The much anticipated Memorial Day Weekend Part II

Boat drinks at Jolly Bob's.  Just like Rick serves at the King Kamehameha Club.

Beers and cheese curds on the dock at the Edgewater with Reedo and Molly, Cecely and Uncle Matt, and MBD. 

Gorgeous sunset on Lake Mendota

Memorial Day Weekend in Madison - Part 1

Laura and I spent the holiday weekend in Madison with Dave and Molly.  We picked the right time for Laura's first trip to the capital city of the 30th state.  Perfect weather allowed many wonderful activities, all of which were navigated by bicycle.  

We arrived late Friday night after watching the Dingers get hosed in Chicago with Nat, Scrodnals, and Veronica.  Saturday morning Dave, Molly, Laura and I headed to Capital Square for the largest producer-only farmers market in the country (thanks Matt).  There we met Matt and Cecely.

We purchased some asparagus and morel mushrooms for a early evening cookout at Dave's.

After cruising State Street for some lunch, we settled at the Terrace to dine.  

That's a huge chair.

Then it was back to the Capital to check out the observation deck.  The views inside and out were stunning.  

A relaxing Sunday morning breakfast while watching marathoners at the 22 mile mark.  Dave's neighbor across the street clapped and cheered for a good 2 hours straight.

Oooh Oooh Mr. Peevley

We took our bikes to the zoo where Laura got up close with this little pup.

I know it's May, but this sure looks nice

I am already dreaming about next ski season. Two nights ago I had a great dream that was almost exactly like this video. I love ski dreams, but not all of them are good. Every once in a while I have one where i am about to leave my favorite ski resort, usually a jumble of Winter Park, Nubs Nob and some place I have never been before, when I realize I have not skied my favorite run. What a terrible feeling.  Anyone else had that dream before?

Belknap Hill

Laura and I rode our bikes north to Belknap Hill for a little spring exercise a few weeks ago.  It's one of my favorite spots in the city with great views South, West and North.

As the hill stretches north from the city, there are a bunch of neglected stairways that lead to the river valley below.   What happened that people just stopped using them?  The Grand River is Graps best aspect yet it is completely ignored by the majority of it's residents.

There are a bunch of steep bike paths straight down the northern face that I had never noticed before.  I am pretty sure there is more vert there than Cannonsburg.  I am planning to take some ski runs there this winter, who's with me?

The ride down is fun, up, not so much.

Here is a video looking South into Graps showing the impressive medical expansion.

Esto es un robo!

Hossa got hosed! They announcer says that the whistle blows before the puck is in the net, but this video proves it does not. I did not catch the final period last night so I am not sure how this all went down. I am guessing that there was no review because the refs claimed they blew the play dead before the puck crossed the line. If they reviewed this, they would have clearly seen that the puck was in before the whistle, and called it a goal. What gives? Then to top it off, the NHL issues a statement that no mistakes were made by the refs. This reminds me of the Big Ten officials always saying calls made in favor of Michigan were mistakes. Maybe this will get the Wings to play a good game or 11.

We just need Zetterburg and Datsyk to act like these guys....

Engines and Loud Noises

I think I found the perfect beach for Dr. Dave. It might be a bit tough to pay attention to good a book, but he could have fun identifying the make and model of each plane, the tonal differences between a GE and Rolls-Royce engine, and the effects of the gulfstream on flight patterns.

This beach is amazing. People line up to watch 747's take-off and land. During takeoff, the engines sand blast onlookers off the beach. I am not sure I would last in a game of chicken with a landing jumbo jet, plus I am scared of engines and loud noises. Check the rest of the vids on youtube. I especially like this one... Holy Hell....