Jim Fails to Keep the Rubber Side Down

Yesterday we rode around Lake Sammamish.  It was a very expensive ride.  We were almost home, when Jim reached down for a water bottle, rode over a reflective dot on the road way, and slammed to the pavement in a split second.  Remember Arte Johnson on Laugh-In falling over with the tricycle?  It was sort of like that.  Anyone under 45 will probably not get the reference.  Go Google it, it was funny television.
Anyway, here is the broken helmet that had to be replaced.  Notice the vertical crack where the arrow is pointing.  It goes all the way through.

 

Additionally, the sun glasses, the bike shorts and the carbon fiber handlebars had to be replaced.  We took the bike in to get the handlebar tape replaced, and they uncovered the crack in the carbon fiber.  I'm glad it was discovered before they broke on a ride. 
This is a shop dog in one of the stores we visited yesterday.  Is he not adorable?  He's Chihuahua and Jack Russell.

 

We saw this on the way home.  It's a motorcycle with a mountain bike rack on the back.  Pretty cool.

 

Sorry about the back picture quality, I took this through the window.  The dog wanted to eat that hamburger really badly.

 

So, how is Jim, you wonder?  He's banged up some.  This was the major point of impact on his hip.  There's also road rash on his shoulder, elbow, knee and calf.  All damage is on the left, which is not the side of his pelvis he broke in 2006.  He didn't feel too awful this morning. 

Jim spent the day on The Rock, taking May back to the dentist.  I had an appointment with the podiatrist, and then I did the 5 mile walk with the giant hill.  Tomorrow we'll try riding again, hopefully with a better outcome.

Another Ride in Carnation Valley

As expected, I woke up this morning virtually crippled from the Chirico trail hike.  My muscles really hurt!  Stairs in particular are a problem.  We did the Carnation Valley ride to loosen things up.
This weekend is the Evergreen Classic Benefit Horse Show.  The number of temporary buildings, trailers, and porta potties is just amazing.  Horse events require infrastructure.

 

A big honking horse trailer.  Note the lift gate in the back.  We were somewhat surprised it's not air conditioned.

 

Then it was time to check on progress at the road closure.  A concrete thing that funnels water (what would you call that?) has been put in place.  The lids for it can be seen behind it.

 

This is a very large back hoe.  Note how tiny Jim looks next to it.

 

The flower fields are in full bloom.  There are many sun flowers.

 

Other than that, we have zippity doo-dah all to report.

Chirico Trail to Poo-Poo Point

We have had to be up early more often than not this week, so it was nice to sleep late today.  After a leisurely morning we met Pat and Clark for a delightful lunch in Issaquah.  Food was good, the company was better.
After lunch we decided it would be good to hike the Chirico trail to see how my new orthotics are doing.  It's 2 miles and 1,700 feet up, the grade is fairly relentless.
This is Mr. Rainier from the south launching point for the paragliders.  I have not taken one good picture of the mountain this summer due to persistent haze from fires in Asia and humidity.  It's SO annoying.

 

This is the north launch, aka Poo-Poo Pont.  It was windy at the top. From eavesdropping on the guys flying we learned that there is a pattern to the wind; they wait for it to be favorable and then turn around and run off the launching area, into the wind.

 

There were many tandem jumps.  The instructor was giving the woman instructions on when to run straight, when to run to the side, and what to do once in the air.

 

There they go, they're leaning forward and leaving the ground.  Notice the orange piece of tape is horizontal to the ground.

 

This guy was just magic.  He's flying a smaller wing than the tandems.  He basically got it filled out, turned around and stepped off the ground.  Really pretty to watch.

 

This woman was not paying enough attention to the instructor.  She had a video camera on a stick and was paying attention to the camera, and not what he was telling her to do.  Eventually they launched, but it wasn't pretty.

 

This was really not pretty, a strong gust went through and just picked them up.  The instructor was able to get his weight shifted back onto the seat in the harness, but she's pretty much along for the ride.

 

This is the guy I'm going up with, if we ever do a tandem jump.  His name is Todd Henningsen (253.226.3357).  He's really good, and eavesdropping revealed that he is well respected in the paragliding community.  This is his wing, beautifully shaped in the wind.

 

 And this is him, on the ground, getting his parasail up in air while he watches it.  None of the other tandem jumps did that, as soon as the wing left the ground, they were running.  The two of them calmly turned into the wind, and stepped in to the air.

 

We got back to the truck in the parking lot about 4:45, and the shuttle was on its way back up to the launch zone with more people and more kit.  Some people hike up and fly down.

 

Today drove home the point that I am not in good enough shape to do this hike.  The descent was very painful, putting a lot of strain on my knees and hips.  I think we should ease in to this one a little.

The First Faint Hint of Fall

I went for a walk yesterday with my new shoes and new foot beds.  It's amazing how uncomfortable a new pair of the same shoes I have been wearing for the past 4 years can be.  It's also terrifying since I only have one pair left in the shoe hoard.  It's all a by-product of the Accursed Bony Feet From the 7th Circle of Hell.  However, as interesting as I find my feet, I'm certain no one else does.  So I will talk about Fall.

While walking, I detected that first faint change in the air that signals Autumn.  Today I read in the Seattle Times, that "... summer is almost outta here."   Yep, we had our two days of 90's, and now we are done.

I see people out with buckets, picking the blackberries, and for the life of me I do not understand why.  They're terrible!

A Tragedy in One Act

Creeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeak.   Creeeeeeeeeeeeeeeak.

"Jim, what's that noise?" an agitated Allison asks.
"It's the ice maker." Jim replies, cooly.

Allison and Jim wonder why it's making that noise.

Holy Crap!  The dynamic duo realizes they have once again allowed the frost in the freezer to grow thick enough so that the ice cube ejector can't rotate freely and eject ice.  Breakage will ensue.  Fortunately the blow dryer frees the mechanism quickly.

Note to self!  Stop letting the frost build up on the ice maker.

The End.

Hot in the City

We had summer this past weekend.  It hit 93 (33.8C) yesterday, and to us pale northwesterners, it felt pretty dang hot!  Yes, I know, everyone else sneers at our complaints of being too warm.  However, today we have the on shore flow and a significant temperature drop.
We did our favorite ride in Carnation Valley Saturday.  We left WAY too late in the day.  I ended up overheating, and had to sit in the shade and pour water on my head.

A significant water control project is being done.  The fields in the background almost always flood in the winter.  

Yesterday we were up and out earlier.  We did the 5 mile walk with the giant hill.  We're getting faster on the hill, and I no longer have to stop for a breather.  So there is progress on that fitness frontier.

 

This is what we're doing today.  Jim's going in for a screening tomorrow morning, so he's spending the day drinking gatorade and chicken broth, eating jello and generally starving to death. Note to self in the future; Campbell's is the least disgusting chicken broth.

 

Other than this maties, I have zippity doo-dah all to report.