Funny Recording

I found something that is broken. The Hennepin County automated library book renewal and information service's attempt to pronounce the title of this book I reserved lead to some interesting results. Listen to this.

Experiences

A few cool things have happened since my last post. I took a vacation to Cable, Wisconsin from Monday, August 21st through Saturday the 26th, on which day I competed in the Seeley Lions Club Pre-Fat mountain bike race. I got my new bike on the Thursday before the trip, so it was a great opportunity to get accustomed to it. That bike was made for the trails up there. It is a Gary Fisher Paragon, their top-of-the-line hardtail mountain bike with 29" wheels. There is definitely a benefit to working at a bike shop.



That's quite a contrast to my previous bike, huh? (See if you can find Maya in both pictures!)



I outfitted it with a new saddle, seatpost, and handlebars to improve the fit and feel, and it is an absolute blast to ride. I had a great time on the CAMBA trails. I rode a lot more than I would've been able to on my old 26" wheel bike, simply because it fit better and was so smooth and comfortable. I was able to ride a few hours each day until the cloud descended on Thursday. I lived in the cloud for a couple of days, biding my time until the race. The course was wet and muddy just like the previous time I had participated in it, in 2002. This time, I was prepared to go the distance, all 25 miles over roads, rocks, roots, sand, and mud, up and down steep hills, and around other riders in a field of 111. Instead of the more than two and a half hour wearisome slog that I had gone through the last time, this race was fast and fun. My bike floated over mud and sand, and rolled over the rocks and roots with ease. I passed all kinds of people, and finished in a little over two hours. After the race, I looked at the results as they were posted, and was shocked to see my name at the top of the list. I had raced faster than anyone else who was 24 years old (my age) or younger! I placed 32nd in my division, 37th overall. I ended up going home with a nice commemorative stoneware plate, a pair of socks and a lot of great memories.

In the week before my vacation, I had something extraordinary happen. While I was playing disc golf by myself, I got my first hole in one, on hole five at Staring Lake Park. I shot -1 that round, and thought it was a shame I wasn't better able to capitalize on that great shot. So, I played another round. This time, I got ANOTHER ace on five (with a different disc) and ended the round at three under par, my best ever. It was quite cool.