Niche Sports Pile-Up

I'm about to drift off to sleep with a smile on my face. With apologies to Sammy Cahn...Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow...

The rain finally stopped in the Inland Valley this afternoon. I dashed over to the SturgeUrge Compound for a visit, between calls to the phone company and the bank.

The rains have bedeviled our VoiP Telephone Service at the Ancestral Digs...two days of phone calls and "We'll work on it from our end" have turned into a "Service Window" Friday morning from 10AM to Noon. I fear the problem will have abated until the next deluge, and I need to make a conference-type call on this line tomorrow...

But that's not what has me smiling...today I enjoyed two of my four "niche sports", when three were potentially available. Oracle Racing was trial racing on the Bay again after a couple of days of weather delays. I'm gonna get over to The City one afternoon in the next week or so to see the AC45s wring it out in match racing trials. My plate was overflowing today...I'm thinking Monday. Truth be told? Bicycle racing is gearing up on the Continent, but I don't have my BodyClock reset yet, and I won't get jazzed-up about it until the Spring Classics begin for real...

Formula One's 2012 season began in earnest today. I watched two thirds of Free Practice One online from Melbourne, Australia. I joined it in progress, after whipping up dinner...fluffy brown rice...Chinese style Garlic Asparagus, and Garlic Mini Bok Choi...I got it all together, served my Mom, and the covered serving dishes held dinner together and warm until Sister K and her Dave got home...I took my plate and a cold Old Chico brew to the computer and watched the beautiful images from Down Under.

When I joined the webcast, the cars were on Intermediate Rain Tyres, on a drying track. Over the final hour, lap times fell about 20 seconds as the dry line finally seduced the brave to go out on slicks. Yes, it's just the first 90 minutes of practice, but the expected leaders,  McLaren, Ferrari, and Mercedes all topped the leader board for a time, while defending champs, Red Bull Racing had some issues. The Mid-Pack runners and the backmarkers all ran better than expected.

After the practice was over, I caught the last four innings of the Giants-Mariners game from Peoria...Arizona. Up and coming short stop Brandon Crawford got his first hit of Spring Training, the go-ahead two run homer run in the sixth. Giants 7, Mariners 5 Happy Days...

After the game, Sister K and I had some laughs at the expense of her ex one day employer, and celebrated her new position. She starts in ten days or so...way to go Sister!

I had just enough time to grab a quick shower before P2 started on SpeedTV at 10:30PM. Again, the session began on a drenched track. The lesser teams were out early on Full Wet Tyres. About 30 minutes in, everyone was on track...no on Intermediate Wets. The sun finally broke through, and the dry line followed shortly. The last 20 minutes were a joy as lap time fell quickly, until everyone realized that the "Last Man Standing" would likely top the leader board for the session. Red Bull Racing, McLaren and Mercedes traded top spot until Mercedes' Michael Schumacher set the last, fastest time of the session.

One more practice, P3 streams at 8:00PM tonight and 90 minutes of Qualifying on SpeedTV at 11:00PM. The Australian GP airs on SpeedTV LIVE Saturday night at 10:30PM (all times PDT)

 The weather in the Tahoe Sierra is too awful to write about...the next wave Friday night will bring lower snow levels and paste over the damage done in the last 36 hours of less than snow...