It's all fun and games until you get written up in a Yoga Magazine.

I guess I get to check this one off my life list. ;)

The Magazine of Yoga

Thanks Susan for talking with me and writing this up. I really had fun. :D

Love,

Pete

Tim Johnson's Ride on Washington: Philly to Baltimore

The Westin Hotel in Philly (http://www.starwoodhotels.com/westin/property/overview/index.html?propertyID=1231) hosted the group for the night in class and the 11 of us rolled out with support vehicles in tow. I hung toward the back and followed the route through Philly. I figured that I’d go to the front once we had some open space and people could benefit from a draft. It took me a little while to get used to the flow…. Mostly having Butch following in the SRAM Neutral Support vehicle so close behind. Usually in DC when someone is following that close to a cyclist, it is because they want to kill you. Butch was AWESOME for the whole trip and definitely provided the glue that held us together.

As expected, the roads opened up and I did some pulls at the front with different people. We were double pace-lining and just changing lead informally when folks needed a break or when there was a sprint for a town/county/state line. I enjoyed doing my share of pulling. Those who know me know that I’m not really happy unless my face is in the wind. Not sure what’s wrong with me that way.

The miles rolled by, made enjoyable listening to the guys talking. I’m not much of a talker, so I mostly listened and asked a few questions here or there. The sprints were fun to watch…. My set-up for the Delaware/Maryland state line didn’t pan out because the sign marking the border wasn’t ever found. I would have gotten my ass kicked anyways. Power I’ve got. Speed? Not so much.

Blissfully we turned off the main roads and headed out onto some rural roads Northeast of Baltimore. This brought in some climbing, that I liked, but the guys that had been hammered for the 3 preceding days didn’t like so much. I made my way to the front and set pace with Peter for a while. Unfortunately that didn’t last long. Matt and Jeremy took off for what they thought was a county line sprint and ended up hooking bars and crashing. Matt definitely got the worst of it… severely separated shoulder. The police showed up immediately, but paramedics and an ambulance took 45 minutes. We worked to keep Matt talking, warm and out of shock.

He was finally loaded up and hauled to the hospital in Harve de Grace. We followed on bicycles, with Butch in tow in the SRAM car. Google Maps listed Pulaski Highway bridge as “pedestrian friendly” but it was under construction. Confronted with a 25 mile detour to get to a bridge we could ride across the Patuxent River, we were contemplating riding the ¾ mile bridge with Butch behind us with his flashers on. Just as we were getting ready to go, a state trooper came up and told us we couldn’t cross. After a bit of joking around and threats of “If you guys drop below 30mph I’m gonna give you all tickets!”, we crossed with a police escort and safely made it to the hospital.

Jeremy and Rapha bought us post-ride food which we enjoyed sitting on the warm sidewalk outside the hospital. Matt was going to be a while at the hospital, so Butch volunteered to stay and bring him back. We eventually tossed our bikes into the back of Richard’s truck and crammed 7 of us into the cab and drove to Baltimore. In the end we rode about 71 miles at an average speed a hair short of 19mph.

I had a shower and dinner with my wife before heading off to Twenty20 Cycling (http://twenty20cycling.com/) for the evening’s reception and advocacy outreach. I’m amazed at these guys. I’m nowhere near social enough to use my brain and mouth for advocacy work. I’m much more effective with my legs and lungs. It was a fun evening.

Photos from today: http://www.flickr.com/photos/pedrogringo/sets/72157626225951686/

Tim Johnson's Ride on Washington: Introduction

6-time national cyclocross champion Tim Johnson (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tim_Johnson_(cyclist) )and the industry bicycle advocacy group Bikes Belong (www.bikesbelong.org) hatched an idea to raise awareness of cycling issues, funds for advocacy groups and a dramatic kick off for the National Bike Summit (http://www.bikeleague.org/conferences/summit11/index.php). Tim and a select group of people planned a cycling trip from Boston to Washington, DC… covering 9 states and close to 500 miles in 5 days. Each rider would be required to raise $1000 for Bikes Belong to take part in the ride. I signed up.

As it turned out, logistics kept me from getting myself and my bike to Boston for the start. I did make it to Philadelphia for the last 2 days of the ride. The first three days that I’d missed had been quite difficult. New England in early March is not always the greatest place and time to be cycling. Weather, ferry schedules and bridge construction definitely complicated the route for the first three days. You could see it in the faces of the 9 riders at the evening reception at Triumph Brewing Company (http://www.triumphbrewing.com/philadelphia/). They welcomed me to the group except for Richard, who wanted to steal the swag t-shirt that Bikes Belong had sent me because he thought I’d nicked it from someone. (Who is this guy and what’s he doing with a Bikes Belong shirt???)

I had confidence in my fitness for this ride, but I can imagine that a few question marks appeared in the minds of the other riders at that first meeting. I certainly did not resemble the body type or racing pedigree of any of the others on the ride. I was easily 8” taller and 40+ pounds heavier than any of the other guys.

The next morning would see how I fit with the group.

Tim Johnson's Ride on Washington: Thank You!!!

I wanted to take this opportunity to thank you for your support and generosity in regards to Tim Johnson’s Ride on Washington this week. The ride was a great success on many levels. We met a lot of great people and spread the word that Bikes Belong, raised much more money than we expected and had a physically and mentally challenging ride between Boston and DC. None of that could have happened without your financial, physical and moral support. Friendships and contacts were made. The fires of bicycle advocacy were stoked and fanned leading into the National Bike Summit in Washington, DC.

On a personal level it was a good wake-up call that I need to put more focus on my advocacy work. That isn’t something that is easy or natural for me. I’m much better at letting my legs to the talking rather than my mouth. Spending a few days with the group doing the Ride on Washington really pushed me to get beyond that and not be complacent about my ability to live my life on 2 wheels rather than 4. It was a good kick in the pants.

Thank you again for your support. You made this trip possible and effective.

Best wishes,

Pete Beers


The dedicated 5-day riders



The dedicated 5-day riders + me. :D

Sky Cycle

I was a tourist in Philly again today. With the rain and nasty weather, I wasn't exactly sure how I was going to fit a ride in. Went to the Franklin Institute to see da Vinci exhibit and realized that I didn't really have to worry about that.

Eastern State Penitentiary

I was a tourist today. The tourist site was a little odd though. Eastern State Penitentiary was built in the 1820s and was used as a prison until 1971. It was the first penitentiary. Its goal was reform and giving people the opportunity to reflect on their wrong doing in solitude and also to learn a trade.

HERE are my photos from the day.

That goal was watered down pretty quickly since space became a bit more cramped. The place has an amazing history and is well worth the visit if you're ever in Philly. Cool place both historically and architecturally.

Its most famous inmate was probably Al Capone, who spent some time here. His cell (seen above) was somewhat more posch than most. His cell was actually in the guards area, rather than in the main cell block.

Air is for WIMPS!

Okay. I haven't blogged in a very long time. Something significant needed to happen to make me want to get back to blogging. The death of my Wheels Built Under the Influence is that something.

History: I was challenged by a friend to build a set of wheels for my track bike using parts I had in the shop. I was not allowed to buy anything for these wheels. Not only had we been drinking a fair amount of beer, but one stipulation of this challenge was that I had to build the wheels while intoxicated. I then had to ride the wheels for a year. I was allowed to fix them, but not allowed to rebuild them or buy new parts for them. Any work done on the wheels beyond changing flats or gear ratios needed to be done in a similar state of inebriation.

Fast Forward 15 months.... The wheels had survived many thousands of miles, getting hit by cars 4 times and a lot of urban hammering. As of this week they were in pretty sad shape. I've been working so much that I haven't had time to abuse alcohol to the point where I'm allowed to replace broken spokes or retension the front wheel. Oddly enough, I had never got a flat tire. These wheels keep on rolling.

I got 2 flats on the way home Tuesday night, one on the way home last night. I found out the reason why. The rim is cracked and it is pinching the tubes. No tube would survive. I could have walked it and hitched a ride home.. but that isn't what these wheels are about. These wheels were conceived and built while under the influence. All major repairs on them have been done while intoxicated. Having them fade away into the sunset is NOT the way they want to go.

So.... With just over 9 miles to go before getting home, I got out of the saddle and hammered home as though I had air in both tires and a pack of riders ahead that I had to chase down. My time for the ride home was only 2.5 minutes slower than my usual riding time. I had to do that because it is almost impossible to corner on a tire with no air in it.

Let me tell you that riding a bike at 20+mph with a flat rear tire is a bit of an adventure. Luckily there was only one hill like that.

That isn't the end of the story... I forgot it was my wife's night to do volunteer work. I didn't have any food in the house and I didn't want pizza. So I got back on the bike and rode 3 miles to Meat in a Box for dinner, then home. Grand total... just over 15 miles hammering around town with no air in the tire. Makes me wonder why the hell I ever bothered to put air in the tires.

Thanks for reading. Might do this a bit more often. :D

Pete

Back on the Mountain Bike Again... again...

I guess two blog posts this year isn't that bad. I could do worse. ;)

I'm now up to 5 mountain bike rides for the year. I had a great ride yesterday on mixed trails... Washington and Old Dominion bike path (Paved), Fairfax Cross County Trail (Mixed single track, double track, paved and gravel) and Laurel Hill Regional Park (Singletrack).

It feels really good to be back on the mountain bike after very few miles on it in the last 2 years. I will be doing more of that and hanging the road bike up for a few months. Fixie and MTB for a while. I need a change.

Since I'm not driving at all, I need to work out how to get to the trailhead. Sean's been great about driving me when I need, but I can't do that all the time. It looks like White Industries double/double set-up will be my weapon of choice. 34 and 36 tooth chainrings combined with a 16 and 18 tooth cog on the freewheel. That gives me 36x16 gear for the roads and 34x18 gear for off road. That should work well. Cool thing is that I can use the same chain length for both. Those White Industires folks are very smart people.

Dr. Einstein broke his stem while adjusting it last week. I used the 5.5nm torque wrench instead of the 4nm one. D'OH! I'm a moron. Oddly enough the stem held through a 60+ mile ride yesterday. Lucky for me.

Other updates need to be made. My 4 year old Avid Juicy 7's need to be replaced. All the hardware is rusted and the brake lever pivot is worn so that the levers move around a lot more than they used to. I could overhaul them, but I think I might just get new ones.

As usual, I ramble.

Later!

Pete

Weird bike day.

Yesterday was the day for seeing strange bikes during my commute. I'm not talking about people riding fixies or different paint jobs. We're talking some whacked out shit here!

First was nice trike guy.... not to be confused with Napoleon on a Trike (a guy who rides a recumbant trike and yells at everyone to get out of his way. I figure he's got a Napoleon complex about being so close to the ground and he thinks he can boss everyone around.) Nice Trike Guy (also rides a recumbant three wheeler) is different. He's actually nice (as his name implies). Seeing him isn't so odd. I just hadn't seen him pulling a trailer before. Every few weeks he needs to bring his dirty laundry home, so he hauls it in a trailer. Again... not such an odd thing. Escept that the way the trailer attaches to the trike, it sits off to the side. It looks more like a side car than a trailer. It was weird and cool. I slowed a little and chatted with him.

The second weird bike had a set of PowerCranks on it. I'd read about these, but had never seen them before. They are FREAKISH. Basically the idea is that you develop a lot more leg strength and learn to pedal circles if your left and right crank arm are not connected. Each turn independently of each other, yet they both have the ability to drive the chainring. It looks pretty normal when riding, but coasting is a strange thing to see. When you coast, both crank arms go to the bottom.

When I first saw this from a distance, it looked like every time the guy coasted, he clicked out of his right pedal and dragged his foot on the ground. That isn't the case. He just had both pedals at the 6 o'clock position. Bizarre.

He said he loves the cranks and they really help with leg strength. He uses them through the winter and has for the last two years. He said when he gets on normal cranks that he just flies.

That might be something to look into. I may have to give them a try.

Later!

Pete

Road frame Search -- Not this again!!!

My deal with myself last year. If I met my weight loss and cycling goals for 2008, I get to buy a new road bike. I thought about a Ti frame, or custom steel. I decided on CF. I'd like something really light. That is all fine and dandy, except that few high-end carbon fiber frames come in Jolly Green Giant size. That SUCKS!

Frames that I won't be getting this year. Anything made by Cervello, Isaac, Kuota, Eddy Merckx, the Ibis Silk, Trek Madone 6.9 and Specialized Tarmac SL are all too short in the top tube. The Cannondale Super6 HiMod might be good, but doesn't really jazz me. I don't really know why. The geometry and close, but not perfect.

First on the list is the Ridley Helium. It is insanely light and EXACTLY the right proportions. I'd really like a bike that I can ride anywhere, but weight is a big issue for me. I'd like something that minimizes weight without being whippy. I rode a Helium that was one size too small and it felt great and scary light. For 2008 I went from a 21 pound bike to a 17 pound bike. It took me two weeks to get used to it. Going from a 17 pound bike to a 15 pound bike will likely have a similar adjustment. The color is perfect. It is black/carbon with really subdued graphics. The other cool thing is that my local bike shop JUST started selling Ridleys. Thanks The Bike Lane.

Ridley Noah is also in the ballpark. Sizing is the same. Weight is a little heavier. But DAMN is it aero. The colors are also not near as nice as the Helium. Red, Blue or Green are dandy, but not to my taste. Helium still wins.

The DeRosa King3 is quite possibly the best bike I've ever seen. I've always liked the ride of a classic Italian road bike. You don't get more classic or Italian than DeRosa. The flat black is stunning. It is imposibly light. It is perfect. The owner of a shop I worked in as a kid used to love to tell me that the only bike for me was a classic Italian road frame. He sold DeRosas and Colnagos. I drooled over them for years. The only problem is the price. DAMN is that frame expensive. At $5500 for frame/fork, it is about $2000 over my price range. This is, by far, the closest I've been to owning a dream bike. I don't really need 2 kidneys, do I? There are two local shops that sell the DeRosa.

The Felt F1SL makes me want to sing "God Bless America". The fit is right on par with the Ridleys and the DeRosa. The basic black and white colors are great. The ride is great. It is a good balance between power transfer, light weight and all-day comfort. It is a hair heavier than the others by virtue of the seat post setup. A few hundred grams is the difference. That shouldn't matter to me... I should be big enough to know that I should just eat a little less, drink a little less, work a little harder and lose the extra weight. I'm not going to completely discount it.... it isn't perfect though. There are quite a few Felt dealers in the area. They are some really good shops that I like.

Can I spend $3000 on a Giant? I remember working in a shop that sold Giant Iguana mountain bikes. I loved it when people would call and ask if I had a green giant iguana. Can I spend tons of money on a TCR Advanced SL? Size is perfect. Geometry is perfect. Graphics and look are Perfect. It is the only one of these bikes that I've actually ridden in my size and it was brilliant. I may be too much of a snob to spend that much on a Giant. The Giant is available locally... though the local shop isn't my first choice for a place to shop.

Last but not least is the bike that doesn't fit my original description, but must be added for texture. The Moots Compact Custom. It is similar in weight to the Ridley Noah... about 100 grams heavier. That makes it a hair heavier than the Felt also. It is beautiful. Has a great ride. It also will likely be the last road bike that I'll ever have to buy. What it lacks in super sexy carbon fiber goodness, it more than makes up for in its amazing ride and durability. It the second most expensive bike on the list at around $4000 (including custom geometry and fork). I've always loved Moots frames. I looked at Seven and IF and they're both great bikes... but they don't jazz me like the Moots. I can't explain why. The Moots would come from my friends at Speedgoat. I know they're not a local shop, but the owners are good friends and that makes them almost local for me.

Honorable mentions: Calfee Design Dragonfly, Cannondale SuperSix HiMod, KirkLee custom, Colnago C50, and a few others.

Now I need to see how things play out. I might be able to scrimp and save and go easy on things and get the DeRosa. I could go easy on the wheels and put that money into the frame.

I have until the end of February to decide. That is when I really need to make a choice in order to be riding the bike in a reasonable amount of time.

Did I miss anything? I think I covered all of the bases with my search.

Thanks for reading.

Pete

New way to commute...

Oy oy.

Doc says I need to spend a little time off the bike. I kinda agree with her. I need a break.

Today I started running part way to work and then taking Metro the rest of the way. The run is a hair under 5 miles. That is a dang brutal way to get to work. I have a lot of respect for the guys that I see every day running to work.

Talk to y'all soon.

Pete

The Carrot and the Stick

Great commute this morning. It was surprisingly warm and the trails were wet and covered in leaves. That made it a bit more adventurous.

My original plan was to take it easy and ride mellow on the way to work. I've got a big ride planned for Sunday and my legs are somewhat toasted after a fairly challenging week of cycling.

That plan went out the window when I rolled onto the W&OD trail and I saw the very familiar sight pattern of Cadex Guy 100 meters ahead of me. This guy is seriously fast. He's also a really nice guy and we ride well together. He talks a little and does his best to make me feel like I'm not entirely lame as we roll along... him relaxed and mellow... me gasping for air and honking out snot rockets.

Riding the W&OD every day can get a little tiring. I tend to make up games to have the ride go a little quicker and to help me keep my pace up. The Carrot and the Stick is quite possibly the best at keeping my legs spinning fast. Anyone out in front of me is a carrot. My job is to catch up to them. Their flashing lights or reflective gear act as short-range radar. On wet mornings, the wet tire tracks left on dry pavement under bridges acts as long-range radar. I can see how many carrots are ahead.

Once I catch and pass a carrot, they become a stick. A stick that hangs on my wheel becomes the best motivation to keep pace high. I'm not trying to drop him/her. I am big enough that I make a good draft. I like being able to motivate people to go fast.

2 or more sticks in relatively close proximety makes a convoy. That is something entirely different. We tend to crash the gate doing 98 and let them truckers roll, 10-4. ;) Sorry.... Had to say that.

Back to this morning.....

I had about a mile to catch up to Cadex Guy before the new "cyclocross" section of the W&OD. They're doing utility work and have 300 meters of trail blocked. You have to jump off onto the gravel section. It isn't tough, though this morning it was seriously slippery in spots. Cadex Guy went from carrot to stick at this point. He wasn't familiar with the section and had 23mm tires, so he took it easy. I've got 35mm soul suckers for tires and just blew by him.

I got a pretty good lead on him and that lasted for about another mile. That's when I came up on Stompy Jamis Dude. CRAP! Meeting this guy is bad enough when conditions are good. When it is wet and leaves are down, it is really bad. He's like me... doesn't always go fast, but can really step on it when he's got someone to ride with. Problem is he's a lot faster than me when he really gets going.

I flew past him in hopes that he wouldn't take the bait.... it was on the short climb right after East Falls Church Metro. Cadex Guy was still about 30 meters back. Stompy Jamis Dude might have been able to ignore me flying by... but he couldn't ingore both me and Cadex Guy... especially when adding him to the mix would make a convoy.

The downhill heading toward the Custis Trail was where I changed from a carrot into a stick bigtime. Both Cadex Guy and SJD came flying past me. I went into the drops to try and hold their wheels, but had no luck at all on the downhill. I just don't have that kind of horsepower or spin.

I was a bit more brave in the turns and kept a good head of steam up the first climb on Custis. I was close enough to start catching a face full of carrot rear wheel spooge off of the wet trails. This is the one part where I had a chance to pass these guys. I was travelling light today... they both had big packs. That was my saving grace. I finally got around them at the base of the rise near Glebe Rd. I held them off on the two steep downhills that go down next to 66.

We rode as a group down "Little Gavia" at Lee Hwy. It was insanely slick. I had the back end step out on me 4 times in about 50 meters. We took it easy through Rosslyn because there was a lot of foot traffic heading past the Marriott. We arrived at the light at Lynn St. together. All out of breath after a really nice commute. SJD heads over Key Bridge. Cadex Guy and I rolled together for about another half mile until he headed down Mt. Vernon Trail while I head across Roosevelt Bridge into DC.

I'm dead meat the next time I meet up with them when I've got a pack on. The worked me over really well today. I won't fare so well tomorrow.

I totally know that playing games like that qualifies me as a MUT Wonder. It is fun and a good way to goof off with the folks that I ride in with. We each get a laugh out of it. Trash talk is encouraged.

Sorry for blathering on. I guess it is my blog, so I'm entitled. :D

Later!

Pete

Doing our part for the economic recovery...

We've had an interesting summer. As the economy tanks, we've had a bunch of things happen that need fixing around the house. Consequently Laura and I are a two person economic recovery team.

• Parts to overhaul the suspension and replace the brakes on the GTI: $1400
• New Microwave oven: $300
• New dishwasher: $700
• Insulation in the attic: ???
• Beer for my ride chauffeur: $20

Now we get to spend the day installing our new home items. I'm gonna have to take a day of leave to work on the GTI. I'm still waiting on some parts. Hopefully next Friday I can take the day off and get greasy. I've missed wrenching on cars. It'll be nice to pay back Sean for all the driving he's done going to bike rides. Honestly that's the only thing I really use the GTI for. I'll even play music that he won't hate on the stereo. That's how thankful that I am that he's been a help. I prolly owe him some beer too.

That won't help GM or Ford, but it is doing our part to help.

Pete

Is beer a clear, liquid food?

I'm having dietary problems. I'm having some kind of surgical procedure Wednesday and it requires that I can't have anything solid or non-clear to eat for 30 hours before my procedure. Oddly enough, I also can't eat anything red or purple. Starting tomorrow morning, I have a 30 hour gauntlet to run. Yuck.

Oh well. At least I don't have to eat anything red or purple. :D

Pete

Great ride at Fountainhead.

Drew and I headed to Fountainhead for a lap today. I've been sick lately, so I haven't been really riding hard. One lap on a very hot day was a good chance to get out and work my legs a bit.

It was a hot day today... 96 and humid. We'd had rain yesterday morning, so the trails were still wet. I was hoping for tacky, but the roots and rocks were more along the lines of "slimey". The roots and rocks were the problem. When they're wet, it is really easy to get knocked off-line by hitting a wet root or rock. That makes some of the gnarly downhill sections a bit more adventurous.

There were a few things that were cool about this ride:

1. The bike handled really well. Riding the rough sections was awesome. It let me pick any line I wanted through the rocks and roots. Only the slippery nature of the trail moved me to somewhere that I didn't want to be. There were some steep sections where I really had to do some slow cranking to get up... the bike tracked so well that I had no trouble tracking straight and true. I was impressed.
2. My gearing is a hair tall for FH. There are a few climbs that I never make. I didn't clean them today. Some that I usually make were a lot more work today. I made it up, but it wasn't pretty. I'll get used to that.
3. The pedals are great. I really liked the look pedals. I had a few problems clicking in late in the ride, but that was more a factor of me being tired and not feeling great.

Drew and I really had fun. I haven't ridden with him much lately and this was a great chance to go.

Later!

Pete

Mamasita

Bob asked about my new mountain bike. It is pretty simple. I moved most of the components from my SIR9 over to the new frame. The build is something like this:

• 2008 Salsa Mamasita (Scandium frame with carbon seat stays)


• White Bros Rigid carbon fork


• King headset


• Thomson X4 stem


• Jones H-bars


• Avid Juicy 7s


• King sS hubs laced to Salsa Delgado Disc rims


• Thomson laidback post


• Phil Bottom bracket


• Kooka forged cranks


• Sugino chainring


• Surly cog


• WTB Nanoraptor tires


• Specialized Prodigy sadle.


• Connex Whitestar SS chain.
• Look Quartz pedals

The gearing is a magic gear for the Mamasita. I'm running 34x19 for the 29er. It is roughly the same as a 2:1 on a 26er. The gear is good for most of the riding I'm doing now. If I go hammer the shed or something, I might want a little bigger cog.

My guess is that this bike will evolve into a 1x5 or 1x6 so that I can take it out west and start on the Colorado Trail next spring. That's a whole other story.

All in all the build is pretty boring. Nothing blingy or fancy in comparison to most of the rides that others are tossing out on the trails these days. It is relatively light, has a great feel to it and handles all 212 pounds of me.

That last phrase is an important one. Last winter I topped out at 237 pounds. This morning I tipped the scales at 212. Once I get down in the 200lb range I'll start thinking about building a blingle speed.

Ultimately I need a bike that I can take to France with me. There's too much good riding there to ignore it. I love the roadie stuff, but spending many weeks there per year will just beg for something to ride. I need something with S&S couplers. Looking at Tony's black sheep is freaking inspirational. Maybe next year. Gotta lose a little more ponchetta first.

You know you're old when....

I just read that the band Foreigner (not a fave of mine... but one that was popular when I was in high school) is going on tour this year. The tour is being sponsored by AARP. Hahahahahahaha

"Maybe its just the woman in you,
That brings out the man in me."

Hahahaha

Pete

Back on the mountain bike again.

Greetings human type people.

I've been off the mountain bike since last year. I got back on a little bit a few weeks ago and it felt goooood. I built a new single speed and am pretty happy with how it is working.

I have really missed getting sweaty and dirty at the same time.

Catch up with you soon.

Pete

Child of the 70s

Oy.

We went to see Cheap Trick, Heart and Journey last night and it was a blast.

Cheap Trick is just awesome. It isn't music of much artistic merit, but it is great to hear fun music performed by a band that clearly LOVES playing in front of an audience... any audience. I've seen them in concert more than 2 dozen times and they're still fun to see.

Heart is an amazing band to see live. Don't miss them. Their music comes to life in person like no band I've seen. Both of the Wilson sisters' voices seem to have gotten stronger and better over the years. They were spot on and I loved every second of the performance.

Journey was really good. Neil Schon's guitar playing was worth the price of entry for sure. Their keyboard player was great. The new singer is awesome and perfectly appropriate for the music and the band. With the exception of one piano solo and Schon's guitar playing, the performance didn't come close to moving me the way Heart's did.

I'm looking forward to seeing Heart again when they're back in town next summer. If you can catch this show, you won't be sorry.

Pete

Lovely to be back in France again...

Coming to Menton has become a great annual event for us. This year it was much needed for both Laura and I. Laura had been teaching summer school with little time after the school year let out. I had been hammering through a busy time at work and hadn't taken a break for a long time.

I'll try and add in a post or two each day as we go through the trip.

I started using Flickr for posting photos. It is really pretty cool. I'll post up photos using it. Let me know how that works.

Menton 2008 Day 1: Arriving and settling in.

Menton 2008 Day 2: 36th Annual Grand Prix of Menton

Thanks.

Pete