Thanksgiving

On Thanksgiving morning, 2008, I got up early and loaded the car with the groceries I had bought the day before, including the 12 pound turkey with the label that read, "Freezer to Oven," and headed to Andrew's and Jennifer's home in Reno. Jennifer had to work until almost 2 pm, so it was left to Andrew and me to prepare things and cook the dinner. Here's Andrew making his famous mashed potatoes:









We had a lot of help with dinner. Andrew's and Jennifer's three dogs were ready and waiting for any little morsel that might find its way to the floor.

More photos are on my Picasa web page at: http://picasaweb.google.com/jstrolin/Thanksgiving2008

Beach Blanket Babylon and San Francisco

Karen and I drove into San Francisco on Sunday, November 23, 2008 to catch the afternoon performance of Beach Blanket Babylon at Club Fugazi in the North Beach section of SF. The show is a musical spoof on politicians and celebrities, and it's really a kick. Here are some pictures from the show's web site - Hillary; Palin and McCain; and the Obamas:

More photos from around the Warf in San Francisco are on the web at: http://picasaweb.google.com/jstrolin/SanFrancisco112308

One neat thing we did was tour the USS Pampanito, a WW II submarine that has been restored and converted into a museum. There's an interesting web site with information about the submarine at: http://www.maritime.org/pamphome.htm .

Wine Harvest Festival in St. Helena - November 1, 2008



Every year, the growers' association in the northern Napa Valley sponsors a big harvest festival that features great food (prepared in large quantities by some fantastic Hispanic chefs) and cases of great wine contributed by the various participating wineries. The festival takes place in the forested hills adjacent to a large vineyard. This year, because of a steady rain that fell all day - and all night before - the sponsors put up huge circus-like tents, and the festivities went on without interruption.

The festival is unique not only for the great wines that are just laid out on the tables for anyone to partake, but especially for the eclectic mix of people who participate. There are lowly field hands mixing and rubbing shoulders with wealthy vineyard owners; professional people from town sharing tables with laborers; old time residents of the area mixing with brand new immigrant families. There were clowns making balloon animals for kids; a local woman spent the entire day painting faces of beaming kids; families with dogs; old people and young people. For more photos of the festival, check out the album at: http://picasaweb.google.com/jstrolin/RainyHarvestFestivalStHelenaNovember12008

Summertime has come and gone - 2008

Summer is finally over here in northern Nevada. That fact was more than confirmed these past few days by the cold temps and the snow that now blankets the mountain tops to the west. Here are some highlights of the summer of 'o8:

Death Ride (July 12, 2008)


After weeks of training that took us to some of the most beautiful and challenging mountain roads in Nevada and California, a group of us from the Carson area completed the 5 passes, 15,000 feet of elevation, and 129 miles of the famous "Tour of the California Alps," better known as the Death Ride.







Photos from the Death Ride can be found at the following url:
http://picasaweb.google.com/jstrolin/DeathRide2008

Training for the Death Ride:

Horseshoe Meadows and Tioga Pass (June 7th and 8th, 2008)

Sean, Debra, and I travelled to Lone Pine, CA (at the base of Mt. Whitney) and rode the entire length of the Horseshoe Meadow road, from Lone Pine proper (elevation about 3,000 feet) to the highest trailhead at the end of the road (elevation 10,400 feet). In the picture at left, you can just make out the switchbacks that wind up the face of the mountain (just slightly to the right of Sean's head in the distance).

On Sunday, June 8th, we did Tioga Pass from Lee Vining, climbing up to 9,945 feet through some of the most spectacular scenery anywhere. At left, you can see the road literally cut into the side of the mountains. The Tioga Pass road is challenging not only for the steady grade and the elevation gain, but especially because the shoulders are very narrow and there's quite a bit of traffic, including large RVs and cars driven by tourists distracted by the amazing scenery. Going back down, you have the sensation of almost flying, since you are literally just feet away from an almost sheer drop off to the right. If you take your eyes off the road and look right, you're looking out into space. Combined with the cars and RVs wizzing by, it makes for an interesting experience. More photos of the Horseshoe Meadow and Tioga Pass rides are at:

http://picasaweb.google.com/jstrolin/HorseshoeMeadowsAndTiogaPassJune7thAnd8th2008

Sean's Purgatory Ride (June 21, 2008)

In what has become something of a tradition, Sean, Debra and I, together with Darlene and Patrick, tackled 4 passes and 101 miles to complete a training ride Sean named the Purgatory Ride (get it ... "Purgatory" ride, just before the "Death Ride"). The route took us from Genoa, up over Kingsbury Grade and Dagget Pass, through the Tahoe Valley to Luther Pass, over Luther to Highway 88, up and over Carson Pass to Kirkwood, back up Carson Pass, down through Woodfords, over to and around Diamond Valley, and back to Genoa (Whew!). For pictures of the Purgatory Ride, check out the album at:

http://picasaweb.google.com/jstrolin/PurgatoryRide62108

Rafting on the American River

In late July, after the Death Ride was behind me, I had the chance to go rafting on the American River near Placerville, CA with Patrick, Marcie, Darlene, and Susan and Clay and their two kids. Patrick had the raft and is an experienced raft guide. This was a first for me - I'd never been rafting on rapids before. The trip down the river was a real kick! The rapids were nowhere near what would be considered major ones, but they still got your heart pumping and arms straining to keep the raft heading in the right direction and staying off the rocks and canyon walls!

More photos of the riafting trip are at: http://picasaweb.google.com/jstrolin/RaftingOnTheAmericanRiver72608