Mikey B's Blog

My Review of Giro Hex Bike Helmet

2010-09-06T12:24:00.001-05:00

Giro® Hex™ combines a muscular, progressive style with versatility and integrity--everything you need and want in a trail-riding helmet.

Bad Design

By MikeyB from Apple Valley, MN on 9/6/2010

Sizing: Feels true to size

Pros: Good ventilation

Cons: Heavy

Best Uses: Mountain biking

Describe Yourself: Avid Cyclist

Was this a gift?: No

Went on 1 trail ride and the helmet loosened up 4 times while riding. Whenever you go over an obstacle or bump your head moves back and the clasp would hit the back of my neck and loosen the helmet. Very poor design. It is also on the heavy side. It seems to have a little too much foam.

(legalese)

Vacation

2010-08-20T22:30:00.004-05:00

Time for me to update this blog.

At the beginning of August Aimee, Heidi and I went on a family vacation along with my parents and their good friends, Jim and Jill. We stayed a week at Aspen Resort on Pelican Lake in Orr, MN. I have been coming up to Pelican Lake since I was about 13 or 14 years old and it is turning into a vacation tradition every 2 years. It's a beautiful lake with lots of wildlife and great fishing. One morning I was fishing and I was surrounded by 6 Loons and every day you would see a few Bald Eagles perching in the tree tops or circling around in the sky. And yes there are Pelicans at Pelican Lake. If the beauty of this lake still exists 35 years from now, I would retire here.

There are 12 or so resorts on Pelican Lake but what is nice about Aspen Resort is that it is the only one with a pool and very kid friendly. Why do you need a pool on a lake you ask? 65% of the lake is less than 10 feet so their are a lot of weeds and they grow tall and thick. The only beach is on the south side of the lake. Heidi got to go swimming in a pool for the first time and loved it. She also liked to go on the swing which turned into a new word for her, "Wee-Wee". No it's not a bathroom code. When we pushed her we would say, "Weeeee....Weeeeee....".

First lesson learned. Close the bathroom doors.

We stayed in the Blue Heron cabin. It's a 3 bedroom 2 bath cabin. Personally I thought it was a little small. It did have air conditioning which was a life saver at the beginning of the week.

Ducks and a lot of them. The dock boys have been feeding them since they were ducklings so they keep coming back every year. Heidi liked to chase after them and say "quack quack".

Weeeee....Weeeeee.....

Heidi enjoying a dip in the pool with Mommy. Another bonus to the pool is that it tires a little toddler out.

Sunset

Sunrise. I got out on the water everyday at 5:30am so I could fish for a few hours and then get back to spend time with my two ladies.

Pelicans enjoying the sunrise too.

A loon in the morning. I wish I had a 400mm lens for some closer shots.

The fishing was great. Lots of nothern pike, smallmouth and largemouth bass. The panfish were hard to find. Pelican Lake is known for its large bluegill but it has been over fished the past few years. They tend to run in cycles and this was a down year for them. There are large walleye in this lake if you want to hunt for them but I didn't feel like wasting hours on catching one.

I'm on a boat! Heidi's first boat ride. She seemed to like it even with the PFD on.

The rest of the pictures can been seen HERE. I would really like to make this a yearly trip if possible. If not we will be back up in a couple years.

Red Bull Flugtag

2010-07-27T08:24:00.003-05:00

I was 1 of 90,000 people along the banks of the Mississippi at the Red Bull Flugtag last Saturday. Red Bull estimated that there would only be 40,000 spectators at the Twin Cities first Red Bull Flugtag event located at Harriet Island in St. Paul. What in the hell is Flugtag you ask? Basically 37 teams were selected out of hundreds to build homemade flying machines and you take a leap off of a 3o foot flight launching deck into the Mississippi. It's not just about the distance of your flight but also the creativity of your craft. With the popularity of the event I can only assume that it will not be long before Flugtag returns.

Here is a link to all of my pictures.

World Flugtag Record of 207 feet set by "Major Trouble and The Dirty Dixies"

MN Zoo

2010-07-21T10:13:00.002-05:00

Since Aimee and I have a MN Zoo pass I figured I better get my moneys worth out of it. You can find all of my MN Zoo pictures in this flickr collection.

Random Picture

2010-07-10T22:29:00.003-05:00

A bunch of wildflowers are blooming near our townhouse. I snapped a few pictures and I really liked this one.

Jay Cooke State Park

2010-06-25T22:39:00.004-05:00

Aimee and I (and Zoey) had a great weekend with friends at Jay Cooke State Park. The best part was there were hardly any mosquitoes! BUT on the other had the ticks were out in full force. We spent more time relaxing at camp than exploring the park so we'll have to take another trip to Jay Cooke. Thank you Grandma N. for watching Heidi!!

Here is a link to the pictures.

Nature Valley Grand Prix

2010-06-19T00:03:00.004-05:00

The Nature Valley Grand Prix was in Uptown Minneapolis this afternoon. Very cool fast race to watch. Pictures are uploaded and ready for your viewing pleasure. LINK

Dark Skies

2010-06-17T21:33:00.000-05:00

Mother Nature was pissed off tonight.

Zoo

2010-06-16T09:22:00.002-05:00

Aimee, Heidi and I went to the Zoo last Monday. The rain kept us indoors which was OK except they had part of the African Forest exhibit closed because they had to make some repairs to the animal enclosure.

Didn't take too many pictures but you can find them here.

1 Year Old

2010-05-26T10:49:00.002-05:00

My little girl turned 1 on May 13th. She makes me smile everyday.

Rufus

2010-05-24T12:55:00.002-05:00

We were watching Aimee's coworkers dog Rufus over the weekend. He's a sweet little pup.

Lake Winnibigoshish

2010-05-19T21:41:00.002-05:00

This years fishing opener was a complete failure for walleye fishing but on the other hand the weather was unbelievable, the beer was cold and I got to witness two good friends get married at Gooseberry State Park. So I got that going for me, which is nice...

This was the view from our camp on Friday night.

New Lens

2010-05-18T21:36:00.004-05:00

I quickly tested out my new 70-200mm f/2.8L lens today. The color, depth of field and sharpness are excellent. I will have to go to the MN Zoo to give it a workout.

113/365

2010-05-04T23:05:00.003-05:00

Baby Evan born on April 21, 2010. This is my first attempt at newborn pictures. I'm pretty happy with the way they turned out. You can see more pictures here.

112/365

2010-05-03T21:33:00.001-05:00

New point and shoot Canon S90 camera. Old camera was retired on craigslist.

111/365

2010-05-03T21:32:00.002-05:00

This is Corey with the 31" Northern that he caught and almost pulled his fishing pole out of his hand as the fish hit right at the boat. We only had a cell phone camera with us. I also caught a 35" Northern the day before. The fishing wasn't too bad despite the weather front moving through. We had to fight 20-30 MPH winds each day.

110/365

2010-05-03T21:31:00.002-05:00

The soon to be groom with his soon to be new Tauras .45/410 revolver. This gun will suck the paint off your house and give your family a permanent orange afro.

109/365

2010-05-03T21:30:00.001-05:00

Kris' parents cabin. Drinking has begun.

108/365

2010-05-03T21:29:00.000-05:00

Transferring some tunes to the iPod.

107/365

2010-05-03T21:19:00.002-05:00

Getting ready for beer drinking, Wisconsin fishing, bachelor party weekend.

106/365

2010-04-27T22:27:00.003-05:00

Organic Batter Blaster - It may seem gross to get your pancakes from a whipped-cream style steel can but damn these were very good pancakes and they don't take long to cook either. They are also USDA Certified Organic. If you get a chance pick up a can at your grocery store and give it a try!

105/365

2010-04-27T22:22:00.002-05:00

Carbone's Pizzeria - Pizza Pies since 1954! SOOO GOOD!!

104/365

2010-04-25T22:08:00.002-05:00

We went to the MN Zoo today and got our year pass. I tested out the Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L lens that I borrowed from a coworker. The weather was pretty crummy but the lens performed well. I did however have to crank up the ISO to get some faster shutter speeds. Here is a link to all of the pictures.

103/365

2010-04-24T14:27:00.001-05:00

Everyone loves a blue eyed girl especially one that just got up from her morning nap.

102/365

2010-04-23T22:23:00.003-05:00

I borrowed my coworkers 100-400mm lens this weekend. I'm not sure I like the "push/pull" zoom.

101/365

2010-04-22T21:34:00.001-05:00

1:30pm Happy Hour! My coworkers and I went to Tavern on France for some drinks today. Another beautiful MN spring day!

100/365

2010-04-21T22:51:00.001-05:00

100/365 - I stopped by Ikea on the way home from work today and in the Mall of America north parking lot sat the Wienermobile. Luckily I brought my camera to work today.

99/365

2010-04-20T22:52:00.001-05:00

What a beautiful spring day it was. I wish everyday could be like today, 71 degrees, sunny with a slight breeze. Our cherry tree is starting to bloom.

98/365

2010-04-19T22:34:00.001-05:00

I didn't take a pic for the past two days of 365 photos, oh well. Heidi was having a fun time playing with my Leeann chin's cup today.

95/365

2010-04-15T22:25:00.001-05:00

Spring Into Life

94/365

2010-04-14T22:46:00.001-05:00

Aimee's coworker's daughter made Zoey a little necklace.

93/365

2010-04-13T22:19:00.000-05:00

Our little Heidi bear is 11 Months old today. Crazy!

92/365

2010-04-12T22:43:00.002-05:00

Recharging the batteries - I've been working on getting the boat ready for fishing opener by installing a battery charger. So far this project has been a pain in the ass. 99% of the pain has been trying to run and hide the wires.

91/365

2010-04-11T23:48:00.001-05:00

Happy Birthday Nordy. Half way to...

90/365

2010-04-11T10:37:00.001-05:00

I competed (or lack there of) in the Ragnarök 105 race today. 105 miles of gravel roads and minimum maintenance roads throughout the Red Wing area. I made it to the Zumbro Falls 55 mile check point in 5 hrs and 47 min. I decided enough is enough so I dropped out there. My hat goes off to the people that can finish this type of race, not only finish but kick some ass as the top time was 6hrs 14min, which is completely insane! If I do decide to try this again next year, I will need to drop at least 30lbs and train, train, train. Also a different bike would help. I would prefer to just take pictures of the race. BTW time for a new point and shoot camera

89/365

2010-04-09T20:55:00.002-05:00

3/4lb Bacon Jucy Lucy...OK.

88/365

2010-04-09T08:53:00.001-05:00

old beer.

87/365

2010-04-07T22:31:00.002-05:00

On call for 1 more day.

86/365

2010-04-06T22:44:00.000-05:00

Lets roll

85/365

2010-04-05T22:12:00.001-05:00

105 mile bike ride on Saturday and I needed some tunes! I found this little Altec Lansing speaker for $13.49 on Amazon and it worked perfectly! Seriously this speaker sounds damn good for only being 3.5 inches in diameter. I put the iPod and speaker in the top pocket of my Camelbak and I heard all of the songs crisp and clear. This will come in handy camping. Three AAA batteries and it will play for 24hrs.

84/365

2010-04-05T21:39:00.001-05:00

Happy Easter Bunny Day!

83/365

2010-04-04T22:55:00.002-05:00

I did some engagement pictures for a very nice couple, Brant and Christine. I will also be shooting their wedding on June 26th. You can view the rest of their engagement pictures HERE.

Violin In Tune

2010-04-02T23:19:00.001-05:00

82/365

2010-04-02T22:38:00.001-05:00

The Easter Bunny was a little early this year.

81/365

2010-04-01T21:40:00.001-05:00

Another sign of spring.

80/365

2010-03-31T16:11:00.000-05:00

Domo wants you to know that spring is here.

79/365

2010-03-30T21:03:00.002-05:00

Since I have a 105 mile bike race on April 10th, I figured it was time to get out and ride today. I only did 15 miles today just to get back in the swing of things. The 28MPH headwind and winds gusting up to 30MPH was a pain in the ass. Also the smell of manure from nearby farms did not help. One thing I do need to figure out is some tunes because it was really boring out there.

78/365

2010-03-29T22:43:00.001-05:00

I was just messing around with the flash. I saw someone on Flickr with the same shot so I tired to recreate my own. I also hit my 10,000th shutter actuation tonight on the 50D.

77/365

2010-03-28T22:50:00.002-05:00

Spring is here. A beautiful Minnesota sunny day with the birds chirping and singing. It took some time to find them hiding in the trees and bushes.

76/365

2010-03-27T17:23:00.004-05:00

Finally! I have been waiting for Schlitz to come out in cans and a bonus they are a "Tall Boy"!

75/365

2010-03-26T21:09:00.000-05:00

Heidi is cutting her top two teeth so she hasn't been the happiest the past few days.

74/365

2010-03-25T21:05:00.003-05:00

Quack! Quack! A female and male Mallard duck were roaming around our house.

73/365

2010-03-24T22:40:00.001-05:00

Out of beer. Send for help.

72/365

2010-03-23T22:06:00.002-05:00

Who's the leader of the club
That's made for you and me
M-I-C-K-E-Y M-O-U-S-E
Hey! there, Hi! there, Ho! there
You're as welcome as can be
M-I-C-K-E-Y M-O-U-S-E

71/365

2010-03-22T22:07:00.001-05:00

Stopped at Flat Earth Brewing Co. in St. Paul for a couple growlers. I cracked open the Double Dry Hopped Angry Planet tonight. I thought it was delicious. Hoppy at first then it goes down smooth with no after taste.

70/365

2010-03-21T20:58:00.002-05:00

Ella and Heidi playing. We went over to Scott's to have him take some portraits of Heidi.

69/365

2010-03-20T22:47:00.002-05:00

We spent the day at Aimee's parents house visiting.

68/365

2010-03-19T22:38:00.001-05:00

I was working from home today. It was a little chilly outside so here is a picture of Heidi playing in a box.

67/365

2010-03-18T22:16:00.002-05:00

Heidi's after bath mohawk

66/365

2010-03-17T22:07:00.001-05:00

FRIES! FRIES! FRIES! Red Robin gave us a crap load of FRIES!!

Karen Elson

2010-03-17T09:09:00.003-05:00

Jack White of The White Stripes is producing his wife of four years, supermodel Karen Elson, new album. I think is sounds great! Also a Jack is working on another Dead Weather album and then maybe back in the studio with Meg for a new White Stripes album.

65/365

2010-03-16T23:00:00.001-05:00

I ♥ Aspartame.

64/365

2010-03-16T22:53:00.001-05:00

Final touch to the Surly Karate Monkey single speed.

63/365

2010-03-14T23:36:00.002-05:00

April baked me an apple pie for taking their pictures yesterday. It was delicious!

62/365

2010-03-14T00:59:00.002-06:00

Kris & April. I needed some engagement session practice. Pretty gloomy conditions but it all worked out. Here is a link to all of their pictures.

61/365

2010-03-14T00:42:00.001-06:00

Heidi working on her walking.

60/365

2010-03-11T22:47:00.001-06:00

I watched Zombieland tonight. Not too bad of a flick but it's no Shaun of the Dead.

59/365

2010-03-11T22:42:00.003-06:00

WTB saddles, a La-Z-Boy for my booty.

58/365

2010-03-09T22:36:00.000-06:00

Surly Karate Monkey project.

57/365

2010-03-09T22:32:00.002-06:00

Damn you Easter! I saw this laying out on our kitchen table. I thought Aimee was going to share but apparently I was mistaken.

56/365

2010-03-07T21:34:00.002-06:00

Biker-X downhill race at Buck Hill. You can find the rest of the pictures HERE.

55/365

2010-03-06T22:22:00.005-06:00

I had some Chipotle for dinner tonight. Barbacoa tacos, yum!! Little side story...Aimee, Heidi and I were driving to Chicago last month and we stopped in La Crosse for some lunch around noon. We pulled into Culver's and the place was packed so we went across the street to Jimmy John's, once again packed. We looked around and there was this little Mexican restaurant called Burranchos next door. We walk inside and it was a total Deja vu moment. I thought we just walked into a Chipotle. The menu was almost identical except for the nachos and quesadillas. The decore was metal industrial just like Chipotle. You ordered the same way as Chipotle by selecting a burrito, bowl or tacos. There were signs claiming they used fresh ingredients similar to Chipotle. It was so close to being a Chipotle that I could see some lawsuits. The food was just OK, very bland and lacked any spicy flavors like a Chipotle. Check out Burranchos if you are ever in WI, they have 5 locations but eat somewhere else.

54/365

2010-03-05T22:37:00.002-06:00

Heidi playing inside the refrigerator. She thought the bottle of mustard was her milk bottle.

53/365

2010-03-04T21:36:00.005-06:00

I can't wait for spring. I dug out the Niner MCR from the back of the garage. It will be nice to get back in the saddle again.

Stay tuned for some less boring pictures, Biker-X is this Sunday at Buck Hill

52/365

2010-03-03T21:05:00.003-06:00

Some Coffee Bender with a little project in the background.

51/365

2010-03-02T21:32:00.001-06:00

Screened in. Is it spring yet?

50/365

2010-03-01T20:39:00.000-06:00

Robot

49/365

2010-02-28T14:56:00.000-06:00

Heidi's lil' shoes

48/365

2010-02-27T16:21:00.000-06:00

Libby enjoying the warm sun.

47/365

2010-02-26T10:33:00.002-06:00

The melting snow has unveiled a bag of salt that was trapped in winters grasp.

46/365

2010-02-25T17:04:00.002-06:00

My new EF 24-70mm f/2.8L USM lens arrived today. Can't wait to get out and take some pictures. Time for the EF 50mm f/1.4 USM to have a little vacation.

45/365

2010-02-24T20:38:00.002-06:00

Buck Hill Ski and Snowboard area. That streak of light at the bottom of the picture are cars on HWY 35.

View On Black

44/365

2010-02-23T19:33:00.002-06:00

Zoey - Yes she is alive.

43/365

2010-02-23T19:14:00.003-06:00

Ice Dam - That right there is about 18" of 100% pure ice dam sitting above our garage. I spent 2 hours pushing snow off of the roof. When I got done there was a 3 foot mound of snow the length of the garage. Lots of snow + east facing roof that only gets a couple hours of morning sun = ice dam.

42/365

2010-02-21T21:49:00.003-06:00

Spent the day ice fishing on Prior Lake. Fishing was OK. You really had to work it to get them to bite. I just decided to drink more beer instead. I did catch my first largemouth bass through the ice.

41/365

2010-02-21T21:47:00.001-06:00

Corey and Mel stopped by to go out for dinner. I do not know why they are arm wrestling but I'm pretty sure Corey lost.

40/365

2010-02-19T22:21:00.001-06:00

Aimee's new little Gateway Netbook.

39/365

2010-02-18T20:42:00.001-06:00

Heart Bokeh

38/365

2010-02-17T22:47:00.000-06:00

Lemon

37/365

2010-02-16T22:00:00.003-06:00

Some rude beer. Ska Brewing Company Durango, CO? Odd.

36/365

2010-02-16T21:50:00.000-06:00

Washington Park Michigan City, IN.

35/365

2010-02-16T21:42:00.001-06:00

Heidi using Great-Great-Aunt Dorothy's walker as a jungle gym.

34/365

2010-02-16T21:33:00.003-06:00

No substitute for the real thing (Mill's Fleet Farm). Blain's Farm & Fleet in Janesville, WI. Though it’s often rumored that the Mills and Blain’s chains are the result of a family feud, they’re not.

The Mills Cos. opened a farm merchandise store called Fleet Wholesale Supply in Marshfield, Wis., in 1955, and that piece of the Mills family empire morphed into Mills Fleet Farm in 1960. It has 30 stores in Minnesota, Wisconsin, North Dakota and Iowa.

Blain’s Farm & Fleet also dates from 1955 and was founded by brothers W.C. Blain and N.B. Blain. The chain has 33 stores in Wisconsin, Illinois and Iowa; the closest to Rochester is in LaCrosse, Wi.

Vacation

2010-02-12T17:35:00.001-06:00

We are heading to Chicago this weekend. I'll post up my 365 pics when I get back on Tues.

33/365

2010-02-12T09:37:00.001-06:00

Frosty start to the day. Dense fog and 5 degrees.

32/365

2010-02-11T17:18:00.000-06:00

Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6 IS USM lens is back in my hands after spending 4 weeks at Canon. The sharpness is back.

31/365

2010-02-10T17:28:00.001-06:00

IT'S A TRAP! Not really. The loft is now Heidi's play area. Since she is on the move it was time to put up the baby gate.

30/365

2010-02-09T22:50:00.001-06:00

The snow has stopped...for now.

Snow Daze

2010-02-09T09:50:00.004-06:00

On the way to work this song popped up on the iPod. I thought it was fitting since it is has been snowing non-stop for the past 36 hours. 10 inches of new snow on the ground.

29/365

2010-02-08T20:56:00.003-06:00

Apple Valley's only skyway. It is apart of the new Minnesota Valley Transit Authority Apple Valley transit station.