A Canadian in Texas

Dallas Stars

2011-10-21T20:16:00.002-05:00

Went to the opening game with Ryan a couple of weeks ago. He's got great seats so i took my Camera. It was also the TX-OU weekend, so this was a pretty big deal for Dallas. We won, great game and we had a lot of fun. Thanks Ryan!

Brave Combo

2011-10-16T22:44:00.002-05:00

What's an Octoberfest without the little Grammy winning Polka band from Denton, Brave Combo. Always a crowd pleasing favorite and sure to detract from the usual musical fare at any Texas based German beer drinking festival in late September....

Actually I really like these guys, they are a heck of a lot of fun and even for the smaller Mckinney venue they just like to have fun and get folks partying.

I took a few handheld shots checking out my camera. This one is at ISO 6400, F5.6, 1/80 second. This was on my 28-135 so pretty much wide open at telephoto. It turned out ok. Couple more stops would have been great. Most of the other shots were too soft. So here you go.

street shots

2011-10-14T23:05:00.001-05:00

Well the 365/52 experiment sure didn't work.

We went to the Mckinney Octoberfest a couple of weeks ago. I went early in the morning then we went back later in the day. This is my favorite shot of the day, some kid walking through the labyrinth they created with cleaning products. I took a few more shots throughout the day, including some of the band Brave Combo. I may try to convert some to B&W to see how they look.

104?

2011-08-14T21:36:00.002-05:00

Ok, there is no way I can do a 365. I took some shots this weekend, I think I can do a weekly shoot, maybe even 2x (both weekend days) but I cannot fathom a 365. So, have some shots from this weekend. I am going to hold on to them a bit, to see how the week goes, but I know already what is going to happen, and if I know, then for sure.....

Stay tuned.

365?

2011-08-10T18:20:00.005-05:00

Thinking about doing a 365 project but I don't know that I have the discipline, or the time. I am currently trying to take photos weekly, not sure I can do it daily, in fact I am very doubtful. But, maybe I will have to try it, this weekend may be a good time to start. I don't have to use my slr all the time, I always have a camera phone, albeit totally sucky resolution, its still at camera......

Summer Heat

2011-08-08T08:37:00.009-05:00

Recording setting summer this year, we are well into the 2nd most consecutive 100+ days on record, currently at 37, and rapidly approaching the record of 42. The weather report said there is a cold front approaching this weekend, but that is still a long ways away and in my opinion, unlikely to crack the high pressure cap we have had all summer.

Back to our little back yard menagerie. The baby birds continued to eat and grow, with the parents being fairly protective in that the were not too afraid of us or the cats in the backyard, especially if we gave them a bit of space. Saturday we had a few folks over and the birds had more than a few observers. Sunday afternoon, the nest was vacated! That was barely over a week. Unfortunately as often happens in the wild, these little birds were not the most fortunate, as they were birds and not ducks. We watched them try to fly a bit Sunday but by the end of they day, they were not able to avoid the pool.

This past Saturday I wanted to get out early and try to get some insect shots. I went to a good sized pond up the road and there were lots of dragon and damsel flies. I got a few shots, but it was a bit breeze, at least just enough to have slight movement in the reeds and grasses, so my shots weren't as sharp as I would have liked. I have a few that turned out well, here are a few of my favorites.

Backyard inhabitants

2011-07-25T22:13:00.003-05:00

Its 105F today, but backyard wildlife continues to flourish. We have had some small birds, finches perhaps, fluttering around the plum tree while we have been outside, and even while the cats have been outside. These birds seem oblivious to any danger in the backyard. I am watching one bird periodically flying into a hanging planter but I think nothing of it. Later, while watering some plants, I see some slight movement in the hanging planter. I thought maybe it was the bird, but upon closer inspection there is a nest with at least 3 very tiny baby birds in it. I tried to get some photos without disturbing them too much but they are quite sensitive and think I am bringing food every time I try to get close to take a picture.

Later there were lots of bees around our "butterfly" bush, and a small green lizard decides to make his presence known.

Albuquerque, NM

2011-07-05T21:40:00.006-05:00

Spent the last couple of weeks in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Was there about 12-14 years ago so had some good memories. Was there on business, but was still able to take advantage of the location. We did the Sandia Peak Tramway, we took a dinner trip to Santa Fe, taking the back road back through Madrid, and took a couple of trips to the Petroglyph National Monument. It was very dry this year, with extreme forest fire danger and in fact many of the public lands were closed. There was an extremely dangerous fire encroaching on the Los Alamos National Laboratory which resulted in a fairly large scale evacuation.

Here are a few shots that capture some of the sights. The jackrabbits were running around the petroglyphs. It was so dry there was very little wildlife. I think I saw a total of 4 lizards. We also took a trip around the backside of the Petroglyph NM where there are a series of very old volcanoes.

Saturday night at the races

2011-06-13T10:41:00.003-05:00

Saturday night we went to TMS for the Indy Car races. It was a new format, two distict short (275 mile) races, with potentially 2 seperate winners. The first race position was determined by pole, the second race position was determined by a draw, in reverse order of the finishers in the first race, so it was total luck of the draw. Danica Patrick was racing, as well as most of the well known Indy racers, even Paul Tracey who hasn't raced here recently.

As usual, taking photos at the race is difficult, with the protective cage on the barrier. I did get a couple of shots though. Here is one from a pit stop that I think captures some of the action.

By the way, the high speed FPS on the 7D is scary fast. I turned it back to regular after my first burst!

Mckinney Farmer's Market

2011-06-12T13:17:00.002-05:00

Darlene and I went to the Farmer's Market in Chestnut Square in Mckinney. We've been a couple of times before as well. Today we bought some fresh vegetables and made a hodgepodge for supper.

Door Hardware

2011-06-01T07:39:00.002-05:00

At one of the Missions in San Antonio. Sorry, forget which one...

Minneapolis St-Paul

2011-05-26T12:24:00.008-05:00

Spent the last two weeks in MSP for business. The first week saw some sights that made me want to bring my camera. In particular the Fort Snelling National Cemetery. There are over 172,000 internments there and they are still accept funerals. It was quite the sight. Hopefully my photos do it justice.

After this, I went into downtown St Paul, which is the Capital of Minnesota and took a couple of shots of some interesting buildings.

This is the Capitol Building

These are some shots of Cathedral of St Paul.

Backyard Lily

2011-05-26T12:20:00.004-05:00

We have some Cala Lilies in our backyard. This morning there some sort of drop on one of the lilies that I thought looked pretty cool. Had my Tamron 90mm macro lens on for these shots. Unfortunately there was a bit of a breeze so these may not be quite as sharp as I would have liked as I was using a fairly slow shutter speed and the flowers were in the shade.

Stunt Rider

2011-05-26T12:10:00.006-05:00

Here's a couple of shots I took about 2 days after I got my camera. Still haven't figured it all out, and really just tried to take some pics to get used to the feel etc of camera. Haven't figured out autofocus points and setting yet or some of hte other modes, but got to play a bit.

These are photos of Zach Schockey, who is the son of one of our riding buddies. He is a professional but was just at our bike skills class for a bit of a demo.

Des Moines

2011-05-10T21:14:00.002-05:00

Dez Moiness. That's how the blonde stewardess pronounced it. Later on the flight, someone must have corrected her, De Moine.. she pronounced it correctely. Certainly, she admitted this was not her regular flight as she butchered other announcements, but geez....

I'm downtown, and actually I really like this city so far. Its a mid-sized city, very clean and relatively friendly as near as I can tell. I didn't bring my camera. Hopefully I'll be back here some day as there are some great photo ops that I don't normally have.

The city reminds me a bit of Oklahoma City, nor sure if that's a good thing or not. I have only been to OKC for fun, this trip to Des Moines is for business so its difficult to compare properly. One thing is apparent, they do love their Harley's here though. A surprising number of bikes in the downtown core. And lots, lots, of bicycles. oops, hockey break, RedWings just came back and tied game 1-1 against Sharks. Good thing, they have been kicking butt all night.

Speaking of my camera, I got a new toy recently, for my birthday. An EOS 7D. I'm excited. I have a couple of shots already I need to post when I get home. Inspired and need to stay that way,

Mardi Gras - Part Deux

2011-03-07T21:32:00.003-06:00

Shreveport last weekend, sure, it was a bit premature, but all these partiers and festival goers have to spread their joy over multiple weekend to take it all in.

While several of our friends are off to N'awlins for the real deal, we stuck by the homestead to take in the Krewe of Barkus parade in downtown Mckinney. Like all these Mardi Gras parades, they are annual events and the one in Mckinney is no exception, and is somewhat unique, just like all the rest. However this one may be the rest, as the parade goers are all dogs. Yes, Dogs.

Mardi Gras 2011

2011-03-07T20:57:00.008-06:00

Have you missed me?

It doesn't matter. I guess Facebook and other social media are the more common means of communication over the web now. But, I think a blog post is still better for a better story than some little Facebook snippet, or god forbid a 140 character tweet.

Well anyway, the weekend of Feb 26, we joined the AEHOG chapter on their annual pilgrimage to Shreveport, LA for the Krewe of Centaur Mardi Gras parade. One of our members has excellent connections and get us prime seating in a VIP area with a few perks.

With my travel schedule, this year Darlene and I rode up on our motorcycles on Saturday morning, with our eldest son following in his car. This was Ryan's first experience with Mardi Gras, although the festivities in Shreveport are noticeably tamer than say, New Orleans. Still a good time is had by all.

Many thanks to Steven Foster for his coordination, and of course Tee and Carla for their generosity and company.

One of the highlights of this trip was dragging Ryan along to get float beads. As a parade "virgin", we used that to our advantage to get some rare float beads. Hmmm, I may have to try that again in the future as Ryan beat me on Float Bead count!

As always this weekend is a better photo opportunity than many, not that the photos are always great, but still.

Also, its Louisiana. Mudbugs.

Back to the main even, the beads and the parade!

Cannonball race

2010-09-22T22:06:00.008-05:00

Hi everyone, its been a while. I guess its been an interesting year and we haven't ridden as much as we have in the past. Have been busy with other things but haven't had the desire to post too much I guess. But, this weekend we went to Ada, OK. and I have some things to share.

Earlier this year, in one of my magazines, I read about a cross country motorcycle race with vintage, actually pre 1916, motorcycles. The Cannonball Race was going to venture through parts close by, and in fact, during a weekend. Well I put it on my calendar as it was something I really wanted to check out.

Ada, OK is just about 140 miles north, so a good day trip there and back. The riders were going to have a lunch stop there, and spectators would have a chance to see the bikes and riders. We decided to celebrate some other good news and made an overnighter out of it, Sunday through Monday.

It was a great weekend, the bikes and stories were incredible, we rode some great roads returning Monday and overall had a much needed mini-vacation.

But back to the bikes. These are all engineering marvels, both in their original form and in some cases, their current forms.... To think that 100 year old motorcycles would traverse the country in 16 days is pretty freakin' incredible. I have ridden some long days, and long weeks, upwards of 3000 miles, and I ride an easy chair compared to these bikes. Most, nearly but not all, have some level of support, and additionally they riders are very intimate with their bike and repairs. Apparently one crew is even traveling with a lathe!

I met Michael Lichter, one of the most recognized and renowned motorcycle and motorcycle culture photographers there is, and other industry notables. Kevin Bean're, Laura Klock, and many others who are either racing, supporting or otherwise partipating in this glorious event. There were two stories in particular that really speak volumes to this event and the commitment. Cris Sommer Simmons, and her team, were inspired by Effie Hotchkiss, who ninetyfive years ago she wanted to travel coast to coast and chose to do so on a 1915, 3 Speed V-Twin Harley-Davidson. Her mother, Avis, told her she couldn’t make that trip alone so the deal was made between mother and daughter that Effie would buy a sidecar, and Avis would make the trip with her. Story goes that Effie carried a bottle of water from the Atlantic ocean with her so that is what Cris is planning to do, dump the bottle of water from the Atlantic Ocean she is carrying in her saddle bag into the Pacific Ocean upon completion.

The second story, is of couple from Germany who are making the trip, she, Katrin Boehner, is on the oldest bike, a 1907 JAP, and he, Dieter Eckel, is on a 1913 BSA, both single cylinder machines.

These motorcycles require constant care and maintenance along the route. Besides the pounding these riders get, the bikes require constant attention as well.

Oo Eee Baby

2010-03-26T23:28:00.003-05:00

Oo-ee, oo-ee baby
Won't ya let me take you on a sea cruise?

We are back on dry land, after a wonderful family vacation. As children get older, it becomes a rare occurrence when you can spend several days with your family and have some fun and relaxation. It is quite possible that this was the last time we could do this as the boys will no doubt have commitments, work, school, girls, whatever, maybe even just don't want to hang out with their wonderful, fun parents....

Actually, I think they really do enjoy our company, at least sometimes.

Its a bit of a weird time however. For the first time in my life, I have joined the ranks of the unemployed due to a workforce reduction (one of many) at my long term employer. Actually I went through a similiar experience many years ago, but I was much younger and the impact did not carry the same weight. I'm not going to dwell on that, but actually I am a bit excited about the prospect of new challenges and opportunities.

Last year Darlene and I went on a cruise, my first, her second. We had a great time, with a lot of friends. Darlene has wanted to take the boys on a cruise for years and as we finished up the HOHS cruise, it seemed like the time was right, as the boys are getting to the point where they may not be able to or want to take a family vacation.

So, we booked a big, bad cruise, Royal Caribbean - 7 night Eastern Caribbean, on the Freedom of the Seas. This is the second largest cruise ship currently sailing and the same one we were on. We booked out of Florida, as departing out of Texas during Spring Break has a premium. Florida, meaning we had to get to the port.....
No problem, its only 1200 freaking miles to the port. Can you imagine, me, a Bluenoser, growing up with salt air in my nose, has to drive 1200 miles to get to the ocean....

20 odd hours and we get to the east coast of Florida, time to kill (sleep...) we take Ryan to Cape Canaveral for the NASA tour and eventually get to port to board the ship.

All on board and fancy drinks in hand, relaxation station as we float on... Stay tuned for the next installment...

Iguana Rock

2010-03-26T23:25:00.001-05:00

St Thomas, US V.I.

Snowy night

2010-02-20T19:56:00.002-06:00

This shot is from our big record snowfall last week. I picked up Corey from work and went back out to get a few shots. Converted to black and white although its pretty monochrome to begin with!

A Man, a Can and a Plan

2010-01-10T09:16:00.006-06:00

It's been quite a while since I posted. Have been quite busy, and haven't had much time to take many pictures, or to do much riding. And its been very cold for Texas! This won't be your typical introspective or retrospective new year post.

So, I decided it was overdue for a beer can chicken. However, grilling is difficult in below freezing weather. Fear not, this can be done in the oven. Well, I have cooked several of these things on the grill, and they always turn out quite well. I was unsure how it would turn out in the oven, so of course I turned the source of all knowing, the internet, for some additional guidance. As a result, one other change was made, usually I stuff the neck cavity with an orange or an onion and seal it, but this time I decided not to stuff it and just leave it open. And just for fun, I took some photos along the way.

Preparation. Note, similar to wine, there is cooking beer and drinking beer. As this is a Beer Can Chicken, I'll let you figure out which one is which.

One of the tricks is to open the can up to allow more steam, and I put additional spices/rub in the can to give the stem a bit of aromatics.

Season the bird with whatever spices or rub you like, I also usually mist some olive oil on the skin. Looking at these pictures I see some irony in the Miller Lite line peaking out from the chicken, I am sure its appreciated.....

Some time later, out of the oven comes a perfectly cooked chicken, tender and moist. I think it was about 2 hours, time it oven isn't as important as making sure its cooked with a proper thermometer.

I think it took a bit longer in the oven, maybe on the grill my temperatures run a bit hotter, and on the grill I let the juices drip onto the hot grill where they vaporize and likely add to the flavor a bit. I didn't notice a lot of different between an open or closed neck cavity, may have to try another one on the grill to see if there is a difference. On the plus side, using the oven helped keep the kitchen warm on this cold day. Served with rice, fresh green beans and carrots. And of course, a beer.

Spoke too soon!

2009-12-02T10:43:00.003-06:00

Snow in Texas? In early December? You have to be kidding me....

Yes Virgina, it snowed in Texas. Actually the Panhandle and other parts of West Texas can get quite a bit of snow every year, not that it lasts that long. And the DFW area typically sees snow in some form or another a couple of times each winter, but that may as little as a couple of snow flurries, or actual accumulation.

So this week we have a cold front, with a slight potential for snow in some counties. Certainly didn't expect any this morning, but there it was, piling up on cars, lawns and rooftops. And to be sure, the skies have brightened up a bit and there is no visible evidence left, so if you missed it, you missed it. But here is what it looked like for all you non-believers!

Holiday season.

2009-12-01T11:46:00.002-06:00

We are all over it this year! Decorations up, bulk of Christmas shopping done (that was actually easy since we aren't buying much this year!), and a great Thanksgiving!

Typically, the Christmas season is different down here in Texas than back home. T-shirt weather, toy runs with 50,000 motorcycles, green grass and trees with leaves still hanging on for dear life.

Work seems to have settled down a bit, as far as all the changes in the past year, we had a good fiscal year and folks seem to be in a bit better spirits. I still have quite a few vacation days to take so will take a couple of weeks over the Christmas break, but that may not be that easy, since my work office/computer is also my home office..... Discipline, that is it takes.

Anyway here's a shot of the front of the house. Of course after I took it we make some minor changes. Will update later but wanted to put something out there, so tis the Season!

Merry Christmas!

What up?

2009-11-24T22:26:00.004-06:00

Well, I've been neglecting my poor blog. No particular reason, have been busy, not riding alot. But also, for some reason I cannot access Blogger from Firefox, and I can't figure it out. In fact this moment, I have Firefox open with some other tabs, and IE open to this page so I can post. Surely there is some explanation, I can access other google sites and have changed my password but no luck on this site and while I haven't spent a lot of time trying to resolve, I have spent some time and research.

Anyway, on to other things, all has settled down post cruise, we had a great get-together the other night with the crew to refresh our memories and share pictures.

I did a 250 mile ride the other day as well with a group from Dr. Pepper in support of their United Way campaign. The weather was cloudy and threatening rain but it held off except for a small shower around Greenville on the way home. I planned the route and must say I enjoyed it and it will be worth doing again, maybe on a Saturday instead of a Sunday though, so that there may be more restaurant options...

Work has been quite busy, with a couple of projects taking a lot of focus, but its also frustrating. Everyone is working remote and being pulled in multiple directions. Busy is good, as is productive, and things appear to be settling down in the HP Enterprise so perhaps that is a good thing overall. We have to take our vacation before the end of the year and I have several days left. Everyone does it seems so that is starting to have impact. Of course this week is Thanksgiving, which is for the most part a lost cause, well, except for today which was a bit nuts.

Its also the time of year to think about family. I am grateful for my immediate famiy and friends that I spend time with, but find myself missing my family back home. As things settle down a bit more around here, its been a crazy year, I need to plan a trip home.

In the meantime however, here's a couple of more pictures from the cruise that bring a smile to my face!

Say hello to my little friend....

2009-11-09T20:55:00.003-06:00

A hermit crab, just under 2 inches, crawling along a window ledge at facility in Labadee, Haiti.

Rafting on the Martha Brae

2009-11-09T16:28:00.004-06:00

This is one of my favorite pictures from the trip. It's from our raft trip down the Martha Brae River in Jamaica. It was as peaceful as this picture looks.

These rafts are handmade by their captain owners. They are made from bamboo that grows along the river. The rafts last about 6 months at which time they are replaced with fresh bamboo. After about 3 months the bamboo starts to become waterlogged and by 6 they no longer float well.

Back on Dry Land

2009-11-09T10:41:00.002-06:00

Back in the great state of Texas after a 7-day Cruise. We partook in the High Seas Rally, in the Western Caribbean, with 12 of our friends from AEHOG.. This is a 7 day cruise onboard the Royal Caribbean Freedom of the Seas. The rally has a completely separate agenda than the cruise although we were able to participate in any cruise activities we wanted to.

We arrived in Coco Beach Florida on Saturday in plenty of time to check out the beach and to attend the pre-cruise party, which had lots of great costumes, since it was Halloween night. Sunday we boarded the ship and sailed off on a big blue watery road. Monday was a full sailing day and we familiarized our selves with the ship, the places to eat (lots of them!) and the rally activities. Monday was fairly relaxed tih time spent on the deck relaxing.

After that we had stops at Labadee, Haiti; Ocho Rios, Jamaica; Georgetown, Grand Cayman; and finally Cozumel, Mexico. On Saturday we had a full sailing day. Friday and Saturday were a bit rough and wet, as we were about a day to a day and a half ahead of of a developing Hurricane Ida.

By Sunday it was time to come home. We had a lengthy day in the airport just waiting for our scheduled flight but got to hang out with our friends for most of the day as we all had different flight times for the most part. We got home late Sunday after an wonderful and memorable vacation.

I took over 1300 photos, so it will take a while to process and go through them all. There are plenty of duplicates, and bad shots (out of focus, no flash, etc) but will get some posted later this week to try to capture the essence of our trip.

Exercising

2009-10-24T08:21:00.002-05:00

Whew, got my camera back. I had to make a tough choice, whether to get it repaired or to dish out for a new camera, especially when Canon just announced the new 7D. Well, like any new released product, it was a bit expensive, and in very short supply. It is getting great reviews and has 1080P HD video, but I just couldn't justify at this point. Another option would have been to upgrade to the 50D, but the new 7D has blinded me... The repair cost was almost at the limit, if I'd have had a bit more time, I may have chosen differently but needed to get a camera back in my hands and, worst case I have a body I will be able to use as a spare should I ever get to a point where I move to something other than a pure recreational hobby.

Anyway, I got the camera back earlier this week and need to run it through its paces. All settings are reset to factory and in shooting yesterday I realized that some of the settings I must have changed, so I fumbled my way around and eventually sorted out the focus point selection. Reminder to self, find manual...

Its autumn in Texas and the leaves are changing from green to brown... So, hit the woods I say. Get some of that awesome Texas color. Actually I wanted to get back down to a particular spot in Allen that has some interesting structure, and also after all the rains I was hoping that some mushrooms were sprouting up, they are always interesting subjects. Unfortunately, none have popped up yet.

So here's a few shots. I actually shot these in RAW, with my tripod. Its been awhile since I actually took time and tried to get some good shots. Obviously out of practice!

Grey Days

2009-10-12T18:21:00.002-05:00

A series of grey days; rain, clouds, much cooler temperatures, and shades of NS, misty conditions.... What up with that? This is Texas after all. Mist, like fog only not so much. Of course when the sky does decide to open up, its much more typical. Here its almost mid October and we have well over six inches of rain has fallen already. If the leaves turned color in Texas, this would be a perfect fall. Actually if we continue to get rain, this may help the wildflowers in the spring after a dreadful past 2 years.

Anyway, a little rain and clouds never hurt anyone, we still got to ride this past weekend and I got quite a bit accomplished. And yes, for those wondering, my camera is still in the shop so no pics this posting either... Its driving me crazy!

Anyway, this past weekend was the LOH ride to Possum Kingdom. There were a lot of riding options this weekend, a lot. But with no camera, the ride to Jefferson for the Boo Benefit just didn't make sense. RC pre-ride to Hot Springs was an option but since we're not doing the fall leaf ride due to conflicts that didn't make a lot of sense either. OK State Rally in Ponca City, OK really wasn't that appealing and the route Tracey did for the LOH ride looked appealing and I figured that with the expected turnout they may need some Road Captains, so I tagged along with Darlene.

It was a great and fun ride. Mid morning departure, we actually had enough bikes for 4 pods, so I got to lead Pod 4. Primarly 407 and some other roads it was a great ride. The weather was quite cool, low 50's so got out full leathers, chaps and jacket, and actually it felt good to get all suited up. I tried my electrics on the way home but I must have a blown fuse as they didn't work which was fine as it wasn't really needed.

I rode with the group to a little "wet" spot of Graford, TX where we had lunch. Funny thing about Texas liquor laws. Here we are in this very small town, the lunch spot, a cafe, doesn't even have a sign, although there were lots of seats. One gas station, and three liquor stores. Not much else going on, practically a modern ghost town with a pretty barren main street and abandoned storefronts. But the burgers were huge and good!

From there the ladies carried on to the Resort at PK, where apparently the carrying on carried on well into the wee hours..... I took a more southernly route with Holly and Matt and Robin through Palo Pinto and along FM4 (awesome! thanks guys) to IH 20 and back home. I am quite sure I have ridden at least part of FM 4 previously but maybe not. Its also very near the Brazos river, and I saw some familiar spots from previous canoe trips with Ryan and Boy Scouts.

275 miles this trip. Sunday I had to do a pre-ride and put on a few more...

Still this temperature and sunny, a match made in paradise...

Sigh

2009-10-08T22:43:00.002-05:00

Sigh.

Camera's broke.

Aarrgghhh!!!

Took it into the shop, thought it was the shutter, nope its the CPU.... Have to send it to Canon, 4 weeks....

Funny when you don't have something, its the only thing you want... The New Canon 7d (drool, drool) is out and available, of sorts... so of course I'm feeling inspired. The new 7D, besides being a kickass picture taking machine with tons of upgrades over my 20D, can also shoot HD (1080P) video.

Its reasonably priced, comparatively anyway, but is impossible to find as everyone is sold out. I've got my eye on one, but hopefully by the time I can afford it and I'm ready to pull the trigger the price will get even better.

Sigh...

Weekend miles

2009-09-29T10:05:00.004-05:00

This past weekend was the TX State HOG Rally, held in San Marcos this year. Both Darlene and I have attended this rally pretty consistently since we have been riding so even though we had second thoughts due to a variety of reasons, we ended up going and did have a very good time. We rode down on Friday, staying east of IH35 for the most part and picking up some ABC points. I like SH77 and the many small towns along the route, like Rosebud and many others. We exited before La Grange, which is too bad as that is an interesting part of the ride. Rode through the pines in Bastrop and the wonderful BBQ capital of Texas, Lockhart.

This year's rally was quite subdued, we met up with several Eagles at the hotel and hung out. Gotta love Embassy Suites, the hospitality hours and great breakfasts that are included in rates. Saturday morning we got on the road at a relaxed pace. I had a route planned out that included the Devil's Backbone and Jim and Gary joined Darlene and I for our route. The Devil's Backbone section was far too short and while we had some great roads with little traffic, by the time we reached Boerne (pronounced bur-ni)we were not ready to head back. So off to Bandera for lunch at the Old Spanish Trail restaurant, based on the recommendation of the Bandera resident doing his laundry at the gas station we filled up in Boerne. Bandera was a hopping little town. We decided to go a bit further, to Medina, but we decided against doing the Three Sisters as it would have added an additional 2-3 hours to our day. On the way to Medina we passed the Rumble on the River rally which helped explain the many, many bikes we saw on the roads.

We popped back to the rally site and caught the Ride like a Pro show and picked up a dvd. Others that we know have the dvd and say its a great educational tool and really improves your driving skills.

Sunday we had a leisurely ride back home, time west of IH35, taking route 12 (very nice ride) from San Marcos all the way up through Dripping Springs then to Bee Cave before heading on 71 through some more great Hill Country vistas, eventually heading due north on US 281 to IH20 then home. Long day..., picked up a few more ABCs.

Total miles for the trip 875 miles....

Pass The Pig - 2009

2009-09-28T22:45:00.003-05:00

Ahhhh, finally got some quality riding in...

Actually have had a couple of good weekends. Last weekend, the 19th, was our club's annual chapter fundraiser, Pass The Pigs. We held it later this year than normal due to conflicts with another local chapter's event. I guess in all it turned out quite well as we had one of the best turnouts we've had with I think it was over 170 bikes. This year we rode it as Darlene has been involved with it every year in the past and it was time for a change. We had had a week or more of rain leading up to it, so when the weekend hit and it was sunny, the bikes came out! It was a good ride in local FM roads, pleasant and stress free, unlike a recent run we were on that had too many miles on interstates and state highways around the metroplex. The one downer was that our chosen lunch spot, Lucy's on the Square, was in receivership, not sure the reason but it had recently been featured in Texas Monthly as one of the top 40 small town cafes and we have eaten there a time or two. We always have bike games after the run and they are always good for a couple of pictures...

Speaking about that other chapters event.... We do have bit of a friendly rivalry. We had a challenge, the other chapter was supposed to double our turnout to their event. We we had well over 40 bikes, I think we actually had 41 arrive in unison with some other members showing up on their own. Needless to say we won the chapter challenge. For our event, that same chapter shows up with around 23 registered riders, a far cry from double our showing. Maybe 1 over double, wait, that's 1/2...

Saturday night at the dirt track!

2009-09-06T20:11:00.006-05:00

Friends of our race Modified Stock Cars. Their home track is Devil's Bowl in Mesquite. We went out to watch some races last year, and Saturday night we went out and got pit passes so we could hang out with them on the infield. There were also Sprint car races this weekend as well.

I brought my camera so I could try to get a few shots of Brad on the track. Its a tough gig! Great and pretty flexible positioning in the infield, could get dangerously close to the track, but unfortunately the racing is at night so you have to rely on high ISO and flash. I have a Canon EOS 20D, so it only goes to ISO 1600 and an older flash unit that is a bit underpowered.

I met Mike, who takes shots for Speedway Photography and he was a great guy, gave me some tips, and helped me out quite a bit.

This race was a bit different than last years race. The Devil's Bowl is in Mesquite. And its Redneck Heaven! Last year in the stands, well, its something to experience at least once. If you ever thought Nascar represented the best in all things redneck, then you've never been to the local dirt track! Mind you hanging with friends in the infield doesn't give you the same experience, but you do get much more of a feel of being the part.

I took close to 400 shots, lots and lots of duds. I haven't shot at a race in years, especially with this kind of vantage point, and never before at night. I think I got a few shots though and I think Brad and family will appreciate.

Here are a few.

Riding Weather

2009-08-31T16:44:00.005-05:00

The weather lately has been great! Temps getting down into low 70's, even 60's at night, hovering around 90 during day. Easing up on A/C and is great to ride in.

These past 2 weekends we have gone on a couple of rides. Well at least I did. We had one of our annual summer rides, the Bug Run, the evening of Sat 22. Darlene didn't ride for safety reasons - group riding at night and she has some difficult with night vision, so I did this one on my own with the chapter. IT was a great night, not too hot, but typically the bugs were few and far between, in fact this was probably the cleanest my bike has been after one of these runs. Aside from not qualifying for any prizes, not having completely bug splattered bike is not a bad thing.... In fact our ride from Jefferson the other weekend was much worse, and with very large bugs....

Now this weekend past, our "adversaries" from down the road, the North Texas HOG chapter, had their rain-rescheduled chapter fundraiser, the Stacked Deck poker run.
We decided to show en force, for a bunch of reasons, but to primarly encourage like attendance at our fund raising run, Pass The Pigs, in September. Just a friendly competition between friends, so to speak, to see who has the best turnout at each others event.

The Stacked Deck run was a good ride of about 100 miles. Personally it was a little too much interstate for my liking, I prefer the less stressful and less traveled FM roads, but a good time was had by all, and based on the attendance I think NT has a successful event.

We ended up at the Cottage Lounge in Dallas off Northwest Highway, definitely a biker bar and apparently a place that is friendly to the Scorpions MC. Saw one other patch member from the Warlocks from Florida.

Anyway a couple of shots from these rides.

New Trick

2009-08-20T19:09:00.003-05:00

Double click on the image to get the full effect!

No animals were harmed during the creation of this image, and yes, we are cat owners.

Ghost busting

2009-08-17T10:25:00.003-05:00

Well I guess we scared the ghosts, or else slept through them. We weren't in one of the haunted rooms however, so who knows. Previously we had stayed in the Excelsior hotel, where there are also rumored to be ghosts, this past weekend was at the Jefferson Hotel. Actually I had more vibe from this one than the Excelsior, so maybe there were ghosts?

We rode separate from the group as we wanted to take advantage of the trip east to collect some ABC points. We did get several and the route I planned had some unexpected happenings. Well not so much happenings but a few of the roads... When I planned the route I usually avoid Country Roads (CR designation) as they are often dirt roads. So in my planning I went on a couple of named roads, thinking they were either FM or SH roads. Well these roads; Dahlia, Hollyhock and Periwinkle, were none of these, however they were paved. Technically. They were about 1 and a half lanes at the widest, no markings, and were through the East Texas forests. Rolling and curvy, and while not in the best shape, there were not significant issues. Just had to take care and exercise caution. In total we rode between 15 and 20 miles on these roads. I have to look back at the map and see the alternate routes on FM roads to see what options we would have had.

The one disappointment on the trip was that it appears that someone has made off with the Uncertain road sign so we were unable to collect "U" this weekend as Uncertain, TX does not have a post office or other government building.

Jefferson is a fun old town that really caters to both tourists and bikers. We had a great time with our friends and lots of laughs at Auntie Skinners Riverboat Club.

Weekend miles were about 360 miles. I think I'm just about due for my next oil change and need to start thinking about brake fluid and fork oil...

East Texas Ghosts

2009-08-13T15:42:00.002-05:00

Jefferson, TX is an old "port" (riverport) city in Texas. It has a fairly colorful history and is reputed to be one fo the more haunted towns in Texas.

It is also a very popular destination for motorcyclists. In East Texas, you have to travel through the Piney Woods to get to it, and is located just west of the only natural lake in Texas, Caddo Lake.

WE have been to Jefferson in the past, its a nice little town. Since we also do our ABC's of Touring, how can you avoid getting Uncertain, TX as the U city, just a few miles east.

Fishing Trip

2009-08-09T21:29:00.003-05:00

Its been a busy couple of weeks, last weekend we took an extended 5 day weekend and took a family vacation down to the Schlitterbahn Resort in New Braunfels. In addition to the waterpark we were on the river so we tubed down the Comal river multiple times. We took one of the boys friends with us as well.

This past weekend we had a little party on Saturday and invited a bunch of our friends. It was a great success and a lot of fun. Of course we managed to finish up some more projects just in time, most notably the downstairs powder room, well almost finished, the baseboard still needs to be caulked...

Sunday was a day of rest, literally. I did a couple of pre-rides, wanted to do the bug run but it looks very similiar to past years and would have taken another couple of hours in the heat. As it was I was on the bike about 2 hours or so and ready to hit the pool when I got back. Around supper I asked the boys if they wanted to go fishing and they were all game so we took off to drown some worms and hopefully catch some mighty panfish. Well we had some fun and some luck. Everybody caught some, and they were plentiful, which was good as they weren't very big!

Of course some were a bit bigger than others....

The end is near.....

2009-07-26T21:20:00.002-05:00

Of my honey-do list that is. Well, before I get carried away, its doesn't really have an end, as its a perpetual list but it is reducing to a more manageable number of items now.

Landscaping - done, short retaining wall in front, soil/fill, sods - check
Attic ladder - installed and trim installed.
Antique (well old anyway) Stained glass windows - hung
Front porch lights - installed and caulked.
Back porch light - installed and caulked
Motion detector light at garage - installed and tested
Soaker hoses around front of house
countless bags/boxes of shredding, trash, goodwill, etc
Painting of trim

I know we did more stuff this weekend.....

Sportster case

2009-07-25T23:02:00.003-05:00

B&W conversion of a shot taken in Bricktown during OKC National HOG Rally.

Catching up.

2009-07-10T09:13:00.007-05:00

Busy, busy. OKC National HOG Rally was almost 2 weeks ago. I posted a bit about my trip on Route 66 but never posted anything about the Rally. Of course I had other things on my mind last weekend with installing attic ladder and cleaning out attic in 120F temps, having the alternator my truck go, and our hot water heater, as well as some landscaping in the slight rain on Sunday. Thankfully it did rain actually, as the temps stayed around 80F. By the way today is forecast to be at 103F and its 90F at 10 am already.

Anyway back to the trip. I took Friday afternoon off after all my meetings and hit the road about 1 pm for a 3.5 hour roll on up the highway to Oklahoma City. Except for the construction I made very good time and kept very well hydrated in the high temps. Hooked up with Darlene in her car at the dealership just outside the city, after we sorted out the wrong (former location) directions I gave her. Then we headed off to the rally site and hung out for a while and caught Le-Ann Rimes in concert. I'm not a fan, just don't know her music, not what I typically listen to, and was very pleasantly surprised. We headed back to the hotel and spent some time with our friends in a great room - special thanks to Carla and Tee.

Saturday morning after the HOG parade, a group of us took off to the other Dealership and then back to the rally site for a few hours. It really started heating up and by the time Kansas took the outdoor stage at 1PM it was getting pretty much unbearable. Which is too bad as they sounded awesome. A bit later we headed back to the hotel. The rally site was pretty good and we saw a lot of our friends from the Chapter, several of which who had ridden up that morning and were heading back in the afternoon. Call me crazy but 7+ hours riding in high temps... no thanks, glad we had a room.

After we got back to the hotel and spent some time in the pool we all went out to Bricktown, had a bite to eat and checked out Bikes and Bricks. It was pretty awesome and complemented the HOG rally very well.

Sunday morning we awoke to passing rain and cool temps. The group took off down 35 and I tool a solo route north to hit Route 66.

Here's a few pictures from the weekend activities.

Bricktown

Get your kicks on Route 66

2009-06-28T19:50:00.003-05:00

Returning home from Oklahoma City for the National HOG rally, I wanted to take in a bit of Route 66, since I was so close. I have been on a couple of other sections, Amarillo in TX, and Kingman, AZ. So, head north in Oklahoma to go to Texas....

Most of the landmarks are long since gone but there are a few sights still to see. I hit the route in Edmond OK and headed East to Stroud before heading south on 377. I will have to watch the movie Cars again to catch up on my Route 66 lore.

HOG OKC

2009-06-26T09:08:00.002-05:00

This weekend is the 26th annual National HOG rally. Last year we rode up to Milwaukee for the 25th, which coincided with the 105th anniversary of Harley-Davidson. Massive Party. This year the rally is much closer to home, in Oklahoma City. It will be a much smaller scale but is still shaping up to be a fairly significant rally. Lots of folks from the chapter appear to be going but for the most part everyone has made their own arrangements for lodging so I'm sure we will be running into everyone at the rally site and in Bricktown.

I'm heading up this afternoon, in the heat of the day, with temps in or near triple digits, oh joy.... But on that note I will be taking interstate to get there quickly. Theres a couple of dealerships in the area that are having some activities related to the rally so I may check them out on the way.

Oklahoma City is directly on the map with regards to Route 66 History. On my trip home on Sunday I hope to partake in some of this history with an extended route home.

Got my camera ready, hope to get some good and fun shots this weekend!

Wrap up

2009-06-21T10:10:00.008-05:00

So after riding the Dragon we stopped back in the Deal's Gap for a store and to check out all the t-shirts and writings on the ceiling. Almost ready to go, and the sky's opened up again, hard, for about 45 minutes, so we wait that out until it slows down enough to head back out. This time we are going to take a bit of a detour as we are in a dry county and the nearest beer for purchase is about 15-20 miles away, on Highway 28 in Fontana Village. The ride to the beer store was awesome as it was along the river and there was a thick fog rolling along the river, we kept riding in and out of this fog and stopped at a pull off just before the road crossed the river.

Back on the road and more rain starts up and finally lets up just before we get back to the room and the others. We hang out with the group, exchanging lies and eating pizza for the rest of the night.

The next morning Darlene and I head out on the southern path and do the Cherohala Skyway, some of the others get their first opportunity to to the Dragon and take the northern route headed home. Carla and Tee stick around for another day riding with Family.

Long day this one, we want to make Memphis and decide to go further. Our route turned out to be a wise choice after a leisurely start as we had a couple of light sprinkles along the way that barely got our windshields wet. We run into Michael and Loyce in Arkansas where we stopped for gas and possible hotel, we decide to go another hour or so, but Michael and Loyce stay put. After 590 miles and 13.5 hours on the road we stop for the night, the rest of the crew are about 30 miles further in Little Rock.

A few more ABC points along the way and we arrive home mid afternoon on Saturday, just in time to rest up for the return to work on Monday.

Finally!

2009-06-19T23:42:00.008-05:00

About time I get back to finishing my posting!!! If only I can remember the details...

So we left Charleston, and continued along the coast, stopping in Myrtle Beach. Carla had spent time here in her past. So we stopped for lunch and checked out the scene. Interestingly the recent rally has had some controversy so the locals were quite happy to see us.

After leaving Myrtle beach we continued onto Anderson SC. A bit of rain along the way, yet another rainsuit decision (good call....). We hooked up with Carla's famil and called it an early night as we were anxious to ride the tail of the Dragon the next day.

Darlene and I were on a mission so we headed off on our own while the rest of the crew checked out Terry's shop and hit the dealership. We had some great roads on the way into Robbinsville, NC,

and picked up some State markers for our ABCs and arrived dry at the Two Wheel Inn about 11:15 am. Got settled in, checked our bearings and fired up the bikes and pointed them to Deal's Gap. Whats this? Rain? Sure enough so we stop and suit up and ride through torrential rain into Deal's Gap. By the time we ride the 11 miles or so the rain eventually stops. We pick up our souvenirs and decide to have a shorter route, and do the Dragon twice since there rain forecast for the remainder of the day. Darlene of course makes yet another new friend.

and we get a shot of the "Tree of Shame"

So we do the Dragon, but have to do it very cautiously as the roads are wet, and yes it starts raining again as we are riding. Lots of Photographers, and the trick is to remember your training, look into where you are going, not at the photographers or that is where your bike will go...

more to come...

Road trip update part 2

2009-06-09T09:42:00.001-05:00

Pending..... haven't had time to summarize and select the right pictures, will hopefully do over the next couple of days...

Road Trip Memories

2009-06-03T15:13:00.012-05:00

So many pictures, so many memories, how does one summarize.... Haven't a clue.

Lets see, day 1 and 2, basically get to destination. Hmmm what happened, oh yeah, rain! But the best thing of course was our riding friends.

Day 2 - down for the night - Perry, GA

Day 3 - Hilton Head Island, rest stop and luggage repair.

Come day 4, we had 2 nights in Mount Pleasant, just east of Charleston, SC. Time to relax. We did a variety of things, some as groups and some as smaller groups. Activities included Boone Hall Plantation, carriage tour of Historic Charleston, swimming in the Atlantic Ocean at the Isle of Palms Beach, as well as the typical eating and drinking and other touring, in the appropriate orders of course.

Day 4 - Riding around Charleston.

Day 4 - Historic Charleston area sights.

Day 4 - Isle of Palms Beach

Halfway point, more to follow.....

States visited update

2009-06-02T12:54:00.003-05:00

Free, personalized travel maps at mytriplogs.com

Updated with the three states traveled to last week, Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina. Starting to develop a couple of holes, notably Florida and Minnesota.

While on the road last week, I turned 50,000 on my odometer. Also picked up a Thunder Press magazine at one of the dealerships. There was an article in it on Dave Zien. Dave is a former senator from Wisconsin who helped our chapter ride over 2 million miles last year. He just officially retired his 1991 FXRT with 1,000,000 miles on it. Here is the article

Home Again!

2009-05-31T09:40:00.003-05:00

We got home yesterday after a long week in the saddle. Some quick notes about our trip. From door to door, 2810 miles over 8 days. Longest day was Friday, which was 590 miles which included the Cherohala Skyway and took us 13.5 hours on the road. The shortest day, well there was no short days! Something in the 300's I guess. Although, Thursday, when we did the Tail of the Dragon may have been under 300.

Including Texas, we rode through 9 states, and we rode in 3 we have not ridden before, Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina. Our furthest point east was Myrtle Beach in South Carolina. We swam in the Atlantic Ocean at Isle of Palms beach, just east of Charleston, SC. The water was incredibly warm. I was very pleasantly surprised.

It rained 7 of the first 8 days.... We rode in some torrential rains, and for extended periods of time, I'm guessing 4 hours in a row day 1 and 5 hours in a row day 2. We ended cutting day 2 short. One day we had a brief 4 minute downpour, it was one of the few days we didn't wear rain gear. We even rode the Dragon in wet conditions, which is much less than favorable. On Friday coming home Darlene and I took a more southerly route and had a couple of light sprinkles, which we didn't even acknowledge, the northern group apparently had a lot more rain, and it couldn't be ignored.

Carla and Tee are still on the road as I write this, but they should have sun and heat today, and they have a long day planned.

No significant bike issues but a host of minor ones. Daryl - problem with lock which was rectified with some lubricant. Judy had a bad CB cord. Lois lost the rear shifter. My bike wouldn't start when we stopped for gas. We tried to bump start it, eventually determined it wasn't getting any gas, thanks to Daryl we disconnected the gas line, and in doing so must have dislodged a small piece of dirt, that did the trick as it started right up and worked fine after that. Carla needed a minor clutch cable adjustment. Darlene had the most significant problems, constantly blowing signal lights as we rode several times with flashers on in the rain. Some water seepage I guess. But the most significant issue was when Darlene snapped a post for one of her side bags. Fortunately we were touring Hilton Head and driving relatively slowly so we were able to stop before the bag fell completely off. Some creative sharing of luggage and we were back on the road, and ended up fedexing the bags home with some clothes the next day.

All in all a great trip with great friends.

More postings, trip details and pictures to follow.

Inspiration!

2009-05-21T09:50:00.003-05:00

Preparing for our trip east. All the way to the ocean. Some time in the mountains and hopefully Deals Gap should we appease the weather gods.

Inspiration

Riding Season preperations

2009-05-16T09:36:00.004-05:00

Technically its always riding season in Texas, except for those few days a year that there might be possibility of snow. But this year, once spring hit, the rains started and that has limited the riding a bit, we cancelled one long weekend trip and have only had a few short rides. I still ride regularly, usually taking my bike to work over my truck.

I have been doing my own basic maintenance for some time now and keep my service manual up to date with dates, but I generally take lousy records and the space to write notes is minimal. Besides if I write an extensive note, I'm likely not be be able to read it cause I have a tendency to write messy at times.

So since this is the spring, let me make a record of recent services so I can keep track and refer as needed.

Tires - both tires, front and rear - 44,800
Replaced leaking shock - approx 47,000
Battery - outlived its useful life - 47,500
Oil - all three holes - 48,130

This service also lubed steering head bearings and shifter shaft. A couple of weeks ago I lubed cables. What a difference that made, especially my clutch cable, like I put in a new easy pull clutch!

I still need to get it safety inspected this week. Also should probably check the cable routing, may have a disturbed something when I replaced the battery.

Targetting about 2700 miles week after next so good to have my bike ready to go and feeling comfortable about it.

Also did hurt to have my helpers working on my bike with me....

Bikes, Babes and Rods

2009-05-13T08:18:00.016-05:00

This past weekend was our chapter meeting and the dealerships 7th anniversary. So in typical fashion they have a bit of a party and bike show. They expanded it this year to include a car show and there were some pretty amazing cars that showed up. Considering the weather, cool and cloudy with chance of rain or storms, there was a very good turnout. I even feel a bit for the Sun-Bru girls who were doing the bike wash in barely there bikinis in 70F weather.

So in honor of the event here is a bit of a picture dump of the festivities.

Bikes

Babes - Limited selection 8^)

Rods

Miscellaneous

Mckinney Scenes

2009-05-05T23:44:00.002-05:00

Guitar pratice for Corey again, so time to kill in Mckinney. Had my camera went down to some of the old mill facilities. Got these shots.

Rainy days and Mondays always get me down...

2009-05-03T10:57:00.002-05:00

Not really. Although sometimes Monday's do.

You know that other saying as well, it never rains but it pours. Well in Texas you can take that quite literally. Typical Texas, much of the state is in a drought. Heading into April we are a bit below the norm. Well for a big chunk of the state, we ended April with a bit of a surplus. And May is starting off with a bang.

Here in Mckinney, we ended April with 5.8 inches of rain, and yesterday, we got 1.55 inches. All around us other communities received varying amounts of rainfall. One community a bit north of us received over 8 inches in a two day period over near the end of April.

But even so, there is beauty in all this rainfall. Everything is incredibly green, and quite lush.

Need to dry to get out and take a few photos as there is a lot of water out there.

Get on your bikes and ride!

2009-05-01T09:16:00.004-05:00

Sorry girls, I didn't know

International Women Riders Day

Unfortunately my bike is not going anywhere fast. I wanted to ride to work today, backed it out of the garage and hit the start button, click click then nothing. Oh well, it was a long time coming, I have been worried about my battery for several months, occasionally putting on the trickle charger, but I think it has finally given up the ghost. I ride all year long, and as such don't normally have to keep the charge up. Bless me Mr Davidson, but it has been almost 2 weeks since my last ride and my battery has finally failed me.

Actually, it may be a bit of a blessing as I have been waiting for this to happen for a while, and its prior to our Carolina's trip. So I picked up my fluids the other day, will pick up a batter this weekend, tires are good, I should be good to go!

I was such a skinny lad
never knew no good from bad
but I knew life before I left my nursery -

Random Photo

2009-04-24T11:46:00.003-05:00

Just a shot taken on a recent ride - small town Texas.

Wildflower weekend

2009-04-19T21:04:00.003-05:00

Well, this weekend didn't turn out exactly as planned. Originally we were scheduled to head down to Boerne on Friday for a weekend of riding, wildflowers and general good times with a great group of folks. Yes, the annual Spring Wildflower Ride. I had been fighting a cold for a week and the weather was shaping up to be very, very wet. So Thursday evening we decided against making the trip and maybe taking a shorter day trip over the weekend if the weather held.

Friday opened up with a lot of rain, so it looks like we made a judicious decision. We have all ridden in the rain and certianly will ride in the rain again, but really didn't feel the need this weekend. The larger group did head down on Friday and apparently had at least 3 hours of torrential downpours and thunderstorms. The Radar looked like they may have had even more, as well as wet roads from all the rain. We were planning on riding a different route and if we had have gone, we probalby would have had about 6-8 hours of very heavy rain and severe thunderstorms.

Mid afternoon Friday I opened the garage to throw out some garbage and was greeted by this site at the end of my driveway, in my neighbors driveway.

So yeah, there were some bad storms....

Saturday we took it pretty easy and hung out with some friends and had some fun Wii Bowling. And plans were tentatively made for a ride on Sunday.

In the end there were only 4 of us who rode on Sunday. But it was a great ride. I had planned the route through some roads in North East Texas, some I had ridden before but a lot we had not. We did see quite a few wildflowers unfortunatley no places where we could pull off and get some good shots. In addition to the bluebonnets there were several other varities.

We also stopped for lunch at Loose Wheels, before heading to Carpenters Bluff Bridge. I have written about this bridge before, its just a cool old one lane bridge that crosses the Red River into Oklahoma. I wanted to get some shots and managed to get a couple that I like. After that we stayed on some FM roads for a few more miles at stopped at Big Slicks, another biker friendly establishment a bit closer to home.

Here's a couple of my favorite shots from today.

Ryan's history project

2009-04-13T21:11:00.002-05:00

Ryan is working on a Texas History project. Personally I think he picked the hardest one to do, but anyway its a fun one and he gets to see some Texas countryside and learn a bit in the process.

In short, he has to find (a lot) of Texas Historical Markers, across several counties and put together some sort of presentation.

While we were out on the Panther Creek Easter Egg run on Saturday I found a rather unique "histerical" marker I thought he should include in his project.

Wildflower Ride prep

2009-04-13T17:15:00.002-05:00

This coming weekend is our annual wildflower ride. This is always a good time with lots of great riding and hopefully great wildflowers in the area. This will be my third trip although Darlene has gone additional times. The first trip I took the fields and roadsides were full of Texas wildflowers. Last year they were pretty much devoid of wildflowers. This year are mixed results with Hill Country being somewhat sparce and East of 35 apparently being better but not as good a past years.

Also this year we have a new end point. Traditionally the destination has been Fredericksburg but this year we are trying Boerne. Its a bit further but I think it gives a few more opportunities for the Saturday rides.

Additionally it puts us in the area of something a bit more sinister.... The Devils Backbone, and Purgatory Road, near Wimberly TX.

We'll miss you

2009-04-07T15:09:00.000-05:00

Race weekend picture dump

2009-04-07T14:34:00.005-05:00

Some shots from the weekend. Never got a lot of great shots of the cars on the track as we were a bit low and pretty much all my shots have fence in them.

Race Recovery...

2009-04-06T13:47:00.004-05:00

Its Monday after the Spring NASCAR race at Texas Motor Speedway. We've gone to the races pretty consistently over the years. We've missed a lot but generally we take in at least one race per year, although not always the main event. Texas has 2 Cup races per year. The past two years we have rented an RV and camped out with the other 10's of thousands of crazed fans and have been fortunate enough to hang out with some real race and camping veterans. This year, we decided to go on the cheap and we set up a tent on our friends RV site. It worked out very well. We went out Friday night, saw the Pat Green concert, saw the race on Saturday, hung out some more then went home Sunday before all the madness and the cold front.

Anyway you cut it though, its usually a wild and wooly weekend. Friday night was fun, we hung out at the RV after the concert and actually took it pretty easy. Saturday the weather was great and we spent the day down at the track, checking out the Nascar practice, the vendors and the race.

Saturday night, wow, its amazing was a bit of alcohol, nice weather and plastic trinkets will make some women do. Heck, some of them didn't even need the trinkets.... Like lots of other major events where there is camping facilities of this sort, car races, motorcycle rallies, etc, it can get pretty wild. I think its something that you really have to experience in person though as I don't think words can truly describe the scene.

Anyway, much thanks to Brenda and Charles, Brad and everyone else for their hospitality as always.

Picture dump will follow! Stay tuned.

Marking their territory

2009-04-01T15:30:00.002-05:00

There's a saying that old Harley's don't leak oil, they just mark their spot. Well mine must be feeling threatened once again, and its not even old. Last year I had a small oil leak, at the shifter spline, which took way too long to repair. The other day after our ride to the LA State Rally, I noticed a small "puddle" under one of my saddle bags. I thought it was quite odd, I even checked to see if I had some unknown liquid in my bag that may have leaked. Nothing there, so I took the bag off and noticed oil on my left rear shock. Must have sprung a leak, that may explain why I could never seem to keep air in them either.

So I called the dealership, at first the service tech thought it may have been under extended warranty so I made an appointment and while doing so I found my warranty coverage. Oops, no such luck so I cancelled my appt and asked what the cost was for replacement. OEM shock was roughly $185. Ouch. Each. Ouch again.

So decided to look online. Of course part numbers are not the easiest to find, which makes price checking even more difficult. Found that out, then checked the discounted dealers, still $150+.

Next best option, eBay. Now I'm an eBay virgin. So I find a couple of options for both "new" and used shocks, with used typically being pulloffs for an upgrade, so for the most part should be in good shape. There were some buy-now options for $100 for what looked like a pair so was considering that, but there were also a couple to bid on.

By the time I finally get around to bidding on this one set, there was 13 hours left and no bids, minimum bid of $5. So signed up, got a paypal account and off I went. Next morning, still only my bid, I'm getting excited. 30 minutes left, another bid. Crap have to increase my maximum, keep watching, getting a bit excited and anxious. Crap, maximum exceeded again, a third bidder. So about 2-3 minutes left to go, up my bid one more time and I win! $18.50 plus shipping. Not bad, hopefully they will be nearly new and I should get them either the end of this week or early next week!

Architecture and Morality

2009-04-01T15:23:00.003-05:00

Bit of a music reference, album title from a band in the 80's, Orchestral Maneuvers in the Dark (OMD). Pretty good album, I liked it anyway, bit of synth-pop. Probably their biggest hit was Enola Gay.

Anyway, why the title. Well Corey had guitar lessons so not having a lot of time between drop-off and pick-up, but time to kill, I ventured downtown McKinney with my camera and fixed focus 50 mm lens. I've been wanting to start doing more with my photography of late so the only way to do it to just do it. Mckinney has a bit of a historical downtown, so hence the Architecture reference. Sorry that's it, no Morality reference. Although it is Texas, and Mckinney houses the Collin County Courts.

So I took a few shots of some of the buildings, but I must say my eye is definatly out of practice. Here are a couple of shots, nothing of note that's for sure, hopefully there will be improvement in coming shoots.

Tuesday isn't very busy downtown after supper but there was another photographer doing some fashion shots with a young male model. Looked like it may have been for one of the local community magazines or maybe a catalog.

Oo oo oo!!!!

2009-03-25T20:31:00.003-05:00

Henry Rollins to appear on Sons of Anarchy!!!

Yeah Baby! Two of my favorite things. I've followed Henry Rollins for years, huge fan of everything he does. Have an original Black Flag album, Damaged, on vinyl, from SST records. Have tons of his music in MP3 form, some covers, some Rollins Band, a book, spoken word cd, I've seen him perform his spoken word three times locally here in Dallas. And on FX network Sons of Anarchy. Not a big TV guy, a few shows, Sopranos, other than that the primary regular shows are news and sports, but I did catch every episode of SoA in their first season.

I'm pumped and can't wait!

LA State Rally

2009-03-22T22:47:00.002-05:00

This was the first time I have been to the Louisiana State HOG Rally and I must say I enjoyed it greatly. This year it was in Shreveport so it was almost too convenient to miss, just a short 200 miles. We left mid-afternoon Friday and took interstate the whole way, getting in around 6:30 pm. Thanks to Kim and Glen once again for putting up with us and sharing a room for the weekend.

We hung around Saturday, toured the rally site, went to the dealers and didn't do any rides this time around. Although there were a few to do including a Bonnie and Clyde ride that would have been pretty cool.

Relatively early night Saturday night and a good early trip home today got us in before noon for breakfast with the boys. The wind was picking up and we got a bit the last hour or so, but the first hour was awesome with a clear sky and low sunlight at our back.

We ran into several other Eagles and hung out at the concert Saturday night for a bit.

Two words of wisdom. Don't drink Margarita's in Styrofoam cups (I think the alcohol causes the petrochemicals to leach out and cause slight poisoning.... Really) and don't eat a Funnel Cake around Darlene.

Here's some shots from the weekend, including an awesome totally chromed bike and other sights.

Musica Musica

2009-03-18T22:52:00.003-05:00

I have Sirius satellite radio in my Truck. For music I usually listen to Faction (think action sports - mix of rock, alternative, punk and hip-hop) and sometimes spin the dial. In mornings when I drive my truck instead of my bike to work I usually listen to Howard Stern. Tonight on the way home from my hockey game (yet another loss, although not nearly as heartbreaking as the loss last night 0.5 seconds left....) I was spinning and stopped on Boneyard. Boneyard is not my favorite station by any means as it was the replacement for the Punk Channel, which was my former favorite... Anyway, some song caught my attention so I stopped. Then the next song came on and it really caught me off guard. Not so much the song but the band. Can you believe it, it was April Wine. Maybe most of my Texas friends won't recognize, but any of you Canadians out there, who grew up in the 70's are familiar with April Wine. I would have been less surprised with Loverboy, but would have been totally blown away if it was Max Webster!

All things must pass however as I stopped to get gas, music had moved on to AC/DC and when I started up again, uggg, it was Def Leppard. Sorry, not a fan, spin the dial back to Faction, no good, couple more spins and land on Underground Garage, playing the very classic Velvet Underground - I'm waiting on my man. Redemption!

Completion

2009-03-17T20:16:00.013-05:00

All these weekends working on renovations are finally starting to pay off. This weekend we put on about 2.5 gallons of paint in the main entranceway and hallway. And we finished the French doors! Well there may be a bit of finish work on the trim but essentially they are complete. So in honor I am going to post a couple of picture of some of the work we have finished.

Here are a couple of shots as we were moving in.
Entranceway, which shows the landing, the "arch" into the living room, and the three teirs on the stairwell.

Some in progress shots. Note archway had been completed by this time, and you can see that the wall on the top tier of the stairwell has been extended to the ceiling.

Here is the finished French Door view. The paint colors are a bit off in these pictures, a mix of many different lighting, including natural, incandescent and flash, sorry about that.

Here is our game room "kitchenor" (hint - Bachelor). We don't really have a before shot but its at the top of the steps built in behind the extended wall where the third tier of the stairwell was.

I don't have a before shot of Ryan's bathroom, but this is the boys bathroom when we moved in which is basically a mirror image.

And the after shots.

We have had several other projects, some small, some not so small, and many more still on the list. Here is the early shots of our backyard, before pool and fence, when there were trees where the pool is.

And a very recent backyard shot which shows the pool, the fence and the shed.

Brrrrr....

2009-03-12T10:38:00.004-05:00

What a crazy, if not typical bout of Texas weather. Last weekend was working outside in shorts, temps over 80F, I actually had to put the A/C on for a couple of short spells to cool off the house so everyone could sleep comfortably. We've practically been in a drought so far in 2009, then as of yesterday, the temperature drops to below 40 for the high and we get about 3.5 inches of much needed rain in 24 hours. I had to switch the thermostat back to heat as it cooled off so much. Forecast for the next couple of days is continued cold and wet, then back to seasonal temps.

Last weekend was our chapter meeting and we had a huge turnout. We were awarding our long flyer patches in commemoration of our chapter riding in excess of 2 million miles in 2008. Here is a copy of the patch.

We had a rather large support group from the Panther Creek Chapter in Allen come out and recognize us on this milestone.

Also a bit of excitement, one of our good friends, Doug "Mini-T" Hull is in contention for a spot on the next season of America's Biggest Loser. For those unfamiliar with the show its essentially a televised weight loss competition. Doug is in the third stage of "auditions" and was taking a video of his activities and his support group, which is of course his extended family. So for the video Darlene panned the rather boisterous group of about 100 or so. I think it certainly will provide the impact desired.

New Photography project

2009-02-27T11:12:00.002-06:00

I think going to take on a new project, just to make sure I do this thing I've had in the back of my mind for a long time. I don't know the best way to describe but it has to do with hulking masses of abandoned and discarded mechanical equipment. This facination goes back many, many years. I guess in part back to the the old Ford graveyard on my uncles property. They always drove Ford vehicles and when they died or otherwise ended their useful life, they old cars and trucks ended up at the bottom of the field. As a kid it was cool look around, play in the vehicles (not always safe since we were shooting out lights and windows with pellet guns, etc) but see the different innovations, like pushbutton transmissions, etc.

Over the years I've taken pictures of these sites, but not to extent I would like to. Typically my shots have been more focused on individual items than "collections", but in our travels I have seen some interesting collections. And these collections appear to serve many purposes. Some are artistic, like Cadillac Ranch, some are commercial, like the wide variety of salvage yards that dot the countryside, and even then there is a subset within this commercial category. A great example of that subset is Earl Mann's Bug Shop in Ardmore, OK. I visited that yard several years ago (pre-digital) and it was great, countless VW's and in various states of dis-repair with grass growing up through them, etc. Great place for photos.

Some of the other collections appear to be just that. Some may have some commercial enterprise just by default, but the origin tends to be either like my uncle, a dumping ground for useless equipment, or perhaps a personal taste or passion by the owner and the start of a collection that has grown out of control. There is one collecition of rusted tractors, mostly smaller tractors, in a yard just west of Paris, TX that is really the inspiration for this project. I have ridden by it many times, each time thinking I need to go back and shoot.

I have seen a variety of these "boneyard" including boats, bicycles, motorcycles, tractors, lawnmowers, and lots that aren't that specific although those are as interesting to me as a specific collection.

Greg Windsor posted a couple of pictures recently of a Combine boneyard (near Canyon, TX) that I have to track down at some point. But for now, here is a teaser of Cadillac Ranch.

Day After Chili

2009-02-22T20:46:00.003-06:00

Well I must be more competitive than I thought. We came in 2nd place. Still very, very good, but I admit I was actually quite disappointed. I was really hoping to win so that we could bring the trophy back to American Eagle so we could host next year.

It was another long day, long week actually, two hockey games and still had to prepare the meat and get supplies and packed. Up fairly early Saturday and off to Bedford. It was very windy and the setup was different than the last time in Bedford, so we were quite exposed. Luckily all the canopies held and the flame never blew out till it was almost done.

The judges came back for a second sampling, so I have a feeling the competition was close. We got some very positive feedback from the tasters so overall I feel pretty good, we were recognized, but still.

Oh well, back to normal today, more home projects. Finishing details. Cut and installed trim on the french doors, hung the piece of crown moulding and did some caulking, including Ryan's bathroom. Stuff is nearing completion.

Chili-axing...

2009-02-20T20:13:00.002-06:00

Its the big event tomorrow. The southwest regional chili cook off... Support your local HOG chapter. Spices are mixed, meat is, well lets just say we're waiting for our next job to come in...

Also on Sunday, the Krewe of Barkus will be having their parade in downtown Mckinney. Check it out.

Shreveport Mardi Gras Picture Dump

2009-02-19T14:11:00.004-06:00

A sampling of the pictures I took in Shreveport last weekend. Click on the individual shot to enlarge. As they say, every picture tells a story.

Shreveport trip

2009-02-18T14:33:00.002-06:00

Busy week, a bit behind on my posts. We had a great trip to Shreveport, 200 miles each way, we left early Saturday and stayed off the interstates for the most part. We arrived to a good group and a good turnout. Lucky for our group, one of the guys, Steven Foster, had an in to a guest tent. We paid a small fee, got some food, a long sleeve tshirt, and primo seating for the parade. Had a lot of fun. I'll post some pics under a seperate post.

I'm not much of a gambler, and true to form, I didn't lose any money, cause I didn't gamble. However, Darlene does partake a bit and as such, we had some entertainment and value for our $$ for a while. And no, we did not win.

Monday was a holiday for us, and since we came home on Sunday, that means home project work. Actually several of our projects are getting to the point were they just need to be finished and we are getting much closer. We finished up some painting on Monday and it feels good.

Can't seem to get ahead though. This Saturday we will be in Bedford all day cooking some prize winning chili! Hopefully one of our two teams will win and we can bring next years competition back to AE and won't have to travel so far!

Prayers for David

2009-02-11T09:41:00.001-06:00

Hey Dave, just want to let you know we are thinking and praying for you, Annette and the kids. Everyone is keeping us up to date on your progress and we are looking forward to you being back in the air and on your motorcycle.

Headway

2009-02-08T20:41:00.002-06:00

Long and busy weekend. Weather was quite nice, overcast and mild. So Saturday morning I washed and waxed my bike and Darlene's car. Sat night we went to some friends and learned to play blackjack in anticipation of a productive trip to Shreveport next weekend (NOT!) Anyway, we had a lot of fun even though I lost about $125 of pretend money.

We also (well Darlene) painted the bannister for the faux balcony so its pretty much ready to hang now.

Of all the household, handyman chores, Sunday was the one I hate the most. Of course we are in texas, so no, you can't have a smooth wall, you have to have textured walls and ceilings (better to hide the drywall imperfections....). So we tackled the remaining knockdown texturing we had to do. And we have this wonderful little patch kit to do about 70 square feet, including arch. After a short break to go get more media, we finished. Yes, we finished, the knockdown texturing. We are now ready to paint, and can soon hang the doors, the bannister and the crown molding. Yes, crown molding..... Be sure to stay tuned for that one!

Super Bowl Sunday

2009-02-01T09:16:00.002-06:00

Darlene and I are going to a Super Bowl party this evening. Its being hosted by one of her co-workers and it should be a lot of fun. We are bringing poppers (jalepeno) and some dessert.

Go Pittsburg! Actually it really doesn't matter that much to me, I'll likely be rooting for Pittsburg even thought they are the favorites and I typically root for the underdog.

Yesterday was a nice day and we had a ride. It was for one of the charities we support, the State School in Denton. After dropping off a load of mittens and hats we did a parade of about 40 bikes around the facilities for the residents. Some of them were obviously very excited.

Then it was on to lunch at Babe's in Sanger. Babes is a popular destination for bikers, its just off FM 455 which is one of the better roads to ride in North Texas, in fact we rode several miles on it on the way home. Babes is famous for their fried chicken which it typically served family style, and they didn't dissapoint.

One I forgot

2009-01-30T23:35:00.002-06:00

I had one more picture from the other day that I really liked, but I had a bit of a compositional problem with it. The big bright spot in the upper left corner. But I really like the shot, even with its faults so I will share it. I am a bit photoshop challenged, so therefore I was not able to hide this fault, so there!

Horse Wreck

2009-01-28T13:59:00.003-06:00

Heard an interesting term today... Had the inspector come by today for annual termite inspection. Lousy day to do so, but anyway, we were talking and he mentioned a few years back he got in a "horse wreck". A horse "throwed" him and he got all busted up, with broken ribs, collarbone, punctured lung. He's ok, just had to rest as there's not a lot can be done for those injuries. But he got in a "horse wreck". Must be a Texas thing, but its the first time I heard that one.

Ice Storm

2009-01-28T13:12:00.003-06:00

Yesterday we had an ice storm. The roads were a mess this morning, starting after supper last night. Today it is warming up above freezing so in all its probably not as bad as it could be but fortunately I can work from home so I really don't know how bad it actually was, other than what was on tv, and it looked pretty bad!

We had a hockey game last night, the roads were too bad for me to risk and shortly after I made that decision, some of the other guys thought similiarly. The rink probably should have cancelled games but at decision time I guess the conditions weren't that bad. Oops just checked the score, looks like we lost 10-0. We obviously didn't have a full bench and from the looks of the shots, we were in pretty bad shape.

So anyway, figured I get up and out to take some photos before I settled into work. I expected a bit more ice on the trees and stuff, but I think I got some good shots.

Peace has returned to the office

2009-01-23T09:21:00.002-06:00

Good news in the office today. After several months, maybe even longer, a co-worker's daughter had commited to playing basketball for a full scholarship at the University of New Mexico.

All of us in the office are very excited for Vanessa and her family as now their life can return to normal, as normal as it can get with a daughter going off to college to play basketball.

Congrats! I may have to watch Women's College Basketball in the future. Go Lobos!

Nnaji chooses New Mexico

December Article

Re-organization

2009-01-22T23:36:00.003-06:00

Everyonce in a while you have to reorganize things. This past weekend we redid our office area, which was much needed. In doing so you tend to find things that you always had, but had either forgotten about, mis-placed, or otherwise neglected. In our cleanup I found some wedding picture disks that some of our friends had given us some time after the wedding. Well I just posted several on the wedding blog site, including an absolutely fantastic series of shots from Rod Dixon.

Crazy Texas Weather

2009-01-22T12:39:00.002-06:00

I rode to work yesterday but took my truck today as I had some errands to run. Tomorrow I plan on riding again.

Interesting weather, sunny, dry, dry for weeks actaully, we are really in need of some rain and some sustained rain. And this dry weather is making for some interesting temperatures.

Yesterday it got fairly mild, it may have reached 70 but not sure. Today it will definately get into the mid 70s and tomorrow its supposed to get into the low 80's. But the real interesting thing was the low temperatures this morning. In Mckinney, which is a bit of a low point, it was 25F. Yet just west of Ft Worth, it was 50F, within 40-60 miles, east/west and with no front, there is a 25 degree variance. This afternoon the temperature will be much more consistent throughout.

The weather guy blamed it on the dry conditions, with the temperatures. He compared it to the desert, where is so dry and the temperature variation between day and night can be significant.

Of course this weekend we will have another cold front, cold and windy and generally miserable on Saturday. If we're lucky we'll get some rain.

First Place

2009-01-18T23:12:00.003-06:00

In the words of Ricky Bobby, if you're not first, you're last... Well victory is bittersweet. In the case of the American Eagle Chili Competition, victory means doing it again in a few weeks at the regionals. So, yes, we are on our way to Bedford.

As impossible as it may be to believe, stacked up against 10 other entrants, the judges felt our chili was the best so we received first place Judges Choice!

As always it was loads of fun, and our intent was to win presentation! Who cares about how the chili tastes if your tent looks good! Well that's not quite true, I really do care how the chili tastes and actually put a lot of effort into making a competitive chili.

So this year, we got beat in presentation, by Bobby and Jo-Ann Mims and Bill Davenport, who had a cowboy setup that a movie set would be envious of! Very well deserved on their part. Tremendous effort and in truth I know how much work that is, so would be surprised to see a repeat in the future but very much looking forward to that likelihood.

I learned a couple of things this year, and have some tips going into the regionals. After travelling all over the metroplex the past couple of years, it would be nice if we or Billy-icious could bring it home to Corinth!

It's On!

2009-01-12T07:39:00.002-06:00

The Chili competition is heating up! The trash talk has begun in earnest.

Our Annual chili contest is this year. We entered for the first time last year, mainly for show (I can say that now that I have recovered from the taste loss....). So this year I have a bit of a different attitude, focused again on show but with a new theme this year.

A new recipe, I think its a bit easier at least all the spices I can pick up locally. Actually I really enjoyed last years recipe except that one of two cuts of meat did fall apart a bit too much.

We picked up most of our props yesterday and should have all we need.

Not sure if we will join the trash talk or not. I have a feeling we will have a "job" to do later this week and a chili competition is a convenient way to "dispose" of the "evidence"....

New Year's Rides

2009-01-05T11:22:00.004-06:00

So far in 2009, the weather has been very cooperative for riding. But I am sure that will change as today for example, we are having freezing rain.

New Years Day is our annual Brass Monkey Ride. This year we are a bit late getting out the door so we caught up with the group and joined in mid-ride. I don't recall the exact number of bikes but I believe I heard numbers of 82 bikes or so, and we were not the only riders that were not part of the official count.

Here's a classic picture of Mini-T leaving the festivities!

We started off in warm gear but the temps got very nice, and standing around was definately shirt sleeve weather, but riding still needed leathers.

Then on Saturday, Jan 3, we had our chapter meeting and went out for lunch after the meeting. It got over 80F that day. I rode in a long sleeve shirt and was very comfortable. There were bikes everywhere and groups of riders. Not what you would expect in January. Of course, typically, a cold front arrived Saturday night, although without the usual light show. It got into the 50's overnight and supposedly got up to 60, but that wind made it feel a lot colder.

50 / 50

2009-01-05T11:10:00.004-06:00

Trying to establish holiday traditions can be tough, but you just gotta stick them out sometimes. Last year we initiated an annual polar bear swim in our pool, after a previous effort at a friends house. Last year was quite successful with lots of the boys friends getting wet.

This year we had high hopes for a good turnout, but unfortunately even best laid plans can fail so you can imagine if the plans are poorly communicated..... Especially with teenage boys.

So while we were low in numbers, Marc, Corey and I took the plunge. We had a couple of spectators but no other takers. Other visitors arrived well after the event and far too late to participate.

The air temperature at the time of the jump was 50F. The water temperature was also 50F. Needless to say, the time in the water was short indeed.

2008 ABC's of Touring

2008-12-31T21:03:00.005-06:00

Holy New Year's Eve Batman! Its time to submit the ABCs before the year is up. Yes in typical fashion, last minute activity. In fact we rode yesterday to finish up our HOG ABCs in order to submit with a post mark no later than today. Of course we had to find the time to ride to finish up, and these past several weeks were particularly challenging, but we did it.

Our furthest state north was Wisconsin, as far east as Ohio, and as far West as California (Texas is pretty far south....)

The story on the Nevada sign is that I took this great little highway (HWY 164, Joshuya Tree Highway) through the desert to get the California border. When I got there, the sign for California was gone, obviously a victim of theft. Across the road was the Nevada sign so I turned around and got that. I eventually did get the California sign on the interstate but its a much less interesting road. Oh, and of course, for these two state markers, I had forgotten my HOG Tales magazine at the hotel so couldn't submit those two.

Anyway, we met our goal, patches and pins all around, woo hoo!

Oh what the heck, here is California! Hmmm, pretty boring crop too!

2008 - A year in review

2008-12-31T20:22:00.002-06:00

2008, as they all are, was an exciting and eventful year. On a global scale, a significant shift as evidenced in the economy and even just the prices of gas. I remember planning our trip to Milwaukee and budgeting $2.50 for a gallon of gas, and re-budgeting on an almost weekly budget as gas prices rose to over $4.00 just in time for our trip in August, and now, they are at roughly $1.50.

A presidential election year, and what a wild one at that. Full of firsts, a black man and a woman, fighting to be the presidential candidate for the Democratic Party. For the Republican party, a 72 year old candidate, former POW, and for his vice president, an upstart woman governor for Alaska, Sara Palin. Looks like the US is finally catching up to other countries, with sex and racial equality....

Well personally, I had a lot going on this year as well. First and foremost of course, marrying (re-marrying) my lovely wife Darlene. We got married on March 29, a biker wedding of sorts. It was a great time. Lots of great friends, family and fun. I love you Darlene.

Work wise, also an interesting year, as we were bought by HP. During that process I took a new role and afterwords questioned my decision to a degree but overall feel comfortable with my role, my manager and the organization I am with during these times of corporate and economic change.

House wise, wow, where to start. One major accomplishment of course was our fence, and there was a lot of smaller accomplishments. Of course a continual list of projects in various states of completion. But its all good, actually it is all good. Some of them test opinions but in the end so far they have been successful and satisfying.

Motorcycle. Another eventful year. Some changes from early start, we had some fairly lofty goals for mileage this year, each hoping to ride 20K miles. Well with the house activity, the chapter activity, and being around more for the boys, we didn't hit our mileage goals, although the price of gas certainly made that happen a bit easier as well. I had over 18,000 miles and Darlene had over 11,000 miles. That included our 3200 mile round trip ride to Milwaukee for the 105th, and it included my 3100 mile round trip to Las Vegas. It did not include the 2 or 3 other trips that we typically do, including no trips to Arkansas this year, compared to typically 2 per year.

Family. Haven't been home in a couple of years, its hard with everything else going on. Still need to get our passports sorted out, and start looking forward to our status in the long term. Mom and Dad are still healthy, but are advancing in years, and Dad makes in interesting of course with fairly major surgery on his ankle. I call regularly but if there is one resolution I need to make it should probalby be a trip home this year.

Closer to home of course, the boys. In some ways growing up too fast and in others not growing up fast enough. Not little kids anymore. Even Marc is in high school. Corey is growing up. He has a good head on his shoulders, quite worldly given his age and truly lack of real world experience. He'll be getting his license this spring. OMG! I'm actually still taller than Ryan, not by much, Corey, well, just don't ask me again next month... Marc, he still has a ways to go, but definately sprouted a bit.

2009, what will it bring. I haven't made any resolutions in a couple of years. Maybe I should this year. Besides the one above which I don't want to mention again for fear of hexing it, I need to focus on health, particulary loss of about 15 lbs. and financial. That one should be a bit easier as the more major projects are behind us.

Credit where credit's due

2008-12-27T22:52:00.003-06:00

Earlier this fall, we have a quarterly photo contest at the chapter meeting. There was one photo entered that I really liked, I even asked the boys for their perspective on the entries. Out of the 4 males in the house, 3 of us, myself included liked one in particular. And the other liked it as well, just not the best.
Well, it didn't win, and no it wasn't one of my shots, I don't seem to have any luck with the quarterly contests.

However the photo was submitted by Matt Cairns and I'm not sure if it was Matt or his wife Robin who actually took the pictures. Anyway, I really wanted to see it in black and white so I asked if he could email it too me. Which he did and I finally got around to converting it. Unfortuately I really don't know a lot about b&w but I'm pretty happy with the results and printed an 8X12 to give to him. So I am going to post it here, its not my shot, its Matt Cairns but wanted to post it anyway.

Paris Bound

2008-12-26T10:50:00.003-06:00

Paris, Texas that is. Disclaimer, this posting is about a week late. I hadn't downloaded any pictures so was conviently waiting on that. Last Saturday, Dec 20, we got a call from the group that they were going to ride to the Paris dealership for something to do, and for the sale. We had plans on going on the Big Texas Toy Run the following Day, but the weather was quickly changing our mind. Darlene had too much to do so I went with Carla and Tee, and Judy and Daryl.

It was relatively warm when we started mid morning, in fact, while waiting I took off my chaps and long sleeve shirt as it looked like the sun was going to break. I still had my heavy leather jacket. It quickly became obvious that it wasn't going to get any warmer however but I was fine for the ride to the dealership.

We actually spent about 90 minutes in the dealership, can you believe that! Anyway, we found a place for lunch and when we left the dealership at 2 PM the weather was starting to change and get colder. First on to the tower, then we searched out a local eating spot but when we got there, they were closed as they were moving to a new location that day, so we ventured over to Chili's. Had a bowl of chili there, imagine that.

Anyway, it was now about 3:30, and we still had an opportunity for some sites so decided to lead the group on a Red River Crossing, we crossed into Oklahoma heading north into the wind. The air temperature was now about 43F, and it felt every bit of it, if not more. On to Carpenter's Bluff bridge, then to a gas station in Denison for a brief warmup before heading home.

Big Texas Toy Run

2008-12-19T13:10:00.002-06:00

The Big Texas Toy Run is scheduled for this Sunday. We are planning on going. Its a huge toy run, one of the biggest in the US. I think there have been as many as 40,000 bikes in some years.

Today is a beautiful day, with temperatures forecast to be in the low 70's today and tomorrow. But then.... Saturday night a cold front will be blowing in. Temps are expected to drop below freezing.

So for now, we are going to the toy run. Sunday morning may bring another story...

Photography

2008-12-18T10:06:00.002-06:00

On Tuesday of this week, we woke up to freezing conditions and roads covered with ice. Schools were delayed 2 hours, then cancelled. I decided to work from home but ended up taking Ryan into work. The roads were surprisingly bad.

Anyway, during my travels I popped into the local Wolf Camera to get some digital reprints done for our Christmas cards. Two things surprised me. The first was how many people were there getting digital reprints, considering the road conditions, but more so, how many films were being processed. Yes films. I haven't shot a film since I bought my digital camera 3 years ago, and I thought I was late to the game.

There were several on the rack, enough for me to notice. I guess it just surprised me. If it was after Christmas I'd be less surprised as a lot of folks take snapshots over the holidays.

'Tis the Season

2008-12-17T09:12:00.002-06:00

And its always a busy one. Places to go, people to see, and a boatload of stuff do do around the house from cleaning, decorating, cooking, gift wrapping, etc. Still have to find time to relax occasionally.

This past Saturday was our AEHOG Christmas Party. Always a lot of fun and this year we had premium jello shots smuggled in as the hotel clamped down on the TABC rules a bit.

One of the big announcements this year was the results of our effort to be the first HOG chapter to ride 2,000,000 miles in a year. North Texas HOG was the first or one of the first to ride 1 million a couple of years ago.

Our chapter heavily promoted this event and aggressive targeted new members to join, which was needed if we even had a hope of achieving this incredible milestone. Earlier this summer we had a bit of a checkpoint and I think our efforts were in jeopardy but it was never communicated. In fact North Texas were also trying to achieve this milestone, and were far short, at roughly 1.2 million miles.

Anyway we have approx 400 members, of which a large portion partipated in the activity. But collecting all the miles in a timely manner was very difficult. At the deadline we still had about 60-80 members who had not reported. We extended the deadline for those members for an additional week or so, this was planned from the outset.

At the party, Lynn held everyone in suspense, teasing us at one point during the party with a faux announcement, that had us about 200,000 miles short.

Finally the official announcement 2,004,880 miles. Woo Hoo!!! Honestly, I had no idea if we would make it or not. Even if we collected from only 200 members. Actually we had results from 213 riders. That is just roughly 9,400 miles each on average, which is considerable miles for a "recreational" vehicle as most folks don't use the bikes as their primary transportation.

Darlene and I both contributed, with her having 11,072 miles and myself riding 18,688 miles. I was a bit short of my 20K goal, but considering the riding we did not do in the latter half of the year, it was still quite good. I think next year we will reduce our goals again rather significantly as we have a lot of projects to finish that we started last year, and our boys are at an influential age and its important that we are around to give them proper guidance. Hopefully gas will stay down in price though....

Also, special shout out to Senator Dave Zien. As the story goes, he had a issue with his motorcycle just a couple of miles from the dealership. From what I understand his visit to the dealership and his meetings with AEHOG members was so great, that he joined our club just so that he could contribute to our goal, and contribute he did to the tune of 55,897 miles.

Of course all these miles come at a cost. Fortunately for most of us its literally just financial. So also this past Saturday, I needed to put new rubber on my bike. Both front and rear, at 44.8K miles.

Lewisville Toy Run

2008-12-07T22:35:00.004-06:00

The Toy Run was Saturday. The staging was in Lewisville this year, apparently back to where it had been in the past, although the past 2 years had been at American Eagle. The weather was great and it was a phenomonal turnout.

One of the things I like about events like this is the variety of bikes and riders. Nothing too extravegant this year, but there were some interesting bikes. This Yamaha chop, very nice and even more impressive is that it has an El Diablo Run sticker.

This chopped Ruckus was probably the most radical bike for sure. There was at least two other Ruckus' that I saw in addition to these but this was very cool.

And of course, paint jobs.....

Texas Cold Fronts

2008-12-05T09:45:00.002-06:00

Winter in Texas can be interesting, with balmy shirt sleeve temperatures mid day, then a few hours later be huddled up in big puffy jackets (mind you this is TX so that about 40F or lower).

Depending on the season, these cold fronts can easily impact the weather by 20-40 degrees, and often bring on violent storms. Spring and summer typically have storms, fall and winter typically have wider temperature swings and wind, but sometimes we are lucky with the precipitation aspect.

This past Wednesday was a dinner ride that I was leading. I took my gear to work so I would go directly to the dealership. In the morning it was about 65 degrees and since I had my work stuff, I had to wear my gear and litterally sweated on the way to work. By 6 PM on the way to the dealership it was in the mid to low 40's with a very cold and brisk north wind. Yes, it was cold.

I remember one particular February cold front from a few years ago, it was 82F during the day, and within 6 hours the temperature dropped almost 60 degrees with a bad storm that covered the roads with ice. The cold temps lasted about 3 days. I was staying at a hotel in Dallas it actually got down to 8F during that week and pipes froze in the hotel lobby. The roads were a mess for about 3 days. I was still truly Canadian conditioned at that time so I was wondering what all the fuss was about.

This Saturday is the Lewisville Toy run and morning temps are forecast to be in the 30s although by afternoon it may, may get up to mid 50s. Should be fun. Winter riding is always fun cause you say hi to folks you know but don't recognize due to cold weather attire. I should get some good pics tomorrow!

Stresses

2008-11-20T11:03:00.002-06:00

This time of year starts to get stressful. Holidays are coming, Christmas in particular. This year is also a bit unique with the current economic environment weighing on everyone's minds, and in our company we had a significant merger and are in the midst of actions that take place as a result.

I guess we will be able to relax a bit this next week. We have an overnight planned for this weekend with a small group. The ride will be slightly chilly but hopefully no rain. The leaves are most likely past but the ride should be good anyway. I have planned the routes, we are riding to Talihina, Ok, and taking somewhat scenic routes both to and from our destination. After that trip is a short week as its Thanksgiving next week, with Thursday and Friday being holidays.

Interesting hockey game last night as well. We finally won a game, it seems like forever. This past Sunday our game was cancelled due to an ammonia leak at the game, so we missed that one. Last night was a "D" game. We won 6-2, I had a goal, and assist and a roughing penalty. Stupid refs.... One shift I get sticked and poked and hacked and hear the ref telling the guy to keep his stick down. Next shift its start out similiarly, I pick up the puck behind our net, get a two-hander accross my stick, hear the ref admonishing the player and I carry the puck the length fo the rink. I see a weak defenseman in front of me so I skate around then have to cut back to goal, they have another player back who just happens to put his skate out and catch me as I am skating to the front of the net and go flying. Again no call. I'm not upset with the player but the ref for lack of a call. I lost the puck of course and the other team starts breaking out, I catch the puck carrier in the neutral zone (I'm a bit pissed) and he grabs a hold of my stick and glove and hauls me down. I yank my arm out from under him and in frustration punch him. Of course, I am the only player to get a penalty. Four infractions on one shift, 3 by their team, one last one by me, very frustrating. Anyway, we won, but they did score their second goal while I was in the box.

Dog Vs Cat

2008-11-17T14:28:00.001-06:00

A little humor for a distraction today. And in honor of our 2 cats

DOG DIARY

8:00 am - Dog food! My favorite thing!
9:30 am - A car ride! My favorite thing!
9:40 am - A walk in the park! My favorite thing!
10:30 am - Got rubbed and petted! My favorite thing!
12:00 PM - Lunch! My favorite thing!
1:00 PM - Played in the yard! My favorite thing!
3:00 PM - Wagged my tail! My favorite thing!
5:00 PM - Milk bones! My favorite thing!
7:00 PM - Got to play ball! My favorite thing!
8:00 PM - Wow! Watched TV with the people! My favorite thing!
11:00 PM - Sleeping on the bed! My favorite thing!

CAT DIARY

Day 983 of my captivity.

My captors continue to taunt me with bizarre little dangling objects.
They dine lavishly on fresh meat-while the other inmates and I are fed hash or some sort of dry nuggets. Although I make my contempt for the rations perfectly clear, I nevertheless must eat something in order to keep up my strength. The only thing that keeps me going is my dream of escape.

In an attempt to disgust them, I once again vomit on the carpet.
Today I decapitated a mouse and dropped its headless body at their feet. I had hoped this would strike fear into their hearts, since it clearly demonstrates what I am capable of. However, they merely made condescending comments about what a 'good little hunter' I am. Bastards!

There was some sort of assembly of their accomplices tonight. I was placed in solitary confinement for the duration of the event. However, I could hear the noises and smell the food. I overheard that my confinement was due to the power of 'allergies.' I must learn what this means and how to use it to my advantage.

Today I was almost successful in an attempt to assassinate one of my tormentors by weaving around his feet as he was walking. I must try this again tomorrow -- but at the top of the stairs.

I am convinced that the other prisoners here are flunkies and snitches.

The dog receives special privileges. He is regularly released - and seems to be more than willing to return. He is obviously retarded.

Hockey Season

2008-11-12T13:58:00.003-06:00

Wow, this season is shaping up to be a bit of a frustrating one. For the past several seasons, the Mens C league has been split into and upper (C1) and lower (C2). We have consistently played in C2 with some success. Well this year, there is one league. Supposedly there was going to continue to be parity as the upper players had either left or whatever, but its sure not shaping up that way.

The last 2 games have turned into blowout losses for us, and both games have turned very ugly late in the game. The previous one was a bit chippy throughout, culminating in a full on body check by their tallest player against one of our smallest players, into the boards with less than 20 seconds in the game. It was a complete and totally blatant hit, which is completely illegal in our league. Of course the referree's don't take any additional action to punish this behavior other than assigning a 2 minute penalty.

Last night was very similiar. We faced the team with 3 of the top 4 leading scorers in the league. And it didnt take long for them to increase their stats with one of them having 4 goals and one assist. While we were down some skilled players I don't believe the overall result would have been any different (a loss). However this game stayed very clean and actually fun (what can you do) until late in the 3rd period. And of course it ended similarly, a body check to one of our players with 15 seconds left, which actually turned into a fight and almost a brawl. While we lost a key player for a game due to the fight, we were lucky in that we didn't lose anyone else as Noyes came off the bench and was pretty much third man it. I don't think I've ever seen him skate that fast!