Catch up

Wow it has been forever since I have posted! Where should i begin? Ok this is a no brainer. THE WEDDING

My daughter Amber was married October 18, 2009 to a wonderful person Joseph Taylor. The wedding was awesome and was held at Blackberry Cove which is located and the end of Reems Creek Rd. Amber looked awesome, the wedding went super. i did not cry and i did a pretty good job at dancing(that is my humble opinion). I will post pictures later.

Next...Nathan and Abby announced their engagement, again awesome news.

Next...Tennessee MSG cross series has begun. I made my way to Kingsport on October (?) for a Saturday and Sunday race. I shared a room with Andy, Nate and Abby.Andy brought an air mattress and slept on the floor, I told him he could share a bed with me but i beleive he was a little concerned after i told him i slept in the buff and opted for the air mattress in the floor.
We had a great time racing, watching goofy tv and...well just being bike racers.
My races went really well. I came away with 2 first place finishes. This is the first time i have ever pulled a double, double win that is.Saturday the gun sounded and we were off. Greg Casteel went to the front and i got on his wheel. we went neck and neck the first two laps. I dropped Greg on the 3rd lap, not with an attack but just steady riding. Sunday was a carbon copy of Saturday. My concern on Sunday was Gerard Remery. I have never beaten Gerard in an official cross race and was a little concerned since he did not race on Saturday and hsd fresh legs. Again Greg and I went to the front and put the hammer down. Greg went to the front I got on his wheel and as soon as I felt the pace slow I went around and put in a hard effort. With this effort Greg was dropped. I was still concerned that Gerard would bridge up so i kept the pace high and took no recovery time.With 2 laps to go I begin to think i could win. Then one to go and all I had to do was keep the pace high and no mistakes. Finally the race was over and I had won. an awesome weekend spent with some awesome friends.

d-dubbs sunday ride

I know kind of lame but here is a replay of my wonderful ride on Sunday

Goodbye Alfa

Goodbye Alfa Romeo Spyder Veloce. Ned a good friend of mine expressed interest in the Alfa a couple of years ago. At the time I was hesitant to sell the car but then again I was not driving it. So today Ned came and picked up the car and is taking it to his shop to restore.
The Alfa had a lot of character. She could be stubborn at times and it took a lot of stroking to bring out the best in her. Usually the stubborness came at the most inopportune times and usually meant not starting which in turn meant Diana pushing me off then hopping into the car. Once running, put the top down find a nice winding road and let the fun begin.The Alfa was red of course as all Italian sports cars should be.She had a 5 speed gearbox with worn out synchronizers in 2nd gear. The synchronizers were an issue on all Alfas which meant you had to double clutch downshifting to 2nd gear.The four wheel disc brakes would fade slightly when driving hard and if you let her set for too long in the garage it usually took about 1 week to get her up and running. Like I say a car with a lot of character and personality.

Not wanting to be without a sports car(my definition-2 seater convertible)I began looking, well honestly I have been kind of looking around for ~1year for a replacement. I have always been particularly fond of the Triumph TR-6 pre 1974 and the old MGA's. Both of these are British cars and each with its own peculuarities. I also considered the Porsche Boxter and the Mazda Miata.What did I end up with, a Toyota MR2 Spyder. Ratonale: Triumph's and MGA's too peculiar/Porsche Boxter-Expensive to maintain/Mazda Miata-too many around.

The Toyota is somewhat unique, reliable,parts are reasonable and it is a blast to drive!

Memorial Day Hike