Michigan Vacation #2

It's a nice routine.  Head out on the boat after breakfast with Daniel, play around the water in the morning, mountain bike ride while kids sleep, back to lake after dinner.

We drove a little south to a unique coffee and doughnut shop called Cops & Doughnuts.  Yes, it was amusing and they were all about the merchandise.  Cops & Doughnuts hats, t-shirts, and more.  We stuck with the doughnuts.

 The boy likes blue.

 That's right, bacon covered creamsticks.

One of the highlights of the week was getting Daniel out on his first mountain bike ride!  The trail was mellow enough I figured this was the perfect opportunity for our first father and son trail ride.  Daniel was pretty excited to "go mountain bikin' with daddy".  Good times, good times.

 Daniel happy to roll off road.

 Through a fern section.

After Daniel and I finished our ride I hit the loop on my own.  Daniel continued on his bike too, riding on one of the hiking trails with mommy and Ellen.

 The powerline "climb".

 Riding towards a blinking camera on self timer.

 Ellen looking very... munchkin?

It was a very nice week on the lake.  I think we will be back.

Sunset by the dock.

Michigan Vacation

We are staying in a cottage at Budd Lake in Michigan for a week.  Should be an enjoyable time.

Daniel enjoyed cruising the lake in the boat.

Mr. Serious on the dock.

 

Fake fishing, but having fun.

 

There's a twisty mountain bike trail about 5 miles down the road.

 

It's a fun trail.  What it lacks in elevation changes it makes

up for in twists and turns.

It's a good place for me to work on less braking and more flow.

 

Ellen having a good nap.

Dry Wallin'

Who do I call when it's time for drywall?  Same guy I call when it's time to go for a bike ride: Ryan.  I was glad to have his help while finishing the garage.

Slingin' some mud.

Kids

Riding?  Yes, been riding but have not been taking too many pictures and a blog post has to have pictures.  So... how about some more kids pictures...

How can that possibly be a comfortable way to watch cartoons?

 Ellen knows comfortable.

Extending Ryan's Driveway

Hey, now we don't have to ride through gravel when leaving the driveway on road bikes!

"Driving" Ryan's tractor.

Fish Fingers

Smell my fingers!

Three to Mohican

With Uncle Chris in town, we made plans with Ryan for a ride at Mohican.  Hot and humid describes the conditions.  We parked at the main trail head and pedaled some pavement to the second trail head.  It was a sweaty, and fun ride back to car.

Chris on the road.

 

Ryan on the road.

 

I packed raisins.

3 Years Old

Happy Birthday Daniel!

Cruisin around the school

It's been overdue for Daniel and I to head over to the high school for some riding.  We loaded our bikes into and onto the new car and drove around the corner for some bikin' fun in the sun.

Ready to shred on the Strider bike.

We rode around the school grounds, going over curbs and down sidewalks.  The sprinkler was setup at one of the practice football fields and Daniel made it a priority to stop and see the sprinkler.

He didn't want to get wet, just see it up close.

After some more riding about we stopped for a snack.  Daniel said we needed "to get some energy back."  Proper fueling is important while riding.

Daniel getting his energy back.

 Having fun in the sun, riding bikes.

After some more riding we packed up and headed home.  It's fun to be out riding bikes with Daniel!

Our bikes.

Elmo Trail Crew

 Daniel looks ready to do some trail work.

Man Down

For the last several weeks I've been taking my mountain bike to work with me in the back of the car.  Beginning on Tuesday I have bike and gear with me in hopes of getting out at a decent time and making it to the Knob.  I'm not sure that I ever made it over there on Tuesday, but I kept my stuff in the car and was able to ride either Wednesday or Thursday as my work schedule allowed.

After riding the Knob several weeks in a row I was starting to feel better connected with the course and felt like I was riding pretty good today.  As the lap went on I felt progressively faster.  After the Furnace and before getting back into the heavier woods I looked ahead and saw a banked corner.  I thought to myself "oh, I'm gonna rip that corner".  Problem is there was a little turn just before getting to the banker and I leaned too hard and lost the front wheel on some dusty trail.  Wham!  I was skidding down the trail head first in the ol' superman position.  I jumped up and looked at myself to find a bloody elbow, no ripped clothing, and not much else.  But, the elbow was leaking pretty good and was full of dirt.

Without much more than a pause I jumped back on the bike and followed the course, a bit slower, to get back to my car.  Oh man, brand new car and I'm dripping dirty blood.  I asked a guy in the parking lot if he had any first aid supplies, but all he had was a roll of paper towels.  After packing my bike up I was about to mummify my arm with paper towels when I looked in my front seat and remembered the stop I had made on the way to the Knob.  KT had asked me to pick up diapers for Ellen... perfect!  I strapped on an infant size 0 diaper on my elbow and drove home without concern over staining my new interior.

 In addition to a first aid kit, I'm going to keep several diapers

in the car for such situations.  It worked well!

 Ouch.

 Gross.

On the Road Again

Another hot, hot day.  Met Ryan on the road for a loop down around Fredericksburg.  Between the heat, humidity, and not riding tons lately we were both beat when we parted ways to head back home.  I ran out of water coming through the swamps on Messner Road, so I slowed down and took some pictures while cruising.

I don't call it "the swamps" for nothin'.

 It's a long, flat road.

Babies in Helmets

Daniel, a couple weeks old.

Ellen, a couple weeks old.

the Wilderness

Today we drove past the campgrounds and people tubing down the river on Wally Road to the Mohican Wilderness area trailhead.  It was unbelievably hot in the sun as we geared up for a ride.

Pointed towards the climb.

 

It was the first time this year we've ridden the Wilderness course.  The opening mile of the ride is uphill, supposedly the longest mountain bike climb in Ohio.  After the climb it's curvy singletrack with a couple rocky sections.  The loop is not too long, maybe 7 miles?  At the end of the day, in my opinion, it's not different enough from riding at the state park to make it worth the extra drive.  Once or twice a year is all the more often I can see visiting the Wilderness Course.

New four wheeler

In the week previous to Ellen's arrival we were test driving cars and planning a swap of the truck for something more fuel efficient and fun to drive.  Of course a prerequisite for the vehicle was the ability to fit a bike inside and the ability to add a hitch for a bike rack. 

The first pick, and the car that started the whole idea, was the Honda Fit.  The cargo versatility in this small car is the selling point but unfortunately the tiny, underpowered engine offsets the cargo carrying prowess.  If this car had another 30 horsepower under the hood it would be in my garage right now.

At KT's suggestion we went to see our friend at Park Mazda and test drove the Mazda3 hatchback.  Now this is a fun car to drive with nimble handling and adequate power without sacrificing too much fuel economy.  Plus the styling, interior and out, trumps the Fit in our eyes.  The cockpit of the Mazda3 is exciting and useful.  The cockpit of the Fit... not so much.

 Mazda3 hatchback.

The first project with the car was a hitch for use with the bike rack.  The install went very smooth and I'm happy with how sturdy the attachment is on this car.  I've installed hitches on five different vehicles now and this is the most solid mounting I've seen on a car.

My helper with the instructions.

Not having the truck is going to be a disadvantage at times, but I know I'm always welcome to borrow dad's truck.  When it comes down to it, I only used the truck as truck about once a month and probably not every month.  Most of the time it was hauling bikes, which the car can do.  When it comes time to buy lumber or transport firewood I'll take dad up on his offer to borrow the truck.

I like hatchbacks.

 

 Side view.  My large Paragon 29er uses up the

whole hatch area lengthwise.

Riding Daniel to Sleep

We packed up the guys (Daniel, Ryan, and I) and headed down to the Fredericksburg for a ride on the trail.  Having a new sister must be taking its toll on Daniel, because he fell asleep just south of Holmesville.  We continued past Millersburg and turned around at some point when he woke up and asked "Are we at the playground yet?"  Of course we had blown by the playground taking advantage that he was still asleep.

Sleeping in the trailer.

 Always a highlight, the vending machine.

 Taking a break with Ryan at the playground.

Ellen's Homecoming

At home in her crib.

Sleeping like a baby.

 While we were in the hospital a life flight chopper

landed and Grandpa arranged for a picture

of Daniel with the pilot.

Welcome Ellen!

Baby Ellen has arrived!  We are blessed to have a healthy baby and KT is doing well too.

Ellen Esther Holmes, about 5 minutes old.

 

 Daniel meets Ellen for the first time.

He is saying, "this is my baby sister!"

My little girl.