Ural Hand Guards

I just noticed that I missed the 2000th post onto this blog. This is post #2003. When I started this, I had no idea that it would go on for so long. We arrived back in Fairbanks at 2 am. Those flights are starting to feel longer and longer.

There was a box from Revzilla waiting for me at home. I had been thinking about some hand guards for a while but wasn’t sure what would fit the Ural. Kevin, who’s place we stayed at in Montane, had ordered a set from the dealer for his new Ural. So thanks to his purchase, I now had a Barkbuster part number. I shouldn’t have over thought it as it is a generic hand guards for 7/8” bars. Note that it doesn’t have the nice aluminum bar that attaches to the handlebar end. It’s purpose seems to just keep wind off of your hands which is fine with me.

To get some clearance for these hand guards, I moved the windshield slightly more vertical. There is now less wind noise so that’s another plus.

Glen Echo Park, MD

This warm afternoon was spent geocaching at Glen Echo Park in Maryland on the shores of the Potomac River. It was around 90°F (32°C) and a bit humid. We never saw the river from the park due to the trees. Glen Echo is an only amusement park that is now owned by the National Park Service. The cache was a “letterbox” meaning we answered multiple questions from the plaques and signage around the park with the answers giving the coordinates of the actual cache.

The bridge goes over the Minnehaha Branch which I’ll assume means creek. The next picture was me playing around with the iPhone camera again to get a slow shutter speed picture of the creek. This uses the “Live” feature which takes a short video at the same time as the picture. Software in the phone produces the slow-shutter speed effect by blurring the parts of the picture that changes.

There was an aquarium, multiple art shops, and a merry-go-round. The merry-go-round was very nicely restored and was, by far, the fastest moving one I’ve ever seen. The music was provided by a calliope which included bells, drums and cymbals. And a large selection of music.

The cafe was open and had ice tea which was wonderful due to the very warm temperatures. Once we had found all of the answers to the clues, numbers were transferred to a form which resulted in latitude and longitude. It was only about 100 feet from our starting point.

This faded painting is on the waves of an old bumper car ride. Obviously no cars anymore but it was interesting to see that they had such rides. The ballroom was open and dance class was in session. I’m assuming ballroom dancing. This park was not crowded but then again, it wasn’t fully operational either. It did seem to be a strange place to be operated by the National Park Service. 

Geocaching in Fairfax

We went for a walk this afternoon with geocaching as the reason. I don’t remember the exact number of caches we found but it was around six. With Bridget’s brother Jim along, it would have been hard not to find them. He’s had a lot of experience finding caches. It was over 80°F while we were walking around and, I thought, starting to get a bit humid. The trail was at Lake Mercer Park in Fairfax, VA. The screen capture shows the location of Lake Mercer.

We had dinner from a Mediterranean chain called Cava. It has been described as a Mediterranean Chipotle and the description seems accurate. They have an excellent website that allows you to build your pita or bowl with whatever toppings match your taste. Excellent food... 

Arlington National Cemetery

Today, we attended a service at Arlington National Cemetery where Bridget’s dad’s ashes were interred. Her brother arranged for a limousine as it would be more convenient than driving multiple cars  into Arlington.

I had  only walked by Arlington National Cemetery on my prior trips to Washington D.C. It was a very well done service complete with a twenty-one gun salute and a group of seven honor guards unfolding and refolding the flag.

Bridget’s niece, Kelly sang a wonderful hymn near the end of the brief service. The time available was controlled by the staff to ensure that things ran smoothly. E.g. the chaplain was given 7 1/2 minutes to speak. About every fifteen minutes, you hear another twenty-one gun salute.

Attending were Bridget’s brother, his wife, daughter, her boyfriend as well as Bridget and myself. There was a professional videographer so a video of the ceremony should be available at some point in time.