A Visit with New Hartford Garden Artists; George & Louise White

Turning Stone Races...

A pretty good inaugural race for the Turning Stone half-marathon/10k/5k. I ran the half-marathon and am nursing some tired legs, so I'll be brief because I am a little cranky and think I'll take a nap. It was a beautiful and pastoral location for a 13.1 except for the few miles where we traversed busy highways. Although there was a very strong police presence and the time of the day we ran traffic was minimal.
All in all I have to give this race a good rating and one which I may run again. There was food(bagels,fruit) but no beer available like advertised, and if you wanted to use the $10 free gaming you had to go into the freezing casino and go to the "Diamond-desk" to claim your freebie. Other than that and the lame expo, I had a pretty good time and experience racing in a 13.1 right here in the Mohawk Valley!

The Erie Canal; The Pathway to The West; Photos of Erie Canal Little Falls Group2

One of the Mohawk Valleys most well known legacies except maybe the movie; "Drums Along the Mohawk", is the Erie Canal and this old classic song; "Low Bridge Everybody Down". most Americans know and can recite at least the first verse. The Erie Canal was an engineering marvel whose opening hyper accelerated the expansion of this country into the west. Little Falls was known for it's amazing set of locks that brought boats and passengers through 3 tiers of locks up the edge of the valley and down into the village.The 3 locks until recent years was the highest lift lock in the world at 40.5 feet

Low Bridge, Everybody Down
(Written by: Thomas Allen in 1905)

I've got a mule, and her name is Sal,
Fif-teen miles on the Er-ie canal,
She's a good ol' worker and a good ol' pal,
Fifteen miles on the Er-ie can-al,
We've hauled some barges in our day,
Filled with lum-ber coal and hay,
And ev'ry inch of the way we know
From Al-ba-ny to Buff-a-lo

Low bridge ev'-ry bod-y down,
Low bridge for we're com-in to a town,
And you al-ways know your neighbor,
You'll always know your pal,
If you've ev-er navigated on the Er-ie can-al

A Visit to the Past... visiting Little Falls photo group 1

I'll share some interesting views from a visit to the Little Falls Canal Days celebration on Saturday. Although the event turned out to be a yawner, I enjoyed walking along the canal and seeing a bit of Little Falls heritage-legacy as a canal port and mill town on the Mohawk River. Unfortunately, much of the canal park area has been neglected. A motorcyle even pushed us along and off the walking path. What started out as a great idea, seems to be badly neglected now. The vendor tents seemed to be the major attraction as a handful of shoppers milled around the tents, and very few people took the mile or so hike out to the lock on Moss Island. Surely having the information booth manned, during the event would have helped greatly, but the booth along the canal was closed when we attended. Little Falls suffers from a similar problem found in towns like Herkimer and cities like Utica. The problem is that at some point, they allowed the DOT to put major arteries across their urban landscape, with no regard to maintaining the character and allowing easy access, much less building with historical character and accuracy, as well as exploiting interesting views.

If you like running hills and beautiful mountain vistas.....

Thought I would take in an easy 10K run this weekend and found myself challenged by a most difficult run. The Lane 10K in Speculator was pockmarked with at least a dozen hills including several that could be described as cavernous. Combine that with humidity of nearly a 100% and you've got one challenging course.

At the start


You're treated to occasional beautiful vistas and views


huff-puff at the finish 49:30 place 18/87


All and all it was a great race-run albeit a very challenging one. Once underway, it was just you against the course with the occasional challenge from competitve runners. For you non-runners out there Speculator is a great place to visit; there is a beach with parking. So, swim and take in the view of the mountain vistas, kayak on the Kunjumuk or on Lake Pleasant. And you're able to walk a short distance (1/8th-1/4 mile) down the street to get some lunch or dinner after.

Sunset over the Mohawk Valley

A moment, and its glory was no more. The sun went down beneath the long dark lines of hill and cloud which piled up in the west an airy city, wall heaped on wall, and battlement on battlement; the light was all withdrawn; the shining church turned cold and dark; the stream forgot to smile; the birds were silent ...~C. Dickens

Around Utica...

Grace Church

Masonic Campus church

Genesee Street former bank Bldg

Corridor in Munson Williams Museum adjoining Fountain Elms

RR Watchtower with Utica Club Brewery in background

Hot Moon

I call it "Hot Moon" because the moon on Saturday seemed to reflect the hot humid weather we had, and will have for the next 4 or 5 days. The dog days of summer are often reflected in the evening sky as well as in the hot steamy sund drenched days and hazy skies of daylight....starting to look forward to the cool of autumn.

Utica Boilermaker 2011; A Testament to The Great Things That Can Happen In This Community!

at the start

mad dash to the finish

Competing in my 26th Utica Boilermaker with 13,000 15K runners from all over the world and the USA, was definitely an inspiring and uplifting experience. The first 2 miles though was an obstacle course as I found myself bouncing off of, and around, runners who seeded themselves in faster groupings.13,000 runners is definitely the maximum number and more thought should be given to policing the seed, and subsequently maintaining the quality and competitiveness of the race. I was seeded 4003(yellow bib) with my previous time of 1:15:51 and finished 2,256 place this year and in 2,457th place last year out of aprox 13,000 runners/11,000+ finishers. Next year if I do run the Boilermaker, I will have reseed myself to get a green bib number to avoid the increasingly large number of much slower runners who seed or get seeded inaccurately. After the "thinning out" of runners by mile 3, the race quality improves dramatically, and you enjoy having space to run and take in the thousands of spectators and entertainment venues on the course. There seemed to be more spectators this year on the course as even formerly barren stretches on Champlin Ave., were lined with hundreds of people cheering us on. The final mile was densely packed with thousands of spectators making the last leg and dash for the finish, an even more exciting and exhilirating experience. The post race party was super, with plenty of entertainment, beer, and plenty of food and drink for thirsty and hungry runners. The big disappointment was the cancellation of the long awaited military jet fly-over, substituted with a lone commercial helicopter which flew over at the appointed time of the jet fly-over. All-in-all, had another great Boilermaker experience and a great time in Utica, NY. The warm and receptive crowds, the Utica scenery and beautiful weather and the great job by the race committee proved that Utica definitely is the "City With A Warm Heart".




Me going the last mile....


My son running in the 5K


With some friends and my son

Boilermaker this weekend!

Can't believe it's Boilermaker weekend already. Seems like yesterday I was running the course last year, and then enjoying a cold beer at 9:30 in the morning. This will be my 26th Boilermaker 15K race and I am looking forward to another exciting opportunity to be a small part of the event. Even if you are not running, get up and grab a cup of coffee support and enjoy this spectacle! The fighter jet fly-over will be a part of this years event once again, as well as the assemblage of bands, thousands of spectators, and 17,000 registered 15K and 5K runners. A great testament to what can happen when we work together in the Mohawk Valley!!!



2010 Boilermaker

This Summer....

Ahhhh, what to do this summer? A few possibilities depending on where your interests lie....

Old and New Forest Cemeteries off Oneida Street in South Utica, is an interesting escape on a hot summer day. But take a walk through time under the canopy of the tall stately trees you will find cooler temps and quiet places next to ponds to reflect. The statues and memorials here are beautiful and thought provoking examples of a by-gone era of craftsmanship,wealth, strong family,locality and religious devotion.



USS Oriskany Monument. Worth a quick picture op visit is the USS Oriskany Monument in the Village green in Oriskany. Dedicated to the aircraft carrier "Oriskany" the monument features one of the ships anchors and a jet from the carrier. There is a small museum there, but was not open when we stopped.



Adirondack Park. The border of the park is less than a half-hour away. The park is the largest park system in the US and is a must see and do this summer, for anyone living or visiting this area. There is much information on things to do and see for just about everyone, so a simple google search will open up a pandora's box of opportunities to camp, swim, kayak, hike-bike-run. Also,the Adirondacks are a shoppers mecca.Places like Old Forge, Lake Placid and Lake George have an exciting array of hotels, restaurants, shopping, theme parks, micro-brews etc. All of which offer a little diversion after a day in the wilderness.

Springtime in Utica...

The Peony is the official flower of Utica, and since it's spring....well anyway...


I love the outdoors and hiking/running in some of the areas more scenic "outdoorsy" areas of the Mohawk Valley. But you have to love running-walking and taking in the many sights, sound and smells in areas around downtown Utica! The interesting people and architecture, as well as the deliciously intoxicating smells eminating from the many restaurants(Vietnamese, Italian-many, American-delis and grills, Japanese, Cambodian to name a few) in the downtown area, make it one of this runners favorite places to jog and take in the many sights, sounds and smells....Give it a go sometime, especially if you are visiting us this summer. If you're not staying at one of the hotels on Genesee Street, you can park for free on Bleecker or Court or State Streets. For a 5K-10K run, I prefer to park by Union Station, and then work my way Southeast towards Bleecker and over by Rutger Street Park (historical homes area) and follow Park Ave to Oneida Square for 5K or up to South Utica (Uptown Theatre area), and then back down Genesee Street past Munson Williams Museum, taking as many side streets as I have time and stamina for. It's certainly a different sort of run or walk then my "usual". But it's one I'm seldom disappointed in. As I often see, smell, and hear some really cool and great things you would never see out in the isolated spots I normally run or walk. Enjoy.
~Yasu

Our Legacy; The Erie Canal

I took my son to visit the Erie Canal Lock 20, and just "assumed" he had been there before. I was slightly embarassed to find out this was his first official visit to see the canal even though we lived just a couple miles away...oops. I figured his school or his mom or "somebody" had brought him down to show him the history and heritage of New York's Erie Canal. Anyway, we enjoyed a beautiful day in Lock 20 park along with joggers, bikers, picnickers,campers, fishermen and just the curious like us. Even got to see a yacht going through lock 20! You can park (just off rt49) at the park or get there by bike or hike on the canal trail system. We will either run or bike the leg from Utica to Rome this summer so watch my blog for some photos and my thoughts as I traverse the ol Erie Canal from Utica to the Copper City(Rome).

Great Way To See The Adirondacks!

All aboard right in downtown Utica and bound for the Adirondacks, riding in climate controlled coaches, or take in the fresh, clean air in their open car, through remote forests, past sparkling rivers, over bridges, tranquil ponds and streams, into the magnificent beauty of the six million acre Adirondack Park....a Great Way For Everyone To Enjoy The Beauty of The Adirondack Mountains! check it out at... www.adirondackrr.com

Tornadoes and Flooding...April goes out like a lion that "Baa's"

Although there was widespread flooding in our area and 2 official tornando touchdowns, the winds and rain have finally subsided. Hopefully now we can settle in to a gentler May, to enjoy the beautiful spring here in the Mohawk Valley!

took above photo last night at Whitestown Town Park preceding photo on Wednesday in Whitesboro

"Moonstruck" by Patrick Huther

Clouds come from time to time -
and bring to men a chance to rest
from looking at the moon.
~Basho

Beautiful moon and clouds in April over the valley!

Spring has sprung in the Mohawk Valley!

The run of warm weather and plenty of rain has catapulted the MV from the last remnants of winter, and right into late spring and summer like conditions in the last few days....even need to mow the grass already :(. Anyway, enjoy if you're a local, and for those who don't live here, I'll post spring photos from around the area.