If you are heading to a parade, BBQ or just hanging out with friends make sure you enjoy and respect the day as well. The last thing you want to do is end up driving drunk, doing something stupid at the lake etc., and ending up in the news as yet another one of the Memorial Day statistics. Anyway enough of the rabble parenting, time now to get on with the day!
Bad Ass EGO Mower
So I tried out the new EGO lawn mower last night and let me tell you that the thing is just as bad-ass as I had hoped that it would be. It cuts the lawn flawlessly and I was even cutting a little bit shorter than I probably should have been to be honest. It did leave a few mow-hawks of mulch grass here and there but that was mostly because as mentioned I was cutting a little shorter than I really should have been and second I was pushing a little fast because I wanted to be sure I was able to get the entire backyard cut with a single charge - guess what, I was able to!
I am not entirely sure if I would have been able to cut the front yard as well with the single charge and I did not even attempt to. Instead I threw the battery on the charger and while it was doing its 30 minute turbo charge that it does, I took the time to finish my Coors Light beer (yea get off my back, I have a thing for cheap domestic beer so sue me) and edged the front, blew the sidewalk off and all that goes along with the maintenance. Came back in the garage and the battery was finished charging and ready to go again.
I plopped it into the mower and was on my way in the front. It cut the front just as good as the back, although I did kill the motor one time when transitioning from the sidewalk to the grass. Not a big deal though, the gas mower nearly dies as well when this happens. It sort of goes from flat to a dip and deep so it's asking a lot of the mowers. I generally just pop a little wheelie and go for it and we are good-to-go, the same was true with this mower.
I had a few of the little mow-hawks again in the front and yes, once again it was entirely caused by the fact that I was cutting shorter than I normally would have or should have but I was not exactly sure how short I wanted the cut to be and did not want to risk having to do the entire yard a second time if my height was too high. I think from here out I may either mow it twice a week or I may just raise the deck up a notch.
I do want to get another battery though, for sure. It will be really nice to be able to swap them out from front yard to back yard rather than wait to charge. Something I will have to wait a few weeks to a month on as they run $199/each. My hope is that maybe the demand will go up on them a little and the price will come down.
Although doubtful when you are talking about a lawn mower that is in the $500 range, most consumers will go the cheap gas route and buy the most basic lawn mower they can. I have gotten 13+ years out of my Craftsman mower and it is still running strong, I just needed a change and wanted to try electric / cordless again. I plan to keep my Craftsman mower as well for certain projects - like after they do the aeration of the lawn, it's hard on the mowers so I don't want to put my electric mower through that abuse. All-in-all I am happy and 100% satisfied with my new
Bike Work Stand
So yesterday I decided it was in my best interest to stop by REI and pick up a bike stand to use when I work on my mountain bike. There are a lot to choose from and the one I ended up going with the Feedback Pro Elite model, it is bad ass. Not only does it swivel in 360° but you can raise and lower the stand to pretty much any height I could ever want. It has a tripod type base so it's very stable as well. There are a ton of accessories you can add to it to hold your tools as well as do the truing of your rims. Those are some things I don't plan to get into but it's cool to know that it has the capability should I choose to.
Because REI had their 20% off sale going on over the Memorial Day weekend holiday I was able to save a pretty good amount of money on the stand. Sure, it was still just over $200 but I think for something that is lightweight, folds down nicely and will last me a lifetime it is well worth the price. But that is just me, I am willing to spend money on good tools. All in all I am very happy with it so far and will probably be using it more and more for general maintenance and related.
1 Trip, 2 Rides
As I mentioned this morning I was planning to meet my coworker and friend Aaron at his house this morning at 8:30 AM. I managed to get there early and get his bike gear all loaded up in the car and his bike on the bike rack. We were gone and on our way to the mountain by 8:45 AM which was awesome. We got there around 9:00 AM, changed into our biking shoes and got our packs and everything ready, well mostly I did because I have extra stuff I like to bring and I have to set up my GoPro camera.
The first trail just about kicked both of our asses in no time. I think we only went about 1 mile up the mountain rested for a good 15 minutes and then decided to do the descend back down to the trailhead. It was one hell of a climb and something you don't want to do for your first ride of the season. Granted, this was not my first ride but it was his first ride this season. Not to forget that I had already done a 10 mile ride yesterday so I was still a little beat from that.
Once we were rested, hydrated and getting anxious to ride we decided that it was prime-time for us to haul butt back down the trail. A trail that is just wider than a normal single track with many blind corners, wood bridges to cross and tunnels to go through. It was a killer ride going down and the only "bad" part is that it only took us 7 minutes to get back to where we started. Where-as it took us nearly 40 minutes to get to where we were before turning around to rocket down. Well rocket down for us anyway, not anywhere near the speeds the downhill guys go and not even close to as technical.
Once we were rested, hydrated and getting anxious to ride we decided that it was prime-time for us to haul butt back down the trail. A trail that is just wider than a normal single track with many blind corners, wood bridges to cross and tunnels to go through. It was a killer ride going down and the only "bad" part is that it only took us 7 minutes to get back to where we started. Where-as it took us nearly 40 minutes to get to where we were before turning around to rocket down. Well rocket down for us anyway, not anywhere near the speeds the downhill guys go and not even close to as technical.
Anyway, after the exciting downhill ride and back to the parking lot, or "trailhead" (a word that Blogger, the blog I am currently using, is certain is not a real word), which ever you want to call it we changed back into our normal street clothes, hopped into the car and cranked up the air-conditioning to max - ah what a nice treat. When we left I had asked Aaron to show me a few of the other trailheads he had ridden last summer if he had time and in case I ever went by myself I would know what to look for and where to go - so that was where we were headed next.
The next stop we looked at a trailhead that was actually pretty damn intense from the start. The negative part of it is that most of this particular one is for hikers so you have to really pay close attention to all of the signs along the way and where you go so you don't get busted by the park rangers or have people pissed off at you. No matter, I am certain that once you get it figured out I think it's probably a nice spot to go to as well. We left that area and headed back down the mountain towards one other spot I wanted to take a look at that we had seen on the way up the mountain heading to the first spot of the day.
We arrived in no time and after walking around a little bit, looking at the maps and taking in how nice the area was we decided it was such a nice day, still early and we had gotten our second wind so what better to do than go ahead and take a ride - plus it cant be much worse than the one we had just came from, could it? Well what do you know? This trail was actually much steeper than the one we came from, "oh shxt, here we go again" I thought.
Once again we manage to ride about halfway up the trail and rather than practically kill ourselves like before (Aaron had to take some breaks in the shade, lay down on big smooth rocks and chill before from pushing too hard), so this time I suggested that we would walk and push the bikes if he was too tired rather than trying to tough it out and ride the entire way.
Now I know that this probably sounds funny, especially to any die-hard riders out there but at least you get a hike out of it and then get the reward of going back down the hill after it all. The trail was really packed too, so there was a lot more technical riding necessary to get around people that were hiking. Not to mention doing this while it's 45° or more uphill and there are dogs running around and kids zigzagging on the trail - not an ideal combination.
Once as high as we wanted to go, okay more like as far as our wobbly legs would take us, we rested for a few minutes while I turned on my GoPro and took a big drink of water. Moments later we had an absolute friggin' blast descending down the trail. This trail was much more technical than the other one and even had some small rock gardens, logs and other obstacles and even a small creek crossing. It was such a blast!
Now I know that this probably sounds funny, especially to any die-hard riders out there but at least you get a hike out of it and then get the reward of going back down the hill after it all. The trail was really packed too, so there was a lot more technical riding necessary to get around people that were hiking. Not to mention doing this while it's 45° or more uphill and there are dogs running around and kids zigzagging on the trail - not an ideal combination.
Once as high as we wanted to go, okay more like as far as our wobbly legs would take us, we rested for a few minutes while I turned on my GoPro and took a big drink of water. Moments later we had an absolute friggin' blast descending down the trail. This trail was much more technical than the other one and even had some small rock gardens, logs and other obstacles and even a small creek crossing. It was such a blast!
Once back down we changed clothes again, well shoes, and I took off all of my gear and helmet and loaded the bikes back up on the bike rack, pulled the GoPro off and was ready to go. Took a nice air-conditioned drive back to Aaron's house where I dropped him off and unloaded his gear. Although we only did about 4 miles total today it was still a really good time. It makes me want to go to Northstar more and more and do some of the downhill riding.
Don't misunderstand or misinterpret what I am saying, I love the exercise that is involved in peddling up the hills mountains, but man does kick my ass. Of course I guess that is the point because like I always say; "if it was easy everyone would be doing it". Anyway the part that spoils you the most is that you get all the way to the top, and by top I simply mean the highest point that you can make it too you get this amazingly bitchin' downhill ride you are immediately spoiled wanting more of that. I guess that's human nature though.
Anyway, no complaints from me - it was a really fun day. I did take a lot of video although I think most of it will be unusable because I have my friend in front of me most of the ride so that does not make for the best scenery / video. Maybe some of the downhill will be exciting to watch although unfortunately I think the GoPro battery died before I was able to do the entire last run. That is a real bummer too because it was probably the better of the 2 downhills, at least in my opinion. It just means I have to go back again, oh darn I hate it when that happens.
Anyway, no complaints from me - it was a really fun day. I did take a lot of video although I think most of it will be unusable because I have my friend in front of me most of the ride so that does not make for the best scenery / video. Maybe some of the downhill will be exciting to watch although unfortunately I think the GoPro battery died before I was able to do the entire last run. That is a real bummer too because it was probably the better of the 2 downhills, at least in my opinion. It just means I have to go back again, oh darn I hate it when that happens.
No matter I can't say it enough about the great day. From start to finish it was filled with warm sun, the smell of pine trees and a breeze gently blowing through the mountains. This is something you must experience at least once and if you live anywhere in this area I would encourage you to enjoy it as much as you possibly can. I look forward to the day that I can take Zoey up there to experience it all for her very first time. Whether with her in a hiking backpack carrier with me or walking with Cicely and I. Collecting pine cones and having fun, it's going to be so awesome for all of us!
Adios
That will have to do it for me today. This 3-day weekend shot by much faster than I thought it would. We were never able to get the pool set-up for Zoey because of the wind. On the bright side though that gives us something to look forward to for next weekend.
Anyway, I hope your weekend was relaxing, fun, safe and/or what ever you wanted it to be because its already Tuesday tomorrow, this weeks Monday. Until next time, adios!
Photo: Looking down the first trail we went up. It sure does not look very steep in the photo which really sucks. Sure this trail was not as steep as the second trail but it was a long gradual climb that had some steeper areas, then it would level out a little more and by level out I only mean back to the gradual long climb that never stopped.
Photo: Looking down the first trail we went up. It sure does not look very steep in the photo which really sucks. Sure this trail was not as steep as the second trail but it was a long gradual climb that had some steeper areas, then it would level out a little more and by level out I only mean back to the gradual long climb that never stopped.
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