TOP PHOTO:The re-union group at the Philadelphia Art School
Jim and Janet Knight, 2nd row, third and fourth from left.
Yale Mini reunion in Philadelphia, October, 2007
BOTTOM PHOTO:Jim and Janet Knight at the Mummer's Museum for class dinner.
Taking a break from holiday shopping, Beverly and I took a quick walk at the marine reserve as the full moon rose and the sun set through the fog. The negative tide was ebbing near its low. We had an enjoyable time scrambling over the exposed rocks and peering into tide pools in the gathering dark. This anemone was in about 3 inches of water. Enlarge the photo and you can see a hermit crab peeking out from his snail shell just to the left of the anemone. 'Hermies' appeared to be everywhere!
Half Moon Bay Surfing Cougars Wahines at "The Hook" in Santa Cruz at last weekend'surf contest. Rachel bottom, Camile left, Sam right. (Cindy Phelps Photo)
Rachel in the Curl (Cindy Phelps Photo)
Photo Album HERE
Santa Crux is surf city and the surf team to beat. Which is what the Surfing Cougars did in the team's second meet. WOW. Coaches and kids had a lot to be proud about in a day of inconsistent surf at The Hook. Everyone gave their all,showed the aloha spirit and most important had a blast. The team is really coming on strong!
A nice write up in the Review here.
If you received a handmade invitation to an open studio that looked like this I suspect you'd be excited to go! Click the image for a much better view.
So was I. Lora Groves is a wonderful coastside artist who works in a secluded studio in the redwoods about 5 miles above Pescadero. She often works in large sheets of cloth as pictured here. I think they are linen, which she colors, paints and sews into evocative patterns of light, color and dark. Bran and I visited her open studio and had a chance not only to view her art, but also to meet family and other friends. I wish we could have stayed longer! I met Lora when she used to occasionally work part time at Moon News ( World's best bookstore!)
She is picture here with (left)"The Whole Cycle of Growth and Renewal is Love" and
(Right)"Some Come in, Some Go Out".
This past week in Northern CA, a tremendous swell came through. The big day was on Tuesday with a 27-30 foot swell on 20 second intervals. Huge. Unusually, Maverick's broke out on the 3rd reef, where the big dogs were towing in. This shot by Doug Acton,the best surf photographer ever of the action at Mavericks over the years, shows that wave faces were in the 60 foot plus range. This shot is of Kealii Mamela. Doug took time out from his Half Moon Bay Surf team coaching duties to document the action as he has for every swell for decades.
John "Music Man" J. and Thomas "El Diablo" J. meet their panting public. I only wish we could hear the mellifluous vibrations that accompanied this scene, but the pictures and imagination will have to suffice (unless Aunt Sarah made a recording that we could post.)
Good going guys! We will expect a duet concert in St. Louis over Christmas
Well, the reports are in from the Intrepid Thanksgiving Secret Spot Hike-Surf Trippers:
Roark: Epic!
Bob: Great
Eric: Pretty Good
Tim: Never Again
I've never done the trip, but it involves a 7-8 mile hike,including a stretch that must be navigated at low tide. Tough going through loose sand etc. Tim reportedly had to be cajoled with unspecified threats and blandishments in order to induce him to stand again after a trail side collapse. (Hard to believe, but perhaps he IS the sane one!) They had rain, big, (too big) surf that kept them out of the water part of the time, but they were able to score when conditions permitted. Four nights camping on the beach. The packs must have been seriously heavy for enough beer to last that long!
Way to go boys!
Se Roark's Photo Album HERE
This one is for John & Thomas. Do you think it is hard to make itty bitty surf boards?
Paradew Photo ALbum Link
Bobbie Simmons Drving - Look out!
Oscar Gift Wrapped
The Half Moon Bay parade of lights took place this evening with the largest crowd in memory looking on. Kings Mountain was strongly represented with a Bronco towed Christmas tree lit with thousands of colored bulbs powered by a 5 KV generator accompanied by 2000 watts of mobile Christmas carol stereo power. Oscar (Phelps) had on his usual flannel lined Christmas package costume, while Bobbie Simmons was lead driver in the posse of Kings Mountain Christmas race cars that set the pace for the parade. Let the shopping begin!
ALBUM LINK
Gee, Dan told me there are these things called 'Killer Logs.' Big heavy logs that look safe but get moved by the waves and crush people- or some such silly thing like that-hey! Is that one over there? Think I'll check it out. Hmmm.. easy to balance...let's see... never stand on beach logs, check....never turn your back on the ocean, check!......Whoaaa!!! Wheeee!! Awesome! Can I do it again? No?
OK then, I give killer logs a 'D' for DONE!
Kids: Be don't be Beverly- be safe! Here is the real scoop from the State of Oregon.
"They're called sneaker waves because they appear without warning, often surging high up on the beach with deadly force, and are impossible to predict.
How to play it safe: Never turn your back on the ocean.
Watch those logs The ocean is strong enough to pick up even the biggest log and plop it down on top of you. Some logs may look small, but even the tiny ones can be waterlogged and weigh tons.
How to play it safe: If you see a log in the surf or on wet sand, stay off it
.....Oregon Coastal Saftey excerpt.Read the whole site HERE
I know it is late for Halloween pictures, but here is a classic pose that deserves to be shared. John and Thomas, taking a break from heavy pumpkin picking duties on a beautiful fall day with a prize winning squash between them. What's with the bolt cutters, guys? Did you have to go through a fence to get into Farmer Jones' field? Where is your Dad?
The Cougars did very well in their first competetive outing at Santa Cruz on the weekend before Thanksgiving. Great write up in the the HMB Review
Way to go, Doug and Marty!
Lots of cowpokes play the fiddle. Most people don't realize that it takes practice, practice,practice to be able to entertain the boys around the campfire.
And it always pays to wear your sidearm! A cowboy never knows when crooks or rattlesnakes might need shootin'. Here is Thomas, hog leg strapped on his hip, ready for anything. Shin'ichi Suzuki would be right proud of this boy!
It is about time. A surf bum has come up with a unified theory of everything, using the E8 as his inspiration.
The E8 root system consists of 240 vectors in an eight-dimensional space. Those vectors are the vertices (corners) of an eight-dimensional object called the Gosset polytope 421.In the 1960s, Peter McMullen drew (by hand) a 2-dimensional representation of the Gosset polytope 421. The image shown above was computer-generated by John Stembridge, based on McMullen's drawing.
Quote:
"Garrett Lisi, 39, has a doctorate but no university affiliation and spends most of the year surfing in Hawaii, where he has also been a hiking guide and bridge builder.
In winter, he heads to the mountains near Lake Tahoe, Nevada, where he snowboards. "Being poor sucks," Lisi says. "It's hard to figure out the secrets of the universe when you're trying to figure out where you and your girlfriend are going to sleep next month."
Despite this unusual career path, his proposal is remarkable because, by the arcane standards of particle physics, it does not require highly complex mathematics.
Even better, it does not require more than one dimension of time and three of space, when some rival theories need ten or even more spatial dimensions and other bizarre concepts. And it may even be possible to test his theory, which predicts a host of new particles, perhaps even using the new Large Hadron Collider atom smasher that will go into action near Geneva next year." Quoted from the Telegraph See full text here
Freshmen Mike and Skyler charging hard at a practice for the Half Moon Bay High School Surf Club Saturday at Kelly Street. These photos were shot by the team's coach, pro surf photographer and waterman Doug Acton
The team was recently formed, sparked by Exec Director Marty and is now sanctioned by the league. About 25 kids have turned out with lots of talent and enthusiasm on the part of both parents and kids. With Doug as the coach they will go far!
Sometimes the ocean bites back. Andrew H.shown sporting a nice souvenir. Today's good times are tommorrow's good memories!
Sunday morning. Calm, clear and warm, the roar of the ocean rising up and falling through my bedroom window as it had all night. Jupiter high and bright in the eastern sky, I loaded up.(It was Jupiter, right Dan & Elizabeth?) Sun broke over the ridge line at almost the exact moment my boat slid off the beach. Gliding glassy harbor water, loosening stiff shoulders, pulling long to stretch, the roar beyond the break water grew louder as a lone surfer, his yellow 'gun' underarm, paralleled my track across the water, walking the path along the harbor edge to the Point where we would converge. His presence and few early bird spectators with binoculars on the cliff confirmed that Maverick's was breaking. I didn't look, but Ross's Cove was probably going off big time.
Beautiful session, jockeying to paddle into clean 10-12 foot wave faces with occasional triple overheads, the line-up about 50 yards beyond Mushroom Rock. There long, long rides with time for multiple cutbacks and then the wave would reform and offer a second drop and bottom turn. A few times the price was paid with a swim in the impact zone, but adrenaline overcame lack of fitness and practice. Outside clean-up sets loping through occasionally forced all out attempts to claw up the wave before it broke or a frenzied paddle to get out in front to try and hang on as the wall crashed behind me. Quite engaging.
There were 15-20 guys (yes all guys)out at the Mavericks line up, a few towing in, although it wasn't big enough to be necessary. One paddle surfer was catching clean shoulder rides and looked as though he could have been charging the bowl with no problem. Impressive!
I had the inner break all to myself until a crew of rodeo boats showed, but only one of them ventured Mushroom Rock. There would have been plenty of room for you!
Note: The first map shows undersea topography at Pillar Point with my crude attempt to indicate the location of Mushroom and Maverick's added, second and third charts show ocean wave conditions by color from this Sunday morning. Pretty aren't they?
A few weekend ago, Beverly organized a great trip to UC Santa Cruz to view Radical Reels, a collection of short films on extreme sports from the Banff Mountain Film Festival. I thought you who couldn't come that night might enjoy the trailer which I've finally gotten around to posting!(SEE BELOW) My favorite was a spoof on "Touching The Void" called "Touching Myself." The agony of choice and a badly broken baguette high on the mountain.
The UC expedition included the Mohr family, Bryan, Beverley, Sarah, Joe F. and me. We survived a chaotic visit to Pleasure Pizza before the show. We will know to order by the slice next time!
See prior post...
This unusual photograph captures a very serious side of croquet competition. Mr. Thomas J. comes to play for keeps and it shows. I wouldn't want to be on the other team when this young man wacks the ball toward the wicket.
The Beijing Olympics is just around the corner. China is set to lead in every category! The next generation of super-watermen ( divers, swimmers & surfers) is now being trained in an undisclosed Chinese laboratory.
OK.... this has nothing to do with family and friends but it does qualify as foolishness. This photo is a repost from the Horse's Mouth , a blog brought to my attention by Bill. What the heck is happening with these babies? Did the spectators have to pay? Were the babies cloned here or are they only visiting?
You've gotta love the 'Give Blood' tee shirt. Thats the spirit. On his recent visit to Half Moon Bay, Dan insisted upon a surf session. Here is a clip of Dan battling the waves and winning! His first stand up move- Africa Beach, August '07.
Way to go,dude! And I hope that rib heals up real soon, bro.
Come vist again before too long.
The The Half Moon Bay High School tennis team is gearing up! The season starts this week.This picture is from the Half Moon Bay Review sports section showing a team drill with Sarah waiting her turn on the back row left.
Read the news article about the team HERE
One of Sarah's favorite artists who shows at the fair is Jane Kiskaddon. Jane works in Marin CA. This is her painting "Living Room" More artists, art fair info Here
(Photos are of Blaine Rawdon working on MacCready projects)
I read today that Paul MacCready Jr., known as the "father of human-powered flight," for designing the first aircraft to make a sustained, controlled flight powered solely by a human, has died. He was 81. I had the opportunity to hear Paul at the San Mateo Unitarian Church several years ago, and after the service he demonstrated several very small airplanes, one of which was literally made of matchsticks and cellophane. It was powered by a rubber band and fluttered like a bat around the church auditorium. Everyone wondered why this marvelous machine wasn't available at the local hobby shop, but Paul said it was too delicate for production. As I recall his comments were inspirational from the standpoint of celebrating the power of human innovation, but paradoxically quite pessimistic about the outlook for mankind and our world. When I was looking for photos of the Gossamer Condor and the Gossamer Albatross, I came across these photos of Blaine Rawdon working on the Gossamer Penguin and the Solar Challenger, two of MacCready's projects. Both photos are from 1980. While in St. Louis this summer I heard from Dad that Blaine had undergone very painful surgery for cancer of the jaw. I hope he is doing well. More wonderful pictures of MacCready projects are Here. More on Blaine's Gossamer work Here
Sarah and Mac contemplate the arrival of the first day of school. This year will be different. We will be organized and stress free!
Sarah's schedule includes;
AP English III, AP Art/Drawing, Chemistry, French II, World History, Algebra II and the tennis team is starting its season. (Tennis schedule Here . See HMB High Here)
Fun!
The Cougars are on the Prowl..
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