Knoxville, TN with Bit Marine

This past week the dealership where I work (Chatlee Marine) sent Jason and I to a training class for the computer system we use. The meeting was held in downtown Knoxville, TN at the Crowne Plaza hotel and convention center. This was my first time visiting Knoxville so I was hoping I could squeeze in a little sightseeing during the trip.

We headed out around lunch on Monday and after a 6 hour drive through the beautiful North Carolina mountains we arrived in Knoxville just in time for some wings and Monday Night Football. The next morning we woke up and had meetings from 8-6. Afterwards, the president, Ed Mcfawn, took us out to dinner at a nice restaurant downtown. I have known Ed and the members at BiT for a few years now and always enjoy their company. After dinner a few of the guys from other dealerships joined Jason and I for a few drinks at a downtown brewery. (In the picture I was giving Ed some grief about being famous, He was voted one of the top most accomplished worldwide in the boating industry)

The next afternoon Jason and I spoke with the concierge about where to find a good dinner. He recommended that we try a restaurant on the waterfront that was renowned for their ribs. (Voted best in America) Before dinner we took a stroll downtown to try and see a few things before dark. We were especially interested in a giant gold object you could see from anywhere in the city.

The Giant Globe we were hunting for lead us to an amazing park. This park is called World's Fair Park and was the location of the 1982 world fair. The park contains several waterfalls, a restaurant, convention center, amphitheatre, an enormous lawn and has a stream flowing through the center of the entire park. We could have kicked ourselves for not bringing our camera, thus the pictures came from my iPhone. From the park we could see the Tennessee Volunteers football stadium, which is where we headed next. As we walked, we joked at how hilly Knoxville was, it seemed like we were always walking up hills or steps. As we made our way to the stadium, we found that all the gates were locked. But we happened to find a construction entrance that was halfway propped open. We knew we probably weren't supposed to enter, but we could talk our way out of it if we got caught, so we headed in.

Neyland Stadium is one of the largest football stadiums in the country. It seats over 107,00 excited fans. As we made our way down the stadium seats, we both commented on the erie feeling that we had. You associate football stadiums with thousands of insane screaming fans and never of quiet solitude. As I entered I couldn't help but imagine being a recruit walking into this enormous stadium and imagining all the fans that would be there to watch me. How great would that feel? We spent a few minutes walking around the stadium and enjoying the view. We were very tempted to run out on the field, but later found it was a blessing that we chose not to. (The stadium has sensors to detect trespassers and the cops would have been immediately called.)

Later that night we headed back to the hotel to meet with Adrian ( a BiT Marine employee and friend) and some of the other guests to head out for our last night in Knoxville. Adrian took us away from the city towards his home for a night out. We had a blast hanging out, as you often do with close friends. I think everyone was moving a little slow the last day and were kind of anxious to get home after a great trip.

Little Black Dress Party

Snow + Friends = Good Times

"Success consists of getting up just one more time than you fall."~Oliver Goldsmith

There is something about snowfall that brings out the kid in all of us, especially for those who don't see it often. When I was teaching elementary school, I quickly learned that on possible snow days it was best to keep the window blinds closed. One snowflake sighting could take a classroom from quite to chaotic in an instant. The funny thing is that at the first sighting of snow most adults display the same childlike behavior. "Hey, it's snowing" sends everyone to a window or door in excitement. I saw my first snowfall of the season this weekend while I was visiting my friends Gavin Holt and Carrie Council in Boone, NC; and at 26 years old, it still puts a smile on my face.

I headed to see Gavin and Carrie on Saturday afternoon for a quick snowboarding trip. Gavin is a snowboard instructor at Appalachian Ski Mtn. and Carrie is finishing up her undergrad at Appalachian State. We loaded up our boards and headed for the mountain around 5:30. When we got to the mountain Gavin gave me a few short lessons on the basics of snowboarding and once we had assured that everyone witnessed me looking like a fool on the flatland, we moved up to the bunny slope. After several more crashes, bumps, and bruises he turned me loose. We all had a blast at the park and stayed until closing, leaving with smiles on our faces. We finished the night in similar fashion catching up over a few drinks and a lot of laughs.

There is an old Irish quote, "There are many types of ships. There are wooden ships, plastic ships, and metal ships. But the best and most important types of ships are friendships." Spending the weekend in Boone made me realize just how true this was.

Ogamaga the troll at the One Lane Bridge

"Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence". - Dr. Carl Sagan
OGAMAGA
Legend has it that down a 12 mile dirt road, way out in the country, where no cell phone would have signal, under an old narrow one-lane bridge lives a troll named Ogamaga. I'm not really sure how the legend came about, or why Ogamaga chose this bridge. Maybe it was the fact that the closest street light or home is 6 miles in either direction? Maybe it was the fact that hunter's often threw the remains/carcasses of their kill off the bridge which would give him an easy meal? Who knows the reason Ogamaga chose this bridge, but it was definitely his home.

The way the legend tells it you are supposed to drive down the long dirt road and arrive just before midnight. Once you have put your car in park on the bridge, you are told to turn the entire car off; no radio, no heat, no headlamps and wait for midnight. At midnight Ogamaga will sacrifice an animal and when you turn your lamps back on, his sacrifice will be laying on the bridge. Or at least that's what they say....

Night Ride 11-25-2008

It looked as though our Tuesday night adventure was going to fall through. Joel was recovering from a bad cold and had to watch Mason, I was sore from the running/biking that I had done this weekend, and the rain had pounded two days earlier (making everything super muddy). Joel was the first to back out, and even though Jimmy and Alex gave him a ton of grief, he wasn't coming. We decided that tonight would be a good night for an easy, out and back ride down towards the bridge where Ogamaga dwelled.

We met at 7:00 and made sure we hydrated properly with Nature's water. After we quenched our thirst with steel, we headed out. As we rode we talked about Ogamaga and the legend. Each of us had tried the legend personally and had never seen Ogamaga. But we hoped tonight would be the night. While we were riding we laughed about stories we had heard from other people's experiences with Ogamaga. Evidently, some crazy things had happened at the bridge we were headed towards. The adventure and excitement was slowly building with each story.

What Alex and Jimmy didn't know was that Joel and I had a little surprise waiting for them at the Ogamaga's bridge. Joel was sick and didn't need to be out in the cold, but we decided he should stay plenty warm inside of a nice and cozy, full gorilla suit! Joel and I had planned earlier in the day to scare the crap out of Alex and Jimmy. We had it planned out perfectly. I was going to text message Joel as soon as Alex arrived. This would give Joel time to park his truck out of sight and hide near the bridge. I was going to build up the story as we talked during our ride and get Alex and Jimmy to pose by the bridge for a photo, just long enough for Ogamaga to appear. It was all I could do to keep from bursting into laughter during the ride.

When we arrived at Ogamaga's bridge we saw something that even I was surprised by. Ogamaga had left a recent "sacrifice" on the bridge. We hopped off of our bikes and posed bye the bridge to take a photo and take a look around. As we were examining Ogamaga's sacrifice, I asked Jimmy and Alex to pose for one last photo by the bridge. As they were posing Ogamaga came yelling from the brush!

This was the hardest I had laughed as far back as I can remember. Even when they realized that it was just a gorilla suit, their terror didn't end. In Jimmy's words, " When i saw it was a gorilla suit, I got even more worried. What kind of crazy a*^ redneck waits in the dark under a bridge in a gorilla suit?"

When Joel took of his mask, the laughter ensued. This was definitely going to be one for the books!

The Culprits:

The Victims:

In the end we all had a good laugh. But I'm positive the next time one of us comes up missing we'll all be on our toes!

Visiting Amanda and The US National Whitewater Center

"It is one of the blessings of old friends that you can afford to be stupid with them."~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

I'm not really sure when Amanda and I became good friends or exactly why we became good friends. We don't share mutual friends, we don't have a ton in common, and I'm positive neither of us thought we would develop into lifelong friends. We met in college through our education classes at UNC Chapel Hill, but our paths didn't truly cross until a Halloween evening in 2003. (or at least thats my version) Six years later here we are, We don't get to see each other very often, but telephones have done the job of keeping us close.

While I was visiting, we decided to head over and visit the US National Whitewater Center. I had read about this facility in Men's Journal and on the Internet and was anxious to see and experience it in person. So after an exciting Friday and a low-key Saturday, we decided to load up our mountain bikes and take ourselves on a personal tour before I left on Sunday.

The US National Whitewater Center is just outside of Charlotte off of Interstate 85. It is nestled on 307 acres and for a measly $38, 000,000, now offers something for any outdoor enthusiast. At first sight I have to say I wasn't impressed with the entrance of the facility. The road that you take to enter is a bumpy gravel road that winds through several gates, and past several trailers. Not quite the entrance you would expect for a 38 million dollar facility. I doubt that this will be the entrance for long, as the evidence of a much more appropriate and up to date paved entrance is currently under construction. We stopped at the Security gate and paid our $5/car entry fee. This $5 gives you access to all the hiking and biking trails as well as access to anywhere on the property.

We were one of the first to arrive at the park and went ahead and entered the mountain bike trail. The trail is one directional and is marked with red arrows and posts showing you how to follow the main path. I was disappointed at these markings as Amanda and I spent our first 3o minutes trying to figure out the proper direction. Once we got our bearings we found that it was a fairly easy ride over rolling terrain. This trail is hard packed and fast, which is different from the twisty more technical trails that I'm accustomed too. Once we finished the South Trail we headed to the North trail. The Trails are connected by a ride alongside the world's largest man-made river and together total 11 miles of singletrack . The first time we passed the river, all was quiet and the canals were only filled with a small amount of standing water.

As we continued onto the North Trail, we found it considerably more technical than the previous. At the mouth of the trail you are warned about safety and reminded that if you were doubtful of your ability, " walk it first, and ride it second." This trail offered great views of the Catawba River as you rode narrow trails on a rather steep incline. Amanda seemed to be somewhat sketched out about the possibility of a long fall into some cold water. This trail offered several long rocky downhill sections and slippery pine straw covered climbs. This trail could definitely lead to a few good bruises and scrapes. But luckily we were able to walk away in pretty good shape!


Once we loaded everything up we headed to take a peek at the main attraction. The world's largest artificial whitewater river and only multi-channel river in existence. By the time we had finished our ride, the water was flowing in full force. This river is definitely not for the beginning paddler and can offer obstacles for even the most experienced. (This is a training facility for the U.S. Olympic team.)


Even if you don't consider yourself a biker or a paddler, this facility still offers something for you. It has a 2,400 square-foot conference center, an outfitters store, hiking trails, guided whitewater rafting tours, several rock climbing walls, a ropes course, and they are currently building a zip line that travels the length of the facility. If none of these interest you, their is a backup plan. The 300 seat River's edge Bar and grill that overlooks the rapids, where you can eat, drink, and watch others enjoy what the US National Whitewater Center has to offer.

Brrr..ice..cycling....

"Adventure is worthwhile" ~ Aristotle

I have never really understood why completely sane and intelligent people tend to enjoy doing completely insane activities? A great example is the well known Laird Hamilton. He has a men's health cover body, a gorgeous model wife, a home in Maui, and seems to be a very intelligent man. But... in his free time he chooses kamikaze drops into deadly waves, just to have fun. Not something that a sane person would probably choose to do.








Unfortunately, Somehow I have that same desire to do completely stupid things in my free time? Whether it be cliff jumping, dirt biking, hiking, or mountain biking; I have found that I enjoy the excitement that can only be produced by nature's speed, adrenaline. On the first cold day of winter, My buddies and I decided it would be a great opportunity for a night mountain bike ride in the woods. This was probably spurred from the sight of early morning snow flurries followed by a cloudless afternoon sky.









We met around 6:45 pm and sat around the fire laughing hysterically at the way Jimmy was dressed. The Indian style chant that he had playing in the background only added to the hysterical view. After consuming one can of the finest adult beverages, "Steel Reserve; 211", we got our bikes and headed out.


With no set route in mind we chose to let Alex lead the way and headed for an old hunting club we knew of a few miles down the road. We yielded off the road onto an abandoned logging road. The trail was extremely muddy due to the recent downpour on Saturday. Muddy ruts were numerous but most could be avoided. Unfortunately there were a few that couldn't. One covered the entire width of the trail and left us guessing as to which side was the most shallow. Two made the right decision and two made the wrong. Alex and I made the wrong and found ourselves spinning through a muddy pit that consumed our bikes up to the skewers. This confirmed what I already knew, not to follow Alex. We both were able to bog through the muddy mess and escape lucky enough to only get our feet wet. (If you ever have the opportunity to ride your bikes in the dark, in 20 degree weather, you definitely will enjoy it more when your feet don't feel like two ice cubes.) We rode for a few hours only stopping a few times to take in the night sky. We came to a cutover and stopped momentarily to listen for owls and noticed that it was clear enough to see a sky filled with thousands of stars, and were amazed at how visible the milky way was. From where we were standing it seemed as if tonight you could see the earth's spherical shape looking at the horizon. We rode for a few more hours and finally were able to spin our icy clubs, otherwise known as feet, enough to get us back home.

I have camped in below zero weather, played in the snow for hours, and walked barefoot in the snow, but I can honestly say that my feet have never been as cold as they were tonight. As soon as we clipped out of our pedals we headed straight for the fire, in hopes of bringing feeling back into our little piggies. We shouldn't have been so anxious to get warm. As the feeling slowly came back into our feet, we didn't get a warm fuzzy feeling. It was a painful stabbing feeling, almost like you were walking across a bed of thousands of tiny needles. As we watched our skin tone painfully return to normal from its fiery red color, we convinced each other to head out for some Mexican food. So we loaded up and headed for Los Dos Potrillos.


When we arrived there, we found all the lights off and nobody in la casa. After a few seconds of debating on where to eat, we came up with a great idea, Local Joe's! We all laughed at the looks and expressions we would receive when we entered in muddy tights and baggy shorts, but decided it would be worth it. We ended the night with some greasy food, Dead Guy Ale, a few cool stories, and a lot of laughs.

Raven Rock State Park

"The best remedy for those who are afraid, lonely or unhappy is to go outside, somewhere where they can be quiet, alone with the heavens, nature and God." ~Anne Frank

As a North Carolinian living in the central piedmont area, we are very fortunate to have access to both the sandy, white beaches of the coast and the thunderous mountains of the appalachian mountain chain; both within a short 3-4 hour drive. But many of the hidden treasures of North Carolina are hidden within the place we call home. One of these hidden treasures is Raven Rock state park.


Raven Rock state park was established in 1969 and is one of North Carolina's most underrated state Parks. It is located in Harnett County, NC and shares many of its borders with the Cape Fear River. In this new age society filled with XBox, Playstation, and Wii; a quiet, relaxing afternoon hike has been replaced with a loud afternoon in front of the television. My nephews, like almost all children, have fallen victim to this disease. Neither, having experienced the enjoyment of the outdoors.



Raven Rock was originally known as Patterson's Rock (named by an early explorer who capsized his canoe nearby), and recieved its offical name in 1854. The name was inspired from the numerous sightings of Ravens on the high outcroppings and the roostings on the rock ledges. Raven Rock State Park sits along the fall zone, an area where the hard, resistant rocks of the foothills give way to the softer rocks and sediments of the coastal plain. The Cape Fear river runs through the heart of the park, and over the ages the destructive force of flowing water and wind carved the rock outcropping, today known as "Raven Rock". Raven Rock has qualities to offer almost any enthusiast. It offers several hiking trails, horseback riding, camping, canoeing, fishing, and picknicking. All of the hiking trails are moderately short, the longest being a 2 mile loop, but trying to tackle them all in one afternoon can be a tiring task, especially to many avid young gamers. But if you can it offers several spectacular views overlooking the Cape Fear River and the fish traps.