Boomer Boom: Recumbent trike a hit with older crowd

Posted on May 11, 2012 by Howard Meyerson

The Terra Trike design originated on a Christmas party cocktail napkin.

A three-wheel recumbent bicycle known as the Terra Trike appears to be a hit with aging Baby Boomers.

“We’ve got 10,000 of them retiring every day for the next 14 years,” says WizWheelz Inc. Marketing Director Jeff Yonker of their target market for “The World’s Most Comfortable Recumbent Trike,”

Terra Trike is even getting some mainstream buzz outside of its niche. Television talk show host Jimmy Fallon recently featured the Terra Trikes in a studio race he staged with actress Queen Latifah, the Grand Rapids Press reports today. Read More: Bike Design.

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Blowin in the Wind: Muskegon wind farm investigated

Posted on May 11, 2012 by Howard Meyerson

Muskegon’s 110,000 acre Wastewater treatment facility, a popular site for birdwatchers and goose hunters, may become the home to a new wind farm in 2014.

County officials signed a lease Thursday afternoon that gives Gamesa Energy USA, a subsidiary of a Spanish-based wind farm developer and wind turbine manufacturer, the exclusive rights to investigate the possibility of erecting commercial-sized wind turbines there.

“Gamesa’s studies are expected to include environmental, including birds and bats, wind speeds at various locations on the site and transmission feasibility,” a Muskegon Chronicle story reports today. Read more Wind farm.

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Woman to run 1,000-mile N.C mountains-to-sea trail

Posted on May 10, 2012 by Howard Meyerson

Ultra-Runner Diane Van Deren, of Colorado, plans to jog, run or trot 15 hours a day and cover 47 miles each day to beat the 24-day, 3-hour, 50-minute run made last summer by Matthew Kirk of Marion, N.C.

Van Deren, who had brain surgery to end seizures, will take off before dawn Thursday hoping to finish North Carolina’s 1,000 mile  Mountains-to-Sea Trail in 21 days, the fastest time ever.

“Van Deren, a super athlete, has competed in some of the most grueling long-distance runs in the world. In 2008, she won the Yukon Arctic Ultra 300-mile race, pulling a 50-pound sled with food and supplies over frozen tundra in temperatures as low as 40 below. A year later, in the Yukon Arctic Ultra 430-mile race, she was fourth overall,” the Charlotte Observer reports today. Read more: Woman to run.

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Fish Art: It’s not over yet.

Posted on May 9, 2012 by Howard Meyerson
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Limited Edition Print: “Not over yet,” by A.D Maddox .

I love good fish art. This spectacular piece is a limited edition print (#26/90) of a brown trout on the hook called ‘Not over yet’ The artist is  A.D. Maddox, world renown for her fish art. She hails from Nashville Tenn. The print is to be auctioned off  May 26, 2012 at the Catskill Fly Fishing Center and Museum  fund-raiser in Livingston Manner, NY.

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Is Nothing Sacred: UP mine project faces sacred site claims

Posted on May 9, 2012 by Howard Meyerson

A proposed Upper Peninsula nickel and copper mine is tied up in the courts as a result of local tribal claims that the mine will be blasted into a sacred site.

The Keewenaw Bay Indian Community and the National Wildlife Federation are challenging the project. They claim the operation threatens Eagle Rock, a sacred site for Anishinaabe people, the Capital New Service reports in this story.

Mining officials say they are trying to better understand the concerns.  The Eagle mine is 25 miles northwest of Marquette.

Matthew Fletcher, director of the Indigenous Law and Policy Center at Michigan State University is quoted saying:  “If the tribal interests win, it will be virtually unprecedented. My suspicion is that this isn’t going to go anywhere. It is probably a strong case, but the law is rabidly anti-tribal.” Fletcher said a stronger case would be environmental concerns. The courts are more likely to respond favorably.  Read more: Sacred Claims

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To all: The links on the safety in bear country post do work properly now. It seems I am still learning the fine points of creating hot-links. Thanks G-Lowe for letting me know.

Posted on May 8, 2012 by Howard Meyerson | Leave a comment

Your Safety in Bear Country: A Yellowstone primer

Posted on May 8, 2012 by Howard Meyerson


A grizzly bear.  Photographer: Wikimedia Commons

Last year was a bad year for grizzly attacks in the U.S.  Much has been written about the tragic incidents that took the lives of four men: two in Yellowstone National Park and two others in the Gallatin National Forest in Montana and the Shoshone National Forest in Wyoming. A quick review of those and other bear attacks can be found at Wikipedia’s List_of_fatal_bear_attacks_in_North_America. It’s sobering to read.

Outdoor enthusiasts all across the Web have since written bundles about the best way to deal with a grizzly confrontation while out on a hike or a hunt. Some say guns, others say pepper spray.  Do you play dead or attack back? There are lots of questions and lots of opinions.

One of the most authoritative online sources for advice and information I have found is by Yellowstone National Park and The National Park Service called: Your Safety in Bear Country. If you plan to visit grizzly country this summer, take a look and browse the topics and videos there. The outcome for you and or your friends and loved ones could well depend on it.

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Natural Camouflage: An Eastern Screech Owl

Posted on May 8, 2012 by Howard Meyerson
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Photo by Doug Locke

It’s no wonder that so many owls are hard to see. I stumbled upon this one while looking through a photo album by The Organization for Bat Conservation on Facebook.

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Bill giving Homeland Security control of public lands sparks concerns

Posted on May 7, 2012 by Howard Meyerson

The cliffs of Santa Elena Canyon soar above the Rio Grande in Big Bend National Park, one of the national parks that could be affected by a proposed law making its way through Congress. Photo from mysanantonio.com

A bill now moving through the US Congress calls for giving the Department of Homeland Security control of all federal lands within a 100 miles of the Mexican and Canadian borders. The move is being derided by environmentalists and public land advocates who see it as a backdoor for gutting environmental protections. Supporters say it is essential for national security. Continue reading →

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Stormy weather claims eight in Japanese Alps

Posted on May 7, 2012 by Howard Meyerson

Eight climbers were killed in bad weather Saturday while trying to climb in the county’s “northern alps,” according to a story today in Japan Times Online.

“Nagano Prefectural Police said a party of six men in their 60s and 70s was found near Mount Korenge near the Hakuba ski resort by a climber early Saturday and confirmed dead after being airlifted to a nearby village. The group, believed to be from Kitakyushu, disappeared Friday,” the story said. Two other climbers, one a woman, also died the same day trying to climb peaks to the south.

Read more: Stormy weather

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