PilotPen

Since Kyle was starting college right when the U.S. Open was starting (plus the fact that I forgot to get tickets), we decided that we would go to the Pilot Pen tournament - which is a warm-up for the Open - in New Haven Connecticut.
So, I took a Wednesday off from work and we headed down to New Haven. This was just like a mini-Open - there was a big stadium and several "outer" courts with shops and vendors all around. We really enjoyed the tennis. The weather was wonderful and it was small enought that we could get right up to the action.

We started off watching some doubles.



Then we saw Srichapan get schooled by Monfils.














Then we saw Davydenko beat (somebody).

We got a look at Patrick McEnroe and the gang.


Then we saw Niemenen.
Bagdadis was on the big court. Our reserved seats were way up top but since there were very few people there, I dragged Kyle down into the box seats and we grabbed some good ones right behind the baseline. Kyle was terrified someone would come and kick us out of the seats but we stayed and watched some great tennis.

Rally Round Westford

Well, we did our first tandem rally last weekend. We went to the Eastern Tandem Rally (ETR) in Westford, MA and had a really good time. I subscribe to an email list that focuses on tandems and had read about other rallies and figured it might be fun to go to one. When this one was announced and was going to be practically in our backyard, I signed us up.

Friday evening we packed up some bags, put the tandem on the car, told the kids to hold the for and set off for Westford. We got kind of a late start so we didn't get there until around 9:00 - a little late for the ice cream social at Kimball's, the local ice cream "farm". We checked in to the hotel and then checked in at the rally desk. They said that Kimball's was still open and we had free coupons in the registration package so we put the tandem in one of the holding rooms - the first one was full - and headed over for some ice cream. It was actually down right chilly out so ice cream wasn't exactly the best thing so we went back to the hotel.

The next morning, they had a breakfast buffet so we got our plates and experienced the familiar "Hmm, everyone else seems to know everyone and is sitting in groups having a great time and we know nobody" feeling. So, we sat down with some people and started talking and had a nice breakfast.

One of the things that I found strange about the rally at first was that there was no set start time. Basically, they gave you a route sheet and said lunch was at such and such a place from around 11:30 to 1:00. The idea was that people would form little groups and leave when they wanted to. Since we didn't know anyone, we just sort of finished up breakfast, got our stuff on and got on the bike. There were people dribbling onto the road so we just joined in. They had several routes that could be combined to give you different total milage for the day. Basically, there was a 43 mile and a 23 mile route to the lunch stop and an 8 mile, 30 mile, and 46 mile route back to the hotel. We really hadn't ridden much more than about 30 miles during our rides this summer so we were wondering if we should do the 22 to lunch and then 8 back but it seemed like most people were doing the 30 mile ride back so we decided to do that.

We started off with a small group of tandems but they were kind of poking along so we gradually left them and caught various other people along the way. Just as we caught up to the organizers - who were riding a triple - they turned into the parking lot of the Minuteman Park. This is the place where the first shots were fired in the Revolutionary War. We got off the bike and walked through the small museum and then down to the bridge where it all started. It wasn't really that spectacular but still pretty cool to be at the spot where it all started.

We got back on the bike and cruised the rest of the way to lunch. We were among the first to arrive and were a bit early so we just talked to the mechanic who happens to work in the bike shop where we got our tandem. I probably should mention the ride sheets. Deb was the Navigator and she had to read the route sheet and keep us on track. She kept the sheet folded up in my back jersey pocket and would pull it out and let me know the mileage at the next turn. So she would call out "OK, at 6.9 miles, turn left on Nagog Hill road". I had zeroed the computer at the start so I just needed to look for the turn at the appropriate mile reading. Except that 15 seconds after she announced the information, it was completely gone from my brain. It wasn't just me either - she would forget what she just said too. So she was constantly pulling the sheet from my pocket and finding the line for the next turn. She was doing all this all while we are blasting down hills and grinding up others. Some clever teams simply pin the route sheet to the back of the captains jersey but after she thought about this, she said that that wouldn't work since she couldn't see the writing without getting it just right in the bifocal area of her glasses. To top it all off, I like to stand up sometimes when going up hills and, of course, I would announce that we were standing just as she had pulled out the route sheet so she had to deal with that as well. All in all though, we didn't get lost. We only really missed one turn and that was because the sign was hidden behind a tree.

At lunch we sat with some people who we recognized from the time we went on a ride with the TBONEs (Tandem Bicyclists Of New England). We finished our lunch and got back on the bike and started off for the 30 mile ride back. At one point, we were working together with another team - each trading pulls and going pretty good. As we were motoring along behind them, they went over a big sewer drain and flatted big time. We were lucky we didn't flat as well. We stopped to help but they said they had all they needed and told us to go on. We were just a mile or so from a stop at the Butterfly Place - a place we had taken the kids when they were little. We pulled in but didn't really feel like going in. As we were cooling it in the parking lot, the couple from breakfast came in. They didn't want to go in either so we both mounted back up and go on the road. We road with them for quite awhile (we would drop them on the uphills and I would soft pedal to let them catch up) until they stopped for a "Butt-break". We were also feeling pretty sore but didn't want to stop for fear of not being able to get started again. We managed to make it back to the hotel without incident.

Once back, we hit the hot tub and chatted with another couple for a bit. Dinner was another buffet thing and we sat at a table with the people we ate lunch with and several other couples and really had a good time talking with them. After dinner, they had door prizes and everybody at our table won something - pretty cool. We won two pairs of "tandem" socks.

Sunday was a quick 30 mile route followed by checkout and a BBQ at the hotel. The ride was a bit hillier than on Saturday but generally not as hilly as our normal rides so we didn't really have a problem. We were among the first to the first stop atop a large hill at the Fruitlands Museum which was a Shaker fruit farm/museum. Unfortunately, it wasn't open. By the time we found out it was closed, a large pack of bikes had arrived so we hooked up with them for a fast downhill run. It's nice riding with a group because you can just follow them and not worry about when and where to turn - theoretically. We were blasting down the road on the tail end of a group and the main group went straight but the people in front of us insisted that we needed to make a left turn. We hadn't been keeping track so we weren't sure so we followed them. Deb quickly got the route sheet out and realized that we should have gone straight. By that time though, the pack was gone and we had to chase. Meanwhile, Wrong Way Larry caught back up to us and got in front. A few mile down the road, Deb calls out that we need to make a left turn on such and such a road. I see it coming up but Larry blasts on through. We turn left and a few minutes later, Larry and Sally come cranking by.

By the time we got back to the hotel, we were pretty tired and sore. 83 miles total over the two days isn't bad for us and we were pretty happy. Lunch was good and we sat with a couple from dinner and the couple from breakfast.

All in all it was a fun time.

The Maine Coast Trip

Tim, Amy, and Quincy came up from the deep south for a visit. They were originally going to stay a few days and then rent a car and travel up the coast of Maine. They wanted to see the "quintessential Maine coast" - rocky harbors and fishing villages and guys saying "ayah". Well, since we had not seen that either, I suggested that we might want to all go up in the MoHo. At the time it seemed like a good idea and they agreed. As I got to thinking however, I started worrying about accommodations. That camper can get very crowded with more than four people in it and I was worried about the dog, rain, Kyle and Carly being bored, and all that. I also worried that we might be infringing on their family vacation but they said not so I didn't worry about it. In the end though, we decided that we would leave K & C & Skipper at home while Deb and I and the Rossers went up the coast.

Deb and I had previously only gotten up as far as Portland which is not quite into the desired landscape so I asked around at work for ideas on where I should go. Of course, I didn't really follow up on it so Deb and I ended up browsing the web and guessing. I'd read a little about Bar Harbor and Arcadia National Park so we made that our destination. We decided to take a couple of days to get up there so that it wouldn't be a tough drive on the Q-dog (Quincy's pet name so-to-speak). Picking campsites from a web page is always a crapshoot but we did our best.

We chose to start at Old Orchard Beach which is just below Portland. We'd camped there before - it is "famous" for an ocean front amusement park - more like a permanent church carnival-type of thing - and it's an easy 2-3 hour drive from home. The next place was Megunticook campground in Rockland which was halfway to the last place in Bar Harbor (BH). We figured we would stay three nights in BH.

The day before we were going to leave, I was sitting at my desk at work looking at the route when a buddy came in. I explained where we were going and we started talking. Then someone else, who I barely know, walked by, overheard us talking about Maine and jumped in with all kinds of suggestions on where to go and what to see on the way up. Serendipity.. Anyway, Tim, Amy, and Q arrived and we poked around for a few days before leaving. Quincy, by the way, was an absolute joy - from when she arrived and throughout the whole trip. It was very fun getting to know her and making her laugh and imprinting on her some special Hudgins things.
The trip to Old Orchard Beach (OOB) was uneventful (if you ignore the problems with the motorhome that I won't get into here). The Rossers were particularly impressed with the New Hampshire State Store just over the border that has it's own highway exit.


OOB itself was kind of shabby. The campground was fine but we walked to the pier/amusement area and found it crowded and kind of dirty - the typical permanent-temporary rides/fried dough/games-you-can't-win kind of place. Quincy enjoyed it though I think. It's funny how your perception of a place can be colored by watching a yung-un experience it. Had it just been Deb and me, we would have hated it. But it was fun with Quincy along.

The next day we continued up the coast and got into the "real Maine". My walk-by buddy had suggested we stop in Boothbay Harbor so that was our first stop. Oh, we passed by Red's Eats on the way - another place that somebody had mentioned. It was a small red "diner" with people in a line wrapped around the building. We didn't stop because Q was asleep and we wanted to make time (ominous forshadowing We got to Boothbay got our first taste of a Maine harbor town. It was a bit bigger and more commercialized than I was expecting but it was very nice and we enjoyed walking around and having lunch. Once again the Q was Qute as ever.
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After lunch, while browsing in a store, I asked the guy behind the counter where I could go to see the quintessential Maine seacoast. He thought a bit and then suggested Pemiquid Point lighthouse. It sounded good and was on the way so we decided that would be our next destination. Well, "on the way" is a relative term in Maine. The coast is made up of many inlets and peninsulas and to get to the end of the next peninsula over, you have to drive back up the one you are on and down the next one. Oh well, we came to find out it was worth it. Pemiquid Point was fabulous





After scrambling over the rocks and enjoying the views and breezes, we piled back in the RV and headed back up the coast toward Rockland, our next campsite. After about 15 minutes on the road though, we heard those words we will never forget - "Bunny?" Now, we had heard the call for Bunny before and the quick application of said Bunny had always calmed the Q and allowed the world to continue to turn. This time however, there was a second call, and a third, and the slowly building realization that Bunny was not in the RV. Yes, we had somehow managed to leave Bunny at Pemiquid Point. On the rocks. With the tide coming in.

We found a place to turn around and headed back to the point. We jumped out and began combing the area for signs of the wayward rabbit. Just as I was about to give up hope, I saw Deb walking back to the camper waving Bunny in triumph. She had found it on top of the fence around the lighthouse, placed there by someone who will now spend all of eternity watched over by a higher power. Amy, who had stayed with Quincy in the RV, was actually crying when Deb arrived with the prize. So, crisis averted, vacation saved, we headed back up the road to Megunticook campground in Rockland.



Megunticook was a small little place that was nice and uncrowded. As I was registering, the lady at the desk said to be sure and check out the "patio" after we were set up. Um, OK, I'll do that... So, after setting up, I wandered in search of the patio. I followed a trail through the woods and emerged onto a beautiful bluff overlooking the ocean and rocky coastline. It really was cool with some chairs for sitting and taking in the view and just generally slowing down (and consuming some of the liquid that was picked up at the State Store in NH).

The next day, we took a quick trip back down the coast a bit to visit a little fishing village and to see the lighthouse at Owl's Head. Both were absolutely gorgeous.


We then headed back up the coast and made it to Mount Desert Isle - home of Bar Harbor and Arcadia National Park. Bar Harbor and Arcadia were also fantastic and we spent the next two days there. One of the great things about the place is that you can get everywhere via a free LPG-powered shuttle bus system. We were able to leave the RV parked and not have to wedge it into places it didn't want to go. The first day we went shopping in BH, and then to a beach and hike along the coast. The next day, Tim and I went kayaking among the Porcupine islands in the harbor and the girls took a trolley tour to the top of Cadillac mountain. For dinner we had lobster at an authentic Lobster Pound where you order your lobster by the pound. They grab them, throw them in a rope net bag and boil them in seawater outside over wood fires. I'm not a big lobster fan but it was fun nonetheless.
It really was a beautiful place.

The last day we headed home. We had planned to head inland and jump on the superslab for the quickest way home but we decided to go back down the coast to see some of the places (read antique and quilt stores) that we didn't stop at on the way up. Well, we didn't stop at them on the way down either, much to Deb's consternation but we did manage to stop at Red's Eats that we had seen the crowds at earlier. So we got in line and waited, and waited, and waited some more. When we finally ordered, I suggested that Deb go find us a table. As I came around to the back patio, I see Deb fuming like I'd never seen before. Seems some woman had pushed past her to claim the only open table in the place. I rarely see Deb get quite that pissed at someone. So, we ate our mediocre lunch at Red's and continued on our way.

Our last stop was in Freeport to checkout the L.L. Bean factory store. Freeport was wacky. It's like the whole town was one big outlet mall. There were outlet stores of all kinds and then, the mega-L.L. Bean store(s). They had a building for bikes and boats (kayaks and canoes), a building for camping gear, a building for regular clothing, and an outlet store as well. The whole place is open 24 hours a day. Weird.

We finally got home that night. This really was a great trip - we had fun with the Rossers and really enjoyed the scenery and locations as well.

My Maine Squeeze

This was shot at the Pemiquid lighthouse on the Maine coast during our trip with Tim and Amy and Quincy.  

Those Amazing Fundies

What will they think of next? This would be fun reading if it weren't so amazingly frightening/depressing.

http://www.talk2action.org/story/2006/5/29/195855/959