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Thursday, July 30, 2015

Alive and Kicking......

It has been a few weeks since I've posted so I thought it best to put up a little something.

We are still alive and kicking, although with today's high temperature forecast to be 106˚F (41.1˚C) we are doing a lot less kicking.

Right now it is too damn hot to do much of anything.

We had plans to load up the bikes for an overnight trip to the south coast one Saturday morning. The plan was to meet RichardM at Saturday morning coffee then escort him part way south to show him some great back roads to keep him off I-5 as long as possible on his trek south. Unfortunately as we were loading the bikes Troubadour's phone rang and it was a Team Oregon instructor looking for someone to cover a class in Salem.  The scheduled instructor had cracked ribs and could not do.  Troubadour to the rescue.  Teaching on asphalt in 100 degree heat was not fun, but he made it through.

He was out of the house within 10 minutes of getting the call, so I spent the next little bit puttering and putting things away.  I decided that since we weren't going away, I'd best go get groceries.  Sorry we didn't get to ride with you Richard.

Right now, the forests in Oregon are so tinder dry that we are hesitant of dual sport riding on the gravel roads through the forestry land.  Fire restrictions are in effect.  We are restricted to gravel roads only and every vehicle must carry with them the following:

1.  One gallon of water or one 2.5 pound or larger fire extinguisher;
2.  One axe;
3.  And one shovel with a minimum 8 inch blade.

Just doesn't seem worth it to load the little bikes down and head of for a few hours packing the extras.

We have managed to book a week off in September.  Maybe the weather will have cooled off enough by then we can get out and do something.  We are thinking a bike trip will be in order. Right now we are kicking around ideas and are pondering a ride up to the Olympic Peninsula and along Highway 101 all the way around the Peninsula.  While we aren't fans of Highway 101 traffic, it isn't as bad on the Peninsula.  Still just an idea.

We have managed to get out on the bicycles a few times.  Nothing exciting, just riding downtown for lunch.  One evening when it cooled off we went for an 8 mile (12.8 km) walk.  Another evening it was a 2 mile (3.21 km) round trip walk to buy an avocado for my breakfast the next day.  Sure we could have taken the car, but we can always use more exercise.

This weekend we are attending Big Northwest at Portland International Raceway. It is a large Subaru rally, our first time attending.  It should be fun.  Well except for the 100˚ temperatures.  Plenty of water, sunscreen, and a hat will be the order of the day.  It is a one-day event and we'll be taking the camera with us.  I should have another post up next week with some interesting pictures.

I hope everyone else's temperatures are a little closer to average for their location and you've been able to get out on some great rides.  I have been keeping up on blog reading and it looks like everyone is still having fun.

I leave you with a favorite hot weather song.  "Too Darn Hot" by Stacey Kent.  Click on the name of the song to take you to YouTube.  If you aren't familiar with her music I recommend you have a listen to this song and others.  To me, her best album is 2003's The Boy Next Door.


UPDATE:  It is 3:30 pm Thursday and it is 103˚F (39.44˚C) out back in the shade and this is a picture of the thermometer out front on the sunny side of the house.  It is under the roof overhand just outside our front door 119.7˚F  (48.72˚C).  It should be another hour or two before we hit the hottest part of the day.  Did I mention we don't have A/C in the house?

(Outside our front door - July 30, 2015, Corvallis, Oregon)
- Au Revoir

" Rest is not idleness, and to lie sometimes on the grass under the trees on a summer's day, listening to the murmur of water, or watching the clouds float across the blue sky, is by no means  a waste of time." - John Lubbock "Recreation"  The Use of Life (1894)
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37 comments:

  1. 106F wow! - I had the heated grips on yesterday during a run to Newcastle (NE England)

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    1. Yeah, we're not supposed to get this hot in our area of Oregon but year after year we get hotter. I just updated my post and then looked outside again and the thermometer days 120.9˚F (49.38˚C) out front under the eaves. Aye carumba.

      Heated grip weather sounds quite nice right now.

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  2. Oh yes, we've been there, too. Record temps in Germany this year. But finally it has cooled down to bearable 25°C. Glad you manage to take off a week in September. Weather will have cooled down by then.

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    1. 25 degrees sounds so nice right now. We enjoyed a week of that (as a teaser) before this heat wave arrived. September is usually quite nice. The boss is heading to Yellowstone for a week so it gives me the chance to take a week off too.

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  3. We are tinder dry here and have had several wild fires, but it doesn't seem to stop the folks who flick ashes out their car windows even with being told how dry it is. I can't say as I want to pack the bikes up like that either when going off road. I'm teaching this weekend and we are approaching the low 30's Celius, plenty of sunscreen, water, and a big hat this weekend!

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    1. We've had a lot of wildfires in Oregon, but nothing like what BC and even Washington have seen in size. Luckily none have been close to home.

      Get yourself a small 1.5-2 liter Camelbak if you don't have one already. They are a lifesaver for Brad when teaching on the range in the heat. All the instructors wear them to keep hydrated on the go.

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  4. Seems a lot of places are too darn hot this summer. This is our first official heat wave of the summer in Eastern Ontario and it has let up already a bit today. Supposedly it will to drop to normal high temperatures by the weekend. I've been taking my walks in the morning and walking a different direction along a road that the trees offer some shade to until around 10 am. Of course the hottest day of the week was the day I decided to restain my porch deck. What was I thinking?

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    1. Why is it we always manage to do projects in the heat. I remember when we moved in this place 9 years ago we decided to paint the exterior of the house on the July 4th weekend. The hottest damn weekend of the year. We had to paint whatever side of the house was in the shade.

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  5. Wow, sorry to hear that everyone is suffering with extra warmth. We've had about the most wonderful summer days that I can remember; what most of us would call perfect summer.

    Thank you for Stacey Kent....didn't know. She's now part of my collection.

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    1. I am glad you have had such a nice summer. After your winters you deserve it.

      We discovered Stacey Kent music in San Francisco over 10 years ago and have been a fan. Nice to know I can share it. Enjoy.

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  6. When we left the air museum, the thermometer on the bike claimed 105°F once we were on the road. Fortunately, it was only 1.4 miles to the hotel which has wonderful air conditioning. When we arrived, it was 99°F and though it felt warm, it wasn't uncomfortably warm. Putting on the gear after it had been sitting out on the bike for about 4 hours was unpleasant. I was tempted to head down with just the shorts and t-shirt. After all, it's only a mile....

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    1. Too darn hot. Our part of Oregon isn't supposed to get this hot. Southern Oregon can and does, but we aren't supposed to. I think our normal for this time of year is in the 80's. Good job putting that gear on anyway.

      See you two later today.

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  7. There's a point at which it becomes just too damned hot to ride, especially if one rides ATGATT.

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    1. This would be it. At these temperatures you don't really want mesh gear either as it will do more harm than good. You do see people wearing evaporating cooling vests under their gear.

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  8. After all our travels this year I'm pretty acclimatized to the hot weather. That being said, I'm still "hibernating" in the house today which stays just comfortable enough with our two tiny air conditioners. September should give you some good weather, but these days who knows? The Olympic Peninsula would be a fun trip.

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    1. Yeah, you guys rode through some really hot, and humid places. But I am with you on the hibernating. We do have two tiny window a/c units, we just never put them in the windows. We hate the noise and they block out so much light. We do put a fan in the bedroom window when we go to bed which blows the cool night air into the room. Darn chilly by morning, which is nice.

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  9. I might have to pop over to sweat out my cold...sob...

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    1. A cold? Oh no. Snuggle with the dog for warmth.

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  10. You know that something is off with the universe when Corvallis is hotter than Salt Lake City. Strangely, we've had the coolest July since the late '90s. Here's to hoping that y'all's heat wave breaks soon.

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    1. I agree. We aren't supposed to have these temperatures. I hadn't realized your July was so cool. We had the driest June on record, not sure what it will show for July.

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  11. That's amazing, I didn't realise your part of the world experience such high temperatures. Drink plenty of your favourite hydration.

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    1. We aren't supposed to see desert temperatures. Death Valley in California, now they see crazy high temperatures, but Oregon doesn't usually.

      The highest it reached under the eaves was 123.8˚F just after 5 pm, then it started to go down. In the shade the highest we saw was 103. Others were reporting the apps on their phone showing 108.

      Drinking hot tea this morning and I am sure lots of water today. Although hubby has cold beer in the fridge for later.

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  12. Yep, riding in hot weather sucks....even with all the tricks/tactics to deal with it, it's still a detriment to mileage accumulation.

    It's why I like Winter so much. :)

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    1. In the winter you can always add a layer or drink a hot beverage to warm up, in the summer you can't take enough off.....

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  13. Damn thats hot and no AC. We used to go down to the shopping centre and sat in there for a couple of hours as they have AC. Poor Brad working in that heat.

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    1. Shopping is a good idea in the heat. Brad was knackered by the time he was done teaching. He had to ride home in that heat too. Sunday he was smart and took the Fiat. Our temps have cooled off a bit today. Highs are only supposed to be in the low 90's.

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  14. Wow, I really, really hope things cool off for you soon.

    A tour of the Olympic Peninsula sounds like fun. But I bet you'll see a lot of trees! That's one thing we remember from our driving tour out there. Lots and lots of very tall trees. But there are also some beautiful places to stop. And lots of cool beaches to see.

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    1. We are almost done with the heat wave. Extreme heat advisory lasts until 9 pm tonight.

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  15. Good stops in Olympic National Park are the Lake Quinault Lodge, Lake Crescent Lodge, and Hurricane Ridge. And the Hoh Rain Forest. If nothing else, it might be cooler there. Or really, really humid. :-(

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    1. Thanks for the tips. I'll have to go back to your blog and look up your trip reports for details.

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  16. I had to do that to refresh my memory. Look for Pacific Northwest, installments 6-9. I should make it easy on you and send the links. I can find them more easily.

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  17. The usual 91 in the Keys, though summer heat is closing in with greater humidity and less breeze. I like it, sunny day after sunny day.

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    1. It was a glorious 73 here yesterday morning and cloudy. We soaked it up.

      Some forest fires have popped up to the south of us and is creating cloud cover. A good result from a bad situation.

      I don't mind sunny days, I just wish they'd stay about 80 degrees and no higher. Not too much to ask, is it?

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  18. How is Basil doing in this heat? It indeed seems to be a hot summer everywhere: in Germany as mentioned by Sonja and also here around Sunnyvale with temps in the high 90th. Like in your area about 80 degrees are normal, but not higher! And it's also very dry with extreme fire danger. Let's hope for the best!

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    1. Basil is handling it pretty well. He hides under the shrubbery in the backyard or lays on the sofa under the ceiling fan. He's a good kitteh.

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  19. bit late posting here but thats me
    seems a bit hot up there
    but a nice day out looking at machinery in the sun

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    1. Better late than never good sir!

      It is too darn hot, but soon it will be winter and we'll be complaining of the cold.

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