Sunday in the RVA (January 27, 2013)

Nice but cool day in Richmond on Sunday January 27, which was a good day to visit some favorite Richmond museums. The first was the Virginia History Museum, which is free and has some great exhibits covering the long history of this great state. I have visited there a number of times and sure that I will many many more times. I liked this display, the horse, the streetcar and the car in back is a "Kline" car (which as I remember, did not get very many miles before the motor quit). I think there is something for everyone at the Virginia History Museum.  

This is actually part of the Chihuly exhibit which was not free, but the museum itself, it being the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, is free admission and is right next to the Virginia History Museum, both being in the area of Richmond known as The Fan, and on the Boulevard. One could spend days there and there is sure to be something for everyone. Like the VHM one of my favorite places and one I have visited often. Amazing to look at some of the very old stuff (as far back as 2500 BC) which is on display here.
Following the visit there, went to the Cary Street Cafe to see the Old Time Jam; nice little bar real close to the museums, and also a favorite stop when I am in the area. The music was really good, and the people are really friendly there; you feel welcome when you drop in. I enjoy checking out the jam which usually starts at 2, and is always a large and diverse group of people. By the way, if all this sounds like an ad for these places, its not, as I don't get paid for things I like, I just like em! 

Final stop was Hollywood Cemetery which is one of the oldest in Richmond. Just a beautiful place located right on the James River and directly across from Belle Island. Two US Presidents, and Jeff Davis (a President of sorts) are buried there, plus a number of other famous people from history (most with a Richmond background). Grave here is of General George Pickett, famous for "Pickett's Charge" at Gettysburg. His wife is buried next to him, and many of the troops he lead in that attack are nearby...most in unknown graves. It is a quite haunting place, but an interesting place to explore.
It was a good day for this. Been kind of down lately, and this all got my mind (at least for a time) off of my troubles. However, things are going to brighten up very soon, a couple of events that I believe will make my time here better will be coming back with me from North Carolina. Always hard to part company, but as I am told things happen for a reason.    

The Lemons of Life (January 20, 2012)

 Took a long walk today, went to Carolina last night and came back the same day after being told my marriage is over. Pretty tough news and a lot of years. House will be sold, and we will go our separate ways - hopefully if not as husband and wife, then not as bitter enemies. I will remain in Richmond, doing the job that brought me here, and enjoying a city that over the (one month away from ) four years in that I have really come to enjoy. I look at this as the start of a new adventure, and one that if forced upon me, I will do the best with that I can.
As for the photo, took it near the James River, liked the hint of snow from last weeks storms; though most of the snow is long gone, bits of it remain. Somewhat of stubborn snowfall as the temperatures today got into the upper 50's. Nothing like a good walk, and in the area of Forest Hill Park and Riverfront Drive there is some good walking to be had. Lots of really neat neighborhoods to enjoy there as well.    

As for the James, over four inches of rain last week, have really moved it up. There is a creek that runs next to it, and that creek is now a river. The river is raging along as well, made a remarkable booming sound as it slammed into the rocks there. This was as close as I could get to it.
The James is something I really enjoy, came from Louisville, Kentucky to here (via Concord, NC) and there the Ohio River runs along the town. As I have noted many times, much in common with those two cities, and nice to be back in a river city. For a bit longer then I planned, will be here, but that is not a bad thing at all.  

Winter and 70 Degrees (January 13, 2013)

Wandered Richmond on a Sunday January 13, with temperatures of 70 degrees it was too nice to be in all day, even with some excellent NFL playoff  games going on. I visited some favorite places today, wanted to give some different views. For instance, this is on Monument Avenue which is a place you can find some great historic statues, but also some remarkable houses such as these seen here. Monument Avenue has won awards as one of the most beautiful streets in America, and in my opinion that status is very well deserved. A good day to park the car and take a walk. 

 Likewise, if you love historical places, I don't think you can do much better than Church Hill. That area has a long history. A few photos from there, and from the other areas I visited can be found on my Photo Page (link to that on this site) and even some (though mostly of motorcycles) on my Racing with the Wind motorcycle page. Church Hill has a whole lot of history, plus a lot of really neat things such as gas lanterns, cobblestone streets, friendly people walking dogs, very nice parks (such as Libby Hill Park), and of course St. John's Church. A few photos of that can be found on this blog in past posts.   

Finally made a stop at the Virginia War Museum. It is a way to remember the cost paid for the freedom we all enjoy - and these are some captured items from some of that history. Weapons from WWII Germany and Japan, plus some from North Korea and North Vietnam. Many people have seen the monument there, fewer have seen the museum which is located in the building. All sorts of history can be checked out there and some of it dates back to the Revolutionary War! The museum was open on this Sunday, and admission is free, which is always a good thing. Nice to have a place such as this to remember those who gave so much.
For a winter day this was a really good one. I sure find this to be a very interesting town. I also enjoyed a great lunch at Buz and Ned's - made a really good start to what turned out to be an outstanding day in the RVA.     

Morrow Mountain in Winter (January 5, 2012)

Just a short post here, but a second nice motorcycle ride, this time with Tim who rode his Harley with me (actually, I was on my Vulcan) to Morrow Mountain just outside of Albemarle, NC. It was a chilly ride, the clouds seen above eventually blocked the sun, and brought down the temperatures. Nice fall view from up there though, you can see some of the lakes in the photo, unblocked by the leaves most of the year there. Though it was chilly, we were dressed for the conditions, and enjoyed a really nice motorcycle ride on an otherwise beautiful day. Morrow Mountain State Park is a favorite stop of mine, and is located just outside of Albemarle, NC.   

Hendrick Motorsports, January 4, 2013

Nice day (finally) for a motorcycle ride, and made a good one. After some Carolina Hot Dogs (all the way) at a local church, met up with a friend and we rode the motorcycles to Hendrick Motorsports in Concord, NC. It is both a working race shop and a museum. What you are seeing at left is some of the museum part, where you can see a lot of former racecars, and other items from the racing careers of the drivers of Hendrick Motorsports. It is a great place to check out not just some favorite (or not so favorite drivers) but just to see what goes into a NASCAR car. Did I mention, admission is free?

Seen here are the 2013 cars of Jimmie Johnson, and Dale Earnhardt, Jr. They have changed the cars this year to look more like the cars you would see in the showroom of your local dealer, and less like the "one size fits all" Car of Tomorrow that NASCAR has been running for the past few years. I tend to think its a really nice improvement.It is amazing to see the various shops and buildings, gone for a long time are the days when these were backyard operations. Now, these cars are built (and from the ground up) in multi-million dollar operations, and Hendrick is one of the most impressive, though all the shops in the area are remarkable.  

This is one side of one of the shops (and shot through glass which is the cause of the reflection) where you can see the many copies of the race cars being built. Many of these cars will end up wrecked at various tracks, others will be built for specific types of tracks (short track, road racing, half miles and superspeedway), but you can be sure some of these will end up as well in a few victory lanes during the course of the season. Hendrick has some of the top drivers and has as an owner won over two hundred races over his years as an owner. Interesting to see these cars put together.   

Finally, though there are many trophies at Hendrick Motorsports, had to get a photo of this one. I believe the year was 2006, but the track this was won was at Richmond International Raceway in Richmond, VA (Richmond being my home away from home!). I am a fan of racing, but also of guitars, and the guitar in this trophy is a Paul Reed Smith, which is one of the better ones out there.
If you would like more information on Hendrick Motorsports be sure to check them out on-line via your favorite search engine. It is a very nice place to visit, and in fact there are a number of race shops in the area. You can see some remarkable things in some of them in the Concord area, or nearby. The vast majority of teams in the NASCAR circuit make their homes in this area.
I greatly enjoyed both the motorcycle ride, the hot dogs, and the wandering around the shops of Hendrick Motorsports. Usually just being here on weekends I don't get to see this often, but have made a few race shops over the holiday, and ready for the season to get underway (and it won't be long now!).  

Louisville (December 26-December 31, 2012)

 Made a visit with Patty to see family and friends in Louisville, Kentucky and Southern Indiana. Actually photo at left was taken from Indiana, which is just a short drive over three usually very crowded bridges just across the Ohio River. That is Louisville (well downtown anyhow). Feel like a tourist there, but I have been gone now some 14-15 years and easy to feel that way. Interesting city with a lot of fun things to do, especially during the weeks around The Kentucky Derby. That is the best time of year to really see Louisville come alive. Although, Christmas time in the area was really special for us! 

The Belle of Louisville is a very old steamboat. I have been on it a number of times, and it is a remarkable old boat. In fact read that in 2014 the Belle will celebrate 100 years. Mentioned Derby Weeks - one of the events is the Steamboat Race for the Golden Antlers (winning boat gets to display them for the year). Not sure it is always on the "up and up" as everyone seems to win eventually, but its sort of cool in a slow sort of way. The Belle is no recreation, its the real deal, and its a fun cruise up the Ohio in the Spring Summer and Fall (it is parked here in the winter).    

 This is the H+B factory, which is the home of the Louisville Slugger. There is a glass factory next door, liked what they did with the baseball at the right side of the photo. Nice museum there, and of course the big bat is a real attraction. Louisville is a very old city, which in a lot of ways reminds me of Richmond having the river, and being old. Like Richmond, Louisville reuses a lot of old buildings, but there is also a number  of new ones going up as well.
For the upcoming year, hearing that finally one of the planned bridges (planned since I was a small kid) may start construction. Growth over the decades have really made the three bridges that let people cross the river, packed! Traffic can be really bad, and hopeful that gets done soon.
Most people in Indiana (or at least a lot of them) work in Louisville which is the home to Ford, GE, Amazon, and UPS which has a giant distribution center at the airport in Louisville.    

I snapped this photo in Southern Indiana, during my visit we got some snow. Good snow in that being wet it did not last long on the roads, but really looked nice in the yards and on the trees. First snow I have seen in 2012, and made for a very pretty photo. Sure there will be more in the area, also expect to see some in Richmond during the upcoming winter.
We had a great time in the "other" River City (Richmond also shares that nickname) and enjoyed visiting family and friends, as well as seeing the many interesting sights. More photos can be seen on my Flickr Photo Page from the visit. 

Charlotte, Christmas Eve Eve (December 23, 2012)

 Took a short motorcycle ride to Charlotte on December 23, and it was rather brisk temperature wise, but a good ride nonetheless. Saw this statue in Uptown, thought it was pretty cool, and a nice view of Charlotte directly behind it. Rode around Uptown for a bit, made a quick stop at Mac's Speed Shop mon South Blvd (good BBQ and cold beverages of note) before heading out a little later. Got a photo of that place on my Racing with the Wind blog. There was a football game going on; Carolina played Oakland while I was there, so parking was hardly to be found, so mostly just cruised around for a bit while I was there. 

I did get a photo of this light rail train, I find them really interesting. Strangely, I have yet to ride on one, but hope to get out and check one out in 2013; think it would be cool to see what that is like. Seem to be pretty popular and a good way to get around Charlotte and the surrounding area. They are working to expand the service routes of the train - plan is to run it into the University area of the city very soon. I think they have obtained much of the funding for that project. All in all it was a very good day, nice to get out, always enjoy visits to Charlotte, it is a most amazing city, and offers a lot of things to see and do.