One More Thing ..............

I didn't want to talk about this until I had the pictures to put with it ! Last night as I was riding my road bike I came upon a wreck . Now this wasn't a regular wreck with 2 cars and somebody did something stupid !

This was a 1 car wreck and 1 dumb ass did something stupid !

First let me explain something to you , I always ride with my small camera ! I never leave it at home ! Well last night as I was about to leave I saw it laying there and thought I am just gonna ride around here I won't see anything worth taking a shot of . WRONG....

So I had to take these shots with my cell phone , then I had to send them to a buddy of mine who emailed them to me . Alot of trouble but it was worth it....Check this out !!

I am pedalling down the rode and come over a hill and see a car in the ditch  I am thinking what the hell ! Then when I get closer I realize ,  it ain't just a car , it's a show car.

This poor guy had taken his "show car" out for a spin and then when he had gotten almost home he decided to light up the tires!

That's where his day was ruined! He lost control of it and wrapped it around a tree in his own front yard!!!

what I see first when pulling up.....

the good side

the side that you know made him cry!!!!!!!

Of all places! Right in front of his house!!!!

When I pulled up he had just gotten out of the car and was standing there, I asked him if he was alright and he looked at me and nodded...Never said a word and went in the house!!!!!!!

I felt kinda bad taking pictures and nobody was hurt so I left......

You don't see that everyday..................

Day 3 .............

Not that I am counting but we are on day 3. Cody has been a licensed driver now for 3 days.

Yesterday , about 4 I decided to call him and make sure he went home , he did and left ! All of a sudden he is willing to take his brother anywhere he wants to go ! Wonder how long that will last !

It won't be long before you know he won't want to take him every where , right now it's still new . LOL

Well I never heard back from the bike rider coming through so I guess he is staying somewhere else . Maybe next time we might have a visitor .

I have inventory here at work today (Friday) and tomorrow morning . Twice a year I have to work half a day on Saturday and this is one of the times. Oh well , I guess it could be worse !

Last but not least I plan to ride this weekend I already have a route planned . I am on a rode bike kick right now , I go through spells . Right now I just don't feel like riding the mtn bike. I want miles !

I went out for 33 last night and really felt good . I plan on 50 tomorrow and 50 Sunday . I haven't had a hundred mile weekend in awhile. Should be fun !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Fast Times On Baucom Deese ..............

First off , with all that's going on this week (Cody getting his license mainly) the week has flown by . It seems like I was avoiding Wednesday because of that reason , so of course it got here real fast . Then It was the middle of the week and I was off so now it's Thursday and the week may as well be over !

It was really a weird feeling seeing my son drive off for the first time yesterday . Then last night when piped up and said he would just take his brother and head to church !

Of course we knew that was coming but damn it came quick !

Watching both of them drive away was really weird ! Before anybody gets all pissy and starts to tell me about he should drive , and get more experience before he should take his brother can just shut up now !

Cody is doing great , if he wasn't he wouldn't be taking his brother ! Cody was sitting in my lap and driving my tractor trailer around when he was 5 . He can back a trailer better than 99% of adults !

Believe me when I say "he can drive" .

On to the guest . I haven't heard back from him so I am assuming he must have made other arrangements . I was kinda looking forward to having a touring cyclist stop by so I could pick his brain a little bit about what works and what doesn't .

One thing it has done , it has really made me want to do a short trip . I ordered a handlebar bag from a guy the other day so all I need now is front bags and I have no more excuses ! I even have a short trip planned out I just need to do it .....

I want to see how my setup works and what I need to change .

This Will Be a First.............

I have been a member of "warm showers dot com" for close to a year , so far I haven't had a single person contact us who wanted to stop by .

Guess what I have been contacted ! We will have a guest Saturday night !

A guy named Jonathon from Hawaii , he is passing through , so it looks like he is coming by !

Here We Go !!!!!!!!!!!!!

I could have done without this , but the time has come !

Every kid , including me gets his license sooner or later so it's gonna happen . It just seems to me like we just had him and now he is off under his own power !

Polkton Highway Patrol Station

We got to Polkton about 8:30 and we were the 3rd ones in line ! All 3 of us where parents with our kids getting there license for the first time !

I thought that was kinda funny . 

Lookout !!!!!!!

So he waited his turn to drive and 15 minutes later he had them !  

We where home at 10:30 and he was ready to head to school ! First time I think he has ever wanted to get to school .

So as you can see I took pictures of the first time he left the driveway by himself ..

you can't see it but he was smiling !!!

turning around....

and away he went..................

I think I need a beer......................

Ok , Here We Go...............

Details to follow ! Today is the big day ! Cody gets his drivers license . We are heading that way right after I drop Chase off for school......

May the force be with us ..........

Intervals Suck ....................

The bad part is I don't even know why I am doing them ! I ain't racing ! I went out Saturday and did a long easy ride , then I go out last night and I start watching the telephone poles go by .

Next thing I know I am sprinting for 3 poles and coasting for 2 poles then back to sprinting ! What the hell .

You know why ? All because I have a subscription to Bicycling Magazine .

I keep reading all the articles on "Intervals" and how they make you faster ! How you need to find a nice long road with telephone poles and just count them off , do sets of 4-5 and then do it again . Next thing I know I am doing them !

Yes I enjoyed them , I kinda surprised myself ! I found that in an all out sprint for 3 sections I was reaching a speed of 28-29mph ! When you hit that speed and coast for 2 sections , the 2 sections go by real quick ! Will it make me faster , I don't know . If you believe everything you read then I will be ready for the next "buddy ride" !

Am I going to race this year ? Right now I have no plans what-so-ever , things change . But I literally have zero plans ! If the kids where racing and Cody's knee was in better shape we would probably be there . But right now nothing !

I would like to do all of the Southern Classic series and nothing else . But hell I have already missed 3 of those races . I don't have any interest in the local summer series races and none of the 1 day races seem to spark any interest so I guess I am just riding at this point .

Yet I am doing intervals ! Makes no sense.......................

Oh Yea !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Sunday was a typical day . Church home and basketball ! Kentucky basketball to be exact ! "The" "Kentucky Wildcats Basketball" !

Yep , we made it through the Sweet 16 and the Elite 8 ! Now it's time for the Final Four !

That's right we have Louisville ! I think the picture says enough ! I can't stand them , nobody in Lexington can stand them . No love loss here . 

We have them Saturday night , hopefully things go well and we move on to the championship game ! Got my fingers crossed ! It's march and I have the fever , four teams left and we are one of them !

So go Kentucky !

Yes I did get off the couch for a walk with the wife . Did that when the Tarheels played , I did catch the end of that game and got a good laugh out of it !

I rode to the store on my beer bike one time ,  but that was it for my riding . Total of 4 miles ! I plan on hitting the road tonight , the weather looks like we will have a good week and then rain again at the end of the week . So I better get in a few rides while I can ! Starting to feel good , so I need to improve while I can !

Things Workout !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

That's right , it worked out ! Karen got home and she didn't want to head out so I went riding !



sky when I left




riding beside 485




fairview area




another random shot




sky when I got home




30 minutes after I got home...raining hard




even had hale

 I hit the road and went from the house to Hemby Bridge , Stevens Mill Crossroads , Mint Hill , Fairview and back to the house 48 miles total ! 3 hours total and never left the little front chain ring ! Just road along and enjoyed the day !

As you can see , I got home just in time ! The sky fell out shortly after my return ! The day turned out perfect if you ask me !!!!!!

This Sucks ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

That's right I sit here playing on the computer wanting to go ride , now is when I need to go . The wife is at Zumba and I was gonna go ahead and go . BUT ,  all I here is rumbling in the sky !

I looked up the radar and it shows a storm just south of us , should be gone shortly . But then the wife will be home and we have plans..........Dammit........

On the bright side Kentucky beat Indiana last light ! On to the Elite 8............GO KENTUCKY..............

I Need This !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

My nice camera is a Nikon . It ain't a cheap one either ! I have been using it for years and haven't figured out all the options yet . With that said even my dumb ass can make good pictures with it !

I want this though ! This thing is the bomb ! It comes with a price , but it would be nice ! LOL

This thing is so sensitive it can take pictures in the dark that look like they were done by a pro ! Just think what I could do with this , might take me 3 years to figure it out but night riding would never be the same !

All I need is about $5g's . Like I said my lens and all are Nikon , I will need all the new stuff.... Donations please............

Different 2 Wheels .....................

And no pictures ! I have gotten bad about that lately . I plan to take pics. for the blog and then get caught up in what I am doing and don't take any pictures ! Last night I came home and Cody was in the garage working on his dirt bike and I jumped in and helped.

The bike has a titanium exhaust pipe on it and it had cracked . He got Brian up at the trucking company to weld it back together for him and then we had to repack the muffler . Most people would not like living next to a trucking company but I love it !

I need something done they can do it ! When I say we live next door , there is a field about a 100 yards wide between us and the shop so it's not like we are on top of it !

But anyhow back to the muffler , I can weld but I ain't no welder ! So seeing the work Brian did , I sure can appreciate what he can do ! That muffler would be $185 to replace and he saved it .

We repacked the fiberglass and pop riveted it back together and it's as good as new ! Cody was burning the field up last night !

I got a feeling we are gonna have a ride before long . Chase wants to go and Cody is starting to talk about it . As for me , it's got 2 wheels..........

Knocked Off The Dust ...........

We'll get to my latest "save a bike project" tomorrow . Today we gonna talk about my road ride last night ! I got home and it being the end of the week , I am low on gas , so the road it was !

Plus I just didn't feel like driving anywhere . I had to pump up the tires and hit the chain with the lube and we where ready !

I go through spells where I will ride just the mtn bike for extended periods of time and won't touch the road bike . Last night the weather was just to nice to hide in the woods , I was gone for about 30 miles and almost 2 hours . I took my time and enjoyed the scenery , you forget how much ground you can cover on a road bike !

You get used to rolling along at about 10mph in the woods and then get on the road and everything starts rolling by at 20mph , big difference ! I think I will hit it again tonight . I have been going down to Rock Rest School and going from there lately , so going from the house it felt like I was riding all new roads , even though I wasn't !

You tend to forget what is around the house when you haven't ridin around there lately . I used to ride the area so much I got kinda burned out . It was nice to see the sites again ! Tonight I plan to head the back way to Wingate and then on to Marshville , from there I will work back around to 5-points and then down Olive Branch . That should be good for 30 miles .

 

Next Project !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Tonight I start my next "save a bike project". I have a 97' Fuji Ace that is about to get a new home . If I ever get to open a bike shop I think that will be the name " Save a Bike-Bike Shop ". Hell I might just put a sign over the garage door now !

Yea this is the same bike Cody redid for his school project last year . All it needs is new tires and tubes , a few adjustments and it will be good to go . He did all the work last year so my job will be easy .

I might check behind him here and there just to make sure he put grease on the important stuff . But besides that it will get rolling this weekend !

So night before last spring started . Over night it seems like everything turned green . Just like that the pollen started coming down !

Last night I went and rode at Sherman and by the time I finished one lap my eyes where swollen shut ! I stopped at the store for my usual Gatorade and even had one lady ask my if I was alright ! It would have made me laugh but my eyes where hurting to much .

My blue truck turned green sitting here at work yesterday ! If I can make it for another week I will make it all summer ! Tonight we have to get the kids to church , then I will see what time it is and go from there .

I hope to get a ride in , might be the road bike but one way or the other I am going to get out .

Projects ................

I seem to end up with a bunch of no paying "Projects" . My latest one, my wife brought home ! Thanks dear !

A guy she works with bought a KHS in 97' while he was in the Air Force , in Anchorage AK . So for sentimental reasons he wanted to get it rolling again .

So when he brought it over and I looked at it the first time I was kinda like , "well the forks locked up and you need brakes , a chain , a few cable housings and cables , don't see any pedals". Probably be about $70 for parts and we will have to check E-bay for a fork . The fork will probably be $150 or so .

So he thought about it and said "can I ride it around the neighborhood without the fork working" ? Yea , of course . So he decided to spend the $70 .

Last night I took about 2 hours and fixed everything , parts total $65 . Right on my estimate , and I stole a pair of pedals of a bike we had in the shed . I was going to throw it away anyway !

rusty cassette and chain



clean cassette new chain no spoke guard



old brakes

new brakes

new front brakes

finished project

r&r bicycle and fitness store Anchorage AK

Cleaned the cassette and removed the spoke guard . New brakes and tubes . Gave everything a little grease and a couple of cables . Adjusted the shifters and put on the pedals. Then it was test ride time ! I rode it around for half an hour and called it a success !!!!!

I believe this would be the first bicycle I have worked on from Alaska . Why do I fix other peoples junk you ask ? It sure ain't for the money . I haven't figured out yet how to charge them for my labor . Most of the stuff that comes through my garage is a case of  "if I don't fix it then it goes back in the corner of someones shed" type deals" !

Being the type of person who cannot understand why everybody doesn't love bicycles as much as I do . I feel like I am the last chance for these bikes to see the light of day again ! If I don't fix them the next stop will be the dump !

Even an old bike can still be fun ! Just like an old boat , if it gets ya off the bank , your in business !

Weekend's Over.............

And Kentucky is in the Sweet 16 !!! So you know I am happy !! Now we need revenge on Indiana and on to the Elite 8 !!!

Updates to follow as we progress...

So one thing I didn't mention yesterday was the fact that Cody decided to try riding his mountain bike Saturday ! He did great, we went down to Cheraw and had a good ride!

Saturday night he said it wasn't hurting and he was gonna try a ride this week . I have been waiting for 7 months for this to finally happen ! It's been a long time coming, it seems like his surgery was 2 years ago !

I am tired of riding by myself, I need my partner back ! When he rides Chase is more likely to go also .. That's win win for me !!

notice I washed the truck......

the other car was behind me....

Also we got down there and believe it or not the parking lot had 3 cars in it ! We passed 1 guy riding. For Cheraw this would be a traffic jamb, and to top it off when were ready to leave 2 trucks pulled up with 6 guys that where going riding. All from Charlotte !!!

Also we also passed a group of scouts on a day hike ! Yea really, that's like 18-19 people there !!!!!

To the Lake......

Afternoon at the lake! We loaded up the canoe and the kayak and headed to lake Twitty! Karen Chase and I.

We had a good time Chase felt like a big boy! He got to use the kayak for the first time, by himself! He was the man!

We paddled around for about an hour. Chase got tired and hitched a ride for awhile but he hung in there! We didn't do any fishing this time, it was just a test run to see how to load the truck and what it takes. It was a success!

There are some nice houses on the lake, the only problem with living there is the fact it's a reservoir. No swimming or skiing. We had a good time though.....

Dream Bike ???????

For me, yes ! Why would I want one of these. It's called a snow bike , and no we didn't even get snow this year!

But we have sand ! Lots of it on the coast ! The Outer Banks would be perfect for this ! How often would I get the chance to take it out there , not often enough ! But it would be fun!

Last year Karen and I went out there for our anniversary and slept on the beach for a week . I swear that was the best 5 days vacation I have ever had !

I think it would be great to drive out to the coast and take the bike over on the ferry and then ride to the other end of the island and pitch a tent !

South Core Banks , the island is 27 miles long , take all my stuff and head to the other end . Pitch a tent some where along the way and sleep under the stars !

Will it ever happen ? Probably not , that's a lot of money to spend on a bike to use maybe once a year .

It would be great fun though....

Friday !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It's been a busy morning here at work! I am just now getting a chance to write!

Plans, not quite sure what they are but I can just fake it. I know I am going to Uhwarrie, Kelly says he's going but we'll see..

He has a habit of skipping rides if it's raining. I am going if it's raining or not!

Yesterday I hit Sherman on the way home, we just about need a little rain to make the trail a little better. It's just about slick, it gets ridden so much the sand comes to the top. You have to be careful or your gonna go down!

So anyhow I plan to take the camera out this weekend and see what I can get! I want to hit the lake one day this weekend so will see what we get....

Don't forget! It's basketball weekend.....GO KENTUCKY!!!!!!!!

Oh No !!!!!!!!!!

Yep I found my downfall.......

Not good.......

I love ice cream! With that being said I could eat it for 4-5 meals a day! I would weight 500 pounds, but damn it would be good!!!

My wife found this place and now I am addicted! Had to go last night! That's twice in one week!

Where you ask? Sweet Frog....Frozen yogurt!

I know your wondering why this place is the bomb, the reason..

Toppings bar! They have at least 75 items and 10 different types of caramel and raspberry and fudge to put on the top!

You pay by the ounce.. Thirty nine cents for an ounce! What a deal!!!!!!!!!!

Glad I brought the bike, going to Sherman after work...............

Ride Da Bicycle.............

Yep, got out of bed, no plan-and then got home from work, plan came together!

I love it when a plan comes together!

I was gonna reduce my self to the walking crowd level, matter of fact I had already planned to do it.

As much as I hate to walk and think it's a total waste of time, I still do it. Why, because that's what the wife "will" do! If she wants to do that then I guess I will join in and act like it's cool. I am just glad we live in the country, none of my buddies are gonna ride by and yell shit at me....

So much to my surprise, she says "just go ride the bike I am tired", "we can walk tomorrow".

BAM !!!!!

No argument here, I can take a hint!

I can load a bicycle and the car faster than anybody on this planet when I need too! Water bottle? That seems to be an option when time is pressing.

Every time I am in a hurry that seems to be the one item I forget! No problem, I just get the cleanest one out of the back of the truck. No mold, no worries!!!

I went to Beatty and rode till dark!

Plan came together.....Ride Da Bicycle.....

So now I have been on the bike everyday since Friday! Except for hiking Sunday. But hiking is "cool", it sounds better when you say "we went hiking". If you told people "we went walking in the woods" you sound like a lazy ass! Besides, in the woods you are going up and down and over shit! That's cool.....

Yes my legs are tired!! Today will defiantly be a walking day...Wave when ya see me!!!!!

Gettin Outta Bed In the AM.........

When I get up in the morning I am already thinking about what am I going to do today!

Yea I know I have to go to work, all that crap is just part of living. I am thinking about exercise! My goal is to do something everyday!

Yesterday I was really sore from the hiking Sunday, so I though I would just take an easy day. Well I got home and couldn't stand it, out the door I went!

30min. later I was at Beatty and did a nice quick 2 lap ride, helped with the soreness. Sometimes when I am really sore a ride to loosen me up is in order. Yesterday was a perfect example! It was a short ride but that was all I needed!

Then I came home, made some fried baloney and all was well in my little world!

Now it's raining, although it should be gone shortly. But I am gonna come up with a plan before the day is over! Bet your ass on that!!

One last thing, the other day I was on the way to go ride and my truck hit a milestone!

Yep, we turned over the hundred thousand mark! Now we are going for 2, it's paid for and only 5 years old, last thing I plan on doing is trading it!!

Also we had the dirt bike drag races last night. Cody and Grayson were having a ball in the field. From one end to the other as fast as they could go! Cody rode the 65 and Grayson was on his 85, you would be surprised how close they are to each other speed wise!

the boys

Grayson has an i-phone with GPS, guess how fast the 250 (my bike) will go? 77mph, that's right she will haul ass!!!!!

my bike........

Plans Change..........

At least they changed yesterday! We got out of church and the wife decides she wants to go hiking! After I gave her a funny look I said sure!

She does good with the walking at the house and I am always trying to get her to go hiking, most of the time she just doesn't seem interested. So when she pipes up and wants to go, I can change the plans!

Off to Morrow Mtn. State Park! 45 miles from the house and you are in the Uhwarrie-Morrow Mtn area. We parked at the top and hiked for 2 and half hours! I was proud of her! She hung in there and did great!

Sore, oh yea, she is paying for it today! But if I can get her out and started hiking she will get used to it.

Right now the trees still haven't started blooming yet so the views where great! With the weather finally warming up it won't be long before the views will be gone. You will still be able to see from the overlooks but from the trail it will be limited.

yes it's steep!!!!!

see lake tillery down there...

going up......

another sweet view, once the trees bloom you won't see this till fall

going down............

You know, around here we have so many options to get out of the house and into the outdoors it's really neat! If you spend a lot of time in front of the TV you are really wasting a lot of opportunities. We were gone for the whole afternoon and if we hadn't stopped at the store on the way home we wouldn't have spent a dime!!!!! 

Maybe !!!!!!!

As I have said already, "Maybe". Well the Maybe's are starting to add up!

I put in a good day yesterday, I went to Beatty and rode 4 laps on the 29er and things are starting to get better every ride!

Do I think I have finally figured this thing out I don't know, but I am absolutely getting faster on it..

Time for more testing today....Full report tomorrow................

The Way It Should Be,,,,Maybe........

OK, so you have heard me whine about my new 29er for a while now. Well I still have it!

No I haven't sold it, I keep thinking I can keep it and at least look at it right!

In my little pee brain I figure if I keep riding it I will just get faster on the 26in. Meh' that might be true, it might not, Probably it's not true. But I feel like I work harder on it so I still ride it, (a little)....

Well last night I headed to the woods for a night ride and it was perfect!

One of those rides when everything is spot on! The weather was perfect, trail was perfect! I was in that groove, the hills were no problem and I was killing it!!

Does this mean I finally figured out how to ride the 29er, I hope!

I plan to do some more investigative work this weekend, maybe I figured it out maybe I haven't. But I am gonna ride all weekend and see what happens.

Of course I let the weekend slip up on me and have made no plans, Kelly is still out west so he ain't around, he usually lines up the rides so I ain't sure what everybody else is doing. But I plan on finding out....

That Hurt............

With being sick last week and the weather, I got off my routine of riding 3-4 times a week. You wouldn't think a week off would hurt your fitness that much.

Guess what it does!

I went out Sunday and the wind was so strong I just took it easy and did a short low gear ride. I still did 20 miles and 10 of them with the wind in my face. It hurt, but I figured it was still worth it.

I got off the couch and spent the day out in the sunshine so how can you not enjoy that!

This week I had plans for Monday but it didn't workout, Tuesday came and went, nothing! Yesterday came and I hit the woods!

I did a lap at Sherman. It started with a flat tire in the parking lot, then I went in the woods and not far into the lap I decided it would be an easy one. Wrong!!!

Halfway through the Roller Coaster I caught a glimpse of a guy just a few turns away! Game on! I had to chase him down! So I finally catch him and he pulls over and says "you caught me go ahead" sure I say.

Thinking he will drop off and I can ease up. NOT, next thing I know he comes back up behind me, he caught his second wind! Dammit....

So from then on we killed it, or should I say "we killed me"....

It was hammer down, the whole time I am thinking, "what the hell" all I wanted to do was ride an easy lap! Fun, yes I had a great ride! My legs are killing me but it was worth it!

I might get out tonight for a night ride, I keep hearing rumors the rain is coming again so I better go if I plan on getting back up to speed... Maybe the wind will be down this weekend I got the urge to ride the road bike if I can........

Food For Thought.................

As a kid growing up, I used to flu to Kansas every year. I went out to see my grand parents for 2-3 weeks. I loved it my brother never really liked to be gone that long but he did it anyway.

So I was reading an article on Yahoo today from an airline stewardess, stories from 35,000 feet. In the comment section someone made mention of flying as a child.

How they would get the kid bag once the plane was in the air, I remember that!

Man I used to be like the king of the neighborhood!!!! I had those little wings you clip to your shirt!

We would play and everybody got to wear a pair! I had like 20 of them, I was the man!

I have no ideal where they are now, but I swear I came across a pair a few years ago. Made me smile!

We used to get to go up front and sit in the pilot seat and checkout the cockpit! I still remember that! One year when I flew out there by myself I got to sit in the cabin in the corner, the jump seat, for the whole flight!

Now when you get on a plane the door to the cockpit is already locked and shut up tight. Kids don't get the special treatment they used to. As a kid growing up at that period of time, it was great!!!!!!!

Now It's Tuesday............

Every once in a while I talk about my buddy, the one who gets to go on the great rides around the country!

Well he's at it again! Of course I got the standard "wish you were here picture"!

He doesn't mean it, he just likes to rub it in! Crack head!!!!!!

kellybone at it again!!!!!

The latest and greatest trip, Moab UT. That's right THE "Moab". 

Clarification for my non mountain bike rider readers. This place is like in the top 5 for must ride locations before your wife gets mad a takes your bike away! If you are going to risk a divorce and book a trip across country for you and your buddies, this is "THE PLACE".....

So hear I sit, at work! While my "buddy" gets to ride a top 5 trail! I get the privilege of a few crappy pictures.........

Friends!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

"Jenna" Brown..........

Today's post is defiantly a different direction for me. I really try to keep this blog full of stupid stuff, but sometimes life gets in the way. With that being said I dedicate this blog post to the late Jenniffer Blalock "Jenna" Brown.....

I am gonna start this with a story. In my line of work I have a steady stream of sales reps. coming through my office all day everyday. Most of them you say hi to and wish they would find someone else to bug. Very few do you ever really get to know, much less come to be friends with.

Well Jenna Browns husband Dave, he is one of the few I would call my friend. I have had the pleasure of knowing him for the last 8-10 years, we have even been golfing together on occasion. In 2006 I lost my father, and was out of work for several days. David just happen to come by the office on the day of the funeral. When he found out everybody was heading to my fathers funeral that day he dropped what he was doing and came.

No reason, other than the fact he felt he needed to. That day was a blur to me obviously, I don't remember much of it, I promise you! But I do remember Looking up at one point and there was Dave standing there. You only meet a few people in life that will go out of there way just "because".

Are we close enough that he needed to come, no. But he did.

The point of that little story is to try and help you understand what kinda person he is. You won't find anyone better.

When you meet someone like that it hurts you when they have to go through something like he and his family have been through. You see Dave and Jenna got married a few years ago and had a little girl. Not long after that they found out she had cancer. At the time she was 31 years old.

For the last 3 years they have been through Hell! You would think at her age, everything would workout. It didn't. She finally lost the fight last Thursday night and they will be having a memorial for her tomorrow.

I never had the chance to meet Jenna, life just had a way of getting in the way. My kids are a little older and we talked about getting together but it just never happened. For this I am sorry, just knowing Dave I know I missed an opportunity to meet a special person..

My thoughts and prayers are with the family, David I am sorry for your unbelievable loss..

                                                                          Richard Markland

Damn Wind!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yep, if you have been out of the house today you are well aware of the status of the wind! Off the hook!!

Well I have been off the bike for a week now with the sickness and all. Then the rain came and now it's to wet to ride the woods. Nothing less than the road.......

sign says closed but you can cross it now...

new bridge baby!!!!!!!!!!!

So we got home from church and I loaded up the road bike and headed down south! I parked at Rock Rest School and hit the road.

sweet open road!!!

Going south was no problem but when I turned to come back north it was game on! South I had a tail wind that was awesome! 23-24 miles per hour, no problem, going north it was 10-11 miles per hour max! That was all I could DO.....

Worth it yes, I got out and off the couch and still got a good workout!