Germany Aug 2012, pt. I - Eurobike

Some pix taken during my late August trip to southern Germany. Part I, the Eurobike trade show:

Sweet Ford Modeo Estate diesel rental car. Solid, roomy, torquey and great brakes and tires...

 ...I had it maxed out at 221 km/h (≈137MPH) on an open, downhill, unrestricted stretch of the Autobahn.

Since the Eurobike trade show is in the relatively small city of Friedrichshafen, lodging accommodations can tend to be "creative" at times. This year a group of us stayed at a Catholic academy:

 Dorm style:

 My thoughts exactly:

Weingarten in the morning:

 Weingarten street art:

 ???:

 Covered roadway between Weingarten and Friedrichshafen:

 Snack #1

 Part of Electra's 80 meter long Eurobike stand:

Anodized 3D violet makes a nostalgic appearance. I bought one of these headsets for my friend who owns the wonderful Velo Hangar shop in Solana Beach:

BOO!

Show-going pooch:

Don P and Thor "The God Of Thunder" Hushovd:

Snack #2:

 Interesting wine-carrying rack on a Schwinn:

 German-style marketing, paint-on jerseys:

Sweet lighting:

Snack three, salty-sweet licorice fish from northern Germany (Hamburg): 

 One of many, repeated texts that kept coming through over multiple nights as I tried to sleep:

Sorry, no Don Jose here. Now beat it.

Not-So Vintage Postcard/POP

I received an interesting "postcard" (to use the term loosely) from my friend Don last week.

Unlike most postcards, this one was quite large. And made of wood.

And not only is it a cool piece of Sconnie to add to the garage wall, it also spurned a conversation in the "Arts & Crafts" department where I spend 40+ glorious hours every week. See, many of you four readers know that I'm a picky eater. I'll eat poultry and fish, but no pork or beef. And I've been that picky for 20 years now.

Anyway, I was complaining to my coworkers that Allie and I have not been able to find turkey brats out in California. A dinner that we generally had about once a week in Wisconsin had been off the menu due to lack of availability.

Well, it turns out that Tip Top Meats in Carlsbad has 'em. And they're not just Turkey Store brand but made at the store. So we picked some up over last weekend. They were enormous and delicious.

So thank you Don for spurring the conversation. If you make it down to these parts the brats (and Leinies) are on me!

Old Stuff - Chequamegon 1993

My friend Don & I were successful in being able to register for the Chequamegon Fat Tire Festival in 1993 to participate in the 40 mile race. So we loaded up my little craptacular 3 cylinder Subaru Justy and headed up to Wisconsin's North Woods.

Don rented a quaint cabin on one of the many beautiful lakes in the Cable, WI area.
Taken the morning of the race, a little brisk (probably in the 40s). Nice Lund - just like the ones my grandparents had on Green Lake. But theirs had a 20HP Johnson.Getting prepped for the race. Dig Don's Allsop Softride Stem. Not shown - purple ano hardware.
Don & friend Lisa at the start. These were the days when it was acceptable to wear cotton while cycling. Wicking schmicking.
Yours truly with a mushroom-shaped Bell Image Pro lid. My bike has Don's old Softride stem (black/silver).
I have no idea on what my results were, but I do remember bonking badly about 15 miles into the 40 mile race. Some Powerbars and Gatorade got me going again. Sadly the Chequamegon's site only has results going back to 1997.
Afterwards there was Hamm's to be had. From the Land of Sky Blue Waters (waters...).
And go-karting.
And the po-po (Washburn County Sherrif). Luckily I got off with a written warning (I still have a copy of it in my photo album).
And Pez.

Don's Getting Into The Pix

My long-time friend Don is posting some of the pix that my other friend Joe & I have been scanning as of late. Check 'em out here.