Strasburg Rocks!

Celebrating Strasburg, Colorado, a small, friendly town in the plains east of Denver...

GoPro Time Warp Bicycle Ride

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Knights of Columbus Tootsie Roll Drive

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UPDATE: Alan received a reply when he tweeted Tootsie Roll Industries about the local Tootsie Roll Drive:

Mike with Knights of ColumbusAfter Augie and I finished breakfast at The Patio Cafe, we quickly went over to the Strasburg Convenience Store where we met Mike.

There was something strange about Mike. Maybe it was the large, warm smile on a cold, cloudy day. Maybe it was the bright yellow vest with huge red lettering. Maybe it was the unsolicited offer of Tootsie Rolls. I couldn’t quite put my finger on it…

🙂

Mike is a Knights of Columbus volunteer for the annual Tootsie Roll Drive to help people with intellectual disabilities. Someone from the group will be in front of the Strasburg Convenience Store from 7AM-5PM every Saturday in October. All funds raised will remain within the corridor (Bennet to Agate).

Kudos to Mike and the Knight of Columbus for their good work…and to the Strasburg Convenience Store for letting them stand out front!

Late Night DXing/SWLing

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Kaito KA1103Kaito KA1103 at nightLast night’s backyard camping excursion with Augie gave me an opportunity to do some shortwave and long distance listening on my Kaito KA1103 hooked to a Sangean ANT-60 antenna. I live tweeted what I found:

https://twitter.com/AlanCult/status/650159245741158400

https://twitter.com/AlanCult/status/650160398457536512
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Happy Friday! (Thanks Strasburg Convenience Store!)

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Happy Friday everyone! I worked from home today…which means I started by dropping the munchkin off at school…worked a little…and then had lunch with the greatest company ever…

My beautiful wife Michelle!

Strasburg Rocks! MugsI’m a big fan of the Strasburg Convenience Store‘s sandwiches (and it’s relatively close to where I live), so that’s where we buzzed over to…and guess what we saw?

These!

Thanks to Gary, the store’s manager, for being willing to carry Strasburg Rocks! 15 oz. Mugs! (I should also mention that he is selling them at almost $3 less than they cost in our Zazzle store.) If they do well we may come up with some other merchandise to help us celebrate this great town we live in.Continue Reading

On a Bicycle Ride to Byers (FIRE!)

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Fire equipmentOne of the greatest appeals of Strasburg is its small town nature…but contrary to what some people think, small town does not equal boring. 🙂 Today I decided to be more ambitious with my bicycle ride and visit downtown Byers (about a 12 mile round trip I figured). However, a bit west of Byers I had to stop to call 911 for two brush fires…a small one where I was and a larger one back even further west that I could see. Here’s a video I grabbed riding back to the second one:

Although I had been near both of the brush fires, I didn’t know what caused them…and chatting quickly with one of the firefighters…found out that they are pretty common, caused by someone driving a vehicle dragging something that creates sparks. Makes me very appreciative of our local fire departments.

Continuing back to Strasburg I passed a third one…so assuming it was a car or truck throwing sparks, it caused a bit of local havoc. Stay safe folks, and make sure nothing metal is ever dragging from you vehicle driving around our area. 🙂

P.S. Not bad video wise riding uphill and holding an iPhone 6 Plus with one hand, eh? 🙂

P.P.S. In case you are interested, a few more picture. Not sure what happened…I thought I had snapped pictures of the first fire I saw…but didn’t have any on my iPhone or cameras.

Popcorn!!! Translation: Support Your Local Cub Scout Troop :-)

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Cub Scouts selling popcorn in front of Hank's HardwareIt’s that time of year again…time to satisfy that natural, healthy urge for popcorn…

And not just any popcorn…Cub Scout popcorn! 🙂

Although we’ll try to post where they are selling here on Strasburg Rocks! or our Facebook Page, you can also order on-line by visiting Bear Cub Augie’s popcorn page. Yes, that means Augie will get the credit but (a) there does not appear to be a generic link for his pack and (b) he really is a great kid…and I’m not just saying that ’cause I am his dad. 🙂

So, please support your local Cub Scout Pack by buying popcorn from them in person or on-line…and don’t forget to like their page on Facebook.Continue Reading

Seal Training Begins!

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Augie aiming a rifleAugie learned to fire a rifle today thanks to the training and mentorship of our good friend Leo. Sadly, I messed up recording his first shot, but did get his second one…and his first use of a pistol. Another advantage to living in Strasburg…you don’t have to go to a firing range for target practice!

Who Would Have Thunk…?

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Airplane overheadLate this afternoon, I headed over to a friends to fire off some model rockets with Augie (I’ll upload a video tomorrow) and we were hanging out afterward. I’ll admit I did not expect to see this in the backyard at his house in Strasburg…

Another reason Strasburg Rocks!

P.S. Be sure to watch through the end…you’ll get to see the plane right overhead as it takes off…

“The Birds” – Strasburg Edition

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Have you ever watched the Alfred Hitchcock movie, “The Birds”?

Did it freak you out?

Then you may want to avoid visiting the Strasburg Convenience Store at dusk in the summer… 🙂

Iron Horse

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And yesterday…as I was going down Route 36 toward Byers…

Strasburg Convenience Store

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Strasburg Convenience Store signIt hit me yesterday, when I stopped on my bicycle ride to grab a Bug Juice for my eight year-old (not to mention a thirst quencher for me), that I hadn’t done a review of a place I visit more than any other business in our small town: the Strasburg Convenience Store.

As a “convenience store it definitely” is convenient. It has anything you might expect, has reasonable prices, and is open most of the time a regular human would be awake. 🙂 (Okay, I’ll admit I don’t know its exact hours…but I’ve only once been on the road earlier than it has been open, and I think it closes at 10PM most nights.)

Strasburg Convenience StoreWhat really makes the store an awesome place is its employees. Not a single one is a grump, and most are as congenial as they come. I have to especially do a shout-out to Dave, who was a friendly face the first time we visited Strasburg. Snowstorm and all he was working and gave us some pointers on where we might buy a house. Now, I could mention more names, but they are all great…although…okay…Amanda and Chantelle do seem to be there a lot when I arrive and are also superb! 🙂Continue Reading

Strasburg on Two Wheels

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Cows
Cows doing what I should have been doing on a lazy Sunday afternoon…
Having lived much of my life in hilly areas, I really appreciate (especially as an aging bicyclist) how Strasburg is relatively level. If anything, there may as great a danger you’ll have to downshift from wind as it will be from an incline. 🙂

Five weeks and one day ago I fractured my left elbow at the end of a ride, so it feels great this week to climb back on the bike. It is true that there is less obvious things to take pictures of here than back in New Hampshire, but it definitely isn’t lacking of interesting subjects. You can tell I especially appreciate the cows. 🙂

Do you live in or around Strasburg and use a bicycle? Recommendations for places to ride to? Tips for us newbies to the area?

See you on the road!

Quest Aerospace Planet Probe

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Quest Aerospace Planet ProbeA reader of this blog (thank you!) told my wife she likes the rocket videos. Well, better late then never…here is the first Quest Aerospace model rocket I’ve purchased and built. The actual flight was two weeks ago (August 15, 2015). Successfully launched three times…and only one landed in the neighbor’s back yard. 🙂

Luckily, (a) they were home, (b) their dog didn’t eat it, and (c) they are friendly. 🙂

For your viewing pleasure, the Quest Aerospace Planet Probe:

Quest Aerospace Planet Probe image from Amazon.com.

Sock Hop!

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Sock hop photo boothWe are just back from the Strasburg Sock Hop at the Strasburg Elementary school, and as you can see it is a very serious affair. 🙂

Swinging at nightNot only was there a great photo booth in a retro-trailer, there were two hours of dancing, limbo rock, and myriad smiling munchkin faces.

Afterward, we completed the night with a good swing. Considering I only was bitten once while our eight year-old enjoyed that activity, I can’t complain.

Now, the iPhone’s photo exposure made it look brighter than it was outside, but this video gives a better idea:Continue Reading

Tecsun PL-880

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Tecsun PL-880Between Internet radio (we have redundant TDS and Bijou connectivity in our home) and SiriusXM satellite radio (which I also listen to mostly over the Internet)…I don’t really have a need for “normal” radio anymore.

But I miss it…along with a former hobby of mine, shortwave listening.

So, I decided to save up some money and get a new shortwave radio, settling on the Tecsun PL-880. I could not be happier. However, instead of repeating why here, please check out my short Amazon.com review.

Strasburg Rocks! Recommended!If you have never listened to shortwave radio, give it a try. There are much cheaper options (e.g. down toward the $30 range)…so you don’t have to spend $150 on the Tescun PL-880 to start (although, it is so sturdily and beautifully built and performs so well, it’s worth that even if you only listen to AM and/or FM). Two great sites to check out as you consider this purchase (and associated hobby) are SWLing.com and RadioJayAllen.com.

Strasburg Rocks! recommends this device and gives it five bulls!

5 bulls

Richmil Ranch Open Space

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Richmil Ranch TrailThis morning, before it got too hot, we headed out to Richmil Ranch Open Space (77910 E. Highway 40, Deer Trail, CO 80105). Minus all the noise from I-70, it’s a great place to connect with nature. I brought a camera to grab pictures, but it was mostly hijacked by my eight year-old, Augie, who gets credit for the photos below.

Not bad (if you ask me) for his first time using my Canon PowerShot G15. 🙂Continue Reading

Our Purpose

The sole purpose of Strasburg Rocks! is to celebrate Strasburg, Colorado, a small, friendly town in the plains east of Denver. It does not exist to make money. However, should Strasburg Rocks! produce any net income, it will be donated back to the Strasburg community.

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