Valley Forge

Bit of sightseeing, soaking in history.

more pics, smaller water.

took a walk up along TumblingRun with the film camera...

adventures with film.

since Montana been playing more with picture taking.
Dad hooked me up with his nice old Nikon 35mm,
picked up a couple rolls of Fuji 400. Been learning
about that whole 'manual' setting, good times. These
are just the digital copies you get with the developed
pics, nothing hi-res.  Curious about the difference...

Ricketts Glen:

  Out n about Boiling Springs:

see, I got this new bike...

and I've been feelin' decent
enough on the Sunday rides
for the last couple weeks.

Mix in a handful of 2hr spins
one night a week from the Furnace
to get to know the new sled,
and why the hell not.?

Let's roll off the couch and do some racin'...


It was neat, lined up for the big boy
loop at Teaberry in the Vet class and
figured to ride a solid tempo, just see
where it puts me.

Start was good enough, slot into 2nd
wheel and roll it comfortably.  Hit the
first little climb, wait for the field to catch
me, feel no breaths down my neck, drop
into Stooges and try to play to some strengths.

then psssssssss....great, just flatted, kinda
early for this bullshit.  The fix took longer
than it should have, as always, and now
way back in the field, lonesome. May as
well get my chase on, see where it takes me.
Steady gunning tempo with some focus is the
name of the game, finally catching riders down
into the Narrows...then perform a sweet dismount
to face plant on rock.  Ouch, that'll leave a mark.

Check point one, finally.  Fill the bottles, qwik
bit of chit chat, smooch my honey and pedal on
up the hill.  Things are going well, and then another
flat on Tumbling Run, damnit. Many thanks to Greg
for the extra air supply. A bit qwicker fix and back
to reeling 'em in down Spooge.

Clueless about the aids, expected one at the
bottom of Southern Gas, dang.  Find a quiet
place and munch those carrots on up the hill
while Mr. Crampy starts tapping the hammies.
Long haul to the top, fill the bottles and start
catching more familiar faces, am I actually
riding back into this thing?  Interesting.

Try to make time across Rocky Ridge, make a pass
and try to ride like a hero.  Then fall over at 0mph.
Get up and rear wheel won't spin. What. the. fuck.
Oh, must've just knocked it loose in the frame....
Still won't spin.  Are you fucking kidding me?
I just taco'd my fucking wheel.  Great.

Get it off the bike, "what would Buck do?"
Find the highs and lows, find an appropriately
sized tree and put some weight into it, hear those
spokes go twang, do it again and slip it back into
the frame...wow, spinning clear now. Barely.
Well, now back to the task at hand, make up yet
more lost time. Clock's still ticking.

Groove the remaining bit of trail, make the turn
for home and battle that old foe Mr Crampy as the
trail turns up, every muscle between knees and hips
going into full revolt. Awesome.

Just pedal thru it, remember??? Remember?

ain't this fun.

Just keep on keepin' on and finally roll her
into the tent for a sub-5 finish.

Eyeball the board....5th vet? no. shit.

Then check the times...less than 2 minutes off the Vet podium??

Less than 2 minutes, are you fucking kidding me?

two flats, a trashed wheel and rolling a carcass that's
way above 'race weight', hmmmm....

Well, call it moral victory, drink some beers.

Maybe I'll do it again in another few years.

Montucky, it was good.

fishin'.
hikin'.

no worriyin'.

life was very good
for an extended spell.

caught some trouts
out of the Kootenai.
Feisty critters, fighting
above their weight class.
Make the local brownies
seem lazy in their subtle
limestone currents.

Caught my first cutthroat,
beautiful fish, though not quite
as vibrant as our native brookies.

Home is where the heart is.

Glacier National Park.....wowsers,
see it while the namesakes still exist,
clock is ticking. Go there and feel
insignificant, get up close and personal
with Mother Earth.  An amazing place,
an amazing time spent  with an amazing
lady. Lucky fella I am. We had a close
encounters with a pretty bold black
bear, were in close proximity to a
grizz and found mooses, sheeps,
interesting birds and curious critters
along the way. A pair of 8hr hikes up
into the high country along with a
shorter effort on day three plus just
enough car-bound sightseeing to
satiate our desires.

Good times.

pics on the Smug.

didya hear?

some changes on the bike front.

first this:

warrantiable, which is cool.
but not avail until Sept, and
new version is more than a
little heavier.

do some pondering, some
contemplating. flirted with
the idea of double boinginess.

but was swayed by the allure
of carpet fibres. and the true
efficiency of a hardtail. dualies
 just plain pedal like mush.

talk about a sweet fuckin' ride.

wowsers, good times will be had.

catching shit.

cuz I ain't been updating this businees. what's to say? been fishin', been pedaling. been having more success at one vs the other, but water's getting warm, so maybe things will shift.

 Big Spring 'bow had a thing for ants.

Bucky tunes up for le Tour.

Another nice 'bow from BigSpring, fish of the year, so far, 22"+.

more please.

one step forward

Went to the PaFFM tackle show dilly on Saturday. Figured it was time I start learning to work with threads, glue and varnish...

a bike ride.

me thinks a bike ride. a bike rid eis order. no matter the sluminess of the drivetrain. the annoying clickity clack of shwooped drivetrains, the\revolving pedals more than not often bring needed clarity. and besides, it's so damn nice out tonight. why the hell wouldn't you go for a spin?

weekend

racin' actions

that was fun, the spring Meeshow Classique. good to see lots of happy campers after rolling 'em around a damn fine 40mile loop. missed the fall race due to the house thing, got that dialed, time to get back out in it. arrows handled by motos, so pleasure riding on Saturday instead of official duties, nice. then snappin' pics and providing encouragement at the finish, twas a pretty sweet wknd.

more pics on the smug as usual.

spring is springing

bugs are hatching

happenings...

been slackin' on this blog dilly,
but, guess that's how it goes.
find a nice rhythm, roll with it.

not much in the way of profound
shit to comment or spout about,
just livin' it the way I know, ya know?

which means fishin', ramping
up the ridin' a bit and living the
dream in good old Carlisletown.

pics are probably worth more
than words I figure...

diggin' the daylight savings,
means I can gear up on the
doorstep and walk to the Letort
for the evening rise. Tied a fresh
batch of flies, went for a stroll
and this fine brown sipped that
little #20 BWO no questions asked.
Now even more stoked on the
new location..


Neighbor's sketchy tree, neat to
look at, but on it's last legs for sure..


Sent a reel back for rework,
so pulled one of the antiques
of the mantel, worked well
enough for an afternoon of
exploring on the Letort.


Walking to market, took some
shots of the mermaid.


Been letting the yard do its
thing in the spring, curious
to see what all it will produce...


The 'cakes let me tag along on a ride...


Snuck over to Big Spring and
played with a few healthy 'bows.


And didya know I met a girl?
Yeah, she's pretty dang cool,
she also lets me tag along on
some rides, heading out on our
way down to Gettysburg...gotta
earn that Easter dinner.


To be continued...

fishin' again.

Well, with this less than fruitful
winter we've been having, with
a mtn bike in desperate need of
freshy bits and no desire to layer
up for road warrioring in the crisp
February breeze, it was back to the
trout stream.


Besides, I had a new stick to break
in. Saturday was sunny and breezy,
not exactly ideal for fishing tiny blue
winged olives on the Letort, but what
else ya gonna do? Did see a few bugs
in the air, saw all of four rises all day
along with some small black stones
flitting about. So I played a hunch and
got lucky, prospecting the water with
a buggy looking black caddis imitation.
Managed to bring one to hand, not
exceptional regarding the size, but at
least I didn't get skunked with the new rod.


Sunday was similar, but without the
breeze and much more relaxed mindset.
Used the new stick again, a 7'6"/4wt by
Matt Schliske from Colorado and really fell
for the rod. It handled the breeze surprisingly
well on Saturday, and in the calmer Sunday air,
it did everything I asked.

The calmer air helped keep the bugs
on the water and I found a bit more
success out in the Letort meadows.
Brought a bunch to hand on dries,
and one nice healthy 15"er on a
bwo nymph.

It's been neat to fish this stream more
in the winter, seeing it in a season when
I usually don't. Quite the interesting place,
lots to soak in out there.