Rocket Launch!!!!

I took my brother and brother-in-law this past weekend to watch a rocket launch put on by Rocketry Carolina in Midland, NC. It was a perfect day with cool temps and mild winds. This was the first "officially sanctioned" rocket launch I had ever been to. Oh, I had built and launched small rockets before but this event took things to a whole new level for me.

It's really amazing to see how the hobby has progressed. I'll admit I'm hooked......

A Physics Professor with one of his students happy after a successful flight of a scratch built rocket.

Assortment of re-loadable rocket motor casings

Some big boys! The orange rocket is the one in the video below. Amazing!


Yep, it's a V2 rocket

Close-up of the ignition system


These fellows tried several times to get this complex multiple engine rocket off the ground. No go. Maybe next time?

Leonid Meteors from top of Black Balsam Knob

Went to Pisgah National Forest and camped on top of Black Balsam Knob to watch the Leonid Meteor showers. I was not disappointed! This is the perfect location to stargaze with a 360 degree view at 6200 feet of elevation. Saw a dozen long tail meteors and whole bunch of smaller ones. It was chilly with a constant wind but felt good to be back inside a tent!

Make Me Stop!!!!!!!!!!!

I've really been getting into ukulele music lately. Here's some of the best girls on YouTube playing the uke. Check 'em out.

Danielle Ate the Sandwich (my number one pick)



Ukulelezo comes in number 2



Julia Nunes has a really promising future too!

What's in a Word?

Been playing around with keyword search engine metrics. Check out Google Insights for Search(beta) for a fascinating look into the subject.

Let's see what kind of traffic I can generate with some of the more popular words.......

coffee shop, coffee maker, coffee cup, coffee table, starbucks coffee, starbucks coffe, coffee house, coffee break, hot coffee, prince keurig, keurig coffee, iced coffee, calories in coffee, coffee calories, costa coffee,Papua, New Guinea, Ethiopia, United States, Australia, Rwanda, Lao People's Democratic Republic, Singapore, New Zealand,Philippines, Canada, a h1n1, symptoms h1n1, virus h1n1, h1n1 flu, flu, gripe, h1n1 influenza, h1n1, influenza grippe, h1n1 symptoms, h1n1 swine flu, h1n1 swine flu influenza, a h1n1 vaccine, h1n1 sintomas, grippe h1n1, flu vaccine,seasonal flu, vaccine h1n1, seasonal flu,h1n1 flu seasonal, flu shot, seasonal flu symptoms, seasonal influenza, seasonal flu deaths, flu deaths, 2009 seasonal flu,helium balloon,ballon a helium, helium ballons,helium gas ballon, helium gas,gas ballon, helium pour ballon, helium balloons,ballonnen,ballon helium tank,half marathon, marathon training, london marathon, boston marathon, marathon new york, chicago marathon, marathon paris, berlin marathon,la marathon, half marathon training,sushi games,sushi game,planet sushi,ra sushi,sushi shop,sushi west,sushi ya,sushi town,sushi menu,sushi king,youtube ukelele,ukelele weeps, ukelele gently weeps,ukelele tuner, jake ukelele,ukelele player,jake shimabukuro, ukelele online tuner,ukelele mac,ukelele orchestra, youtube taylor swift, vma taylor swift, taylor swift video,taylor swift songs,taylor swift music, taylor swift lyrics,kanye west,kanye taylor swift,kanye, fearless taylor swift,rachel ray show, rachael ray sucks, rachael ray oprah, rachael ray divorce, rachael ray diet, rachael ray cookware, everyday rachael ray, rachael ray show, rachael ray recipes, rachael ray recipe,bbq grill,bbq chicken,bbq sauce,bbq recipes, bbq ribs, how to bbq, bbq pork, gas bbq,barbeque, weber, bbq grillware, hawaiian bbq,famous daves bbq, famous daves,baked bbq chicken,korean bbq,bbq pizza, bbq bbq menu,the bachelor, shawn johnson,julianne hough, edyta sliwinska,derek hough, cheryl burke, abc.com,julianne hough, cheryl burke, shawn johnson,the bachelor, the biggest loser, edyta sliwinska, dwts, derek hough, brooke burke,Survivor Samoa

New Apple iMac Release Date Annoucement!

I've been on pins and needles waiting for news of the new 2010 Apple iMac release date. You see my old Windows desktop is on its last leg- the perfect time to switch! For what I do, Apple seems like the logical choice. Besides, I'm fed up with poor performance, worrying about constant virus and malware threats, and the silliness of the entire Vista/Win 7 platform.

The journey to the "other side" began with a visit to a local Apple retail store. I spent time asking all the pertinent questions and playing with the applications. The result? A 24-inch : 2.66 GHz model won out over all the others.

So, I wait........

Stay tuned.

.......Like a Southbound Train

I don't know why but every time I hear the song "Wagon Wheel" by Old Crow Medicine Show it transports me back to my life on the Appalachian Trail.................Enjoy!

Do I Have the Swine Flu (H1N1)?

Yikes! I woke up this past Saturday feeling like I'd been hit by a truck. My throat was sore and I wondered if I managed to swallow a box of sheet rock screws in the middle of the night. No fever initially but then it rose to 101 degrees and stayed that way all day long. Coffee, orange juice, and a toasted English muffin was about all I could stomach. Back to bed.

Kim and I had plans to meet friends for a wine tasting later in the evening and I held out hope of feeling good enough to attend the festivities but........ in the interest of not infecting everyone there I called the host and gracefully bowed out.

October has never been a good month for me. I somehow manage to get sick every October and have for as far back as I can remember. Change of season, bad DNA strands, alignment of the stars? Who knows why this happens. Thank goodness I wasn't still on the Appalachian Trail huh?

My fever broke Monday evening and on Tuesday I ran out and got my annual "seasonal" flu shot. According to the CDC, you can get a flu shot at the same time you have a respiratory illness without fever or if you have another mild illness. Still feels kind of weird getting a shot when you feel light headed and your heads pounding.

Our local H1N1 flu vaccination program is starting off pretty haphazardly since the Mecklenburg County Health Department pre-ordered way too few doses. If they run this program like the Fed's did Cash for Clunkers it will be a big fiasco.

Stay tuned........

Musings about the H1N1 Vaccine

Can someone explain this to me? How in the world can we come up with a vaccine to battle the H1N1 Swine Flu in less than a year and we can't even figure out a way to do the same thing for diseases like Cancer, Herpes, Lyme Disease, Dengue Fever, etc...?


No wonder the U.S. healthcare debate is so raucous.

Model Rocketry, Onboard Video

I'm getting bored after thru-hiking the Appalachian Trail. Time to explore a new hobby. Been scoping out model rocketry. As a kid I built several small scale Estes rockets and always enjoyed launching them.

My, my how the hobby's grown up. Seems the big boys have progressed the sport to new heights. Now rockets are being constructed with mid and high power reloadable motors. Some even carrying electronic payload bays like altimeters and onboard mini digital video cameras.

Makes me drool. Check this out. AAARRRRGGGHHHHH!!!! What a ride!!!!!!!!!

The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

A strangely hypnotic twist on an old western classic movie tune

Enjoy!

Test Driving the 2010 Toyota Prius IV

The lure of driving a "greener" automobile and getting better gas mileage has infected me more acutely than the H1N1 Swine Flu. It all started after I returned from my Appalachian Trail hike and began driving my current vehicle- a 2006 Toyota Tundra Double Cab. Don't get me wrong, I like my truck but it's never met a gas station it didn't like.

The damn thing sucks gas like no tomorrow and my retirement income just can't take it anymore. I need some relief! Besides, I can get by without having all the hauling capacity. So, let the car hunt begin!

I narrowed down my choices between a Honda Accord EX-L and the 2010 Toyota Prius IV. I want leather seats to caress my bum and these models have that option. My research reveals both are excellent choices so the final decision boils down to a choice between good gas mileage or hyper gas mileage.

There's no shortage of Hondas in my hometown but that's not the case with the Prius. It's the hot car now and every dealer I called has a waiting list. I want to test drive one since the reviews from west coast owners has been spotty on the new model. Most car magazines laud the 2010 Prius model for revolutionary upgrades and engine performance but the "average joe" reviews hasn't been so perky. Most of the complaints revolve around the "cheap" look and feel of the interior. Mainly the amount and types of plastics used inside as well as the thin feel of the leather seats. Not the sort of comments you expect for a $20,000 plus automobile.

I decided to see for myself. This past Saturday a local dealer called me to say he one on his lot. I arrived there on Sunday to take the puppy for a spin. Let me say, I've driven previous model Prius' before and enjoyed the ride. Sure they're different than a conventional car but not by much. The silent running engine was the most noticeable adjustment for me.

Back to the 2010 model- The interior was adequate and I didn't really mind the look and feel of it. The leather seat material was thinner than expected but not as bad as I had been led to believe. The seats were comfortable but there's really no way of telling if that same comfort would be there after 400-500 miles on a road trip. Seat adjustments are manual on all Prius models due to weight concerns. Hmmm........

Now the biggest disappointment was drivetrain performance. The ride was jerky, more so than any previous model year. I detected mini engine power surges as I drove along and reminded me of an engine trying to compensate for an inadequate air-gas mixture. Not good. Imagine how much something like that is to fix once the warranty runs out. Back at the car dealership I park the car, get out, and shake my head in disappointment.

Did I test drive a lemon? Maybe. While I haven't totally discounted getting a new 2010 Prius my first impressions were shattered by a bad test drive.

The hunt for a new car continues.....

Hiking the Appalachian Trail

I fulfilled another dream- hiking the entire Appalachian Trail in one hiking season. It took me 143 days to walk from Springer Mountain, GA to Mt. Katahdin, ME.

YEEHAW!!!!!!!!

Read more here:

Spokes Trail Journal

2009 Krispy Kreme Challenge Race Report!

Some things in life are just too crazy to imagine. Like having this guy as a neighbor:

Yes, it's a zany world out there. Enter the Krispy Kreme Challenge.

Brainchild of NC State University students several years ago, the concept is simple. Run 2 miles from the NC State Bell Tower to the Krispy Kreme donut shop on Peace Street, eat a dozen glazed donuts, run back. All this of course, in one hour. For those of you counting, that's 2400 calories in one sitting!

The race has been a phenomenal success. In fact this year attendance was the greatest ever recorded, 5519 runners raising over $35,000 for the NC Childrens Hospital. Good for them.

Now onto the festivities.

Saturday February 7, 2009

My day begins at 02:30 hrs and goes like this- Wake up, perform the Chi ceremony, eat, dress, and drive 3 hours to Raleigh, NC. Thanks to Ron Horton (www.tricharlotte.com) and a Magellan Roadmate GPS unit, I find my way without a hitch. The time is 0735 hrs. I follow friendly volunteers directing me with silly orange flags to the parking deck just a half mile away from the Bell Tower. I'm a happy camper.

The Check-in Area

Walking down to the check in area, I'm surprised there aren't more people hanging around. Well it is 0745 hrs and this is a college crowd. I get my race bib, t-shirt, and timing chip then hump back to the parking deck and wait. It's a little chilly this morning but temperatures are expected to warm up later. Still, I decide to run in my lightweight running jacket. Looking back, I could have done without it.


Operative word- EAT!

The race is slated to begin at 0930 hrs. so I walk back up to the start around 0830 hrs to take in the crowd. Glad I did.

It was a complete circus. Combine a 4 mile run, 12 glazed donuts, a time limit, and you can guess who's gonna show up. Lunatics, geeks, and costumed fools. I'm right at home.

There's an assortment of characters. Some of the most memorable ones I saw were the Bridesmaids, a guy in a tuxedo, Thing 1 and Thing 2, Elvis, Superman, a cow, Santa Claus in a large red foam cowboy hat, and other assorted misfits.

This is gonna be a good run........

Santa gettin' down!


The Bridesmaids

No race is complete without Thing 1 and Thing 2!


COW!

Superman and Elvis! All is well!


This guy was nothing but warm

What? Donuts without coffee? NAW!


Tuxedo Man

Time to check out the port-a-johns. They have only 10 for this event. A little on the slim side but it doesn't cause a problem. While I stood in line I struck up a converstation with a veteran Krispy Kreme Challenger and asked him if they had water at the donut shop. "Oh, it'll be zoo down there, you better bring your own water" is what I was told. This ended up being the best advice of the day.

All in a row


I make my way to the official Start and get right up front. It's about 10 minutes before the start and people are still trickling in. I look over my left shoulder to a group of guys that have constructed a Viking warship out of cardboard complete with a dragon mast and tail. Heck, there's two of them! I'm cracking up with laughter until I look to my right. It's a guy wearing a red negligee. Well, Valentines day is just around the corner.


Scene at the Start

The gun sounds and we all begin running. I'm always worried at the start of a race. So many people pushing and wanting to get up front. It's prime time for a fall. But this is different.. Everyone behaves themselves and the pack evens out.

Now the path to the Krispy Kreme shop on Peace Street is virtually all down hill. I can't help but think the return trip is going to be brutal. It's all good. I should be on a good sugar high on the flip side.

Arriving at the donuts shop was interesting. They directed you around the back of the shop then back toward the front. All of this is designed to control the crowd of runners but there's still chaos. All along the perimeter of the parking lot were tables containing boxes of donuts and I only saw one table that had any water being distributed. Glad I brought my own.

The Smash 2 and Cram technique was good to me!

I grabbed a box of glazed, wandered off to a nice spot near a curb, and began the process of consumption. "Less talk, more eat" was my motto. The technique that worked the best was dubbed "smash 2 and cram". It was pretty simple- devour two donuts at a time by smashing them together like a sandwich and cramming them into your mouth. After each course you definitely needed a sip of water or risk choking on the sugary mush in your mouth.

The process continued until the box was empty. Everything went well until the last two donuts. They were definitely the hardest to get down. Success! I got all twelve down...........and they stayed down!

Thank goodness I overheard someone say you had to show your empty box before you were allowed through the timing chip tunnel for the return trip home.

I'm off. It's an uphill run, but after all , you're on the greatest sugar high on earth! I settle into a comfortable pace and enjoy the sensation of my feet gliding above the asphalt. I'm not Italian at this moment, I'm a Kenyan. A fleet footed Kenyan..... Yippee!!!!!!!!!



Before long I see the Bell Tower in the distance and cross the timing mats. The beeping is amazingly loud for some reason. Could it be all this damn sugar in my system? Maybe.

Scene at the finish

In the Finish area volunteers cut off your ankle strap timing chip and directed you through a fence tunnel out the opposite side of the Tower. It worked pretty well and kept the crowd moving but I've heard others complain of a massive bottleneck in this area afterwards. Oh well, maybe next year the organizers can work out the kinks.

The insanity is finally over

This run was a blast! It's definitely one to run again (with friends). Next year I'll have a costume for sure.

The Results

I'm pleased with my times considering the remarkable physical and mental ability required to complete such a gastronomical event. Here's how I stacked up.

-- ran the first 2 miles in 17:42 (8:51 pace)

-- consumed 12 donuts in 11:10

-- ran the final 2 miles in 19:23 (9:42 pace).

-- Placed 349th overall in the Challenger Division

Total time 48:03. YEEHAW!!!!!!



This is the best YouTube video I've seen so far. Thanks meddyteddy!

Post Race Fun

After the race I met Russ and Mandy Barringer in Durham, NC for a beer. Russ and I hooked up on the Trans America Bicycle Trail last year and have kept in touch ever since. It was great to see them and the kids.

(l-r) Me, Mandy, and Russ Barringer. Thanks for a fun time guys!

Until next time............