Split Rock Creek Cruise

Well, this weekend was my debut at a SDCA cruise. We met at McHardy Park in Brandon, SD to embark on the cruise. Also, I had a friend join me for the trip.

upstream from the put-in

A fellow kayaker prepping for the cruise.

We were warned that the beginning of the cruise would be shallow, but we had lots of problems with having to portage. The two of us weighing nearly 400 lbs didn't help us either. We noticed that passage was possiblewith only one of us in the boat. But after about 1/3 of the trip was complete the water depth began to increase easing our paddling. Thanks to frustrations of portaging, I didn't take near the pictures I had planned on :(

Goat!

My friend, THE BOATSWAIN, at the take-out

Even with the frustrations, we had a great time on the cruise. Afterwards, we tried to hit the Sioux Falls night life, but the three downtown bars we checked were either closed or slow! But we were exhausted so we headed back to the motel.

Accent Quiz

What American accent do you have? (Best version so far) Neutral You're not Northern, Southern, or Western, you're just plain -American-. Your national identity is more important than your local identity, because you don't really have a local identity. You might be from the region in that map, which is defined by this kind of accent, but you could easily not be. Or maybe you just moved around a lot growing up.

Click Here to Take This Quiz Brought to you by YouThink.com quizzes and personality tests.

My thoughts on my results? Well, before Pierre, we (my family) lived in the KC area; Ft Peck, Montana; & somewhere in Wisconsin (I don't recall exactly where)... Plus, I lived in Washington for a year+, so I have been exposed to a lot of accents. Also, I have heard that the Midwest, in general, is considered a neutral accent.

Capital City's Annual Honker Run

I just ran my third 5k (summer and total) and I also came up with my best time yet!

22:41

I averaged ~8.2 mph and a pace of 7:19/mile!

I actually finished 2nd overall and 1st in my age group. Some 16 year old kid was wa-ay ahead of everyone. I guess it might be time for me to try a 10k.

Vanessa Carlton

I am excited about the release of Vanessa Carlton's third CD, Heroes and Thieves, in ~2 weeks. Some of you may not know her, so here is a youtube playlist.

These two are must sees:

Nolita Fairytale

White Houses

Also, an old interview I found:

TLAPD

Arr, it be 2007 Talk Like A Pirate Day, you swabs!

I's not spent the day like many of me cutthroat brethren but it be not wasted either. I worked the day long, but I sported me PotM t-shirt!

A young mate also partook in the day's glory by sportin' ey paper eye patch and a ey sleek paper hat.

I be spendin' the evenin' sailing the internets, spying pirate vids, and just unleashing me inner pirate...

Long live the scourge of the Missouri...

A Good Weekend

I didn't get out kayaking this weekend (overcast and rainy), but it was still a good weekend. I ran well this weekend thanks to the cooler temps and victories for "athletes I cheer for":

1. Justine Henin won the women's final at the US Open... Allez Justine!
2. The Carolina Panthers defeated the St Louis Rams 27-13 in St Louis.

Then I found this article:

In shadow of Vick case, two NFL players show love for dogs

Sep 7, 2007 04:20 PM

CHARLOTTE, NC (AP) - The Michael Vick dogfighting case drew headlines all summer.

At the same time, the doggy day care backed by linebackers Will Witherspoon of the St. Louis Rams and Dan Morgan of the Carolina Panthers did brisk business.

Talks have recently heated up about expanding Club K-9.

As Vick faces jail time and an indefinite suspension from the Atlanta Falcons, Morgan and Witherspoon have agreed to help sponsor a rescue program that places stray dogs in homes.

Witherspoon says he and Morgan are "on the opposite end of the scale" from Vick's situation.

On Sunday, the friends will likely chat about canines when they meet on the field before the game.

Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Stand Up

I have managed to out wit the internet pixies and capture a streaming video from one site to upload it to you tube ;)

Now here is what I want everyone to do at work on Monday:



JUST STAND UP!

Also, I have discovered that I get Canadian Thanksgiving off of work this year! (Never mind that it lands on Native American Day/ Columbus Day/ Leif Erickson Day!)

Saturday... did NOT end this great summer... ;)

Well, I tried to end what I am calling the best summer of my life with a bang of grand proportions, but I failed.

First, I thought about going to see the Clumsy Lovers on this coming Tuesday night in Lincoln, NE but I couldn't even get my friend in Lincoln to join me and I didn't want to use leave if I was going alone. My KC friend had his parents coming for the weekend so I chose not to head to the KC Irish Fest. I thought I had an opportunity to paddle with said Lincoln friend near Vermilion, but he decided not to help his sister move back to college and chose new tires for his car and working on a presentation for work. So I chose to paddle Sheridan Lake in the Black Hills, partake of the Phoenix, and catch part of the Gathering of the Clans in Rapid City.

Low-head dam at the outlet.

Outlet is clogged with debris, water is very shallow, and the dam has a gentle slope, so no worry about getting close ;)

Beautiful, isn't it?

Hopefully, these pictures make it obvious why I decided to return here this summer and not find another lake in the Hills.

I was quite disappointed with the Gathering of the Clans (and not because of it's Scottish lean). It seemed to have only three musical acts for the whole weekend! Two local groups (I didn't get a chance to see) and a duo out of Colorado. I did purchase a CD from one of the local groups though. There was one humorous detail though!

Nessie!

There she is! And no fog for her to hide in!

But heed the warning... luckily I saw this sign before I went paddling with her.
I really don't feel as lucky as this guy. Though...

A copy of the gtalk conversation between myself and my Lincoln friend:

Arnold: I will probably not be coming because my car needs new tires very badly. I will spend tomorrow doing that, will not get to Vermillion in time, so I'm canceling the trip to work on my presentation Sent at 11:31 PM on Friday

Pat: if you would have let me know sooner, I could have found some where near Lincoln to paddle. Instead I'll go to Sheridan Lake and force myself to enjoy general chicken at the phoenix ;) Sent at 6:09 AM on Saturday

Arnold: Noooooooo I didn't know you'd be willing to come out this far. But oh well. Have fun at Sheridan. Sent at 10:19 AM on Saturday

Speaking of coming out "this far," Paddling.net has three locations near Lincoln that look enjoyable.

1. Elkhorn River
2. Platte River
3. Zorinsky Lake

Here is the location of the first two (the larger river is the Platte).

Zorinsky Lake map. And it is near I680!

If my Lincoln friend (and anyone else) thinks they sound like fun, let me know and we can try to plan something for this month yet. next weekend is my dad's B day so it is out but the following would be good (for Saturday). Sunday I would need to procure a chair in a sports bar to catch the Panthers game before heading back to Pierre.