Enduro - Endured

No injuries. All smiles.

Group Shot. We're tired puppies.

Scenic View of the Trail Ahead of Us.

A River Crossing.

Loose Rocks on a Long Hill.

Mogollon Rim Rendezvous - Bubble Gum Day

Today is done and no injuries. Pictures here.


I did have some trouble though. I misread my GPS and went off-course. The terrain was tight pine forest and I was too far committed when I realized my mistake. Instead of backtracking, I tried to cut my own trail up a hill in the forest in order to save time. Bad decision! Trees down everywhere! I jumped two trees just fine, but the third got me, and the bike went down. Turns out in Arizona, the pine trees have many branches that each break off and make sharp edges. :( Why can't they make trees like they do in Indiana? So I pick up the bike, and gas is pouring out of the side of the tank and onto my leg. Punctured.

So I McGuyver'd it. Here's my bubble gum "fix". Quotation marks means the stream of gas went from looking like a horse peeing to a slow trickle. I went 92.3 miles more and finished the day! Sorry, Allyn, about your bike. I'll get you a new tank. What a good lesson learned though! What fun!

Walking In Autumn

Walking with Niki and Kai in the Park lately....


All I could say when I saw this was "Can you please stop pimping out our dog?"

Customer Service as a Nice Surprise

Sometimes companies can surprise you. I bought a handheld GPS from
Amazon.com on October 12th. I needed it for an Enduro Race in Arizona
on the 24th. I decided to go with the free shipping option because the
delivery date was estimated to be October 20th. The 20th came with no
package on my doorstep, so I decided to track it down...

Amazon's website gave a tracking number with the United States Postal
Service, and kept the estimated delivery date at October 20th. I went
to USPS.com, but they had no record of the package. Hmmph. UPS.com was
next, but they didn't have it either. Finally, I found that FedEx had
it and had sent it from Ohio to Pennsylvania, and weren't planning to
deliver it until the 24th (when I'd be in Arizona).

I filled out a customer service complaint, not with the expectation for
action on Amazon's part, but more as a form of therapy for myself. I
wanted to inform them that if it didn't arrive by the 23rd, I'd be
buying it locally and returning their shipment. I added to boot that I
would not be using Amazon in the future.

So last night I received this email. I was completely surprised, and
completely happy. In true "Dumb and Dumber" fashion, I thought "then
you go and TOTALLY redeem yourself!"

-----Original Message-----
From: "Amazon.com Customer Service" <cust.service03@amazon.com>
Sent: Tue, 20 Oct 2009 17:49:57 Pacific Daylight Time
To: Me
Subject: Your Amazon.com Order #XXX-XX-XXXXX-XX

Hello,

I'm extremely sorry to hear that this package hasn't yet arrived to you.

Your package was shipped on Oct 14, 2009 by a service called FedEx
SmartPost. FedEx takes these shipments from our fulfillment centers and
delivers them to the U.S. Post Office closest to the destination. The
U.S. Postal Service will make the final delivery.
I understand that you need this shipment by Oct 24, 2009 and the
tracking information on carriers website states that it will be arrived
on Oct 24, 2009.
To ensure that you receive your items as soon as possible for you needs,
I've placed a new order that's listed below. We'll ship it to the same
address as soon as possible. I've also upgraded the shipping method to
One-Day Shipping at no additional charge.

Estimated Delivery Date: Oct 22, 2009
There's no charge for this replacement order.

If the original order does show up, please use our Online Returns Center
to return the extra order or refuse the package :
http://www.amazon.com/returns

We look forward to your next visit.

Best regards,

Balaji K.
Amazon.com
We're Building Earth's Most Customer-Centric Company
http://www.amazon.com/your-account

Camping With Dad

I am currently 3 days into a 10-day vacation. I spent the first two with Dad in the Daniel Boone National Forest. I don't think I've ever camped with just him and me. It was really nice to spend time with him, and to hike to some really awesome places. I want to make that kind of trip a once-per-year deal from now on.

The next 6 days will be here in Florida. Niki and I plan to do nothing but relax...

Planning Habits and Raking Leaves

Planning is a theme theme has been in season lately. I've spent long hours in planning as we roll into a new Fiscal Year at work. In conversations with friends, noticing differences amongst our planning habits and styles have provoked friendly smiles and playful jabs. And at home, my habits of planning have become stressful. The habits are getting worse!

It's not that I don't plan. It's that my planning is like autumn. The ideas fall like leaves, a few at a time, and it's hard to judge when the process is complete. For me, there are always too many variables for a plan to hold true for long, so why start raking?

I know, you're probably thinking that mine is the yard that hopes the leaves blow on to someone else' yard. It's not. I'm sure to go rake; it's just that the decision comes at any time.

And in my defense, what of the time between the making of a plan and it's execution? Is it wasted? Could that time be used to make and execute other plans? Or is it just spent in waiting. Does the preparation have to take the entire time between the marching orders and "D-Day?"

And if you don't buy my defense, I'll just say it's hard to change. I know there is little comfort in jamming 10 gallons of plans into a 5-gallon bucket. And it's probably tough to be around someone that lives that way. I just want to cram as much life as I can into the life I'm given.

So to those around me, thanks for putting up with it. :)

Goings On

Tire Transport
Originally uploaded by tommykline

New knobby tires shortly! Bringing these rims into the shop to get more 'dirt-worthy' rubber mounted.

Niki, Mom, Mason and I went down the Eel River. That's a canoe strapped to my roof.

New Message
Originally uploaded by tommykline

Staining my deck. Needed it last year. Sorry, no picture...