Mt Erie ..

Steve and I decided on doing some rock climbing at Mt. Erie on Monday. Skies were to be clear, and temps around 40° up in Anacortes. This was our choice after being somewhat tired from our Saturday climb, and not thinking the skiing was going to be all that great.

We had a leisurely start to the day, and left Edmonds around 8:30am. Our intention was to climb in the Snag Buttress area of the mountain, and check out some new (to us) routes in that area. Steve's main interest was in the route Touching the Sky, a 5.9 sport route accessed from Snag Buttress. That meant climbing the first pitch of Zig Zag (5.7) to get there. Once on the ledge, we determined that the down climb, and water seep on the route meant we did not want to do it. Instead we opted to climb up the ledge slightly above the top of Snag Buttress where there were multiple routes to chose from. We opted for the Ray Auld Memorial Route (5.7) which brought us up to the top of wall.

We hiked around a bit trying to make sense of the maps and crags. We stumbled upon a short blocky sport route which I am thinking might be A View to a Climb (5.6) on the Lumpy Crag. Hard to tell. We climbed it, and just west of the top we were above the Friction Slab area. After that, we played the typical Mt. Erie find the best way down game. We looked through the book and followed some weak trails down. (Made more fun by walking on slippery grass with rock shoes.) A free-hanging rappel off a Madrone tree and some bramble bushwhacking got us back to the packs.

It was a fun day. However, I seemed not mentally up to the climbing and had difficulty at times with moves/grades that are well within my ability. Also of note, was the generally crummy rock quality and lack of good protection in some areas. Plenty of relic pitons and old bolts around too.

Coming up Zig Zag (photo by Steve Machuga)

Steve leading up Ray Auld

Show off

Mount Rainier :: Perfect Timing!

Tuesday, September 14th - - It was mid-morning when I finally entered the southwestern side of Mount Rainier National Park. The morning had not been hopeful, awakening to cloudy skies once again. But luck was with me and as I drove toward the park the sun appeared and burned away the clouds. Quite a welcome change from my previous visit of a week ago, which was basically a drive-thru since I couldn't see anything at all due to the clouds, the fog, and the rain!

I forget the name of this creek but it was only a few miles into the park and it was the first view I had of Mt Rainier. Breathtaking.

This is a little further into the park. When the roads were constructed through the park the engineers took into account the “viewing pleasure” of the public and I must say they did an excellent job in selecting the sites for the viewpoints.

A couple of close-ups of the top of the mountain.

Probably the most visited area of the park is in the south-central part. It was about 12:30 in the afternoon when I arrived in Paradise and, as you can see, the clouds had moved in. I spent some time in the visitors center at Paradise - looked at the exhibits, viewed the park movie, then looked through the telescopes and saw three climbers halfway up the mountain.

The mountain played peek-a-boo with the clouds, but they eventually completely blocked out the view. I joined some of the other visitors on a short walk along one of the many trails in the area.

Mount Rainier and me!

Hollow Rock Ice Cave

Remember my shot "Into the Ice Cave" from yesterday? That shot was taken from outside the cave, looking into it. Well, here is what it looked like once I crawled into it! It was a fascinating wonderland of ice! I had to lay on my back on the ice and stick my arms (holding the camera) through and around the icicles you see on the right of this photo in order to get this shot. I couldn't look through the viewfinder because my arms were outstretched to reach around the icicles, so it took several attempts to get the shot I wanted. It wasn't an easy shot to get, but I sure do like what I ended up with, so to me it was definitely worth the effort!

La Sportiva Hi5 skis

I see that Lou over at Wildsnow finally let the horse out of the barn :-)



http://www.wildsnow.com/5292/la-sportiva-hi5-ski-review/comment-page-1/#comment-36675



Big help now as I really wanted the info a couple of months ago! I know Lou had the skis and wondered why he waited so long on the review. Likely out skiing. What was he thinking? Let me help make it a stampede of sorts.









If you follow this blog you know I hadn't skied much (as in none) for a decade or so. The climbing trip last winter to Chamonix was my cardiac jump start. The continued ski season (and terrible weather) here in the NW and with the resulting never ending snowit has allowed me to ski instead of ride my bike or rock climb.



Enjoying it actually. Getting togo back to several old spring ski haunts because of it.



I have been skiing on an assortment of old and new boards over the winter. Shaped, asymmetrical,super short, skinny, fat and in between. Lots of skis. They all generally turn left and right as required.My BD Aspects, Dyna Stokes and the Dyna Broad Peaks are missing from this picture. No huge surprises except one. And that one ski the Hi 5 has been an interesting education that continues.







I first saw the Hi5 at OR last winter and was more than a little skeptical ofthe newLa Sportiva Hi5 or La Sportiva in particular for skis. But I did want a pair of thoseall carbon race boots the STRATOS!Any way, hard to miss a bright green, giant ski that resembles a retro water ski more than snow ski.Or so I first thought. It was a ski that stood outin the ski racks at two "ski bars" and ridingthe trams in Chamonix over the winter. And of the La Sportiva Hi5sI did recognise, all seemed amazingly LOOONG in comparison to the other skisbeing toted around the valley.(from a distinct mental note taken back in March...and obvious ski/mtn gawds riding them)















Hugerocker on the tip of this ski. (well huge to me, the guy who had only skied one pair of rockered skis, these) a squared cut tailand a full 105mm wide at the waist. It is a 75/25 % rockered ski. My early production 188cms pair measure 135/105/125 mmand weight in at 8# 10oz.Light I thought for such a fat and long ski. But they will get lighter in the / production. The goal is 7#15oz for a pair of 188s. My skinny162cm Se7en Summits with arace binding weight 6# for the pair as a comparison, My 178cm BD Aspects are just over 7# with bindings.



The Hi5s are a good bit wider and longer than either with the resulting performance advantages.



In French here:



http://www.sportiva-fr.com/produits/catalogue7.php?id=74



- Longueur : 168 - 178 - 188





-Weight: 1.600gr - 1.700gr - 1.800gr - Poids : 1.600gr - 1.700gr - 1.800gr



- Construction: Sidewall Fusion - 75% Camber / Rocker 25%.Progressive sidecut Progressive sidecut



- Songs: ABS thermoplastic



- Core: Wood Light Karuba - Ame : bois de Karuba léger



- First layer: fiberglass tri-directional



- Second layer: carbon fiber bi-directional / fiberglass inserts



Almost nothing on the Net early on besides these:











Having been on the same hill, on those same days, lhave to admit I now really wanted to try thesefat boys out. But sadly, mine would show up in Apriland the closest I would come to a Cham pow day was a foot of nasty Cascade cement at Crystal that was doing point release slides under the lifts by the afternoon..







But that turned out to not be a bad thing. I wanted to get some skinning in on my lwt stuff but the new snow and avi danger made that problematic. So I stuck withthe Hi5s on the lifts all day. It seemed better than going home, as most did. The first steep I dropped into was 4 turns to the packed again. And I thought that was rather easy. Easier than expected for sure. Next drop I made 6 turns and was still not being pushed. Seemed too easy in the sloppy snow. Terrible snow to ski on but the kind of snow a good snow boarder loves So next time I dropped in the same place and did sixturns before the first tree. Holy shit! Are these really 188cm and 105cm wide? These will take some imagination and relearning what is possible was my thought that day.



Just say no to short skis ;)These are realskis!



No wonder the kidsin Cham were on head height or better skis lengths. These things turn like they are a150mm soft, skinny skis or a snow board. And maybe they are with that much rocker and flotation! What ever is going on here for technology, they sure are a hoot and super easy to ski on!



Check out the actual surface area being used on flat groundbetween my 162cm Se7en Summits and the Hi5 in a 188cm. That is SOME seriousrocker!



When you start looking at rockered skis you need to be really careful with the definition because the ski companies aren't. "Early rise", "semi rockered" and the other terms so easily bandied about generally aren't truly rockered skis. Real rockered skis, ski and turn like much shorter skis than their measured length would first indicate because there is less surface on the ground taking full weight.









When the tips of your skis set on the snow like the Hi5 obviously does, the ski is rockered. 410cm of rocker by my measure on the 188s. A quick example of the difference? A 173cm Stoke ski like a 188cm Hi5. If I cut hairs here, the 176 Aspect feels slower to turnthan thelongerand wider 188 Hi5. Most of that is rocker, some of it is the additional side cut of the Hi5. The pointis the Hi 5 turnslike a much shorter skis in my opinion. Surprizingly so and much to my personal enjoyment.





I hear fat skis are a little tough to edge. Big, stiff boots will solve part of that.



Fat skis are not suppose to like light weight boots. I took that test and like the Dynafit TLT Ps with these skis. And I generally ski the Ps without the tongue, as I was doing in the skiing comments above. Add the tongue and there is plenty of boot for the Stokes or the Hi5s in any length. But I haven't bothered adding the tongue. Might be the fact the Hi5 is so easy to ski and not the boots. It is a question yet unanswered to my satisfaction. But I have the technology to find that answer and will come back to it when I do. I like to think of the Hi5 as my Aspects with power steering and 4 wheel drive if that makes sense. Lower geared, and easier to drive in shitty snow.





The only other fat ski in my quiver is a pair of the new Dynafit Stokes. Goodski as well.But neither ski is really FAT by today's standards. Can't consider the BD Aspect as fat either.I wanted some serious rocker just to see what it was like to ski. Butif possible on a more traditional ski with some side cut. Dbl rockered skis seem a little extreme. But may be I am wrong there. Traditional you say? Well no tail rocker (unless you consider the last 2" of ski rockered" and thereasonableside cut seems almost traditionalthese days. The side cut isn't that far off between the Aspect and the Hi5.BTW I simply haven't noticed the square cut tail. When you sit back there is good support and edge there...like a decentGS ski. Looks a little weird a first but then so does this ski.That was amazingly easy toget over. And amazingly easy to set tail first in hard snow if it is required. The Hi5 numbers made it looklike a more "traditional" ski with some added rocker...OK a lot of rocker.



(all factory numbers..not my numbers)



Mustagh SL 187cm6lb 9oz 122-88-111



Aspect 186cm 7 lb 2 oz 130 / 90 / 117



Drift 186 cm7 lb 10 oz 138/ 100/ 123



Stoke 191cm 7 lb 14oz134 / 108 / 122



Hi5 188cm 7lb 15oz 135 / 105 / 125



Wailer HB 190cm 9lb 4oz 141/ 112 / 128



Megawatt 188cm 10 lb 1 oz 153-125-130







My pre production pair of Hi5s are a few oz.over at a measured 8# 7oz. La Sportiva missed the mark early on by 4oz per ski in a 188. Close enough from my perspective for what I am getting in added performance. I actually made a special trip to Marmot just to check my own numbers again when I started listingthe weight numbers on the Aspect and Stoke. Part of that is the HI5 is a little longer and a good bit wider. And the ski performance matches the Hi5's bigger numbers. Bottom line is I don't care about the weight on this ski (within reason) compared to my Aspects or Stokes.The Hi5shave proven themselves asmy go to, "Hero skis" any any kind of soft snow. If I need a hero ski that particular day I'll deal with the marginal extra weight on the uphill. (Thank Colin at La Sportiva for correctingthe production numbers on the skis being shippedas of Sept '11)



Ithink, if given thechoice, you'll find fewwilling to ski a non rockered 175 or 180cm ski where you can so easily ski the rockered 188 Hi5. The rocker makesthat much difference.I like skiing a little longer ski again.It wasan easy sale after just threeruns.









This is the most funall aroundski I have been on for junk snow. Short of ice and really hard groomers anyway. They aren't GS skis. There is a definite speed limit. These are my hero skis for junk snow. Ski just about anything,anywhere on these and feel awesome while doing it. Might even be able to give my boarding buddya run for the money inwind blown. Which says a lot. No way I would have believed that if the only place I hadskied them was on Chamonix pow. Might be the only ski I use for the down there next winter though. Rippingright out of the gateon the Midiis a dream I intend to make real with this board.









Bottom line? If you haven't skied a fat rocker ..you should ASAP. Hero skis, plain and simple.. With adecade off line...I needed a hero ski ;-)

When Simplicity Trumps Comfort

Will Spring ever arrive this year? Looking at all the new snow on the trail as we braved another "spring ride," I began to seriously doubt it. Nonetheless, my Rivendell is back in action after a long winter.



Now, here's an admission: Although the Sam Hillborne is super-comfortable, when it comes to shorter rides without major hills I've come to prefer a more pared-down roadbike. In fitting the Rivendell with a front rack, decalleur, handlebar bag and good sized saddlebag, we made a conscious decision to optimise it for long distance travel and exploration at the expense of simplicity. Though individually each accessory is fairly lightweight, all together they do add heft to the bike and make it more difficult to take in and out of the apartment. And I find it inconvenient to detach and reattach the bags depending on what kind of ride I am taking, so I would rather just leave them on.



I have a routine 30 mile ride that I do whenever weather permits, and on this ride my ideal bike would be a lightweight single speed (fixed/free flip-flop hub), with a tiny saddlebag and no fenders. Currently, my Moser and Bianchi share this role, with the Moser being the fixed gear and the Bianchi essentially acting as the freewheel singlespeed, since the 2x6 gearing is so unfinicky that it allows me to forget it's there. By contrast, the 3x8 gearing on the Rivendell feels cumbersome on a ride where I don't need to shift gears.



I am not the first person to experience the epiphany that "for fast and short rides I prefer Roadbike A, while for long and hilly rides I prefer Roadbike B." Still, I was surprised to feel myself developing this preference - particularly the single speed and no fenders part of it. There is something to be said for just being able to throw a bike down on the grass and not worry, for pedaling fast and not playing around with shifters. At times I value this simplicity and ease more than I value load capacity, gearing, comfort, and yes - even keeping my clothes clean and dry. There, I said it!

Port Angeles

A few miles above Lake Crescent we came to the city of Port Angeles. Port Angeles is one of the northern most citys in Washington. From there you can catch a ferry, cross Strait of Juan de Fuca, and dock in Victoria, Canada. Regretably we did not have the time to take the ferry to Canada. I will save that trip for another time. (Remember it is another country, and now you need a passport to go there. Even for just a day visit.) In this photo you can see one of the ferrys. They were huge. We wern't able to get real close but did get some shots as some came in on there return from Canada. We visited some gift shops, had a bite to eat, and decided we would spend the night in Port Angeles as it was to late in the day to see Hurricane Ridge in Olympic Park, which was to be the high point of the whole trip.

Rolling Log

Here is one of the logs coming into shore. It was rolling in the water as the tide came in. It couldn't go out due to the rock behind it, and seemed to be taking it's time coming on in. We didn't get to near as you could tell it was very heavy and would be deadly if a big wave were to pick it up and throw it on to the beech. We took it's photo and wondered on.

Understanding Rest and Recovery

For the past month I've been cycling about 120 miles per week, not counting transportation. And as someone who is completely new to the concept of "training" (i.e. cycling with the goal to become faster, better uphill, and so on) I've been struggling with how to structure my rides. Last year the very notion of structure would have seemed completely ridiculous: I would simply go off on my bike whenever I had the time. But last year I never cycled the way I do now, never exerted myself to such an extent repeatedly. Now everything is different, and I feel completely lost in this new territory.



One thing I've realised, is that if I do strenuous rides for more than two days in a row, on the third day my performance starts to get worse rather than better. Even if I don't think that I feel tired, it's as if my legs stop working properly. If you're an athlete, you are probably thinking "well, duh!" but to me this was a novel discovery. The idea of needing to rest and recover in order to improve did not have meaning until I physically experienced it.



What I am trying to figure out now is, what exactly does resting and recovering entail? Some advise that on days off, you absolutely must do "recovery rides" - 15-20 mile rides at an easy pace on fairly flat terrain - and that not doing them will result in stiff muscles and make it even more difficult to ride the next day. Others advise that on days off, you need to stay off the bicycle completely and just basically lounge around and eat so that your system can fully recover. Unless I am misinterpreting (which is entirely possible), these two points of view seem at odds with one another. So which is applicable under which circumstances?



Having tried both methods, I am still not sure which works better. I am also not sure whether transportation cycling (on an upright bike) is considered a type of recovery ride, or whether it's considered not cycling at all. Given that it activates a different set of muscles I suspect the latter, but I could be wrong. None of this stuff is intuitive for me, which makes it both frustrating and fascinating.

Minnesota Corn

Blomkest Corn, originally uploaded by ParsecTraveller.

Looking down on sweet corn in a field in the rural town of Blomkest, MN.

I've grown 'Golden Bantam' sweet corn. I only got a few ears of corn, but that may have been due to our sun-baked California clay soil. Not the best for growing vegetables.

EZ Tools? Finding What Works

I knew that I was pushing my luck, riding a bike that had just been assembled the previous day. And sure enough: 5 miles into the Vermont Fall Classic my dynamo headlight rattled loose. I was just about to rummage around for my folding multitool, when a riding companion, Vorpal Chortle, whipped out a little wrench-looking thingie with multiple heads that I'd never seen or used before. "Here, maybe one of these is the right size?" It was. Without getting off the bike, I tightened my headlight and amoment laterwe were on our way again.



No one thought that anything out of the ordinary had transpired, but I was stunned. This was not what tightening bolts on a bike was normally like for me. This was done without effort, and more importantly, without the usual flood of shame and anger at my helplessness.



I've explained before the situation with working (or rather not working) on my own bikes. It's not that I don't know how or don't want to learn. I can give others tutorials on bike repair. But I have problems with my hands that limit my hand strength, dexterity and fine motor skills. Even just holding some tools is difficult: They fall out out of my hands, because my fingers can't grip them tightly enough or wrap around them in the right way. In the very best case scenario, I might be able to do an easy repair (like tightening a headlight bracket) but it will take ages. I have tried individual wrenches, Y-wrenches and folding multi tools, and it's always the same story. How or why the flimsy looking Park Tool MT-1 was any different was beyond me.



Shortly after the Vermont Classic I bought an MT-1 of my own (available locally at Harris Cyclery), and can now easily handle anything on a bike that requires a 3/4/5/6/8mm allen wrench, an 8/9/10mm socket wrench, or a straight blade screwdriver. That does not cover everything, but it's a start. There is something about the size and shape of this thing that both stays put in my fingers and provides enough leverage to compensate for my lack of hand strength. The joy this has brought me is almost embarrassing (thanks Vorpal Chortle!).



Granted, this particular tool may not work for everyone. But my point is,if you are finding bike repairs physically difficultthere might be something out there that does work. I am going to experiment more aggressively from now on, and maybe I will find tools for all the other tasks I still have trouble with. For instance, I might be imagining this, but I recall watching a woman use a collapsible type of lever that connects to the hub axle(?) to remove a tire in one fell swoop. Maybe I ought to look into that and try to get my flat fixing time to under 30 minutes. In the end, I would love to put together a list of "EZ Tools" suggestions, but I'm not sure how universally applicable these things are. Ultimately, we must keep experimenting to find what works for us, and for some this will be tougher than for others.

Fishing Pier at Myrtle Beach State Park

I think fishing piers are kind of like boardwalks. They may not scream summer in quite the same way, but they do seem to have the same air of relaxation about them. They seem to say, "pull up a seat and stay awhile". The pier at the State Park was one of the nicest ones we have seen at a State Park.



There are benches to sit at and fish, or just watch the water. The pier has places to measure and clean your fish. And there are people both young and old and everywhere in between. I could sit and people watch here for hours and hours and hours.





The view is not too shabby either!



I like this one much better though because you can't see the buildings as much.



I'm going to miss this place when we leave here.



Living the life in SC!

Blue Flower

This photo is one that my email friend Cindy took in her yard in England. It is so nice I had to share it. I just love the blue color and the composition and lighting. You can see more of Cindy's photos on her blog at http//cindyssnaps.blogspot.com or go right to them on my links list.

A Trip Full to See Friends

This week was supposed to be our vacation week. We were going to go down to Ft Myers beach to meet up with some friends and to spend some beach time there as a family. Then I got a job offer to spend the summer at the beach, and I needed our vacation week to work out some of my two week notice. So we took my two days off to go down instead. We landed at Peace River and drove down to Sanibel Island for the day.



At Sanibel, I was able to see my dear friend Barb and her husband John. I haven't been able to visit with Barb in person for a few years now and it was so wonderful to catch up in a face to face way. She is one of the neatest people I know and someone who has had profound impact on my life, so the visit was uplifting and nourishing to my soul. We grabbed a bite to eat at a restaurant there and the food was very good, so my body was nourished well too. I would have liked more time together, but the time we did have was very precious to me.

Since we were at Peace River, we also had a too short visit with some very special friends. As soon as we returned from Sanibel Island, Rich and Donna had a cookout for us. I've shared here before how Donna is one of the main reasons I stuck with pickleball. Beyond pickleball, I just enjoy her as a person. She is one of those rare people that is sweet and interesting all rolled up in one.



We had the treat of sharing the cookout with some newer pickleball friends, Russ and Jody. They went to Capone's with us the night we visited there, so we had already shared that fun night together. We enjoyed getting to know them better tonight too. We decided to head out tonight instead of waiting until the morning, so we didn't get to play pickleball together. We loved what time we did have together though.

Living the life in Florida!

Last day of the rally

Today was the last day of the rally. We all ate breakfast together, which was really neat. There is something about sharing meals with people that it very bonding to me. We left right after breakfast so we could get over to Clermont as soon as possible. We enjoyed meeting so many new and very interesting people and we are excited that many of them will be with us this next week too!



On top of that, we have Austin's birthday coming up and our travel buddies are heading down to Florida. It is looking like it will be a great week for us!



Living the life in Florida!

Anthropologie Bike Lane Dress

Last week the annual ritual of acknowledging aging descended upon me, and my loved ones consoled me with gifts evoking youth and whimsy - including this fun and girly bicycle dress. But can a cotton frock covered with a colourful, geometrically improbable bicycle print cure existential ennui? Why yes, it can. I wore it on the day in question despite the winter temperatures, and found it impossible not to have fun. Promoting frolicking to the extreme, it was a fantastic gift. The Anthropologie Bike Lane dress has figured prominently in the velo-twitteverse since it came out earlier this winter, and so I thought I'd post a review for others considering it.






The calf-length strapless cotton voile dress has classic 1950s styling: a rigidly tailored bodice and a full, loosely pleated skirt. The colour of the fabric is a vintagey cream, with the bicycle print in faded ink-blue and bright vermilion red. Both the skirt and the bodice are fully lined. I received this dress in a Size 2, and was sure that I would need to exchange it. But to my surprise, the small size fit me and I was even able to wear it over a long-sleeve wool baselayer. The design requires the bodice to be very form fitting, or else it won't stay up. Any larger and the dress would have been too loose. I would say go down one size from what you normally wear, and other reviews of this dress seem to suggest the same.





Despite the whimsical print, the Bike Lane dress is not trivial to get into. The construction is surprisingly traditional (read: complicated). The bodice is corseted, with flexible plastic boning sewn in at the rear and sides. There are two systems of closure: a long zipper on the side, and buttons along the back. Depending on how flexible you are, you may or may not be able to get into the dress on your own.







The buttons along the back are cloth-coverd and very pretty. They are also rather difficult to button and unbutton, because they are large and the button-holes are small. The Anthropologie websites describes them as "decorative," but technically that is not accurate since they actually function to open and close the dress in the back. I think what they mean is "decorated."






All the tailoring does serve a practical function, in that the dress really does stay up without straps. The corseting and the pleats criss-crossing the front also make it possible to wear it without a bra for those who require only moderate support.





Optional straps are included with the dress and they can be attached to sit either straight over the shoulders or crossing at the back. But if you are going to use the straps, I suggest sewing them in, as the hooks do not always want to stay in place.






While the Bike Lane dress is complicated to put on and may not work for all figures, if the fit is right it is very wearable and easy to move around in. There is nothing cycling-specific about this dress, but it is certainly "bikable." The full skirt makes it easy to step over a frame and to pedal, and it's not so long as to be prone to flying into spokes. The corset in the bodice is flexible and does not constrict movement. The quality of the fabric and craftsmanship is good, with a lot of little details that give this dress an elegant simplicity. I will probably wait for Spring/Summer to wear it again, and the gauzy voile should be comfortable on warm days. The very recognisable print means that it can't possibly be an everyday dress, but it's perfect for special occasions. A great gift for bicycle-obsessed ladies with a penchant for vintage tailoring.