Feb
13
2011Great story and easy read for those loving the espionage genre – and it’s true! Eye opening account of the training camps, the mindset and the training of those engaging in violent jihad.
Feb
13
2011Great read. I love autobiographies and this book is written (with help from an excellent coauthor) superbly. Wow. I now have a better understanding of the sacrifices one has to make to be a world ranked top athlete. The title is extremely fitting given Agassi’s emotional candor (let alone the now publicized drug use revealed the book).
Mar
19
2009The millitary uses dog tags in part to help identify service members who have been rendered incapable of communicating their identity due to either a severe accident – or death. The idea of us regular schmoes possibly “benefitting” from a dog tag is admittedly pretty morbid. But anyone that does anything off of their property alone should have a form of identification on them. Thinking back to all of the spills I’ve taken road or mountain biking, sports I often do alone, there’s a real chance I might get get take a nasty fall, get side swiped in traffic or just be the klutz that I am and get knocked out. Heaven forbid something like this happens, and it’s definitely possibility, I’d like who ever finds me laying there to know who I am, who to call and have access to any special medical info.
The Road ID, sold at www.RoadID.com, is the high speed low drag (I love high speed, low drag) alternative to running with your driver’s license in your shorts. But what if you are biking or swimming? What if you want to convey more information than just your address – like your emergency contact info or any special medical needs such as drug allergens? Wear the Road ID.
photo acquired from roadid.com
The product in its most popular forms comes in either a wrist or ankle bracelet. These bracelets hold a little metallic card that carries the info you want emergency response people to have should they find you unable to communicate that info yourself. The company also offers the option to load your info to a database that a first responder could access on a web page with your bracelet’s info. This sounds handy for those of us that have specific medical concerns or change addresses a lot. I would probably add to my file DO NOT MRI NECK because of my little metal plate. They would probably figure that out with an x-ray first but you get the idea.
I am all about supporting products that could save a life and apparently already has. This is one I’ve been meaning to get for a while now, especially since my dog tag jingles, bounces, snags my chest hair, was, uhm, accidentally left behind somewhere and …doesn’t convey all of the info it should, like “Call So and So.”
The Road ID is pretty cheap to begin with but definitely a must for anybody that pretty much leaves the house, let alone participates in any kind of risky sport. You can try and use coupon code # ARR5178 for an additional $2 off. I just ordered my Ankle ID in the interactive edition. The interactive feature allows first responders to access a web page with your emergency contact and medical data which you can update on the fly instead of ordering a new informational plate every time you move, switch insurance companies or break up with you emergency contact.
Mar
11
2009
I travel to both Port of Miami and Port Everglades (serving the Fort Lauderdale area) on an almost daily basis shuttling cruise ship passengers between the ports and the airports or area hotels. Both ports are huge, compete with each other for being the largest ports in the country for both passenger and cargo traffic alike, and are extremely invaluable to the economy of South Florida. Without either one, there would be a very huge void. But I if were to recommend one port over the other (and I do quite often), strictly in regards to providing the best and most accommodating access to the cruise industry customer, the choice is clearly the Port of Miami.
Two main reasons:
-the Port of Miami has effectively separated the passenger side from the cargo side
-the infrastructure at Port of Everglades seems to be setup willy nilly with no clear goal of uniformity – or aesthetics for that matter.
When you enter the Port of Miami, which is conveniently connected to downtown Miami, you go over a bridge which has magnificent views of water and skyline on either side. You’re sure to recognize the locale from many a movie and for some, scenes from the cheesy CSI: Miami TV show. You’re almost certain to travel into the port effortlessly without a wait in line of traffic and are welcomed with an up to date overhead electronic sign displaying the location of your ship and palm trees a plenty.
To get into Port Everglades on a busy weekend, you’re welcomed by the four smoking stacks of the Florida Power and Light facility and a wait in line to get through the traffic check point run by the Broward Sheriff’s Office. Since the cargo and fuel refinery areas are commingled with the cruise terminals the whole port is a secure area. To me, this leads to a very poorly protected port in regards to the security of the cargo and fuel refining operations and an unnecessary hassle for cruise ship passengers. I’ve seen the sheriff’s office ask many a cabbie to open their trunk only to see some large suit cases and just wave them on through after confirming there’s luggage in the trunk.
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Once inside Port Everglades you have to find your ship by navigating through stacks of cargo
containers, a dozen fuel tanks and a rusty freight ship here and there. It is a scene straight out of the Jersey mafia drama, the Sopranos. There seems to always be chaos at the terminals (none of which look alike) and the sheriff’s office hollering and screaming at everyone. I saw a lady in tears after her husband was yelled at for pulling up to the wrong spot to pick up the family and luggage after a cruise – there is no right spot.
You can see from the satellite images below that Port Everglades consumes more overall acreage. This is obvious from the refinery function. But you should also be able to see that everything is mixed together without any seperation of function. It seems Port Everglades is set up and is able to accommodate additional ships on the fly. But this very flexibility doesn’t seem to be thought out, or at the very least, implemented well. Every exodus from this port comes with a sigh of relief.
Port of Miami
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Port Everglades
.jpg "Can you find the cruise ships?")
Jan
25
2009I might go to the local shop with the attractive manager (I’ve already said too much) for something simple like a tube. But when Bianca, my mountain bike, needs some true love, I take her to the guys at Bicycle Generation in Deerfield Beach. If I were going to bring home another bike, chances are more than likely it would come from them. I’ve bought four trusted steeds over the years since I got hooked on cycling. Of those four two were bought in a store. Those two, my first mountain bike and my first road bike, were both bought at Bicycle Generation.
Like every major purchase, I did my homework when I decided to invest in my first bike. I knew exactly which model I wanted before even setting foot in a store. With that model in mind I called every Trek dealer in a 80 mile radius. Admittedly, I’ve bought cars with less homework. I got a quote below MSRP at one place and then dialed the next shop down on the list. I ended up getting Leo, the owner of BG on the phone.
Leo gave me a competitive price and threw in all kinds of attractive extras such as a free first tune up on the bike and a discount on merchandise for being a bike customer. The deals are always changing but a purchase at BG is always sits well. The staff at the store want to keep you happy – not only out of sheer business principle but I truly believed it is because they are excited to share in your passion for cycling. I’ve come in the bike with a broken bike dismayed at the prospect of not riding for a few days to find myself being able to ride that day. On the spot repairs can’t be reasonably be offered or delivered by bike stores. They’re pretty busy. Yet the guys behind the counter are the type of people to help you out if they can.
The atmoshpere in the store is laidback and friendly regardless of how busy the foot traffic in may be on a particular day. The guys running the shop (now Leo’s son and gang) all seem to be friends. They all ride – both on and off road. You’ll see them on the trails and at the charity rides where Leo himself will make a star appearance and hit the pavement. In or out of the shop, there’s no difference between customer and employee – everyone’s a fellow rider. They know the bikes, your needs and probably have felt your same pains at some point. One of the guys races at a semi pro level (last I heard) but is humble as can be. The store doesn’t sponsor a racing team. So preferential treatment isn’t reserved for store sponsored racers like in many of the stores around here.
The store carries several brands and can order anything from the rare nut and bolt to your dream racing gig. The staff are well versed at helping customers at all levels from the first time rider and children’s bikes to placing an order for multiple dreamy high end rigs for an international customer involved in competive cycling. Warranty returns and replacements are processed with relative ease.
Bicycle Generation has shown no interest in expansion into a chain of multiple shops. The store seems content in providing top notch service to their loyal customers. We’re loyal for a reason.
Bicycle Generation 1346 E.Hillsboro Blvd, Deerfield Beach, FL 33441 954-427-1484 www.bicyclegeneration.com