Thanksgiving 2005

Thanksgiving at South Village Trail is always a fun time, and this year was no exception. The gang was ready for the Holidays. Lots of great food, drink, desserts, and company. Always so much fun!

This year's turkey came from Barry's Turkey Farm. A free range bird weighing in at 25 pounds and she was delicious! Dad outdid himself with his apple pie -- it was almost as good last night as it was this morning with coffee! Kim's gingerbread dessert really hit the spot - she never ceases to amaze. Thanks everyone!

Striker

Presenting the newest member of the Penfield Strikers! This week Calli started soccer practice with her team. She is very excited to be playing in an organized sport with her friends. After a quick trip to Dick's for sneakers, chin guards, and socks, she was ready to go!

Letchworth Ride

It was too nice of a day to pass up. And there are too few of them left this year to spend in the office. Woke up at 6:00, checked the forecast, and decided to take a personal day. There aren't many things better than using a personal day for an all-day ride in the Autumn. It's definetly good for one's mental health.


After dropping off Calli at school, I came home, geared up and headed out. Since I was up at 6:00, I had a chance to think about where I wanted to ride. And since I rode yesterday, I wanted a fresh route. As I was playing with Streets & Trips, I noticed Letchworth State Park. Hmmm, I haven't been there in ages. And although the leaf season is just slight past peak, it is still a bounty of colors out there.


So, Letchworth it was. But that's much too close to home to make for a nice ride. I decided it would be nice to head east from the southern tip of the park on Route 70 through Hunt Hollow, Swain, and into Arkport. This was one of the nicest roads I've traveled -- very scenic, rolling hills, nice sweeping turns, and great surface. Since Arkport was about halfway on my loop of 180 miles, I decided to stop at Arkport Motors and stretch. Low and behold they had a 2006 Goldwing on the floor! This was a gold model with the comfort package. Honda has made nice changes to the new wing, but nothing extraordinary. And the gold color would not be my first choice. It's rather bland looking. I still favor the pearl yellow and titanium colors. The salesman was just happy to have someone to talk to, and had been admiring my ride. On my way out, I told him I'd be back in the Spring.


From Arkport Motors, I headed east on Route 70A all the way into Bath. At this point, it was starting to get cloudy, the temperature was dropping, and I turned north towards Prattsburgh, Naples, and home. Great ride. Great day. Great bike.

Autumn Ride

Finally! The first nice day in 4 weeks. Sunny and 60 degrees today -- perfect day for a Fall ride.

Left home at 10:30 and headed south to Canandaigua and down Route 21 to Naples. From Naples I rode down Route 53 through Prattsburgh, over to Hammonsport, north to Branchport, up over Italy Valley, back to Naples, and then north on Route 64 through the Bristol Hills and home. Sure was a quick 150-mile ride, but I enjoyed every mile of it!

This photo was taken at the southern end of Keuka Lake, looking north towards the bluff.

Halloween

It's that time of year - Halloween! Calli and her good friend Natalie are off to the annual 'Monster Mash' at Cobbles tonight. Calli has chosen the always-trendy ED physician costume, while Natalie is going as Wednesday from the Addams Family. Looking good girls! 

Driver

Well, it finally happened. It was bound to happen. But it got here so fast. Meg passed her road test, and is now a legal driver.

Lord help us. Actually, we don't need much help. She is a good driver. She passed on her first attempt, which is more than I can say for myself.

We no sooner got home from the East Rochester test site, and she was off in my car to pick up her great grandmother for dinner. They had a blast. And my big girl is one step closer to independence. It all happens so fast...

And they're off...

Thanks, Rick and Donna, for hosting a nice gathering to say "So Long for Now' to Mom & Dad. Good food and great company -- a good time was had by all. The kids all had a blast as you can see from this photo of Paul and his buddy, Jackson! Hurry back Mom & Dad!

Skater

This week, Paul and I put together his first custom board. We bought an Element Heartagram deck off eBay, wheels and bearings from Zumie's, and Independent trucks donated from his friend, Alex. Today we put it all together, and he took first test ride. As you can see from the smile, he loves the new board!

Cayuga Lake Loop

Fall is upon us, but you'd never know it from the weather. Today's forecast was sunny and mid-70's so I decided to get in a good ride. There aren't too many weekends left, and you never know what the weather will be in our fall season.

I've always wanted to see Cayuga Lake, the longest of New York's Finger Lakes, at just under 40 miles long. So my journey today took me south to Canandaigua, through Naples, east to Hammondsport, through Watkins Glen, over to Ithaca, and up the west shore of Cayuga Lake.

As I was heading north on Route 89 up Cayuga Lake, I stopped at Taughannock Falls in the Taughannock State Park. It turned out to be a great spot to stop, stretch, and admire a gorgeous view of the Falls. This is one of the highest Falls east of the Mississippi at over 250 feet. I'ts well worth the stop!

My route took me over 200 miles and lasted much of the day. It was a marvelous day for a long ride and I hope to be able to get in a couple more like this before the snow flies. The bike now has over 9000 miles on her, and the tires are now in need of replacement. Last week I ordered a Metzeler 880 for the rear, and a Metzeler Z6 for the front. This Wednesday I have an appointment at Hollink Motorsports to have them mounted and balanced. Can't wait to try them out!

Moutain Ride with Dad

Well, we finally did it. After spending a couple months talking about it, Dad and I spent three days riding in and around the Adirondack region of New York. It was an experience I will never forget, and can't wait to do again.


Day 1
We left home at 8:30 AM and headed east, he on his 2004 GL1800, and me on my 2003 ST1300. Our route took us along Lake Ontario north of Syracuse through Baldwinsville and then along the south shore of Lake Oneida. We intentionally planned a route that would give us maximum time riding through the mountains, from the south. The ride was uneventful until we crossed the Adirondack region. Temperature was 75 degrees and mostly sunny.

Heading northeast on route 28 we rode through Minnehaha, Thendara, through Eagle Bay and into Inlet, New York. This is the beginning of the Fulton Chain of Lakes - a string of small, natural, old lakes. From Inlet we continued northeast past Raquette Lake and then to Blue Mountain Lake, one of the prettiest areas I have ever seen. At Blue Mountain Lake we picked Route 30 and headed north to Long Lake. Route 30 continues north until you reach Tupper Lake. At Tupper, we picked up Route 3 and headed east to Saranac Lake. Our destination, Lake Placid, is just 10 miles from Saranac and we pulled into Placid at approximately 4:30. Lake Placid was the home of the 1932 and 1980 Winter Olympics. We putted around Mirror Lake taking in the village and scouting the hotels that were on our list. We settled on the Northwoods Inn since it is situated on Main Street right in the middle of town. We enjoyed beers and burrgers at the hotel that night - they were the best we had ever had.

Our total mileage for Day 1 was 290 miles. Average trip speed 42 MPH, with 1 hour and 20 minutes of stop time. Our mantra for this trip was, "It's not the destination, it's the journey." Our relatively modest pace was set intenionally to enjoy the beauty that surrounded us on the entire ride.


Day 2
Walked down to a coffee shop on Main Street and struck up a conversation with the owner. He gave me two great tips for ride suggestions. One was to head north at Whiteface Mountain on the Roosevelt Parkway to ride up to the summit of Whiteface Moutain. The other was a nice route along Lake Champlain through Essex, New York.

We left town and headed straight for Whiteface. There is a modest toll to ride to the top of the mountain, and worth every penny. Whiteface Moutain was the ski venue for the Olympics and is simply breathtaking. It is the third highest peak in the Adirnondacks at 4,865 feet above sea level. The ride to the top is a slow spiraling ascent with many scenic overlooks on the way. On a clear day, such as this one, the visibility is 40 miles. Once you arrive at the top, the parking attendants happily gave us and our bikes front row parking. From here, you walk through a 150 yard long tunnel that is cut through the moutain. At the end of the tunnel you take an elevator up another 270 feet to the summit. The summit houses a circular observation deck, hiking trails, a weather station, and a view of God's country. Simply breathtaking.

From Whiteface Mountain we headed east to Route 9N and up to Port Kent on the west shore of Lake Champlain. From Port Kent we rode south on Route 22 along the shore of Champlain through Westport, Port Henry, Crown Point, and into Ticonderoga. We had a great lunch in Ticonderoga at the Wagon Wheel. Leaving Ticonderoga, we rode west on Route 74 through Chilson and Paradox to Route 9. Route 9 took us north through Schroon Falls, North Hudson and into the High Peaks region. The last leg of our ride took us northwest on Route 73 (freshly paved!) which was one of the most scenic routes on the entire trip. This stretch of roadway jogs through the Keene Valley, past 40 moutain peaks in 34 miles, and through Elba and back to Lake Placid. Day 2 total miles was 175, and as scenic as any ride I've ever been on.


Day 3
The forecast for our return home was not good - 50% chance of showers and thunder showers, heavy at times. As much as we hated this trip to end, we decided it was best to high tail it out of Placid and the mountain roads before the rain started. As we looked ahead to Saranac, the sky darkened and the lightning lit up the sky. We pulled over under a shelter, donned the rain gear, and kept going. The next 70 miles through Saranac, Tupper, and west were slow and wet but we kept on. The weather radar indicated that the storm was worse to the south, so we took a different route out of the region - Route 3 all the way to Watertown, New York. It paid off. Reports from home were that the storms were severe, but we encountered no rain after the first 2 hours. The pace quickened a bit since the scenery was now dull in comparison, home was still many hours away, and the winds had increased to gusts of 40 MPH along the east shore of Lake Ontario. We stopped in Pulaski New York for lunch and kept going until we arrived at home at 4:00. Total mileage for Day 3 was 250.

A great trip. We truly enjoyed the region, our bikes, the ride, and each other's company. It was great to spend that much quality time with my Dad. Would do it again in a heartbeat!

Thanks Dad!