Sports Guy Book Signing at Barnes and Noble in Boston

I was able to meet one of my heroes today. Bill Simmons had a book signing in Boston to promote his new book, The Book of Basketball. I bandied about things to say for days leading up to the meeting and even changed ideas right up until he was in front of me. Perhaps that explains the disjointed nature of our conversation. I only had to wait about half an hour and he actually signed my book by noontime for what was supposedly a 12:30 event.

The whole thing was a little bit of a blur. I was in his face before I knew it and he just started talking about how I was wearing a Celtics shirt and then how all he saw at his New York signing was Yankees and Knicks gear. This isn't really what I wanted to talk about with him. I decided to just tell him how long I had been a fan, hoping I guess that will encourage him to keep writing in the future.

I didn't really care if he wrote his name inside the book. Actually I was hoping much more for a picture of he and I. Alas, I'll have to do with a picture of myself and my book with his name written in it. That's ok, it was still quite a thrill to meet him and I doubt I'll ever forget it. Thanks, Sports Guy.

Great Gift

Bet you didn't know General John Stark said that...

Waterville Valley

So, by popular demand the Live Free or Die blog is back. For awhile my excuse to myself was that I hadn't done anything in New Hampshire but that has long since stopped being true. My Granite State visits have included another hike up North Pack Monadnock (sans snow), Pemi River Campground (kind of expensive and close to the highway but still a good time tubing down the river), kayaking the Merrimack river from Franklin to Boscawen (great time, saw my first bald eagle), back to back trips to Smoke Shack BBQ in Boscawen and Yankee Smokehouse in West Ossipee (both great, too close to call).

This past weekend I ventured up to Waterville Valley for my annual hockey tournament there that the Hockey Academy puts on. The two losses in three games didn't take away from the good times had by all.

The cool thing about the "Town Square" at Waterville is all you need is right there. It's all overpriced of course but you got a grocery store, pizza shop, restaurant, bar, ice rink, golf course, and ice cream parlor.

The Town Square condos offer fairly affordable accomodations right upstairs from all the action. The best part of that deal is all the free perks you get with the room. Free round of golf every day. Free 2 hour mountain bike rental. Free chairlift ride. Free kayak rental for an hour to take out in the pond they have there. I didn't get to do any more than play one round of golf since we had hockey games to play but one could easily get a full day out of the free offerings. An hour could be spent just walking around drinking in the breathtaking views the area affords.

If you're looking for a nice resort to spend a weekend with the fam you should definitely take a look in Waterville's direction. You can just park the car Friday and you won't need it again until Sunday.

Campells Scottish Highlands

I'm just getting into golf. One of the things that's cool about golf is the number of courses within a half hour drive of my house. I played one of those places for the first time on Sunday.

One of the keys to playing a new course is golfing with someone that is familiar with the layout that can guide you through your first round. Luckily I had two such partners.

My companions also happened to be quite a bit better than me which is good and bad. Good because you get to see them up close and try to copy what they do and also it forces you to raise your game a little. The bad news is you can only raise your game a little so you end up feeling like an anchor a lot of time.

Campbells Scottish Highlands is an 18 hole track that is fairly wide open. Most fairways lie side by side with no trees to obstruct you in between. Most of the course was wetter than you might expect for May. Unfortunately this forced us to keep our carts on the cart path. This resulted in what I would imagine was nearly as much walking as if we had just walked the whole round but maybe I'm just exaggerating.

After spending five hours there, I've decided CSH is definitely a course that I'll have to put in my rotation.

North Pack Monadnock

The Wapack Trail runs all the way from Greenfield, NH to Ashburnham, MA. On Saturday, along with my uncle Jason, I got take care of the northernmost part of the trail by climbing North Pack Monadnock.

As with the Monadnock climb the previous week, snow and ice blanketed the path throughout. This posed little problem on the ascent though. The trail winds its way over brooks and wet areas before it really starts to rise. In fact, the slope of this trail is so gentle, you barely know you're climbing before you get to the first lookout. It's nice northerly view that allowed us to see all the way to Mount Washington, although I needed my binoculars to initially discover this.

Its probably another 1/2 mile hike to the next view point which is a little more open than the first. This one looks to the east. Only a few mountains dot the landscape before giving way to the flatter land between south central New Hampshire and the Atlantic Ocean.

Another quick 1/2 mile jaunt to the summit allotted us a breathtaking view of Monadnock and the Vermont mountains west of that. No less than five mountains with ski trails carved into them were visible but I can only be sure that we saw Mount Snow, its sister mountain Haystack and Killington.

A slippery walk down that mountain caused us both to go ass over tea kettle at least once. Serious injury was avoided though. We cut over virgin crusty snow to avoid the ice where possible. Before long we were back on the flatter portion and home free.

North Pack Monadnock is a really nice day hike. The views will definitely bring me back for a return trip this summer.

Monadnock Spring Hike

Every year in March we get a nice warm day before the snow has completely melted. I usually try to take advantage by making a summit assault on Mount Monadnock via the White Dot Trail from the State Park. I was worried that the ice storm of December would force me to wait until 2010, but when I checked the NH State Park site I was greeted with a message saying the trails had been cleared. Some crazy trail-clearing, chainsaw-wielding bastards must have gone to town up there.

Temperatures were around 50 degrees for the whole afternoon. Much of the trail was covered in snow, but it was heavy and wet so it wasn't too hard to plow through. There was also minimal ice which made it an easier climb. We ate lunch on the summit without getting too cold aided by a thermos of hot chocolate. The skies were clear but we could only barely make out Mount Washington and couldn't quite see Boston. Still a stunning view.

Our descent was made speedier by our ability to slide down on our hind parts. Definitely my favorite part of a nice Winter/Spring hike up Mount Monadnock.

Bretton Woods: Way Cooler Than Loon

It is rare these days that I get to visit a mountain that I have not skied. Somehow though, I have not managed to get to Bretton Woods. I had heard that it gets very crowded and the terrain is not very challenging. After seeing that there are four high speed quad chairlifts I decided the 54 dollar discount lift ticket through my stay at Indian Head in Lincoln that it would be worth checking out.

You can't beat the scenery at Bretton Woods. It is across the street from Mount Washington. A cloudy morning threatened to keep us from enjoying the views afforded by this plum location but after lunch the skies cleared up nicely.


For a nice, warm, sunny day, the mountain wasn't particularly crowded in my opinion. The base lodge could use some more room for people that bring their lunches (read: cheap people). In the lodge's defense, we did go to eat lunch exactly at noon. Popular time to eat from what I hear.

The gentle terrain does make this mountain a perfect place to bring a beginner or even an intermediate skier, but that doesn't mean an expert can't have a good time. There are many acres of glades and tree skiing. Bretton Woods also have its fair share of steeps. One unique thing I haven't seen anywhere else is a terrain park in a glades trail that uses downed trees as rails to grind on and jumps. Pretty cool. I didn't get any pictures of this park, but I was able to rip one from their website. There are additional photos there too. http://www.mountwashingtonresort.com/winter_sports/alpine/terrain_park_conditions

I enjoyed a Long Trail Ale at the bar upstairs after our day concluded. It took a little longer to get than I might have like, but again, it was quarter to 4, a popular time to stop in for brew.




I was hesitant to make a visit to Bretton Woods, fearing it would be another Loon Mountain, but I will definitely be making a return trip in 2010.

Ridiculous Ad and a Hilarious Spoof

So this is hardly New Hampshire related, but I've been on a pretty big health kick lately. Results have been modest but I still try. Anyway, this has been bothering me/cracking me up for a couple of days.

These first two commercials actually air on TV and are supposed to prove that high fructose corn syrup is good for you or something.

This one is patently hilarious.

I always say that if you make a Nazi movie you'll probably get nominated for an Oscar, but if you make a Nazi joke, you'll definitely make me laugh. This next one isn't that funny, but is quite informational.

This one is also pretty freaking funny.

NELSAP.org

I'm not exactly sure of the first time I stumbled across the New England Lost Ski Area Project. I seem to remember reading it in a computer lab wasting time at Umass Lowell circa 2004. Whenever it was, I've been checking in on it periodically since then. I was reminded of it this past weekend traveling to Freedom, NH. West Ossipee is home to a mountain with the obvious scars of a former ski resort. The McDonald's there even has a lift tower in the parking lot. Not sure of the name of these dormant slopes, I called upon NELSAP.org to enlighten me. Sure enough, Mt. Whittier closed in the late 1980s and I was even able to view an assortment of old trail maps. Just the info I need for when I hit the lottery and can purchase said mountain.

I was not only greeted with the information I seeked this time though. It seems the creator of the site, Jeremy Davis, fellow Chelmsford High School graduate, has taken the time to put all of his findings in book form. I haven't had the chance to read it yet (or even order it since Jeremy has to be contacted directly for a price quote, somewhere in the range of 25 dollars shipped) but it's definitely on my radar now. I can't wait to learn about what went wrong for the myriad of resorts that sprouted up and failed in New England. Until I can get my hands on a copy, Mr. Davis' website will answer all my questions I am sure.

Can't Judge a Mountain on Conditions

Visited Shawnee Peak on Saturday. Unfortunately, a rain/ice storm had blanketed the slopes the evening before. I am forced to try to be as objective as possible about a nice day of skiing I can only imagine.

First off, Shawnee Peak is in Maine not New Hampshire. That's ok. Since it is about a 20 minute drive from Conway, I am going to grant it honorary NH status along with the section of the Saco River you drive along to get there (which I enjoy canoeing every summer).

According to their website, Shawnee is working with a 1300' vertical drop. Pretty decent by Northeast standards. Comparable to nearby Cranmore. Tickets were purchased on their website using a coupon code (gs2008) slashing the price to a very affordable 42 dollars. Additionally, pre purchased tickets aren't locked in to a specific date, so if you get too hungover to ski Saturday, you can make it up Sunday or even later in the season.

Shawnee's summit is serviced by two lifts that ascend from two separate bases. Neither are high speed, but they move pretty well. The view from these lifts and from the summit are truly incredible. Mount Washington and the other Presidentials are visible to the West while to the east you can almost see to the Atlantic. Saturday's ski conditions were subpar, but visibility couldn't have been better.












A friendly ski patrolman took a very nice picture of Mary and myself with Washington in background.
The mountain's terrain was tough to evaluate, but there seems to be good amount of variety. One summit lift traverses a glades section that would be very fun after a snowfall. Steep sections are common. Many trails are half moguls and half groomed which I believe is a nice feature. I definitely will be taking in another day at Shawnee and I might even hike it this summer to get another chance to drink in those vistas.

Quick Hits

Here's some thoughts I've been sitting on that don't quite warrant their own blog. Of course they all pertain to the Granite State.

1. The Common Man is a small chain of restaurants entirely located in New Hampshire. I just discovered them last winter and I am totally hooked. Each meal comes with complementary bread (two kinds) AND cheese and crackers (all you can eat). The entrees are delicious and if you visit their website (www.thecman.com) there are quite a few selected recipes for your home enjoyment.

2. Visited Fun World in Nashua for the first time in maybe 15 years. That is an hour or so and 5-10 dollars well spent. Played air hockey, Daytona Racing, a few shoot 'em up games and one of those football throwing games like the basketball shooting games. If you can shake the pedophilic feeling of being there, I recommend it.



3. Dined at La Carreta on Saturday night. I gotta say, I don't get it. Food was decent, served quickly and plentiful at a reasonable price, but the wait was ridiculous long (about an hour if you don't include our trip to Fun World) and the parking situation is a mess (our friends had to park at a car dealership up the road.) From what I hear, the place is always mobbed too. I want to know what dish is so amazing that people are willing to endure such obstacles. My chicken tacos cannot possibly be that dish.

4. Why does the northern part of New Hampshire have to receive 10"+ of snow on Sunday night, the longest possible time before I can go enjoy it? I guess it's just a present for the locals that tend to the slopes all winter and face the harsh weather that comes with it head on. Enjoy, White Mountainers.

Budweiser Brewery Tour

There are only four Anheuser Busch breweries in America that give free tours. Happily, one is located in Merrimack, NH. I was able to partake in a tour yesterday. It turned out to be a nice activity for a cold February Saturday and of course involved free beer so I am fully endorsing it.

Before the tour begins, there are a couple of things to pass the time. One is a visit to the gift shop that includes many specialty Budweiser items. I will definitely making a return visit there before Christmas rolls around again. Also, A small museum occupies the waiting area. One could learn quite a bit about the history of Anheuser Busch just from these exhibits. Our tour guide did a nice job filling in the blanks about Adolphus Busch and his rise to prominence in the beer industry. A fun fact about Budweiser: It doesn't mean anything. Adolphus Busch chose "Budweiser" because it sounded German and was easy to say.



The actual tour takes you through the brew house and give a view of the bottling process. It was mostly impressive for the amount of beer that is produced there. Something like 5 kajillion gallons a second I think. You could tell that most of us were just waiting for our free beers. Our tour guide could absolutely tell and even she seemed relieved once the beers were finally poured. The bar area was very nice.

Given the proximity to my house, I would probably visit this bar as a paying customer fairly regularly. Alas, I don't believe this is a service they provide so I'll have to settle for two free beers every time I decide to endure the guided tour. Next time I'm just going to get two Budweisers though because how does it get better really?

5 Up, 1 Down: Cannon Mountain

At gunpoint, I would absolutely name Cannon Mountain as my favorite ski destination. Having visited there only three days ago here are five things that have Cannon up in my mind.

1. Fantastic Views: I can totally see why people pay money to ride up the tram in the summer just to enjoy the summit and its views. To the west you get a great look at the Mt Lafayette-Franconia Ridge. Past that you can really take in the Presidentials. And to the north you can see for what seems like forever. And all the while, the view of the valley between Cannon and Mittersill is outstanding.

2. Steep Terrain: Cannon is one of the few mountains that I get to ski that has some nice challenging steeps that really make me work for it. I like to be forced to turn when I ski. I also enjoy the two trails from the summit that wind their way to the middle of the mountain. Those are really a blast.

3. Hiking to Mittersill: I didn't have the pleasure to experience this on Valentine's Day, but I have a few times in the past ventured out of bounds and made the short hike up to the trail that leads to the old Mittersill resort. It's really neat to ski down the narrow trail to the top of the old lift. You need a lot natural snow to support this and make sure you stay to the right after the lift to get back to main base area or else you have a good hike back ahead of you.

4. The Lodge is cool: The last two times I've visited Cannon, there's been a band performing at the bar starting around 3 PM. The outside tables and deck are very nice if the temperature is anything above 30 degrees. There's a bubbler to drink from so you don't have to shell out 3 bucks for a cup of water. There's even another place to eat downstairs that I just discovered where there is no frowning upon brown-bagging it. And best, you walk about 20 feet from the door to board the High Speed Detachable Quad.

5. It's not that far away: Cannon is closer to me in Nashua (and to Boston) than Killington, Wildcat, Sunday River and Mount Snow. I've been to all those places and I would put a day at Cannon up against a day at any of those places. Plus, Cannon is within 20 minutes of Bretton Woods, Loon (yuck) and Waterville if you did want to do a multi day trip.

There's not much to pick nits about when it comes to the skiing at Cannon Mountain. There is one thing though.

1. The trail map lists quite a few glades trails. Problem is, they are rarely open. I don't know if Cannon just doesn't receive the natural snow required for glade skiing, but I do know that Ragged, Tenney and Gunstock all have glade trails that I have skied this year. Cannon, get some more natural skiing so I don't have to keep hiking over to Mittersill.

Some Pics from our Trip to Cannon Mountain

Indian Head Resort

I visited Indian Head Resort in Lincoln, NH twice a youngster, so imagine my delight when I found out my girlfriend's Mom is good friends with the owner. Lucky me. Anyway, we went up there on Friday night to enjoy the pool and bar areas before heading to Cannon Mountain on Saturday. After sitting in the hot tub for as long as we could stand it, we headed to the bar around 10 PM. It consisted of a small bar area and about 5 or 6 large tables. One of the tables had an Uno game going on. Another was hosting a fairly large group of skiers from England we were told by our bartender. Multiple high def televisions were showing us the old man tennis NESN has been broadcasting (show more NHL Classic if you need programming). Our bartender was very helpful in letting us know the conditions at the area mountains. We were already thinking of going to Cannon, but Bretton Woods remained a possibility. She assured us were correct in the first place. Things got interesting when a 30ish woman rolled in after falling off her snowmobile. She joined us and the hockey Dads that were apparently having a couple pops after coaching their kids in a tournament. She had a large scrape on her arm that we saw and one on her ass that we only heard about. She proceeded to tell Mary, my girlfriend, practically her entire life story. I was ready to pull a Jim Carrey from Dumb and Dumber on her. "I don't know and I don't care...bartender!" Her DB boyfriend showed up about 20 minutes later looking not very concerned. She asked us if we thought we was cute. I jokingly said I did and he wasn't even the least bit amused, you know, since he was a DB. After ignoring them for a while and talking about the channel 7 news that Mary and the bartender shared a similar love of, the woman started getting much too drunk. She dropped something on the floor, possibly a shot glass, I didn't much care, then the next thing we knew, her barstool fell over almost taking her with it except the bartender saw and got her DB BF to grab her in time. They saw this as a sign to retreat to their own hotel. The bartender suggested they didn't drive their "sleds" back, which made sense especially because Indian Head had no problem with them leaving them there, but they shook off this thought and went ahead and tried anyway. The bartender went to watch and came back with a tale of her getting stuck in the middle of the road. I can only assume that she was fine though, save the raging hangover she must have faced upon waking on Saturday. I know snowmobiling is a large part of the winter recreation in New Hampshire, but I just don't understand it. First off, stop calling them sleds. That was cool for about 6 months back in 2000. I think I will refer to them as skimobiles from now on because that's about the last thing a real skimobiler would call them. Second, skimobiling seems like a very cold activity. You're flying around at 50 mph, not really doing any work. I don't know how you warm up. I guess most skimobilers just drink. Which brings me to the third thing about it, very dangerous. Doesn't it seem like people die skimobiling all the time? Call me a pussy if you want to. I would much rather destroy my knee skiing than get paralyzed skimobiling.

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