6-10-07
Do you feel that?

It's racing fever and it's spread all the way to Kabul!! Here's where I've been riding for the last couple months....man, it doesn't get any better than this! Wait...I think I've been here too long....remember Pisgah, Clemson, Conyers, Stanley Gap......oooooooooo....Stanley Gap.....YEA!! I remember now =)

Last night was a good workout. I somehow managed to stay at a high power output at an average of 95 rpm for the entire hour. I had some good stuff to watch during this workout too. See, our neighbor on one side is the VP of the country and he had a large gathering of about 100 folks at this house. There were people coming and going and guards and soldiers with RPG's all over the place. Good times! I may get to see the new F-22's running patterns at home, but you don't get guys with AK's and RPG's. HA!

Ok, picture pages, picture pages.....


LOOK!! It's the PinkTurtle Walt Works in action. Take a good look at that becuase that bike is going to be a singlespeed or 1x9 when I get home. The gears are going on the new Dos Niner softail 29er.















There's my view for most of my workouts. Note the privacy screen around the patio next door? Yea, the VP doesn't like us nosey Yanks!!

6-8-07
12......

And we're back with more from your broadcasting correspondant from the Big Funky K-town. Weather this week has been....well....interesting! We've had sun, rain, hail, sun, heat, cool, sun....did I mention sun? This week also brought on a site visit to a building dedication. The building was constructed by the Germans with money donated from the country of Qatar and it was a cool experience to be a part of. I will say we didn't go just for the dedication as we needed to see the remainder of the site so we can include it in our master planning efforts but it was a fun time anyhow.

I've been talking also with several new contacts about the possibility of executing some facility management training for the Afghan ministries and that has brought me into discussions about collaborative work with the German government as well as the US and Afghanistan governments. It's been a great learning experience to say the least!

Oh, I bought a new mountain bike frame this week...a Salsa Dos Niner. I've been wanting this frame for about two years and just refused to pay the asking price of $1000 for a Japanese made frame when I got my custom WaltWorks for under $800! Well, I found the Salsa for under $700 from the fine folks at http://www.bike29.com/, based in the Green Mountain State (VT) and was able to get a quality new wheelset and the frame for the MSRP of the frame. I'm pleased with that! I also found a new helmet by LAS....I'll post a picture of this funky skid lid when I get home and retrieve it from the mail.

My UK trip is coming together quite nicely too. I have a close friend whose brother lives in London and has offered me two nights free lodging. Turns out the guy lives two blocks from Buckingham Palace so I'll get to see all the sights and it's all within a 10 minute bike ride from Peter's! What a blessing! With the free lodging in London, free camping at the Mountain Mayhem race for two nights, this little adventure is fast becoming a lesson in "How to spend a week in the UK for under $500!"

Ok, now onto the pictures...

Rainbow over Kabul 6-5-07

Entrance to the Kabul Zoo. I'm almost scared to know what's behind that gate!

A couple months back I posted a picture of this mosque and the catwalk to the tower. Here's an updated shot so you can see the progress!

This is a village on the west side of TV Hill. I thought the street running straight up the hill just looked cool, but this gives good perspective on how much of the population of Kabul lives. Remember, there's no running water going to these houses, so the folks up top have to carry buckets and jugs from the wells at the bottom. I won't talk about the lack of a centralized sewage system....I'm sure you understand.

This is the north face of Shir Dawarza, the mountain we hiked back in March. Again, another good shot of the houses.