Life on the Coast

Well, we just got back from a great 4 days in San Diego, where life is easy. We drank wine, swam in the ocean, sailed around in the bay, kayaked into seal infested caves, and even found some time to relax. It was just a few days with great friends, great weather, and great times. Here are a few pics!

Also if you have not stopped by Ronto's Folly in the past, have a look at some of the older posts, this blog was started to chronicle my journey on a bike from the Canadian Border to the Mexican Border in the summer of 2008. So go back and check out the stories and pictures from the beginning, and thanks for stopping in at Ronto's Folly! Also although I have not posted much lately, I will continue to do so, so stop back again sometime, thanks.

Why Bike Shorts Are Black!

I know it has been a few months and I have doubts that there is anyone at all still following along, but if there is, here is a funny picture I found about the need for black Lycra when it comes to making bike shorts! Thanks for checking in, and I will be posting more soon, so come back!!

Also be sure to go back to the start of the blog and check out all the great posts from last years tour down the west coast to all the great inventions I found online. Thanks again, and come back next time you need your fill of my folly!!

New Belgium at DIA

Hate airport food? Tired of having to eat Panda Express or Steak Escape? Well if you are at Denver International you are in luck. Tucked away in the B concourse all the way at the end near the ridiculous gates of B 90 something is the New Belgium Hub, a little pub and grill with the typical NBB flare. So if you happen to be at DIA and have time to explore, seek out the hub and sit down and enjoy the delicious food and cold beer!!!

Amazing!!

Watch this video of Danny MacAskill who has taken trials riding to a new level!! This video is amazing, and even if you don't ride you may be inspired!! Have a look, click on the link below or just click on the title to this post!

Click here to be amazed!!

Last Day of Resort Skiing 2009

Here was one last epic day in the Colorado Rockies. Vail at its best, I think I'll let the pictures and movies talk about the waist deep late march snow. Enjoy!


(Desert Dog)

(Paul the Skier)

(Walter the Bearded Man also known as Brad the Big Teets)



(Vail Art... So classy that Raccoon is!)

"no backwood country cop..."

In Arkansas, a woman with a beer started a brawl at a wake. The 52 year old woman is now facing domestic battery charges from the ill fated cat fight. Sheriffs deputies quoted the woman saying "no backwood country cop was going to take her to jail." I just wonder what flavor the woman was drinking!

To see the full article just click on the title to this post!

Tweet tweet, companies jump on Twitter

Here is an interesting article about some local businesses joining the Twitter revolution. New Belgium's Adrian Glasenapp comments about how tweeting can be a great way to open lines of communication with customers.


Here is a picture from the Coloradoan of Adrian sending out tweets on his iPhone. I find this interesting because my research over at CSU is how companies are using new media to communicate with their customers, and Twitter seems to be one of those next mediums that is starting to catch on in the business world.

If you want to read the full article just click on the title to this link, thanks for stopping in at Ronto's Folly!!

Spring Break 2009!!

No I did not flock down to Cancun and show off my goods like many spring breakers this year, but I did manage to make it to the beach. I went to San Diego to see my brother, well best friend, but as close to a brother as anyone, and just relaxed. We did end up at Wave House in Pacific Beach however, and for anyone who is visiting San Diego it's recommended to stop in and check it out.

There is a full overhead wave machine at the bar, so if 2 dollar domestics don't do it for you, you can get in line and catch a wave.


The rest of break was spent in the Fort Collins sunshine, as well as with a quick trip up to Missoula with Molly for a job interview. All in all, break was great, I hope you all are enjoying the start to spring, and now that I am back in town there should be more posts coming.

Thanks again for staying interested and click on the title to this post to read more about the exciting things over at the Wave House.

Bring the StripCycle to your next party!!

Thought biking around town was getting dull? Get one of these crazy contraptions and make the party a bit more wild. I guess in NYC you can rent these with the pretty gal and all!! For those of you that liked my more serious postings, you may have been at the wrong blog! Just kidding but new bike contraptions will always be posted here, with adornment and jealousy, remember the couch bike from last spring!! Imagine the two together, it would be like your college living room reincarnated.

Check out the article by clicking on the title to this post!!

British pubs see hard times!

Over 20,000 jobs have been lost and over 2,000 pubs closed due to Britain's 2008 beer tax increase. An estimated 75,000 more jobs are hanging precariously, not knowing what the future may bring. All this after an 18% tax increase on the production of that frothy beverage we love called beer.


I am writing this because of the article I posted a week or two ago about Oregon's and Idaho's plan to raise taxes on beer by almost 1900%. As I said in that post, with this sort of re-regulation and government intervention we will surely see jobs lost that could be avoided. With the call for more spending comes higher taxes, and some small businesses as well as consumers just cannot afford the hike.

Click on the title to this post to have a look at this article from the Guardian.

Utah may join the rest of the beer drinking world!!!

Utah legislators voted this week to bring full strength beer into the bars throughout the state. As of now in the state predominantly run by the Church of the Latter Day Saints, only beer with a 3.2 alcohol by weight percentage is sold. Utah has a few other funky rules concerning booze as well, like all liquor stores are state owned, and beer must be sold non-refrigerated. Also, to get into a public bar, patrons must be members of the bar, or sponsored by a member. I have spent a little time in Utah, and the laws are bizarre. In a place where outdoor life is epic, beer would be the expected counterpart. Unlike Utah's neighbor to the east, the state does not cherish the tasty fermented beverage. For me, this always put a damper on a great day of biking or skiing, not being able to engage in apres like we may have wanted. This welcomed news may just make me pack up my camping gear and head to Utah this spring!!

Click on the title to this post for a link to the article in the Deseret News, Salt Lake's paper!

What, No Amgen!

Sorry to anyone who would like to see my comments on the Tour of California, but that's just not what this blog is all about. Sure the Amgen was great, and there is old Leipheimer, the winner, and of course Lance Armstrong did great, who knows if July will come too soon for him. But really this blog, Rontos Folly, is more about bikes as a lifestyle, not a race. We talk about touring, sustainability, beer, traveling, and of course bikes. The best thing from the tour for me is this picture of Leipheimer getting some love after the victory!


Personally I would rather be involved in a race like this one above, with a beer in hand! So I just wanted to clear that up for anyone out there expecting me to write about the race, or any race for that matter.

Okay, ok, one more important picture from the tour!!

Finally I found the Molly Video!

For those of you that were following this summer, Molly and I rode our bikes from the Canadian border to the Mexican one along the West Coast, mostly along highway 1 and 101. Anyway, we put pictures, movies, and stories from every day up on this blog and this was the one movie that I could never get to load, but had tons of requests for. So finally here it is, enjoy.



For anyone that has no clue why I would ever post this video, have a look at the archived posts from last May and June, 2008. There are 30 some days of postings from the road, on our bikes, on tour along the coast. That was the reason behind this blog, and now it is transforming into something more, but originally it was to follow our bike trip, our folly. So have a gander, and thanks for coming to Ronto's Folly.

Just click on the title to this post and it will take you back to the first few days of our trip, and where this video took place!

Lost Generation

Have a look at this interesting video submitted to by a 20 year old to AAPR for a video contest. Be sure to listen and actually read the words as they come up on the screen. It's only 1:45 long so take the time out of your day and check this out.



If you cannot view this video click on the title to this post and you will be linked to this video on YouTube.

Beer tax to raise 1900%!!

In Oregon and Idaho beer and wine producers are looking down the barrel of a loaded gun. Legislation in these two states is being pushed to raise taxes on beer and wine for the first time in over 40 years. In Oregon the tax increase proposed will raise the price per gallon of beer from $2.60 all the way up to $49.61, that's over 1900%! Although that's only an increase of 15 cents a beer, local craft breweries will be greatly affected. One brewery, Wakonda Brewing Co. in Florence, would see costs rise from $208 to $4080 for the same amount of beer produced.

In Idaho the proposed tax increase is not as dramatic as that proposed in Oregon, however it will still have a great effect on the states beer and wine production. In a time where the economy and small businesses are struggling are the legislators thinking clearly? These tax increases are due to the states demands for better substance control and recovery plans, and many of the brewers feel the burden should not be placed on them or their customers.


My two cents is that in an economy like we have today, states need to pocket their projects and focus on promoting small business and revenue sources for the people running those businesses. While the government is raving about Main Street they are doing little here to actually support the businesses that are keeping Main Street alive. Breweries and wineries across the west are a great part of the communities that they operate in, and to put the "nail in the coffin" as some brewers call this proposed legislation is ridiculous. I am be biased here, I love beer, I live in Fort Collins the home to New Belgium Brewing, and would hate to see the small guys in the industry disappear taking with them their delicious brews, but hell this is my blog so I am due my opinion every now and again.

Anyway, have a look at the two articles, the Oregon article is attached to the title of the post, so just click on that, and here is the link for the Idaho article:

http://www.boston.com/business/taxes/articles/2009/02/23/idaho_beer_wine_tax_hike_hearing_draws_crowd/

Let me know what you think as well, I would love to hear your comments!!

Spring is here! At least those in Seattle think so...

Have a look at this article from this weekend's Bainbridge Island ride just across the Puget from down town Seattle. The ride was 33 miles, over 2700 vertical feet, and over 4000 people showed up to welcome spring and this year's riding season. I attach this because last year in May, Molly and I started our journey south from Seattle and day 1 was across a lot of this same terrain. Bainbridge is an amazing place to ride and a great getaway for those in Seattle. If you are ever in the area, hop the ferry over to the island and get out and explore!!

Have a peak at our ride down the West coast; every day had a post on this blog with pictures and stories. Go to May 2008 in the archives and us pedaling through Bainbridge is under the post titled "Day 2 May 26th." What a great trip that was!!!

Just click on the title to this post for a link to the Bainbridge article!

Don't Have Bike Lanes, Just Take One With You!

Check out this new idea from Altitude called the LightLane.

This bike light uses lasers to project a virtual bike lane behind a rider, hoping cars and other crazy night traffic will give bikers a wider berth. As more and more people take to the bikes, the incident rate of car to bike accidents is bound to increase. LightLane will hopefully give those on two wheels one more tool in their quiver to attempt to stay off the windshields of night drivers. Altitude thinks they will price the LightLane around 50 bucks, which may well be worth it considering the alternative.

To those of you who only ride at night on the way home from the local watering hole, LightLane will not guide you on your journey home or help you keep an even keel, don't think 50 bucks solves all your problems, but it may keep those pesky cars off you butt!!

Check out the link to the Wired.com article talking about LightLane by clicking on the title to this post. Thanks.

Like bikes but not hills?

Here is an interesting idea from Sanyo, it's a bike that you still pedal, but as you pedal or coast downhill you recharge a battery that will power the bike that last mile or up those difficult hills on your way to work. I know some hardcore bikers will think this is silly, but for the person wanting to go green and take the time to enjoy riding a bike to and from work everyday this may be the answer. The best thing, you don't have to stroll into the office sweaty anymore, if that's not your badge of honor that is!

Click on the title to the post, "Like Bikes but not Hills?" to be linked to the full article.

Want to be Green in Fort Collins? Or maybe just have a chicken or two??

Have a look at Today's Links to Enlightenment! There is a great article in the Coloradoan about classes around Northern Colorado where you can learn about sustainability and going Green! Or if you simply want to know how to raise chickens there is a class for that too!! Have a look and you may even learn a bit about the city's new laws allowing residents to produce their own eggs!

You can just click on the title to this post as well and it will take you to the Coloradoan article.

Back to the Mountains

Just another weekend up in the mountains. We spent Friday at Vail and Saturday at Keystone. The snow was amazing, over 42 inches last week at Vail!! Have a look at some of the pictures.












(There's Tod the God ready for Blue Sky)



(Adam, my brother in law, about to drop off Lovers Leap)







(Madisen, Jack, and my mom going for a walk in Keystone)



(Love birds, this is my Brother in Law Todd and my Sister Tiffiny)




(Little Tanner with his X-games bandanna on, he is read for the hill too!)

(Madisen, all dolled up and ready to rip, has been skiing since she was about 22 months old!!)



(Just a quick video in North Bowl at Keystone)