For a quick overview, go to the Photo Albums on the left.
Stats: 4858 mi. - 171 gal. gas.
Photo Albums
Professional Work
Day 7 Ray's Memorial Service
March 3, 2004 - San Francisco
Ray O'Neal was one of the nicest guy's you'll ever meet. One of the few people I've ever met with a true heart of gold. The only time Ray ever got in a fight is if he was sticking up for me in a bar.
Check out more about Ray at RememberingRay.com
Ray and Sophie's daughter Rose
Day 14 Setting out on the road
March 10, 2004 - NYC
Brooklyn
The day started very unsure. I'd borrowed camping gear, packed up my bike stuff, my tools, cooler, clothes, maps, phone, radar detector flash lights. Washed the car, filled it with gas, had the oil changed, and even checked the pressure in the spare.. Still, I felt unprepared. I was not sure where I was going. I had a vague idea that I'd drive down the eastern seaboard paralleling the Intracoastal Waterway, and camp on Assateague Island.
I got to the turn off for Assateague at about 4:00. The weather was crap. Cold, Rainy, and Windy! I knew that the storm would pass through in about 7 hours, but I didn’t want my first night of camping to be in those conditions. So, I kept going on to my sister's house on the other end of the state.
Day 15 Western Virginia
March 11, 2004
Woke up and took Mike (sister's husband) into Lynchburg to pick up his truck at the train station. On the way back we stopped at a famous hot dog place on the side of the road. I'm not even sure if the place had a sign. This place was literally wide place in the road. It backed up to a steep hillside and the parking lot was only wide enough for one row of cars before encroaching on the highway. Apparently this place has been around for ever and it a favorite of the locals. We had the house specialty chili dogs with coleslaw on top for all of about $2. It was mighty good too.
After lunch we went on a drive around the area to look at the various Mennonite and Amish farms. Along the way we came upon the bird man of Volenes. Mike and Angela had been to see the bird man before and were intrigued. The Bird Man (Ben Hazelwood) has a farm with about eight or ten small barns behind the farm house. the barns contain antiques and tractors and other such things. Between the barns are a multitude of various sized chicken wire pens and coops for his birds. Mostly he keeps chickens, but there are ducks, geese, turkeys, peacocks, and probably more things I didn't see. What is remarkable are the variety. He has all kinds of strange and exotic chickens. The pieces of resistance though are the fighting cocks. Yep, Real Fighting cocks with spurs that can kill. One, Big Red (pictured with Mike) once killed a German Shepard Dog. These chickens are smart enough to gouge at their foe's eyes. The story goes that the German Shepard got blitzkrieged in the eyes. These birds will even gouge their spurs into something and then flap their wings to tear open the wound....
Day 17-19 Tsali Heaven
Tsali, mountain biking heaven.
I arrived in the late afternoon in time to set up camp, then drive in to town for some BBQ. The first night was bloody cold. 27 degrees. My sleeping bag is rated down to 20, but I think that’s just to keep you alive, not for comfort. I had my long underwear on, wool socks, jeans, fleece, hat, and my sleeping bag was zipped up so tight only my nose was sticking out. I made it through the night ok. The next two nights were about 15 degrees warmer and much more tolerable.
aint nuthin' like a warm Krispy Kreme
The first day on the trails I met Bob, Dave, and Roger from Ashville on the Mouse Branch Loop. Bob is a social worker, Dave is a "relationship counselor", and Roger is a retired engineer. I still don know if "relationship counselor" meant Priest or Divorce Lawyer.... Anyway we had a good time riding, then went to town for Mexican food and they showed me where to find some of their local trails in Ashville. Good guys. All were older than me and still riding hard.
My neighbors in the campsite were Eric from Georgia on one side with Bret from Florida and David from Indiana on the other side. Bret is a programmer and David is an 8th grade Science teacher. They’re are old friends who get together once a year to go riding at Tsali and my age, and Eric is a College Student and about 10 years younger. We all hung out together drinking Jim Beam and Guinness around the bond fire till the fatigue of riding all day sunk in and we broke up the party.
The next day we were all a bit groggy, but ready to hit the trails. Eric was supposed to set an easy pace but somehow ended up leaving the rest of us in the dust for the entire loop.
After lunch I spent some time talking to Aaron Ely the proprietor of The Trailhead at Tsali. Aaron once owned a bike shop in Florida but moved with his wife to North Carolina and now owns a the smallest and best bike shop on the planet. The Trailhead is a small trailer permanently parked at the trailhead with everything you could ever need for your bike, expert repair service and stuff for dogs.
The question I posed to Aaron and all the other people I met along the trails was: If there are the Seven Summits in Mountain Climbing, what would be the equivalent in Mountain Biking?
For my current list, go to the second installment at Tsali, Tsali 2....
Eric left that day, Bret and David at dawn then next, and I packed up and headed for Birmingham.
Days 19-20 Birmingham
March 19, 2004
Birmingham was quite a surprise. I'd never been there and was expecting an industrial city with a rail road down the middle and defunct steel mills littered about. It couldn’t have been more different. I met my old drinkin' buddy Taylor Dawson at his office in downtown. After chatting a while and running by the house to say Hi to Rebecca, Taylor took me to his favorite watering holes including Lou's Pub & Package Store. The only Package store I've ever seen with a full bar and Lou himself behind the counter.
The next day was sunny and warm. Rebecca showed me the around town. Downtown, Hollywoood, Mountain Brook, etc... The steel mills have been replaced by hospitals as the local industry. Two big ones. We picked up Taylor for lunch and headed over to Sam's Super Sandwiches. We marched right in an orderd three of the house's roast beef specials. "No Roast Beef Today." Rebecca's face fell. She looked so dejected that Sam patted her on the hand and offered her a free on next time...... In the face of adversity we had to buck-up and regroup "Two Super Burgers and Two Super Dogs...." 
Mmmmmmmmm Goood!
We made short work of that.
Off to the famous Sloss Furnace. "On April 12, 1882 the giant Sloss Furnaces began producing pig iron and it did not stop until almost ninety years later. Now recognized as a National Historic Landmark Sloss Furnaces is open to the public as a museum of industry. With its massive furnaces, web of pipes, and tall smokestacks, it offers us a glimpse into the great industrial past of the South and the nation."
Back downtown, we dropped Taylor off back his office. We randomly decided to take a spin by the old Alabama Theater just for fun. Naturally, it was all locked up, but a little sign pointed to the office next door. We went in..up some stairs..and entered into a cluttered little ante-room. No receptionist, just some doors to offices. We looked in to the offices...no one. We could hear voices in the background so we milled about for a while. I was getting ready to intentionally knock something over when a man appeared. "uh...uhh.. we were wondering if we could see the theater..." "OH SURE!" He opened what looked like a door to a closet, but shazam, there was the inside of the theater. "Just go right ahead, go anywhere you want" And we did! We climbed all over that place. Up in the balcony, down on the stage, back stage, side stage, dressing rooms, royal box, lobby, everywhere. We were pretty happy with ourselves. Afterwards we were milling around outside. next door in an old storefront was the original movie projector from the theater. We were looking at it and all of a sudden an older gentleman walked past and started telling Rebecca about it. "That projector weighs 600 pounds. We had a hell of a time getting it out of there." We didn't now exactly what to think at first... was this guy a crack-pot? He seemed believable. He told us all about the history of the theater and the other theaters in the area. It turned out that he was the president of the theater foundation, and had even written a book on the Alabama Theater. Crazy.
Day 21.5 The Rural Studio
Before I could leave Birmingham, Rebecca made me breakfast. Ten slices of bacon, Three eggs, and toast! As I watched her I make it I thought she was going to have some too, but it all came my way. There’s no way I can eat all this.....
Yes I can.
Taylor arranged for me to meet an old Princeton buddy of his for coffee later that morning. John Forney is a Professor of Architecture at Auburn's Rural Studio. John took the time to meet me with and pass off a map of the Rural Studio projects and a quick briefing about the state of affairs at the program since the death of its founder, Sambo Mockbee. So, map in hand, off I went into rural Alabama.
Newbern is about 40 miles due south of Tuscaloosa in one of the poorest areas of the country. Downtown Newbern consists of about eight loosely grouped buildings. The Rural Studio occupies most of them. I met a friendly 5th year student who took the time to show me around all the studios, then sent me off to see the work under construction. Across the field I met Mockbee's daughter Carol who was busy, with the help of a crew of student volunteers, setting formwork for her dad's last design, the Subrosa. I walked up and introduced my self. They were all very friendly. The first question was "How long are you staying?" and the second was "Wanna help?" Well, I was just passing through...and as for work, that's not on my horizon right now. To tell the truth though I was tempted to stay a few days and help out. It might be good therapy. I had people in New Orleans who were expecting me, however, and the Big Easy was already pulling me in.
I'd expected to find a rag-tag, low budget, duct tape and bailing wire operation, but was surprised to find a well organized and vibrant Mini-university. The energy, enthusiasm, and overall atmosphere at the Rural Studio was uplifting. It certainly has a magic aura about it that is alive with possibilities.
Days 22-26 - NEW ORLEANS !
AHHHHHH NEW ORLEANS !
Such a comfortable place to be. My days in New Orleans were all pretty lazy, the way they should be, punctuated by good meals with friends.
Rolled into Nick & Val's about 9:00pm and was quickly given a cold beer. Woke up in time to see everyone off to work, then took my time getting ready and down to the French Quarter for lunch. I'd planned to meet T. Lea, Gabe, and Nick at The Napoleon House for lunch but it was too crowded so we went to Mena's up the street. Catfish Po-Boy & Iced Tea. Life is Good!
T.Lea encouraged me to go to the D-Day Museum, so iced coffee in hand, I ambled up to the warehouse district. The museum was remarkably good. I was lost for about three hours in all the exhibits, films, and recordings. Then moseyed back through the Quarter and back to Nick&Val's house.
Friday was yet another sucessful New Orleans Day, Lunch outside with Duane and Rene at Dante's Kitchen on the river, Mojitos, and then the later part of the afternoon driving around and stopping to look at their new house. Then it was time to get ready for dinner... at the famous Sid-Mar's of Bucktown!
On Saturday morning I went by the Architecture School at Tulane to see my old buddy Dr. Professor Byron. B-Ron is an underprivaleged louisiana boy who somehow got himself into graduate school at Harvard. He was with his students explaining the finer points of pouring and finishing concrete. We had lunch and then Mr. Gabriel came over to meet us for a little field trip to Byron's new house. It was a typical afternoon in the sultry south, most of it occupied by lunch and a little bit of actual activity.
Sunday was "Super Sunday." The annual parade of the Mardi Gras Indians. (I can not explain it any better than the link, so go check it out.) In any event, we all went down to the bayou to see the gathering of the Indians. It was a warm sunny day. As usual it took quite a while for all the Indians to gather up and start the parade, but thats jus the way things is in New Orleans.
Day 30 - Vicksburg
About a day's drive from Dallas I found myself in Vicksburg, Mississippi. Vicksburg and the battlefield of the same name is on a big hairpin turn of the Mississippi River, hence the strategic importance. Just to make it more ideal, right at the apex of the hairpin, on the outside of the hairpin, is a large hill, the perfect place for a fort. The Rebels held the fort and thus controlled the lower Mississippi. The Union had already taken most of the rest of the river and only had to break Vicksburg to cut of all supply to the Rebs via the Mississippi.
The siege took over a month but the Union finally beat the South. I went out for a quick dinner and roll around town, the hit the hey for an early start. The next morning I got up and headed for the battlefield. I pulled up and was informed by the Ranger that there was a short movie about the battle at the visitor center starting in 20 minutes. I decided to take a quick drive around the battlefield then go to the movie. Boy was I wrong. The battle field is huge. It took me two hours to drive around the perimeter. All I kept seeing for the first hour were Union encampments it was beginning to look like the Rebels weren't even there. Finally I came around to the western side and drove up the hill to the fort. This battle is a textbook scenario, a fort, on a hill, controlling a river. The attackers came in a line from the east with their cannons, the defenders were on the hill with their cannons protecting the fort, and between the two was a gulley. The attackers laid siege and tried to starve out the defenders. In any event the Union finally won.
Dreamland BBQ in Tuscaloosa, Alabama
After about three hours at the battle field I was already behind schedule and high tailed it back to my favorite camping spot in NC. Tsali.
Day 33 - Tsali 2
I arrived at Tsali after dark. I was a little worried since the weather had been nice and it was a friday but my concerns were unfounded. The camping area was active but not full. I found a nice camp site with a good view of the clear night sky. The headlamp I borrowed from the Penguin really came in handy setting up camp in the dark. In fact, all the camping gear Eric (the Penguin) loaned me was excellent. The tent was a good size and easy to set up and all the other stuff was great. The only thing I didn't use was the first aid kit. After dinner in town, I came back to the camp site crashed out for an early ride.
In the morning, after the obligatory coffee and Krispy Kremes. I broke camp then geared up for the Thompson Loop. It must have been about 9:45am and there were not many people out on the trails so I headed out to do the trail alone. It was a beautiful morining and one of my favorite trails. the best thing about Thompson is the wicked downhill at the end. It's probably a half mile of windy downhill with a straight away at the end shooting right out at the trailhead. It so much fun on that last stretch when you're hauling ass and shoot out into the open. Invariably there are almost always other riders at the trailhead, and all you can do is grin from ear to ear...
This time there was a guy there so after I slowed down the bike and turned around, I started talking to him. He'd just finished Thompson too and was still high on endorphins and adrenalin. One thing led to another and it turned out that Rob (from Charlotte) had built his own night light for riding. Intreguied i started asking detailed questions so that I could build one myself. Hey, a light opens the door to more hours of riding time, not to mention 24 hour races. It turned out that Rob had the lit in his truck so we rode back to the parking lot to check it out. You can see it in the pictures. As we were talking a tall blonde named Sara rolled op to the car next to us and joined in the conversation. She lived in a town near by and rode Tsali frequently. We all hung out and talked for a while, then split up go our various ways. I had to be in Maryland that evening, and I was already behind schedule. So after a quick shower I loaded up the bike and hit the road yet again.
My list of rides has taken on some new dimensions. I've discovered that labeling the greatest rides is pretty difficult. It seems as though every part f the country has some good trails. THere are certainly some areas where Mountain biking Culture is more evolved and involved. The following areas seem to be the Meccas:
Moab
Colorado
North Carolina and Georgia
Vermont
West Virginia
Northern California
British Columbia
But I offer two more options to fee your appetite.
and
Singletracks.com checkout jeff's articles on the Mountain Bike Meccas.
Day 32-34 - Washington
I pulled into Wardo's driveway about 9:00pm, more or less on time. (Last fall I went down for a weekend to help Wardo redo part of his house check out the before and after in the album) A cold beer was in order so Steve, Kirbro, and I knocked back a few before bedtime.
Sunday was a gorgeous day mostly spent hanging around outside on the deck and entertaining Steve's three year old son Joey.
Me & Joey Wardo
Monday was a big day. Ever since I was a kid I've had a fascination with the Gossamer Condor. The Condor is the plane designed by Paul McCready that won the Kremer Prize for Human Powered Flight in 1976. I can remember seeing the documentary on TV. After McCready won the prize, the Mr. Kremer upped the ante and offered another prize for human powered flight across the English Channel. McCready won the second Kremer Prize in 1979 with the Gossamer Albatross. Both planes live in Washington at the Smithsonian Air & Space Museum. The Condor lives in the downtown wing and the Albatross lives out at the new Udvar-Hazy Center at Dulles. Monday we went to Dulles and Tuesday we went to the Air & Space Downtown.
They say flying the Condor was like flying a dry cleaner bag. In real life it looks about like one. This thing does not even look as though it would fly, much less stay together if it weren't being held up by wires. The condor was light years more sophisticated. Compare the two in the pictures.
In addition to the Gossamers, there were lots of cool things at the Air & Space, a replica of Sputnik, the Wright Flyer, and the Spirit of St. Louis, just to name a few.
All of a sudden it's March 30th and I'm due back at work on April 1. So the next day I hit the road for NYC.
Day 38 Back in NYC
I got back home about 3:00 and found a parking place right outside my apartment. My apartment was just as I'd left it. Back to the real world..... I unloaded the car, checked my email, snail mail, made some phone calls. And now it's back to work. It's good to be back in my space with all my things around me, back to my friends and my regular routine. I'm back at work, on a new project, on a different floor. All the responsibilities of the old job are lifted. It sure was nice to be off for a month. I'd forgotten what it's like to be free. It sure felt good. If you can take the time off. Do it.
