New Toy

So as the last post said I did sell the truck and camper but I had found a used BMW motorcycle in Bend, OR last weekend and I wanted to go down there and see what the bike was like. The bike is a 2005 BMW R1200GS, it is one amazing bike. It has luggage already on it with hard side bags and the one on the top in the back.

I must say that at the test drive I was a little scared about taking it out, I had never ridden something this big before and I will say that I was blown away at just how this thing handled. Once on the bike you really forget just how big it is, it is tall but I don't think that will bother me. All that i can really say is this test drive made me want it even more.

The previous owner had done some upgrades and that helped close the deal for me, the hard bags are great, taller windshield, engine guards, heated grips, etc... They all make for one nice ride:)

So my only concern was to see if Stacie would ride with me, I bought her a helmet while down there and when I got home and she saw the bike I am not sure if you wanted to ride it or not, now she likes riding and it only took one ride for her to like it. We have been traveling around on it and I really like it when she and I go out for a ride.

It is a lot of fun to ride and I just want to be very safe while out there while riding.

Saying Goodbye to a "family member"

So on Monday we said goodbye to the truck and camper, it left with a great family that will get lots of use out of it. Ashley and Sheila Wegner from up in Washington came down and drove her home and I must say that it was a sad day seeing it leave.

Stacie and I traveled so much in that thing and had many adventures in it. It enabled us to see parts of the country that were just great and was a cheap way to travel. I think that if we had it to do all over again we would do it just the same way. We had been all over in that truck and camper and had made the trip across the US 5 times I think....... So I am rambling, great combo and that is all that I will say about that....

McCubbin's Gulch Scramble 2007

So today was the scramble at McCubbin's Gulch, a place that i had never heard of but I will remember for a long time. So the idea of a "scramble" is that on purpose it is not a trail run, they even tell you at the start that this is a not a trail run. There might be lots of trails around where you are running but for the most part you really don't get on them. They have marked the course with ribbons and you just follow them and you cross everything from creeks to log jams. The idea of a scramble seems strange but there are many people that love doing them and I think that I might be in that boat as well.

So three of us decided to go, myself, Joel Hart from Hood River and Dave Huber, long time Snowshoe, WV friend and bar patron that has recently moved out here. I must admit that I wasn't going to do this run, I had rolled my ankle about 9 days ago and the swelling was still there but decided this morning with pressure from Dave that I should do it and it turned out just fine. Great feeling to cross the finish line or rather as it was a finish creek. It was a blast, Dave smoked the course, that guy is fast and Joel ran the downhills like something wild was chasing him and I just ran, felt like the uphills were my sweet spot and the downhills, well lets just say that i took them very slow! Enough said, great day and looking forward to the next

race....

Just one last note, Dave drank a beer on the way to the race and was having a beer when I crossed the finish line, I suppose that beer is good training fuel.

Thinking about bartending

So with the name of this blog I was thinking about how bartending has affected my life. For the most part all of my friends I have met because of bartending. There are only three that come to mind that I new before bartending, Neil, we met in first grade, Joey and Mick, met in college and the rest were from standing behind a bar and getting to know people.

My first bartending job was at Ham's in Burlington, NC, just graduated from Elon College and then started bartending, I think that my parents especially my mom had a tough time understanding this move but after a few years she found out that I was really happy with what I was doing and that this was a "real job" for me and one that I loved.

That was 16 years ago, wow does time fly. So after spending 9 years at Ham's I moved to Hood River, OR and just windsurfed the summers and then went to work at FoxFire Grille in Snowshoe, WV bartending during the winter. The FoxFire job was tough, long hours but the money was great and I had lots of friends come up to spend long weekends skiing or snowboarding and once again they would all come to the bar after skiing and we could hang out. Spent 6 winters doing that, three of those Stacie came with me and having her there made all the difference in the world.

Just over two years ago I started working at 6th Street Bistro and Loft in Hood River. I work on average about 4 nights a week and it is such a great little restaurant bar. The people that I work with are fun and once again my friends come and hang out with me while I am working. The owners are super people (check out the pic, that is them) and seem to like having me around so I think that is a that good thing!

Back out there

So yesterday was the first day of really doing anything since I rolled my ankle last Thursday down in Bend while trail running and things turned out pretty good. It started late in the day when the wind came up down at Doug's Beach so Stacie and I went down there to see what was going on. Going down there it looked really light and Stacie didn't stay that long at all but I played the waiting game and it turned out OK, well at least I got to sail. I sailed 5.3 with the big board and stayed out there until the wind just kept coming up till the 5.3 was just too big.
Once I left the beach I came home and Stacie and I went for a little road ride going North towards Klickitat. The temperature was going down so it was a great ride and my ankle held up well during the ride.

Post ride was a little cookout for us that produced some great food and a relaxing night outside.

First Blog

Well not sure how this will go but I think that it will be interesting keeping up with some of the stuff that happens here. I must say that proof-reading is not my strong card but i will try to do that better:)
Hot weather out here right now, looks like one of the rivers will be calling my name this afternoon to seek some comfort from the heat. When I left to go to work yesterday it was 106 degrees and that was around 3pm. Today it is at least some overcast up there to give us some shade.
Stacie and I went up towards Klickitat to pick blueberries and it was so much fun. You can pick and buy or give them half and then the other half is yours for free. The bushes are just hanging full of fruit too so looks like we will be heading back up there to pick some more.