Yesterday was training day but not in the sense of riding a bike. Casey Dean and I volunteered to take a chainsaw certification class for the Winnebago Council so that we are allowed to use chainsaws on Camp Ingawanis property which will allow us more flexibility in clearing downed trees over the mountain bike trails. One of my biggest pet peeves is seeing where other riders have gone around a tree because it takes so long to get it removed. Lots of times this just isn't possible due to lack of man power or time constraints caused by more important projects for the camp ranger. Well now we can help out and just do it ourselves whichl should save quite a bit of time and frustration. Somehow, I think that we may end up taking care of some non-mountain bike trail tree removal on occasion. This class may have been a double-edged sword in that aspect. I'm okay with it all though; I like making sawdust. I will try to get some pictures next time.

The class consists of watching about an hour video that shows what to do, what not to do, and most importantly, it shows how to do it safely. After watching this video we were given a ton of opprtunity for hands-on experience removing some pretty big trees that had fallen over a trail that we are adding to the system on the 7th and 8th of October. I really wish I could have gotten some pictures for you but I was having to much fun making sawdust.

My brother is playing in a couple of hockey games today that I am going to watch. I have a sneaking suspicion that it might make me want to play again. Having my weekends freed up has given me the time to do it so it just might happen. Hockey is good cross-training for mountain bike racing isn't it? At least the cardio aspect of it anyway.

New look for the blog this weekend compliments of Kerkove Media. Jeff has been trying to get me to allow him to do it for quite a while and so this weekend I gave him the control. He does a great job with it. Jeff has a good sense of what colors, designs, and layouts work together which allows him to create very eye-appealing designs. Anyone that is in need of a great graphic designer should get a hold of him.

This entry was posted on 9.24.2006 at 7:40 AM. You can skip to the end and leave a response.