Quick Trip to Texas

Taking a part of last weekend, I decided it was time for a visit to hang with Mom. I decided to ride the new bike down.

The visit was wonderful. It was good times with Mom. Great food, great conversation and Jim popped over for a visit as well.

The trip down was 779 miles and the trip back was 783 miles. Long, but fun days on a bike!

The ride down was a little tough. Fromn Amarillo to Brownwood, the temps were over 100 degrees. The hot spot was Post, TX, at 107 degrees.
The bikes temp registered 101 degrees in Abilene.

For most of a day, I worked around the property. Mom's road was washed out, so I used the tractor to fix the road and build up the 'water dump'.
The "four sixes" (6666) is a massive ranch in the Texas panhandle. Briefly I stopped for a rest at a roadside park, named after the ranch.

Really????? Hey kids....here is a playground.....but don't enter because of rattlesnakes!!!!! Only in Texas.

Tyler's Intersquad Scrimmage

Tyler came out performing really well, in the team's "Green and Gold" scrimmage this past weekend. He is #44 and plays an Inside Defensive End. Being a 4A sized school, all but a couple of kids just play on one side of the ball. Tyler's game is defense. Enjoy the pics.





Tyler is also the back-up Tight End. Here he is running a good route.

Cassi's New Pad

Couple of weeks ago, Audra and I headed to Boulder for the day with a trailer attached to the 4-Runner, loaded up with furniture for Cassi's new appartment. The day was filled with unloading, putting beds together, running to HomeDepot for some odds and ends....etc.

It was a fun and exciting day!!!!!

2010 Big Dog Ride

The 2010 Big Dog Ride was yet another, epic event with fantastic scenery, great riding and the comraderie of an elite collection of gentlemen. For me, the 2010 ride (my second year) was another opportunity to get to know more of the invitees and truly enjoy their company.

This year, the host hotel was based out of Ridgway, CO, about 10 miles north of Ouray. This was a great location, as it allowed us easy access to all the San Juan's had to offer. For two days we bounced between Ouray, Lake City and Telluride. We tackled the challenges of Engineer Pass, Imogene Pass, Black Bear Pass, Cinnamon Pass, etc. At times the riding was easy, allowing everyone to "take in" the scenery and "soak up" the high mountain air and solitude. At other times, the riding was so technical and tough, every micro-second was spent concentrating on your line, as to avoid an "over the cliff", career-ending performance.

For the full Write-Up.... CLICK HERE

New Bike in the Stable

Ever since Audra was able to enjoy a short ride on a big touring bike, we have both had a desire to get something more comfortable for longer rides.

Our opportunity surfaced lately, when a friend offered us a wonderful opportunity to purchase his BMW K1200LT. One test ride was all it took to fall in love.

RMAR - Rocky Mountain Adventure Rally

About 9 months ago, I learned that WestFest (an adventure motorcycle rally that I have attended for the past three years), had been moved on the calendar. It now conflicted with Audra's birthday. So in an effort to not miss some fun, I called half a dozen riding friends to ask if they would be interested in doing our own event, where maybe 15-20 riders would show up. Long story short, 120 registered and turned our cozy, little outing into a major ADVRider Rally.

We met in South Fork, CO, (in between Alamosa and Pagosa Springs) on Thursday and enjoyed four days of outstanding food, riding and friendship.

Joining me was Bryce and Audra, along with Marcus, Jessica and my friend from Amarillo, Terry. (Tyler just got a new job and couldn't get time off....and Katie stayed at home with him.) We all shared a big cabin at the base camp.

So yeah....you can imagine the logics and prep to cook two breakfasts and two dinners for 120 people. It went very well and was a huge success.

Enjoy the pics.....






Bryce playing in the mud.







A pic of me leading a large riding group.
Jessica and Terry on their 6 hour ride through the mountains, while Marcus and I were playing on tough double track.
Marcus and I at 13,000 feet.