May 31 2006-2016 - A tale of Two Cannondales

 I just looked up my blog post from May 31, 2006.  I posted about riding at Chubb trail with my Cannondale Rush.  The old 26" bike still ranks as one of my favorite bikes.  And what did I post yesterday?

I posted this yesterday, May 30, 2016.  It's a photo of my Cannondale Habit at Chubb trail again!  The sign board is different today, but it sits in the same spot! I did not do that on purpose...it just happened. 

Ah, time.  It does funny things when you're not watching.

Car Watching - Jaguar F Type

 As far as modern sports cars go, to my eye the most beautiful example is the Jaguar F Type.

 Muscular and sexy at the same time.  Short overhangs.

 Cat-like eyes, a true Jaguar trait.

 Fat fenders to let you know there is 350 to 550 horsepower under the hood.  Supercharged V6 or Supercharged V8.  That works.

The business end.  Just gorgeous.

Running the Stairs at Castlewood

 Long ago, maybe 1990 or so, I did a fair bit of running.  I did a few duathlons and even a few running races.  Realizing that running on the pavement was for the birds, I started running the mountain bike trails that we rode and raced on.  Castlewood was unique because it offered THE STAIRS.  I arrived at Castlewood today with a little sun poking through...my morning ride plans had been dashed by rain.

 Before this morning sun poked through, it must have rained hard at the 'wood.  I don't know if you can tell that there is water running down the middle of the trail.

 After running up Lone Wolf and heading right at the top, the trail meanders along until this happens.  No problem for me today and MY ADIDAS.

 The views along the top of the bluff are stuning.  I wish my camera could do them justice.

 More beauty.

 Then....THE STAIRS.  They are awesome.  They start here (or maybe they end here?) and go all the way down to the railroad tracks that run along the Stinging Nettles trail.

 They keep going down.  And down.  They are nicely made wooden stairs.  This is actually not the same set of stairs that I ran in the 90's.  The old set had longer straight sections and may have been harder.  This set stutter steps, sometimes only three steps at a time.  But they do go down...

 At one point you can sight the old stone steps that led up from the bottom.  I'd love to go back in time and see the antics that happened out here when it was a summer getaway.

 After getting to the bottom, it's back up again.  This is perhaps the longest straight section.  It doesn't seem like much at first, but somewhere about a third of the way up, it seems like a bad, bad idea.  It's NO STAIRWAY TO HEAVEN!

Back down to the bottom (I did this four times!), this is the sign to turn around and go back up.  It's the little tunnel under the tracks that leads to the Stinging Nettles.  All told, I was out there about an hour.  Mostly running, some trotting, and finally some walking back to the car once I got back down Lone Wolf.

I'm going to do this again.  And Chubb.  Maybe some of Greensfelder, too.

Car Watching - 1966 Ford Mustang Convertible

 I had the opportunity to snap a few shots of this beauty last weekend.  It's a 1966 Mustang Convertible.  Very easy to ID this one!

 This pristine convertible appears to be "Emberglo" in color.  Apparently it's a bit of a rare color.

 The body was great.  He left the top down so you can see that the interior looks pretty darn nice as well.

 With no engine emblems on the front fenders, and the good ol' automatic shifter sticking up out of the tunnel, this gem is probably a pedestrian inline-6.

And that's not a problem.  This is an enjoyable little car, not a hot rod.  Kudos to the owner for keeping such good care of a 50 year old icon!

Car Watching - 1968 Dodge Charger R/T

 I caught this gem on the way to work today.  The light was horrible for taking photos, such bright morning sun, but I took my chances and they came out okay.

 The 1968 Dodge Charger R/T.  One mean looking car.  So mean it even hides it's headlights until it's absolutely necessary to show them.  If this is a real R/T, it's packing a 440 Magnum...or a 426 Hemi.

 Someone cares about this one.  The body is very straight, and the glossy black paint doesn't give away any body imperfections. 

 Long hood.  Long deck.  This is no pony car.  This is the first view of the sexy buttresses that bracket the backlight...and those sexy tail lights.

 The money shot.  The sexy tail lights, a great view of the backlight, the sexy dual exhausts. 

One last shot of the rear, showing the gas filler on the left flank.  This was one awesome catch.