Author: gfox (old content)

Goofy Powder

Shane and Sean

An early morning led to a spectacular day. Spectacular in the fact that I had a great time. Myself, Sean, and Shane went snowboarding today, and it was my first time this season. What a way for me to start the season.

wind blown flags

Let’s start with the pre game show. I managed to pick up Sean and Shane on time, so we were able to leave Victoria on time. The drive to the mountain literally sped by. On the hill while gearing up I could tell that the snow was in great condition. Thursday night there was a 55 cm dump, then a smaller dump Friday night. It was also cold, colder than I was expecting. Combine these two conditions, and you get wicked powder!

snow on my board

Yep, the quest for the day was untracked powder. It was delicious, and I consumed all I could. While Sean was taking a break, Shane and I hit a few tree runs. More powder. Along the sides of the groomed was more untracked powder. It was amazing.

chairs disappearing into the fog

The weather was a little foggy at times, but it was always clear at the bottom. The wind kicked up a couple times too, so that added to the chilliness.

shane fixing his board

I felt pretty good all day, but my right foot was always getting sore on the lift up. I ride goofy foot, so maybe the weight of the board was causing it, I am not sure. I also think I want to buy some better bindings. The straps on mine would loosen part of the way down the run. Take out the equipment factor, and I was very happy with the day.

snow covered trees

All in all it was a long day (left Victoria at 5:45 am, and got home 7:00 pm), but it was most definitely a fun road trip.

shane getting ready to ride

sean boarding

Wireless Documentation

leaf on rock

I returned the Bluetooth adapter I bought the other day. It was some cool technology, and it was kind of neat that I could hotsync without using the cradle, but I couldn’y get any range out of it.

I have no other wireless devices, yet the Bluetooth adapter could not reach the 15 ft or so through one wall to the living room. That meant that I would only be able to use it in the computer room, which was pointless since I might as well just use the cradle. Also hotsyncing over Bluetooth was noticeably slower than syncing with the cradle.

Surfing the net through Bluetooth was cool, and I must admit that my Tungsten T3 has a gorgeous screen (the graphics downloaded looked amazing), but again it was rather slow. I would rather walk to the computer and load the web page.

Anyway it was fun to play with. I understand better why Bluetooth hasn’t taken off the way people would like. The current implementation was a pain in the butt to figure out, and the Palm documentation was next to nothing. Since it was so complicated, when it didn’t work, I had to try and figure it out myself. That took a while, and was very frustrating (none of the setup was very intuitive, something wireless technologies need to be, for people to find them useful).

Anyway, fun experiment. Back to being wired.

Pounding Breakwater

wind blown water

I took Yoshi for a quick walk after work tonight. Stormy! The wind has been pounding Victoria today, and got even more fierce when the sun started to go down. Yoshi’s ears were flapping all about 🙂

water crashing on the rocks

The cool thing about storms that last is that the parks can get some wicked waves. Tonight the waves crashing onto the breakwater were sending spray right over the breakwater! I had never seen that at the park before. Very cool.

tree silhouette

I am a wimp though, and took refuge in the trails. It was only supposed to be a quick walk anyway, but it was fun. I love windy, stormy weather.
Click for a couple more pictures

Yoshi on leash

Yoshi on leash

Yoshi on leash

Inconsequential Quality

altered wooden box

*sigh* I just got back from Tim Hortons. All I wanted was a Canadian Maple donut, and a cup of coffee. I went with a couple people from work, and while the lady was getting my donuts, I turned to talk with Cliff and Noah.

When we got back to the office I discovered the lady had grabbed a Maple Dip, and not the Canadian Maple I had been expecting.

It really is inconsequential in the grand scheme, but I had been relishing the thought of this donut the walk back to the office. I had built it up in my mind.

Is it just me or has anyone else noticed a shift in the donut quality at Tim Hortons?

Wrecked Waterworks

part of the handlebar on my bike

I type this with wrecked hands,
hands that have seen and done wonders today.

The air was crisp,
the ground frozen and crunchy. Instead
of hindering me, this coolness inspired me, pushed me on.

Much ground was covered,
mud was flung. Grins by all who knew.

Up the hill, along the log, leap off the rock. A man once said “It’s all about two legs, turning two cranks, turning two wheels”. Two true.

macro picture of my front tire

South Ridge, Fun Trail, C-Section, Waterworks are part of the picture. The rest is fun, fun, fun.

I want to get out again. This has inspired me, boosted my drive. There is always next weekend.

part of the drivetrain on my bike

</poem like thing>

As you may have guessed, I went riding today. I had a great ride. I went out with Sane, Darryll, and a couple other guys from Shane’s group. The cool morning air was awesome. Enought to keep me awake and refreshed. It hurt a little when I breathed deeply, but it was that good kind of hurt that reminds you that you are alive.

At the beginning of the ride we messed around at the Technical Training Area, and that is where I discovered that I had left at home, the compact flash card for my camera. Damn! 🙁 My goal was to have a good ride, and take lots of pictures. Guess I had to settle for a good ride.

We took our usual route up to the switchbacks, then headed up. Near the top of the switchbacks was a new log ride that was loads of fun. To get onto the log ride, you must cross a 3 foot high log pile. The log ride begins with a slight downward slope, then after a slight jog to the left, the log turns upward ever so slightly and tapers until it is only 4 inches wide. I never made it all the way, but it was most fun to try.

After we hit Champs Café, we zipped down South Ridge, along Fun Trail to Green Ribbon. Getting late on time we bombed Green Ribbon as fast as we could. I did a couple jumps I hadn’t hit in quite a while. Surprising to me since I haven’t ridden in quite a while.

At the end I was a happy camper. I had a great ride, which hasn’t happened in a long time. It totally reminded me why I love this sport. I am pumped to get back out there soon.

Brandished Needle

selectively focused bolts on fenceline

Last night was Aphros first vet appointment since we got her. She did not like bein in the kitty carrier! When we finally stuffed her in (with a towel), she meowed almost constantly during the ride to the vet. She would take little breaks in her caterwauling, just to make us think she had quieted down.

When we got to the vet she was pretty quiet, which was nice. We took her into the exam room, opened the door to the cat carrier, and she slowly made her way out. The vet did her exam, including weighing Aphro, and she was pretty good. The vet did the first shot, she was fine. The vet poked in the needle for the second shot, and that is when Aphro flipped! Ears flat, mouth open she tried to bite the vet, then she hissed. Claws brandished she took a few swats at the vet. To her credit the vet calmly put the needle in a safe place, got a better grip on Aprho, then continued where she left off. The last needle was a quick one, then some deworming fluid, and it was over.

Sort of. Sue and I had to get Aphro back into the carrier. 🙂 All in all a good visit. Much different from a Yoshi visit. He just stands there and lets anything get done to him. He is next though. In just a few weeks actually.

Dizzy Puddle

Yoshi taking a rest at the park

Lunchtime today was a nice treat. I wasn’t able to take Yoshi to work today, so he stayed home, and at lunch I went home for a visit and a walk. It was short (just under 20 minutes), but he had a great time. We met up with Emma, a Lab mix. She was cute. As soon as she saw Yoshi, she came bounding up to him. Yoshi didn’t see her approach, so when he did notice her, he quickly dropped the stick we has carrying, and they both did the doggy twirl (they walked around in a circle sniffing each other).

Then Yoshi decided Emma was a cool dog, and instigated a playfest with her! 🙂 I was stunned to watch this but it was hilarious. Yoshi woulld zip away, then run at her. Emma would chase Yoshi back. Yoshi would grab the stick, and Emma would chase. Emma would grab the stick and Yoshi would chase. They the two of them dissappeared into the leafless trees and rand round and round and round them, chasing each other until I thought they would be dizzy.

To cool off they zipped to the nearest dirtiest mud puddle and lapped it up like it would evaporate momentarily. Crazy dogs! I love watching playtime like that.

Our other pet, Aphro, goes to the vet for the first time since we got her. We bought a cat carrier yesterday, and we are not relishing the idea of trying to stuff her into it. I am prepared for mortal combat with her. She must get in, and I am sure she will do everything in her power to not go in. I will be totally shocked if she doesn’t spaz. More later I guess.

Ruined Deodorant

Kodi laying in front of my moms fireplace

Today I had my morning ritual interrupted, ruined almost. I got up as always, started the coffee, ate breakfast, fed Yoshi, then went upstairs for a shower. Aprés shower I discovered that I had forgotten to buy more deodorant after emptying it yesterday :grr: I had to stop somewhere on the way to work and buy some.

I much prefer mornings where I can get through my ritual unimpeded.

To top it off, it would appear that my favorite brand is no longer being produced as a deodorant, but only as an antiperspirant. I don’t want that. I now have to try a new brand. In fact, in the aisle marked deodorant, I would estimate that there was a ratio of about 4:1 for antiperspirant to deodorant. Maybe the sign should be changed?

Yoshi laying in front of my fireplace