I'm going to Mars! Red Rocks yea yea!!

Sorry for Party Rockin'

Blue Mountain, ON was perhaps one of only a few quality ski resorts within driving distance of Detroit in the Midwest area of North America to get any snow this year.  A group of us made the trek across her majesty's wind-swept Highway 401 to Blue Mountain Resort, just north of Collingwood, ON.  We spent MLK Day weekend there, Friday 1/13 till Monday, 1/16.

The snow was pretty good, although the resort didn't stop blowing snow until the day we left, which left our faces constantly frozen from the spray of artificial frozen precip and our goggles frosted over.  This man-made snow production also caused the top of the resort to be bathed in thick fog most of the mornings, until the afternoon sun boiled it away.  Temperatures were mild, more so on Sunday than any other day, allowing me to strip down to just an UnderArmour turtleneck and my Mountain Hardwear softshell.

I decided to keep my nearly 10-year-old Head ski boots and K2 Apache All-Mountain skis as my equipment this trip.  Both are on their last legs, and I hope to upgrade before the next "big" ski trip.  My Oakley O-Frame goggles with new Fire-Iridium replacement lens did the trick, although the night-skiing was a little sketchy looking through those dark-tinted lenses.

This was a blast of a trip.  Going out after skiing was just as much fun as the skiing itself!  Jozo's really was the place to be for music and cheaper-ish food, and MJ Bryne's Irish Pub in the village offers ENORMOUS Hoegaardens!  A few of our friends decided to try whatever 'club' is in the main village, and ended up waiting in line for an hour, only to leave...  Sorry for party rockin'!  Another friend brought back some overly-apologetic and overly-drunk-and-puking girls back to our mountainside condo, and a story that has been immortalized in an epic poem ensued (will insert poem here soon...!)

Take a look at some skiing action captured with the GoPro:

If warmth finds this state like it found my heart...

This marks my first blog post as a married man!  Our big day was April 2, 2011.  Not the warmest day of the year, but definitely the most exciting and special!  We received a GoPro Hero HD camera as a wedding gift from my brother, and it's been my favorite so far (close 2nd was the couple's massage on our honeymoon in Vegas.)

I've been trying out it's many features, mostly on the bike.  Here's a sample of what is sure to be MANY more pics and vids from the GoPro!

Corktown 5k Race

Cloudy, 34 degrees, scattered snow showers.  Perfect day to run a 5K race in Detroit's Corktown neighborhood, right before the St. Patrick's Day parade!  My beautiful fiance ran the race too, marking the first of many 5K races this year for both of us!

Official time:  24:42

Last year's 5K race times:
Corktown: 36:39
Rollie Hopgood: 28:38
Race for the Cure: 26:16
Huron Applefest: 27:59

Snowshoeing in the great white north

This weekend, my father and I, along with his hiking club, took a trip to Higgins Lake to do some XC skiing and snowshoeing.  The temperature was perfect, but snow conditions were slushy during the day, and iced over in the afternoon, but otherwise a fun filled weekend in the Michigan north.  My only complaint was that my beautiful fiance could not join me.

Here are a few pics from the weekend:

Sunday, Feb 13, 1:32pm

Nothing beats a wall full of beers that are on tap while watching a Wings game.  I usually go for the Guinness anyways...

Check out The Oak Cafe in Wyandotte, MI.

www.theoakcafe.com

Aaron

aaron.michael.swift@gmail.com

*Sent from my Palm Pre

Let's go Red Wings!

Last wednesday, my fiance and I, along with some of her family, went to see the Wings play the Devils at the Joe.  The game was closer than I would've liked, but the Wings came out on top 2-1. 

Here's a pic I snapped of the Gordie Howe statue just outside of the Arena.

Aaron

aaron.michael.swift@gmail.com

*Sent from my Palm Pre

Location : 41639 Bedford Dr, Canton, MI 48187,

Location : 1707 Walnut Ridge Cir, Canton, MI 48187,

Happy New Year, and Happy Skiing!

Welcome 2011 and all it has in store!  This will be the year I get married!

It's already brought so much, skiing in Southern Michigan and the Cycle World International motorcycle show in Novi, MI.

Trying out the Harley drag bike.  I won't be taking this on
any trips, other than a quarter mile down Milan Dragway.

Jason Britton showing off for the Metro Detroiters.

My fiance and her best friend taking the black diamonds
at Mt. Holly.

The crew (plus random snowboarder)

Fiance at the summit of Pine Knob

A little bit about the Monster

Having taken a riding course in the summer of 2005, I began cultivating my new skills on the back of a borrowed 1999 Harley Sportster Sport.  It was a tall machine, a bit front-heavy, and a little unforgiving at stops, especially for a beginner.  It did, however, possess the raw low-end torque that would make any rider's hair stand up on the back of their neck.

Cue the search for my own bike.  Searching used bike sites and forums yielded me a few possibilities, one of which was a 2000 Ducati Monster 750 that was garaged most of it's life.  Having only 300 miles on it and selling for less than $4k, I jumped on it in the spring of 2006.

Here's a few snaps of how the bike has looked, and how it looks today:

Early 2006

Early 2006

Today:  Cycle Cat frame sliders, Puig Rapter windscreen,
CRG bar end mirrors, 41t rear sprocket, 14t front sprocket,
1 1/2" handlebar riser, Sargent seat, mini LED signals,
gutted stock exhaust cans

RKA saddle bags, Cortech tail and tank bag

Loaded up with LED turn signals added to saddle bags,
along with 'tail chop' mod

The pilot's throne

Cortech bag powered for iPod/phone/Chatterbox charging

Tail of the Dragon

In May of 2009, my parents, brother, and I all trailered our bikes down to the Tail of the Dragon in North Carolina.  It's a windy stretch of road on US129 at Deal's Gap, NC.  It's claim to fame is the 318 turns in 11 miles of road.

The first day was sunny and dry

The next day was wet and overcast...

...but that didn't stop the Pirelli Scorpion Syncs