Posts Tagged ‘Mt.’

Know Your Russian Acrobatic Yak Aircraft Above San Francisco

Monday, January 4th, 2010

This Russian-made Yak-50 acrobatic airplane used to be seen all over the skies of the San Francisco Bay Area – buzzing Mount Tam in Marin County, checking out anti-abortion rallies along San Francisco’s waterfront, that kind of thing.

But here’s your take-away, babe: These things had a working life of just 50 hours back in Mother Russia, as the stress of all them 9G loop de loops and whatnot led to bad things, such as “main spar collapse.” Ouch.

Anyway, looks like fun:

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Happy trails

Is That What You All Call Snow, Bay Area? Nothing Beats the Winter of Ought-Two for Snow

Monday, December 7th, 2009

If it’s colder than normal this AM and there’s some white stuff on the ground, well then I guess you could say it snowed in the San Francisco Bay Area. But back before the global warming the climate change, back in 2002, we had SNOW, baby.

As here, in ought-two up in Marin County on Mount Tamalpais, when I was out prospecting for gold with my donkey and/or on my Trek 8000 mountain bike (born 1991, Waterloo Wisconsin, died 2006, Civic Center, San Francisco). This is what it looked like in the afternoon ’til the rain melted everything.

Click to expand, why not? Heading to the East Peak with the Richmond San Rafael Bridge below:

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Now that was snow, the most we’ve had since 1976.

So, nothing after 1976 has beaten 2002 for snow in the bay area. (I think.)

Stay warm!

San Francisco is a Shining City Behind a Hill, When Seen from Marin County

Tuesday, December 1st, 2009

As seen from Mount Tam.

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Why are all the buildings on that side of the Golden Gate and not this one?

The Cloud City of San Francisco, as Seen From Marin County

Tuesday, November 24th, 2009

Marin County is close, but oh so far away.

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Build a Trail, Go to Jail in Marin County, the Home of Mountain Biking

Tuesday, June 17th, 2008

Only in Marin! That’s right, Marin County, the birthplace of mountain biking, and home to nuclear-tipped missiles, endangered deer, and marauding mountain lions (nee cougars), can’t abide you people building your own single-track MTB trails.

Michael Philip More is getting a ten-day jail sentence for illegally building a quarter-mile trail at the end of Robinhood Drive in San Rafael.    

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Approximate path of the trail - the white line is a quarter-mile long

Does Michael More wish there were more singletrack MTB trails in Marin? Given that MTBers are mostly confined to fire roads in Marin County, signs point to yes.

The Bay Area’s Military History Shown in a Photo

Thursday, April 17th, 2008

In the foreground we see the Presidio’s now-abandoned Public Health Service Hospital (PHSH), site of the old U.S. Marine Hospital and Defense Language Institute.

On the left further back in Marin is Hill 88, former site of Integrated Fire Control facility SF-88C Wolf Ridge that used to house W31 nuclear warheads and Nike Ajax / Nike Hercules defensive missiles

And on the right up high is the West Peak of Mount Tamalpais, former home of Mill Valley Air Force Station.

Not much going on at these places these days.

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