Portsmouth New Hampshire

Flew in early and spent the afternoon walking around this old historic town. Met Dylan and Emily in Durham for dinner last night and getting ready to go watch the Maine Black Bears play some rugby today.

Sent from my iPad

Throwing Team

A good portion of the throwing team on a walk about on the strip.

Sent from my iPad

Missing picture from original post below

Sent from my iPad

Furries

There was a Furries convention in La Vegas last weekend as well. Hundreds of these creatures roaming the streets near UNLV all weekend. Good thing it wasn’t hot because wearing these heads with temps in the 90’s would be miserable.

Sent from my iPad

Unattached

Sam threw hammer and disc at UNLV last week unattached. The NCAA determined he only has one year of Collegiate eligibility left at Drake and he opted to use it next year. He can still throw in meets on representing Drake but still hang out with his throwing buddies. He PR’ed and won the hammer competition with a 62.77 throw. Got 5th in disc. Sent from my iPad

Minnesota State Basketball Tournament

Marsh and I made it to the Target Center for two and a half games of the 4A quarters last Tuesday. Good high school basketball in the great state of Minnesota.

The Mall

Unless you get up before dawn on weekends, you don't get pictures like this. Nicole runs before dawn four or five days a week.

Missouri Valley Conference

Sam didn't have his best throws in the MVC conference indoor championship but 2nd ain't bad. His buddy Adam got one better throw for first place.

West End

A selfie from Sam's bar in Des Moines in February. Always fun at the West End.

Celebrating a PR

The throwing community is very supportive of each other, regardless of the team.

23rd

Sam move to 23rd in the NCAA yesterday and #1 in Weight Throw all time for Drake University. Good day for Sammy.

Ski Des Moines

Nice dinner with Robbie and a fresh blanket of snow in the Historic Valley Junction district of Des Moines.

Gun show

MVC honors.

Missouri Valley Conference Award

Sam hauled in the field athlete of the week award. He's having a great indoor season.

Great Trip

Always nice to get a few days of skiing in. It's good for the soul. The snow wasn't as good as previous years but there was plenty on the green and blue runs. I'm already looking forward to next year.

Gondola to the Top

The peak of steamboat is about 10,500 feet. The town is 6,000. In comparison, the family wrnt to Breckenridge for a few years and our lodgings were at 10,000, the peak was 13,500.

Early Bird

While the rest of the crew got an extra 45 minutes of sleep, I got out and got the first lift to mid mountain a few times. Early morning skiing is cold but less crowded.

The Whole Crew

This on includes Martin who arrived late due to the snow closing the pass.

Rabbit Ears

The lodging of choice for the older skier with a need to be in town.

Lincoln Ave

Matt, Bruce and I liking the fresh powder on the main drag.

Warm Water Cold Air

Steamboat Springs actually has warm springs in it. The Yampa River doesn't really freeze there due to the warm spring water feeding it. The name of the town comes from the early non-native settlers hearing a regular steam whistle sound from one of the hot springs. They compared it to a steamboat. The Yampa River is not deep enough for a steamboat.

Steamboat Walk

Steamboat Springs is a nice little and relatively old Colorado town. There is a nice walking path along the Yampa River that goes for miles. I got to Steamboat Springs a day early to avoid the incoming "snowcreate" storm in DC. That allowed a nice leisurely day before the skiing started on Monday. Got 4 miles of walking done in a steady snow. Beautiful way to start the week.

Snowcreate

6 inches of snow and 3 inches of sleet creates a heavy duty ice rink in the front yard, driveway and street. I left for Colorado the day before this event but the snowcreate lasted for two weeks with below freezing conditions for over 10 days. Our street was a one lane road for over a week.

Tappan Zee Bridge

Dylan and I stopped for the night in Tarrytown (Sleepy Hollow) the home of George Washington Irving and the Headless Horseman. Had a nice dinner at the Bridge View Tavern with a view that didn't disappoint.

I'm on a flight back to DC from Hartford, Dylan is finishing the last 5 hours of the drive on his own.

Shame

Dylan and I joined Steve and Patty at Ottobar in Baltimore a few days ago. Some punk rock is good for the soul.

Holiday Season

Both boys came home for the holidays and we all went to Minnesota for a few days. Hosted Sam's friend and teammate Adam over new years and I hooked up with some old friends to reminisce about our youth.

Time Flys

Late December and most of January has gotten away from me. I need to increase my blog posting or I will be in danger of giving up on this 21 year old blog project for good. Here's a start to 2026 with a picture of our step dog Buddy.