Category: Sporting Events, Nascar, Tailgating
Up, Up and Away: Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta
September 16, 2011 by Rex Vogel · Leave a Comment
Countdown to Liftoff: 14 days, 14 hours, 14 minutes Part of the reason for the success of the Fiesta are the cool Albuquerque morning temperatures in October and the Albuquerque box. (Credit: Raymond Watt, balloonfiesta.com) Each October, New Mexico skies are full of bold blues, imperial reds, and vibrant yellows. The event is the world-famous Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta, the largest hot-air balloon event in the world. This extravaganza takes place from the first weekend through the second weekend in October—this year’s festival is from October 1-9—and attracts hundreds of hot-air balloonists from around the world. The balloons come in many colors and shapes with the special shapes category getting larger every year. There are balloons that look like cows, cartoon characters, automobiles, stagecoaches—and just about everything else. A century after the release of Jules Verne’s balloon adventure novel with Captain Phileas Fogg, Around the World in 80 Days, internationally-acclaimed... [Read more...]
NASCAR Racing Comes to Town
April 30, 2011 by Professor95 · Leave a Comment
The roar of 41 high performance engines is literally deafening. Still, when combined with the aroma of 112 octane racing fuel and burning rubber it all comes together for an evening of excitement at Richmond International Raceway in Virginia. Last night was the Bubba Burger 250, which is one of the races scheduled this year for the NASCAR Sprint Cup series of quick lap races. Living within 12 miles of the track (as the crow flies) I can hear the roar of the engines days before the race as the cars come to run practice laps. It helps to build on the fever and excitement for what is to come. Gas Bar-B-Q grill designed like a Chevy 350 racing engine Several days before the race, literally hundreds upon hundred of RVs; travel trailers, fifth wheel trailers, pop-up campers, motor homes, vans, buses – you name it – assemble in the Meadowbridge Camping section. Pre-race activities include games, such as toss across, Bar-B-Q dinners, music, dancing and just hanging out with other campers... [Read more...]
Best of America
April 22, 2011 by Rex Vogel · 3 Comments
The backbone of American greatness is the contribution of each individual. From innovative and heroic people to compelling ideas and stories, Reader’s Digest celebrates the best. Image courtesy Reader's Digest Where can you find the best hot dogs in America? What are the best town names? Where are the best natural vistas in the United States? What are the country’s best eccentric competitions? RVing and imagination—both take you anywhere you want to be. Reader’s Digest reveals the “Best of America” Reader’s Digest, known for simplifying and clarifying the topics that matter most to its readers, dedicates its May 2011 issue to the “Best of America.” As Reader’s Digest celebrates the “Best of America,” the second phase of its “We Hear You America” online contest at rd.com continues through May 16, with a total of $7.5 million in financial and promotional support for towns and cities across the U.S. In a recent news release, Peggy Northrop, Reader’s Digest’s... [Read more...]
1015 Onions and Dancing Horses?
April 20, 2011 by Hoby · 2 Comments
(Photo Caption: Onionfest Shirt) Of the many events that we attended here in El Valle this winter, the one we found most interesting was Viva La Onion! – the Weslaco, Texas Onionfest. The Weslaco Onionfest celebrates the “world famous” Texas sweet 1015 onion that was developed here in Weslaco by Texas A&M. The name comes from the recommended planting date, and the onion has an incredible sweet flavor that goes well with the local cuisine. This year (2011) was the 22nd year for the festival. We noticed that they were selling 50-pound bags of the 1015 onions for $12! There were a number of things to do at the festival; the events included live music (including a mariachi band and also an Elvis impersonator), kids areas, an onion-eating contest, a car show, food vendors, arts and crafts, and (the highlight of the day) the Andalusian and Azteca dancing horses. This was my favorite part of the festival. The riders were adults and youth from the local area; the costumes... [Read more...]
Country Superstar Vince Gill to Headline The Good Sam Rally
March 30, 2011 by Woodalls Editorial Staff · Leave a Comment
The Rally, presented by DISH Network Country Music Hall of Famer set to perform in Redmond, Oregon July 15 To thrill rally attendees this year, The Good Sam Rally, presented by DISH Network, announced today that they have booked award winning County Music artist Vince Gill to perform Friday evening July 15th at the Deschutes County Fairgrounds and Expo Center, much to the delight of registered rally guests. When it comes to Country Music achievement, Vince Gill outshines them all. Not only has he received 19 Grammy Awards, 18 CMA Awards, Entertainer of the year twice and 5 CMA Male Vocalist titles, he has sold more than 26 million albums including songs such as “What the Cowgirls Do,” “Whenever You Come Around,” “You Better Think Twice” and many more. In addition to being a prolific and beloved artist, Gill is well known for his humanitarian and charity event activities as well. “I am thrilled to have Vince Gill headlining The Good Sam Rally this year,... [Read more...]
SafetyTat will give you peace of mind!
March 1, 2011 by Canadianladybug · 1 Comment
Have you ever lost your child – even a short period of time – and wondered how you can protect them when visiting an attraction park of theme park? SafetyTat is here for the rescue! SafetyTat is a cool temporary tattoo where you can write your contact information in case your child gets lost in the crowd. I discovered SafetyTat more than a year ago and had the privilege to review their product twice so far. I love the idea of being able to put a temporary tattoo on a child when visiting a place where it could be easy to lose them. Don’t take me wrong. I usually don’t lose my kids but just in case one of them would wander and we don’t realize it, it is great to know that somehow, our phone number is marked on him/her and somebody will call us. Back in September 2010, we visited the Toronto Zoo and we were able to put our SafetyTat to good use. We rapidly applied some SafetyTat tattoos on the two youngest who would have trouble to give a phone number if... [Read more...]
Hill Country Shooting Sports Center, Kerrville, TX
January 25, 2011 by Dana T. · Leave a Comment
Earlier this month, our family had the opportunity to spend the day together at the Hill Country Shooting Sports Center near Kerrville, Texas. With a great range in the heart of beautiful hill country, this center was an incredible family outing for our family! The experiences that we were able to enjoy there have topped all of our previous range excursions, and it was due to the customer service that we received! We were able to meet the director; he spent the day with us (the attention that traveling with 10 kids brings is not always bad!), and blessed us with a very special experience (which I’ll share in a minute)! The Hill Country Shooting Sports Center is located on 140 acres just a few miles out of Kerrville, Texas, and is a full service range that hosts many national and international competition shoots and is a Olympic training site. They also promote youth sport shooting including involvement with local 4-H groups. They have a clubhouse/pro shop, and... [Read more...]
CAMPSITE POWER – Chapter 6, Synchronous Generators
December 29, 2010 by Professor95 · 2 Comments
In chapter five I wrote about the essential functions of inverter generators. One of the benefits of an inverter generator is the ability for the engine to run at lower speed with a light load and still maintain 120 volts at 60 hertz. This of course saves fuel and lowers noise. There is another class of generator often used by campers. It is known as a synchronous generator. This class of generator drives an alternator directly from the engine crankshaft. In order to produce the standard 120 volts of alternating current at the correct frequency of 60 hertz, the generator engine MUST run at 3,600 revolutions per minute ALL THE TIME. Synchronous generators are much simpler than inverter generators since they have fewer expensive parts. Thus, they cost a lot less than their inverter cousins for the same or more wattage output. The downside is they are not as fuel-efficient and can make a whole lot more noise than inverter generators. Powermate Genrator uses a Chinese built 196cc... [Read more...]
CAMPSITE POWER – Chapter 5, Inverter Generators
December 16, 2010 by Professor95 · 5 Comments
Up until today, we have been exploring methods for providing campsite electrical power primarily from the sun and storage batteries. If you haven’t been reading the previous chapters on Campsite Power I encourage you go back and review them before immersing yourself in this chapter. Without a basic understanding of storage batteries, solid state power inverters and the relationship between power and voltage you might find this chapter confusing. They can be noisy, noxious, loved, and hated. I am referring to portable AC gasoline engine powered generators often carried and used by campers in areas where no electrical power is available. For the moment, I am excluding installed RV generators such as the Cummins-Onan models often factory installed in motor homes. These are not “portable” in respect to this chapter. The China Built Kipor kge2000i inverter generator There are two types of portable generators commonly available. One is the synchronous generator that directly... [Read more...]
Spring Hill RV Park to Host Benefit for the Alberta Children’s Hospital
October 12, 2010 by RA Manseau · Leave a Comment
I love a good car show! (And, I love good BBQ!) Mix that with camping at a great resort and what more could you ask for? Maybe the added pleasure of helping a sick child at the same time! On August 20, 2011 the Spring Hill RV Park (just north of Cochrane, Alberta) will host the 5th Annual Spring Hill Charity Show & Shine. All proceeds from this event will go to the Alberta Children’s Hospital. Registration for the car Show & Shine will be from 10:00 AM – 12:00 PM, and cost to register is only $10.00! (Proceeds are to be donated to the Alberta Children’s Hospital Foundation.) The Charity BBQ benefiting the Alberta Children’s Hospital will run concurrently with live music and the car Show & Shine from 12:00 PM – 4:00 PM. Plus, it keeps getting better! Door prizes will be awarded throughout the car show. Trophies will be awarded at 3:30 PM. A 50/50 Drawing will be held at 4:00 PM. The Big Finale! As a special fifth anniversary treat, the Spring Hill RV Park is... [Read more...]
