Mike's Random Travels

I Love Summer -Muccotash

2011-06-30T21:08:00.002-04:00

One of the best things about Summer is the abundance of fresh vegetables, especially here in the Garden State. This is a variation on Succotash. Most Succotash recipes call for Lima Beans, but I hate Lima beans (goes back to my childhood, when my mother tried to convince us to eat the nasty legume by referring to them as "footballs", as in "Eat your footballs".) Needless to say, this recipe has no beans, but plenty of flavor!

Ingredients:

1. Olive oil

2. Chopped Onion

3. Okra - chopped

4. Fresh corn - kernels sliced from 2-3 ears

5. Chopped fresh Roma tomatoes

6. Sliced green zucchini

7. Seasonings (salt, pepper, cumin, etc)

Saute onion a bit in olive oil. When onions start to get soft add the okra (not only does the okra add flavor, but it makes the sauce nice and thick). Saute on med-low heat for 5-10 minutes. Add corn kernels and saute for another 5 minutes. Add tomatoes and occasionally stir as the vegetables cook for at least 20 minutes.

Season with salt, pepper, etc to taste.

At this point you can add the zucchini (you don't want to over-cook the zucchini). One option is to cook on low heat for 15-30 minutes. Another option is to put it in the refrigerator at this point and let the flavors combine and reheat the next day.

I love summer!

Cane Garden Bay Tuna Puttanesca

2011-03-14T21:45:00.006-04:00

It has been over a year since my last post, but that is not due to a lack of traveling! Most of my travels have been limited to repetitive trips to work locations across the mid-Atlantic and New England. Never the less I have been out and about having fun whenever possible. Recently Lizzy and I, along with our great friends Mark and Laura spent a week sailing the British Virgin Islands.

I have hundreds of pictures and seven days of stories, which I may or may not find time to write about.

I'll start with our favorite recipe from this trip. This was a collaboration on the part of Laura and myself. Try it, I'm sure you'll like it!

Cane Garden Bay Tuna Puttanesca

Ingredients:

4 lb Fresh Tuna, filleted and skinned
Onions
Garlic
Tomatoes (Fresh and/or canned)
Red Wine
An assortment of seasonings (Cumin, Rosemary, Thyme, salt, pepper, hot sauce)
Olives
Anchovies (can)
Pasta
Vegetables (for roasting)

1. Sail to a spakling Caribbean Harbor (Cane Garden Bay on Tortola works just fine) and anchor or pick up a mooring late in the afternoon.

2. Head to the beach and watch the local fisherman pulling tuna from their nets in the harbor while enjoying the special cocktail

3. Buy a 4 lb fresh tuna from the sister of the fisherman

4. Sweet talk the sister into cleaning the tuna

5. Enjoy the sunset from the beach with another cocktail

6. Return to the boat, take an open air shower off the stern

7. Saute the onion in olive oil

8. Add tomatoes and garlic and simmer. Add red wine, seasonings and olives. Simmer until flavors are well blended.

9. Cook pasta and roast vegetables (to serve as a side.)

10. Add tuna (cut into large bite-sized pieces) and anchovies. Cook until fish is just cooked. Add a dash more red wine.

11. Serve over pasta.

Tobago Cays - The Perfect Caribbean Anchorage

2009-12-27T22:29:00.033-05:00

Tobago Cays is a special place. A horseshoe shaped reef separates the Atlantic ocean from the Caribbean sea and provides a magical anchorage. Lizzy and I, along with our friends Mark and Laura, have been lucky enough to travel to Tobago Cays twice, first in January, 2006 and last February.

The reef is almost two miles wide at its opening. There are four deserted islands inside the reef, and one island on the Atlantic side of the reef. We entered the reef by motoring between Petit Rameau and Petit Bateau and finding a spot to anchor or tie to a mooring buoy by the Turtle nesting ground along Baradel. Between 2006 and last year, the Tobago Cays Marine Park (TCMP) increased the number of mooring buoys. Being only an occasional sailor, I always sleep better when tied to a buoy, without the fear of the anchor slipping. This is especially true at the Cays. While the reef protects you from the surf, there is nothing stopping the wind as it blows across the Atlantic.

Snorkeling is one of the main attractions at the Cays. Depending on how hard the wind is blowing, diving at the reef can range from fair to spectacular. But what is really fun is swimming with the turtles. Many Sea Turtles nest within the reef and are at ease with the snorkelers. If you are patient and still, a turtle may even swim up to you.

The Cays are the quintessential Caribbean destination where your cares seem far away and where relaxation comes most naturally.

The Tobago Cays are also famous for its “Boat Boys” who travel each in their brightly painted speed boats from Union Island or Mayreau. Walter, in his boat Free Spirit 2, is available early in the morning to sell you fresh bread, baked by his wife Lola, for your breakfast.

Sydney has been working in the Cays for over 20 years. If you take a few minutes to get to know him a little, you’ll quickly learn that Sydney’s world is much broader than the horseshoe reef. This is certainly a combination of his everyday interactions with scores of people from all corners of the earth and from taking time to travel during the slower seasons. During the depth of the recession, Sydney offered a surprising perspective. “America needs to pull back and take care of its own back yard, even if it means that other places go down; or else there will be severe consequences.” Sydney is also happy to discuss his family. He has 12 children, two are in Germany; two are in Maryland; and the rest are in the Caribbean His oldest daughter is studying at the University of Cologne. He is quick to point out that this means that he has lots of responsibilities as he proceeds to show you his inventory of creative and well made tee shirts.

Romeo stopped by later in the day offering to sell us lobster. We asked if he had any fish, but Romeo told us that it is too rough for the fisherman to go out. He said he’d rather not be out with the wind blowing so hard, but that he “has bills to pay and customers to serve.” We asked to see the lobster which was a beautiful four-pounder. When I protested that he shouldn’t be selling lobsters with roe (eggs), he told me that I should eat the roe since it will give me stamina. Lizzy asked Romeo if his girlfriend was named Juliet, Romeo responded without missing a beat (obviously not the first time he had been asked this question) that his girlfriend was named Julia. (A few days later I ran into Romeo and Julia on Union Island. Sure enough, Julia was even more beautiful than the heartbreaker from Verona.)

I did buy Romeo’s lobster and created an original Tobago Cays recipe which I have dubbed Lobster Romeo. We had a wonderful dinner under the stars while sharing a bottle of champagne.

One of the great things about cruising is meeting other cruisers. We met an especially colorful group when we were exploring Petit Bateau one afternoon. I don’t remember any of their names, but the captain had been sailing around the Caribbean for the last several years. His son and one of his son’s friends had been along for the ride for the last year or so, and his wife would occasionally join them, while on vacation from her job in Florida. They had a bottle of rum (we had a cooler of beer and some snacks). The young man thought it would be a good idea to have Pina Coladas, so he shimmied up the tree to grab a bunch of coconuts. The captain used a machete to slice off the tops of the coconuts and added a healthy ration of rum for each of us. We shared the impromptu cocktails, told stories, laughed at jokes as the sun set on another perfect day in the Caribbean.

Snowbiking

2009-12-24T23:09:00.006-05:00

Off of work for the holiday week - thought I'd be able to get some time out on the road. The weather didn't cooperate; last Saturday the Snow came and has stayed all week. I got out on Saturday when the snow was just starting to come down and had a quick ride along the Canal path. There wasn't anyone else out, but I did startle a rather large wild Turkey.

The snow fell all day and night on Saturday, and we awoke to over a foot on the ground - so much for road biking.

I got a call from Chris this morning (Christmas Eve) wanting to know if I wanted a go at snowbiking. We met at Mercer County Park and slogged through the drifts towards the trail. Much of it was virgin snow that collected in the spokes and made the brakes useless. At times it was nearly impossible to get going, and we were forced to dismount and walk through the deepest spots. In other spots the snow was only a few inches deep and you could get some speed going. At one point we stopped to catch our breaths and Chris asked how I was doing. I said all was just fine and that my only goal was to keep my feet dry.

There are a number of streams in the park, and someone has improved the bridges over the past year. During the Summer and Fall, we don't hesitate to ride right across the bridges, but today, both Chris and I thought it was more prudent to walk our bikes across. Well so much for being prudent, first I watched Chris slip on the bridge, drop his bike and tumble into the stream up to his chest in the icy water.

Chris is a real trooper and didn't hesitate to get back on his bike and continue down the trail. As we headed back, coming across one of the bridges, I also slipped and went into the muddy stream. Fortunately Chris didn't have his camera.

As Chris pointed out, we weren't just snowbiking today. Rather we had a snow triathalon, complete with riding, walking and swimming.

Time to Get Back On the Bike

2009-10-03T09:12:00.002-04:00

Came across this bike in Miami last week. It's owner had leaned the bike against her Banyan Tree. A Banyan tree expands by dropping "prop" roots to support its broad limbs. Over time the roots merge with the trunk. It only took a few weeks for the roots to start to reach through the frame. After a month or two it would have required a saw to extract the bike. Now, far all intents, it is impossible to separate the bike from the tree. The only part of the bike that extends out of the tree is the front wheel and part of the handlebar. Within a year or so, the bike will not be visible.

If you want to be philosophical for a moment, there are a number of meanings you could take from this photo. (Feel free to add yours as a comment.) I'll just take it as a reminder to get back on the bike!

Leaving St. Vincent - 19Feb2009

2009-03-29T09:07:00.006-04:00

I had been looking forward to this vacation since the Fall. Lizzy and I were returning to the Caribbean to spend a long week cruising the Grenadines with our great friends, Mark and Laura. We had done three similar cruises with Mark and Laura, and each, while different, had been near perfect escapes to life in a tropical paradise. This year, with the economic mess, craziness at work, and a colder than normal winter, I was especially looking forward to the trip. (Although, at one point in the Fall, as the market crashed through another low, I called Mark and asked if he still wanted to make the trip. Without missing a beat, Mark responded "Absolutely. If the economy gets much worse, we'll just go down and not come back!")

We had booked a one-way bare-boat charter with TMM out of St. Vincent to Grenada. There are two key advantages to a one-way charter. First, you can visit more Islands since you don't have the return leg. Additionally, this allows sailing almost exclusively with favorable winds due to the prevailing direction of the Trades. This turned out to be especially advantageous during our time in the Grenadines, since the weather was unusually breezy with gusts well above 30 knots.

Getting to St. Vincent is a bit of trip in itself, since there are no direct flights. While Mark & Laura began the trip in VA and we started in NJ, we met in the San Juan, PR airport in time to catch the LIAT ("Leave Island Any Time) island hopper. The flight itself was uneventful, but Lizzy and my luggage didn't make it to St. Vincent. But what the heck, we were in the Caribbean. In the morning, along with provisioning, we picked up bathing suits, tee shirts and flip flops at the local stores. The good people at TMM assured us that, when LIAT found our luggage, they would take care of collecting it and putting it on a ferry to catch up with us (which it eventually did two days later.)

We were anxious to put to sea, and in the afternoon, we left Blue Lagoon, raised the sails and began the exhilarating sail to Bequia. Almost immediately, with the salt spray in my face, the wind in my hair and the We Two's wheel in my hands, the craziness of the last several months was left miles behind.

Carriacou Boat Building

2009-03-10T21:09:00.012-04:00

We woke on Ash Wednesday to a peaceful sunrise on Tyrell Bay. There was no external evidence of the previous night's revelry. A short, au naturel swim off the back of the boat cleared out the remnants of fat Tuesday. Hard to feel the need to repent in such surroundings!

As we enjoyed a cup of coffee, we were visited by a local merchant. "Hello, my name is Simon, I am mentioned in the cruising guide and sell the wine". We selected a couple of bottles. Simon clearly had been out fishing early and we bought some snapper for dinner. Simon has a good reputation among cruisers and we asked if he'd be willing to give us a tour of the Island. Simon met us at the yacht haul-out dock with his small car. Once we had squeezed into the car, I mentioned to Simon that the guide books refer to him as Simon the smuggler. He took offense at this characterization, but he didn't let his offense stand in the way of giving us a great tour of this beautiful island. We were particularly interested in visiting the local boat builders in Windward.

The Windward shipyard is just off the beach hidden behind the mangroves. It was quiet the day we visited. Simon introduced us to Charles McLauren, who took a few minutes to explain a little about the two boats they were building. One was a 30 ft boat that would be used by a local fisherman. The other was a 44 ft sloop that was being built to race in the classic regattas.

The keels are made of Greenheart trees imported from Guyana. The remainder of the ship is constructed from Cypress. Charles explained that shipwrights take forms into the forest and find trees that match the shapes they need. Charles guaranteed that these boats, if maintained, will last over 100 years.

It seems like the kids are let out of school at mid-day in most of the Caribbean. As we left the shipyard, we spotted two kids who were have a great time playing in the gentle surf.

As we headed back to Tyrell Bay, Simon stopped to show us the weather beaten side Atlantic coast. Carriacou is a beautiful island with friendly inhabitants. I look forward to a longer visit.

From Here to Carriacou

2009-03-10T13:06:00.016-04:00

Before I go on to describe more of our recent Grenadine's cruise, I'll digress about the links in space and time that brought us to Sandy Island. Back in the Fall of '79, Lizzy (back row, far left) and I were students at Duke living in Wilson House. Lizzy and I had met a few months earlier and were still getting to know each other. Wilson House was a wonderful enclave of kids with widely diverse interests. Recently Lizzy and Lynne Wolfe (sitting directly behind me) reconnected on Facebook. Lynne is now a mountaineering guide and editor of The Avalanche Review. (When I heard this, I felt oh, so corporate - but I guess I am pretty corporate!). Lynne learned we were heading to the Grenadines and suggested that we look up Tom, her husband's uncle. It turns out Tom is a long-time Bequia resident and publisher of the The Caribbean Compass. Lynne introduced us to Tom via email and Tom responded that he was "happy to meet with anyone who was willing to buy his drinks." Unfortunately Tom was under the weather when we were in Bequia. I let Tom know, via email, that we had never been south of Tobago Cays and asked if there was any place special that we shouldn't miss. Tom responded right away that we should head to Carriacou and spend a day at Sandy Island. Thank you Tom!

Carnival in Carriacou

2009-03-09T20:36:00.048-04:00

During our short cruise from St. Vincent to Grenada, we had successfully lost track of time. We innocently sailed into the Hillsborough harbor and dropped an anchor just before noon. We knew we needed to dinghy over to the Customs' dock and check into the the nation of Grenada (Carriacou is part of Grenada). What we didn't know was that we had arrived in Carriacou just in time for Carnival (Mardi Gras).

The check-in process is a bit cumbersome. First a stop at Customs, then Immigration, and finally with the Harbor Master. They were all in good moods and seemed anxious to move the process along so that everyone could get back to the festivities at hand.

Carnival in Carriacou is an all day affair. Early in the day is the Shakespeare Mas. Revelers take turns reciting the various parts of Shakespeare's Julius Caeser. If one misses a line, then he is playfully beaten. We tried to find out the background behind this part of the festival, and especially about the emphasis on Julius Caeser. We were simply (and proudly) told that "it is part of our culture."

Knowing that the festivities would be going on through the night, we headed back to the We Two and motored the two miles or so over to Sandy Island.

Sandy Island is a small strip of perfect beach with coral reefs on either end. We dropped anchor in about 10 feet of crystal clear water just in time for a light lunch.

We spent the afternoon relaxing and taking turns snorkeling over to Sandy Island to explore the island and the reefs. The waters were complete with beautiful corals, stunning fish and even a pair of green turtles. The beach was complete with a nude sunbather (French of course, but friendly, even if she was chain-smoking!)

As the afternoon started to wane, we accepted that we needed to pull anchor and head over to Tyrell Bay. Tyrell Bay is a well-protected harbor popular with both cruisers and working fisherman. In fact, there is a "Hurricane Hole" -- a lagoon surrounded by mangroves -- that is used by hundreds of boats during large storms.

Up to this point, we had managed to overnight on a mooring, and had even tied up to the end of the dock in Union Island. While the wind had settled down, it was still gusting well above 20 knots. I was nervous about the anchor holding, especially with the number of beautiful boats close by that we would collide with in the middle of the night if our anchor started to slip. It took us three times, but finally the captain was happy that we had securely anchored far enough from other boats to sleep through the night. But first we had plans for the evening.

We got cleaned up and loaded into the dinghy. After puttering around Tyrell Bay, we ended up at the main ferry dock. This was fortuitous, since just as we were securing the dinghy, a Dollar Bus pulled up onto the dock and asked if we wanted to ride to Hillsborough. (At some point, I'll do a posting about the Dollar Buses, but for now let's just say it was only a few lively minutes before we were deposited just back outside of Carriacou's main town.) Carnival was in full swing.

Everyone at Carnival seemed to be enjoying themselves (although some of the younger revelers looked pain exhausted even though it was still early in the evening.) This women was really enjoying being costumed and getting lots of attention. As is evident in the photo, the audience was also getting a kick out of her .

What you don't get from the picture is the sense of the lively and loud Caribbean music.

After enjoying the festivities for a while, we walked through town to the Green Roof Inn. The Green Roof Inn is a small guesthouse and restaurant a mile or so North of Hillsborough. Except for the faint pounding of the amplified music wafting across the harbor, it could have been in a different world.

We had a wonderful meal on the veranda overlooking the harbor. At one point, just before they were ready to serve our entree, the electricity in the restaurant cut out. We could tell that power was fine in the rest of the Island since we could still see the lights on in Hillsborough and hear the deep bass of the Carnival bands rumble across the water. The friendly staff at the Green Roof Inn never missed a beat. They brought out a few extra candles and served an exquisite meal.

After such a luxurious meal, we were not ready to crowd into a Dollar Bus, and asked the restaurant to call us a cab. We were happy when we got back to Tyrell Bay and found that We Two's anchor was still holding!

Sunday's Sourlands Winter Hills Ride

2009-02-07T08:41:00.010-05:00

Got out on the road.

(Update from Last Sunday's Ride)

The roads were messy, but everyone had a great time. Did about 36 miles. Of course, stopped for some picture taking. It turned out to be a beautiful day...

Flat Stanley Visits NY

2009-02-01T18:53:00.033-05:00

Joy, my niece, called last week and explained that Olivia, her daughter, had a school project and asked for my help. Olivia wanted me to take her friend Flat Stanley to NY. I immediately replied that I would do anything for Olivia.

Flat Stanley arrived in the mail a couple of days later. On Friday, I took him with me to NY. We rode the New Jersey Transit train to Penn Station and then started our walk across town towards my office. Walking up 34th Street, Flat Stanley saw the Empire State Building and decided to climb a tree to get a better look.

Next we stopped in Herald Square and imagined what it would be like to be part of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.

Our next stop was Bryant Park. Bryant Park is a wonderful spot that is located next to the NY Public Library. It is a great example of public-private partnerships. During the summer, they show classic movies in the evening and have concerts on Friday mornings. Right now they are setting up a big tent for "Fashion Week", where they will have a Fashion Show. Too bad Flat Stanley wasn't here a week earlier, when Ice Skating was set up in the Park.

We continued to walk across town. Normally, I don't walk through Grand Central, but I knew that Flat Stanley would like to see the inside of the famous landmark. Grand Central Station was built at the end of the 19th century by shipping magnate "Commodore" Cornelius Vanderbilt. By the 1970's the station was badly deteriorated and many people wanted to tear it down. Others banded together and found the money to restore the station. The revitalization was completed in 1998. Today it is a beautiful and functional space.

I only work two blocks from Grand Central. When I got to the office, Suzie, my assistant, volunteered to show Flat Stanley around. Flat Stanley especially liked the view of the Chrysler Building from my office. He liked it so much, he tried climbing my plant to see if he could get a better view.

Flat Stanley also got to meet some of the people I work with. We have a lot of diversity in my group. Elodie is from France. The next photo is of Mark (from England) and Nitin (from India). The third photo is of Tara (from USA). In my small group, we also have colleagues from Puerto Rico, Viet Nam, Germany, and Ireland.

After a long day, we headed back to Princeton. When we got home, we found that Julian was still there and was happy to see Flat Stanley. Julian is the first son of Lizzy's cousin Len. Len works in Princeton and we are lucky to get to see Julian quite often.
On Saturday we we drove down to Washington, DC. We were able to visit Olivia's cousin Mark and his fiancee Gloria at their new home in Hyattsville, MD.

It was very nice having Flat Stanley visit us. But I think he may be happy to head back to Atlanta and to get out of this cold weather!

Finally Back on the Road

2009-01-25T20:21:00.005-05:00

As much as I like riding in the woods, I've missed being out on the road. Finally this past weekend the temperatures eased up above freezing. Laura was in the book to lead out of Canal Park in Rocky Hill. We had a great ride with a great group -- some regular Hill Slugs: Laura, Mike B, Chris and me along with John and Jane.

In spite of some high winds, Laura led us a great ride over the Sourlands. The photo above is of Mike B crossing the Raritan River outside of Neshanic.

Jane and John have both been riding fixies this Winter. They have become evangelicals in the fixie movement. John is prodding me to come over to the "dark side." He let me ride his fixie (painted bright yellow like a NYC cab) when we stopped for our break. I didn't have any trouble getting started, but I found it really unnerving going into a turn and, naturally, trying to coast which just isn't possible. Even in the few minutes I spent on the fixie I did start to feel the attraction, but I'm not sure if I'm ready to take the plunge in spite of Jane's observation that "getting fixed is not the dark side - the simplicity, quiet, and fun we have while on the fixies is pure light and sunshine on any dark day."

Below Mike B, myself, John and Jane take a moment at the bottom of Old Georgetown Road. (Photo has been shamelessly stolen from Laura's post at perpetualheadwinds.blogspot.com).

January Snow Biking

2009-01-25T19:46:00.007-05:00

January in New Jersey. Guess what? It's been cold!

Does that mean we are going to stay inside and moan about the weather. Maybe venture to the gym. Not when Mercer County Park is just down the road, and Clayton is a short drive away.

There is nothing like racing through the snow and jumping over logs to make you feel like a kid again. What a great feeling...

They say that if you don't occasionally fall when you are mountain biking that you are not pushing yourself hard enough. The black and blue marks all over my legs would say that I'm pushing just hard enough.

I've included a random selection of photos from the last 3-4 trips out in the woods. Hope to see you there soon.

MTN Biking on New Year's Day

2008-12-31T07:34:00.011-05:00

New Years Day (2009) Mountain Biking in Mercer County Park

Like many people around the globe, I was happy to see the back side of 2008 and wanted to start the year off right - on the bike.

It was a cold day (23*F at the start), so the "sensible" option was to stay in the woods. We met at Mercer County Park at noon. Chris brought some CMCs (Chris Made Cookies). It was Mary's first time out with us, but she didn't hesitate to take Chris up on his offer of a CMC.

We had a great group. Mike B., Laura, Chris, Mary and myself. It was also Mike's first time out and he was on a borrowed bike. It took a little time to get him set-up, but then he was off without ever looking back.

We stayed on the West side of the park. (Chris and I had been out a couple of day's earlier and had stayed on the East side of the park. Many of the trails were submerged under 5-8 inches of water. It was impossible to keep your feet dry.) Chris led us through the "Hall of Mirrors." This trail is through a ridiculously tight stand of young oaks. This trail really tests/develops your bike handling skills. There are many spots where the trail is book-ended by a pair of oaks spaced closer together than the width of your handlebars.

Mary has had a great year on the road -- over 10,000 miles before she found out that her frame was cracked at the beginning of December. She was struggling to keep warm, even though we were in the woods. Fortunately, Mike had some hand-warmers that she was able to add to her gloves.

Laura, after being up late hosting a wonderful New Year's eve party, was doing great in the woods. I wish I had done a better job of capturing her jump over the log pile, but she was just moving too fast!

Eventually we found the "playground". Someone has been busy building a number of obstacles that are beyond me. Mike, even though it was his first time in the woods, didn't hesitate to try to make it over the see-saw. No, Chris didn't push him over. Chris was just trying, without success, to keep Mike from tumbling over.

The only downside of the entire day was that Laura's shoe failed her.

In spite of the "wardrobe failure", it turned out to be great way to start the year!

Nearly all of the Cousins

2008-12-20T08:23:00.004-05:00

This past September, my nephew David married his sweetheart Jess in Nashville (they are both Vanderbilt grads.) We had a great turn-out. The picture above includes my parents, 14 of their 15 Grandchildren (only missing Jimmy), the two ersatz grandchildren (Helene and Caro), and, of course, the bride. My father likes to claim that his good looks bypassed his children and went straight to his grandchildren. He may be right.

Dr. Phil

2008-12-07T20:05:00.020-05:00

Thank you Facebook.

We had all been at Duke together. After graduation Phil seemed to be more interested in piloting large pieces of equipment (moving vans across the South, seismic explor-ation equipment in Montana) than being a captain of industry. A few years later, I was a young father and Ed was a rising Congressional staffer. Phil was making noises about going to medical school. None of us took him too seriously - at least not any more seriously than he seemed to take his poly sci classes at Duke. Shortly afterwards, Ed got married, and somehow we lost track of Phil.

Fast forward 20 years. A few weeks ago, Lizzy receives a Facebook "Friends" invitation from Phil. It turns out Phil had gone to medical school and now is an anesthesiologist in Northern Virginia. After some schedule negotiation, we decide on a date to meet in DC.

Ed let us know that he bought a set of tickets for a Wizards game at a Diabetes charity auction and asked if we'd all like to meet at the game. He didn't bother to mention that the tickets were for a luxury box!

Phil kept us waiting -- he is a doctor after all, but did show up by half time. I always think it is going to be awkward to meet up with a long lost friend. But Phil showed once again that it is really pretty easy to pick up where we left off. Yes, there we spent a part of the evening catching up on the last 20 years, but soon we were back in the same routine of just enjoying each other - we are still the same people with the same senses of humor. It was a great evening.

After the game we retired to a trendy, crowded wine bar (what recession?). Late that night we said our farewells to Phil and found the Metro out to Bethesda.

On Saturday we visited the Pompeii exhibit at the East Wing with Ed, his wife Angie, and his beautiful teenage daughter Madeline.

Fall in Western Mass

2008-10-30T19:42:00.003-04:00

At the end of October, Lizzy and I drove to Amherst for Parents' weekend. On Saturday evening, the six Amherst a cappella groups performed. Julie's group, DQ, was the best (of course.) What made it especially nice was that the newly weds, my nephew David and his wife Jessica, drove up from Wesleyan for the concert and dinner. The Concert Choir performed on Sunday afternoon. The choir, while very entertaining, was quite formal. This was in stark contrast to the daring skits and routines performed by the students the night before (which was put on without any oversight from the college.)

All of the Rt 9 motels were fully booked, so we ended up staying at the lovely historic Deerfield Inn about about 15 miles Northwest of Amherst. This turned out to be a nice surprise. Deerfield is truly a living history museum. Driving through town too quickly, you might see it as just another quaint, well maintained, small New England town. Scattered among the families, schools and shops, are over a dozen homes and other 18th century buildings which have been meticulously restored and furnished with authentic pieces. With your museum admission, you can stroll from house to house and ask questions of knowledgeable guides.

Sunday morning, the very hospitable receptionist, mapped out a ride on a piece of scratch paper. The ride while short, had one good climb and terrific vistas. I'll bringing my bike on our future trips to Amherst!

&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="http://www.mapmyride.com/ride/united-states/ma/deerfiled/595699332173"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Deerfield Short Loop&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;br/&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="http://www.mapmyride.com/find-ride/united-states/ma/deerfiled"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Find more Bike Rides in Deerfiled, Massachusetts&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;

MTK MBK (Montauk Mountain Biking)

2008-09-26T08:26:00.005-04:00

As summer waned, Lizzy and I dropped Julie, our daughter, at college. Like any normal 19 year-old, she was much more interested in re-connecting with friends then with spending additional time with her parents. Sunday morning we headed to Montauk via three ferry trips: New London to Orient Point followed by quick trips on and off Shelter Island. Driving off the ferry at Orient Point, we found ourselves in the middle of hundreds of riders halfway through the North Fork Century. Even though it was a pleasant day for a drive through beautiful countryside, I would have much rather been out on the bike. As soon as we arrived in Montauk, we met up with Lizzy's brother Ger and his wife Tina. Ger and Tina were out in Montauk for the better part of the week, along with assorted members of Tina's extended family. Ger and I immediately headed out for a ride, letting everyone know that they didn't need to wait for us to start dinner.

Ger and I found some beautiful trails along along a sandy ridge in Shadmoor State Park. We meandered up to the lighthouse at Montauk point using a combination of the road, legal and questionable trails. It was a great warm-up ride.

Monday morning we started at the bike shop to pick up an extra tube and to ask about the best trails. The surly teenager (I'm used to those) behind the counter pointed us towards Hither Woods state park and convinced us to buy a trail map (good idea.) Not having time to ride all 40 miles of the park, I pressed the angry adolescent to recommend his favourite trail. He pointed out "Serpent's Back" and described it as "the Sweetest Trail."

Riding North out of Montauk, we quickly found our way into the park. The trails range from packed gravel roads to nearly hidden single-track; from firm and flat to short, steep climbs. Riding through Laurel Canyon affords a terrific vista across the island out to Block Island Sound. We rode for almost two hours before we came upon the Serpent's back trail.

Not really sure what the malcontent mechanic meant by "the sweetest trail", I was expecting a serpentine trail with many twists and turns. What we found is a nearly straight run from South to North, following a series of steep uphills and fast downhills. I quickly learned that if you wanted to get up the following hill, you first needed to build momentum on the downhill. At one particularly steep downhill, I noticed too late that the bottom was deep sand and down I went. As falls go, fortunately it was more spectacular looking than it felt. Head over the handlebars, I landed flat on my back on relatively soft sand. Since he was behind me, Ger witnessed the fall and knew to take it a little more carefully. With adrenalin flowing, I got back on the bike and enjoyed the remainder of the sweetest trail.

For years I've been trying to convince Ger that he needs to wear his helmet. After the Serpent's Trail, he knows why. I'm confident that he will be with a brain bucket the next time we ride.

Leaving the Serpent's Trail we found a lovely single track along the shore. It was a great way to recover. But since the day was still young, we turned back to the center of the island to find some more hills to climb. My chain decided it had had enough. Fortunately were only a couple of miles from the road, and were able to call Lizzy to come and rescue us. Just another example of how lucky I am!

A Birthday in Burnsvile (NC)

2008-08-26T07:03:00.010-04:00

My mom turned 80! I flew to NC for the weekend to celebrate her birthday. She and my dad (almost 83) spend much of the Summer in the mountains of NC. They remain independent and active in spite of the toll that age has taken -- both of them suffer from arthritis and have had multiple joint replacements; my father has recently developed bulging discs.

It was a great weekend. We had a few nice meals, watched some Olympics, played some scrabble, and visited the mountain in Burnsvile.

My mom has always been a strong proponent for biking. Part of this was that, with six kids, she needed us to be independent, and by 1st grade, I was riding my bike the mile to school. In the 60's she convinced Coral Gables to build a bike path down Old Cutler Road and into Matheson Hammock. This was quite an accomplishment, long before the dawning of activists groups such as Critical Mass, and during a time when people really did believe that what was good for GM was good for America.

On Sunday, my parents and I drove up to the "Mountain" outside of Burnsville. This is a piece of property that my father bought 25 years ago that backs up to the Tennessee border and the Appalachian Trail. My brother Steve has recently built a beautiful four season home on part of the property. Nothing quite compares with the rustic charm of the original log cabin.

The weather was warm and dry, perfect for a short hike. The only other times I had been to the Mountain was with my kids when they were just about 10 and 12, so hiking was limited to strolls along the road and through the meadows. I decided it was time to try to climb up. Up I went.

I made it to the top of the ridge, but wasn't able to find the Appalachian Trail. On the way back, I did get off course a tad, which required a rather steep climb!

Finally Did A Century

2008-08-10T21:07:00.008-04:00

I've been biking for 40 years. When I was a kid, the bike meant freedom. Even after I started driving, biking remained an important part of my life. The bike has allowed me to cover greater distances than on foot, while remaining close to the ground. I found both of the houses that I have bought while scoping out neighborhoods on my bike. There was a period of 10-15 years where I spent more time playing tennis than cycling. I've learned that biking is much gentler on the knees. Three years ago I joined the Princeton Free Wheelers and started cycling regularly. I've made some good friends and enjoy cycling more every week. I did my first century last week at the Princeton Event. Check out Laura's Hill Slugs Chronicles for a nice write up http://perpetualheadwinds.blogspot.com/2008/08/pushing-boundaries.html.

Martha Vinyard vintage 1988

2008-08-10T19:02:00.031-04:00

We first visited the Vineyard in the Summers of '87 and '88. Lizzie and I were young parents. Mark and Laura were in love that first summer of '87 and were married by the next. Mark, one of my college roommates, and fellow engineering student, had called a few months earlier to ask if we wanted to go in on a beach house. I'd never heard of Martha's Vineyard, but always trusted Mark to arrange a good time! We learned that getting to the Vineyard is a bit of hassle, but once there, everything seems far away. The house was on Tisbury Pond, a short boat trip to an isolated section of South Beach. I still remember the exhilaration that Mark (in photo), Laura, and I felt as we jumped off the dunes onto the deserted beach.

Back then, we were into biking, but Mark, ever the engineer, always seemed as interested in working on the bikes as he was in riding them.

Mark and Lizzie are also great friends. The three of us had already traveled to Vermont and Montreal. This was our first time traveling with Laura - but it would not be the last!

Back then, Julie was just an infant and Ed was a toddler. Now they are both in college. You can visit Ed's cartooning blog at http://edmoorman.blogspot.com/ Julie is following her passion for music, especially voice, while studying at Amherst.

Mark and Laura share a love of food and of entertaining. We had a memorable 4th of July party that summer. Mark and Laura's had offered an open invitation to their friends in Boston. Little did we know that news of the party spread around Cambridge like wildfire and soon we had over thirty people show up at the small house on the pond for a night of fun under the stars. Mark and Laura responded by pulling out all stops for a great evening.

Back to Martha's Vineyard (July 2008)

2008-07-24T21:53:00.029-04:00

We shared a wonderful week in Martha's Vineyard with our friends Mark (at left) and Laura and their terrific children. This was a first trip back to the vineyard in nearly 20 years. While I have fond memories of visits to the Vineyard in the '80's I was put off returning by all of the hype the Vineyards received during the Clinton years. I was sure the island was going to be over developed and commercialized. I was more than pleasantly surprised! Not only has the development been managed well, but more than a third of the island has been set aside as publicly available land. This has made the island even better, especially for hikers and bikers!

I managed to get out on the bike every day of the vacation. Some of the rides were hops to town to get coffee before the rest of the house woke up. Other's were longer treks around the island either on my own or with Mark or Lizzie (my wonderful wife). One memorable ride included a ride up island to Gay Head. We included a an excursion to view the famous cliffs (with the rest of tourists) and biked around to the small marina (at left) on Menemsha pond. The best biking is definitely off-road. There are dozens of named trails and paths through parks and land set aside by the MV Land Bank. In addition, there are quite a few publicly accessible "ancient ways" through private land.

Of course, there is more to MV than biking. Every day we visited a different beach - each with it's own character. On a couple of days we loaded up the Mark's car and took the short ferry over to Chappaquiddick. The trek across the infamous bridge and the four wheel drive through deep sand leads you to truly beautiful and deserted beaches.

Lucy is a very serious fisherman. She spent hours surf-casting. But unfortunately she wasn't able to pull in the big one! (Luckily, the local fisherman had much better luck and we were able to find wonderfully fresh fish in the market.)

We stayed in a cozy home on Lake Tashmoo. Each afternoon we went out in the canoes to get fresh clams for dinner. Each evening we sat out on the deck and enjoyed cocktails as the sun set. No wonder this was the most relaxing vacation I've had in years!

Wildlife Adventures in Our Backyard

2008-06-29T06:54:00.026-04:00

Sometimes you don't need to travel far for a little adventure.

Yesterday I was catching up on some paperwork when Julie, just back from college, excitedly called from the back door. I was sure she was going to point out the pair of wild turkeys that have take up residence. What we saw was just a bit more dramatic. A red-tailed hawk had successfully hunted a rabbit and was now preparing his afternoon meal.

Although we missed the hunt, we were allowed to witness the culinary event. The hawk took his time prepping his meal. He rolled the rabbit onto its back, ripped open the the gut and carefully pulled out the entrails, leaving them in neat pile beside the carcass. He then enjoyed a leisurely meal in the shade of our oak tree.

The hawk couldn't be bothered by my photographic efforts and cared even less about Julie watching, with a combination of fascination and revulsion, from the deck. After about 15 minutes the predator had his fill. He attempted to move the remains, but with great effort he could only drag them about a foot away from the pile of entrails. He flew up into the tree for an after meal rest until heading back to the woods.

You might say our townhouse with its shared yard is a representative microcosm of New Jersey. New Jersey is the most populous state in the country. Traveling the Turnpike through refineries outside of Newark airport, you could be excused for mocking our motto "The Garden State" embossed on millions of license plates. But you don't have to travel far off the highway to find miles of rolling country roads. Similarly, we only live a few hundred yards from Rt. 1, but our yard backs up to the D&R canal and beyond the canal is a large track of protected woodlands. It is encouraging that the wildlife is clearly thriving in spite of the continued development.

A Hill Slug Rides the Vienna Hills

2008-06-08T13:00:00.039-04:00

After some quick scratching on the back of an envelope, I calculate that I've spent more than 1500 days traveling on business over the last 20 years. Yet, I can count on one hand the number of trips where I've been able to combine any leisure other than a nice dinner, maybe a quick walk around the city, and too much time spent in the bar. Not one trip where I've been able to combine any cycling – until my last one...

As soon as I found out that I had a pending business trip to Vienna, I emailed my friend Ernst to let him know that I could be in town on the Sunday morning, and asked if he would be up for a repeat of the mountain bike outing that we had done last September when I was there on vacation. Ernst is, for all intents, my big brother, having lived with my family for a year as an exchange student when we were both teenagers. When we rode in September, he seemed to get a lot of pleasure out of briskly riding up hills where I was forced to dismount and walk up the steepest sections. Fortunately, Laura's rides have continued to improve my conditioning.

After an overnight flight, I find myself at Ernst's on a temperate, overcast Sunday morning. A great day for a ride! We're joined by Bizzy, Heinz, and Heinrich. Ernst lives in the 19th district on the very edge of Vienna. It is only a short ride through residential neighborhoods until we're on a dirt road riding through vineyards. Beyond the vineyards is the Wienerwald (Vienna Forrest). The overcast skies and misty conditions resulted in photos that don't due justice the beauty of the rolling hills.

After about 30 minutes, it becomes clear that Ernst and I have some become separated from the rest of the group. Fortunately Ernst's ever-present mobile phone works in the hills and soon the group is re-united.

Soon we come to a fork in the road, I can't read the sign, but Ernst lets me know that now the climbing starts and that it will be uphill for the next 30 minutes or so (oh joy!) While not as steep as what Ernst brought me up in the Fall, it was pretty steady climbing (think 3 or 4 climbs up Long Hill Rd strung together.) At the top, the loggers conveniently left a makeshift chair for Heinz to rest upon and enjoy the view while he waited for me to slug it up the hill.

After a combination of ridge riding and climbing, we made it to Kahlenberg. Kahlenberg is at 484 meters is a popular destination for locals out for a hike or bike, as well as for tourists. There are broad terraces that offer wonderful views of Vienna. In clear weather you can see through Lower Austria to Slovakia. In spite of the limited visibility, we still took a moment to enjoy the broad vista. This picture below (from Wikipedia, courtesy of Clemens Pfeiffer) gives a much better sense of the vista.

Behind the terrace is the Baroque Church of St. Joseph, also referred to as the Polish Church. The church was built to honor King John Sobieski of Poland who stopped to pray here before leading his troops to the defense of Vienna against the Turks in the 1683 Battle of Vienna.

The ride back from Kahlenberg featured some spectacular downhills, a few reasonable climbs, and some great vistas as we rode along the ridge. All too soon, we were riding through the vineyards and back in Ernst's neighborhood.

On the way back, we stopped so that Ernst could give us a tour of the house that he recently bought. Ernst and his wife, Margit, are renovating this to be their dream house where they will spend the next 50 years together. I was pleased when Ernst pointed out that the renovation includes a nice guest room!

The new house is within walking distance from Ernst's current house. After a quick final ride, we put the bikes away, and cooled off with a dip in the pool and a nice Austrian beer.

In closing I'll provide my comparison of a typical Hill Slug ride with my Sunday excursion in the Vienna Woods.