R is for reading

Just a little insight into my personal realm. (and a strong attempt to avoid alliteration) This is a list of all the things I currently have piled up on my couch, night stand and Nook to read.

Sport Rider magazine. All about sport bikes, crotch rockets or whatever you like to call them.

The Atlantic magazine. News, features. Always interesting and not as overtly biased.

Practical Shooting: Beyond Fundamentals. A book by one of the pioneers of modern competitive pistol shooting.

Vienna; Day by day. Pocket size guide for upcoming vacation.

The Best of Budapest. Sounds like an 80's band, but another guide book.

Foreign Affairs magazine. Just like it says, a mag about international stuff.

Mind Gym, The Athletes Guide to Inner Excellence. Hopefully a good read for my competitive self. Some would question if I need more of this. hahaha.

The Journal of International Security Affairs. More world security stuff.

There ya go, the varied list of reading material from a renaissance man like myself.

This a totally color enhanced pic from my ride today. A 4 hour ride through the hills of north county. I'd say that's a break in!

And of course here is the requisite video. I picked the wrong song, so you can mute it if you want. Oh, and that exhaust is going to HAVE to go. They are called "motor" cycles, and should not sound like sewing machines.

The Rowdiest Week EVER!

Most other weeks will live in shame at the thought of comparing themselves to the week I have planned. It takes a real Rowdy to pull down a week like this!

-ride the new motorcycle on a small adventure ride in the dirt. with video! CHECK
-practice shooting. dry and live fire. CHECK
-ride the downhill bike, even if just an easy ride. Friday?
-bootcamp 4 mornings a week to get a sexy bod. CHECK
-mailing my awesome Christmas cards, the ones that say "Only terrorists say Happy Holidays". Tuesday?
-sending Killer his birthday and Christmas package. CHECK
-surf Thursday?
-friends over for dinner Thursday 6pm
-shooting competition Saturday 8am
-truck oil change Tuesday 10am
-final shopping before two weeks in Europe CHECK

Yeah, all weeks turn away at the realization of their insufficiency.

Expect more....

Now that I have a GoPro, which I never had with any of my previous dirt bikes or supermotos, prepare for more motorcycle pictures and such. And better than previous ones like these:

Psalm 144:1

Blessed be the Lord my strength, which teacheth my hands to war, and my fingers to fight.


What I do with my eyes and my fingers is critical to succeeding in competitive shooting. I am still new enough and learning enough that I am not consistent in what I do. So I am off to practice!

Athletics, Organized and Such

A little Rowdy history of athletics, competition and sponsorship.

I wrestled in 8th grade, I did awesome in practice and got crushed in matches. I learned I liked grappling stuff but I just wasn't ready for it at that time. This is the first time I exerted myself soo much that I fainted while running.

(if you don't puke, pass out or die, keep going!)

Also starting in 8th grade I played tennis. All the way through my senior year when I quit the team right before the end of the season, for a stupid reason I can't even remember now. In college I also played club and league tennis for a year.

For high school graduation I bought myself my first mountain bike. So of course I started racing it. Then I got a job at a bike shop. Then I rode and raced more. Then I started getting parts for free. But I stopped. Changes in life and school.

I started rock climbing. I became a president of a rock climbing club. I taught rock climbing. I wrote articles that were published in climbing papers and news letters. All of my friends were from climbing, male and female. I mentored 3 kids for a senior project about climbing. I wrote a guidebook for the local area as a 33 page paper for a technical writing class in college. And then I moved to where there was no climbing.

But I found brazilian jiu jitsu. And you know the 5 or 6 year story there. Medals on the national level. One trip to the world championships, Mundials, losing to a guy who has won them three times now. Got free private lessons, free t-shirts, extra attention, free patches, my picture here and there. That sort of thing.

Then back into bike racing. Won two local Super D championships. Started working at a bike shop again. Tons of medals. Free stuff. Actual sponsorships for tires and some other things. But then the schedule of the season changed and I couldn't do it as much. Then one series folded Super D. Time to move on....To BMX bike racing. A concussion and not a single trip to the main, I decided that was enough bike racing.

So here I am now shooting competitively. It is athletic, but in a different way. I'm competing often. And as happened in the pedal bike and jiu jitsu world, people are starting to know me. People I don't know. A shooting instruction company here in the area just gave me tons of free targets and some ammunition. And a hat, saying "You're a good shooter, please wear this for us." A local Master class shooter who works in the industry has taken the time to mentor me in my practice specifically for IDPA.

Which got me to thinking..... I probably talk to at least 300 people a month at these shooting competitions. I have the ability to make essentially what is a face to face sales pitch for any company 300 times a month. To a group of people who aren't afraid to spend money. Meaning, I need to start working on my sponsorship proposal package. It's time to turn my name, reputation, charm and competition results into free ammo, training, entry fees and clothes.

If it shoots, has a moter and/or wheels, goes 'boom'; i like it!!

My new ride! 2013 Honda CRF250L. Oh yeah!! Get ready for a new round of pictures and videos of my riding Rowdy adventures!!!

Vroom Vrooom Vroom