ Madrone. Trying out the Garmin again. This was a baseline ride to see how I do not pushing hard, but rather a constant pace. This loop was on my El Mariachi 1x9 with 100mm fork up front. Next ride will be on the 429 to see if I'm any faster or slower on the dual suspension. I felt way faster on the last Wed. night ride, but it's possible it was in my head.... of course I forgot the GPS on Wed.
A nice casual loop @ Madrone. Trying out the Garmin again. This was a baseline ride to see how I do not pushing hard, but rather a constant pace. This loop was on my El Mariachi 1x9 with 100mm fork up front. Next ride will be on the 429 to see if I'm any faster or slower on the dual suspension. I felt way faster on the last Wed. night ride, but it's possible it was in my head.... of course I forgot the GPS on Wed.
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Chihuahuan Desert
I arrived early @ Dennis' place Wednesday morning. It was cool and raining, I was glad to have arrived early to beat the traffic on the west side of town (if you can call this traffic compared to DC or the ATL). We were all loaded up and on the road by 09:00 which is pretty darn early for this group. We took the scenic route south via Hwy 90 going through Del Rio and other assorted towns along the border. A total of four of us in Dennis's Tundra, and two in Mike's Outback... we were ready for 5 days in the desert!
Upon arrival, everyone jockeyed for position and various places to "crash" in the little slice of heaven know as the Study Bute Resort (aka the sh!thole)... nothing in the desert is cheap... except the camping. I fully expected to camp and brought all my gear, I simply set up on the front porch and avoided the smells and sounds that accompany 7 grown men in a two bedroom cottage. I think I was the smartest one of all in this respect.
Our first ride started off with good intentions, only we discovered that one of the bolts on my upper rocker had gone missing.... this was the first in a series of reality checks the desert brought to our attention. You can never have too many parts, water, or a range of clothes. We searched in vein for a replacement bolt, but alas could not source one. Luckily for me, Will our go to McGyver was able to find a bolt under the hood of the tundra that was the right length and TPI, so I was saved! We only wasted about 1.5 hours on this mishap, again not too bad for this crew. Off we went. We were not much further than a mile before Mike began lagging behind. We decided as a group to split off @ about mile 5 of the ride and let the 3 in the back do their own thing, we continued on to the Contrabando Trail.... Will, Mike C, Marty and myself were all going a good pace, did the entire Dome Trail, and by the time we got to the Cinnabar mine decided it was a good time to apply more sun screen... Oh, yeah, did I mention it was 97*? The week prior it was a daytime high of 19*. After applying copious amounts of sun screen for fear of catching on fire, I was reminded again of how unforgiving the desert can be... I over heated with clogged pores and began to suffer the effects of early heat stroke... goose pimples, and dizziness! Oh joy, and not getting out other than riding in the mid day sun and heat. My riding partners were very graceful, helped get my core temp down by soaking me and making me drink more and more, and finally we exited the trail in one piece. I was really feeling like the drag of the trip until I found out several people had to be evacuated via ATV over jeep trail due to heat stroke/exhaustion.
The rest of the weekend was spent riding on the Lajitas tail system, covering every portion of trail, and having a blast. I'll have to do a full write up soon, but was really just in need of posting up the best of the worst, and of course some pictures... Pictures of the place, even by a pro photographer do the place no justice. The place is massive and overwhelmingly beautiful. I highly suggest checking the place out for yourself. Late fall through late winter would probably be the only times of year I would want to be in the desert, but I imagine it's breath taking year round... if you love heat, this is the place for you.
Upon arrival, everyone jockeyed for position and various places to "crash" in the little slice of heaven know as the Study Bute Resort (aka the sh!thole)... nothing in the desert is cheap... except the camping. I fully expected to camp and brought all my gear, I simply set up on the front porch and avoided the smells and sounds that accompany 7 grown men in a two bedroom cottage. I think I was the smartest one of all in this respect.
Our first ride started off with good intentions, only we discovered that one of the bolts on my upper rocker had gone missing.... this was the first in a series of reality checks the desert brought to our attention. You can never have too many parts, water, or a range of clothes. We searched in vein for a replacement bolt, but alas could not source one. Luckily for me, Will our go to McGyver was able to find a bolt under the hood of the tundra that was the right length and TPI, so I was saved! We only wasted about 1.5 hours on this mishap, again not too bad for this crew. Off we went. We were not much further than a mile before Mike began lagging behind. We decided as a group to split off @ about mile 5 of the ride and let the 3 in the back do their own thing, we continued on to the Contrabando Trail.... Will, Mike C, Marty and myself were all going a good pace, did the entire Dome Trail, and by the time we got to the Cinnabar mine decided it was a good time to apply more sun screen... Oh, yeah, did I mention it was 97*? The week prior it was a daytime high of 19*. After applying copious amounts of sun screen for fear of catching on fire, I was reminded again of how unforgiving the desert can be... I over heated with clogged pores and began to suffer the effects of early heat stroke... goose pimples, and dizziness! Oh joy, and not getting out other than riding in the mid day sun and heat. My riding partners were very graceful, helped get my core temp down by soaking me and making me drink more and more, and finally we exited the trail in one piece. I was really feeling like the drag of the trip until I found out several people had to be evacuated via ATV over jeep trail due to heat stroke/exhaustion.
The rest of the weekend was spent riding on the Lajitas tail system, covering every portion of trail, and having a blast. I'll have to do a full write up soon, but was really just in need of posting up the best of the worst, and of course some pictures... Pictures of the place, even by a pro photographer do the place no justice. The place is massive and overwhelmingly beautiful. I highly suggest checking the place out for yourself. Late fall through late winter would probably be the only times of year I would want to be in the desert, but I imagine it's breath taking year round... if you love heat, this is the place for you.
Tuesday, February 08, 2011
Day 5 P90X
As usual, I haven't been keeping up the blog, what's new right?
Friday 2/4 we had a "snow day" here in TX... this is funny because it was maybe 1/8" of snow and was gone by 10:00, but never the less the state is not equipped to handle such massive amounts of snow, so the entire city shut down. This gave us a fun, unexpected "family day". Of course, this also meant a lot of indoor time after the snow melted, so K asked about the P90x video's I had gotten about 6 months ago. I loaded up her database, ran through the schedule, and she decided to "bring it" right there and then. I've been wanting to get in shape, so I decided to join her. Working out together made the time pass more quickly, and E found the entire thing hilarious. She couldn't stop laughing at her mom and dad dancing around doing some sort of strange mating ritualistic dance. The next day we were bot sore, but in a good way, finding muscles that have been lying dormant for years. It's good to have a work out partner, even if we aren't working out at the same time, being on the same schedule/program will help us to motivate each other. Now we just need to stick with it for the full 3 months and hopefully end a lot of bad habits.
So today is Day 5. Yesterday was "Yoga", so I figured what the heck, I can do it before bed... let me tell you something here guys, if you haven't done yoga before, don't dismiss it so quickly. It was freaking hard! By far the hardest thing I've done in some time. It's difficult to believe how much flexibility I've lost over the last two decades, even so, I never had this kind of ability. I can only hope that as the weeks and months go by I'll be able to do more.... I have to say, I really like yoga, from the breathing to the stretching to the stabilizing muscle use... you can't cheat in yoga!
Today is legs, back and abs!
Friday 2/4 we had a "snow day" here in TX... this is funny because it was maybe 1/8" of snow and was gone by 10:00, but never the less the state is not equipped to handle such massive amounts of snow, so the entire city shut down. This gave us a fun, unexpected "family day". Of course, this also meant a lot of indoor time after the snow melted, so K asked about the P90x video's I had gotten about 6 months ago. I loaded up her database, ran through the schedule, and she decided to "bring it" right there and then. I've been wanting to get in shape, so I decided to join her. Working out together made the time pass more quickly, and E found the entire thing hilarious. She couldn't stop laughing at her mom and dad dancing around doing some sort of strange mating ritualistic dance. The next day we were bot sore, but in a good way, finding muscles that have been lying dormant for years. It's good to have a work out partner, even if we aren't working out at the same time, being on the same schedule/program will help us to motivate each other. Now we just need to stick with it for the full 3 months and hopefully end a lot of bad habits.
So today is Day 5. Yesterday was "Yoga", so I figured what the heck, I can do it before bed... let me tell you something here guys, if you haven't done yoga before, don't dismiss it so quickly. It was freaking hard! By far the hardest thing I've done in some time. It's difficult to believe how much flexibility I've lost over the last two decades, even so, I never had this kind of ability. I can only hope that as the weeks and months go by I'll be able to do more.... I have to say, I really like yoga, from the breathing to the stretching to the stabilizing muscle use... you can't cheat in yoga!
Today is legs, back and abs!
Saturday, December 18, 2010
41 times around the sun...
... and to celebrate I took and old friend
To this place....
With a stop here
To think about how lucky I am to have the life I have.
I'd be lying if I said I hadn't been in the dumps lately, but it's amazing how a simple ride in the "woods" on a simple machine can change your entire perspective on things. Indeed I am a very lucky man.
After my pause to reflect, it was back to the trail, and finally time to pack it up. Amazing that I can cram so much stuff into such a small vehicle!
Today, I'm off to tackle a rocky place with lots of climbing and great vistas with friends.
To this place....
With a stop here
To think about how lucky I am to have the life I have.
I'd be lying if I said I hadn't been in the dumps lately, but it's amazing how a simple ride in the "woods" on a simple machine can change your entire perspective on things. Indeed I am a very lucky man.
After my pause to reflect, it was back to the trail, and finally time to pack it up. Amazing that I can cram so much stuff into such a small vehicle!
Today, I'm off to tackle a rocky place with lots of climbing and great vistas with friends.
Sunday, December 05, 2010
Too much time....
... spent looking through a windshield, not enough time looking beyond the front tire of my bike. I rode the Madrone on Saturday due to time constraints and family schedules, all my chums hit the BCGB for 20 + miles, I did two laps and got ~ 17 miles, but I only had a 15 minute drive home... would have been an hour had I gone to Austin, but the Taco Deli would have made the drive worth while. Days are getting shorter and cooler, nights have a bit of a bite... I'm acclimating to Texas weather... after 5 years! Night riding schedule is all over the map, but Wednesdays are the favorite thus far. Michael has elected to ride with me off road and get his MTB on after close to a year off the dirt. He has the mashing ability that comes with being a runner or roadie, but fears the rocks and tech which makes us a good match. We could both stand to lose 30#'s, so bring it Michael, I'm going to get my sh!t in shape because I'm sick of being fat, and out of shape, the gauntlet has been thrown my friend!
The wife and I both have the bug. Been checking out statistics on Spokane, on paper it meets and or exceeds our wants and needs. A trip there this spring or summer is a must. So far the responses I've gotten from various boards have been positive, but walking downtown and going to the local lakes will tell the truth. I knew the minute we drove through Atlanta that I hated the place, should have elected a western state back then. Texas has been ok, but not the final stop for us. It's been good to us and we'll walk away having learned a lot about what we do and don't want and what is important to us moving forward. The next stop will be a long term situation. I'd like for E to be able to finish HS the next place we land so it has to be the right amount of compromise to realistic living formula. Of course with 76 lakes like the one shown above, how bad could it be? Stay tuned!
The wife and I both have the bug. Been checking out statistics on Spokane, on paper it meets and or exceeds our wants and needs. A trip there this spring or summer is a must. So far the responses I've gotten from various boards have been positive, but walking downtown and going to the local lakes will tell the truth. I knew the minute we drove through Atlanta that I hated the place, should have elected a western state back then. Texas has been ok, but not the final stop for us. It's been good to us and we'll walk away having learned a lot about what we do and don't want and what is important to us moving forward. The next stop will be a long term situation. I'd like for E to be able to finish HS the next place we land so it has to be the right amount of compromise to realistic living formula. Of course with 76 lakes like the one shown above, how bad could it be? Stay tuned!
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
It's been slow...
.... as far as riding and adventures go. There was a cool article in Dirt Rag one or two issues back about how you have to "grow up" and be responsible @ some point in your life (really? Bummer!!!). It was pretty spot on, and so I'm taking the advice of the author and am going to be doing a lot more riding, but at a time that will not negatively impact my family or work obligations... yes, we're talking night riding! I've been night riding since the mid 90's. My first light was a mini mag light forced into one of the vent holes of my helmet (brilliant I know, nothing like an aluminum pipe inches from my skull while I ride in the dark and wait for an endo). I soon moved on to a night rider that required 4 D-cell batteries (I spent about $500 on batteries before I clued in and bought rechargeable). The light output was awesome and gave me a solid hour of ride time. I then graduated to my first NiCad Night Rider. I bought it used from one of the guys at the shop, this was so much better than my other light and came with a helmet mount and had a high and low mode... I believe it still only gave me about an hour of ride time, but between the two lights I could do some serious riding! By the early 2000's my rechargeable D cell had bitten the dust, and I only had the NiCad and a new cheap, but bright 12w Marwi light. The Marwi gave me 1.5 hours of solid ride time, and I still have that set up handing around in the parts bin. When I finally stepped up a few years ago, I went full bore and bought an HID Nightrider, this thing is silly bright compared to my 10w and 12w halogens, it also doesn't burn as hot (those halogens would burn the snot out of your fingers if you weren't thinking about what you were doing and touched the lens) and has a 3 hour run time, but this brought up a dilemma.... how do I justify spending another couple of hundred $ on another bike light "when you have a perfectly good light" in the bike barn? Welcome to global trading and cheap Chinese crap. I picked up what has to be the brightest least expensive light ever! I have no clue what the company name is, they sell to just about anyone. The biggest US distributor is GEOMAN Gear the light itself is called Magic Shine, and the sucker burns 900 Lumens (whatever a Lumen is) of LED goodness for a solid 3 hours. Couple that with my HID Nightrider and it's like riding during the day!
So, with days getting shorter and night lasting longer, I'm now on a solid diet of night rides! To begin, I'm doing 2 nights a week with plenty of others. The idea is that when I ride with others I tend to push myself a little harder. When I solo, I tend to stop and smell the flowers. I need to push myself... winter is upon S. Texas and my Eastern European genetics tell me to eat lots of carbs and sleep as much as I can.... perhaps I'm part bear and beginning to hibernate (this could also explain the mystery hair sprouting from my back... I'm like freaking teen wolf!).
Nothing great pixel wise, I really need to charge up the battery on the little camera and start taking it with me on the night rides. The only ride picture I have as of late is from an urban ride with fellow ex-pat Michael... his keen eyes spotted this little guy on our ride Saturday.
So, with days getting shorter and night lasting longer, I'm now on a solid diet of night rides! To begin, I'm doing 2 nights a week with plenty of others. The idea is that when I ride with others I tend to push myself a little harder. When I solo, I tend to stop and smell the flowers. I need to push myself... winter is upon S. Texas and my Eastern European genetics tell me to eat lots of carbs and sleep as much as I can.... perhaps I'm part bear and beginning to hibernate (this could also explain the mystery hair sprouting from my back... I'm like freaking teen wolf!).
Nothing great pixel wise, I really need to charge up the battery on the little camera and start taking it with me on the night rides. The only ride picture I have as of late is from an urban ride with fellow ex-pat Michael... his keen eyes spotted this little guy on our ride Saturday.
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
HEAT!
No, not the '90's Bobby De Niro heist flick (I should be so lucky).... on my way to a client meeting, I saw the temp on one of those bank deals (my crappy little wind up car does not tell me such things... I miss my A6) and it read 92*... it's the last week of October! I should be breaking out the wool and finding my winter stuff! This heat is making me nuts! That is all.....
Sunday, October 17, 2010
down & out
... tried to sleep in my hammock the other night since the weather was so nice for sleeping outside. I got maybe 2-3 hours of sleep before I had to go inside. There's just something not right to me about sleeping in a hammock, just freaks me out. So yesterday I snuck out for a quick ride around Madrone and my lower back was king of bugging me. I haven't had back pain in a while, really since switching over to the wingnut hydro pack. By the end of the ride my back was a wreck, I could barely lift the bike onto the roof (so I didn't, ended up stuffing it into my Fit). By the time I got home for the Daisy/Brownie/Girl Scouts fair, I could barely walk... well, really it's the sitting and standing change the makes me want to cry. Looks like I may be off the bike for a while (K's dream come true). I think I need to work on the core, do some stretching & yoga, and time to ditch the idea that I'm every going to be able to use a hammock to camp.... threw the hammock on the marketplace and am now researching solo tents and bivvy's. I think a good bivy will be a good start.
This was from last weekend. It was ~2,000 feet to this vista, not bad for flat old Tex-Ass. Notice the two Pivot's? It's not an optical illusion, both ends of the spectrum there. The red 429 is an XL next to my S raw 429... eyeballed wheelbase difference is 8-10"... makes me wonder how the poor guy is able to take any switchbacks or make any steep climbs
This was from last weekend. It was ~2,000 feet to this vista, not bad for flat old Tex-Ass. Notice the two Pivot's? It's not an optical illusion, both ends of the spectrum there. The red 429 is an XL next to my S raw 429... eyeballed wheelbase difference is 8-10"... makes me wonder how the poor guy is able to take any switchbacks or make any steep climbs
Monday, September 06, 2010
shake down ride....
.... @ Salado! yes, I know I'm breaking from tradition, but it was the closest group ride I could find. The new Pivot Mach 429 did great. Far exceeds expectations. Since I've been on a hard tail for the last 10 years, a dual suspension bike has to be really efficient to get me excited. The 429 does not disappoint! Plenty of squish when and where you need it (in the rough stuff and on big hits). Stiff and efficient when I want it (climbing and seated pedaling). We didn't get too many miles in, and the pace was nice and social so I had plenty of time to bounce around and make adjustments as necessary. I'll have to dial in the air pressure on both the shock and fork, I think I have too much air pressure in the rear shock, and the rebound is super fast... this would be great, but the front end was a little low and slow, so I felt like I was too far forward all the time. I was able to increase air pressure up front which leveled things out a bit. Other than that the bike did great, didn't complain at any of my bad line choices, except for the 44t front chain ring that didn't like being smashed on a rock ledge. One negative so far is the BB seems super low on this bike. I've had more pedal strikes in one ride than in months of riding the HT Salsa EM. May have been pilot error, but me thinks some shorter cranks are in my future.
Pic's to come once the complete build is done. Right now I'm running donor parts from the El Mariachi!
Pic's to come once the complete build is done. Right now I'm running donor parts from the El Mariachi!
Friday, August 27, 2010
Waaay behind....
.... it's not just you, my adoring public. I'm very far behind in work, school, and socially. I'm weeks off of my exercise regiment.... such is the life of me.
Ok, bringing you all up to speed.
2 weeks ago we were supposed to camp @ Garner State Park to spend a long weekend playing in the Frio River.... the daytime temps were predicted to be 101 with 108 heat index... hmmm, let's think here. A prissy wife who doesn't like to camp, add a 5 year old who's as pale as an Irish cave dweller, with a dash of my significant others friend & kids (who I'm not a big fan of), mix them all in a tent and what do you have??... A recipe for disaster. We cut out the camping portion and just made an all day event of the Frio.
E had a blast as usual, she had two friends with her, a large floating inflatable platform, and not nearly enough sun screen. We always knew she was a bit of a thrill seeker, and this trip really brought it home in a big way. Our little Evel Kenivel was jumping off of rock faces that were at least 6', and swinging on a rope swing that was at peak 10 feet high! Not only that be she insisted on doing the rope swing over and over again.... can't wait until I get her on the trail on a mini mountain bike!
It was another great trip to the Frio. This is our favorite place to visit so far. For my next trip I want to rent a Sprinter to take out to the Mas-O-Menos race in Terlingua in February. The girls can explore during the day if I end up racing, then we can spend a few days in Big Bend hiking, river rafting, maybe even a little family mounting biking (I can dream, can't I?).
More to come, I promise.....
Ok, bringing you all up to speed.
2 weeks ago we were supposed to camp @ Garner State Park to spend a long weekend playing in the Frio River.... the daytime temps were predicted to be 101 with 108 heat index... hmmm, let's think here. A prissy wife who doesn't like to camp, add a 5 year old who's as pale as an Irish cave dweller, with a dash of my significant others friend & kids (who I'm not a big fan of), mix them all in a tent and what do you have??... A recipe for disaster. We cut out the camping portion and just made an all day event of the Frio.
E had a blast as usual, she had two friends with her, a large floating inflatable platform, and not nearly enough sun screen. We always knew she was a bit of a thrill seeker, and this trip really brought it home in a big way. Our little Evel Kenivel was jumping off of rock faces that were at least 6', and swinging on a rope swing that was at peak 10 feet high! Not only that be she insisted on doing the rope swing over and over again.... can't wait until I get her on the trail on a mini mountain bike!
It was another great trip to the Frio. This is our favorite place to visit so far. For my next trip I want to rent a Sprinter to take out to the Mas-O-Menos race in Terlingua in February. The girls can explore during the day if I end up racing, then we can spend a few days in Big Bend hiking, river rafting, maybe even a little family mounting biking (I can dream, can't I?).
More to come, I promise.....
Friday, August 06, 2010
.... camping re-cap
I was wrong in my previous post. We didn't go to Enchanted Rock, we went to Perdenales Falls (not really much of a "waterfall" compared to Great Falls or Niagra, but good for TX). It was hot... very hot. The tent was fairly easy to set up as I knew well enough to do a dry run @ home, however I neglected to put the rain fly on at home... I mean, how hard could it be?.... Evidently harder than I thought. Next time will make more sense, but the heat & bugs made for a very frustrating set up.
After setting up the campsite, the "Unit" headed down to the river for a little cooling off session. The walk down to the river was pure torture. K was acting like her Aunt Flow was visiting... she gets rather grumpy when overheated. Once we got to the water though, her temperment settled down and we all enjoyed a nice swim in the river. As a matter of fact, it was next to impossible to keep E out of the river once we were in. She's like a fish that one! It was pure bliss, and everything I had hoped for. We stayed in the river for a good couple of hours (2-3) and decided to go for a quick hike on an overgrown trail. The trail led us to an estuary that fed the river from a spring no doubt, as the temperature was a good 15* cooler than the main river. We splashed and played in that for a while and helped E look for animal tracks near the waters edge. Then the hike back to the camp. Once @ camp we all kind of settled in. I started the fire (tried my magnesium fire starter but failed) and K found some sticks to use as Hot Dog/Marshmellow skewers. We cowed down... I swear hot dogs have never tasted so good... well, Turkey dogs, but you get the idea. The one thing I neglected to bring was a cup. K was smart and kept her cup from Sonic, but I tossed my before we left, so I had to drink straight from the water container, and I drank a lot... Ummmm dehydration! As nightfall was upon us the girls crawled into the tent hand went to sleep. I stayed up for a while and watched the glowing embers in the fire pit, then climbed into my hammock for a little relaxing. I finally turned in ~ 11:00 only to be awakened by our college aged neighbors who decided to roll into their campsite late, and began drink, talking loudly, and playing music! It was still hot, K was annoyed, E tossed and turned all night, and I slept like a baby... typical for us. At first light we all had a family breakfast and K and I looked at eachother and said "let's go for a bike ride". We brought both bikes and E's tag-a-long.. spun for a loop of the park, then headed back to camp and broke down our site. It was getting hot, and I was glad to be getting out of there sooner rather than later. E was bummed because she wanted to spend the day in the river, but K was exhausted and I was dehydrated... perfect time to head home!
Next up is a trip to the Frio River and Concan. This would be an awesome trip, but K invited one of her friends who I loath... I'll bring my bike and go for a loooong ride while they hen around.
After setting up the campsite, the "Unit" headed down to the river for a little cooling off session. The walk down to the river was pure torture. K was acting like her Aunt Flow was visiting... she gets rather grumpy when overheated. Once we got to the water though, her temperment settled down and we all enjoyed a nice swim in the river. As a matter of fact, it was next to impossible to keep E out of the river once we were in. She's like a fish that one! It was pure bliss, and everything I had hoped for. We stayed in the river for a good couple of hours (2-3) and decided to go for a quick hike on an overgrown trail. The trail led us to an estuary that fed the river from a spring no doubt, as the temperature was a good 15* cooler than the main river. We splashed and played in that for a while and helped E look for animal tracks near the waters edge. Then the hike back to the camp. Once @ camp we all kind of settled in. I started the fire (tried my magnesium fire starter but failed) and K found some sticks to use as Hot Dog/Marshmellow skewers. We cowed down... I swear hot dogs have never tasted so good... well, Turkey dogs, but you get the idea. The one thing I neglected to bring was a cup. K was smart and kept her cup from Sonic, but I tossed my before we left, so I had to drink straight from the water container, and I drank a lot... Ummmm dehydration! As nightfall was upon us the girls crawled into the tent hand went to sleep. I stayed up for a while and watched the glowing embers in the fire pit, then climbed into my hammock for a little relaxing. I finally turned in ~ 11:00 only to be awakened by our college aged neighbors who decided to roll into their campsite late, and began drink, talking loudly, and playing music! It was still hot, K was annoyed, E tossed and turned all night, and I slept like a baby... typical for us. At first light we all had a family breakfast and K and I looked at eachother and said "let's go for a bike ride". We brought both bikes and E's tag-a-long.. spun for a loop of the park, then headed back to camp and broke down our site. It was getting hot, and I was glad to be getting out of there sooner rather than later. E was bummed because she wanted to spend the day in the river, but K was exhausted and I was dehydrated... perfect time to head home!
Next up is a trip to the Frio River and Concan. This would be an awesome trip, but K invited one of her friends who I loath... I'll bring my bike and go for a loooong ride while they hen around.
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