first test exercise

computers

With an expanding podcast directory and not enough idle time, I borrowed B.O.U.R.Girl’s iRiver iFP-180Tand a pair of cast off headphones. Unwilling to dull the senses I’ve always taken my exercise without props. Breaking with this tradition I tuned into TWIT episode 22 and went for a jog. This mp3 player, mounted to an armband holder is unobtrusive. The dangling cable is a slight distraction while the earbud pieces do tend to produce mechanical noise of howling wind if there happens to be a breeze. Another initial bug was the less forgiving problem of having sweat rivlets rolling down the temple and onto the ear piece. The left one plugged up / shorted out at about the 4 mile mark! More testing is in order. I’m sure that an ideal setup will be found because the audio is a nice brain diversion from the pain – gain thing.

Here is a useful podcast source: NPR. Talk radio is back baby! Think what your VCR (PVR) does for your TV viewing experience. Podcasting is audio on your schedule.

Las Vegas Strip

jogging

One lap jog of Las Vegas via Paradise Rd – Riviera – (the)Strip – Flamingo Drive. Plenty of desert heat and hard pavement sidewalk. The wide open front doors of the casinos beckon tourists while allowing huge cold air to spill outward conditioning the blvd. Las Vegas is a spectacle. Even in the harsh sunlight, giant LED powered LCD video billboards dazzle. Traditional barkers have been surpassed with surround sound audio, which is synchronized to seamlessly play the width of a resort building, time shifting so as to prevent echo. It’s a kind of twisted adult theme park with shades of pirates-of-caribbean sin. Surprising though, to see other runners taking in these sights with exercise shoes on.

Google Earth Placemark

Dulles layover

jogging

W & OD trail update…

Google Earth Placemark

LAX layover

jogging

Stepped off of the “Ocean Express” which is a free bus trolley – no doubt funded by local merchants to draw touristas from airport hotel highrises to Manhattan Beach shopping. I kept my plastic holstered however and put my shoes to the cement at Rosecrans and Highland – 4 lanes from the Beach. The Strand runs further than you or I can go and ran north with empty and isolated El Segundo Beach on the one and city utility, co-generation plants and industry on the other side. At the Hyperion Sewage Disposal Plant prior to Imperial hiway, I turned back, for a GT of 5 miles.

Google Earth Placemark

up the river

adventure, boats

New Bern, NC is located at the Trent and Neuse Rivers. Northward, it is a scenic sail through fresh water. I took a dip into the dark water for refreshment but not long enough to attract gators 😉 The river narrows into dense hardwood marsh and becomes very still and unspoiled in areas. A brief rain squall halted our journey as we tried to eliminate the horizontal flow of precip into our dry cockpit. Once upstream, the current accelerates (est. 2-3 mph) and buffets the hull. The edgewater property is private rural land and in some places evokes images from the movie – Deliverance. At 23 miles we marked a GPS waypoint and turned tail.

IMG 2094

Google Earth Placemark

LAX layover

jogging

Lots of fashion on the Strand. Come to stroll, strut and be seen. I believe that most of them arrived on retro-schwinn bicycles. Pro beach society types have the practiced style and look of year-round weekend beach time. Manhattan Beach, CA is “Was up!” compared to Venice Beach – “Ich don’t think so“. Google Earth Placemark

A good lunch location is the El Sombrero #1, for authentic Mexican food. Bueno.

down hard

adventure, boats

a little roadside trouble… A trailer axle bearing disintegrated with much smoke and heat. A passing motorist with beeping horn and waving of arms gave the alert. The hiway exit up yonder was only a mile away but not wishing to risk the hub assembly departing the vehicle or a wheel fire we ground to a halt. Inglorious end of voyage.

coastwise nav

adventure, boats

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The challenge is to cross without touching bottom (sans electronic depth finder). You can’t see bottom. You can sometimes see a slight change in the hue and color of the sea surface if the light is right. We used a light mushroom anchor and known length of line dropped over the side, old school river boat method, to estimate waters depth. Six feet, four feet, the chart shows shallows that would ground our 1.5 foot draw. The easy way out is to join up on another craft and assume (hope) that their local knowledge was good while watching for tel-tale warning like reduced speed or tilting adjustments to their v-drive. Our draft is fixed so the only escape is a 180. Sometimes it’s clear when the odd sea bird is sighted — standing out there in the suspect area and only ankle deep.
Google Earth Placemark