tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35847713625987974622024-03-12T21:33:31.302-07:00CorduroyPlanetMaking Light in the DarkTruckeeDavehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11825726321011399776noreply@blogger.comBlogger912125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3584771362598797462.post-22389469753285043792018-01-04T10:54:00.001-08:002018-01-04T10:54:55.942-08:00Back In The Saddle AgainHat tip to Gene Autry!<br />
<br />
So I was laid off in the first week of February, 2012 due to low snow and lower skier interest after My Mountain lost both Christmas weeks and MLK weekend. It was grim...<br />
<br />
When Mother passed away in 2016 I was nearly free to get back in my tractor, save for getting the Ancestral Digs ready to sell. Believe me, it was torture watching My Mountain via webcam and seeing all that beautiful snowfall last season, and not being able to join the fray!<br />
<br />
So this is the season! I've moved to the Delta to be nearer to the fishing opportunities that do it for me now: Dungeness Crab, Chinook Salmon, and California Halibut. I've decided to give Sierra Trout a break, catch and release isn't perfect, and I probably shouldn't be tromping around through rivers and streams anyway...<br />
<br />
This month Sturge Urge and I are keeping our ears to the rail for the impending Pacific Herring Spawn.<br />
<br />
There have been a couple of spawns in our neighborhood on San Francisco Bay, but no early enough intel as of yet. One good herring trip and we'll have bait for a year, and some pickled herring to boot!<br />
<br />
So far I have worked four shortish shifts back on My Mountain. To say it's a little thin at the base is PR Gold! We got 2 inches overnight, with a chance for another few inches through the weekend. All is not lost, I remember a couple of seasons that turned out fine after similar dismal starts<br />
<br />
The dry start has blackened the hearts of locals...now instead of imploring everyone to "Pray For Snow" and "Time for a Snow Dance" I'm hearing: "It might be time for Human Sacrifice"...TruckeeDavehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11825726321011399776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3584771362598797462.post-35427417206206247102015-02-10T22:02:00.000-08:002015-02-10T22:02:00.400-08:00Ahoy Dangerous Shoals<br />
<a href="http://www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/news/article.cfm?c_id=4&objectid=11198708" target="_blank">Waffling</a> on the next America's Cup Venue.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://skiracing.com/stories/drone-technology-continues-to-revolutionize-ski-racing-video/">Ski Racing Drones </a><br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.breitbart.com/Breitbart-Sports/2014/02/19/Baseball-Teams-Using-Drones-in-Spring-Training">Baseball Drones</a>TruckeeDavehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11825726321011399776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3584771362598797462.post-76363289899602629072014-08-26T03:37:00.000-07:002014-08-26T03:37:00.031-07:00AftershocksThe Napa Earthquake held the local TV News Cycle through the end of the Late Sunday Night News. It's dialed back Monday morning, however the clean-up will take weeks and the recovery years. I saw photos of the Trefethen Winery, it looks like a total loss. Monday's Noon News is reporting sixteen structures are red-tagged, meaning they are unfit for habitation. The 4PM News says there's nearly 50 red-tagged structures.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ3CivGqdPwIOid2QLqxT-DLgPmMAY6k9CfXBgAkBQ4BML-HqGaqvVgcmm7aD11EP5CPsr8JzzAa_6bp5d74LZvTyq4uIfT2N4e2q_bhiAuhH7QDTKhKZmGEpO2h_Jp8YKbDq2t6T0cmVo/s1600/CorduroyPlanet+2014+070.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ3CivGqdPwIOid2QLqxT-DLgPmMAY6k9CfXBgAkBQ4BML-HqGaqvVgcmm7aD11EP5CPsr8JzzAa_6bp5d74LZvTyq4uIfT2N4e2q_bhiAuhH7QDTKhKZmGEpO2h_Jp8YKbDq2t6T0cmVo/s1600/CorduroyPlanet+2014+070.JPG" height="305" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Trefethen Winery</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
Many wineries are reporting big losses of bottled wines and wine in the barrel.<br />
<br />
Closer to home, Kirk Vallus messaged me via Facebook: "<span class="_5yl5" data-reactid=".by.$mid=11408941722074=23702b3d33f47f62d35.2:0.0.0.0.0"><span class="null">Spoke
with Richard tonight, good news, went up to the Ranch today and not a
stone had moved in the ruins..... That is a good thing....</span></span>" <br />
<br />
Richard owns quite a bit of the historic <a href="http://www.laurencoodley.com/sodasprings.html" target="_blank">Napa Soda Springs Resort</a> in Soda Canyon on the flanks of Atlas Peak. Richard's place has ruins of some of the original buildings that date to the 1860's, and many of the named mineral springs still flow. Soda Canyon is on the east side of the Napa Valley, well above the destruction of old downtown Napa.<br />
<br />
Today drone images of downtown Napa's damages were posted to YouTube:<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="252" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/LQhYbfIz0n4" width="448"></iframe><br />
<br />
My heart goes out to the People of Napa...lots of work ahead...<br />
<br />
It's certainly stunning footage, and drones are all the rage lately, but it's another Information Age connection that caught my fancy today: Jawbone UP<br />
<br />
What's Jawbone? What's UP? I'd never heard of them before I saw this <a href="https://twitter.com/Ramisms/status/503939169799139328">tweet</a> this morning: "Wearable tech maker @jawbone says 93% of its users woke up at 3:20AM during earthquake"<br />
<br />
I read the <a href="https://jawbone.com/blog/napa-earthquake-effect-on-sleep/" target="_blank">linked blog</a>, perused Jawbone's <a href="https://jawbone.com/up" target="_blank">UP website</a>, and my blood's running a little colder now. It turns out I do know what Jawbone is...they are makers of the Bluetooth ear pieces that make mobile phones "hands-free", and they make Bluetooth speaker systems to stream your phone or iPod music to.<br />
<br />
Jawbone UP is an "Activity Tracker", favored by people who want their entire lives and beings digitized for use by Mobile Apps and computers. A bracelet interfaces with your phone and records many channels of data including heart rate, physical exertion, time at rest or sleeping. Once saved and accessed the data is your to "Share" on social media, or embellish your daily diary or exercise planning. UP tracks your activity, diet and sleep. UP's website touts: <br />
<ul class="copy-1 text-block feature-list">
<li>Healthy Food Score</li>
<li>Simple Water Logging</li>
<li>Popular Restaurant Menus</li>
<li>Enhanced Calorie Tracking</li>
</ul>
I wonder how long before the NSA is selling this personal intel to Insurance Companies to finance yet another covert (read Unconstitutional) surveillance program (or worse). Facebook is snoopy enough! At least there you must first chose to report your thoughts, activities, and post photos of your meals at the newest trendy restaurants!<br />
<br />
I removed the Facebook App from my smartphone 3-4 weeks ago, when the latest Facebook "Feature" seemed too invasive for my sensibilities.<br />
<br />
Being awakened by earthquake tremors is one thing...plugging in my vital signs to the cloud would keep me up all night! TruckeeDavehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11825726321011399776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3584771362598797462.post-53555983887495571702014-08-25T03:37:00.000-07:002014-08-25T12:38:59.601-07:00Again With the "No Rest For The Wicked" DealI was awakened by the shaking at 0320 Sunday morning. I don't know if I thought it or said it out loud: "Wow, this is a good one!" I was expecting to be awakened at 0430, I'd set my alarm clock so I could watch the Belgian Grand Prix LIVE from Spa-Francorchamps.<br />
<br />
I didn't even need to "rub the sleep outta my eyes" I was wide awake! I hit the internet running, and in under a minute, I had the USGS Quake Sheet up informing me of the (then) Magnitude 6.1 quake four miles south of Napa, CA.<br />
<br />
At the Ancestral Digs, the local TV News outlets were wall-to-wall in under a half hour, while the local 24/7 News Radio Station was taking calls while their reporters got to the scene.<br />
<br />
Twitter was on it like white on rice. I tweeted the quake at 0323...three minutes after it shook.<br />
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ77kkK2OoQvWmOwq8AnHnn8wlW4R2ZhuOXg_dha4KwQUUtqd3SBNMgHUzW4Ca7aLBYTiNc2Q-CdM3V_jWf5j0EYZEwlrK_F9wg9JKA_ZDHren8Iilg8njzXeVCO_zZ07n11Vr9DmYXcfZ/s1600/CorduroyPlanet+Tweets+2014+044.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ77kkK2OoQvWmOwq8AnHnn8wlW4R2ZhuOXg_dha4KwQUUtqd3SBNMgHUzW4Ca7aLBYTiNc2Q-CdM3V_jWf5j0EYZEwlrK_F9wg9JKA_ZDHren8Iilg8njzXeVCO_zZ07n11Vr9DmYXcfZ/s1600/CorduroyPlanet+Tweets+2014+044.PNG" height="640" width="360" /> </a></div>
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I heard from Chico Dupr<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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</xml><![endif]--><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">é in mere moments. He didn't feel it, though it was felt up to 400 miles from the epicenter...Carson City, Nevada...on the far side of the Sierra Nevada mountain range!</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">The radio had harrowing stories of damage and shaking, and this kept me in rapt attention until the TV Newsfeeds began. There were fires...why is it always trailer parks? Tornadoes love 'em it seems...</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">At 4:30AM, I changed the channel to the Formula One Pre-Race Show. The three weeks of "Summer Break" were over and the racing would resume in just under 30 minutes!</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">I switched up my Twitter Feed to a Formula One List...of course it was sprinkling in Pit Lane! Spa-Francorchamps is high in Belgium's Ardennes Forest, it's the longest track on the F1 calendar and it often rains up there...sometimes it'll rain on one end of the circuit while there's bright sunshine at the other end. It always makes for dramatic racing, and I expected nothing less than Broadway-Worthy Drama!</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">I wasn't disappointed! The rain never was a factor...it was the human side of F1 that provided the drama. The two Team AMG Mercedes teammates were on the front row. Together they have the top two spots in the Drivers' Championship.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">The lights went out, the Mercs sped towards Turn One and it was ON! Points-leader and Pole-Sitter Nico Rosberg was bested by teammate Lewis Hamilton, with my guy, Red Bull Racing's Sebastion Vettel right in the mix. On lap two, Nico made his way outside Lewis and they touched! Nico's front wing clipped Lewis' rear tyre and all hell broke loose. Lewis' tyre went flat, and part of Nico's wing went flying. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">There was good racing up and down the track, the rain stayed away and the race was decided on the merits, not the luck of the draw (as is so often the case with wet races)</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-size: small;">It was all over but the post-race chatter when I plugged back into the earthquake coverage...which I quickly grew weary of. I turned it down, reset my alarm for 8AM and shut my eyes...baseball pre-game chatter would start at 0800, and my San Francisco Giants are in a pennant race with the Los Angeles Dodgers!</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-size: small;">More later...No Spoilers...You're Welcome! </span></span>TruckeeDavehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11825726321011399776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3584771362598797462.post-87563591764942203772014-08-05T09:22:00.000-07:002014-08-05T09:22:24.806-07:00California Halibut Fishing On San Francisco Bay<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">We launched the F/V SturgeUrge from Richmond
into a bit more Southerly wind than forecast about 9AM.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">We turned the corner and headed south towards
Southampton. It didn't take long for the lump to get to us. SturgeUrge was really
working hard to make way, so we turned tail and headed towards Red Rock.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">For some reason...maybe the week's worth of
hot days and nights' toll on my sleep schedule...made everything seem like
pulling teeth today...</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">The first three sets of our
Dodger/Hoochie/Frozen Herring rigs totally got gongered and came back looking
like macrame plant hangers. My apologies to the SturgeUrge as my 'Cranky Pants'
must have been 'riding-up' cause I was whining in stereophonic
Wall-Of-Sound-style.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">You know what they say: "Three's A
Charm"... after the third untangle/rebuild/redeploy, *Bang* FishOn!</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">I felt the head shakes and pumped her up a
little fast...then she saw the boat and turned tail and ran...fast! For a
minute I was almost convinced I'd hung a Mud Marlin, but the fight was up and
down only, no crazy bat ray antics. A couple more ups and downs and SturgeUrge
did a perfect net job!</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Before the net even came over the rail that
fish went ballistic! Think rolling surgeon next to the boat! There went a brand
spankin' new $8 sinker! The fish wrapped itself up in the net like a mummy!</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWlDL7ciiwwpDrhaIQm4DcjSIrrpzbXvWyEWd7ytBS1AY6C5S0guXuCVhYKkD7qWkABjjQHJUf7dvizRcauoCVGtXFDy6bDsdbrU5mElaXBo4A9-JE4oJmfG8EE5nBK5o3Gii1SIEV9AMC/s1600/2014-8-4+Red+Rock+Halibut+004.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWlDL7ciiwwpDrhaIQm4DcjSIrrpzbXvWyEWd7ytBS1AY6C5S0guXuCVhYKkD7qWkABjjQHJUf7dvizRcauoCVGtXFDy6bDsdbrU5mElaXBo4A9-JE4oJmfG8EE5nBK5o3Gii1SIEV9AMC/s1600/2014-8-4+Red+Rock+Halibut+004.JPG" height="396" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">That was it for the day. Fish came about 2/3
of the way towards Red Rock on a line from Paradise Pier to Red Rock, just west
of the channel...about an hour before the bottom of the small ebb.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">We trolled the mark for a couple more hours
before switching to drifting to give SturgeUrge a break and to make lunch...I
was afraid the top slice of Jewish Rye might blow off the pastrami sammiches I
was building.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">We haven't had a drift halibut all year, but
trolling has been golden so far...we've been sticking to halibut tides
exclusively.</span></div>
TruckeeDavehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11825726321011399776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3584771362598797462.post-36568002254602237462014-02-21T10:02:00.000-08:002014-03-19T16:39:57.844-07:00Unseen ThingsA lot of things I like are happening this week: Sochi Olympics' second week, NASCAR is ramping up to the Daytona 500 on Sunday, Formula One teams are testing in Bahrain, and another cold front is approaching the Northern California Coast.<br />
<br />
Unfortunately, there's lots of stuff happening that I wish I wasn't seeing...Venezuela and the Ukraine are aflame as their citizens are protesting in the streets against their respective tyrannical rulers. Many are dead in Kiev, and blood is beginning to flow in Caracas...<br />
<br />
NASCAR kicks off their season with their Super Bowl, the Daytona 500. The teams have been at the Daytona International Speedway for a week, practicing, qualifying, racing an All-Star race, the Sprint Unlimited, and running the Twin Qualifiers to decide the running order for The 500. The front row is locked in during qualifying...the two fastest runs take the Pole Position, and the other front row slot.<br />
<br />
NASCAR is pretty tame stuff as motorsports go...I do love the Daytona 500 though, it means that Formula One is coming over the horizon, and that Spring is just weeks away. Still, there are surprises from Daytona. Long time readers will remember the <a href="http://corduroyplanet.blogspot.com/2012/02/grinding-it-out.html" target="_blank">weird Red Flag</a> during the 2012 500.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6VMmmmTP3dnrfgAXSMaJUmWQpZRe4haJg7gJn6lWGFQJm1izQqKaNAVCqJZdR1kjsFIPvR2_fpIMXb_6EZMibbRk4X9D7t3jUEOOxuvzivtvouC6I0TwLhhOg7Jvz9ef_P6xX8st2g4Ik/s1600/CorduroyPlanet+2012+085.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6VMmmmTP3dnrfgAXSMaJUmWQpZRe4haJg7gJn6lWGFQJm1izQqKaNAVCqJZdR1kjsFIPvR2_fpIMXb_6EZMibbRk4X9D7t3jUEOOxuvzivtvouC6I0TwLhhOg7Jvz9ef_P6xX8st2g4Ik/s1600/CorduroyPlanet+2012+085.JPG" height="318" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jet Dryer spewing flaming fuel after Juan Pablo Montoya sideswiped it under caution!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
This week, the Sprint Unlimited provided another head shaker...<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYtBFWyykJ28ETGH45U_R95J3S9owGUDBLSWNnR0tMNXyGdh0cXFbio60GZ2MlQkVj9GbxoxGS7OghMc2F-x-NBA0Sw8rEpwGVx72CCFV7fBIwCe1KyZqlXXCjfU8E-O0HAaq_OcKA6ukc/s1600/CorduroyPlanet+2014+056.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYtBFWyykJ28ETGH45U_R95J3S9owGUDBLSWNnR0tMNXyGdh0cXFbio60GZ2MlQkVj9GbxoxGS7OghMc2F-x-NBA0Sw8rEpwGVx72CCFV7fBIwCe1KyZqlXXCjfU8E-O0HAaq_OcKA6ukc/s1600/CorduroyPlanet+2014+056.PNG" height="223" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
That's the Chevy SS Pace Car on fire...during the race! Everyone got out OK, a back-up Pace Car took care of things, but it was really weird to see the Pace Car towed behind the Pit Wall by a wrecker!<br />
<br />
NASCAR has a new aero package for their Restrictor Plate Races (Daytona and Taladega) this season, and it's the best they've had in many years! The draft looks like the draft form the Golden Years, long trains of cars nose to tail are gone, as are the two-by-two pairings for the last few years. I think they finally got it right!<br />
<br />
During Thursday's second 125 mile qualifier, they had "The Big One'" on the final lap when Jimmy Johnson's number 48 Chevy ran out of fuel causing a huge melee...one unlucky racer ran into a spinning car, turned sideways at 185 mph, lifting off the track and did a 360° barrel-roll, landed upright, blasted through the infield grass, and finally drove, under control into the pits! The onboard footage was awesome...good television!<br />
<br />
I've mostly forsaken the TV coverage of the Olympics in favor of streaming the events LIVE. Seeing every racer from the first bib number to the last is storytelling in it's most visceral form.<br />
<br />
Conditions are a huge part of the Sochi2014 story, you can see and hear the conditions change when you see the whole event. The PrimeTime Package barely qualifies as a 'Highlight Reel', much less storytelling. I will watch the NBC package tonight on Women's SkierCross to see how they handle the mid-qualifying delay while some clouds blew through the middle of the course, causing local whiteout conditions, and holding up the proceedings for 10-15 minutes.<br />
<br />
Who knew that Iran sent a Giant Slalom racer to Sochi? Did NBC show their run? <br />
<br />
The Formula One circus is in Bahrain testing. No TV, no LIVE Stream...Still there is an information stream or two online. BBC Radio is doing a LIVE Text stream, as are several Grand Prix magazines and websites. These are informative and can be dramatic. Most of these chat-like streams include comments or tweets from fans.<br />
<br />
Most compelling is Twitter of course, F1 Teams, drivers, F1 journalists all tweet every interesting tidbit of on-track info-tainment...in RealTime.<br />
<br />
As the preeminent technological racing series on Planet Earth, it amazes me that F1 doesn't have an internet streaming service for sale like Major League Baseball's <a href="http://sanfrancisco.giants.mlb.com/mlb/subscriptions/index.jsp?c_id=sf&affiliateId=CLUBMLBTVTAB">MLB.TV</a>.<br />
<br />
This gem gives you every MLB game, from every team, across every device including your Big Screen HDTV LIVE with your choice of home or visitor audio for $129/year. Every single game is available, except in local blackout areas (generally within a team's 'FanSphere')<br />
<br />
All games are available On Demand all season, again with choice of broadcasters...worth every penny to rabid baseball fans.<br />
<br />
I'd happily plunk down $130/year for the Formula One equivalent!<br />
<br />
That's all for today, the San Francisco Giants are streaming LIVE from Spring Training at 10AM PST <a href="http://m.mlb.com/video/topic/22048014/v31371571/sfg-live/?partnerId=as_sfg_20140221_18959894" target="_blank">Here</a> If you can't stream the full screen version, clear your browser's cache.<br />
<br />
Play Ball!TruckeeDavehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11825726321011399776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3584771362598797462.post-84717361022695277092014-02-15T10:52:00.000-08:002014-02-15T10:52:59.487-08:00Warm And FuzzyThe weatherman says we might get some drizzle overnight tonight...we'll take whatever we can get! They say the wet will hold off until the Chinese New Years Parade is over, but the truth is most of this system is trending north of the Bay Area...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMWIg0ok7yLGme7zN22qIyyv2F_D2jqP6-nDnAx8IMcHVe6y-JLQ0K62jxF07dPFVrQlvJpgrjmBXWByiy3YKYwtMovLDQYhaUcC_HCoSk6SVr1jFlNJiPDQXH32URbMesau8Z9L_1hDkC/s1600/Baseball+2014+009.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMWIg0ok7yLGme7zN22qIyyv2F_D2jqP6-nDnAx8IMcHVe6y-JLQ0K62jxF07dPFVrQlvJpgrjmBXWByiy3YKYwtMovLDQYhaUcC_HCoSk6SVr1jFlNJiPDQXH32URbMesau8Z9L_1hDkC/s1600/Baseball+2014+009.PNG" height="640" width="360" /></a></div>
<br />
Friday morning felt like Spring had sprung...I didn't get out, though the temps were Spring-like, instead I spent a very generous morning LIVE streaming the San Francisco Giants #SFGLive. They were streaming from Scottsdale, AZ where Pitchers & Catchers were reporting for Spring Training. #SFGLive went a little over Four Hours! The Giants' Opening day is 44 days away.<br />
<br />
I didn't watch much <a href="http://www.breitbart.com/Breitbart-Sports/2014/02/14/Sochi-Weather-Strikes-Again-Ski-Cross-Training-Session-Canceled" target="_blank">Olympic coverage</a>, opting to luxuriate in all things Giants' Baseball. The webcast featured interviews with new and returning players and coaches, Giants beat writers, even groundskeepers. They threw in some studio features on Giants' Promotions for the coming season...everything from Bobbleheads to R2D2 stocking caps!<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjCMgr2UcqorqEue93tLd4LQHc6zQ9N42rVr1dI3EHkU0CA2iwaOg3JcQ0zVZeE7dNRFygHt7vWFvR9ylIIUVGkaskzieLxNIp3Xtkk_mrkjAYwDM26159516tVH8lNDZY1uF11WMrsL1X/s1600/Baseball+2014+011.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjCMgr2UcqorqEue93tLd4LQHc6zQ9N42rVr1dI3EHkU0CA2iwaOg3JcQ0zVZeE7dNRFygHt7vWFvR9ylIIUVGkaskzieLxNIp3Xtkk_mrkjAYwDM26159516tVH8lNDZY1uF11WMrsL1X/s1600/Baseball+2014+011.jpg" height="640" width="230" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hunter Pence Bobblehead Wed April 9th, giveaway</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnpA3G-AS6V8COspH6RlYslF14zO2LeK8CZxkzKmmDy8yI5_2xghz4rs5Tj_h-WKIFYG4zSqh71oEHIcP6be4n_W22iCWwUD28-j7qElClns0DvSbzLUvpyvEqpOwXlka_E6gNSsf28Xoz/s1600/SnarkyOne+2014+046.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnpA3G-AS6V8COspH6RlYslF14zO2LeK8CZxkzKmmDy8yI5_2xghz4rs5Tj_h-WKIFYG4zSqh71oEHIcP6be4n_W22iCWwUD28-j7qElClns0DvSbzLUvpyvEqpOwXlka_E6gNSsf28Xoz/s1600/SnarkyOne+2014+046.JPG" height="397" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">STAR WARS Day Sunday August 31st giveaway</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
You know Spring Training is almost magic to baseball fans...during spring training reality doesn't carry as much weight as dreams. During Spring Training, every baseball fan's team is going to the World Series!<br />
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Sure reality is still reality...players will make the team...or not. Some will be surprises, some will fall to injury, but overall Spring Training is like Springtime, a time for renewal and rebirth. 3rd Baseman Pablo 'Kung Fu Panda' Sandoval played Winter Ball in Venezuela, and worked really hard losing around 40 pounds. Back-up catcher <span id="yiv7804681551yui_3_2_0_17_1333269179758390" style="font-size: small;">Héctor Sánchez lost 20 or so pounds too...that will help his endurance when he starts behind the plate.</span><br />
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Everyone's champing at the bit to get going, lots of position players are in camp already too. Groundhog Day is behind us and baseball season is just six weeks away. That'll take care of that pesky Seasonal Affective Disorder!<br />
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As I write tonight, I'm listening to Baseball Talk on KNBR 680AM...more specifically I'm listening to Marty Lurie do his first show of Spring Training. Marty's Twitter handle is <a href="https://twitter.com/baseballmarty" target="_blank">@baseballmarty</a> Marty loves baseball, and the Giants...he has Reverence for baseball. He does KNBR's SF Giants pre- and post-game shows on weekends, and he's their Super-Substitute, sittin' in whenever they need him during baseball season. There is a <a href="http://www.knbr.com/" target="_blank">LIVE Stream</a>, and you can tune in KNBR on your smartphone with the <a href="http://www.iheart.com/live/5530/" target="_blank">iHeartRadio</a> App.<br />
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As a Talk Radio listener for 35+ years, I hate SportsTalk...on talk radio, sports is like religion...nobody is persuading anybody...they're just spewing their 'doxies, and there's no genuine discussion. Marty's shows are different...yeah there's still SportsTalk Dolts that make it past the CallScreener, but for the most part it's compelling listening. Thanks Marty.<br />
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I'm off to watch some Olympics with the sound off... TruckeeDavehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11825726321011399776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3584771362598797462.post-29131185609117146502014-02-14T04:37:00.000-08:002014-02-14T15:42:00.526-08:00Under My RadarSochi2014 is a week old today, and it's been fascinating to be sure. It's no wonder a lot of news that matters to me has been overlooked in the day to day of the Winter Games.<br />
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I've been streaming most of the events I care about, and not watching the NBC Broadcasts that much, except as Family-Time entertainment for the Marquee Events. We still love the American Figure Skating Pair that skates to the James Bond theme music.<br />
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Watching the <a href="http://www.nbcolympics.com/results-schedule" target="_blank">LIVE Stream</a>, you see every racer in the downhill...all 50 bibs. NBC showed All the Americans and the Gold, Silver, and Bronze runs...and every crash...these events are much more interesting viewed as they happen, in order, in full. Sochi's balmy weather and the venues' deterioration are a story that NBC barely acknowledges, but tells itself when viewed start-to-finish.<br />
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With Sochi twelve hours ahead, I'm losing a little sleep in my quest to enjoy these Games...<br />
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California's reservoirs got a shot in the arm from a nice Pineapple Express. Folsom Lake near Sacramento caught 23.8ft and gained 102,870 acre feet of water. Salmon and steelhead are grateful...<br />
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A week after NorCal's Big Gulp, record high temps have been matched or recorded in Reno, Sacramento and South Lake Tahoe. Our poor TV weatherfolks are bored already, and the forecasters and TV weather people are starting to act like shell-shocked walking wounded again.<br />
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Forecast Model Ensembles are coming into agreement on another system for Saturday night/Sunday, but it's tracking north of Interstate 80. Both Noon News shows I caught today said snow on the passes...just what the Resorts and Mountain Businesses don't need...another Holiday Weekend Rain-Out. If precedent holds, the crowds will avoid the mountains...and the 'storm' will miss wide north...This pattern is three winters old now...<br />
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Sadly, the last big International Sporting Event, the 34th America's Cup Regatta has been getting some ink...the Organizers and San Francisco's Powers-that-be are scrapping over the next regatta, scheduled for 2017. As you can imagine, it's all about <a href="http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/America-s-Cup-cost-to-San-Francisco-nearly-doubles-5222510.php" target="_blank">money</a> and outsized egos.<br />
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Larry Ellison, tech giant Oracle's Top Dog, and winner of the 'Old Mug' with his ORACLE Team USA syndicate is <a href="http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/nevius/article/S-F-Ellison-can-t-let-game-of-chicken-sink-5215526.php" target="_blank">making noises</a> about <a href="http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?section=news/sports&id=9424102" target="_blank">taking his ball and going home</a>...which is his newly purchased Hawaiian Island, Lanai. Organizers are <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/14/amaericascup-venue-idUSL2N0LI1HT20140214" target="_blank">looking at San Diego and Newport, Rhode Island as well as Hawaii</a>...<br />
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Even the design of the regatta and the <a href="http://www.mysailing.com.au/news/oracle-upsets-america-s-cup-challengers-with-talk-of-limits" target="_blank">challenger's feeder regatta are being argued</a>, though I hope it's just Ellison trying for a negotiating advantage. It would be a shame if the Organizers artificially kept the Challenger Fleet small. When SturgeUrge and I went to the first Louis Vuitton Cup race between Italy's LunaRosa and Sweden's Artemis, the Aquatic Park Jetty was packed with European tourists...the majority Swedes.<br />
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The Regatta was so incredible, set against the breathtaking San Francisco, Golden Gate Bridge, and Marin County shores, the Organizers would be fools to go anywhere different. Contesting the next Cup in some other venue without the television eye-candy quotient, would be suicide for potential sponsors. Anyone who watched the excellent TV coverage from San Francisco Bay would be channel surfing before the first tack.<br />
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Last year's America's Cup Regatta was <a href="http://www.latitude38.com/lectronic/lectronicday.lasso?date=2013-09-27#.Uv1qN7S2WZR" target="_blank">so hotly contested</a> that it took me weeks to get my breath back...Sudden Death races for ORACLEteamUSA...two a day, for the final week of racing...what a spectacle! It would be criminal to lose it.<br />
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To be fair to The City, it should cost less next time around...no new venues are required, in fact the city and National Park Service could make enough cash to offset their costs just by selling access to the Aquatic Park Jetty, where SturgeUrge and I watched the first race of the Louis Vuitton Cup. At $5/head, they could bag an easy $2000/day!<br />
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There's baseball news too! SF Giants' Pitchers & Catchers report to Spring Training today! The club is <a href="http://m.mlb.com/video/topic/22048014/v30991967/final-sfg-live-of-2013-season" target="_blank">streaming live</a> from Scottsdale at 9AM PST If you can't see the full screen stream, clear your browser's cache.<br />
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Ugghhh... <a href="https://twitter.com/NWSReno/status/434082813973770240" target="_blank">@NWSReno</a> just tweeted: Very windy on Saturday with more snow expected for the <a class="twitter-hashtag pretty-link js-nav" data-query-source="hashtag_click" dir="ltr" href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23Sierra&src=hash"><s>#</s>Sierra</a> on Saturday night into Sunday. <a class="twitter-timeline-link" data-pre-embedded="true" dir="ltr" href="http://t.co/LCQoRFXa3X">pic.twitter.com/LCQoRFXa3X</a><br />
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Not what the resorts want to see going into Presidents' Day Weekend...The math is hard. The resorts have lost half of the Christmas Holidays, most are at best half open, the 49ers copped another two weekends...it's gotta be pretty grim in the accounting department...<br />
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Hey! On the bright side, <a href="https://twitter.com/SquawValley/status/434133307593621506" target="_blank">Squaw's KT22 opens Friday</a>!TruckeeDavehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11825726321011399776noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3584771362598797462.post-87745455778235951742014-02-13T03:37:00.000-08:002014-02-13T03:37:00.380-08:00Sochi2014 OverviewTaking the high view at Sochi2014 is a <a href="http://diydrones.com/profiles/blog/show?id=705844%3ABlogPost%3A1556405&commentId=705844%3AComment%3A1559476&xg_source=activity" target="_blank">CameraDrone</a>. I caught a glimpse of it during the Women's SlopeStyle competition. You could see the drone following the skiers down the course. I didn't see any of the drone's footage on NBC's broadcast.<br />
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I searched my favorite Geek websites for CameraDrone info...to no avail...I <a href="https://ixquick.com/" target="_blank">Ixquick</a>-ed it and found one story: <a href="http://www.foxnews.com/sports/2014/02/10/drone-in-sochi-shooting-live-olympic-tv-not-terrorists-as-sneaky-machines-find/" target="_blank">'Drone in Sochi shooting live Olympic TV, not terrorists, as sneaky machines find new uses'</a> Talk about a loaded headline...<br />
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The AP article says <a href="https://www.obs.tv/about.php" target="_blank">Olympic Broadcasting Services</a> is running the drones...kinda. It sounds like British Company <a href="http://www.heliguy.tv/" target="_blank">Heliguy</a> might actually be handling the flying/filming, though the exact details were omitted in the AP story.<br />
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After 24 hours, this one AP story has been published dozens of times by large and small news outlets...from 24/7 cable heavyweights like FoxNews, to small local affiliates...let's see if these amazing little fliers get any more ink...I did suss that the CameraDrones are at the SlopeStyle and Ski Jumping venues.<br />
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I've noticed more than a little inaccuracy in some of the Sochi tech stories I've read. The numbers in the 'Stockpiled Snow' articles have been epically...let's say...flexible, and I expect misunderstood. For example the first story said there was one year's-worth of snow stockpiled...700K cubic meters, or 928K cubic yards. Another story claimed none of the stockpile was utilized yet, then went on to say 25K cubic feet is ready at hand?<br />
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Another story I cited said two year's-worth of Sochi snow had been stockpiled. Math is hard...I'm guessing there may be language barrier issues contributing to the confusion too...<br />
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It's amazing the facts that fall out on the floor while you're looking for Sochi info! Browsing through Olympic Broadcasting Services' website, I found out that Swiss World Cup Alpine Ski racer, Bernhard Russi is the architect of the Rosa Khutor Alpine Resort where Sochi2014's Alpine events are held.<br />
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Russi is a two-time Olympic Medalist, one Downhill Gold from Sapporo1972, and a Downhill Silver from Innsbruck1976 where he lost by 0.33 second to Austria's Franz Klammer after Klammer's legendary run starting 15th, the last of the top seeds. This Downhill was the Gold Standard, shown during every Winter Games broadcast until NBC bought the current Olympic Television Rights in 1988. Klammer's daring run, and ABCsports' Frank Gifford and Bob Beatti's play-by-play are legendary.<br />
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Russi designed Rosa Khutor, but he didn't choose the site. Much has been said about Sochi's Sub-Tropical climate, however it's not the Southernmost Winter Olympics site. The title goes to Nagano, Japan site of the 1998 Winter Games.<br />
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<b>Top 5:</b><br />
Nagano is at 36° 28" N In order are Nagano, Squaw Valley1960 at 39° 11" N, Salt Lake City2002 at 40° 45" N, Sochi2014 at 43° 35" N, and Sarajevo1984 at 43° 52"<br />
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NOAA's Climate.gov says <a href="http://www.climate.gov/news-features/featured-images/sochi-among-warmest-winter-olympics-host-cities" target="_blank">Sochi is one of the warmest</a> winter games host sites ever.<br />
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<b>Wednesday AM Update:</b><br />
This morning I found a story that says: <a href="http://www.breitbart.com/Breitbart-Sports/2014/02/11/Sochi-Officials-Forced-to-Break-Out-Stored-Snow-for-Olympics" target="_blank">Balmy Temps Force Sochi2014 to Use Stockpiled Snow</a>. Krasnaya Polyana is the region where the Rosa Khutor Resort's Alpine Events are contested.<br />
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The article is more of an overview...none of the specifics I'm into were addressed. It would be nice to know which courses got the transfusions of banked snow.<br />
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I finally found a decent Weather Page for Rosa Khutor: <a href="http://www.wunderground.com/cgi-bin/findweather/getForecast?query=Krasnodar+Krai%2C+russia" target="_blank">Krasnodar, Russia (URKK)</a> Not a forecast that bodes well...temps forecast to stay above freezing through Sunday, with a 60% chance of rain Sunday, High temps in the mid-50's...TruckeeDavehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11825726321011399776noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3584771362598797462.post-58125423238746121322014-02-12T03:37:00.000-08:002014-02-12T03:37:00.337-08:00Sochi2014 It's All Downhill From HereThe Winter Games are heating up. The Men's Downhill is in the books, as is the Men's Snowboard Half-Pipe. America's Favorite Sons, Bode Miller and Shaun White misstepped in their attempts to step up to the top of the podium.<br />
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Conditions at Rosa Khutor look pretty tough on the competitors...every Alpine Event I've watched (save the Men's Downhill) has been contested in what you call 'Spring Snow'...Bode Miller lead the time sheets on two of three sunny Downhill Training Sessions, only to face the infamous <a href="http://skiracing.com/stories/men_olympic_downhill/" target="_blank">'flat light'</a> on race day.<br />
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I just streamed the Half-Pipe, Qualifying, Semi-Finals and Finals...the pipe looked a little soft, save for the walls...they even sent a pack of skiers down the gut of the pipe midway through the Finals to sideslip the 'mashed potatoes'<br />
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Aside from the American Bobsledder who made a sensation on the web when he got locked in the shower room, broke out through the locked door, and tweeted a photo of the breached door, <a href="http://blog.sfgate.com/olympics/2014/02/10/u-s-bobsledder-who-got-stuck-in-olympics-bathroom-gets-trapped-in-elevator/#20483101=0" target="_blank">getting stuck in an elevator</a> (no destructive escape this time around), for the most part the Snark from Sochi has been reduced to a softening mylar birthday balloon a week on...there are, medals being won and lost after all!<br />
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Well...there is the <a href="https://twitter.com/SochiProblems" target="_blank">@SochiProblems</a> Twitter account that has a third more followers the the Official <a href="https://twitter.com/Sochi2014" target="_blank">@Sochi2014</a> verified account... Not all Snark from Sochi is dead, it's just been on the 'Down Low' for a day or two now...<br />
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<a href="https://twitter.com/MagnifeyeRoads" target="_blank">@MagnifeyeRoads</a>'s man in Sochi, Truckee's own Jonathan Sass <a href="http://blog.magnifeye.com/post/76294333743/grooming-machines-at-rosa-khutor" target="_blank">takes requests</a>!<br />
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That's how it got started, I emailed him, and he blogged the photos two days later!<br />
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I don't remember if it was during the SlopeStyle or the Women's Combined Downhill coverage, but for a fleeting moment I saw a Bombardier MP Groomer with a Troop Carrier body on the back, parked on the side of a trail! It was still the original Bombardier Yellow, all waxed and shiny, too... It looked great considering that it was probably 10+ years old.<br />
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Seeing this snowcat was the genesis of my photo request. I was curious whether Sochi made a deal with Prinoth/Leitner or Pisten-Bully for a fleet of machines, and if they did, was there special Olympic Livery like Bombardier showed on the Salt Lake2002 machines?<br />
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Jonathan's photos showed a nice array of groomers. It doesn't look like what I think of as a 'Fleet' however. To me a fleet is all of a single manufacturer, and of a single tractor model. This keeps the parts inventory at the cat shop down to a dull roar...<br />
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My Mountain has had a mixed fleet from time to time over the years, and more down shifts and over-crowded parts rooms are the price you pay.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo: Jonathan Sass 2014</td></tr>
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Pisten-Bully PB400<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo: Jonathan Sass 2014</td></tr>
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Prinoth BisonX parked next to an Everest Winchcat<br />
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Everyone who's into Sochi2014 should follow Jonathan's <a href="http://blog.magnifeye.com/" target="_blank">Magnifeye at the Olympics Blog</a>, and while you're all at it, please follow <a href="http://corduroyplanet.tumblr.com/" target="_blank">CorduroyPlanet's Tumblr</a> as well...thank you very much!<br />
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Going forward, I suspect there'll be more <a href="http://www.climate.gov/news-features/featured-images/sochi-among-warmest-winter-olympics-host-cities" target="_blank">grousing</a> about Sochi2014's Sub-Tropical climate. The forecast has Highs in the low 50°F's and Lows in the high 30°F's for the rest of the week. <a href="http://www.breitbart.com/Breitbart-Sports/2014/02/11/Sochi-2014-Last-Women-s-Downhill-Training-Canceled-Due-to-Mild-Weather" target="_blank">Tuesday's Women's Downhill Training was cancelled</a> due to the balmy weather. Women's Combined looked really juicy Monday as well. The early Downhill didn't look too bad, but the afternoon Slalom portion looked ridiculous!<br />
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Another thing caught my eye while streaming the Women's SlopeStyle Skiing last night, it was a CameraDrone following the action! I didn't see any DroneCam footage on NBC's LIVE stream, I'll look for it on Tuesday night's big broadcast.<br />
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There's plenty of Sochi2014 still to be contested, Stay tuned!<br />
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<br />TruckeeDavehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11825726321011399776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3584771362598797462.post-22731711773560536122014-02-09T08:50:00.000-08:002014-02-09T08:50:26.178-08:00Rainy Day We're finally getting a decent Winter Storm. Over an inch of rain so far at the Ancestral Digs, with more on the way. Trans-Sierra highways are snarled with chain control slowdowns and accident-caused back-ups.<br />
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This is what Winter is supposed to be! It's how I remember real winters were before our dry spell began back in 2011/2012.<br />
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Saturday's Six O'Clock News is full of North Bay flooding, Bay Area traffic at a standstill, and even some mud and rock slides! It's like déjà vu all over again!'<br />
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The snow levels are forecast to rise above Pass Level overnight before gradually falling Sunday. The Pineapple Express will provide the wide open spigot through Sunday late.<br />
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It's not a 'Drought Buster', but it's a help...one Bay Area TV weatheman quipped: 'It's a 'Drought Denter'...I'll take it. Here's how Sacramento's NWS Forecast Office put it:<br />
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I'll drink to that...TruckeeDavehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11825726321011399776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3584771362598797462.post-7167012965394486542014-02-08T08:30:00.000-08:002014-02-08T08:30:11.034-08:00Sochi2014 Outta This World <b>Update:</b><br />
Sochi2014 Organizers stockpiled Two Year's worth of snow in the woods above the event slopes under thermal blankets.<br />
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BBC Buisness interviewed the artificial/stockpiled snow contractor, Snow Secure. It's an interesting <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-26079790" target="_blank">listen</a>.<br />
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Closing the circle next week at Sochi, <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2549607/Sochi-Olympic-medals-contain-fragments-Chelyabinsk-meteor-slammed-Russia-year.html" target="_blank">Olympic Medals awarded on February 15th</a> will include pieces of the <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/science/2013/nov/06/chelyabinsk-meteor-russia" target="_blank">Chelyabinsk Meteor</a> that slammed into Russia's Southern Urals last year on February 15th.<br />
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This big rock hit during my hookey playing from this blog, but it held my rapt attention at the time.<br />
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For my money it had everything...Astronomy, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=itMdLTd1l4E" target="_blank">Russian Dash-Cams</a>, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dpmXyJrs7iU" target="_blank">viral video</a>...what's not to like?<br />
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PBS's NOVA did a show this fall on hunting the pieces of the space rock. <a href="http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/earth/meteor-strike.html" target="_blank">'Meteor Strike'</a> can be streamed free online.<br />
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These things always remind me of Easter Egg Hunts. Remember the California Foothills meteor that hit in 2012? The Chelyabinsk Meteor Hunters did not employ a <a href="http://corduroyplanet.blogspot.com/2012/05/meteorite-hunting.html" target="_blank">Zeppelin</a> like NASA did in the <a href="http://corduroyplanet.blogspot.com/2012/05/history-again.html" target="_blank">Foothills Meteor Hunt</a>.<br />
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Thursday night I watched some Sochi2014...Men's Snowboard SlopeStyle the new-to-the-Olympics event. I agree with 2-Time Snowboard Half-Pipe Gold Medalist Shawn White, that course is a little Extreme...or Dangerous as White called it. White, who got banged-up during SlopeStyle practice this week, withdrew from the SlopeStyle event to focus on the Half-Pipe.<br />
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I think I saw some Grooming Machines parked off the adjacent trail to the SlopeStyle Course...I'll keep an eye peeled...<br />
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Meanwhile...<br />
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A different kind of Sochi2014 Up & Down...<br />
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6'-9" Hockey Player Zdeno Chara towers over 4'-11" Skater Kristen Moore-Towers <br />
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I'm in town all week, Folks!<br />
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<br />TruckeeDavehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11825726321011399776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3584771362598797462.post-38456213691821330082014-02-07T03:37:00.000-08:002014-02-07T12:29:05.604-08:00The Hits Just Keep Coming!Sochi2014 is turning into just plain SnarkTastic Fun!<br />
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In today's busy world it never ceases to amaze me how fast the Scolds and 'Debby Downers' can get their panties in a bunch! We can thank/blame SocialMedia for that.<br />
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With so many wordsmiths tweeting <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23SochiProblems&src=tyah" target="_blank">#SochiProblems</a>, and Network TV's magazine and chat shows featuring the snark, is any wonder the Killjoys have fired up their TwitterMachines to <a href="http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2014/02/06/pampered-journalists-facing-backlash-for-tweeting-sochi-problems/" target="_blank">exact their pound of flesh</a>...<br />
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It's all in good fun...unless you're 'sense of humor challenged'...<br />
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Just in time to stir the pot, Breitbart Sports covers the <a href="http://www.breitbart.com/Breitbart-Sports/2014/02/06/Sochi-Winter-Olympic-SWAG-Bags-Are-Awful" target="_blank">media's 'Goody Bags'</a> from the Sochi Hosts... <br />
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Still amazed that the Russian Olympic Organizers would site their games at a sub-tropical seaside resort where Russians holiday to escape their bone-chilling winters, I found this fascinating story about <a href="http://www.breitbart.com/Breitbart-Sports/2014/02/06/Russians-Saved-Snow-from-Previous-Winters-for-Sochi-Games" target="_blank">Sochi 'Snow Hoarding'</a> Good plan, Russkis!<br />
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The authors needs a spot of Snowmaking 101. Snowmaking machines do make snow...but nothing resembling 'powder'...still stockpiling nearly a million cubic yards of snow 'just in case', is a good plan. Should Mother Nature forsake Sochi, the groomers could move the stash onto the courses and work them over until they're ready to race on. I've got news for the authors...powder is the last thing ski racers want on the racecourse! To a competitor, they want the hardest sheet of ice they can get!<br />
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Snow stockpiling can't cost that much...I'm still musing over the $51 Billion spent on Sochi...<br />
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Even if the Sochi Organizers paid Roscosmos to fly their Olympic Torch to the International Space Station and spacewalk it for the cameras, that would run, what...$10-$20 Million tops? A drop in the 51 Billion Dollar Bucket...<br />
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I wonder if 'The Russian Judge' is gonna be a thing this time around?<br />
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Oh jeeze...Never a dull moment when it comes to Sochi2014, there's another <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2550897/Off-piste-Russias-female-Olympians-Russia-goes-Sochi-charm-offensive-scantily-clad-photo-call-athletes-youve-never-seen-before.html#ixzz2sb71scvL" target="_blank">kerfuffle</a>. I don't remember this kind of outcry when the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition hits the news stands...every...single...year. You know what? The female Russian athletes don't look a bit like 70s East German Lady Olympians any more. I've got your progress right heah!TruckeeDavehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11825726321011399776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3584771362598797462.post-29093769770652537592014-02-06T13:25:00.001-08:002014-02-06T13:25:03.082-08:00Freestyle SchadenfreudeI do love me some Olympics, especially Winter Olympics, and the Sochi 2014 Olympics TV coverage starts tonight in The States.<br />
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The Sochi Buzz has slowly been ramping-up over the past six-or-so weeks. I haven't written about it because until the hordes of Athletes, Western Sportswriters, and TV Talking Heads began to arrive in Sochi, most of the stories were political in nature.<br />
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All the Sochi coverage before this week was in the 'Is Sochi Safe From Terrorism?' vein...not exactly my cuppa tea...I remember the 1972 Munich Massacre vividly to this day...not a pretty picture.<br />
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Putin's Russia does have regional enemies, and they're using terrorism to bloody effect in Stalingrad (now called Volograd) in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/October_2013_Volgograd_bus_bombing" target="_blank">October 2013</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/December_2013_Volgograd_bombings" target="_blank">December 2013</a>. Enough said.<br />
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This week the Sochi News is the comedy flip-side of the dark worries that went before.<br />
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As with all things human of late, social media have carried the ball to hilarious effect.<br />
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This morning, ABC's Good Morning America did a <a href="http://abcnews.go.com/Sports/winter-olympics-2014-sochis-99-problems-twitter-handles/story?id=22394751#.UvPb9_ZUExs.twitter" target="_blank">story</a> on <a href="https://twitter.com/SochiProblems" target="_blank">@SochiProblems</a> the snarky new Twitter account that tweets all things <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23SochiFail&src=tyah" target="_blank">#SochiFail</a><br />
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Russia's spent uphill of $51 Billion to build the seaside Olympic Village and Alpine venues...but they're running just a little behind. Hotels without running water, missing finishing touches, WiFi network Phishing MalWare, even streets missing manhole covers!<br />
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Toilet Humor abounds in Sochi it seems...<br />
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I've been ice fishing many times...but never considered the indoor angling opportunities cited in this Sochi Bathroom Plaque!<br />
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Long time readers will remember <a href="http://corduroyplanet.blogspot.com/2011/07/planets-align.html" target="_blank">my recommendation</a> of <a href="https://twitter.com/MagnifeyeRoads" target="_blank">@MagnifyRoads</a> the local that tweets all of CalTrans' I-80 electronic signboards every time their message changes. I've written that these messages are more useful than a weather app in telling me what I need to know about the weather on My Mountain in Real Time.<br />
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Magnifeye's <a href="http://www.tahoedailytribune.com/northshore/10038515-113/sass-games-sochi-russia" target="_blank">proprietor is in Sochi</a> as a volunteer, and has a <a href="http://blog.magnifeye.com/" target="_blank">Tumblr Blog</a> you can follow for the latest. Today's entry mentions his three foot fall into an open manhole!<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRKIQmVQvQuUP7T7ZTgp5a4b6YkTuHUD0uiQxGfdIxel8XghxmtXAjWi6Psg7W4hdr4WWxK9ERr2HoVlpDlUeNr8AqZwPS85vuNFLtwlsZqhV9LZ5K9KZd9A3V40DUGIEKPzyrZzFYhdeM/s1600/CorduroyPlanet+2014+025.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRKIQmVQvQuUP7T7ZTgp5a4b6YkTuHUD0uiQxGfdIxel8XghxmtXAjWi6Psg7W4hdr4WWxK9ERr2HoVlpDlUeNr8AqZwPS85vuNFLtwlsZqhV9LZ5K9KZd9A3V40DUGIEKPzyrZzFYhdeM/s1600/CorduroyPlanet+2014+025.JPG" height="225" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">@MagnifeyeRoads' Jonathan Sass</td></tr>
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Somehow in the run-up to Sochi2014, I missed the fact that Sochi is a resort built on the shores of the Black Sea! Wikipedia says Sochi has a Sub-Tropical climate!? Wow, think 'Lake Effect Snow' on steroids!<br />
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I found an <a href="http://www.breitbart.com/Breitbart-Sports/2014/02/06/Report-Explosives-Half-Pipes-to-Combat-Perfect-Avalanche-Conditions-in-Sochi" target="_blank">online story about avalanche control</a> above Rosa Khutor, the Alpine resort where Sochi's Alpine events will be held. Rosa Khutor lies 25 miles from the Black Sea Shore, where 3+ foot snowfall in a day is not uncommon...hence the linked story that features explosives in a Non-Terrorism context.<br />
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Sochi2014 is on NBC-TV in The States, and Sochi is 12 hours ahead of the West Coast of America, so most of NBC's Broadcast coverage will be Tape-Delayed.<br />
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With SocialMedia saturation, it's going to be hard to avoid spoilers...thankfully, NBC is streaming everything that happens in Sochi <a href="http://www.nbcolympics.com/" target="_blank">LIVE</a> online.<br />
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I for one am ready to settle in and watch The Games...Best of luck to Sochi2014, the athletes and Organizers!<br />
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<br />TruckeeDavehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11825726321011399776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3584771362598797462.post-47176949211707344812014-01-26T15:50:00.000-08:002014-02-06T13:47:50.970-08:00Take 2More photos...less than a thousand words:<br />
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Word from several sources is that the model runs are coming together for a Pattern Change about the end of the month!<br />
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The Sacramento NWS Office seems to be leading the charge...as they would. I think of them as the Chamber of Commerce of Forecast Offices...Cheerleaders even...<br />
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There is a pretty robust system on the horizon, even Bryan Allegretto,<a href="http://opensnow.com/dailysnow/tahoe" target="_blank"> OpenSnow.com</a>'s Tahoe Snow Forecaster, the forecaster I trust the most long range-wise is a <a href="http://opensnow.com/dailysnow/post/2053" target="_blank">believer</a>...so far.<br />
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Bryan has been the only standout these past two atypical winters when it comes to 1 week+ forecasts, always calling the inevitable fizzled forecasts from the rest. Always later and less than the NWS forecasts. In the main, Bryan nailed all the changes AND the timing.<br />
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BA is like oil on troubled waters to me...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgj__wyyZKb9owNDSB8aIbDEVPePk_bJDyupgSFCAEEGv4rCkYposcOfHGvHzgp64VTQN_A3fxeKp9MXlG90cqzqdBQuAnpr7U7zZ5qHLgZ8iGaPHGJM2uF8EUiLVNvYWkvqgzuQ6a7RIYB/s1600/CorduroyPlanet+2014+019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgj__wyyZKb9owNDSB8aIbDEVPePk_bJDyupgSFCAEEGv4rCkYposcOfHGvHzgp64VTQN_A3fxeKp9MXlG90cqzqdBQuAnpr7U7zZ5qHLgZ8iGaPHGJM2uF8EUiLVNvYWkvqgzuQ6a7RIYB/s1600/CorduroyPlanet+2014+019.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
Lastly, here's the Reno Office weighing in...in Chamber of Commerce-style I'd say!<br />
<br />
This isn't usually the style of the Reno guys...they're the most conservative of the four NWS Forecast Offices that I keep tabs on.<br />
<br />
I'm giving them the benefit of the doubt...I can't imagine how bored they must be. How can you blame them for getting excited at a glimpse of hope?<br />
<br />
I must confess, I haven't been reading their (or any other Office's) Area Forecast Discussions since the Blocking High settled in before Thanksgiving...I'll quote Bob Dylan: "You don't need a weatherman know which way the wind blows"<br />
<br />
So can I stop feeling guilty and look forward to putting the garden hoses away?<br />
<br />
Fingers crossed...there's still a couple of wildfires in California that haven't been 100% contained...TruckeeDavehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11825726321011399776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3584771362598797462.post-31421379953278741952014-01-21T13:28:00.000-08:002014-01-21T13:46:28.446-08:00Worth A Thousand WordsIt looks like the frigid weather in the Plains and Northeast will last through Groundhog Day, February 2nd:<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9vqEm_POK_jINxZxRL89HRA99dZFZivje0wbnlaKpkxTEV72nfzBk567dOda6SDk0N82I58HAYRHmSNB5rqcynHjXjwW2pi866FkwdQmc7gZ75iQqigyITuj5kQm5iW11M-SqipdmvvC3/s1600/CorduroyPlanet+2014+003.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9vqEm_POK_jINxZxRL89HRA99dZFZivje0wbnlaKpkxTEV72nfzBk567dOda6SDk0N82I58HAYRHmSNB5rqcynHjXjwW2pi866FkwdQmc7gZ75iQqigyITuj5kQm5iW11M-SqipdmvvC3/s1600/CorduroyPlanet+2014+003.JPG" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">East Coast sentiment</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Forecast models don't offer any relief...<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSPACjMLkyIig34o6L2J6dGTereMUlc6afRrTvphK9-xBu-97CBF5S1Ki6uSagSTio3IOfGOoBwbJNJh931zZRbnsiEy4ZdwlX4qlKNLrQ6q0Dybj3WAqLqNj5Fyg5W4JzVsATMS_RjU_v/s1600/CorduroyPlanet+2014+012.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSPACjMLkyIig34o6L2J6dGTereMUlc6afRrTvphK9-xBu-97CBF5S1Ki6uSagSTio3IOfGOoBwbJNJh931zZRbnsiEy4ZdwlX4qlKNLrQ6q0Dybj3WAqLqNj5Fyg5W4JzVsATMS_RjU_v/s1600/CorduroyPlanet+2014+012.PNG" height="640" width="360" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"> Weatherman Mark Finan a week ago</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
The forecast map though Groundhog Day:<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7J866JyQhCm2YjOwrWsMDqbMgMalZ8MQWWbXRuSUL4dxDYGYXOpK7wrFBkTg5dkppLHIuxZgqS2QwWgBFUBxdypbhD29G2v372Cs55QV5ummlZIlPVugHZ2m04Vo_vUiSnixv0p6IlxnR/s1600/CorduroyPlanet+2014+013.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7J866JyQhCm2YjOwrWsMDqbMgMalZ8MQWWbXRuSUL4dxDYGYXOpK7wrFBkTg5dkppLHIuxZgqS2QwWgBFUBxdypbhD29G2v372Cs55QV5ummlZIlPVugHZ2m04Vo_vUiSnixv0p6IlxnR/s1600/CorduroyPlanet+2014+013.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Temperature Anomaly thru 1st week of February</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
The Culprit: <br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcI7f52ilckOl6NWV45iu6Sn8nbmjtgV0QkaU7qPp9XXXoZVKuaCZKVCokZNPuDfMnExSN7j8rnCTGotYRBtnviwW5d9rT_aNEoq4qM_rp1NHdfuXPXD5R_R5kq_I-7Z0SkkgxcGQHZniO/s1600/CorduroyPlanet+2014+014.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcI7f52ilckOl6NWV45iu6Sn8nbmjtgV0QkaU7qPp9XXXoZVKuaCZKVCokZNPuDfMnExSN7j8rnCTGotYRBtnviwW5d9rT_aNEoq4qM_rp1NHdfuXPXD5R_R5kq_I-7Z0SkkgxcGQHZniO/s1600/CorduroyPlanet+2014+014.JPG" height="320" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Big Picture</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
The 'Blocking High' that's keeping every drop of precipitation away...entrenched.<br />
<br />
There are <a href="http://inciweb.nwcg.gov/state/5/" target="_blank">active wildfires</a> in California today, and officials continue to <a href="http://www.kfbk.com/articles/kfbk-news-461777/officials-warn-of-high-fire-dangers-11991577/" target="_blank">warn of High Fire Danger</a>.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqriH2Bg4QBkWINMV5iixQ1tdfbVhR7-0pyft_KyBqSc7M4Cro2Apa7MVbgR8Mlc36VwiReLRZb6_EIZeat_-NPKIBowdcsFJ5vGHfgTrsoFed43JebMzlZIemy0BP5acT-aZv8RSBvf6O/s1600/CorduroyPlanet+2014+004.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqriH2Bg4QBkWINMV5iixQ1tdfbVhR7-0pyft_KyBqSc7M4Cro2Apa7MVbgR8Mlc36VwiReLRZb6_EIZeat_-NPKIBowdcsFJ5vGHfgTrsoFed43JebMzlZIemy0BP5acT-aZv8RSBvf6O/s1600/CorduroyPlanet+2014+004.JPG" height="286" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Warm temps keep bears from hibernating. Photo at Heavenly Valley Ski Resort</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
Let's be careful out there...and keep our fingers crossed!TruckeeDavehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11825726321011399776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3584771362598797462.post-31473167128344461042014-01-14T04:37:00.000-08:002014-01-14T04:37:00.334-08:00Irony or ScaryHappy New Year!<br />
<br />
It'll be the Year of the Horse come Chinese New Year, this January 31st.<br />
<br />
Buh-bye 2013 the "Driest Calendar Year On Record" in central California and the Sierra Nevadas...<br />
<br />
There was no avoiding it this morning...my Social Sites were lit up with records and warnings:<br />
<br />
Red Flag Warnings are up for most of the Bay Area hills:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhVv7YJYxlwYmi_lWcn3fToUZ47atLNOW7OeN2Fi0LFZvGPZZ_HLtXrBJEwb5_AtStCQCycgeX08oEl7glPmgFUVsRIGlrUGuGs64OZdqE6qOAtocfaUD3Ird0c4qA3rkqyHpshPRiGUTW/s1600/CorduroyPlanet+2014+009.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="331" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhVv7YJYxlwYmi_lWcn3fToUZ47atLNOW7OeN2Fi0LFZvGPZZ_HLtXrBJEwb5_AtStCQCycgeX08oEl7glPmgFUVsRIGlrUGuGs64OZdqE6qOAtocfaUD3Ird0c4qA3rkqyHpshPRiGUTW/s400/CorduroyPlanet+2014+009.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
This afternoon, more High Temperature Records fall, <a href="https://twitter.com/NWSBayArea/status/422872426620264448" target="_blank">@NWSBayArea:</a> "Record High Temperature at <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23Oakland&src=hash" target="_blank">#Oakland</a> Airport! High so far today of 70 degrees - breaks previous record of 69 from 2009. <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23cawx&src=hash" target="_blank">#cawx</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23recordsetting&src=hash" target="_blank">#recordsetting</a><br />
<br />
Meanwhile up in the Sierras, the Forest Service is doing control burns in forests that should have several inches (if not several feet!) of snow on the ground!<br />
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbGsl88_lBqqWsizLC5zq2FmEazxkarnLhn0VVWvHNSrhJcs9jKcF3eCF6AxLFc1K68tbWUz-SuTS1IpUkGdIwCBmScwmyXJ37c-DojqpZsCtrrwDbkc3MLjTncetIvBelSOIs14zdONM7/s1600/CorduroyPlanet+2014+008.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="156" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbGsl88_lBqqWsizLC5zq2FmEazxkarnLhn0VVWvHNSrhJcs9jKcF3eCF6AxLFc1K68tbWUz-SuTS1IpUkGdIwCBmScwmyXJ37c-DojqpZsCtrrwDbkc3MLjTncetIvBelSOIs14zdONM7/s400/CorduroyPlanet+2014+008.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
Reno's News/Talk station posted to Facebook:<br />
"<span class="userContent">Prescribed Burns Underway -- U.S. Forest
Service fuels management crews will continue prescribed fire operations
off of Bunker Drive near Tahoe City and on Luther Pass near South Lake
Tahoe through January 18, weather and conditions permitt<span class="text_exposed_show">ing. </span></span><br />
<span class="userContent"><span class="text_exposed_show">Smoke from prescribed burns may continue for several days after the
initial ignition. Forest Service staff will post road signs around the
areas affected by the prescribed fire, send email notifications and
update the local fire information line at 530-543-2600, #6.</span></span>"<br />
<br />
I know I said it was gonna be another dry winter...but that doesn't mean I like it...that it doesn't fill me with dread...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgK_fWCyQBu4-YRUBFaB1_ZPG10LQ3v_ommXkSwnBO2GbB_nFGTcnJXEXlrKBc_s86I6arcVXWQs6IEI1dJW5VuZjA6Kmte2MJijExOam7ZguI1pW3YHEtXNtHtGcqgFtZiMxOnCSimvgRF/s1600/CorduroyPlanet+2014+006.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="331" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgK_fWCyQBu4-YRUBFaB1_ZPG10LQ3v_ommXkSwnBO2GbB_nFGTcnJXEXlrKBc_s86I6arcVXWQs6IEI1dJW5VuZjA6Kmte2MJijExOam7ZguI1pW3YHEtXNtHtGcqgFtZiMxOnCSimvgRF/s400/CorduroyPlanet+2014+006.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
I'm not liking these odds...I hate when I have to do extra mental health housekeeping...<br />
<br />
We'll have to do some outdoorsy stuff while the weather's too nice...between off-season watering at the Ancestral Digs. usually watering the Diggins is all over by NFL Playoff time.<br />
<br />
Thank God for the San Francisco 49ers and their quarterback #7, Colin Kaepernick from UNR (University of Nevada Reno) because baseball seems very, very far away.<br />
<br />
BajaBabe called me 'pensive' in an email last week. I didn't reply to disabuse her of the notion because I thought she was nuts...and because I don't like to be a jerk...but I found myself taking refuge in the 10 DVD set of "Ken Burns' Baseball" from PBS ever since...<br />
<br />
I gotta admit that wildfires in January and Red Flag Warnings in January after "Driest Calendar Year On Record", have me more than a little worried.<br />
<br />
Let's call me scared...a little...worry is nothing but a waste of imagination, and I'm fairly frugal...being a "Glass Half-Full Guy"<br />
<br />
Let's keep our fingers crossed, be Fire Safe, and "Hey, let's be careful out there"... <br />
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TruckeeDavehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11825726321011399776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3584771362598797462.post-85165904471573028002014-01-05T03:37:00.000-08:002014-01-05T03:37:00.015-08:00Making LemonadeWhen life gives you lemons...<br />
<br />
As a 'Glass-Half-Full' guy it did me good to find another 'Glass-Half-Full' Guy who's actually celebrating the low intensity start to Winter 13/14.<br />
<br />
The San Francisco Chronicle's Outdoor scribe Tom Stienstra writes: <a href="http://www.sfgate.com/outdoors/article/Drought-has-its-outdoors-recreation-benefits-5107371.php" target="_blank">"Drought has it's outdoors recreation benefits"</a><br />
<br />
Mmmm...camping near Monterey and taking a Dungeness Crab/Sanddab Combo partyboat trip would help take the edge off...<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdK09bcrnZLZYXDqKIQDdeRBpQoRwujjcXR3tPzjsOUNBIMyt6atzySK6qnDdj3WHHNWvLzQABP7oJJZ4AHoxHMaJnVF0ZBqQtO83oWucJrwLZnfZEwIdyc7mmjnW5FJLuBioK9ZkPFnLA/s1600/CorduroyPlanet+2014+001.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="326" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdK09bcrnZLZYXDqKIQDdeRBpQoRwujjcXR3tPzjsOUNBIMyt6atzySK6qnDdj3WHHNWvLzQABP7oJJZ4AHoxHMaJnVF0ZBqQtO83oWucJrwLZnfZEwIdyc7mmjnW5FJLuBioK9ZkPFnLA/s400/CorduroyPlanet+2014+001.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pacific Sanddab</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />TruckeeDavehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11825726321011399776noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3584771362598797462.post-30899597268006308492014-01-04T04:20:00.000-08:002014-01-04T04:20:01.451-08:00Don't Shoot!...Me, I'm just the messenger!<br />
<br />
I've tried twice since early November to scratch out this blog...Most years I do my prognostication blog in mid-October, this year it's like if I don't put my thoughts to paper, maybe the worst won't happen...I dunno...My first attempt was November 2nd.<br />
<br />
I titled it <b>Hindsight is 20/20:</b><br />
"How'd that Halloween thing work out for ya, Boreal?<br />
<br />
Well...to
quote Agent 86..."Missed it by that much!" Boreal opened at noon on
October 32nd according to their website. I looked at their webcam around
4PM that November 1st afternoon and things looked pretty threadbare...<br />
<br />
Saturday their website was touting: "Snowmaking continues" they'll reopen when conditions allow.<br />
<br />
According
to the Reno NWS Forecast Office's AFD, snowmaking temps will arrive
overnight. Alas the moisture tied to toe cold front is hanging north of
the I-80 Corridor, so none of Mother Nature's Finest will accumulate.
However, good cold temps will hang around for a day or two, though
warming is forecast into the weekend..."<br />
<br />
Boreal did get open and stay open, though not wall-to-wall yet... <br />
<br />
I couldn't get to the point...I tried again on November 18th:<br />
<br />
<b>Here We Go...Maybe...</b><br />
<a href="http://www.saminfo.com/news/new-data-suggests-potential-record-year-west" target="_blank">One forecast</a> is saying record year!<br />
<br />
However, that's This "winter, the mountain lodging industry in the western U.S. is in a
position to post record-breaking numbers according to the most recent
data released by DestiMetrics." as reported by Ski Area Management Magazine...<br />
<br />
Tuesday <a href="http://www.sfexaminer.com/sanfrancisco/cal-fire-extends-fire-season-staffing-in-san-mateo-county-amid-low-rainfall/Content?oid=2630002" target="_blank">CalFire announced</a> they were extending staffing in San Mateo County to deal with the very dry fire conditions.<br />
<br />
Here in January, wildfires are 'still a thing' in tinder-dry California...it's scary. <br />
<br />
OK, now it's 2014 and I'm at it again. It reached almost 70°F here at the Ancestral Digs, with frosty nights. Up on the Sierra Crest, temperature inversions have played havoc with air quality and overnight temps and humidity keep snowmakers from plying their trade.<br />
<br />
As 2013 wrapped up, all the NWS Forecast Offices that I follow on Facebook made a flurry of posts with photos and graphs chronicling the super-dry year's end.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuRtSGEn9aL3MyjUg2Ymt9bbNgT5hFhUff75WoJHG8T48W9J2x3ZHQl1cRmTxvRoriHuVGWOVLCwnL7n6u95LT7ev1i-5xhc9miZqnX8g4gx8iNGYX7rJ0S8SUPSe58nQ1h4WakZEB2dqi/s1600/CorduroyPlanet+2013+076.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="303" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuRtSGEn9aL3MyjUg2Ymt9bbNgT5hFhUff75WoJHG8T48W9J2x3ZHQl1cRmTxvRoriHuVGWOVLCwnL7n6u95LT7ev1i-5xhc9miZqnX8g4gx8iNGYX7rJ0S8SUPSe58nQ1h4WakZEB2dqi/s400/CorduroyPlanet+2013+076.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Sacramento NWS Office posted this on December 26th</td></tr>
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I have a bad feeling about this... <br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCdhuuv_hjG0uMxxbzOynzenJYyYR5rArnNOk2nU_Zgo094sqrC7jRZU59K_j7ta-UnLH370CoR6tLBkhWydOAjJG7TrhAuTdweoLVGxufCn88Gso7H-yRRB4ZMlpLn1JEzu2_7q8a9HjJ/s1600/CorduroyPlanet+2013+077.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="331" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCdhuuv_hjG0uMxxbzOynzenJYyYR5rArnNOk2nU_Zgo094sqrC7jRZU59K_j7ta-UnLH370CoR6tLBkhWydOAjJG7TrhAuTdweoLVGxufCn88Gso7H-yRRB4ZMlpLn1JEzu2_7q8a9HjJ/s400/CorduroyPlanet+2013+077.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Blocking High...'it's like déjà vu all over again'</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
The same big picture as the past two winters. I won't cite all the alphabet soup of ocean oscillations...it's too painful...too real.<br />
<br />
How can I sugar-coat it...I'm seeing a third dry winter in a row...something I haven't seen in 33 years of living Central Sierra Nevada weather.TruckeeDavehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11825726321011399776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3584771362598797462.post-42083369037015577962013-11-29T15:36:00.000-08:002013-11-29T15:43:02.711-08:00Boob TubesI enjoyed a lazy Thanksgiving bereft of most of my family. We all have more than one family these days which makes for scheduling fun every time the Holiday Season rolls around. I don't mind really, sometimes the all week prep and all day kitchen marathons are nice to avoid.<br />
<br />
Still, I will be baking a 14lb Free Range turkey later this week...with Sausage and Spelt Cornbread Dressing...without the rest of the requisite Thanksgiving Feast hoopla.<br />
<br />
Unencumbered by responsibilities, I plugged into some NFL football on TV while keeping an eye on the internet for Breaking Space News...<br />
<br />
SpaceX, the private space launch company wrangled by Tesla Motors' head honcho Elon Musk, was set to launch a TV Satellite from Florida's Space Coast.<br />
<br />
Mysterious traveler, Comet ISON was swinging around the Sun, and skywatchers were on pins and needles on whether it would survive the close encounter. ISON was predicted to pass our star at one Solar Diameter's distance from the Sun's surface, enduring (or not) temps high enough to melt iron.<br />
<br />
Football it turns out offered a twofer in the form of the Raiders vs Cowboys game. The first half looked like the 70s/80s Raiders crushing America's Team 21-14, only to look like a different team in the second half only scoring 3 points to the Cowboy's 17, in the end, losing 31-24.<br />
<br />
SpaceX ended up offering a twofer of sorts as well...<br />
<br />
A dramatic <a href="http://spaceflightnow.com/falcon9/007/131128scrub/#.UpkVtOL8mZQ" target="_blank">Aborted Launch</a> seconds after engine ignition, when sensors showed the Falcon 9's main engines' thrust ramp-up was out of spec. The launch was "aborted by autosequence due to slower than expected thrust ramp," Musk posted on Twitter.<br />
<br />
The SpaceX Launch Team secured the rocket and began failure-analysis while concurrently recycling the vehicle for a second attempt at launch within the hour! NASA never double clutched ever!<br />
<br />
The Launch Team ran out of time to understand the anomaly, and ran up against the edge of the satellite's Launch Window. They'll try again after the Holiday Weekend, when the FAA will let them launch once the holiday air travel eases up a little.<br />
<br />
Comet ISON was a twofer as well. All Solar Viewing satellites recorded images of ISON's swing through it's late morning (PST) perihelion...comet observers held their collective breath...then nothing!<br />
<br />
I had tried to view ISON before it's close encounter to no avail...hazy skies at the Ancestral Digs made the highly improbable observation impossible.<br />
<br />
After sunset, the first images of ISON reappearing after it's blast furnace rendezvous, show something on ISON's path. Observers were of two minds: ISON didn't survive...or...ISON did survive without it's nucleus...or something. As of 'Black Friday' afternoon, whatever it is has brightened quite a bit! Sky & Telescope Magazine has the latest <a href="http://www.skyandtelescope.com/observing/home/Comet-ISON-Updates-193909261.html" target="_blank">Comet ISON blow-by-blow</a>.<br />
<br />
Here's a <a href="http://science.nasa.gov/media/medialibrary/2013/11/29/weird_anim2.gif" target="_blank">movie</a> of the comet's two+ day solar flyby.<br />
<br />
ISON may yet be a naked-eye wonder! Stay Tuned...<br />
<br />
What a nice Thanksgiving night surprise...ComcastSportsNet replayed Tim Lincecum's No Hitter against the San Diego Padres from this past July...like an early Christmas Present!TruckeeDavehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11825726321011399776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3584771362598797462.post-3580517223206024142013-11-22T12:49:00.000-08:002013-11-22T12:54:49.744-08:00Cranky HistoryRIP JFK<br />
<br />
I'm cranky today...reminded from midnight on that I was around to witness this sad milestone in America's history.<br />
<br />
I wrote about it a couple of years ago. What I wrote still stands: <a href="http://corduroyplanet.blogspot.com/2011/12/living-history.html" target="_blank">"Living History"</a><br />
<br />
I'll go be cranky somewhere else now...TruckeeDavehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11825726321011399776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3584771362598797462.post-29714422029010783052013-11-02T18:37:00.000-07:002013-11-02T18:37:56.919-07:00What's At Stake<b>...last week.</b><br />
It was Boreal's slog to get enough snow to sell lift tickets for Halloween. After a long, warm, uneventful Fall...Mother Nature just barely bailed out their annual Marketing Push (read Stunt...hey...whatever gets you through the night)<br />
<br />
<b>Saturday November 2nd</b><br />
How'd that Halloween thing work out for ya, Boreal?<br />
<br />
Well...to
quote Agent 86..."Missed it by that much!"<br />
<br />
Boreal opened at noon on
Friday October 32nd according to their website. I looked at their webcam around
4PM that November afternoon and things looked pretty threadbare...<br />
<br />
Saturday morning their website was touting: "Snowmaking continues" they'll reopen when conditions allow.<br />
<br />
According
to the Reno NWS Forecast Office's AFD, snowmaking temps will arrive
overnight. Alas the moisture tied to this cold front is hanging north of
the I-80 Corridor, so none of Mother Nature's Finest will accumulate.
However, good cold temps will hang around for a day or two, though
warming is forecast into the weekend...<br />
<br />
<b>Bigger Picture</b><br />
If the Winter 2013/2014 is another dry one, the West will be in trouble.<br />
<br />
The 'D' Word, drought will become a stuck record on weather reports, the Six O'clock News and The Weather Channel.<br />
<br />
The Drought is much more serious for the <a href="http://www.rgj.com/article/20131026/NEWS07/310260048/Colorado-River-faces-critical-snow-season" target="_blank">Colorado River</a> where it's been 14 years of substandard precip.<br />
<br />
I have a special place in my heart for the Colorado River. I've hiked both the Grand Canyon from the South Rim, across the river and up the North Rim to Roaring Springs, and Havasu Canyon from the South Rim all the way through Supai, down Havasu Falls and Mooney Falls to the confluence of Havasu Creek and the Colorado.<br />
<br />
My tally is three Grand Canyon trips and two Havasupai trips.<br />
<br />
In the years since those adventures, I've taken two dozen fishing trips to Baja California.<br />
<br />
The Colorado River empties into Baja's Sea of Cortez...or it used to. The mighty Colorado is so totally utilized to irrigate the Southwest, that barely any of the Colorado runs into the Cortez anymore.<br />
<br />
The Cortez needs that water at least as much as lawns in Phoenix do.<br />
<br />
<br />
I still haven't drawn a bead on this coming Winter...the Sun is still too quiet...<br />
<br />
Like I said <a href="http://corduroyplanet.blogspot.com/2013/10/let-prognosticating-begin.html" target="_blank">last time</a>, I've got a bad feeling about this.TruckeeDavehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11825726321011399776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3584771362598797462.post-7081616448969727052013-10-20T20:05:00.000-07:002013-10-21T17:36:59.024-07:00Let The Prognosticating Begin!<b>August 25, 2013</b><br />
I'm scanning the Sunday Chronicle online, and on the Entertainment Tab (Think Pink Section), I found a <a href="http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Farmers-Almanac-Super-Bowl-may-be-Storm-Bowl-4759664.php" target="_blank">story</a> about the '<a href="http://www.farmersalmanac.com/" target="_blank">2014 Farmer's Almanac</a>' which publishes Monday August 26th, 2013.<br />
<br />
Last week I blogged about the Fire Weather. KirkVallus quizzed me: "<span data-ft="{"tn":"K"}" data-reactid=".r[ugpy].[1][4][1]{comment10151691517252771_27741635}.[0].[right].[0].[left].[0].[0].[0][2]"><span data-reactid=".r[ugpy].[1][4][1]{comment10151691517252771_27741635}.[0].[right].[0].[left].[0].[0].[0][2].[0]"><span data-reactid=".r[ugpy].[1][4][1]{comment10151691517252771_27741635}.[0].[right].[0].[left].[0].[0].[0][2].[0].[0]">no snow news? but you cover all the rest that I need to know, thanks Dave....</span></span></span>"<br />
<br />
Even my Sainted Mother has been asking about 'the signs'...wooly worms and such, that help make those folksy winter weather predictions...<br />
<br />
Truth? I haven't given it any thought lately...oh, the one weathergeek who I respect (for his accurate forecasts going out three weeks) <a href="https://twitter.com/TahoeWeather/status/367410774165041153" target="_blank">@TahoeWeather</a> tweeted: "<a class="account-group js-account-group js-action-profile js-user-profile-link js-nav" data-user-id="70778108" href="https://twitter.com/TahoeWeather"><span class="username js-action-profile-name"></span></a><small class="time"><a class="tweet-timestamp js-permalink js-nav" href="https://twitter.com/TahoeWeather/status/367410774165041153" title="2:22 PM - 13 Aug 13"><span class="_timestamp js-short-timestamp " data-long-form="true" data-time="1376432529"></span></a></small>Some Winter hints... <a class="twitter-timeline-link" data-expanded-url="http://www.opensnow.com/dailysnow/tahoe" dir="ltr" href="http://opensnow.com/dailysnow/post/1567" rel="" target="_blank" title="http://www.opensnow.com/dailysnow/tahoe"><span class="tco-ellipsis"></span><span class="invisible">http://www.</span><span class="js-display-url">opensnow.com/dailysnow/tahoe</span></a>" on August 13th.<br />
<br />
Tahoe-based snow forecaster, Bryan Allegretto was checking in early with some thoughts on our upcoming winter...when KirkVallus quizzed me and I gave the coming winter a bit of thought, I came up with the same data points as <a href="https://twitter.com/TahoeWeather" target="_blank">@TahoeWeather</a>... ENSO Neutral, PDO Negative. I keep an eye on the Sun's behavior too, and it's still quiet...too quiet.<br />
<br />
In his August 13th Blog, @TahoeWeather demurs from offering a forecast this far out.<br />
<b> </b><br />
<b>October 15, 2013</b><br />
I tried to view the Climate Prediction Center's website, to view the September 90 Day climate Outlook Discussion, but the site is unavailable to civilians due the the incremental Government "Shutdown". Shutting down 17% of our $3.8 Trillion+ Government is hardly a shutdown...even the furloughed "Non-Essential" bureaucrats will get paid when all is said and done (think extra paid vacation) <br />
<br />
<b>October 20, 2013</b><br />
OK, the "Shutdown" is over, and Government websites are open to Citizens again. The CPC's 90 Day Outlook published October 17, 2013, says ENSO Neutral through the 2013-2014 Winter. No El Niño, no La Niña. The PDO is still negative too...in short the "Signs" look about like last year.<br />
<br />
The Siskiyou Wing of the family was here at the Ancestral Digs for a long weekend telling tales of near-suicidal squirrels braving traffic to collect as many sugar pine nuts as possible before winter sets in.<br />
<br />
Here, hundreds of miles south, Indian Summer holds sway. There's a notable dearth of yellowjackets, and this isn't wooly worm country. There's a slight cooling trend forecast for this week, roughly 1°F cooler each day through the weekend, so we'll still be in the high 70s. There was a 'nip' in the air overnight. The mercury fell to 43°F between 6-7AM this morning.<br />
<br />
The Reno NWS Forecast Office put a photo of the famous "Blocking Ridge" up on Facebook.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisEFaL7m02az-V3x7yX6cFhVCuCnLZr6ftAi7sOePFQqxhoJ5rnXQWa-KtAQiPUrvCaw_886At8pgvKXMiNzY_V5Xb9LtosiCDPlE90seN-RGn2lhX22-AS1zIfC4uRRwvH3oLPgrByNJ_/s1600/CorduroyPlanet+2013+061.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisEFaL7m02az-V3x7yX6cFhVCuCnLZr6ftAi7sOePFQqxhoJ5rnXQWa-KtAQiPUrvCaw_886At8pgvKXMiNzY_V5Xb9LtosiCDPlE90seN-RGn2lhX22-AS1zIfC4uRRwvH3oLPgrByNJ_/s400/CorduroyPlanet+2013+061.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
This was the culprit that kept us dry last winter.<br />
<br />
It's eleven days until Halloween. A quick look at Boreal's webcam shows one snowmaking fan sitting forlornly near the bottom of their hill. The forecast says no snowmaking weather up there this week. They're gonna need a modicum of luck to blow enough snow to sell lift tickets for Halloween, in my humble opinion...<br />
<br />
OK, so what about my winter forecast? I'm waffling still. In 30+ years on My Mountain, we've never had three below normal winters in a row (read dry winters) so the odds say normal or above precipitation. Why am I not sold on the wet winter forecast? Too many cold signs so far.<br />
<br />
By cold I mean the Negative PDO, the sun is still hibernating even though we're at or near the Solar Maximum for Cycle 24, plus another weak Atlantic Hurricane Season. (Last year's Hurricane Sandy, that slammed New York and New Jersey was the second named system that made landfall on the United States during the 2012 Atlantic Hurricane Season)<br />
<br />
Sandy came ashore as a Category 1 hurricane, but did massive damage to the Jersey Shore and coastal areas of New York City as it came ashore at high tide and was 'funneled' into Lower Manhattan by the shoreline topography. Beachfront developements were especially hard hit.<br />
<br />
With under two months of the 2013 Atlantic Hurricane Season left, there's been only eleven named systems, of which two have become hurricanes. Hurricane Season ends November 30th. No hurricanes have made landfall on The States yet this year. Pretty quiet overall.<br />
<br />
Gotta say...I've got a bad feeling about this...<br />
<br />
Stay tuned...<br />
<div id="stcpDiv" style="left: -1988px; position: absolute; top: -1999px;">
Snow Forecaster Bryan Allegretto</div>
<div id="stcpDiv" style="left: -1988px; position: absolute; top: -1999px;">
Snow Forecaster Bryan Allegretto</div>
<div id="stcpDiv" style="left: -1988px; position: absolute; top: -1999px;">
Snow Forecaster Bryan Allegretto</div>
TruckeeDavehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11825726321011399776noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3584771362598797462.post-21854594470120816232013-09-19T17:13:00.000-07:002013-09-19T17:13:00.461-07:00What I Saw Sunday<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Sunday
in The Valley Of Speed was the windiest day of the weekend. There was rain near
sunset again Saturday, just like Friday evening, though not quite the gully
washer intensity. Rain should settle the dust, smoke and haze, but the rain was
minutes in duration not hours…</span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
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<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Sunday’s
wind certainly raised plenty of dust…my tripod, set up as a monopod with only a
single leg extended was too much of a sail when the wind gusted. I made only
photos Sunday, it was just too windy to follow the race with a 432mm telephoto
lens! Trust me many of the photos were shaky too!</span></span></div>
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</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">I
looked at the skies and mountains several times to see the ‘Autumnal Light’
that traditionally I notice for the first time every year at Reno/Stead
Airfield. To tell you the truth, I didn’t know what I was looking at by Sunday.</span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">A
months-worth of Rim Fire smoke had blown away before I arrived, but isolated
thunderstorms and their brief but powerful Outflow Winds kept the particulate
counts high over the High Desert…waddya gonna do? <span> </span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">I
saw two good Unlimited races Sunday…</span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
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<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">The
Silver Race was almost stately compared to Saturday’s Gold Heat. Without<span> </span>Strega in the heat, the pace was…let’s
say…graceful…</span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">As
the winds freshened Sunday afternoon, I began to fear a Gold Race cancellation
for high winds. Fortunately there were no looming thunderheads…no chance of
rain, and the wind was steady, not really that gusty.</span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
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<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Finally
we heard the Racer’s Introductions over the radio…at last the planes took to
the sky and formed up with the Pace Plane and flew out behind Peavine Mountain,
to line up for the start.</span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Down
The Chute they came…Voodoo on the Pole, and Strega bringing up the rear.</span></span></div>
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</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">“Gentlemen,
you have a race” crackled the radio and the throttles went forward. </span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Voodoo
lead September Fury, followed by Czech Mate and Rare Bear. Strega was passing
the backmarkers like they were standing still. Voodoo’s first lap was 504MPH
and change.</span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Strega
was flat out flying! By the fourth lap, September Fury May-Day-ed and landed
safely. Strega passed eternal nemesis, Rare Bear, and blew by Czech Mate. She
was 7-8 seconds behind Voodoo…</span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">The
two highly modified P-51s outclassed the rest of the field, my favorite,
Precious Metal ran around in fourth, sounding like a million bucks.</span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">That’s
the way they finished. Kudos to Stephen Hinton in Voodoo who took his fourth
Reno Gold in four years of racing! His first three wins were in Strega.</span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Had
Strega qualified without drama, what a race that would have been!</span></span></div>
TruckeeDavehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11825726321011399776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3584771362598797462.post-64522114316510852132013-09-15T10:15:00.000-07:002013-09-15T10:15:04.501-07:00Annual Autumnal Light Review<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Well
I reached my annual milepost on the way to Winter. I’m up The Hill for a
weekend of National Championship Air Racing at Reno/Stead Field. This is the 50<sup>th</sup>
Anniversary Championship.</span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">I
rolled out to Stead Friday afternoon about 45 minutes before the Unlimited Gold
Heat, under partly to mostly cloudy skies. I wasn’t thinking about the quality
of the sunlight while chewing the fat with the fenceline regulars I know from
previous years in The Valley Of Speed.</span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">The
impending thunderstorms encroaching on the race course cancelled the final race
of the day…the same Gold Heat I’d bet my whole stake on…time-wise…</span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Saturday
morning I ran downtown to poach the Truckee Library’s wifi signal to post
Saturday’s blog, and through the narrow slice sky of my street, I could see a
pretty thick smoky haze partially obscuring the Carson Range…on the bright side
however, I see where the Great Smoky Mountains got their name...</span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">I
arrived in the VOS a half an hour before the Unlimited Heat Silver 3B. Catching
up on the day’s news with my fellow Fenceliners, I learned that the Unlimited
Bronze Class was cancelled due to a dearth of entries.</span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Three
time defending Unlimited Gold Champion, ‘Strega’ would race her way in via the
Silver Class.</span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">There
was an AT-6 Heat, and the highly promoted “Jetman” did his show…from our
vantage point he wasn’t even a spec in the sky…</span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Finally
the big warbirds launched for the Silver Heat. ‘Strega’ easily went from worst
to first.</span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">It
was hot out in the High Desert…I took shelter in the car…it’s like the seats
fold down into a chaise lounge! I’m reading “Hidden Warbirds” by Nicholas A.
Veronico a new book chronicling the finding, recovering and restoring of lost
WW2 aircraft.</span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Still
a couple of hours to kill, I looked at Twitter. Oh my God! <a href="https://twitter.com/americascupLIVE/status/378978754300608512" target="_blank">@AmericasCupLIVE</a>
tweets: TIM TNZ Capsize! What? Via Twitter I sussed that the Kiwi</span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">S
capsize wasn’t terminal…TeamOracleUSA won the first race, the second race was
abandoned on the second leg due to the Wind Limit.</span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Finally
the Gold Unlimited competitors took to the sky. Large puffy Cumulus clouds
filled the sky. Their shade was more than welcome. It was almost 5PM, winds
were still MIA</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgU8CPChDehOqoANjNdEAL7sRV1R-ddg2g5w8HbqP8ZcMX4xTdmYUln7QSLG7aNS0P-HJfz0xBY0XndyTtH4MMZ1ppt1YG-DwD5JUHya3Pvq6RF4LWIBl3zmjfmmVLr9b7NppZTqAPhDhyphenhyphenx/s1600/RARA+2013+Saturday+003.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgU8CPChDehOqoANjNdEAL7sRV1R-ddg2g5w8HbqP8ZcMX4xTdmYUln7QSLG7aNS0P-HJfz0xBY0XndyTtH4MMZ1ppt1YG-DwD5JUHya3Pvq6RF4LWIBl3zmjfmmVLr9b7NppZTqAPhDhyphenhyphenx/s400/RARA+2013+Saturday+003.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fenceline view of show center in the distance</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: small;"></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">‘Voodoo’
the P-51 lead them ‘down the chute’ and it was ON First lap was over 500MPH!
Sadly we heard a pop pop pop<span> </span>sound and
Race 232 ‘September Fury’ pulled up, called May Day and made an emergency
landing with Space Shuttle Astronaut Hoot Gibson at the stick.</span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">‘Czech
Mate’ finished second, ‘Rare Bear’ third and ‘Precious Metal’ fourth. </span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">With
‘September Fury’ likely down for the count, there’s still three planes with a
shot at Gold Sunday afternoon: ‘Voodoo, ‘Strega’ and ‘Rare Bear’</span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">I
got home to the DaveCave just in time to watch my San Francisco Giants destroy
the LA Dodgers in their house. Final score? 19-3 The most runs scored against
the Dodgers ever in Dodger Stadium!</span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">After
the ballgame, I caught the replay of the America’s Cup Race. The Kiwi’s didn’t
capsize ‘all the way’, their wing never touched the water…it was close. The
blew a turn by not reversing the wing. It didn’t ‘pop’ and over they went. 45</span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">° of heel
easy before the wing popped and the yacht righted itself, committing a right of
way foul on the Americans in the process! Wing trimmer error…perhaps a
hydraulic problem?</span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">The
bigger news is the Americans made some changes to the boat, and I suspect
fitted it with new foils, they looked faster Saturday. The proof in the pudding
awaits Sunday.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Saturday's skies were too busy to get a glimpse of Autumnal Light conditions...I know it's there...it's time... </span></span></div>
TruckeeDavehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11825726321011399776noreply@blogger.com0